The Days of Noah: Book One: Conspiracy

by Mark Goodwin

  Jones got up to walk Everett to the door. “Remember what I said. Bring some provisions up here, buy a gun, and get your ducks in a row so that you’re ready to move when the gold and silver markets look like they’re down by roughly forty percent. Never bring your regular phone up here, even with the battery out. You should take the GPS navigation out of your car also. If you don’t know how, I’ll show you.”

  “I already took it out. I was a computer science major in school, remember?”

  Jones smiled. “I remember, but I don’t know what they teach kids anymore. I know the entire education system is ninety percent propaganda. That doesn’t leave much room for useful skills. You’re a smart kid. You’ll figure it out, and you’ll get through. It won’t be easy, so get yourself ready for it. This collapse is going to be worse than anything you can imagine.”

  Everett listened with his full attention. His paradigm was shifting at warp speed. “Okay, I feel like I should try to learn as much from you as possible. I know I’m going to have questions.”

  Jones nodded. “I’ll teach you all I can. Keep that burner somewhere handy. Not in your house. Check it every day. I’ll be in touch.”

  Everett waved good-bye as he opened his car door.

  Jones waved back. “Thanks for the chicken.”

  “Please, it was the least I could do.” Everett closed his door and drove away.

  As he drove home, he started making a mental list of all the things he had to do. The silver and gold, I think I can figure out. Groceries, that won’t be a problem. It’ll be easier than learning to cook. The gun, that’s going to be the challenge. I need to buy something that will be off the record.

  CHAPTER 13

  Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!

  Ecclesiastes 4:9

  Noah anxiously prepared to leave for Bible study. Sharon would be bringing Lacy. It would be the first time he or Cassandra had seen her in two days.

  Noah brought Lacy’s favorite bear. “Stick this in the bag you’re taking to Sharon.”

  “I can’t believe I forgot to pack her bear.” Cassie took the bear from Noah and placed it in the bag.

  Noah grabbed his jacket and opened the door. “I hope it doesn’t upset Lacy to see us and not be able to come home.”

  Cassie walked out the door to the car. “She’ll just have to adjust. We’re doing everything we can to get her back.”

  Noah locked the front door and got in the car. “I guess it could be worse. Thank God that Sharon was able to get custody of her.”

  During the drive to Isaiah’s, Cassie said, “I think we should buy another shotgun and a rifle.”

  Noah shook his head. “We need to really watch our money.”

  “We still have our savings and the money from the stocks we sold. I spoke with Carl at the paper. They’ll give me as much work as I want. When they don’t need me for writing or editing, I can work in ad sales. We’ll be fine with money. Something will come up for you. In the meantime, you can homeschool Lacy.”

  Noah glanced over at Cassie. “Why do we need a shotgun and a rifle?”

  “They took us off guard this time, but I’m not going to sit idly by and let something like this happen again.”

  Noah turned onto Isaiah’s road. “I may have a felony conviction in a month from now.”

  “Then we’ll stash a gun or two in the yard like before. That’s the only reason we have a gun now. The federal government is tightening the noose on our freedoms more and more. I know I’ve been harping on this for years, but I really feel like things are about to come to a head. I don’t want to be unarmed when it all goes down.”

  Noah nodded. “And you were just proven right. I’m sorry if I was dismissive all the times you tried to talk to me about the tyrannical police state. But I’m with you now. If something happens, you’re right, we should have the ability to fight back.”

  “Great, so we can get a battle rifle?”

  Noah opened his eyes wide. “A battle rifle? Are we going to fight the Army?”

  “I don’t know who we’re going to fight, Noah. But I’d like to be ready. The way things are going, AR-15s and AK-47s will be banned soon. I think we should get one while we still can.”

  Noah pulled into Isaiah’s driveway. “I’m going to start trusting your instinct, Cassie. Over the years, I’ve watched the things you’ve talked about come true. I’m the cautious type. God made me that way. Be patient with me, but I’m on board. Yes, you can get a battle rifle.”

  “Awesome, I’ll pick it up tomorrow.”

  “You already have one picked out?”

  Cassie got out of the car and grabbed the bag she’d put together for Lacy. “Come on, Lacy’s waiting.”

  Noah smiled. He’d been set up and had fallen right into Cassie’s trap, but he didn’t care. He loved her deeply and all the more so since this nightmare had begun. If he had to walk through the valley, he was glad he could go through it with her.

  Noah got out and walked hand in hand with Cassie to the front door.

  Isaiah opened the door and let them in. “Lacy’s in the kitchen.”

  Noah patted Isaiah on the shoulder. “Thanks.”

  Once in the kitchen, Noah grabbed Lacy and hugged her tightly. “Daddy missed you so much.”

  Lacy gripped him fast. “I was afraid the police killed you. Did the police shoot Sox?”

  “No, honey, the police didn’t kill Sox,” Noah said.

  “I brought your bear.” Cassandra handed the stuffed animal to Lacy.

  Sharon walked into the room. “I told you mommy and daddy were alright.”

  Cassie handed the bag of clothes to Sharon. “Thank you for taking care of our little girl. You don’t know how much this means to us.”

  Sharon hugged Cassie. “It’s no trouble at all.”

  Noah pulled Sharon to the side. “Her eyes look glassy. Is she okay?”

  Sharon sighed. “The crisis center put her on medication for PTSD. They love doping kids up. I’ve been through this before with other kids. They prescribed her Zoloft and Klonopin. She slept most of the day yesterday. I’m giving her children’s chewable aspirin so when the social worker asks her if she’s taking her medication, she’ll say yes. Isaiah said that we’re welcome to meet up over here as often as we like. I was thinking, you’ll see her every Sunday at church and Thursdays for Bible study. Would you and Cassie like to come by here on Mondays and Fridays?”

  Noah said, “That would be fantastic. Thank you.”

  Sharon poured herself a glass of water. “Becky is keeping her on Saturday nights when I go to the restaurant. She said you’d be welcome to come over there as well. I’m so sorry about all of this, but we’ll do everything we can to help out.”

  Noah took Sharon’s hand. “We really appreciate everything you’re doing.”

  Noah and Cassie sat and talked with Lacy for the first hour, while the others held Bible study.

  Lynette Ray came in the kitchen with a neatly wrapped gift and presented it to Lacy, who was sitting in Noah’s lap. “Mom and Dad said I should let you all be alone for a little while, but I wanted to bring this to Lacy to make her feel better. We pray for your family every night.”

  Lacy took the gift and opened it. “A baby doll! Thank you, Lynette.”

  Noah patted her on the head. “That’s very sweet. You two can play for a while. Cassie and I are going in the living room with the others. Lacy is coming to your house on Saturday.”

  Lacy’s eyes lit up. “I am?”

  Noah put her down from his lap. “Yes, and Mom and I are coming over to visit.”

  “That will be fun!” Lynette said.

  Noah and Cassie joined the adults in the living room and left the two girls alone to play.

  Isaiah stood up. “Come on in; you didn’t miss much. It’s hard to stay on topic when everyone’s hearts are preo
ccupied with your ordeal. I’ll leave it up to you whether you feel like discussing the subject or not, but we’re all concerned and want to know how we can help.”

  Noah found two seats next to the Taylors and motioned for Cassie to sit next to him. “We can talk about it. First, I’d like to say thank you so much for all the prayer and support you folks have given us. Especially the Rays, Sharon, and you, Isaiah. We’d be in a lot worse shape if it wasn’t for you folks.”

  Isaiah said, “What else can we do to help?”

  Cassie jumped in. “I emailed a video link to everyone in our small group. Did you all get it?”

  Everyone in the room acknowledged receiving the email.

  Cassie stood up. “We need you to share that video with everyone in your email list. Ask them to share with everyone they know. I spoke with my editor at the Mountain Press, and he is pretty much giving me carte blanche on writing about our experience as long as I provide in-depth coverage of Noah’s trial. I contacted my old boss at Channel 10 in Knoxville, and they came out this morning to interview Noah about the trial. As soon as the other local stations heard about that, they started calling. Fox News wants to do a Skype interview tomorrow. That will be the big one. From there, it will depend on whether or not CNN and MSNBC pick up the story. If they don’t, it will just be a blurb on Fox and die out after a day or two. If anyone has time to reach out to alternative media sites, that’s our best bet. They’re small, but there are literally thousands of them. More and more people are starting to go to alternative media for the real news, especially folks in the Liberty movement.”

  There was a knock at the door, and Cassie sat back down to grab her purse.

  Noah figured she was thinking exactly what he was thinking. Could it be the Department of Child Services? Had they followed Sharon to see if she was bringing Lacy to see them? He looked over at Cassie’s hand, which was in her purse, resting on the handle of the Glock. A pang of guilt shot over Noah as he realized his wife was stepping into the void he had left as the protector of his family. If he lived through the next five minutes, he vowed to step up and provide for his family’s safety and security. He recalled first Timothy five, verse 8.: “If anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his immediate family, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”

  Noah looked over at David Ray who had stuck his hand behind his back. Is he going for a gun? This is really shameful, he thought, everyone is doing my job but me.

  Isaiah looked through the peephole before opening the door. “It’s Pastor Mike.”

  Noah sighed and gave Cassie a look that begged for forgiveness.

  Cassie smiled back and grabbed Noah’s hand.

  Pastor Mike Barnes walked in the door, followed by his wife, Lynn. They were both carrying a dish. “I’m sorry we’re late, but I had a meeting this evening. I brought one of Mrs. Barnes’s blackberry cobblers, as well as her famous cherry dump cake. I just know you’ll forgive our tardiness as soon as you take a bite. Jim Taylor forwarded a video link to me yesterday, and I just had to come by to express my sincere condolences and pledge the support of the church to the Parkers.”

  Isaiah and Sharon got up to take the dishes to the kitchen so that the pastor’s hands would be free.

  Pastor Mike sat next to Cassie. “We’re going to announce what happened to you at church at the end of the service Sunday. I’m going to give a ten second warning that what I’m about to show is graphic, then we’re going to show your video of the crime scene on the big screen, if that’s okay with you. What you said in the video about pastors who didn’t want to be involved in politics shot straight to my heart. I’m not sitting on the sidelines anymore.”

  Cassie said, “Of course it’s okay if you show the video. Thank you very much!”

  Pastor Mike continued, “The video is going to stir up a lot of emotion. We need to make a call to action right after. I was thinking about starting a petition and organizing a protest on the courthouse steps. Do you have any thoughts on that?”

  Cassie took Noah’s hand. “That would be wonderful.”

  Pastor Mike said, “I’m good friends with George McConnell. His talk show is nationally syndicated on Christian radio. He said he’d love to have you two come on the show to talk about what’s now being called the Parker Monkey Trial and your home invasion. And Noah, you’ve always tithed to Faith Church. Now it’s our turn to help you in your time of need. I want to help you out with a stipend, so you can focus on your case until it’s over, and you can get back to work.”

  Noah shook his head. “I can’t do that, Pastor.”

  Pastor Mike’s voice turned serious. “Noah, Faith Church supports missionaries and has several different ministries that try to fulfill our mission. I can’t think of a more important ministry right now than for you to win this case. If you lose, we all lose. This isn’t just about you; this is about freedom. It’s about the First Amendment. If you lose this case, a precedent has been set for every Christian in America to be told to sit down and shut up. Are you refusing to accept this calling that God has so clearly placed on your life?”

  Noah hadn’t expected such a scolding. “I accept the calling Pastor, but . . .”

  Pastor Mike cut him off. “But what? First Timothy five, verse eighteen says, ‘a worker is worth his wages’. Do you know more than the inerrant Word of God, Noah?”

  Noah sat quietly for a moment. He’d been put in his place. He thought about how Pastor Mike had just quoted a verse from the same chapter of the Bible he’d thought about not five minutes ago. Maybe that was confirmation.

  Pastor Mike looked at Cassie. “The head of our new Defenders of the Faith ministry is going to need an assistant. Do you need a sermonette?”

  Cassie put her hands up. “No, sir. I surrender.”

  Pastor Mike stood up. “Good, let’s get some pie.”

  Benny Loomis came up to Noah on the way to the kitchen. “Congratulations.”

  Noah shook his hand. “Thank you, Benny.”

  Noah said to Pastor Mike, “If Benny needs help with any projects around the church, I’ll be happy to help out. I’m fairly handy.”

  Pastor Mike looked at Noah. “You’re pushing it, but I’ll keep that in mind. Thank you.”

  Lynn Barnes came up to Noah and Cassie in the kitchen. “I hope Mike isn’t being too aggressive. He’s very passionate about what you two have been through. Let me know if he’s too overwhelming, and I’ll have a chat with him.”

  Noah said, “Not at all, Mrs. Barnes. And this cherry dump cake is fantastic.”

  Cassie said, “We need all the exposure we can get. Trust me; it’s not too much. This type of thing happens all the time. The news covers it, and people go back to sleep. If you remember the Justina Pelletier case, it took her family sixteen months to regain custody of her after she was abducted by the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families. One doctor said that she was misdiagnosed by another doctor and accused her parents of medical child abuse because of that. Then there was the California couple, the Nikolayevs, whose child was abducted at gunpoint by the police and Child Protective Services because the parents wanted to get a second opinion before they admitted their baby, Sammy, into surgery.

  “Both of those cases got national media attention, but nothing changed.

  “If you search YouTube for ‘dog shot by police’, you’ll get over 204,000 results, but the police state has continued to grow. Even after the public outcry several years ago from the flash bang grenade that almost killed a Georgia toddler, nothing was done about the militarization of the police. The baby’s family, the Phonesavahns, incurred roughly $800,000 in medical bills, and Habersham County refused to lift a finger to help the toddler, even though no drugs or weapons were found in the raid.

  “The list of tragedies is too long to recite. Seven-year-old Aiyana Jones of Detroit was killed in a police raid. John Adams, from right here in Tennessee, was killed by police who raided the wrong house. Non
e of their murderers were ever convicted. That’s why it keeps happening. If some folks start getting prison time for manslaughter, things will change. But the trend is certainly moving in the wrong direction.”

  Lynn pulled Cassie close. “We’re all with you on this one. Maybe we can make a difference.”

  Cassie hugged the pastor’s wife. “We’ll tell our story to everyone who’ll listen.”

  Henry Whitaker motioned for Noah to follow him out to the porch.

  Noah kissed Cassie on the cheek. “I’ll be right back.”

  He walked outside where it was only him and Henry.

  Henry leaned over the railing of the porch. “I bet you’re livid about all of this.”

  Noah stood nearby. “It’s been a rough couple of days.”

  Henry glanced at Noah. “If you want to hit these guys hard, let me know. I’m in.”

  “Thanks. We can use all the help we can get. If we can get enough people together, I’d like to start protesting on Monday. I’ll need people for mornings and afternoons. I think it would be good if everyone could commit to specific time slots so we can keep the momentum going. Can you come down to the courthouse Monday morning?”

  Henry shook his head. “That’s not what I’m talking about. I know some guys with great technical skills, IEDs, that sort of thing.”

  Noah stepped back. “We’ve got a lot of support to do things the right way. I’ll admit that I was furious, but like Pastor Mike just said, this is bigger than my case. It’s about our freedom of speech and freedom from religious persecution.”

  Henry turned and looked at Noah. “You’re dealing with violent people, and the only thing they understand is violence. Cassie hit the nail on the head in her video. They locked you up, murdered your dog, and abducted your daughter. They owe you a pound of flesh.”

  Noah said, “Thanks, but I have to try the high road.”

  Benny Loomis walked out and joined them on the porch.

  Henry looked at Benny then back at Noah. He turned to go back in the house. “My offer is always open.”