The Great Thirst Boxed Set

by Mary C. Findley

  “Keith had an accident here on this site, shortly after we first found this place,” Talia replied. “The brickwork gave way under him and our friends had to dig him out.”

  “Judging by the look on your face, I’m going to say it was pretty serious,” Mary said. “Is he okay?”

  “Like he says, getting there,” Talia replied. “Better every day, finally. It’s been a scary time.”

  “We been praying for you folks,” Mike said. “Hope you can make this place safe. Doesn’t look very big. Seen pictures of that ball court at Chichen Itza. This one’s pretty tiny, though it’s bigger than some.”

  “This one has a secret compartment,” Talia said. “Would you like a quick tour?”

  “You bet,” Mary said.

  “Gives ‘bigger on the inside’ a whole new meaning,” Mike said as Talia guided them through some of the brick passageways under the ball court. “That’s a fine thing, having that water source inside your walls. How deep does this go?”

  “The brickwork has four finished levels underground,” Talia said. “We have people working around the clock making repairs and reinforcing. Below those levels, there are caverns. The waterfall drops down over two hundred feet, and we have no idea how far the caverns go. We also found geothermal vents, so we have heated water and air-conditioning. The sound carries with amazing clarity, like at Chichen Itza, so it’s got a built-in warning system.”

  “You can give refuge to a lot of people here,” Mary said.

  “That’s the plan,” Talia said. “As long as it stays secret. I’m glad you like taking the scenic route when you travel.”

  “As long as we can cover the fuel,” Mike said.

  “We’ll make sure you can.”

  Talia took them to see Keith and found him sitting up in bed, conferring with Cindee and Jiggly over images of tablets and artifacts. They hastily tried to put everything out of sight.

  “These are the truckers who saved Keith and the others from the prison attack,” Talia said. “If anybody can be trusted with our secrets, I think it’s them.”

  “Oh! Hi!” Cindee said, extending a hand. “If Talia says you’re okay, you’re okay with me.”

  “Heard about this cyborg fellow,” Mike said, accepting Jiggly’s mechanical hand and looking at it with great interest. “Sometimes a loss turns out to be a gain, huh?”

  “Still mulling that one over,” Jiggly admitted. “But hey, I’m working my way through the whole ‘God doesn’t do things my way’ concept.”

  “Hey! Good to see you,” Keith said. He shook hands with Mike and Mary. “Sorry about having to receive you in the sack like this. Feel like I’m getting lazy.”

  “Not from what we’ve heard,” Mike said. “Looks like you’ve been plenty busy.”

  “I keep trying,” Keith sighed. “So hard to keep everything moving.”

  “Take it easy,” Mary said. “I know you’re the brains of this outfit, but your head’ll be clearer if you give your body time to heal.”

  “Everybody says that,” Keith said. “Just seems like time’s getting short. Feel like something’s gonna happen.”

  “No doubt something is,” Mike said. “But God didn’t hook human beings up to any doomsday clock. This world is passing away, but the Word keeps telling us not to be anxious about anything, and not to fear.”

  “I thought I heard a familiar voice!” Dan came into the room and pumped Mike’s hand. “Never met the boss lady before.”

  “Hey, Dan,” Mike said. “Fancy meeting you here.”

  Mary extended a hand to him. “This is that troublemaker you tried to train? And you two are brothers. Do you realize you were my husband’s first and last trainee? I think you broke him. He never really wanted me to drive. Good thing, too. I’d be like that woman I heard about who got her CDL, set out to team drive with her hubby, and first day out ended up screaming in the bunk and making him drive her straight home.”

  “I never could sleep when somebody else was driving,” Mike grumbled. “And independent was always the plan.”

  “Especially can’t sleep with somebody like me drivin’,” Dan said. “They get me to drive supply trucks now and then, but it ain’t my thing, for sure. Yeah, figured I’d get some family time while my baby brother was convalescing. Good thing I hooked you guys up, huh? Glad I did something right.”

  “You’ve always been too hard on yourself, Dan,” Mike said. “If you carry the world around on your shoulders, it just increases the pressure on the control valve. We’re not meant to bear that load. Glad you’re getting some time with your brother.”

  After Mike and Mary left, Naddy, Sophie, Jiggly, and Cindee joined Keith and Talia for a Skype session with some of the Guardians involved with the tablet work.

  “The last shipment from Veracruz just arrived today,” the man on the screen said. “The images you sent were excellent, but there is nothing like seeing the actual artifacts. I am sorry this was such a costly find for you, but we are so grateful.”

  “I never even got to see them for real. Just hope you can get them translated, and figure out what we’re really supposed to do with them,” Keith said.

  “We are learning extraordinary things,” another guardian exclaimed, moving into the monitor view. “As you know, the communication system has opened up so many doors of understanding as we have been able to confer with others. Even though Talia has not been able to continue operating the Veracruz pyramid site, we have others up and working now.

  “Again, we are humbled by our times of inertia but encouraged by the insights and successes forced on us by the accident. God chastens us and goads us into activity through your misfortune. As much as we regret the cost, we are blessed.”

  “So when are we going to the moon?” Jiggly joked.

  “It’s not as far-fetched as it sounds,” a third guardian, this one a woman, said. “We are learning that air travel was a common thing to the ancients. The daughters in law of Noah made powered vehicles, balloon types, and gliders, and those who created the tablets tapped into much of that ancient knowledge in their efforts to preserve and transport what they made.

  “But the important thing to understand is that there is such a dovetailing of knowledge and skills. We are sure, the better we understand the cultures of Britomartis, Pipali, and Araña, the better prepared we will be to translate, defend, and disseminate the Testaments. Our counterparts who first created the tablets clearly tapped into knowledge we must rediscover. Once we do, we will develop a supply chain to fulfill every believer’s desire – free access to the Word of God for all of us. It will travel the world, and perhaps even go to the moon – wherever persecution drives us.”

  Chapter Ninety-nine – “Sensei Magic”

  “David, you are going to kill me!” Keith groaned from his position flat on the floor of the improvised therapy room under the ball court. He had managed to complete exactly one set of one of the exercises on the list David had given him. “I remember what Jiggly said about you and your karate training. I watched The Karate Kid, but I’m just not black belt material.”

  “The original Karate Kid is the ultimate occupational therapy movie.” David bent to help Keith get up on his knees. “A true sensei prepares body and mind for everything life can throw at you. I include the truth of the Holy Scriptures to prevent the wrong spiritual forces from getting into your heart. Besides, Jiggly is incapable of focusing. He has the attention span of a squirrel.”

  “I’m standing right over here,” Jiggly said. “At least you can get up on your knees today, Keith,” he added.

  “Yay for progress.” Keith grunted. “The kids will be here in a week, and I can hear the grandpa jokes now. ‘I thought walkers were for old people, Mr. Bradley.”

  “Walkers are for people who keep trying,” David said. “Ask your grandmother when she gets here.”

  Keith clawed his way up to the weight bench and straddled it. “Okay, Jiggly, show me how to get my upper body in shape cyborg style
.”

  “Well, for me, it’s about co-ordination,” Jiggly said. “I had to figure out how to get the mechanical arm and hand to do the same things the real one can. Which sometimes got to be like crossed circuits, because I used to be right-handed. That was a crazy tough adjustment. When my brain sends signals to the wrong side – and still, when I look in a mirror – freakin’ chaos, man.”

  “I can imagine,” Keith said. “But I still have trouble getting either side to do what I want.”

  “The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak,” Jiggly commiserated. “And when you got no flesh to work with, God’s Spirit is the only thing that keeps you trying.” He handed Keith a set of light dumbbells, took two slightly heaver ones himself, and demonstrated getting his arms to mirror each others’ movements.

  “Keep watching and praying that you may not enter into temptation,” Keith mused as he tried to do the mild lifts, flys, and curls in tandem with Jiggly. “Temptation to give up, temptation to do things the wrong way because it might be easier or faster –. Dang, Jiggly, you’re making me think about things that just rolled off before. I guess the disciples were the same way. That’s why they never saw the crucifixion coming.”

  “Or the resurrection,” David added. “They got themselves confused and depressed and scattered at the time of the arrest. By the time the crucifixion was over they had begun to realize they had to get back together, but they still didn’t understand why. It’s not just being stronger together. It’s waiting for Meshiach to be your strength as the head of the body.”

  “Yeah,” Keith said. “Speaking of the body, and co-ordinating sides, I am still not making progress with my left leg. It keeps dragging and it hurts like crazy.”

  “Lie down on the bench,” David ordered.

  Keith obeyed but saw the wary look in Jiggly’s eyes. “I need both my kneecaps located right where they’re supposed to be, please,” he begged.

  David lifted Keith’s right foot and bent his knee toward his body. “Push back,” he said.

  Keith grunted but obeyed.

  “Harder,” David said. “As hard as you can.”

  Keith struggled to obey and his breath exploded out of him.

  “Breathe each time, Keith. You’re forgetting to breathe.” David made him do it five times. “Now the left.” He moved to the other side of the bench. “Push and breathe. Push and breathe. Harder.”

  “I can’t,” Keith said, dropping his leg. “Sorry. Grandma’s going to beat me at the walker races next week.”

  “Don’t be sorry. There’s something wrong here.” David kneaded Keith’s leg, pulling and massaging.

  Keith almost jumped off the bench and couldn’t suppress a howl.

  “I’m sorry. I’m sorry.” David exclaimed.

  “He told you he needs his kneecaps,” Jiggly said. “You okay, Keith?”

  “That was – what did you do?” Keith gasped.

  David gave Keith a hand and he pulled himself up into a sitting position, dangling his legs. He shifted so his left foot rested on the floor and tested his weight on it.

  “What did you do? It’s – it works now!”

  “Just like the Karate Kid!” Jiggly exclaimed. “Go Sensei Sharon!”

  “Something just felt out of place,” David said. “I pushed and it must have popped back where it belonged.”

  “Dan was right. You are crazy,” Jiggly said. “Let me just push here and shoot Keith screamin’ out through the roof. Maybe he’ll feel better afterwards.”

  “It worked, didn’t it? If he’d continued walking on it he might have caused permanent damage. Keith, don’t think you just have to bear the pain in silence. Tell us, even if you think it seems wimpy. That’s why God gave us pain.”

  Okay,” Keith said. “Noted for future reference. Help me up.”

  Jiggly and David both supported Keith as he pushed up onto his feet. “That is better,” he said. “I can actually walk, kinda. Thanks.”

  “Now for the rest of the exercises on my list,” David said with a grin.

  “It worked. They’re coming!” Talia propelled herself into the workout room. She stopped dead, seeing Keith make his way slowly across the room with no walker, just gripping one of Jiggly’s mechanical fingers. “Oh!”

  “Hey, you two!” Keith said between heavy breaths. “Look at me, the walking man! Now, what worked, and who’s coming?”

  “Brad Shannon sent the list of guests for the School Administrator Appreciation Gala. Your dad and the others are on it. And I have the agenda, too. Dr. Williams will give a speech explaining the special recognition of those administrators. They are going to make her publicly apologize.”

  “I’ll believe it when I hear it. Thanks, Jiggly.” Keith let go near the door and grabbed his walker.

  “You’re doing so much better than this morning,” Talia said. “Did something happen?”

  “Mr. Miyagi dropped by and worked his magic,” Keith quipped. “David found something out of place and I’m telling you, I actually have some hope.”

  “Thank you both,” Talia said, kissing David and Jiggly on the cheek.

  “The honor is to serve,” they both said at the same time, looked at each other, and burst out laughing.

  “Dad’s going to stay with us, right?” Keith demanded. “I wish he didn’t have to be on the same planet with Dr. Williams, but at least not in the same hotel, right?”

  “It’s a condition of his release that they all stay in the hotel where the conference is being held,” Talia said. “But Drew promises to bodily, personally carry him out the second there’s any threat.”

  “When do they get here? And how about the kids and the others from Precious Treasure? They’re staying with us, right?”

  “Brad and Drew both said we have to make things look normal,” Talia said. “No whisking anybody off to a secret location unless there’s a disaster of some kind. They reluctantly suggested the same hotel where the conference will be held – it’s a mega-complex of hotels, actually, so we were able to get a separate wing for us and our gang. Down here is still under construction, to be truthful. You haven’t been able to get around to see how much work needs to be done.”

  Cindee joined them. “Wow, Keith, you’re standing and walking and stuff! You look great, except for the sweat –” she sniffed the air “– and the aroma,” she added, as she and David embraced. “Hit the showers, guys. We are going to dine in style and check out the hotel with Drew and his security force.”

  Everyone else headed out the door but Keith lingered a minute and leaned over the top of his walker.

  “Me and my lady and our dancing Cherub will be with you shortly,” Keith called out, wrapping his arms around Talia. “It is so good to be able to do this again, and to feel those little feet knocking up against me. I love you both so much!”

  “Oh, we are both so happy to be back inside this circle,” Talia whispered. “But you do need a shower.”

  Chapter One Hundred – “Carte-Blanche”

  Keith had already begun to regret his demand to be promoted to a cane for the hotel tour. They ended up commandeering a hotel courtesy wheelchair to finish looking over the facilities and get him to the private dining area.

  “Please don’t fall asleep in your food, Keith,” Sophie said with a smile. “I knew we would have more trouble with you trying to do too much than making you work at getting stronger.”

  “Feels so good, though,” Keith said. “Everything is moving better, finally.”

  “Excellent news,” Naddy said. “The Guardians have a new discovery to talk to you about as soon as you are able to sit through another Skype session.”

  “Okay,” Keith said. “Didn’t know I was holding anything up. Tell them to fire away.”

  “So this is the movers and shakers luncheon!”

  Keith almost fell out of his chair as Jenny Kaine walked into the room with a cameraman and four of Drew’s people in tow. Talia gripped his hand and he didn’t even care abo
ut fingernails. He held on to her for dear life.

  Drew and Anne both emerged from their positions on the wall and intercepted them.

  “Turn around and walk back out,” Drew said. “This is a private meeting.”

  “We tried to tell her that, Boss,” one of the men said. “She showed us legal papers –”

  “Just to prove I’m legal,” Jenny Kaine said, tossing a pile of forms onto the table. “I have carte-blanche authorization from Dr. Williams, the U.S. Department of education, and the state and city of Veracruz, to interview everyone connected with the School Administrator Appreciation Gala and the Bible as Literature Olmec Field trip. And in this room is the largest concentration of people currently in Mexico who are in the know about both those events.”

  Keith saw the look Drew darted him, but he made himself relax and pulled Talia’s hand in closer. “This is a one-time offer,” he said. “Ask whatever you want to now, because you will not get another chance.”

  “I want access to your field expedition when the students get here, too,” Jenny Kaine insisted.

  “Okay. One time only for that, too, and we choose the time and the location,” Keith said. He stroked Talia’s hand and her grip relaxed. But the expressions on the faces around him were tight and angry or openly fearful.

  “Now for my interviews. Who wants to go first?” Jenny Kaine said brightly.

  “Nope. You can ask me your questions, and that’s it,” Keith said. “Nobody else has to talk to you.”

  “I can contact Dr. Williams if there’s some part of ‘carte-blanche’ you don’t understand,” Jenny Kaine said.

  “I said this was a one-time offer,” Keith said. “You break it off now and go crying to mama, it won’t be repeated. It’s do or die with what you get right here and right now.”

  “Interesting choice of words,” Jenny Kaine said. “All right, then, I’m Jenny Kaine for the International News Network. Sir, please tell us your name and occupation.” She snapped her fingers at the cameraman and Keith watched the lens zoom in on him. He had hardly ever felt so exhausted in his entire life, but he straightened his aching body and took a breath.