"He's got some kind of a monitor rigged up that he used to keep track of his dad. That's how he knew Big Zeke had been arrested. He knows his dad won't give him up, but he also knows he can't stay there. He's packing."
"Yeah," Buck said, "all he'd need is for the GC to find all his files and document-making paraphernalia." "It will be good to have him here," Tsion said. "He will be safe and can do so much for so many. Cameron, how are you feeling?"
"Better than Chaim, apparently." The old man lifted his head and tried to smile. "I'll be OK," he mouthed through his clenched jaw. "No capers for me. Eager to study and learn."
Tsion moved away from the window. "And me with a student who cannot talk. You must listen and read. You will be an expert about our own people before you know it. God's chosen people. What a thrill to teach it. I will use the same material in my cyberlesson, wherein I expose Carpathia as the Antichrist."
"Coming right out with it, are you?" Buck said. "Absolutely," the rabbi said. "The gloves are off, as you Americans so like to say. There is no longer any question about him, nor should there be. I am persuaded that Leon is his false prophet, and I will say that too. Those who have ears will not be deceived. It will not be long before the Satan-indwelt beast will take out his rage against the Jews."
Chaim held up a hand. Buck could barely make out the labored, muffled question. "And what are we to do? We are no match for him."
"You will see, my friend," Tsion said. "You will learn today not only the history of the Jews, but their future as well. God will protect his people, now and forevermore." "I like being a believer already," Chaim managed. "Buck," Chloe said, stepping close to embrace him, "we have to plan Zeke's rescue."
"Just what I need today, another mission."
"You slept, didn't you?"
"Like a dead man."
"Don't say that."
"Well…"
"It's you or me, pal," Chloe said. "If you need another day of recup-"
"I'll be ready," Buck said.
"I can help," Leah said. "I'm fit."
"Maybe the two of you, then," Chloe said. "I've got to get news to the co-op, keep everybody working together."
"We're going to need a pilot," Buck said. "Put the GC chopper down right in the middle of their stakeout, chide 'em for missing a suspect, and we arrest Zeke Jr. and bring him here. What? What's with all the looks?"
"We don't have a chopper today or tonight, hon," Chloe said. "Probably not until tomorrow night, and we don't dare risk making Zeke wait that long."
"OK, so where's the helicopter and your dad? And Albie?"
FOUR
David hurried to his office and phoned Annie. No answer. Then he called the motor pool. The man who had originally brought him his cart was off duty, but the one he reached told him, "No, sir, no phone. Nothing was left in there. We found the cart but not you, and my boss was pretty mad until he traced you to Medical Services. You OK?" "Fine."
"Need the cart?" "No."
"Anything I can do fo-"
But David had hung up. He flipped open his computer and saw urgent messages flashing from the code words and numbers he knew belonged to his comrades in the Tribulation Force. He would get to those when he could, but for now, before the infernal meeting, he had to get his phone back and find out where Annie was.
His watch read 2135. He searched the GC database for Personnel, Medical, Nursing, Female, under P. There it was: "Palemoon, Hannah L., room and extension 4223." A groggy hello greeted the fifth ring.
"Nurse Palemoon?"
"Yeah, who's this?"
"I am so sorry to be calling so late and sorry to wake you, but-" "Hassid?"
"Yes, forgive me, but-" "I have your phone." "Oh, thank G-goodness! Is it on?" "No, sir, I turned it off. Now are you coming to get it so I can get back to sleep?"
"Could I? If you don't mind terribly, I-" "I gotta show you something anyway." What in the world? Was he being set up? Why would she be so willing to have him come and get it? And why did she take it in the first place? To be safe, he jumped back on the computer and fired up the bugging device that would record their conversation in the corridor outside her room. As he backed out of that program he saw the blinking signals for his urgent messages again. Looked like Rayford and Albie had been desperately trying to reach him. He didn't have time to deal with them, but what if they had heard from Annie? He had to peek.
The requests stunned him. He was way late for helping Albie and Rayford in Colorado, but his fingers flew over the keyboard anyway. His head ached, his wound oozed, and he blinked furiously. He entered the numbers to over-ride the Peacekeeping security codes. Under his phony name as a high-level GC unit commander in New Babylon, he assigned Marcus Elbaz to Carpathia Memorial Airstrip in Colorado Springs. He also authorized him to temporarily appropriate a vehicle with which to take custody of an escapee from the Belgium Facility for Female Rehabilitation, currently incarcerated at a bunker on the north end of Pueblo. A few more keystrokes derived the exact coordinates of that facility and the name of the deputy director in charge-Pinkerton Stephens. Fortunately, Stephens was lower ranked than Deputy Commander Elbaz.
David would work on name, rank, and serial number for Rayford later, hoping the two of them could bluff their way past the GC in the meantime. It was 2150, Hannah Palemoon was waiting, and he couldn't be late for the big meeting. Healthy and in shape it would have been a challenge to get to her room, retrieve his phone, and get to Carpathia's office in time, but wounded as he was, he couldn't imagine it.
He could phone Fortunato at the last minute and explain he would be a few minutes late, coming from his hospital bed. But neither did he want to miss any of that meeting. As he locked his door and strode quickly toward the elevator, he wobbled and had to grab the wall. Catch your breath, he told himself. Late is better than not there at all.
"Give me my razor," Albie said. "It's going to be hard to pull this off if I'm out of regulation."
"You'll be on the ground in less than a minute," Rayford said.
"I have a copilot, do I not?"
Rayford pulled Albie's electric razor from his bag and took over the landing as Albie shaved and tightened his tie. When the tower confirmed the landing, Albie responded, then whipped off the headphones and put on his uniform cap. When they disembarked, Rayford was struck again how the diminutive Middle Easterner seemed taller, more commanding.
"I can point you to the refueling area so you can tank up before takeoff, Commander Elbaz."
"You can't do it for me while I'm on assignment?"
"Sorry, sir, we're shorthan-"
"I know. Carry on."
Rayford stayed a step behind Albie as they made their way to the offices, hoping that once David got him enlisted as a GC Peacekeeper, he would give him an even higher rank. How could he supervise a man who outranked him in disguise?
The officer at the desk saluted and said, "I told my chief you weren't in the computer, so you're on your own for ground transportation. If you'll give me your fueling order number, however, I can clear you for that when-"
"Excuse me?" Albie said.
"You'll have to refuel yourself, because-"
"I know all that. I need a vehicle for an important assignment, and I need it now. You expect me to rent a car?"
"Sir, I'm just telling you what my chief said. I – "
"Get him out here."
"He's a her, sir."
"I don't care if he's a gorilla. Get him, or her, out here."
The airstrip chief appeared before the deskman buzzed her. She saluted but did not smile. "Judy Hamilton at your service, Commander."
"Not enough at my service, I'm afraid."
"I can do only what I can do, sir, but I'm open to suggestions."
"Do you have a vehicle?"
"None available, sir."