The Days of Noah: Book One: Conspiracy (23 page)

Everett didn’t understand, but he was comforted that the nurse seemed to know what she was talking about. “Alright. Thank you.”

He went back in and stood by the bed. He took Jones’s hand. “John, it’s Everett. I’m here.”

Jones was unresponsive.

“Want to watch the news?” Everett turned on the television and watched it as he sat next to his sleeping friend.

The nurse came in and injected the drug into Jones’s IV. “That should help. It might not take effect right away. Give it a little bit.”

“Thanks for taking such good care of him, Mrs. Collins. Has anyone else been by to visit?”

“Just you. A messenger brought the flowers and a card from his work.”

Everett remembered what Jones had once said about the Company. She won’t love you back.

“Let me know if you need anything. Anything at all.” Mrs. Collins offered a sympathetic smile as she left the room.

Everett pulled the other chair around so he could put his feet up. He sat back and rested comfortably as he watched the news. Shortly thereafter, he drifted into a light sleep.

When he awoke, he checked his phone for the time. “Wow, I was out for almost an hour.”

Everett gave Jones’s hand a gentle squeeze. “John. Wake up for a little while.”

Jones didn’t come around. Everett decided to take a short walk around the hospital and the campus to stretch his legs.

He gave Courtney a call as he walked.

“Hey!”

“How’re you holding up, soldier?” she asked.

“I’m good.”

“Is Uncle John doing any better?”

“No, he’s worse. He is completely out. They’ve got him pretty doped up. He’d be in a lot of pain if he wasn’t, though.”

“Would you like me to come by for moral support?”

“That’s so nice of you to offer, but I’m okay. Uncle John wouldn’t even know you were here.”

“If you change your mind or you just need to talk, give me a call. I’m here, okay?”

Everett had never really seen this soft side to Courtney, although he’d suspected that it was there. “Thanks, so much. I really appreciate it.”

“Anytime. Talk to you soon.”

“Okay, bye.” Everett hung up and started heading back to the hospital room.

When he arrived, Jones seemed to be coming to. Everett took his hand. “John, hey.”

Jones turned his head toward Everett and half opened his eyes. He gave Everett’s hand a light squeeze to acknowledge his presence.

A minute later, Jones appeared to be fully awake. It was obvious that even with the high dosage of pain relievers, he was in pain. “Can you pass me my cup?”

Everett did so.

Jones took a small sip from the straw.

Everett asked, “Do you want some nicotine gum?”

“No. I’m fine without it.” His voice was weak. His skin looked much worse than it had just the day before.

“Do you want to watch the news, or should I have the nurse bring you something to eat?”

Jones shook his head ever so slightly.

Everett was at a loss for words. He just stood next to his friend’s bed.

The minutes passed, and Everett stood patiently.

“Thank you, Everett.”

“I’m the one who should be thanking you; what could you possibly be thanking me for?”

“For being my friend. I pray that you’ll really dedicate some time to thinking about what you believe. I hope you’ll discover that Jesus is real. I hope we’ll meet again in glory.”

“I’ll think about it.”

“Good.” Jones forced a smile through the pain.

Tears started to flow down Everett’s cheeks. He squeezed Jones’s hand as he watched the life slowly leave his friend’s body. A look of serenity replaced the expression of pain and anguish on John Jones’s face, and he breathed his last breath.

***

Everett was straightening his tie in the mirror Tuesday morning when he heard a knock. He walked to the door and opened it. “Wow! You look great.”

Courtney walked in and took her coat off. “Thanks. I was worried this dress might be too short for a funeral, but it’s the only black dress I have that covers my shoulders. You look nice, too. I’ve never seen you in a suit.”

“Do you want a cup of coffee? We still have a few minutes before we need to leave.”

“No thanks. So Lisa and Ken are coming. Was Ken close with John?”

“Not at all. He’s coming because I asked him to. I don’t want to be the only one from our office at the funeral. I’m sorry I wasn’t completely honest about John. He had his reasons for not wanting to tell you his whole history.”

Courtney rolled her eyes. “Yeah, I was completely surprised to find out that he wasn’t your real uncle. What a shame to have your skill set wasted at an analyst’s desk. Clandestine Services is really missing out by not having you on the team.”

Everett loved Courtney’s playful sarcasm. His only fear was that he was losing control of his feelings for her. He’d never been in a relationship where the thought of losing someone produced so much anxiety. She seemed to be quite interested in Everett as well, but how could he be sure that she wouldn’t get bored? Only time would tell.

Everett finished drinking his coffee, brushed his teeth, and put on his jacket. “Okay, let’s go.”

“Do you have an umbrella? It wasn’t raining when I left.”

“Sure.” Everett retrieved the umbrella and held it for Courtney as they walked to the car.

Once they were on the road, Everett said, “It was very nice of you to come along today. Your boss didn’t hassle you too much about taking the day off?”

“No, as long as there’s no imminent crisis, we can take personal days. The flipside is that if there is a serious event, we have to drop everything until the threat is evaded. Speaking of events, did you know the US closed over 400 foreign bases and DOD-controlled facilities last night?”

“No, why?”

“They were all reclassified as non-essential.”

“If they were non-essential, why were they there in the first place?”

Courtney shook her head. “I suppose they were essential for pilfering the US taxpayer to prop up the military industrial complex. It’s big business and bigger politics. They were probably essential for threatening other nations into complying with US fiscal policy as well. But if what Uncle John said is true, that jig is up. Sorry, I meant John.”

Everett nodded. “We can still call him Uncle John. He didn’t have any family, so I’m sure he’d be honored. He’d mentioned to me that a large-scale repositioning of troops and military assets within the US would be a sign that they’re getting ready to pull the trigger.”

“And by ‘they,’ are you referring to the Illuminati?”

Everett curled his mouth. “New World Order, whatever you want to call them. ‘They’ are whoever have their finger on the button to bring down the political and financial system, so ‘they’ can replace it with their own global government and global monetary system. Do you know where the military personnel from all of these installations are being sent?”

“No, but I can get into the military’s human resources database and track them over the next few days.”

Everett nodded. “Fantastic. We should meet up every day or so to keep each other briefed on any new developments.”

“Mr. Carroll, you don’t have to make up excuses to see me every day. Just come out and ask me.”

Everett could feel his face getting red. He tried to will himself to not be embarrassed, but it was to no avail. “Really, I just thought . . .”

“I’m kidding!” Courtney released her seatbelt and leaned over to kiss him on the cheek. She sat back in her seat and put her seatbelt back on. She put her hand on his leg. “I like you too, Everett.”

His heart pounded. He suddenly felt somewhat lightheaded and took a deep breath. Everett worried that he might lose consciousness while he was driving. He tried to put his focus on the road and the steering wheel, but he knew the physical symptoms were confirmation of what he already knew: he was in love.

Since Jones had no family, no procession was planned. Everett drove straight to the cemetery. The drizzling rain had stopped, but it was still cloudy. The dampness brought out the familiar smell of the fall leaves decomposing and completing the circle of life. The smell had always evoked a feeling of melancholy for Everett, and it seemed to suit the occasion so well.

The gravesite was a simple headstone. There was no grave, as Jones had been cremated. The urn was secured in a niche within the headstone.

Ken and Lisa arrived minutes later.

“Hey, thanks for coming out,” Everett said.

“No problem. There aren’t many people here,” Ken replied.

“Yeah, well I guess that’s what you can expect when your job description is to live your life unnoticed.”

Ken asked, “So what’s the name on the headstone?”

“It’s blank except for the masonic square and compass.”

Ken’s mouth hung open. “Really? They’re going to bury him with no name on the headstone?”

Everett said, “I think the engraver just hasn’t gotten to it yet. I’m sure they’ll put a name on it.”

Ken crossed his arms. “So we’ll never know what his real name is.”

Lisa said, “I wonder if he’ll get a star on the wall at Langley.”

Everett shook his head. “That’s only if you’re killed in action.”

Ken stood close to Everett and spoke low. “Did you find out if all the rumors about Jones were true?”

Everett looked around. All of the other six attendees were men who wore sunglasses and long overcoats. While the weather certainly warranted an overcoat, it was odd how everyone looked so uniform. And the sunglasses were certainly not needed on such a dreary day. He whispered to Ken, “Why don’t we talk about that later.”

One of the men said a short eulogy. He praised Agent Jones for his faithful service, explaining that he had worked with Jones without mentioning any specifics of where, when, in what capacity, or for how long. Everett felt sorry for the man, as he seemed to be sincerely sorrowful over the loss of John Jones. He wondered if the man wished he could more freely express his grief.

After the funeral, one of the other attendees walked over to Everett and Ken. “Mr. Carroll, Mr. Gordon, were you gentlemen close to Mr. Jones?”

“He was a good boss. We felt we should pay our respects. What’s your name?” Everett offered his hand to the man.

The man shook Everett’s hand. “I worked with Mr. Jones on a project for some time. It was nice to meet you. Perhaps I’ll see you gentlemen around.” The man walked away without giving his name.

Ken looked at Everett. “On that note, I’m out of here.”

Everett caught him by the arm. “Why don’t we all meet for lunch at the old diner right before you get to Ashburn?”

“Right before Town Center?”

“That’s the one.”

“See you there in a bit.” Ken took Lisa’s hand and headed for his car.

At the diner, Everett laid out the information that Jones had shared with him to Ken and Lisa while they ate. He focused on the fundamental problems that would create the collapse and tried to gloss over most of the conspiracy information. He explained what the world would look like in a very short time, delicately laying out the predictions made by Agent Jones that had already come to pass.

Lisa seemed to accept that the information was true more quickly than Ken. She kept looking at him for answers, but he appeared to have trouble digesting what he was being told.

Ken had finished less than half of his plate when he set down his fork in frustration. “So what are you saying? The whole country is going to look like Mad Max by Christmas.”

Courtney said, “More like Hunger Games than Mad Max. Big Brother type of totalitarian dystopia, you know?” She had a way with words.

“So what are we supposed to do?” Ken was clearly in a huff.

Everett calmly explained the course of action that he had begun. “If you and Lisa want to follow suit, we have a place where we can all lay low until this blows over. But everyone has to be all-in.”

Ken put his hand in the air. “Whoa, whoa, whoa. Do you know where we work? If this is a government-controlled thing, we’ll be taken care of. They need us. Whatever they have to do to make sure we’re okay, they’ll do it.”

Courtney stepped in. “If it’s like Jones said, it’s not the American government. Besides, you don’t even work at Langley; you’re probably considered non-essential personnel. Don’t think anyone gives two cents about your tail at the Company. Look at Jones. That man gave his life to the Company, and if we hadn’t attended his funeral, there would have been six people there. Six! And one of them was probably just a spook assigned to see who came.”

Lisa grabbed Ken’s arm. “Honey, we have to do something.”

Ken put his arms on the table and sighed. “I don’t know. I don’t know what to do.”

Everett reached across the table and patted him on the hand. “Take tonight and think about it. You and Lisa talk it over tomorrow after work. Thursday night, we’ll all go out and discuss it as a group. If you decide, the four of us will develop a plan. Friday after work, we’ll start acquiring some supplies. Saturday, we’ll take you two out to the place I mentioned.”