Involuntary Control (Gray Spear Society) (31 page)

It was a reasonable question, but Bethany had no idea how to compute the result.

Leanna shrugged. "Half of all marriages end in divorce."

"And those are normal relationships," Norbert said. "We're
not
normal."

"But we need you!" Bethany said. "You're the nicest man we know."

"Thanks, and you're very sweet girls."

"We can do research on the internet. We can learn how to maintain relationships."

He shook his head. "Love is not a research topic. You have to let your feelings guide you."

"But we don't understand feelings that well," Leanna said. "They're hard to analyze. Can you just tell us what to do? We're good at following instructions."

"You want me to be in control of our relationship?"

"Yes, please. We trust you."

He looked back and forth between the two girls. "This is so bizarre." He sighed deeply. "Fine. I'll be your boyfriend, but no more talk about God. That's a topic I take extremely seriously."

He kissed both girls gently on the lips. Bethany sniffled.

"I'll let you get back to work." He turned around.

A ball of light appeared in front of him. It looked like burning green mist, but there was no heat or sound. Flashes deep inside the ball reminded Bethany of a lightning storm at night. She instinctively knew what the light represented.

"Norbert," the ball said in a voice that seemed to come from very far away, "will you do Me a big favor?"

"Yes," Norbert whispered.

"Take very good care of the twins. Protect them. Nurture them. Love them. They're My friends, and I want them to be happy."

The ball vanished.

Norbert was as still as a statue.

"Norbert?" Bethany said. "Are you awake?"

"What just happened?" His voice was hard to hear.

"That was God, obviously. It was nice of Him to visit."

"It's a trick."

"Don't be rude," she said in sharp tone. "He broke His own rules by speaking to you. You should be grateful."

Norbert looked at her, and his face was pale. "Not a trick?"

"No."

His mouth hung open.

"The filter program just finished," Leanna said urgently. "We have results."

Bethany nodded.

"Are you OK?" she asked Norbert.

He walked off. "I have to meditate," he muttered, "for a long time."

The twins went back to their workstations and set sail on the ocean of information.

* * *

Aaron walked into the computer room. Is seemed like every time he visited, it was more futuristic. The overhead lights were off, and now wall fixtures provided gentle illumination. The glow emanated from behind big, square panels of frosted glass.

"I like the new lights," he said.

"Nancy installed them," Bethany said. "They eliminate screen glare. The old lights hurt our eyes."

"That was considerate of her." He checked his watch. "It's been eight hours exactly. What have you got for me?"

The twins were already getting out of their chairs. As usual they wore white shirts, pleated red skirts, and no shoes. The souls of their feet were visibly calloused.

"Springfield, Illinois," Bethany said.

"The state capital?" Aaron said.

She nodded. "We identified a large cluster of suspicious credit card transactions. The cards are not in the name of White Flame Technology, but that's who pays the bills. There was a burst of activity this morning. We estimate at least a hundred employees arrived in the Springfield area today."

"Excellent work."

"Thank you, sir."

"My team will head south first thing in the morning," Aaron said. "I'll go with them this time. We'll fly in our new helicopter."

"Norbert, too?" Bethany said in an anxious tone.

"His job is to fight God's enemies, wherever they are. That's not going to change just because you love him."

Both girls frowned.

"Speaking of Norbert," he said, "I haven't seen him for hours. Do you know where he is?"

"He told us he needed to meditate, sir," Leanna said.

"He needs to practice his martial arts. He has a lot of work to do in that department. Some exercise would be very good for both of you as well. You have some free time now."

"We'll get sweaty," she whined, "sir."

"That's the idea. I'll ask Nancy to show you her regular workout. And afterwards, you'll practice shooting."

They groaned.

* * *

Aaron climbed a tall ladder that was placed against the side of the headquarters building. He reached the top and carefully stepped onto the slick metal roof. It sloped gradually from a peak in the center. The surface was corrugated, galvanized steel, and some parts were much shinier than others. He had been up here with Nancy a few times, patching holes in the summer heat.

It was night now, but low cloud cover reflected light from the city. The result was an eerie orange glow almost bright enough to read by.

A lone man sat on a folding chair on the roof. He was staring at the skyscrapers of downtown Chicago.

Aaron walked over. "Norbert?"

"Yes, sir." Norbert didn't turn his head.

"This is an odd place to sit."

"I needed some time alone."

Aaron realized he was intruding, but it couldn't be helped. "What's going on?"

"Did you know the twins receive text messages from God?" Norbert said.

"That's interesting."

"Interesting?" Norbert finally turned. "You don't want to use a stronger word, sir?"

Aaron shrugged. "Of course I'm curious what God is telling them."

"Apparently, He likes their software."

"Oh."

"You believe me, sir?" Norbert said. "You don't think it sounds completely insane?"

"You're talking to a man who spits acid and who sleeps with a woman with poisoned fingernails. And by Society standards, I'm not particularly weird. I've learned to keep an open mind."

"Well, I didn't believe it at first, until He delivered a message to me, too. He actually spoke to me in person, if you can call a glowing green ball a person."

"Be careful. Those glowing balls aren't always God. His enemies manifest the same way to us. What did He tell you?"

"To take good care of the twins. They're His friends."

Aaron nodded slowly. "Sounds like important information to remember."

"I've served the Lord my entire life," Norbert said. "I've sacrificed and suffered in a thousand ways. Now, finally, I receive an acknowledgement that He's paying attention. That He knows I exist. And what is my divine purpose? It turns out I'm the designated caretaker for a couple of... freaks."

"You sound disappointed."

"It's not a very glorious job, sir."

Aaron put a hand on his shoulder. "I disagree completely."

"Oh?" Norbert said.

"Considering they have an open line of communication with the Almighty, they at least rank as high priestesses. Maybe prophets, and two of them are officially your responsibility. That sounds pretty glorious to me. It's a very important job, and the Lord could not have chosen a better man for it. Your compassion and dedication are limitless."

Norbert raised his eyebrows. "Thank you, sir."

Aaron smiled. His management skills were improving.

"That's not why I came up here. We're leaving first thing tomorrow for Springfield, Illinois. You need to prepare for the trip now. Pack plenty of guns."

"You're coming with us, sir?" Norbert said.

"Yes. Marina will object, but I have to go. It makes me crazy when she's in danger and I'm not with her. Besides, I want to see how this ends."

"I look forward to working beside you, sir."

"Just try to remember everything I taught you," Aaron said. "This isn't a training mission. Mistakes will be very costly."

"Yes, sir."

"And make sure you take care of the girls tonight." Aaron winked. "Show them a good time. Orders from the top."

Norbert snorted. "Unbelievable. A holy ménage à trios with identical twin prophets."

"Just another day in the Gray Spear Society."

Chapter Nineteen

Aaron looked out the window of the helicopter. They were approaching Springfield, and it didn't impress him. The capitol of Illinois had a population of about two hundred thousand, hardly enough to qualify as a real "city" in his mind. There were more populous suburbs near Chicago.
At least Springfield is bigger than Lemonseed,
he thought.

Only two structures stood out from a distance. The capitol building was a huge mass of sand colored bricks with arched windows. A silvery metallic dome reflected the sunlight dully. The other structure was a concrete cylindrical tower, which he didn't recognize.

Lush green farmland surrounded Springfield on all sides. An occasional river broke up the pattern, but otherwise every square inch of dirt was being cultivated. He could smell the fertilizer from high in the air.

Marina was flying the helicopter. She made a wide circle around downtown Springfield before heading north. Aaron saw a big airport directly ahead, but she descended before reaching it. At first he thought she was going to land in an empty field, but then he saw a cluster of four helipads.

"It's a private heliport used by corporate executives," she yelled over the engine noise. "I rented us a spot."

With a deft touch, she landed the helicopter on the only free pad. The blades spun down. Aaron, Marina, Smythe, and Norbert got out.

Aaron stretched his back.
That's the right way to travel,
he thought. Instead of a tedious four hour drive, they had made the trip in an hour and had seen some amazing views along the way.

He admired the team's sleek, new helicopter. The dark blue color was beautiful even though he preferred gray. It could carry a pilot, a co-pilot, and four passengers in luxury. There was room for another row of seats, but they had been removed to provide extra cargo space.

A maintenance worker in a blue uniform ran out of a small, white, stucco building.

"Hello!" he called. "Do you need any service?"

"Just fuel," Marina said. "Fill 'er up."

"Yes, ma'am. Right away."

Aaron stepped away and took out his phone. He typed in the speed dial number for Bethany, the first time he had used it.

After three rings, she answered in a soft, almost sleepy voice. "Hello?"

"Is Leanna there?" Aaron said. "You both need to hear me."

"I'm already listening on my phone," an identical voice replied.

"How did you...? Never mind. First off, it took you too long to answer. Two rings are the most I'll tolerate when we're in the field. Keep your phone within reach every second of every day. Sleep with it, eat with it, and go to the bathroom with it. It's waterproof, so you can even shower with it."

"Yes, sir."

"I may be calling because I'm in big trouble," Aaron said, "or maybe it's Norbert. If you don't answer, one of us could die. Work out a system so that never happens."

"We will, sir."

"We just landed in Springfield. Where to next?"

"The Calhoun Hotel," Bethany said. "At least fifty White Flame employees are staying there."

"Got it. What are you going to work on now?" he asked.

"A system for answering our phones faster."

"That's correct. Bye." He closed his phone.

Smythe and Norbert were already unloading the helicopter. A pile of duffle bags and suitcases was growing on the helipad.

"Our destination is the Calhoun Hotel," Aaron said. "Marina, we need a van. Please go rent one."

"Yes, sir." Marina ran off.

"And the rest of us will move all this gear."

* * *

It was a muggy day in Springfield. Aaron tried not to get distracted by the girls in shorts and halter tops as he walked down the street. Even though it was still morning, the warmth was making him sweat.

He arrived at the address of the Calhoun Hotel and looked up. This was the cylindrical tower he had seen from the air. Black strips of windows ran up the sides to a height of about twenty stories. Brass trim surrounded the doorways, and it had a diamond pattern hammered into the metal.

"Nice," he said.

He turned to his team. Marina wore blue pants, a matching blue jacket, and a black shirt. A black wig and glasses with thick rims served as a minimal disguise. Norbert and Smythe wore business suits, colored brown and gray respectively. Norbert had glued on a full beard that blended into his brown, curly hair. It probably itched like crazy. A latex skull cap made Smythe appear bald and dark sunglasses covered his eyes.