Left Behind: A Novel Of Earth's Last Days (43 page)

Not getting an answer at the Steele’s’, he dialed the church. Bruce answered and told him Chloe and Rayford were there. “Put them on the speakerphone,” he said. “I’m taking the three o’clock American flight to O’Hare. But let me tell you this: Carpathia is your man, no question. He fills the bill to the last detail. I felt your prayers in the meeting. God protected me. I’m moving to Chicago, and I want to be a member of, what did you call it, Bruce?”

“The Tribulation Force?”

“That’s it!”

“Does this mean—?” Chloe began.

“You know exactly what it means,” Buck said. “Count me in.”

“What happened, Buck?” Chloe asked.

“I’d rather tell you about it in person,” he said. “But have I got a story for you! And you’re the only people I know who are going to believe it.”

When his plane finally touched down, Buck hurried up the let way and through the gate where he was joyously greeted by Chloe, Bruce, and Rayford Steele. They all embraced him, even the staid captain. As they huddled in a corner, Bruce prayed, thanking God for their new brother and for protecting him.

They moved through the terminal toward the parking garage, striding four abreast, arms around each other’s shoulders, knit with a common purpose. Rayford Steele, Chloe Steele, Buck Williams, and Bruce Barnes faced the gravest dangers anyone could face, and they knew their mission.

The task of the Tribulation Force was clear and their goal nothing less than to stand and fight the enemies of God during the seven most chaotic years the planet would ever see.