The Veritas Conflict (69 page)

“… can now confirm that most
—
if not all
—
of the victims were associated with a student Christian group here on campus, and that the young man driving the truck was Niles LeJames.”

The announcer came back on, his voice grave.
“This senseless killing appears to have undeniable religious undertones. Mr. LeJames was well known on campus for his strong views against Christian proselytizing and had led a protest rally at the site of the killings earlier in the day. Stay tuned after the break for excerpts from an article written by Mr. LeJames just a few weeks ago.”

Stefan ran after Sherry as she brushed out the door and stalked away.

“You’re not listening, Sher!”

She walked a few more paces on the tree-lined path. He grabbed her by the shoulders, turning her toward him.

She slapped his face. Hard.

“I do not want to stand here and listen to your superspiritual garbage!” she hissed under her breath, looking around. “You’re as bad as Claire! I don’t care what you say you
saw
. This conversation is
over.”

She turned and hurried away. Stefan put a hand to his head and leaned against a tree trunk, his eyes glazing. Then, with a start, he turned and took a step toward the dorm.

Two large men stepped out the door carrying a long, heavy duffel bag between them. One had his free hand stuck inside his jacket.

Stefan stood still in the shadow of the tree as the two men looked around. One of them cursed under his breath. “Where did he go?”

Stefan’s eyes narrowed, and he stepped out from beside the tree. “Over here.”

The man in the blue coat turned and snapped to attention as Stefan walked over.

“We’ve got the girl. Were not sure where the evidence is. We need to take out the man.”

“Leave Ian Burke to me.” Stefan’s voice was curt.

“Okay.” Blue-coat tossed him a small packet of white cloths. “We’ll rendezvous at your father’s house in one hour. If we don’t meet you there, we’ll see you on the island later tonight.” Blue-coats eyes bored into his. “It
will
be tonight.”

“Yes.” Stefan straightened. “Understood.”

Blue-coat hesitated. “Are you sure you don’t need help?” He looked over to his comrade then back at Stefan. “Let us settle the girl, and then one of us will meet you at the man’s car.”

Stefan shook his head. “I can handle it.” He turned and walked toward Ian’s car. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see blue-coat staring after him.

Ian glanced at his watch, and his face tightened. He unbuckled his seat belt and got out of the car just as Stefan came running through the campus gate toward him. Alone.

“Get back in!” Stefan gestured frantically. “Get back in the car!”

“Where’s Claire?”

Stefan yanked the passenger door open and jumped in. “They took her!”

“
What?
” Ian turned toward the gate.

“They’re on their way to get you! Come on!”

Ian wavered then jumped in and slammed the car into drive. He pulled out of his parking spot, tires squealing, just as a man in a black coat came charging through the gate. The man ran a few paces after the car then stopped, staring, in the middle of the street.

Ian kept one hand on the wheel, and with the other reached over and grabbed Stefan’s neck, his fingers digging in.

“What happened!”

He released his grasp with a shake and turned his attention back to the road, pointing the car toward the Grindley House.

Stefan slumped in the seat. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry. There were two of them. And they were armed. There wasn’t anything I could do.”

Ian had tears in his eyes. “What are they going to do to her?”

“I don’t know.…”

“You don’t know!” Ian slammed on his brakes, swerving to a stop in the middle of the road. Behind him other cars screeched to a halt, horns blaring.

“its your family that took her!” Ian jabbed his finger at the door. “Get out of this car!”

“No … no … don’t make me. They want me. Please, I can help you.”

Ian closed his eyes, struggling for self-control. He forced himself to pray, hearing the quiet, urgent voice of the Lord.

He pressed on the gas again, and for the next few minutes they rode in silence, Ian’s mind roiling. One thought—stronger than all the others—was pulling him, drawing him like a crane and a winch.
Get to the Grindley House … get to the Grindley House.…

The other ideas fought for supremacy. They should call the police.… They should notify the college.…

His lips pressed together. And what would they say? That—on a day already chaotic with so much tragedy—the authorities should investigate whether a prominent business professor had arranged a mysterious kidnapping?

He could see their disbelieving eyes now.

Suddenly, Stefan stirred beside him and started to mutter. Ian glanced over. His passenger was whimpering, holding his head. “No … no …”

Ian sped up, praying furiously as he turned onto the familiar street. He could see the gate ahead, standing wide open. Despite himself, his lips twisted. That security camera at work again…

More whimpers. He looked over at Stefan’s face and started to pray aloud.

“In the name of Jesus, evil spirit, I command you to leave this man! Leave this car!”

He turned the wheel, bumping over the edge of the Grindley driveway.

In a flash, Katoth was flung aside. He howled in rage and pain as he smacked against the impenetrable barrier, the stinging prayers of the saints. The car continued on without him. He could see the backpack bouncing around in the backseat.

Behind him, his troop also arrested their progress, hovering, their eyes red and furious.

Katoth watched a score of warriors swarm over the car, watched several women run from the dreadful house, pulling the heir from the passenger seat.

Their prayers! Their prayers!

He roared his rage, holding his head. He pictured Krolech ripping him apart piece by piece.

He stilled. A deadly calm came over him.

It wasn’t over yet. The heir could still make his choice. Why would he choose weakness and frailty over the power he had already seen, the dynasty he could command?

Katoth turned to his troop, barking orders even as his thoughts sped ahead. It was time to take some precautions.

Ian stepped through the front door, laying down Claire’s backpack and standing aside as two women half-carried Stefan inside. He heard the swift tapping of a cane and turned to see Edward Grindley coming toward him across the foyer, deep sorrow in his grandfatherly gaze.

Ian stepped forward and hugged the old man, then broke down at last in wracking
sobs. He slipped to one knee and felt gentle hands on his head and shoulders.

“Mansfield was my
father.”
He whispered to the air. “Why did You take him, Lord?”

Edward kept his wrinkled hands lightly around Ian’s shoulders until Ian’s tears shuddered to a stop. He looked down in benediction and put his hand under Ian’s chin. “The enemy of our souls is the author of death and destruction. But the Prince of Peace transforms what is intended for evil into good. He is transforming the blackest of tragedy into a pearl of great price.”

He kept a quavering hand on Ian’s arm as the young man rose to his feet. Ian’s eyes couldn’t leave Edward’s face.

“God’s purpose is already beginning to unfold, young Ian. There is a wave of anguish, of soul searching, sweeping this campus.” He gestured to the three women still standing quietly in the foyer. “Here in this house, we have felt it. The prayers of the saints have grown fervent. We have already received several hundred phone calls, e-mails, faxes, telling us that a breakthrough is coming, that this campus is shaken to its core.”

He steered Ian slowly into his den. The television set in the corner played silent pictures of the Harvard campus, scenes of grief.

“Within one hour after the news hit, Memorial Church was overrun with students kneeling at the alter, praying, crying. In every dorm, in every building, students and faculty are grasping for something beyond themselves, searching for something to make sense of the senseless. And, as people watch, the scene is being repeated across the nation.”

Ian looked dully at the television then swung, alarmed, toward the old man. “Edward, they took Claire! That accident … they were trying to kill her too!”

“Who is Claire?”

“She was the one doing most of the research on the endowments project, and then we started finding all this other stuff on the Pikes. She—”

Edward gripped his arm. “What is her name, Ian? Her full name?”

“Claire Rivers.”

Edward reeled, and several hands reached to steady him.

He looked up at Ian, an odd expression on his face. “There is even more going on than I suspected. God will reveal it in due course. Before we can know what we are to do about your friend, I need to hear the full story of this day.” He gestured toward the fireplace. “Come sit down.”

Ian cleared his throat, his voice tight, as he allowed himself to be steered toward the sofas around the fireplace. “Do they know how many are dead?”

“They probably know, but they haven’t released a formal list. The authorities
cordoned off the scene, and it took a while to remove the truck without hurting anyone who might have been trapped under the tent.”

“But on the radio they knew Mansfield was dead.”

Edward nodded, his face sober. “He was the first one hit. There is already speculation that the death toll would have been even higher if Mansfield hadn’t been standing in that exact spot. As for the other casualties … well, some students on the scene reported what they saw, but its not all accurate. There was much confusion over who was in the tent. My daughter has a partial list on the hearth.”

Ian went immediately to the list, then he spun around, holding the list in disbelief. “This says Claire Rivers! What—”

“That’s what I’ve been wanting to tell you.”

Ian looked up. Stefan was standing in the doorway, his face grave.

Edward took a long, careful look at the young man as Ian, jaw clenched, explained who Stefan was and how he came to be there. He was about to elaborate on their investigation when Edward raised his hand, then crooked his finger at Stefan. “Why don’t you sit on the couch here and tell us what’s going on.” Edward turned to Ian. “Both of you.” He gestured at one of the women standing in the foyer. “Kathryn, why don’t you join us?”

In a moment, they were all seated by the warmth of the fire. At Edward’s nod, Ian explained the events of the morning and afternoon, trying to keep his tone calm as he described Claire leaving for the dorm and Stefan returning without her.

Edward said nothing, just turned to Stefan and raised an eyebrow.

Stefan took a deep breath. “I’ll explain a little more in a minute, but first I have to tell you what I saw at the tent. At my father’s order, I was watching your barbecue, standing on the Loker Commons stairs. He told me this was to be a ’learning event’ that would help shape my powers within our family dynasty.”

Edward Grindley made a small grunting noise, and Ian, confused, looked over for an explanation.

The old man smiled sadly. “The enemy often creates a terrible counterfeit to something God has ordained. Harvard has a godly heritage, so the enemy desires to raise up those who will be his agents in this place. You might call Stefan’s family a dynasty that has committed itself to the enemies of God for many, many generations.”

Ian straightened, putting a hand to his head. “The old Pikes!” He explained briefly what they had found in their research.

Stefan was looking at him, openmouthed. “How did you—? Never mind. We don’t have time.” He turned back to the larger group. “From my angle, I could see through the tent and into the back corner. Right before the truck hit I saw Mansfield talking to Claire.”

Ian stood up, his voice rising. “What kind of trick are you trying to pull, Stefan?”

“Ian, sit down and listen,” Edward said. “This is all part of it.”

Ian took his seat, quivering, as Stefan continued.

“I watched Mansfield talking to Claire and then—” he closed his eyes, and his whole body shuddered—“and then suddenly it was as if a switch went on in my brain and I could see a whole different picture. I was looking at the lawn, the tent, the students at the barbecue, but superimposed on the whole scene were—” He began panting, no longer looking at his listeners. “Were … these huge, shining men … and these terrible, dark beings with dreadful faces. They were fighting. It sounded like a battlefield. And I looked down and saw these arms coming over my head and shoulders, claws digging into my chest.”

His hands clutched at the fabric on the front of his shirt, and he squeezed his eyes shut. “I couldn’t get them off! The claws started to burn, and I tried to tug and yank at them, but my hands just went right
through
them, and they stayed latched in place. Then I heard tires squealing. And I looked up at the tent and saw that Claire wasn’t Claire at all, but a giant man with huge wings! He looked over at me with this fierce look on his face just as the truck plowed into them! It was like he could see that I could see!”

Edward’s voice was a little shaky. “And then?”

“And then I saw Mansfield. He was shining, surrounded by these giant beings, and … another man was coming toward him.” Stefan looked up, and his eyes were red. “The other man had his arms outstretched, and the expression on his face was—” Stefan’s voice choked. “I’ve never seen anything like that.”

He closed his eyes. “I wanted to run toward him. But this … this burning started in my chest like nothing I’d ever experienced. I ran and ran, trying to get away from it.”

The fire crackled in the background. Ian cleared his throat. “And that’s when you saw us.”

Stefan didn’t speak, just nodded.

Edward leaned forward. “What you saw, Stefan, was the reality behind the veil. There’s a whole world out there that we cannot see, that’s more real and more powerful than this one. There’s a great war going on, and it has two sides.” His voice grew strong. “And you need to decide this day whom you will serve.”