A short time later, with his leather bag tightly held under his arm, Ed was re-tracing his way back to the White House with Natalie and his two security men in tow. His urgent mission now was to attempt to solve the mysterious codes and he could not wait.
As he pushed his way past security, he instructed the guards to locate the CIA director immediately. He could sense his influence was high when the men scampered off immediately to fulfill his request. The second man escorted them deep into the White House past several more security men, and into a plush room. Painting and ornate furniture decorated the space, but more importantly Alex Pike was sitting up on a hospital-type bed with a gown on. He was forcefully yanking wires off his chest and arms. The tall Asian doctor was attempting to stop him and Ed could tell that the relationship between Alex and the doctor wasn’t going so well. Ed placed his bag on a corner table and pulled out his notes while their heated exchange took place.
Natalie also placed her notepad on the table, pulled over a chair, and sat down. “Is that your friend?” she asked.
“Yes,” Ed said, pulling out several papers from his bag.
Alex noticed Ed was now in the room and yelled out, “Are you going to help me or not?”
“Now let me see what we have,” Ed said, ignoring him. He then waited a few seconds, turned to Alex and added, “Are you going to be a good lad and allow the good doctor to finish working on you?”
“Absolutely not. I am tired of being poked and prodded upon.”
“Well then,” Ed said, “I cannot help you.”
The doctor chimed in, “Sir, can I at least take your blood pressure?”
“If you must,” Alex answered, thrusting his arm forward. “Make it quick, please.”
The doctor took the blood pressure, finished removing the wires, and turned to Ed with a relieved look. “He’s all yours.”
“Thank you, doctor,” Ed replied. “I apologize for his stubbornness.”
The doctor smiled, holding back a laugh. “There’s never a dull moment with you Brits.”
Alex pointed his finger in the air and looked directly at Ed, “And where have you been?”
“I was going to ask you the same thing.” Ed walked up to the bed. He grabbed the clipboard at the end of the table and glanced at it. “It says here that you are guilty of getting shot, captured, interrogated, and vacationing in Spain. How do you plead?”
“Not guilty,” Alex coughed. He crossed his arms on his protruding belly and said, “So I see you have been busy while I was on vacation; what kind of trouble are you in now?”
“Only the usual moaning and complaining,” Ed said, patting his shoulder.
“Good,” Alex said. “I just couldn’t imagine you getting anywhere without me.” He threw his arm in Natalie’s direction, almost pulling his gown off. “And who is that?”
“That young lady is Ms. Natalie Sikorsky, my new assistant.” Ed was deliberately taking it slow with Alex, not knowing how much he had been told since his rescue. “Do you remember what happened?”
“Of course!” Alex shot back. He reached to the side of him and lifted a pile of newspapers and folders. “Someone lit off a bomb over Washington, D.C. and you would like me to figure out who did it.”
“Wayne is dead,” Ed said slowly.
Alex lowered the papers and his demeanor changed from angry to somber. He took a deep breath, lowered his head and asked, “What happened?”
Ed approached the propped-up bed. He was not sure where to begin but decided to start at the beginning and explain the shooting in Lebanon. He patted Alex’s shoulder. “If I remember correctly, the situation was slightly reversed. I was on a plane strapped to a gurney after being shot and you had just arrived with Agent Al Robek and Agent Jess Contreras. I was having a meeting with Mr. Badagliacca from the Vatican.” He paused and then continued. “Ah yes, I recall the aircraft engines were beginning to power up when, for no reason, Jess Contreras jumped up and shot the pilots and then the rest of us.” Ed abruptly stopped, smiled, and asked, “Okay, well that’s it. So how have you been, my friend?’
Alex suddenly caught Ed’s intent of diversion and said, “Don’t you dare leave out London.”
At that moment, a female aide burst into the room virtually on the run, placed a small pile of folded clothes on a desk, and rushed back out.
Ed glanced at the door and Alex grabbed his arm. “You were just about to explain what happened in London.”
“Well,” Ed turned back reluctantly and continued. “It’s all quite simple in fact. The London bunker was attacked and destroyed the same time we were all shot.”
“Betty?” Alex inquired.
Ed nodded, “She got out.”
Alex let go of Ed’s arm and swung his legs off the bed. “Where is she?”
“That is quite the question,” Ed answered with his eyes lowered. “She has been on the run since the attack.”
“On the run?”
“On the run and very busy.” He turned around, walked over to the table, grabbed his leather bag, and returned to Alex’s bedside. “After the shooting, Al and I were captured and were being interrogated for Holy Script translations.”
“As well as I,” Alex added.
“Roughly two weeks later, Betty contacted Saif in Lebanon and he organized an elaborate escape for Al and then he and Vance rescued me.”
Alex tightened his gown to cover his bare legs and asked, “Then who rescued me?”
Ed smiled, “Well, Betty also found you several hours ago and Al...”
“I got it,” Alex finished his answer. He stepped off the bed and walked over to the table, grabbed the folded clothes, and stepped behind the bed to put them on. “Where is Agent Robek? I need to thank him.”
Natalie broke her silence when Alex finished dressing and shook his hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, sir.”
“Likewise,” he answered, tucking his shirt in.
“I’ve heard a lot about you,” she added, staring at the long scar traveling up his face and head.
Alex uttered a short, guttural laugh. “I can only imagine.”
Ed reached into his bag. “A bomb exploded over D.C.”
Alex picked up the newspaper. “I thought the gas explosion story sounded fishy.”
Ed pulled out his papers and placed them on the table. “I see your old dusty brain is still with us.”
Alex glanced at the newspaper briefly and asked, “Was it similar to the bomb Al discovered in Baalbek, Lebanon?”
“Al mentioned that this one was much larger.”
“It was found under the White House?”
“Yes,” Ed answered, sweeping his hands over the papers, spreading them out.
Alex gave Ed a serious stare and he knew what he was thinking. Ed turned to Natalie and said, “My dear, could you please step out for a moment.”
“What, oh, I mean yes,” she replied and left the room.
Once she was out, Alex walked over to Ed with his bare feet and asked in a low tone of voice, “Excuse me for appearing irrational, but has she been checked out?”
Ed responded, “Yes, I had her checked out completely this time.”
“Please finish that statement by stating that you are not kidding with me and how did they destroy the London bunker?”
“No, I’m not kidding, I cleared her, and it turns out that the attacks were coordinated simultaneously.”
Alex glanced up. “I recall the pilot saying over the intercom that the Israeli Prime Minister was assassinated—just before Jess Contreras shot everyone.” He glanced back down, “So the Prime Minister, London, and our plane was attacked; is there more?”
“That’s a good question,. So far our intelligence shows that Agent Contreras received a message from London. The message from London seems to have been sent to several different locations simultaneously.”
“Where?”
“The CIA director is working on that herself personally. Also,” Ed continued, “it was Natalie’s investigation that led us to find the bomb.”
“H-mm,” Alex murmured. He then motioned to the ceiling and gave Ed an innocent stare.
Ed nodded again, understanding what Alex wanted to know without asking out loud. He wanted to know if they were being monitored. Ed shrugged his shoulders in an ‘I don’t know fashion.’ One thing Ed could not let out verbally was the existence of several World War II surplus London bunkers the SAS and MI-5 were using to store records and secret items. As of now, they were not attacked and Ed just shook his head, then smiled.
“Oh,” Alex said, nodding. He walked to the door, opened it, and said, “Please come in.”
Natalie walked back in with an air of suspicion and asked, “Am I cleared.”
“You most certainly are,” Ed answered, continuing where he left off. “Then apparently the London bunker was hit and the three of us were captured, separated, and interrogated individually.”
Alex sat down and began putting on his shoes, “So, tell me about this bomb.”
“I thought you would never ask,” Ed replied, spreading the papers out on the table. “The chamber where the bomb was found was quite old.”
Alex finished tying his shoes and stood up. “How old?”
Ed hesitated a moment before answering, “I believe...older than the White House.”
Alex glanced at the pages on the table and asked, “The space that contained the bomb also had this writing?”
“Yes. We discovered two main chambers connected by a long tunnel. The bomb and the writing were discovered in the chamber below the White House lawn.”
“And two buried statues,” Natalie added.
“Interesting,” Alex said. “Statues, writing, and a bomb. What language was the writing?”
“Hebrew,” Ed answered.
“Well, show it to me already,” Alex barked, ready to move on out.
Ed tossed a few more papers on the table and pushed one in particular toward Alex. Pointing to the middle of the page, he said, “Hold on. We have several mysteries to solve first. One is the writing we found on the bomb.”
“Wait,” Alex said. “There was actual writing on the bomb?”
“This,” Ed tapped his finger on the page, “was actually stenciled on the metal skin of the bomb.”
“Moved from Tilmun in preparation of the loftiest”
“Tilmun,” Alex said. “Is that correct?”
“As far as I could determine, considering the brief time I was down there.” Ed moved his finger to the next page. “And, this is the writing over the buried statue’s head.”
Alex leaned in and read it.
“In-of-the-giants...
Returning from the everlasting...
Establish their throne.”
Alex silently rubbed his chin. “I am already beginning to see hidden clues, and a possible pattern.” He then picked up the page and, after looking at it for a few seconds, said, “This looks very familiar.”
“Ah-ha,” Ed said loudly. “I thought you would catch that.”
“As odd as it sounds—and correct me if I’m wrong—”Alex said, “this writing appears to be a continuation of the secret writings we translated earlier from the gold plate.”
“Gold plate?” Natalie asked.
“Very interesting,” Alex said as he began reading,
“The return...”
“And,” Ed interrupted him, “the writing from the gold plate helped
us find the bomb under Baalbek, Lebanon.”
“Wow,” she exclaimed. “You done yakking?” Alex asked, lowering the page. “Please continue,” Ed said. Alex began reading,
“The return shall be the lighting of the seven seals of Erra through the earth.
First seal of Tubal and the horse
Second seal of Masech
Third seal of Rosh
The end of days will be in the day GOG days.”
Alex glanced back up and grumbled, “This is deep.”
“I had hoped to have all this deciphered,” Ed said.
“Has Wayne had a stab at it yet?”
Ed didn’t respond.
Alex stopped and shook his head. “It’s going to take some getting used to not having the old team around.”
“Yes it is,” Ed replied, somberly. He reached into his bag, pulled out the translation computer and placed it on the table. “Betty managed to save this after London was attacked.”
Alex pulled up a chair and sat down next to the computer. “Well, it’s a start, considering what happened.”
Ed pulled up a chair and sat next to him. “After all these years, this is the first time we have been disrupted in this manner, although we knew it could happen someday.”
“Yeah,” Alex said, “but not so decisively.”
“I’m sorry,” Natalie said.
“The fact is that we got beat and lost a battle or two,” Ed said.
Alex cleared his throat, “But not the war.”
“For example,” Ed said, addressing Natalie, “I would give Wayne the phrase, Moved from Tilmun in preparation of the loftiest. He would then rapidly decipher a biblical connection that would get our investigation started.”
“Yes,” Alex said. “Back to that, how quickly can we determine where Tilmun is, assuming that you translated it correctly?”
“When I first read that,” Ed said, typing the name into the computer, “it reminded me of shipping orders.”
Alex laughed, “That is a good assumption.”
Ed sighed, “Unfortunately, I just realized that some of the information we are accustomed to using is not here.”
Alex cleared his throat and asked, “And what does that mean?”
“As far as I know,” Ed said, “Betty saved one computer from the London attack, but there are now two, which would mean that one is a duplicate.”
“And it’s most likely this one,” Alex added.
Ed leaned back, “I believe so, which means that half our information is on the other computer.”
“Well,” Alex said, “what do you have?’
Ed sat back up, “Well, this computer has the basic translation, but the remaining theories are on the other one.”
“In other words, all the important information,” Alex stated.
“The problem is that I do not know where Betty is,” Ed said.
Natalie raised her hand as if she was in class. “What about the CIA director, can she help?”
Ed put his hands together and clenched his fists, unsure how to respond. He wanted to trust Natalie and believed she could help, but how much could he tell her?
“Well,” he said, “it’s a bit more complicated than that. Our research and theories encompass decades of work.”
“Is it feasible to track down the exact location of this Tilmun?” Alex asked.
“That may be a tough one,” Ed replied. “I looked into it briefly and it appears by most theories to be somewhere in the Sinai Peninsula.”
Alex gave Ed an odd look which gave him an idea. “Since we are stretched thin at the moment, I suggest possibly giving Betty a mission.”
Alex nodded in approval, “I think she could handle it.”
Without actually saying it out loud, the men determined to send the information to Betty to locate Tilmun.
At that moment, Ms. Churchill burst into the room with her security detail, consisting of three very intense-looking fellows. Once her eyes connected with Ed’s, she turned and pointed. The men stopped and backed outside, closing the door.
As the door closed with a thud, Ed saw that Churchill looked frazzled—as if the whole world hung on her shoulders.
She attempted to compose herself as she approached them. “I am glad to see you are safe, Alex” she said, shaking his hand.
“Just another day on the front lines,” he graciously replied.
Ms. Churchill pulled up a chair and put her hands on the backrest. She glanced down at the papers on the table, took a deep breath, looked up and said, “Ed, I have been waiting so patiently for your report. The president, Secretary of Defense, and a few other key individuals, are constantly nipping at me for answers.”
“I can imagine,” Ed politely responded.
She let go of the chair. “You mentioned to the president that clues to locate the other bombs were written on the walls in the cavern below the White House lawn. How far along are you?”
Before Ed answered her, he had to be sure certain requests he had made had been tended to. “I need your help with something.”
“Anything you need.”
“First, did you get the message about the bodies in the tunnel?”
She nodded. “They are being removed and analyzed as we speak, and the area is fully secured.”
Ed read her face and carefully answered, “Very well. There is a reason why I am asking for this as a matter of urgency.”
“I am not asking for explanations.”
“I understand,” Ed said. “Those bodies may somehow hold the key to part of the mystery, but as to what, I do not yet know.”
“From what I hear,” Ms. Churchill prodded, “they were very old skeletal remains.”
“They were Masons,” Natalie added.
“Now that adds an interesting twist to the mystery,” Alex said.
“The bodies were found at the bottom of a shaft at the end of the passageway,” Ed explained. “It depends on which way you arrive, but,” he paused and turned over the papers on the table, “we found a hidden message and a code at the top of the shaft, directly over where the bodies were.”
“You suspect a connection,” Ms. Churchill asked.
“Yes,” Ed answered. “A theory we have is that the message was carved into the stone before they were murdered.”
“Maybe,” Natalie chimed in. “Sorry but,” she abruptly stopped.
“That’s okay, Natalie,” Ms. Churchill said. “You are part of this team now and your ideas and opinions are important.”
So not holding back, Natalie blurted out, “They were murdered to hide the bomb. You know, eliminate everyone that had any knowledge about it to hide the evidence.”
Ms. Churchill analyzed Natalie briefly and replied, “If what you are saying is even remotely correct, that would indicate that the bomb was quite old.”
Ed was not sure how to answer that question but answered, “Yes, of course.”
Ms. Churchill removed a handkerchief from her skirt pocket and dabbed her forehead. “Just tell me that this is heading somewhere.”
“Allow me,” Ed continued. “The chambers below the White House are going to take some time for intensive investigations, but the discoveries made thus far must not reach the outside world.” He placed his hand on the table and stared at her.
“May I see the message?” she asked.
“Of course,” Ed answered, turning one of the pages around so she could see it. “Here is a message we found hidden by one of the murdered men. Part of it looks to be encoded.”
She crossed her arms, glancing down at it, “I’m ready.”
Ed began reading,
“None... of... us... have... revealed what they seek.
Only three left alive for a brief time.
Ed looked up and attempted to read her response. She appeared unaffected by what he read. He then read the second part,
8-1-3-2-I-k-2
“Your analysis,” she asked.
“The message was obviously meant for someone other than us,” Ed answered. “We just have to keep in mind that they were dying and this hidden message may have been their last resort...but why?”
“Why?” Ms. Churchill prodded.
Alex chimed in. “Pardon me for playing catch-up here, but these men or one of them held a secret that someone wanted badly enough...”
“To murder them,” Natalie said, finishing his statement.
“Yes,” Ed added. “When we were deciphering Nazi codes during World War Two, we would often encounter situations like this, but very different circumstances, of course. When someone who held important information knew that their days, hours, or minutes were numbered, they would very often leave a clue or several clues as to what the secret was.”
“Or,” Alex interjected, holding a finger up, “often to mislead us and anyone who found it.”
“Precisely,” Ed said, turning the page back around to face him. He then continued, “The first part of the message is an attempt to describe their situation, and reports that the secret was not revealed; that is clear. The five numbers and two letters are the second part of the message and are a clue as to what the secret was.”
“If it is a clue about the bomb,” Ms. Churchill said, glancing at Natalie, “I think we found it.”
“I don’t think it is,” Ed said, tapping the page.
“Well, then?” Ms. Churchill asked.
Ed held his head down looking at the series of five numbers and two letters. He was quiet for a bit longer than expected and Ms. Churchill prodded again, “Well?”
Ed smiled, placed his pointed finger next to the sequence and straightened up. He then slid his finger directly under the first number. “During the war,” he explained, “we would often spend countless hours looking at numbers like this, researching every hypothetical possibility and every scenario the enemy could possibly throw at us.”
Alex continued for him, “Sometimes it was such a production that we missed the obvious.”
Ed then pulled out a pencil and rewrote the sequence.”
2KI 2318
“A license plate number?” Ms. Churchill quickly asked.
Ed waved his finger back and forth. “Unfortunately, I don’t think cars existed when this was written.”
Natalie pursed her lips as if she was going to plant a kiss on someone and blurted out, “Second Kings: Chapter 23:Verse 18! It’s a Biblical passage.”
“Under ten seconds,” Ed said.
“Impressive,” Ms. Churchill responded. “Scary, but impressive.”
Ed reached down and with his pencil added a colon.
2KI 23:18
After Ed added the colon, he reached into his bag and pulled out Al’s Bible. He turned to II Kings, chapter 23, verse 18. He immediately noticed that it had already been underlined. He smiled and explained, “This Bible was given to Al in Rome by the 19th degree Masons.” He handed the Bible to Natalie, knowing that she would know what he was hinting at. “Can you please read out loud the underlined part?”
She gently took it and began reading,
“And he said, let him alone; let no man move his bones. So they let his bones alone, with the bones of the prophet that came out of Samaria.”
“Notice the mention of bones,” Ed asked.
Natalie spoke first. “It’s weird that one of these guys that wrote this passage about bones is now a pile of bones.”
Alex seemed to catch Ms. Churchill’s puzzled look and explained, “When you are working with Masons you have to understand that they work with signs and symbols and this Biblical passage is intended to be a message of some fashion.”
Ms. Churchill moved closer, glanced at the passage and asked, “Any idea what it means?”
At that moment, the door swung open again and one of the security men entered, walking directly up to Ms. Churchill, and handing her a note. He was out of breath, as if he had just finished a short marathon. “I apologize for the interruption, Ma’am, but this is urgent.”
She grabbed the note and read it. She looked up at him. “When did this happen?”
“Under an hour ago.”
She turned to Natalie. “You had suggested earlier that I pay special attention to any unusual Templar-type activity, correct?”
Natalie seemed almost embarrassed by her statement and answered, “Um, yeah, I guess. Why?”
Ms. Churchill handed the message over to Ed. He read it over, handed it back to her, and said, “The knights have attacked a university.”
Ms. Churchill turned to her security man. “Get this message encrypted and send it to the President and Secretary of Defense immediately.” He turned and ran out, slamming the door shut as he did.
The CIA director then turned to Natalie and said, “Young lady, since you predicted this, I need you to accompany me to brief the president.”
“Oh, okay,” Natalie replied, looking at Ed and Alex for support.
“It’s okay, my dear,” Ed said. ‘You have a very good grasp of the situation and the president needs your counsel.”
Natalie visibly took a deep breath, “Wow, I wish my dad could see this.”
Ms. Churchill motioned with her head. “Let’s move it.”
As they departed the room, Ed and Alex silently sat back down and Alex commented, “The Brotherhood is on the attack here.”
“Yes, they are,” Ed said.
“We are running out of time.”
“Yes, we are.”
“Do you think the CIA director has any idea what is going on?” Alex asked.
Ed shook his head, “No.”
Alex let out a deep breath and grabbed one of the pages. He read it over for a few moments. “I would like to start with the bomb and the chamber it was in,” he paused. handing the page to Ed. “You say this was written on the side of the bomb?”
“Stenciled in black directly on the metal.”
Alex began reading,
“Moved from Tilmun... In preparation of the Loftiest.”
Ed squared himself with the computer, turned it on, and typed in ‘Tilmun.’ “It says here that in Sumerian it’s,” he paused, and wrote it down,
TIL.MUN
“And the meaning?” Alex asked.
“Literally,” Ed said, glaring at the monitor, “land of the missiles.”
“And who came up with that term?”
“Good question,” Ed said as he typed away. He then asked without looking up from the keyboard, “How are you feeling, by the way?”
“Still feeling the latent effects of the drugs but overall feeling peachy. Why? Who’s asking?”
Ed stood up and gathered his papers. “I have a better idea; let me show the chamber to you in person.”
Alex slowly got up. “I thought you would never ask.”