“Whoever controls the money controls you.” Sharon Tucker
Khalil met with his mother, brother, and the trustees to discuss the embezzlement charges he recently raised against his father. Hezekiah wanted to play dirty so Khalil was about to show him who was the real boss.
He yielded the floor to his brother, the financial wizard. “After conducting a full financial review, it has been determined that over half a million dollars was embezzled by former Pastor Hezekiah McCoy. In addition, we have reviewed Holy Rock’s financial accountability practices that protect the church and the reputations of any others involved with the church’s finances.”
Khalil then spoke up. “We considered one of two options and decided on the latter. The first option was to consider whether to involve local government authorities. If the amount stolen had been a small amount we more than likely would have decided to keep this matter private, asked for full repentance and restitution. This was not the case. The second choice is to entirely turn the matter over to the authorities and "wash our hands" of this terrible situation after being betrayed by my father, former Senior Pastor of this great church. After weighting both options, it is understandable that there comes a time, such as this, we thought it wise and in the best interest of Holy Rock to involve law enforcement, which we have done.”
Many of the trustees present could be seen nodding in agreement. “Though it could have been done prematurely, a crime was still committed. I communicated this to the congregation of Holy Rock.”
Xavier used his excellent mathematical skills to fix the financial records to show his father had embezzled hundreds of thousands of dollars, which would put Hezekiah behind bars far longer than the six years he once served!
Yeah, you messing with the wrong ones now, Daddy-o Khalil thought. All he had to do was find out where his father had moved. He had no real worries about that because he was assured by law enforcement and the FBI they would have no problem finding him. A search of Hezekiah’s medical records would reveal that. Yep, it was only a matter of time and Hezekiah McCoy’s walls would come tumbling down.
Khalil still couldn’t believe his father would stoop to the low level that he had by sending those guys to do God knows what to him. Since that night, he made sure to look over his shoulder. He was about to move into his new spot this weekend. Holy Rock was footing the bill. Unlike his father, he wanted the church to pay the mortgage, taxes, and other expenses for his home. The trustees agreed without question. He had them in the palms of his hands. There was not much that they wouldn’t agree to when it came to Khalil McCoy. He was just that smooth.
His next big purchase would happen later today after the meeting. He and Omar were headed to Brentwood, Tennessee to check out an $80,000 Tesla Roadster in his favorite color no doubt— red. He loved his Lexus coupe but in light of the vandalism that had been done to his ‘baby’ and the fact that the thugs knew the car, Khalil put it up for sale and got a buyer in a matter of days.
Xavier and Ian went shopping for furniture to put into his new crib. He moved into his apartment the week after his mother moved into her new home. Each of them, including Khalil, were making money moves and Xavier felt good. He may have missed out on attending college, but he was quickly becoming accustomed to the benefits and perks of being part of Holy Rock. The more the church prospered, the more his pockets prospered…and the church was on the rise.
It was becoming a big draw, the church for young highly successful professionals and techies who didn’t mind filling the collection plates Sunday after Sunday.
The television ministry would be taking off in another couple weeks and that was expected to bring in even more money. Televangelism was a billion dollar industry. Many pastors and churches became mega rich because of the reach these television preachers were able to garner. Khalil planned to be no different. He already had commercials he showed on two partner television stations announcing Holy Rock Ministries would be coming to those particular stations. He formed a partnership that was already starting to bring in substantial sums of money through social media, livestreaming church services, and mass mail outs. He and Xavier, along with Fancy, of course, were turning Holy Rock into a church to be reckoned with.
Khalil arranged, along with Xavier, a partnership called WOW which stood for World of Worshippers. WOW were partners who sowed into the ministry of Holy Rock. They would receive a variety of gifts depending on the amount of their giving. His selling points to those who became WOW Partners was their donations and commitment to being WOW Partners would ensure Holy Rock was able to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ globally, help those in need, support weekly television broadcasts, live worship events, and missions.
After each live and replayed television broadcast, much like he already started doing on Holy Rock’s social media accounts, he offered tapes of his sermons and life changing messages, in exchange for any amount the person could give or at no charge. Most people, however, who ordered the tapes paid from one dollar to twenty-five dollars for each DVD which had grown into thousands being mailed. That too would only increase, Khalil guessed, when he went live on Sunday morning and did replays on Sunday evenings and live again on Wednesday nights.
The young preacher used the same hustle mentality he once used on the murderous and dangerous streets of Chicago and put it into making Holy Rock, but namely himself, a household name while his bank account grew exponentially.
“What about this?” Ian asked Xavier as they stopped and stood in front of a tan wraparound sofa Ian pointed out in the furniture store.
“Umm, I like it, but I don’t know if my living space will hold such a huge sofa. I think I need something smaller.”
“Yeah, I wasn’t thinking about that. Your apartment is quite larger than mine so I thought it might work, but you’re probably right, it wouldn’t leave much room to get around. But I do love it,” Ian told him.
They continued to walk around the furniture store. “What about this one? And that chair that goes with it? I think it’ll be perfect,” Xavier said as he pointed to an atomic red, three-seated, fabric sofa with high arm and headrests.
“Oooh, I love it. I see you have a wild side to you,” Ian teased. “I never thought you’d like bright colors”
“There’s a lot you’ve yet to learn about me,” Xavier remarked, “stick around and you might find out.
“I can’t wait,” Ian replied. “So you’re thinking about this one?” he asked, referring to the sofa again.
“Yes. I think it and the chair will be perfect. All we need to find now is a rug, a couple of end tables, and a coffee table.”
“Let’s do it then,” Ian said.
Three plus hours later, Xavier had finished choosing the furniture, including a queen-sized bedroom set, a two seater dining room table, the sofa and chair and numerous other accessories. He made arrangements for the items to be delivered. Ian also helped him choose linen, towels, dishes, and anything else the two of them thought Xavier would need.
When he was done, he was exhausted, but happy that he was taking the step he was taking. He was a man, a man that would be living on his own, making his own money, and making his own decisions about his life. No more listening to the opinions of others; he was taking charge of his own life. With a friend like Ian, he felt empowered. Ian had that type of effect on him.
He was glad that Eliana introduced the two of them. Two more nights, and he would be picking up the keys to his own apartment. Settling down for the night, he fell asleep quickly at Ian’s apartment.