“He’s not here, son. He never accepted the Gift. Your father never wanted anything to do with God. He rejected Jesus—the only sin that can’t be forgiven.”

Barrett shook his head. “Pop was a good man. He was honest and hardworking. He never complained. He did volunteer work and helped strangers in need. He was everything I wasn’t.”

Susan Barrett touched her son’s knee. “But all his good works didn’t allow Xavier entrance into heaven. But you, my precious son, recognized your need for forgiveness and believed Jesus would save you. And he did.”

“I waited so long to ask Him to forgive me, almost too long.”

“But when it counted the most you stepped into the Light. And now you are here with me. I couldn’t be happier.”

“Mama, can you see the people down on Earth?”

“Of course I can. All saints can. But why concern ourselves with a dying planet? This is our home now. Earth holds nothing for us now.”

“Can you show me how to do it, how to look at those below?”

“Why do you want to look back at Earth? That planet is going to eventually melt away along with the heavens. After the fire burns it up, God will renew Earth back to its original state.”

“I want to see if Jon and Annie Rafter and Ned Hoxley are okay. It’s my entire fault their lives are in danger. I knew what Arcadias and Damien were planning to do. I had the power to stop it from happening. But I did nothing.”

“I never did approve of the Charbonneau boys. I feared they would lead you down a wrong path, a journey you didn’t have to take. But I wouldn’t say you did nothing in your mortal life. You went from villain to hero there at the end, Josiah.”

“Too little too late, I should’ve done more.”

Susan Barrett took his hand. “We all could’ve done more to love our fellow man. But we didn’t. So the best thing we can do now is pray. Jon and Annie and Ned Hoxley are Christ followers. We should lift them up in prayer and ask our Father to move his angels into position. Every believer has their own guardian angel.”

Barrett squeezed his mother’s hand. “You start, Mama, and I’ll finish.”

Chapter 45

Arcadias still held the cordless phone in his hand. And when it rang he nearly jumped out of his skin. He looked at the caller ID number on the screen even though he already knew it would be Roy Nixon, the hostage negotiator outside.

Arcadias hit the talk button and walked to a window in the parlor. He pulled the drapery back an inch and peeked out. He dare not move back any more drapery than that. Rafter had warned him about snipers positioned in hidden places, expert marksmen who wouldn’t miss their target.

They’re actuallydoing what I asked, Arcadias thought. Most of the squad cars had moved to the end of the long driveway. And the rest were heading in that direction, as were the deputies. He could see the lawmen walking toward the road. “Hello?”

“Your first demand has almost been met, Jon. Now you need to send out the hostages like you promised.”

“You sound surly, Roy.”

“I’m sticking my neck out for you, Jon, and I’m taking some heat. The SWAT team out here wants to raid the house. And they have legal authority. They have search and arrest warrants. But I convinced them to give me more time. I told them you were calm, and that I thought I could work with you. So live up to your promise, Jon, and I’ll get you some more time.”

“I will release Colette and Ned Hoxley within the next ten minutes. You needn’t worry, Roy.”

“If you want to assure your own safety, I think you should release them within the next five minutes.”

“Okay, but I have one more demand before I do so.” Arcadias could hear the negotiator sighing through the phone.”

“What is it?”

“I want the electricity to the house to stay on.”

“That’s a reasonable demand. I’ll pass it along. But we need to work on your surrender now. The sooner you surrender the quicker you can get your life back.”

Arcadias laughed bitterly. “I will never get my life back. We both know that.”

“You will likely do jail time, Jon. But if you behave yourself you can make parole.”

“I killed a cop, Roy. The lawyer in here says I’ll be charged with capital murder and get the death penalty if convicted.”

“Jon, I need you to calm down. Take a deep breath. The lawyer is only trying to scare you. I can almost guarantee you that if you release the hostages and surrender peaceably, and cooperate with us to the fullest extent and tell us everything that happened tonight, you’ll not receive a lethal injection.”

Arcadias mulled over Nixon’s words. For a short moment he considered laying down his Glock and giving up. But the moment was brief…very brief. “I’ll think about it,” he lied.

“That’s great, Jon. Gabriel Schofield would want you to do that. He cares a great deal for you. He’s worried sick now that he knows what’s happened to you.”

Gabriel Schofield? I wonder who that is. Arcadias scrabbled for an answer. He suspected Nixon dangled the name as bait, hoping he’d bite.

“You remember Gabriel, don’t you? He was your captain in Brooklyn, in the 16th precinct. He’s retired now, but I understand he was a hardnosed police captain, an ex-Army Ranger.”

“Of course I remember Gabriel. How could I not? He’s unforgettable.”

“Gabriel says you’re like a son to him. He wants you to give yourself up so you don’t get hurt,” Nixon said.

“I’ve disappointed Gabriel, I know. But he’s in my past, and I can’t go back.”

“Think about your parents, Jon, and the pain they’re going through now. You can put an end to their worries by simply giving yourself up. It’s what they want.”

“I’ll give it serious thought, Roy. Tell my parents I’m sorry. I have to go now.”

“Okay, we’ve talked for three minutes, Jon. That leaves you seven minutes to release the two hostages. I expect you to honor your word.”

“You’ll see the front door open in seven minutes, I promise. Goodbye, Roy.”

Chapter 46

Roy Nixon killed the phone connection. He turned and looked at Newton Laskey. “I think you may be right, Mr. Laskey. Someone is only pretending to be Jon Rafter.”

Sheriff Tubbs spat on the ground. “What gives you that impression, Roy?”

“The hostage taker drew a blank when I mentioned Gabriel Schofield. He recovered quickly, but never corrected me when I gave false information about Schofield. I said Schofield was his captain in Brooklyn’s 16th precinct. But Jon Rafter was a policeman in Manhattan’s 17th precinct. I also said Schofield was an ex-Army Ranger. That wasn’t true either. Schofield was a Navy SEAL. The true Jon Rafter would’ve known I had it wrong.”

“Maybe he chose to say nothing,” Tubbs suggested. “Maybe Rafter didn’t care you had it wrong.”

Nixon shook his head. “That doesn’t explain the odd answer about his parents. I told him his parents are worried sick about him. And he told me to tell them he was sorry,” Nixon said. The hostage negotiator looked at Laskey. “You said Rafter’s parents are dead, that they died in a house fire shortly after Rafter graduated from high school and went off to college.”

Laskey nodded. He grinned at Sheriff Tubbs. “So how about it, Sheriff, do you still think the dark river flowing through Jon Rafter’s heart is overflowing its banks?”

“I stand corrected, Newton. You were right. But we can only hope Rafter doesn’t take the law into his own hands as he’s prone to do, that his gallantry doesn’t sabotage this operation.”

“I’m sure Jon will only do that as a last resort. He strikes me as an intelligent person.”