7. The Four

Kate Maxwell stepped quietly through the open French doors of the study. Her husband was cradled in one of the overstuffed leather chairs, eyes closed, breathing steadily, and oblivious to her presence.

She stepped to the right and stood in front of the coffee machine. It recognized her and displayed a list of her favorites. Her finger hovered over the options, touched Caramel Latte, and the machine hummed as it began grinding the beans. She glanced at her husband, but he remained oblivious to the sounds. She turned to stare blankly at the flames dancing in the fireplace, her mind replaying images from the dream. Was it just a dream? She had a gift for interpreting dreams, but this one needed no interpretation. There was no hidden meaning or symbolism. It was real. And why did her husband seem so distraught when she told him Sarah was the Seer?

A gentle chime told her the Caramel Latte was ready. She turned from the fireplace and lifted the steaming cup to her face. She closed her eyes and inhaled the rich aroma, letting it draw a smile on her face. It’s the small things. 

Her mind returned to the dream, walking up to her husband and talking with him. He was as surprised as she. People in dreams aren’t surprised to see you. Holy Spirit, what’s this about? 

She eased into the other leather chair opposite her husband and watched him over the brim of her cup. The answer to her question would come as they talked about it. That’s your way, isn’t it, giving half the story to each of us. Revelation flows out of our union. 

Like us.

Kate smiled, closed her eyes, and breathed into her mug, enjoying the warm coffee aroma brushing her cheeks. Yes. Life flows from intimacy. Her mind lingered on the thought. It was woven into the fabric of creation.

She raised an eyebrow at her husband. Well, there certainly wasn’t any intimacy going on here. Either he was lost in communion with God or had fallen into a “deep meditative state,” as he liked to say when she teased him of napping. Setting her coffee on the end table between her and the loveseat, she leaned her head back, letting herself sink into the leather chair. God’s presence settled on her like a warm blanket. She yielded, closed her eyes, listened to the crackling fire, and turned her affections toward the one who loved her. Her mind wandered back to the dream of heaven, the little flowers that caressed her toes, the big angels thumping their chests as they anticipated a new mission.

The smell of coffee and caramel drifted into her consciousness. She opened her eyes and jerked with a start. A young woman stared at her from behind the loveseat, dressed in an oversized hoodie and sweatpants. 

“Oh! Sarah, you’re so quiet.” 

Sarah was young, in her early twenties, with sky-blue eyes that sparkled with so much life. Her long blond hair, usually cascading around her head and shoulders in French braids, appeared a bit tussled from a night’s sleep. About a year ago, she had called them one morning. “I see angels,” she told them, her voice excited and laced with wonder. Not long after that, Sarah came to live with them and started attending the school where she and John taught. 

“I’m sorry, Aunt Kate. I smelled his presence and wanted to see what was going on. I’ll leave you alone.” Sarah turned to go.

Kate glanced at her sleeping husband and spoke quietly. “Sarah. Stay. Come. Have a seat.” She motioned to the love seat, then realized Sarah couldn’t see her hand. Sarah responded with an eager but muffled giggle, climbed over the back of the love seat, and snuggled into it, drawing her bare feet onto the small couch and hugging her knees. 

Kate smiled at her and wondered what it was like to smell God’s presence. Sarah was a Seer, in a unique sort of way. They delighted in her innocence and loved to hear her describe the angels that visited their home from time to time. She was such a joy and had become like a daughter to them. Her presence in their home helped fill the void left by Destiny. 

Kate looked at her husband. “I feel like this morning is important. Let’s get this thing going.” She raised her voice slightly. “John?”

The man didn’t respond. His head was back, and his breathing steady. She tried again, a little louder. “John! Wake up!”

Her husband jerked and sat up. “What?”

“You fell asleep.”

“Oh, don’t be silly. I was, ah, in a deep state of meditation.” He smiled at her, saw Sarah, and smiled again. “Oh. I’m outnumbered.”

Sarah giggled. “Busted!”

“So did God say anything while you were, um, mediating?” Kate took a sip of coffee and peeked at him over the rim of her mug. 

John sat up. “I had a dream last night.”

Kate leaned forward. “I had a dream as well, at least, I think it was a dream. It was like nothing I’ve had before.”

“I love dreams!” Sarah’s head bent forward, and she hugged her knees more tightly. “Who’s going to share first?”

Kate looked at John with raised eyebrows. John frowned and shrugged.

“You first, Aunt Kate.”

Kate looked at Sarah, then at John. “Okay. I dreamed I was in heaven. It felt so real. The grass, the breeze. And there was so much joy. It’s like, well, I think I could even smell it.”

“You smelled joy? It’s a wonderful smell, isn’t it?” Sarah’s face lit up in a huge smile.

Kate looked at her. This girl smells things like this here. Her world is so different. “It was amazing. I can’t compare it—.”

“OK, girls, let’s talk smells later. On with the dream, please.”

Kate looked at her husband and then at Sarah. “I guess he didn’t smell joy.” She took a swig of coffee while Sarah giggled. 

“All right, Mr. Maxwell. Here’s the dream.” Kate launched into a detailed description of her experience in heaven, omitting the part about Sarah being the Seer. Sarah listened like a child looking at a lighted Christmas tree and interjected questions for more details. John was quiet, but his eyes grew wider as she described what she saw.

She finished and looked at her husband. His head was bowed, and his eyes were closed. “John, what’s the matter?”

He opened his eyes and took a deep breath. “Wow.” She and Sarah waited for him to say more. 

“Kate, I was there. I saw you walk toward me and call my name.”

Kate blinked. The idea settled upon her mind. It was not a dream. They were both there, in heaven. Somehow. 

“John, we are the shepherds.”

He nodded. “We know who one is, but do you have any thoughts on who the other three might be?”

Kate leaned back in her chair and lifted her mug. “For the healer, Miguel comes to mind.” She took a sip of coffee.

“Have I met Miguel?” Sarah’s face scrunched in thought.

“You might have met him at school. You two would definitely get along. He’s such a sweetheart.” Kate snuck a side glance at John and winked.

Her husband raised one eyebrow to give her a look. He was always trying to stifle her matchmaking activities. She was good at it. Romance is good for the soul, but he didn’t like the complications it introduced. Sure, love was messy. But worth it. He’d come around. She looked at him and raised an eyebrow in response.

Kate sipped her coffee before lowering the mug. “There are numerous prophets at the school, but the one already connected to us is Jessie. Now that girl can read your mail.”

Sarah clasped her hands together and smiled. “Jessie, yes! It’s annoying when she reads my mail, but I love her.”

Kate touched a finger to her bottom lip. “The craftsman represents someone gifted with God’s solutions, like Daniel in the Old Testament or the artisans who built the first Jewish temple.” She cradled her mug in both hands. “Oh, well, of course. Our very own Austin. You better nab him quick. Half the mothers in the church are asking me to introduce their daughter to him.” Kate looked at John with an imperceptible nod.

John returned her look with one of his own and shook his head imperceptibly.

Sarah interrupted their silent dialog. “And I’m the Seer!” She sat straight and beamed with a big smile. 

Kate raised both eyebrows and looked at John, then at Sarah. “That was my thought exactly, Sarah.”

John’s eyebrows wrinkled, and his lips pressed together in a frown. He leaned forward and looked at Kate. “Kate, I asked the angel next to me where this mission was going down.” John rubbed a hand over his face. 

Kate looked at him. “What?”

John sighed. “The town’s name is Novus.” 

She sat forward, her lips pressed together. Her gut tightened. 

“Novus? The one we talked about?”

John glanced at Sarah without moving his head. He nodded imperceptibly.

They had recently talked about Novus. A month ago, John stumbled upon their web page. He felt compelled to investigate further, and so put CAITI on a mission to unearth everything she could find about it. It appeared to be a green initiative financed by private investors. John wasn’t satisfied and directed CAITI to search the dark web. There it told a different story.

A hacker group posted what they believed were the digital wallets used by Novus to receive funds, claiming that at least 30 percent of all funding came from the government. CAITI confirmed that a third of Novus funding came from a single source, but could not verify that it was the U.S. government.

That same group claimed the town was really a front for a government experiment. All internet traffic was filtered going into and coming out of the town, and the town was exempt from certain laws protecting the rights of citizens. Two of their members posed as a couple, were inducted as citizens, and began reporting back information about the town. Then all communication stopped, and they were never heard from again. When they inquired about the couple, Novus said they had no records of anyone by those names or descriptions. John said the hacker group’s claims couldn’t be proved and that it was difficult to conceive that such things could be covered up. At the time, Kate had dismissed Novus as irrelevant to her life. Until now.

The giant was back.

She chewed on her lower lip and stared at him as heat flushed her face. Tears pooled in her eyes. John looked at Sarah, who looked at Kate with furrowed brows. The room was silent for a long minute. Kate blew out a breath and slowly shook her head. Her hand trembled slightly as she set her coffee mug on the table.

“I don’t know if I can…” Her voice wavered. She took a deep breath. “Handle another round with the giant.”

She stood and turned to go. “I need to talk to God about this.” As she rounded the door, she put her back to the wall, closed her eyes, and listened to Sarah’s voice coming from the study. 

“Uncle John, why is Aunt Kate afraid?”

Her husband sighed. He spoke cautiously, as if trying to protect Sarah from unpleasant images. “Novus is a smart city in the U.S. It advertises itself as the perfect city. But its laws are more, uh, restrictive than here. They don’t, uh, take kindly to anyone disrupting their control.”

“But it’s not like we’re going there to disrupt their perfect city, right?”

“Oh, but we are, Sarah. God wants to disrupt their plans. The kingdom of God will always disrupt the kingdom of Man. They won’t like it. They won’t like us.” 

The study was quiet. 

“But I get to go with you, right Uncle John? I’m the Seer in your dream.” 

Kate leaned her head against the wall and bit her lip. The girl didn’t realize the danger this would put her in. She didn’t know what she was asking. They couldn’t risk losing a daughter. Not again. Kate stepped into the doorway and looked at her husband. She pressed the fingers of one hand against her mouth. 

“Uncle John, if Jessie goes to this smart city, I want to go with her and you and Kate. You guys are my family now, and Jessie and I are like sisters. I have to go. It feels like my destiny.” 

John glanced up at Kate. Her eyes burned with fresh tears. She covered her mouth, then turned and walked away.