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Danger for an Old Friend
Josh drove back along the old dirt road toward home, savoring the pleasure he experienced every time he visited the old home place. The landscape was just as beautiful in the late afternoon light as it had been earlier and it never ceased to remind Josh that the Creator was still in charge and He was merciful. He had put his faith in that promise for most of his life and it still brought light into his darkest often joked that the old pickup was like a trusty horse that knew its way home because he had driven the trip so many times. As he drove he allowed his thoughts to turn to the homecoming that awaited him in the arms of Kelli, his wife of more than twenty years. That homecoming was always the highlight of Josh’s day knowing full well he would be greeted by her with three quick kisses followed by a tight hug. He marveled at the love they shared. It was a love so strong on her part she stayed with him throughout the dark days after he left the Marine Corps. During that entire time, she had been a rock and encourager as he struggled with the initial guilt over some of the targets he had taken down during his service. The young ones were the worst. Those whose parents had turned them into bomb carriers or suicide bombers and then sent them out to kill and cripple as many innocents as they could. His duty had been to stop them before they reached their targets and he had made the shots no matter how much it grieved battle with San Antonio traffic congestion ended as he pulled into the drive alongside their craftsman-style home in an older section of town. Josh had lovingly restored the old house in the King William area of San Antonio after Kelli’s parents had gifted it to them as a wedding present. Josh pulled up in front of the detached garage and entered the kitchen through the back door. He stopped for a moment and gazed at Kelli, taking in the sight of her and the well-lit kitchen full of the fragrant odor of their evening meal. He was home with his wife who, for a reason known only to the two of them knew, called Bear. Did you miss me?” he turned and smiled, “I did, silly.” She gave him three quick kisses and then a deep hug before looking up into his eyes. “You’ve been visiting those old memories again, haven’t you. Are you all right?” she know me too well. Not to worry. You’ve made it all better.” Josh leaned toward the stove and tried to lift the pot cover to check out the delicious aroma permeating the homey kitchen. His reward was a swat on the wrist by Kelli with a hand wash up and then we can grinned, “Yes’m. Right finishing they remained seated at the small kitchen table to talk about the day’s events. Kelli was always happy for Josh to escape the harshness of police work by spending his free time at the ranch. He always returned relaxed and recharged, ready to face the strain of more time on the me something, Joshua. I can see how much you enjoy working on the ranch and I was wondering if you ever think about moving out you should ask. Seth suggested that we give up city life and build a house close to what did you say?”
“I told him I had been too long gone and I love what I do. It’s my calling. I might feel different when I retire but for now, we both have our own areas of service. The ranch is too far out of town for my studied his face and concluded with confidence from their long history that Josh was not minimizing his feelings. She tapped the tabletop with a pointed finger, “Enough said. What was the call from Caleb all about? He seemed excited but he wouldn’t tell me anything.” She gave Josh her most beguiling smile and fluttered her eyelashes. “What’s the story?”
Josh tried to return her smile in kind as he leaned forward, his chin resting on his hand, “You know I would tell you if I knew anything. All Caleb would say is it had to do with some letter the prophet Jeremiah wrote to the Jewish exiles in Babylon. He wanted me to meet him at his office on campus around 8:00 tonight and he promised to fill in the details. As you said, he sounded very excited on the telephone. Speaking of, I’d better get changed before I rose, picked up their dishes, and placed them in the sink then kissed her quickly before heading to their bedroom to exchange his denim work clothes for a more presentable shirt and Antonio traffic could be difficult even in the late evening and tonight was no exception with the approaching rain, increased winds, and cooler temperatures. A few interspersed raindrops fell as Josh made his way to the campus of South Texas Bible Institute on Broadway Boulevard. He rarely used his nights off for any purpose other than spending time at home, but Dr. Caleb O’Connor, being his longtime mentor, held a rare position in his special hierarchy of friends and deserved unique attention. Josh was sure that Caleb well knew of his time limitations as a police detective and would not have presumed to ask for an evening meeting except for something of great importance to him concerning his two men had been friends for ten years, ever since Caleb had immigrated from Ireland to the United States to accept a teaching and research position at the Institute. Within a few months, Caleb had become the leader of Josh’s Bible study group at church. In whatever way those special friendships develop, that singular event occurred between the two men. Josh found a gifted confidante and teacher of Bible prophecy interpretation and Caleb showed fascination in Josh’s stories of military service and police work. It was their mutual interest in prophecy that led to that unique cruised the parking lot in and out of the circles of illumination cast by the security lights for a few minutes, searching for an acceptable parking space among the cars belonging to night students. In short order, he found several slots at the back of the lot and parked so that there was an empty slot to each side to protect his vintage paint job. He left his prized pickup and headed toward the staff office building, breathing in the cooling night air as he walked in between the assorted car models. He knew this springtime respite from the sizzling summer temperatures was short-lived in San Antonio so he did not mind the long walk to Caleb’s office. His long strides quickly carried him to the front door and as he entered he felt what he called the aura of learning wash over him. He continued down the hallway, by-passing the elevator in favor of the stairwell Josh ascended to Caleb’s second-story knocked on the door before letting himself into Caleb’s inner sanctuary and was about to utter a greeting but opted for a simple wave upon seeing him speaking on the telephone. Caleb was trying to remain cordial but was beginning to show signs of agitation, a fact made obvious by his Irish brogue becoming more pronounced. He waved for Josh to enter and have a seat but Josh devoted his attention to the large bookshelf and its contents. After several minutes he turned from the crowded shelves and surveyed the office and its working office seemed small because it was lined wall-to-wall with stacks of books and mounds of research material, and student papers. To Josh, the most important feature of the office was a comfortable brown leather wing-back chair positioned in front of the desk. Though the rest of the office might be cluttered, Caleb made sure that the visitor chair was kept clear to welcome anyone who sought his accent reached its full register and he slipped into Gaelic as he lost all patience with the caller, “No! I do na wish to discuss the purpose for which I am using those manuscripts. Ni’l a fhios agam how you came by this information.” Caleb listened for a moment, “I mean I do na know how you found out but it is none of your business!”
Hearing Caleb’s frustration with the conversation, he returned to the bookshelves and removed the occasional copy, and studied the title. He removed a copy of The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis and casually thumbed through it when he felt chilled by a dark feeling of danger in the air. Is there a real threat here or is it just my imagination? he wondered. Despite feeling somewhat foolish Josh responded to the threatening premonition, and he glanced over his shoulder just to be he focused on the office entrance, Josh saw the door open slowly and a shadow-dark gun barrel thrust into the gap. His mind screamed, gun! All the years of training took over as his instincts sent him flying in that direction. The contents of Lewis’s book were written as a spiritual weapon, but at that moment the book itself became a club in the hand of a trained fighter. As his shoulder crashed into the door, pinning it against the assailant’s wrist, Josh clubbed the exposed hand with the edge of the book, just as a single shot reverberated inside the room. The bullet struck the wall, inches from Caleb’s six-feet-two-inches tall and weighing a solid two hundred pounds, Josh delivered an enormous impact to the door pinning the assassin’s wrist against the door jamb! The onslaught caused the assailant to scream in pain and drop the gun. The shooter’s hand hung limp but he still responded by slamming his greater mass into the door, an impact that sent Josh hurtling into a large bookcase. He rebounded like a basketball and he tried to draw his service weapon as he fell to the floor on his hand and both he scrambled to his feet and raced to the doorway Josh observed the shooter reach in quickly and retrieve the fallen gun before turning to run for the exit. Josh finally unholstered his gun and jumped over a scattering of fallen books, yanked open the door to take a quick look into the hall only to see the stairwell door close and the sound of the suspect’s footfall. He quickly closed and bolted the door, stepped over, and pulled down the blinds to prevent anyone from attempting a shot through the window. The spiritual warrior in Josh said a silent prayer as he knelt beside his friend, fearing the worst but hoping for the best, he slowly pulled on Caleb’s shoulder to turn him over. He felt an overwhelming sense of relief as his eyes met Josh’s and he felt around his friend’s torso with shaky hands for Are you hurt?”
“Scared and a little bruised from the landing, but I’m all right, took a deep breath of relief, “Okay, okay. I’m sure the guy is long gone, but I need to make sure anyway. After I leave, lock the door behind me and stay away from the window. Don’t open the door to anyone except me and while I’m gone, call rose and approached the door, pulled it open to peer outside. Reassured that it was clear, Josh stepped out into the hallway and waited a moment for the locking sound as Caleb shot the bolt. He held his weapon pointing down and off to his left, then retrieved his mini-light with his left hand and headed to the stairway door at a jog. He made his way down to the first floor and checked every door only to find them locked and bolted, then he exited the building and made a complete circuit around the inspection showed the site was all clear, at least for the moment, but now he faced the problem of putting Caleb in a safe place because this had all the earmarks of a planned attack. He couldn’t let Caleb just go home as if this was only a simple mugging. He walked the short distance from the front corner of the building to the main door and looked to the parking lot, and his attention was drawn by the flashing blue lights of the police unit as it arrived. “That was a good response time,” he groused. “I wish it had been quick enough to catch this waited by the front door with his weapon now holstered and his badge in hand as he watched two uniformed officers run toward his location. The two blue-clad men stepped under the protective awning above the entrance and looked Josh over with suspicion. Josh held up his badge and identified himself, “Detective Sergeant Josh Winslow. The intended victim made the call and he’s upstairs in his office. I’ll show you the pulled open the glass door and led them into the building, pleased to note that the senior patrolman was calling the dispatcher and requesting backup to search the campus, as well as an EMT team. He felt sure that the shooter was far away but he hurried up the stairs out of concern for Caleb. They quickly arrived at the office door and Josh knocked three times, then called out, “Caleb, it’s Josh. The police have arrived and it’s safe now. You can open the door slowly swung inward and Caleb peeked out at the three men. The two uniformed officers snickered at the sight of him holding a heavy book raised above his head for protection. However, any urge for Josh to laugh died at his realization of just how unnerving this event was for looked sternly over his shoulder at the two men and his scowl ended the laughter. “Sorry, sir. That was out of line,” mumbled the senior it was.” Josh prolonged his stare a moment longer, then said, “Let’s get to work gently pushed Caleb back as he eased the door open for them to enter and guided his friend to the leather guest chair. “It’s over, Caleb. I checked all around the building. He’s a long way from here by now,” he assured his friend as he removed the large tome from his shaking fingers. He looked at the title and smiled at the coincidence, Battles Against Principalities of the Dark by Caleb O’Connor. He held it up so Caleb could read the title. “It seems you chose the right volume under the circumstances, don’t you think,” he God for His protective hand,” he said and smiled. Then, turning serious, “So that’s the true nature of your job! I mean, peace one moment and extreme violence the next! It’s one thing to listen to you tell of your adventures. But it’s completely different to be in one of them! Lad, how do you go to work every day facing the possibility that you could be the target for some crazed person with a gun?”
Josh knelt beside Caleb as he answered, “Caleb, this job exacts a heavy toll on every person who undertakes to wear a badge. None of us or our families live in a constant state of conscious anxiety, but there is a nagging fear right under the surface that can eat away at a person if they don’t have a well-founded faith. I know I have a lot of people praying for me and that brings me peace. Most of all, it brings Kelli peace. I trust God for his will you take a moment to pray with me? Being shot at is more frightening than I could ever the impatient regard of the uniformed officers, Josh and Caleb prayed quietly for safety and deliverance from fear. As they lifted their requests, each man felt the burden of fear dissipate from their minds, and a real sense of peace come over we will be here for a while so we can file a report. I’ll call Kelli to let her know I’ll be late and to expect you as our house guest. Just for safety’s sake.” He turned away before Caleb could protest and motioned for the two officers to get heavy overcast robbed the night of all ambient light from the neighborhood. The predicted storm poured blowing rain against the windows. The heavy drops made a hammering sound on the roof that masked the sounds of traffic and nature creating a deafening bubble of noise around the house. Kelli turned on the porch light of their restored craftsman home and its lone glow encroached upon the darkness of the late dancing shadows of the trees blown about by the blustery storm filled the front yard with images like gnomes prancing on the lawn. What an imagination I have, thought Kelli as she waited alone through the interminable hours for Josh and Caleb to arrive. She couldn’t help but wonder just how badly Caleb would be traumatized by being the intended victim of a shooting. She had sat with Josh frequently as he talked himself down after being involved in such an ordeal. His training and experience always helped but Caleb did not have that checked her watch for what seemed like the hundredth time to see that only ten minutes had passed since her last look. “It’s always worse when it’s a nighttime phone call and I have to wait alone for Josh to get home,” she mumbled to the empty room. “Not knowing how bad the situation is, sometimes makes my imagination run wild, and then time drags by at a snail’s pace. That makes it even peered out the window again as the mantle clock struck midnight but this time she saw the headlights of Josh’s truck as he pulled in from the street. A palpable sense of relief washed over her. She padded over and opened the front door to stand under the warm glow of the porch light and waited to greet Caleb and her husband. The radius of light reached the street but Kelli could only see the silhouettes of the men approach her home. Their footsteps splashing water along the sidewalk was a welcome sound. She stepped away from the open door and greeted Caleb with a hug as he tried to stamp his feet to remove the dampness, “Don’t worry about that, Caleb. A little bit of water won’t harm anything.” She turned to Josh and sought his comforting inside, Caleb, before you catch a cold,” Kelli scolded as she took Caleb by the elbow and escorted him into the house. “I have the kettle ready to heat water for tea and I want you to try and relax. There’s plenty of time afterward for me to hear the whole story.” She took a quick look at Josh and was gratified to see him turn in a complete circle as he checked the neighborhood for any movement. Only after he satisfied himself that the area was clear did he follow at a short distance behind and then turned on extra outside lighting at the corners of the think hot tea is an excellent idea,” Caleb feared that it would be too late for caffeine so I put out some herbal pomegranate tea. I hope that’s all that would be delightful. Did you know that pomegranates have excellent health benefits and were greatly prized in biblical times? Of course, today science has determined that they contain high levels of vitamin C and K as well as most of the essential minerals for good health,” he rambled. “Biblical dietary habits might make a good topic for term papers next gave Josh a worried look as he mouthed one word to her, Shock. She got Caleb seated on the sofa and then went to the kitchen in the back of the house to retrieve the tea it’s been too long since you’ve come to visit. My goodness, it must have been at Christmas time,” she said upon re-entering the living agree, lass. I seem to get so caught up in my teaching and research that I just let time slip away from me. Other professors at school have told me often enough that I’m tunnel-visioned.” Caleb fell silent as Kelli brought in the tray with three mugs filled with steaming water and set it on the coffee table. The steeping tea bags filled the room with the sweet aroma of the exotic fruit and the warmth of the mug Caleb held soothed his frazzled nerves. He began to believe that sleep might be possible after sipped slowly at his tea, allowing the familiar act to dissipate the adrenaline effect that had flooded his system earlier. As he began to relax a little, the thinking process of a trained investigator began to take over and he started to compile a mental list of the questions he must pose to the most peaceful man he knew. He watched and listened as Caleb relaxed and when the time seemed right he began, “Caleb, this may sound like a ridiculous question but do you have any enemies that would wish you dead?” Josh gave him the most innocent stare he could muster, “I’m a lovely chap. How could I have an enemy so evil as to attempt my murder?”
Josh’s stared icily at his best friend to convey the seriousness of the question, “Caleb! This was not a robbery gone bad or a case of mistaken identity. This was an attempted assassination, don’t assume otherwise. I was only able to stop him because I got gave him a lightened-up look. He stared back for a moment before taking a deep breath and exhaling slowly. “I’m sorry, Bear. But Caleb was targeted tonight so it’s obvious that someone with an unknown reason wants him dead. I need the information to have any chance of finding that person and making an arrest so I need direct answers to my you believe that whoever ordered this will make another attempt?” she challenged in anticipation of her husband’s a doubt!” he confirmed in response to her question. Josh turned to look at Caleb. “Someone wants you dead for reasons of their own and they won’t be satisfied until the deed is done. If we can figure out those reasons, it will greatly facilitate our search for the responsible person without putting you or me in any more he won’t try again. I know you must have hurt him? I heard him scream after the shot,” he insisted, still not fully understanding the import of Josh’s pretty sure I broke his wrist when I slammed into the door. He won’t be back any time soon but they can always hire another hung his head in resignation, then looked up, “I’m sorry. I can’t even imagine what this is all about. I’ll try to answer your questions as best I studied his friend with compassion, but still, he decided to press on with his questions, “I’ll arrange for increased security with the campus police, they can patrol the hallways outside your office and classroom more frequently. But right now, let’s try to figure this you need to let Caleb get some rest. Can’t you see he’s exhausted,” Kellie buts,” she said with conviction. “That’s enough for tonight. I’ve made up the bed in the guest room. You look tired didn’t even bother to protest as Kelli stood and pointed him toward the guest room promising, “I’ll be sure to wake in time to make it to your first class of the morning. Although, I don’t see why you can’t take a day off after being the target of a shooting,” she scrubbed roughly at his face with both hands as if he were rubbing away the fatigue, “Bear’s right. I’m so exhausted it’s hard to think straight. No one will know to look for you here. I think it’s a good idea for you to stay here for a few days while we try to find this watched his friend walk slowly into the hallway and then spoke quietly to Kelli, “I can’t fathom why anyone would try to kill Caleb. How could a man who projects such care and concern for everybody make such a hateful enemy?”
“That’s a question for tomorrow. Right now, you need some sleep too.” Arm in arm they headed up the staircase to the master bedroom for some much-needed