Chapter 42
Joseph had been reading a very thick book that explored what might have happened in history if things had gone slightly differently. Some historical scholars speculate that the Jewish faith would have died had the Syrians attacked a small Jewish village in 79 AD instead of passing it by, considering it insignificant and not worthy of the effort People being what they were, which is not much different than what they are now, the village would have been destroyed and no members of the faith would have been left within its blooming center. Consequently, destruction of that village the would have been the demise of the Jewish faith in its budding form, the Christians and the Muslims would never had seen their own births, for they are offshoots of Judaism. How different would the world be today?
Joseph had been reading a very thick book that explored what might have happened in history if things had gone slightly differently. Some historical scholars speculate that the Jewish faith would have died had the Syrians attacked a small Jewish village in 79 AD instead of passing it by, considering it insignificant and not worthy of the effort People being what they were, which is not much different than what they are now, the village would have been destroyed and no members of the faith would have been left within its blooming center. Consequently, destruction of that village the would have been the demise of the Jewish faith in its budding form, the Christians and the Muslims would never had seen their own births, for they are offshoots of Judaism. How different would the world be today?
If a Nazi officer had not moved a briefcase because it was in the way at a meeting, Adolph Hitler would have been killed by a bomb that briefcase contained. WWII would have ended long before it did and millions of lives would have been saved. The ironies of chance seemed to show the world as haphazard at best and the speculation is that today's major religions would be something much different then what they are. It was a book of speculation by scholars, interpreting the 'what if's' of history, of which there were so many it create a book thousands of pages long. Joseph found this type of reading fascinating, but at the moment the book lay open on his lap, his head hanging to one side, the overhead reading lamp shining duly on his thin gray hair as he dozed.
The sound of the phone ringing jarred him awake with a start. “Yes.” he said into the receiver.
The voice did not identify itself, but only said, “You may complete the operation.”
“Are you sure?” Joseph asked hopefully.
“Yes, it has been a long time coming, hasn't it? The final stages are transforming as we speak. You know what to do, what we agreed upon.”
Joseph wondered how the Committee knew what was happening before anybody else did, but he didn't ask, and accepted the information as fact, for the Committee was always accurate. Joseph knew that 'chance' could always change the course of events, which is why he carefully studied each step he took, and even then remained flexible, knowing fate was determined by human foible. Being human, he was just about to do exactly that – change the course of expectation.
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When Sam Levitt, Assistant Director of the Special Unit, Anti-Terrorism, was declared lost at sea in a plane accident, the newspaper failed to mention the other passenger by name, only saying that other members of his party also passed into the good night. The other passengers was a man named Alberto De La Cruz and his assistant, Spike.
Joseph read the article and then called a phone number he had never called but had waited patiently to contact for three years.
“Joseph?' The voice asked hopefully upon answering the phone.
“Hello, Jeff.” He responded.
“My God, don't tell me it's over.”
“Yes, it is. You were right when you guessed the mole was Sam Levitt. Believe it or not, your own sister devised the plan to bring their operation down.”
“Susan? Are you telling me that they found her.”
“Yes. But, she is one tough, smart lady. She and a man named Brad sort of saved the day. Hopefully, you will get to meet him sometime in the future, but for now we will complete our deal. I will contact the agency and list our demands for the return of the weapons system.”
“They will suspect who you are.” Jeff Jenkins noted.
“It doesn't matter. We have this planned out and it has been for a long time. We're charging a finders fee of ten million for something that is worth billions. They will consider it a bargain. As soon as it is completed, you will find five million in the account that we set up. I think we can both comfortably retire on five million a piece.”
“Yes. I would say that supplements my savings quite well.”
“How do you like the island?” Joseph asked.
“It's beautiful here and the costs very reasonable. I think you will enjoy your new home.”
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