04 The Edge of Darkness Read Free Page B

attraction. It is similar to Alcatraz Island in the San Francisco Harbor, only Robben Island is much larger. Nelson Mandela spent a number of years incarcerated there.”
    “It’s too bad they let him out of prison,” stated Bartholomew. “I’ve grown weary of his rhetoric about apartheid and his suffering through racial segregation. For the life of me, I can’t imagine why they awarded him the Nobel Peace Prize.”
    Viorica Enesco nodded in agreement, brushing her red hair out of her eyes. “Enough about that.” Her Romanian accent was strong. “I have no desire to visit the prison on Robben Island or anywhere else. I’ve personally seen enough prisons.”
    “How about a ride up toward Table Mountain, behind our estate?” asked Señor Mendez. “I hear there’s quite a view of the Cape from up there. And then perhaps we could drive over to Lion’s Head. It is quite famous.”
    “This is not a vacation,” said Bartholomew. His British accent had a chilling tone to it. He was tired of all this useless banter and anxious to start the meeting. “We are here to discuss business. Our attempt to blow up the George Washington Bridge did not succeed quite as wehad hoped. It did, however, fulfill our plan to drive the leaders of the United Nations out of America. They have started their relocation plans to Babylon. The European Union is functioning well, Europa is rising, and we are still on course.”
    “Well, I must add that the George Washington Bridge plan did put quite a scare in the Americans. That was a great bonus for us.”
    “True, Jakoba. That, along with Talon eliminating Stephanie Kovacs. That reporter was getting too inquisitive for her own good. She was on the verge of finding out about our payments to the U.N. leaders. Besides, she was giving too much information to Murphy.”
    Sir William Merton quickly sat forward. His face began to change and his eyes flashed with hatred. “We have two loose cannons to be concerned about. The first is Dr. Michael Murphy. He knows too much about the Bible and has discovered too many ancient artifacts that can help to prove the Bible to be true. But what worries me the most is his talking with Dr. Harley B. Anderson. There’s no telling what information he acquired from him before Talon killed him. We don’t know what he learned about the birth of the Boy from reading Anderson’s notes.”
    “The Boy!” said Viorica. “You know he’s not a boy anymore! He’s a man, and it’s almost time for the Friends of the New World Order to expose him and unite the people of the earth under his leadership!”
    “And the second loose cannon?”
    “Yes, Ganesh, that is our old enemy Methuselah. His hatred for the Seven is matched only by his great wealth. We have been unable to get close to him. He has too many bodyguards. Yet he keeps getting information about us somehow.” He studied the faces of his six compatriots for several moments before continuing. “There has been a breach of security in our organization. You will recall that we had Talon steal the tail of the Bronze Serpent from the Parchments of Freedom Foundation and bring it to our office in France. We were going to then transport it to the castle. However, someone stole it from the safe in the office and sent the tail back to the Parchments ofFreedom Foundation. I’ve instructed Talon to get it back. Whoever did this is through. Once we discover who it is … he’s a dead man.
    “Or woman! Who do you think that might be?”
    “I don’t know, Señor Mendez. But you can be sure that we will find him or her. It’s just a matter of time. We’ll all have to be on the alert for anything suspicious. Meanwhile, we need to focus on the future. It would be good to eliminate Dr. Murphy, but for now, we must concentrate on empowering De La Rosa.”
    “What do you suggest?” asked Mendez.
    “We shall invite Shane Barrington for a visit. We will get him to promote De La Rosa through the vast Barrington News