The Called: Chosen (The Called Series Book 2) Read Free

Antichrist and he had to get out of his presence soon.
    Charles Billingsley’s analytical mind was still at work as he was processing all of the information that he had received. As a scientist, the possibility that this man was in fact an alien fascinated and excited him. On the other hand, he wasn’t sure what he thought about worshipping a self-proclaimed alien as a god.
    He knew what he had seen out in the desert after the portal had been opened, so there had to be some truth to what he was saying. He just had a nagging feeling that they weren’t getting the entire truth of the story from Assad. That was preventing him from jumping headlong into believing him like his associate, Nick, apparently did.
    Assad warned them all that he wanted to keep this news under wraps until the right time. “I am going to make an announcement in Jerusalem at the Temple Mount this weekend. This will be the final step toward peace in this region. That is where I choose to make the announcement to the world, and to show them who I truly am.”
    The three men agreed on it and they were dismissed to their quarters for the evening after a few more lingering questions were answered. They all had the answers they had come in seeking. Two had made up their mind and one was undecided. Charles knew that he would have to make a decision at some point in the near future, but he had to think on everything that he had seen and heard that day.
    As Charles went upstairs to the beautiful suite that had been prepared specially for him, he thought to himself, ‘When, where, and how will Assad’s army show up and what will they look like?’

CHAPTER 2
    Abbie walked into the spacious recording studio at Moonshine records to lay down some tracks for her debut album. The music industry had certainly changed. Technology was so advanced that anyone could make an album from their own home sound professional with multiple layers of vocals and music. It never would be professional though. Those were a dime a dozen now and the market had become so saturated with those independent artists that few of them ever enjoyed success.
    Jenson Moon made a killing out of not only signing artists and recording them there traditionally, but also by taking the few independent artists that were successful and making them even more so. His hybrid business model worked in a world where music, especially country music, had been changing constantly.
    For many years, country music had lost its identity and sound among the pop and rap that had influenced the genre. The two intertwined, but each genre had gone back to its roots in many ways and country was once again country, albeit, not as popular as it had been during the first half of the 21 st century. It had receded back to the southern and Midwestern portions of the country in popularity, but urban country, the mixture of country with other forms of music was still alive and well in the cities across the U.S.
    Abbie looked around the studio at the pictures of past stars who had recorded with Moonshine records. The business had been in Jenson Moon’s family for three generations. It began with his grandfather back in 2059. His vision was to make music pure again. It had become too manufactured and fake. It needed heart…a touch of realism that only real musicians and artists could give it.
    As the band was setting up behind Abbie, Jenson Moon walked in and shook her hand. “I am happy to have you in here today Abbie. I hope that it wasn’t too quick for you. We haven’t even gone over the deal yet. That was my granddaddy’s way though. He sealed everything with a handshake before anything else.”
    “I just appreciate the opportunity Mr. Moon”, said Abbie.
    “It’s my pleasure. Would you like to come into the next room with me so we can go over the deal and discuss a few things?”
    “Absolutely Mr. Moo…”
    Jenson interrupted and held his hand up to her mouth. “You don’t have to call me Mr. Moon. You are part