In the Beginning-

Chapter Eight

Simeon:

            “You’re not going to believe this.”

            Simeon frowned as he looked up into the face of Sebastian. Having spent a better part of his morning in his study poring over his art books, he’d lost track of time.

            “Guess who’s at the front gate asking to be buzzed in?”

            “How about telling me? You know how I despise guessing games.”

            Sebastian grinned. “None other than Elliot Church himself.”

            “You’re kidding me?”

            “Nope, the guy’s at the gate at this very moment.”

            “Interesting.”

            “Yeah, I guess that’s a word for it.”

            “I suppose we’ll have to let him in.”

            Sebastian’s grin faded. “Now who’s kidding? You’re not actually thinking about letting that bastard in this house are you?”

            “I’m afraid we don’t have much choice.”

            “What are you talking about? Of course we have a choice, and it’s an easy one. We either ignore the guy until he goes away, or we tell him to go away and never come back.”

            “As appealing as both choices sound, neither one would be wise.”

            “How do you figure that?”

            “If we don’t let him in, we not only miss an opportunity to find out what his intentions are, but we’re giving him reason to be suspicious.”

            “I guess that’s true.”

            “All right then, go ahead and let him in, but don’t show him here. Bring him to the front sitting room, and we can have our little meeting there.”

            While Sebastian went to welcome the enemy into their home, Simeon made sure to store his books in a well hidden place despite locking the study behind him. Though Sebastian wasn’t crazy about letting an admitted servant of God into their midst, and though he shared his friend’s feelings, Simeon was quite curious to see what prompted the visit. Perhaps Elliot Church was wise to the recent surveillance which revealed some interesting things about the man.

            Besides being the pastor of the new Church of Christ, he lived in a modest home not far from the church. Although he wasn’t married and had no children, he didn’t live alone. Instead, he shared the home with a beautiful young woman whom he claimed was his sister. All rather boring, rather mundane things Simeon could’ve learned on his own. The interesting part was the fact that nothing else could be learned about the man in spite of hours of meticulous searching by some rather expense private investigators.

            No one knew the names of his parents or where they lived or if they were even still alive. The names of his schools couldn’t be discerned, nor could the names of any prior romantic attachments he may have had. While he did have an account open at the local bank, two accounts actually, one for his private funds and one for those of his church, no one knew where the private funding came from. Not even his age could be determined with certainty. It was as if Elliot Church appeared from thin air, giving credence to Sebastian’s suspicions of who he truly was.