Deceived by Jerry B. Jenkins

Henderson left and told his secretary he wouldn’t be returning for the day, the woman gathered her things and walked out the door. Natalie waited, then returned to the office, got on the computer, and pulled up information about the Iowa facility.
    She had just called up the release order when Deputy Commander Henderson walked into the office.
    â€œWhat are you doing?” Henderson said.

    Vicki wasn’t allowed into the men’s section of the prison. Instead, she stood at a window while men filed past. As Vicki pointed out the three believers, GC guards separated them from the other prisoners and led them to a holding room, where they were handcuffed and their names recorded.
    One of the younger boys thought he was being led to the mark application site, and the guards had to restrain him. When a guard said he was being turned over to a commander, the boy stared at Colin.
    Colin leaned forward and said, “Tell me the truth. Are you a Judah-ite?”
    The boy nodded. “How did you know?”
    Colin smiled. “Your friends have given you up. But if you will tell us what we want to know, you will live.”
    Colin gave the order to lead the three males outside to the van. Vicki was taken back to the women’s building, and the females were paraded past her like the men had been. When the girls she had known from the abandoned college walked past, she pointed and they were taken into another holding room.
    Vicki couldn’t help thinking that she was somehow controlling the destinies of these women. If she chose them, they would be safe from the Global Community. If she let them pass, they would be forced to take the mark of Carpathia. She only chose the believers, of course, but she still felt bad for the women who had rejected God’s love.
    As the line dwindled, Vicki scanned the crowd for the dark-haired girl she had seen when she first arrived. Finally, when the last few women passed, Vicki spotted her and pointed.
    The last girl in line was Cheryl. She had pulled the hood of her sweater over her head. When she passed Vicki, she threw the hood off and Vicki gasped. On Cheryl’s forehead was the mark of the true believer.

7
    NATALIE quickly clicked Deputy Commander Henderson’s computer off and moved away from his desk.
    â€œI said, what are you doing in here?”
    â€œI’m sorry, sir … your computer is so much faster—”
    â€œYou have no right.” Henderson clicked the computer back on.
    â€œSir, I was just composing a message to … a friend of mine, and I didn’t want anybody to see it.”
    â€œA love interest?” Henderson said.
    Natalie looked away.
    Henderson studied the screen. “Let me ask you again, and this time don’t lie—”
    â€œI was helping a friend,” Natalie interrupted.
    â€œBut why were you using my computer? Unless …” Henderson pulled up the last document in the computer, and Natalie closed her eyes. If he found the entry about Commander Blakely, the kids were dead.
    She fell to the floor and grabbed at her throat, pretending to choke. She glanced at the wall and found the computer’s power cord. Before she could reach it, Henderson’s foot came down hard on her arm, grinding it into the floor. Natalie cried out, but Henderson kept his eyes on the computer.
    â€œI’ve had my suspicions about you.” He grabbed her arm and pulled her into a chair. “No one can see your computer from your desk. Why would you use mine?”
    Natalie rubbed her arm and stared at the man. Before she could speak, he opened the order sent to the Iowa reeducation facility. The name Commander Blakely appeared on the screen.
    Henderson turned wildly. “Did you send this order from my computer?”
    Natalie put her head down and prayed that God would somehow intervene on her behalf.
    Henderson pulled out his service revolver and pointed it at Natalie. With the other hand he picked up