CHAPTER 23
“We pattern our thoughts and actions after the God or Gods we worship. They are more a part of us than we realize. Only by understanding how in our own minds we have defined their nature can we begin to understand the underlying forces that make us behave the way we do.”
David Anderson
On the day after they returned to the nation’s capital, Toby and Trey received a call from Director Barnes in Georgia. He had a report on the three suspected Muslims that had eaten at Bubba Johnson’s restaurant on the day before the bomb exploded in Savannah.
“Well, your instincts about these three men were right,” Barnes said. “It turns out that they were no more Muslims than you or I.”
“Oh really?” Toby answered, although not at all surprised.
“Nope,” Barnes continued. “They were students at the University of Georgia who were heading for the St. Patrick’s Day festivities and decided to take a little detour to eat at the Bubbacue.”
“But what abote the Koran?” asked Trey. “And all of the talk about Allah and Jihad.”
“I was coming to that,” said Barnes. “Turns out that they were all in the same comparative religions class and were studying for a test that they had right after the St. Patrick’s Day break. My men said they were very cooperative and actually got a big laugh about being suspects. They said they will always have a good story to tell about being suspected of being Muslim terrorists while eating pork ribs at Bubbacue’s. I have to admit that it is a pretty good story.”
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After hanging up the phone with Barnes, Sullivan and Rawlings were put to work interviewing people whose names were on the lists that Tad generated for Drake. It was a miracle that the media had not jumped all over the profiling that the task force was getting away with.
A week of 12-hour shifts passed, and then another one, and another. Before anyone knew it, March had turned into April and April into May. Easter and Passover had come and gone, as had the cherry blossoms and school children on field trips. Spring was giving way to summer. No more bombings, but no arrests either.
On the home front, the good news for Toby was that Tad had decided to move in with him. “No long-term commitments until the case is solved,” she had said, “but the food and the sex are both pretty good, so why not?” (When Toby had asked which was better, the food or sex, she had only smiled coyly.)
Politics replaced terror on the front pages of the nation’s newspapers and on the television news shows. It was on one of these shows that Georgia’s Senator Stevens was a guest one evening while Toby was preparing dinner and he and Tad were enjoying a glass of wine.
“There’s Senator Stevens.” Toby said as he inserted a lemon into the large cavity of a five-pound chicken. “Is that loud enough?”
“It could be a little louder,” Tad responded as she looked at the small screen that Toby had installed under one of the cabinets. “I’m anxious to hear what Stevens is saying. He seems to be one of the few senators with common sense these days.”
Toby gave a voice command to raise the volume just in time to hear the question asked by the show’s host.
“Senator Stevens, as you know, the majority leader has promised to bring the Christian Republic Amendment up for a vote in a few weeks, after both political parties hold their conventions. Our network has just received the results of a poll we commissioned that indicates that 60 percent of the American people favor the amendment and it would likely be ratified by all but three of the states- New York, California and Massachusetts. You are on record in opposition to the amendment. Given the fact that a clear majority of the people support the amendment- including 65 percent in your state of Georgia- are there any circumstances under which you would vote for the amendment?”
“Absolutely none,” Stevens responded.
“Would you care to elaborate?” the questioner asked.
“I think my views on this issue are well known,” the senator said. “This country was founded by people who risked everything to come thousands of miles across an ocean expressly so that they would be free to practice their religion- or not practice any religion. I believe we would be denigrating the contributions of these courageous men and women if we passed an amendment that essentially says that we no longer believe in religious freedom.”
“But senator,” the newsman continued, “what do you say to those people who claim that the United States has always been a Christian nation and that the First Amendment was enacted only to prevent the favoring of one Christian sect over another.”
“I’d say they’re idiots,” Tad interjected.
“I say that they either can’t read very well or they simply don’t grasp the concept of separation of church and state,” Stevens answered.
“But you would agree, wouldn’t you, that the First Amendment was intended primarily to prevent the establishment of a state religion, such as the Church of England?” the questioner asked.
“You know, John, I wasn’t there, so I don’t know what each of the founding fathers thought about the First Amendment, but I do have a little common sense, and that common sense tells me (1) that the concept of freedom of religion doesn’t mean much if one religion is given a higher status in law than all the others, and (2) it is a form of religious establishment to recognize one specific religion within a country’s name.”
“You tell them, senator,” Tad exclaimed as she looked at Toby who was putting the chicken in the oven.
“Well, give me your prediction, senator. Will your side prevail? Will the amendment be defeated in the Senate?”
“It will be a lot closer than it would have been a few weeks ago before two senators were killed in the bombings and replaced with amendment supporters,” said Stevens, “but I believe the final vote will be 65 votes for and 35 votes against.”
“That means that a change of just two votes and the amendment would pass. Are you sure the administration can’t find two more votes?”
“Anything is possible,” the senator said, “but I believe our votes are firm.”
“If that’s the case, why is the majority leader bringing it up at this time?” the newsman asked.
“Simple,” Stevens responded. “It’s now or never. The house has already voted in favor by a one-vote margin, but 2/3 of both the senate and house have to vote in the affirmative during the same term of Congress before an amendment can go to the states. I think the supporters realize that if it doesn’t pass now, there is no way they can get it passed in both houses next session, because our party is very likely to gain seats in the upcoming election.”
“I see, so this definitely will be a historic vote in a few weeks,” said the television interviewer, stating the obvious. “We’ll be watching closely. But if I can switch to another topic, senator, how is Governor Arnold doing?”
“Governor Arnold is a very close personal friend of mine. He has always been a fighter and he is fighting each and every day to get better. I don’t know what his prognosis is for the long term, but I am hopeful he will be able to reassume his duties as governor some day. I visited him recently and he has come out of his coma. He recognized me, but he was unable to communicate much more than recognition.”
“And finally, Senator Stevens, you know that I have to ask you about the upcoming election,” the newsman said. “Do you think that Senator Clay will be your party’s nominee and can he win in November?”
“Yes and yes,” Stevens answered.
“And, if asked, would you run as his vice-presidential candidate?”
“That’s putting the cart before the horse,” said Stevens.
“I sure as hell hope that Stevens is right about the big vote on the amendment,” Tad said as she took the re-filled glass of wine that Toby handed her. “I don’t believe I care to live in a country in which institutional religion plays such a prominent role.”
“Nor do I,” Toby said, “but if it does pass, I think that the biggest losers won’t be agnostics or atheists or even Jews or Muslims.”
“Oh no, well who then?” Tad asked.
“As hard as it may be to believe, I think the biggest losers will be Christians,” Toby explained. “In the long run this will cheapen their religion.”
“How so?” Tad asked.
“By making it so common,” he said. “Think about it. People value those things that are scarce or things they have to work or sacrifice for. We don’t value things that are in our face constantly. It’s already started with the Freedom to Practice Religion Act. People are now praying all the time- before every meal; before every meeting; before every sporting event. Do you think that most people are really paying attention to those prayers? Do you think they really believe that God cares who wins their first-grade kid’s soccer match? And look at what the private sector is doing to capitalize- WWJ this and WWJ that. Heck, I saw an advertisement yesterday at a car dealership that said ‘What Would Jesus Drive?’ Their answer, of course, was one of the new hydrogen fuel cell cars. I felt like going up to the manager and yelling at him, “He wouldn’t drive, dummy. He would walk or ride a donkey.”
“I see what you mean,” Tad said with a big smile. “You have a way of seeing the big picture. But I still hope the amendment doesn’t pass, because it could cause a whole lot of grief for a lot of people.”
“A lot of grief, and maybe worse,” Toby said while taking a peak at the chicken in the oven. “Let’s hope that Senator Stevens is right.”
“And let’s hope that chicken doesn’t take too much longer to cook,” Tad said. “I’m starving.”
“It’ll be done in about 45 more minutes,” Toby said. “I’m using the high temperature method- 450 degrees- the total cooking time for this size bird is just an hour.”
“So that’s the secret,” Tad replied. “My mother used to cook chickens for nearly two hours, and they were always tough and as dry as sawdust. Yours are moist and tender.”
“Most people cook things, especially chicken and pork, much too long,” Toby explained. “The high temperature method seals the bird, the lemon gives it a wonderful flavor, and the real key is cooking it breast side down. That way, the juices flow into the breast meat, which tends to dry out if it is cooked breast-side-up.”
“I see,” Tad replied. “It seems as if you still enjoy cooking.”
“Put it this way- I still enjoy eating,” he replied. “Can you think of a better reason to enjoy cooking?”
“No, guess not,” she answered as she poured herself another glass of wine.
“Pour me some, too,” Toby said as he put some water in a pan to steam a few small florets of fresh broccoli. “And help me figure out what we can do to get the bombing investigation moving again. It’s like watching paint dry. We’re getting absolutely no where interviewing all of the people on those lists you are generating.”
“I wish I knew,” Tad said as she bent down to give J. Edgar some attention. “I honestly don’t know what else we could be doing, given the evidence- or lack of it- that we have.”
“That’s it,” Toby said as he opened the refrigerator door to get the half and half for his spoiled cat. “We have never seen any of the so-called evidence. Nelson and his lab assistants need to show us everything they have. There has to be something there that is being overlooked. I’ve never been involved in a case in which so little hard evidence has surfaced.”
“You’re right,” Tad said. “First thing in the morning, you need to march right into Drake’s office and demand a presentation by Henry Nelson to the entire taskforce- including the women.”
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As soon as Toby reached the office that next morning, he met with his partner, who agreed to join him in a meeting with the boss. He then talked to Margaret, who arranged the meeting for 10 a.m., subject to the director’s approval. Toby returned to his office and thanked Trey for his help. “Let’s face it, Trey. You have the director’s ear much more than I do, so I appreciate your support on this.”
“I’m glad to do it,” Rawlings replied. “You’re absolutely right that we have to do something to get this investigation off the dime. It’s been nearly three months now and we’re no closer to identifying the people responsible than we were on the day of the first bombing.”
“Well then, while I’m at it, I’ve got another favor to ask, too,” Toby said. “What else can you tell me about this Society of Saints thing you’re in?”
“There isn’t much more to tell you than I already have,” Trey responded. “We just try to make the government more like Christ would have wanted it to be.”
“Okay, let me be straight with you,” Toby said. “I have heard from sources I can’t reveal that there is some kind of shadowy Christian network within the government that purposely tries to make sure that Muslims receive negative coverage in the media.”
“What do you mean?” Trey asked. “You don’t think that the Society of Saints has anything to do with that, do you? I thought you knew me better than that.”
“Look, Trey, don’t get your boxers in a twist,” Sullivan responded. “Of course I know you well enough to know that you wouldn’t participate in a smear campaign against Muslims or anyone else, but it isn’t too difficult to believe that there are people within our government who would do such things. Would you just do me a favor and keep your eyes and ears open when you’re at your meetings to make sure that there isn’t some secret society that you don’t know about that is actively working to harm Americans’ perception of Muslims?”
Trey was clearly bothered by his partner’s accusation against Christians.
“You really don’t like the fact that Christians are finally out of the closet, so to speak, do you?” Trey asked. “You are like a lot of Americans who want people to keep their religion private- in the church on Sunday and within the confines of their own homes. Any public exercise of religion- outside of church- makes you uneasy, doesn’t it?”
“I admit that the public display of religion does bother me a little,” Toby said, “but what bothers me most is the use by the government of a particular religion in ways that adversely affect other religions. My comfort level isn’t important, but the right of people of all faiths to practice their religions is.”
Trey thought for a moment without speaking, and then he said, “Okay, I’ll keep my eyes and ears open, but do me a favor and try to look at some of the good things that Christians in our government are doing.”
“I’ll try,” Toby said. “I’ll really try.”
After making a few phone calls to contacts in local FBI offices around the country, Toby and Trey were summoned into the director’s office for their meeting. Drake was seated behind his large desk in what looked to be a very comfortable leather executive chair. The two agents sat in leather wingback chairs in front of the desk.
“Okay, what can I do for you two?” Drake asked.
“We’d like you to arrange for the full taskforce to visit Henry Nelson at the lab in Quantico so we can all get a closer look at the evidence,” Trey said.
“What good will that do?” Drake asked, “If Nelson and his crew had found anything, they would have already shared it. They are working as hard as they can to find something to help us.”
“But it’s hard to believe that they haven’t turned up anything,” Toby said. “Maybe if we all have the chance to see what is there and let Nelson tell us what tests they have run and what they have found, someone will see something that will trigger some ideas. If nothing turns up, what have we lost? We’re getting nowhere doing things the way we have been.”
Drake seemed taken aback at Sullivan’s bluntness. “Perhaps you would like to see someone else in charge of the investigation, Agent Sullivan?”
Sensitive, isn’t he, Toby thought before saying, “I did not mean that,” although he had thought many times that a new leader with fresh ideas might be necessary at some point. “All I meant was that the investigation has stagnated and doing the same thing over and over and expecting the results to be different is foolish.”
Sensing that Drake was finding Toby’s bluntness a bit annoying, Trey took a more tactful approach.
“What Toby is trying to say is that we are as frustrated as you are that we haven’t solved this case yet, and we think there may be some information that has been overlooked. If we all look at it together, we might get lucky and find some little thing that will turn the whole investigation around.”
While Drake leaned his chair forward and tapped on his desk, Toby studied the wall behind him that contained several plaques and photos, including a photo of Drake with President McNeal and a plaque on which the words “Matthew 28:18-20” appeared.
Finally, Drake spoke.
“Okay, I’ll call Nelson and arrange for him to give us a video tour of the lab and all of the evidence on Thursday. That way he doesn’t have to interrupt his day as much as he would if we all were trampling through his labs. You’ll be able to ask him and his staff any questions you wish. Is that acceptable?”
Before Toby could say anything, Trey answered for the two of them. “That would be great. Thank you.” And then he rose out of his seat and made sure that Toby was out of his, too.
“Okay, are you satisfied now?” Trey asked once they were back in their office. “You got what you wanted- a chance to look at the evidence.”
“Yea, but only on the screen, not in person, but it’s definitely better than nothing,” Sullivan said. “I am very anxious to understand how the bombers were so careful that they didn’t leave even a slight trace of evidence that might help identify them. It is as if they are ghosts- or forensics experts.”