Read Online The Regime: Evil Advances by Tim Lahaye, Jerry B. Jenkins - Free Book Online
Authors: Tim Lahaye, Jerry B. Jenkins
Tags: Religión, thriller, Suspense, Science-Fiction, adventure, Fantasy, Contemporary, Adult, Spiritual
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trip. She had arranged for Jackie to take the kids, and she had booked a room at a local hotel. That was not new, but when she had done it before, it had been either Valentine’s Day, their anniversary, or Rayford’s birthday. This time there was no special occasion.
During his flying and idle time, Rayford tried to come to some conclusion about what this was all about. While their love life of late left something to be desired, it had not been all that bad. She was tired, stressed, overworked. He was distant, not entirely happy, clearly with something unresolved on his mind.
Maybe it was a test. Maybe she was going to ask him if he had remained faithful. For that he was grateful. He didn’t need real guilt atop what she already tried to induce in him with her looks, body language, and comments about his parenting, his responsibilities to his parents, and his fast-deteriorating Sunday commitments.
Rayford decided to take his list with him. Maybe it wasn’t fair to ambush her, to spring a confrontation on her when this was a party she had planned. There was
obviously something on her mind. He would enjoy putting her at ease, but at some point, if the timing and atmosphere were right, he was going to haul out that list.
That she had planned this at a hotel, plainly with romance as part of the milieu, meant she was not totally on the warpath. He wouldn’t be either. But it was time to be honest. He would be clear with her that he had not strayed but also that he had good reasons for the emotional distance he had allowed between them. The fact was, this was as much or more her fault than his, and she was going to have to face that and deal with it.
“I’ll have a bag packed for you, hon,” she had said. “You don’t even need to get out of the car unless you want to. I’ll be ready to go, and we can head straight for the hotel as soon as you pull into the drive. How’s that sound?”
“Suspicious,” he said.
“I’m sure glad you said that with a smile,” she said. “There can’t be anything wrong with a woman wanting to seduce her husband, can there?”
“I’ll rack my brain,” he said.
NINE
Nicolae Carpathia couldn’t help but be intrigued by the dichotomy that was Leonardo Fortunato. During the meal he had listened to the man but had not really taken him in visually. Nicolae was always more concerned with how he looked than how others did.
But now, trying to get to know the man, he surveyed him more carefully.
Fortunato was probably five inches shorter than Nicolae, and yet was so thick and compact that he appeared a solid mass. The little things were not lost on Carpathia. The suit, dark and conservative, was plainly inexpensive and yet tailored. French cuffs with diamond links protruded from the sleeves. Fortunato wore two rings on one hand, one on the other.
His tie was an iridescent red and seemed to pulsate, even in the dim light of the screened-in anteroom.
When he crossed his legs—no small feat—socks that matched the suit showed a red stripe that almost matched the tie. Nicolae decided this was a man who had to fight flamboyancy.
A soft breeze kicked up and Carpathia edged closer to the fire. Fortunato did the opposite. Not only did he lean away, but he asked if his host minded if he shed his suit coat.
“Not at all,” Nicolae said, snapping his fingers and calling out, “Peter!”
A valet appeared.
“Oh, I’ll just drape it over the back of the chair,” Fortunato said, “if you don’t mind.”
“I do mind,” Nicolae said. “Peter, please hang Mr. Fortunato’s suit jacket and bring him a smoking jacket just in case.”
Peter soon returned with a burgundy felt-and-satin number and draped it over the arm of a divan near Fortunato.
Leon leaned toward Carpathia, spreading his feet and resting his elbows on his knees. In the low light Nicolae noticed sweat rings under the man’s arms. Nervous or truly overheated? He never touched the smoking jacket.
The men
During his flying and idle time, Rayford tried to come to some conclusion about what this was all about. While their love life of late left something to be desired, it had not been all that bad. She was tired, stressed, overworked. He was distant, not entirely happy, clearly with something unresolved on his mind.
Maybe it was a test. Maybe she was going to ask him if he had remained faithful. For that he was grateful. He didn’t need real guilt atop what she already tried to induce in him with her looks, body language, and comments about his parenting, his responsibilities to his parents, and his fast-deteriorating Sunday commitments.
Rayford decided to take his list with him. Maybe it wasn’t fair to ambush her, to spring a confrontation on her when this was a party she had planned. There was
obviously something on her mind. He would enjoy putting her at ease, but at some point, if the timing and atmosphere were right, he was going to haul out that list.
That she had planned this at a hotel, plainly with romance as part of the milieu, meant she was not totally on the warpath. He wouldn’t be either. But it was time to be honest. He would be clear with her that he had not strayed but also that he had good reasons for the emotional distance he had allowed between them. The fact was, this was as much or more her fault than his, and she was going to have to face that and deal with it.
“I’ll have a bag packed for you, hon,” she had said. “You don’t even need to get out of the car unless you want to. I’ll be ready to go, and we can head straight for the hotel as soon as you pull into the drive. How’s that sound?”
“Suspicious,” he said.
“I’m sure glad you said that with a smile,” she said. “There can’t be anything wrong with a woman wanting to seduce her husband, can there?”
“I’ll rack my brain,” he said.
NINE
Nicolae Carpathia couldn’t help but be intrigued by the dichotomy that was Leonardo Fortunato. During the meal he had listened to the man but had not really taken him in visually. Nicolae was always more concerned with how he looked than how others did.
But now, trying to get to know the man, he surveyed him more carefully.
Fortunato was probably five inches shorter than Nicolae, and yet was so thick and compact that he appeared a solid mass. The little things were not lost on Carpathia. The suit, dark and conservative, was plainly inexpensive and yet tailored. French cuffs with diamond links protruded from the sleeves. Fortunato wore two rings on one hand, one on the other.
His tie was an iridescent red and seemed to pulsate, even in the dim light of the screened-in anteroom.
When he crossed his legs—no small feat—socks that matched the suit showed a red stripe that almost matched the tie. Nicolae decided this was a man who had to fight flamboyancy.
A soft breeze kicked up and Carpathia edged closer to the fire. Fortunato did the opposite. Not only did he lean away, but he asked if his host minded if he shed his suit coat.
“Not at all,” Nicolae said, snapping his fingers and calling out, “Peter!”
A valet appeared.
“Oh, I’ll just drape it over the back of the chair,” Fortunato said, “if you don’t mind.”
“I do mind,” Nicolae said. “Peter, please hang Mr. Fortunato’s suit jacket and bring him a smoking jacket just in case.”
Peter soon returned with a burgundy felt-and-satin number and draped it over the arm of a divan near Fortunato.
Leon leaned toward Carpathia, spreading his feet and resting his elbows on his knees. In the low light Nicolae noticed sweat rings under the man’s arms. Nervous or truly overheated? He never touched the smoking jacket.
The men
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