The Milestone Protocol Ernest Dempsey (best short novels of all time .txt) 📖

dashed on the rocks of new discoveries almost every day now.”

Kevin arched his right eyebrow. “There are those in my circles who would dispute those ideas. And I thought you were Christian. How does that jibe with the Bible stuff?”

“It’s the timeline I question, not the message. The first humans may have lived a hundred thousand years before being kicked out of the Garden of Eden. We’d have no way of knowing it. The antediluvian world could have been extremely old. My point is,” he said, getting back on track, “the things we believed impossible yesterday are being proved today. Many would say that this ruling-class theory is impossible. Yet we see it playing out all the time. Some people who can barely string together a coherent sentence are nominated for the highest office in the land. One must wonder why, and who is pushing this stuff?”

“So, you think that this…shadow caste affects free elections, the voting process of free Americans?”

“Not just Americans, Kevin. All elections. Maybe they don’t dabble with the votes themselves. Then again, they don’t need to. Think about it. Why are there only two choices in the United States? Those two options have been preselected for us. We get virtually no say in the matter. Even when a candidate is winning on their side of the aisle, that doesn’t mean they will get the nomination. We’ve seen people with big leads abruptly drop out and offer their support for someone that, just a week ago, they loathed. And if you tell people you’re voting for a third party, you’re mocked and told that you are merely throwing your vote away.”

Kevin’s head bobbed absently. “I see your point, but what does any of that have to do with me or my team, or that tablet over there?”

“Maybe nothing,” Sean admitted. “Maybe I’m wrong. I honestly hope I am. But when you said those words from the inscription, it set off a light bulb.”

“What if it’s talking about Nephilim or some other kind of supernatural group? Perhaps the Anunnaki. It could be an ancient myth. Nothing more. In fact, I would hedge my bets that’s all it is.”

“Could be.” Sean took a sip of his coffee.

The two fell silent and were consumed by their thoughts as they drank. Sean could tell Kevin was trying to wrap his mind around all of it.

“You said they’re about to make a move or something. What did you mean by that?”

“They’ve already made it,” Sean said, indicating the tablet with a slow nod. “Like I said, when they attacked your dig site and then came after you. They followed you here, didn’t they?”

Kevin blinked, and his silence signaled he understood.

“Look.” Sean leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees. “Maybe I’m wrong about the shadow caste being involved here, but the bottom line is that someone wants you dead, and wants that tablet. Perhaps it’s a secret society. Or it could just be some Russian goons trying to take an artifact they believe they can sell on the black market.”

“Possibly.”

“Yeah. Except that Russian guys probably wouldn’t have known what you found. You said you didn’t tell anyone except your contacts at the university. Right?”

“Yes.”

Sean pulled out his smartphone and flipped it around so Kevin could see it. He’d kept the screen on an article from Volgograd.

Kevin’s mouth dropped open and fear shot through his eyes. Disbelief trailed the initial emotion, and he began shaking his head at what he saw.

“All of your contacts at the university are dead, Dr. Clark. This is not the work of the Russian mob. It’s something far more sinister. And I need to find out what they want with that tablet. My initial guess is they’re after the weapon it mentioned.”

A horn honked from the street below, and then an engine whined as the car drove away.

“What kind of weapon is it talking about?” Kevin asked. “I mean, I realize you don’t have much to go on.”

“I’m not sure, but from the sound of that text, I would venture it’s some kind of doomsday weapon. And it sounds like this rose stone is the key to unlocking its power.”

“Doomsday weapon? Like a bomb?”

Sean leaned back and drank the last gulp of coffee. “Unlikely. It’s more probable that we’re talking about some kind of bioweapon. The few people who believe in the shadow caste think that they not only manipulate politics and finances but have also used diseases, pandemics down through the ages. And as I said before, wars, too.”

“Sounds like an awful lot of work,” Kevin admitted. “And for what?”

Sean blinked as he stared out the window at the city rolling through the hills. Hundreds of thousands of people went about their day without a care in the world, or without concern that they were in any danger.

“Population control,” Sean managed.

“What is that supposed to mean?”

“You know what it means. We do it all the time with deer and other wildlife, thinking that we humans know what’s best for the planet. We intervene and cut down the population to protect farms and other wildlife. Is it so outrageous that there is a group out there that does the same to people?”

Kevin scoffed at the notion. “So, you’re saying this ‘shadow caste,’” he used air quotes, “is doing the same thing with us as we do with deer and other wild game?”

“The earth can only hold so many people, Kevin. It has a finite number of resources. Those are facts. I don’t know who is a part of this group or the extent they reach into individual lives, but I know they are out there. I can feel it.”

“I’m sorry,” Kevin said and slapped his thigh. He stood up and walked over to the coffeepot. Once there, he picked up a fresh packet of coffee and placed the filter into the machine. After filling the reservoir with bottled water, he hit the button, and the pot gurgled to life. “That’s just crazy. I’ve heard some pretty wild