Red Tears
About the Book
World on Fire: Red Tears
World on Fire is a three-part series. The first volume, Red Tears, begins in September, 2051. The story depicts one possible but realistic future. In this dystopian society, David evolves from being an unabashed supporter of the dictatorial, anti-god, government into a man saddled with profound questions regarding God and growing doubts about the government he serves.
David’s journey continues in Redeemed, the second volume of the series. Here he is introduced to the Bible and learns about God from Sarah, the woman he comes to love. Through her unbridled faith and dedication to God and the Lord’s miraculous intervention, David ultimately becomes a soldier for God and vows to destroy the government he once supported.
The World on Fire series concludes with Reconciled. The final volume moves ahead twenty years. It tells the story of David’s family, friends, and the surviving Christian remnant in the last days prior to the tribulation and ultimate return to earth of our Lord, Jesus Christ.
Book
Chapters Summaries
Chapter 1
"Red Tears 2051"
“I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.”— J. Robert Oppenheimer, Trinity Test Site, 1945, excerpt from the Bhagavad Gita.
The year is 2051. Red tears stain the streets. Bewildered people roam the countryside seeking a savior, a protector, someone to provide them with safety and hope for the future. President Theril assumes dictatorial powers and forms a new government shaped in his own image. Young Thomas is assigned to a Child Protective Center (CPC) along with other orphaned children to be molded into a desirable citizen. People begin to call President Theril, The Great Protector.
Chapter 2
"2084"
“Men must be governed by God or they will be ruled by tyrants.” —William Penn, 14 October 1644 —30 July 1718.
The year is 2084. David is wounded in combat and evacuated from the battlefield by MEDIVAC helicopter. Does he really hear the voice of God or is it simply a hallucination? Does God have more for David to do in life?
Chapter 3
"Profit and Remorse"
“For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?”—Jesus Christ, Mark 8:36 ESV
Now an adult, Thomas works for the Big Country Hog and Cattle Feedlot and faces a dilemma. Will he continue to follow orders as he has done in the army for 20 years or disobey his superior and save the lives of innocent children?
Chapter 4
"Bible Study"
“If you are not prepared to use force to defend civilization, then be prepared to accept barbarism.”—Thomas Sowell, Knowledge and Decisions
Sarah’s Bible Study group meets secretly in the forest for safety from the Patriot Police.
Chapter 5
"The Deception Gambit"
“Truth is so precious that she should always be attended by a bodyguard of lies.”—Winston Churchill, “The Big Three Conference” at Tehran, Iran, in 1943.
Henry unpacks his plan for revolution to Joshua, his trusted Brother-in-Arms. Joshua recommends Thomas and Sarah for prominent positions in the Doctor’s conspiracy.
Chapter 6
"Unconventional Thinking"
“And what is a good citizen? Simply one who never says, does, or thinks anything that is unusual.”—H.L. Mencken, American journalist, September 12, 1880–January 29, 1956.
A horribly wounded veteran claims to have seen an image of heaven. He pleads for David to put him out of his misery and let him die. Will David kill a helpless soldier? Does what the patient say reinforce David’s own miraculous experience? David awaits his release from the hospital and attempts to determine the status of his application to the Thought Crimes Division in the Ministry of Justice. Who is Janel Wilson?
Chapter 7
"Love and Desire"
“Only a struggle twists sentimentality and lust together into love.”—E.M. Forster–English writer, January 1, 1879–June 7, 1970.
David prepares to meet Janel, the woman who controls his future. Sarah admits to her Bible Study group she possesses a forbidden Holy Bible. She tries to explain why she believes Christians must use violence if necessary to fight the government under which they suffer. What will Sarah do?
Chapter 8
"A New Beginning"
“Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.” —Thomas A. Edison.
David prepares to meet Janel at the Justice Department Headquarters. Sylvia, Janel’s mother, gets ready to leave for her dream retirement community, the Region VI Adoption and Retirement Center (ARC).
Chapter 9
"Love and Loyalty"
“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.”—Ecclesiastes 3:1, ESV.
Sylvia is crammed into a train compartment for her journey to the ARC. She is shocked by what she encounters upon her arrival. She meets Ruth, her four-year-old adoptee. They are assigned quarters at the ARC.
Chapter 10
"Passion and Devotion"
“To fall in love is easy, even to remain in it is not difficult; our human loneliness is cause enough. But it is a hard quest worth making to find a comrade through whose steady presence one becomes steadily the person one desires to be.”—Anna Louise Strong, American journalist, 1885 —1970.
David and Janel begin a romantic relationship. Joshua departs the secret mountaintop headquarters and begins his mission for the Doctor.
Chapter 11
"Answers"
“Now I see that going out into the testing ground of men it is the tongue and not the deed that wins the day.”—Sophocles
David takes the required tests to become a Justice Department investigator, but something unexpected happens. He is drugged and interrogated by an unexpected antagonist. He does not do well under the interrogation and questions any future he might have with Janel and the Justice Department.
Chapter 12
"Final Solution"
“Eugenics is… the most adequate and thorough avenue to the solution of racial, political
and social problems.”—Margaret Sanger, founder of Planned Parenthood
Sylvia and Ruth bond under the rigorous demands of life in the ARC. Days and weeks of suffering have taken their toll on Sylvia. Unable to call Janel, Sylvia starts a letter to her daughter. Surely, Janel can do something about the horrible conditions Sylvia has encountered. Her letter is interrupted. What will happen to her? What about Ruth?
Chapter 13
"Calm Before the Storm"
“The general who wins the battle makes many calculations in his temple before the battle is fought. —“Sun Tzu, Art of War
Joshua, Thomas, and Sarah travel to Region VI to carry-out the Doctor’s plan. Thomas takes the opportunity to school Sarah in leadership and the art of war.
Chapter 14
"Deliverance"
“Liberation is not deliverance.”—Victor Hugo, French poet, novelist, and dramatist, February 26, 1802 – May 22, 1885.
Janel must choose between duty and her deep personal desires. Joshua, Thomas, and Sarah make their way to Little Rock to lead the local resistance.
Chapter 15
"More Pieces of the Puzzle"
“Each one of us fulfills a piece of a larger puzzle.”—Eric McCormack, a Canadian-American actor and singer, born April 18, 1963.
What has become of Senior Chief? David and Janel take a road trip. Love blooms. Sarah briefs the local resistance on her plan to attack the Region VI ARC.
Chapter 16
"The Players Assemble'
“Everyone prepares for battle in his own way.”—Janet Morris, American author of fiction and nonfiction, born May 25, 1946.
Thomas briefs the volunteers on his plan to steal arms and munitions from the Pine Ridge Arsenal. David is formally introduced to Bryan Stonehouse. David is accepted into the Justice Department’s Thought Crime Division.
Chapter 17
"The Storm Erupts"
“To each there comes in their lifetime a special moment when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered the chance to do a very special thing, unique to them and fitted to their talents.”— Winston Churchill.
Sarah’s band of Christian fighters attack the Region VI Adoption and Retirement Center. She is injured, but is she dead? Bryan and his new trainee, David, are assigned by Assistant Attorney General James to investigate the ARC attack and eliminate those involved, including relatives, friends, and associates. David says good-bye to Janel.
Chapter 18
"The Doctor’s Secret Trophy"
“I would rather live my life as if there is a God and die to find out there isn’t, than live as if there isn’t and to die to find out that there is.”— Albert Camus, French philosopher, author, and journalist, 7 November 1913 – 4 January 1960.
Bryan and David arrive in Arkansas and begin their investigation into the attack on the Region VI Adoption and Retirement Center. Thomas and his volunteers attack the Pine Ridge Arsenal. Joshua retrieves Doc’s prize. Thomas is injured while trying to escape the Pine Ridge attack. Is he dead?
Chapter 19
"The Journey Begins"
“Sometimes, reaching out and taking someone’s hand is the beginning of a journey. At other
times, it is allowing another to take yours.”— Vera Nazarian, The Perpetual Calendar of Inspiration.
Bryan and David’s ARC investigation is interrupted by an emergency call from Assistant Attorney General James. The agents are urgently required to end their ARC investigation and move to investigate the attack on the higher priority target, the Pine Ridge Arsenal. The perpetrators must be captured or killed. Both the Attorney General and Great Protector are concerned about this latest attack against the government and demand quick action. Janel makes a decision. Nothing is more important than helping David learn the truth about her mother. She will do whatever is necessary, take any risk, to help David. Bryan and David arrest Sarah. Bryan immediately begins to brutalize her.
Chapter 20
"Steadfast"
“Faith does not make things easy. It makes them possible.”― Author unknown (paraphrase of Luke 1:37)
Bryan tortures Sarah. He is determined to make her give him information about the Christian insurrection. Sarah remains strong in her faith to God.
Chapter 21
"Sacrifice"
“For I was sure of one thing, it wasn’t always the hero who saved the world. It was the person most willing to die first.”― R.K. Ryals, Fist of the Furor
8 Bloodlines plus 10 Kings, 37 Times and My Lord Sings. What does the poem mean? Janel seeks David’s help. Sarah suffers more torture. David and Bryan investigate the Pine Ridge Arsenal attack. Officer Delores 4/63 makes her appearance.
Chapter 22
"Stirrings"
“There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.”― Albert Eintein.
Will the torture ever end? Sarah asks God, “How long must I suffer?” David feels a stirring within. It is as if a still, inner voice is calling to him, leading him somewhere unexpected. Can Sarah explain what is happening to him?
Chapter 23
"Beginning of the End"
“What we call the beginning is often the end. And to make an end is to make a beginning. The end is where we start from.”― T.S. Eliot, “Little Gidding” published, September 1942.
Joshua returns Doc’s prize to the mountaintop hide-away. Doc briefs Joshua on the status of the resistance forces who attacked the ARC and Pine Ridge Arsenal. Sarah welcomes an end to her suffering.
Chapter 24
"Deliverance"
“The wise man in the storm prays to God, not for safety from danger, but for the deliverance from fear. It is the storm within that endangers him, not the storm without.”— Ralph Waldo Emerson.
David secretly opens Sarah’s Bible and randomly reads 1 Thessalonians 2:13. “And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as a human word, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is indeed at work in you who believe.” Sarah’s ordeal ends. David learns everything is possible with God’s help.
Epilogue
Heartache and Hope
“Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.”― Winston Churchill.
What will the future hold?