"You know I never did. And, I'm not born-again. Chosen by God. Big distinction." Daniel frowned at me as if he were the one trying to gauge my sanity, instead of the other way around. "Okay, all I'm saying is that the experience I had felt similar."
He gave me a weary look, and I remembered what Dorshak had said about Danieclass="underline" "Daniel said the LINK-angels guided his hand." Daniel chose his words carefully, as if he'd had this kind of discussion before. "Can we agree that technology of the LINK-angels is similar to what I'm claiming happened, at least?"
I nodded. "Although Phanuel operated on the individual level, Gabriel was sort of a group emotional experience. If the LINK-angels' appearances aren't miracles, and, in fact, are human hacker genius, or the product of Jordan Institute's research – then it is technologically possible. But, who has that capability? Or that kind of firepower?"
"Government."
I sputtered out a laugh. "Government? Now you're telling me you think it's a government plot?" Daniel didn't even crack a smile at my teasing, so I continued, "This is all hypothetical since I still maintain all the nodes in the world couldn't pull it off, but why Would the government do it?"
"Letourneau clearly has motive," Daniel said grimly. With patient deliberation, he was building his case. Motive and opportunity, the standard requirements in any homicide.
"Letourneau isn't government yet – not until after the election anyway," I reminded him. "What about Mouse? He has the same access. And the angel in his hard drive could constitute evidence."
"True. Mouse could be working for Letourneau."
"Why would a Muslim work for the New Right?" I asked.
"Mouse is a terrible Muslim," Daniel reminded me. "He's far too interested in worldly goods."
I nodded. "He told me Letourneau stood for things he believed in – especially the LINK expansion."
"Makes sense. He wants to keep America out of Christendom, keep the LINK more chaotic, a hacker's paradise."
I started to nod. Then I stopped, suddenly conscious of what Daniel and I had been proposing. "Wait a minute. Letourneau? What made you suggest it might be Letouraeau?"
"Haven't you been listening to me, Dee? The LINK-angels. They were what made me kill the Pope."
"The LINK-angels, yes, that's what I thought. But no one has ever connected Letourneau to the LINK-angels." Besides Michael, I added silently. "Except that they say Letourneau's the Second Coming."
"I'm making the connection."
"Okay," I said, "let's hear it."
Daniel took a deep breath, and said, "God told me the LINK-angels were false prophets."
I blinked.
It was the kind of statement I expected the Reverend-Senator himself to make during a press conference, not my ex-partner. I stared at Daniel. He stared back. His face betrayed nothing but absolute seriousness. Of course, truth was, an angel told me the same damn thing.
"God didn't happen to give you any hard evidence by chance, did he?" I asked.
"God doesn't need evidence, Dee," Danny said, exasperated. "God is God, for Chrissake."
"True." I smiled. Despite myself, I was starting to enjoy this conversation. "But he's not being very considerate of his humble servant, is he? It would help our case a lot if he'd deigned to leave us something that would hold up in a court of law."
Danny smiled back, but shook his head. "Don't make light of all this, Dee. I'm serious. This sounds even crazier than anything else I've said – but an angel came to me in my cell. A real angel."
My smile faded. The evening breeze felt cold against my cheeks. "An angel."
Daniel watched my face intently. "An angel. A real angel. I never told that doctor about this. I know exactly what he'd have thought of this new development, but, yeah, it was a real angel."
"How do you know? What did he look like?"
"Well, that's the strange part. He didn't look at all like what I expected. He ... well, I guess 'she' ... was a Chinese-American drag-queen ..." He laughed, and looked away self-consciously. "A drag-queen angel. Man, now that sounds crazy."
I touched Daniel on the arm gently. "No, it doesn't. In fact, that's the most sane thing I've heard you say all night."
He looked relieved, but skeptical. "Why do you believe that, of all things, Dee? That's the last thing I thought anyone would believe."
"I've met an angel, too." It was the first time I'd admitted that out loud, and I surprised myself by saying so without hesitation. "He's an Italian cop with a fondness for leather and blue jeans."
He laughed. "Mine preferred sequins."
"I'm sure the two of them would look great together."
"Heaven must be one strange-ass place." Daniel shook his head, giving me a ghost of a smile. A familiar twinkle lit his eyes.
"Neither of us is likely to find out."
"Hey, I might," he said. When I shot him a look, he added, "Well, I'm trying to change my life. I mean, for once, I think heaven might be my kind of place. I always thought heaven must be boring – perfect peace and all that. But, if drag queens and cops are angels, hell, it almost makes me think I might actually enjoy eternity up there."
"I don't know," I said, thinking of spending forever with Michael. I shook my head to banish the thought. "What did the angel tell you besides the fact that Letourneau wasn't the Second Coming? Anything?"
"Lots of stuff. We had long talks. Ariel, his ... or, rather, her name was Ariel, was convicted for gender bending. Ten years she got for that, can you believe it?" When I looked at him quizzically, he explained. "She was my cellmate. Anyway, I took notes. It's all in here."
He pressed the Bible into my hands. "I knew you'd understand, Dee. I ..."
His words were drowned out by the thrum of helicopter blades springing to life. Four sleek, black government stealth helicopters rose over the rim of the stadium, throwing beams of bright light down on the stadium.
"Scramble, Malachim!" Rebeckah's voice sounded far away coming through the thin thread in my ear. "Cover them!"
TXT transcript from McMannus Fan interactive 3-D BBS 2/25/76
kid@LINK.com
"Did anyone (beside me) catch the HardLine LINK broadcast last night? The skycams caught a glimpse of our girl. You should've heard the commentary. Twenty-seven seconds of wild conjecture of why, who, and where. I figure she was out and about trying to sneak into church. It is Lent, you know."
justin@LINK.com
"We agree on many things, my friend, but in this case you're dead wrong. Deidre is tougher than that. She doesn't even miss the solace of the church."
kid@LINK.com
"Justy my man, you're so unplugged. Get a grip. McMannus is tough AND sensitive. Run archived interview 10/11/25 on the main fan node if you need a refresher."
shelia@LINK.com
"You guys need a life. Like any of us know her well enough to talk. 'Kid,' what I want to know is what did HardLine say? What was she wearing? (More illegal pantsuits, I hope. That girl's got rocks!)"
manny/BBSsysop@LINK.com
'Kid,' what I want to know is how you keep getting on this BBS with a handle. LINK protocol demands full disclosure. If there is a LINK hack in progress, the Tech-Squad will shut us down so fast it'll make our heads spin. This BBS is unlicensed enough as it is – the last thing I need is a spike sent right to the cop shop every time your unregistered name pops up. Shut down or uncloak!"