Therefore, David was here with his best people in the viewing room waiting for Jack South’s interview on The Morning Headlines. He hoped that Brad Williams would do his job as he had been instructed to do by Joe Biggman. They might get some answers. The questions The Network had given to Jack and his council were not the real questions Brad Williams would ask. The aim was that Jack would not be prepared for Brad’s quizzing and would slip up.
As David thought over everything, he knew he had to find out what Jack was up to; how he had won the lotteries and everything else about him that The Waldger Group wanted to know. Moreover, that came directly from the top. David always did as he was told.
Chapter 4
6:45 AM EST New York - The Network Studios
As Mark Anderson glanced around the room taking in his surroundings, he was thinking about how he had managed to get into the middle of this mess today. He had reluctantly agreed to be a part of this, he thought to himself, due solely to Jack’s associate, Gabriel.
When he had first agreed to represent Jack during the meeting with Jack’s associates, Gabriel had initially irritated him by asking about his religious beliefs; as well as how much he knew about God’s final plan for humanity. He then went on to say that Mark had been chosen to help a long time ago. They also told him that his career had been directed by God, to be able to handle what was going to occur over the next few months and years. He was not sure he agreed with that, even now. Mark had listened to what Gabriel and Ariel had to say in the private meeting, but it was almost beyond his ability to believe. Gabriel had looked at him and said, “I guess you need some proof don’t you?” Then he had just disappeared in front of Mark’s eyes, while Ariel remained sitting across from him. Then, he had felt a tap on his shoulder and swiveled around to see Gabriel standing there. Then, once again, he disappeared as Mark turned back to face Ariel; and there he was sitting across the desk. He remembered the sweat pouring from his forehead. It was at that moment that he started to realize that there was a power beyond this earth in his office and that he was indeed speaking with messengers from God. The meeting reminded him of his Jewish history, when Abraham was visited by the messengers in the Sodom and Gomorrah story.
Mark had gathered his composure and listened attentively to the plan from Gabriel and Ariel. Once they finished telling him the complete story, he understood his role. What he knew was that when Jack began his ministry, the government would want to take him in and find out what made him tick. Mark’s job was to stop that from ever happening. That was also why they had hired the PR firm; to make sure that Jack’s visibility to the public was so high that not only would the U.S. government, but any other government, shy away from just picking him up and locking him away to get answers. After his time with Gabriel and Ariel, Mark resolved that he would use every bit of his knowledge and power to protect Jack as long as he could, at any cost.
He looked over at his client. Jack was very quiet and calm and seemed to be in his own world. Mark wondered what he might be thinking; then his mind started wandering too as he started reminiscing about how he had gotten to this point in his life.
Mark’s grandparents had migrated to the U.S. during the beginning of World War II. Like others of their kind during the period, they melted into the society called America. They chose to drop the Jewish name, Zingle, for they felt it was too difficult to use and too Jewish. They adopted the American surname of Anderson and that change allowed the family to easily integrate themselves into American society. This was a common practice of German Jews coming to America during that time. Not only was being Jewish a problem, but having a German Jewish name was difficult during that period. Therefore, the anglicized name, Anderson, resolved the issue.
After the war, Mark’s grandparents eventually moved from the tenements of New York to Chicago. They ended up in a small suburb of Chicago, known as Cicero. Cicero was well known for its Jewish community. It was there that his grandfather set up shop as a small finance company, financing small purchases for immigrants that banks would usually turn down.
Mark’s father was born two years later, and when he was old enough, started working in the company alongside his brother and father. The company offices were originally housed in a little one-room building; but by the early 60’s they moved on to a new facility on Cicero Avenue, where it still stood today. The company was loaning out over three million dollars a year by then, at rates of up to forty-five percent. Illinois did not have any caps on finance charges, so it was simple. If you wanted to take the risk to make money, then at forty-five percent, you could make some.
His father and mother were married in 1962 and Mark was born in 1963. His brother, Michael, was born in 1964 and sister, Carolyn, in 1966. As a young man, he had little appetite for the finance business. He felt bad about the repossessions and the collections side of financing. He let his father know that it bothered him and that he felt that loaning money was an unscrupulous practice.
Mark’s father had no tolerance of him or his refusal to work in the family business. After keeping up the pressure on him, he finally asked Mark what he really wanted to do. “Practice law,” Mark had told him. “I want to help people.” Finally, his father gave in and sent him off to college, where he excelled. After graduation from Illinois State, he was able to attend Columbia Law School, where he graduated at the top of my class.
After graduation, he returned to Chicago and immediately took a position as a Public Defender for the City. He worked there for three years. Mark eventually opened his own law office in Cicero, specializing in criminal defense. The practice grew exponentially in the late 90’s. He ended up with several high profiled federal defense cases, which he won. The practice then exploded with clients ranging from politicians, movie stars, and even people with no money. His firm also took assignments as court appointed attorneys from the state, especially capital cases, which they were very good at winning.
By 2005, there were over 200 attorneys on his staff in multiple locations. The home office was in downtown Chicago, on Michigan Avenue in the AON building. There were satellite offices in New York, Atlanta, Dallas, and Los Angeles. For the past three years, Mark usually did not take a case, but referred it to one of his capable staff attorneys. He had become more of an advisor to his clients and let other attorneys do the brunt of the work. At least that was true until this case came along.
Mark’s journey in finding God came about when he lost a death penalty case and his client was sentenced to death. It was a very high profile case. He knew that his client was innocent, but he could not prove it. Unfortunately, he lost all appeals and his client was executed. That led him to do some soul searching. He had many questions swimming around in his head. He finally found his answers in God.
He became a patron of the local Synagogue and religiously started on a journey into learning about God. He had read the Pentateuch and then, out of curiosity, what Jews call the Gentiles, book. He studied about Jesus and the New Testament. He became very interested in the Bible itself and especially the end time prophecy. Moreover, without his peers knowing it, Mark became a believer. Now, as he thought about today, he realized that his curiosity had landed him right in the middle of prophecy.
Jack brought him back to reality when he asked, “Are you ready with the video unit?”
“Yes, it is ready to go. I checked it out this morning and sent a test message as instructed by Luke at his firm. They received the video and it was useable.”
“It is very important, Mark, that immediately after the interview, you send the data. As you know, when we negotiated the terms of the interview, you are allowed to be right next to the cameras to video for me. They are expecting you to do that; but probably not expecting you to transmit it.”
“Jack, do you want to tell me what you are going to say?” Mark asked for the second time today.
“No, you will know soon enough, and I don’t want to alarm you. Moreover, as we discussed, it is very important we do th
is correctly. I have read over the interview questions we agreed on but I think they are going to throw some curveballs. What do you think?”
“Well Jack, a news anchor is like a prosecuting attorney. He will follow a script up to a point. They think they can make you slip, and as we rehearsed, you need to be prepared. Keep your answers to a minimum amount of words. Many have been caught in a statement that has destroyed them. So remember how we coached you. Do you have any idea what they might ask that is not on the pre-screen they gave you?”
“Yeah, I think they are going to elude to some sort of conspiracy and that I manipulated information and or fixed the lotteries. The odds of winning are very close to zero, as we all know.”
“What if they do ask that directly? What will you tell them?”
“The truth,” Jack said, “the absolute truth.”
After digesting Jack’s answer, Mark thought to himself, yes they will now all learn the truth and yet be very confused at the same time. The truth Jack would tell them was not going to be what anyone ever expected.
Chapter 5
6:50 AM EST New York - The Network Studios
The door opened and Molly, the dog woman, entered. I was somewhat relieved to see her for I had grown tired of my attorney’s continuous questioning of what I was going to say to Brad. I needed a break from his questioning and turned towards Molly. “Are the dogs calmer now?”
She replied, “They are doing fine, Jack. I needed to get some coffee and freshen up some.”
“Me too. I need to look my best on TV, right?”
She smiled at me as she poured out coffee into a Styrofoam cup and started adding sugar.
I excused myself and went into the restroom to comb my hair and make sure I did not look too bad. As I gazed into the mirror, I checked my tie, collar, and brushed some lint off my sports jacket. My hair was fine. As I looked at my reflection, I realized that in a very short time, everything that was my life for the past fifty-eight years would now change. There was a plan for me beyond my power. It was beyond anyone’s power here on this earth and it was time for me to do as I was asked. I was ready, although I had no idea why I felt so calm.
I was thinking of my family and what they would think after today. I had not told my wife the whole story. Lois would have been quite upset if she knew all of it before today. She would have said no. I did not want her and the kids in the middle of this. I only explained to her that because of all the money, she and the kids would be at risk. She thought about this for a while, and then had packed herself and the boys up and moved out of the country to a villa we had bought in Brazil. They had around the clock security at this time. You never knew what people would do, especially after today. I hoped they would be safe, regardless of my personal demise.
There was a knock on the door of the restroom. I opened it to find Michelle there with another man. She introduced him as Chuck, one of the pages for the show. He put his hand out to shake and I responded in turn. Michelle said, “You are on at 7:20, just before the 7:25 local station break away. I wanted to take you down now to get comfortable on the interview couch. Are you ready to go?”
“It’s now or never,” I responded. I motioned for Mark to follow us and together, we left the Teal Room to go to the studio where the interview was to take place. I glanced over my shoulder to Molly and waved goodbye.
She said, “Good luck. Break a leg.” Mark and I then walked through the door and down the hallway, following Chuck.
Chapter 6
6:50 AM EST New York - The Network Studios, Anchor, Brad Williams’ Dressing Room
In his dressing room, Brad Williams looked at the clock by the door. It was 6:50 a.m. He had just finished doing one-line spots for various affiliates around the country and was having the makeup people touch him up before the actual show started taping. He had about five minutes before it was show time for him, Brad Williams, the “Best Anchor in America,” to deliver the day’s headlines and happenings.
Today though, he was a bit uneasy. He had the interview with the multiple state lottery winner, Jack South. Ordinarily this would not bother him, he thought, but yesterday he had been called into his producer’s office and there was Joe Biggman, President of News Network. They wanted to talk about the interview with Jack South. They both knew he had interviewed several lottery winners over the years and knew what he was to do. This was the first time that he had been called in and been given a completely different set of questions for the interview than the standard ones given to Jack a week ago.
Brad had been directed by the big man himself to find out why Jack South had spent millions on a criminal defense team. This Jack was utilizing the services of the largest law firm in the U.S., which defends major criminals. He had also spent millions more on a nationally recognized PR firm. As Joe said to him, “There is something wrong with this whole Jack South thing and we want you to use your skills to get him to spill his guts on national TV.” Joe went on to say, “We are going to change the rules to see if we can catch him off guard.”
They had done that in the past; tell the interviewee that he or she was on at a certain time, sit them down early, no pre-introductions, start the interview early, and change the questions they may have been prepped for. Usually, this worked with the person and they got answers they would not normally get. It had been done before and they were going to try it with Jack South as well.
Brad was still uneasy. His sixth sense was telling him that Jack South was not the normal lottery winner. He and his demands before the interview, like having his attorney present to video tape the interview himself, and having the legal right to a copy of the interview were not normal at all. What was Jack up to? Why all the uproar by the head of the news department and the producer?
Brad had a whole dossier on Jack, which was colorful at least. Jack had been in a lot of trouble as a kid and had been through several marriages. His life was just spotty in general. If necessary, Brad felt that he could crucify him on TV and get to the truth, but still he was uneasy.
His thoughts were interrupted when his assistant said, “Mr. Williams, time to go. We have less than two minutes before you need to be out front.” Brad looked in the mirror, smiled, tore off the paper around his neck, stood, and walked towards the door. Just another day, he said to himself.
Chapter 7
7:00 AM EST New York - The Network Interview Studio
The interview studio had a couch with the anchor’s chair adjacent to it. The studio lights were on full tilt and the room was comfortable, if somewhat warm. I was directed by the page to sit on the corner of the couch next to where Brad Williams would sit for my interview.
As I sat down, I wondered why I had not at least gotten to say a cursory hello to Brad, but remembered in the coaching that they may try and set me up to see if they could learn something. A man walked up and started talking to me, “Hi, Mr. South, I am Lester Marks and I am in charge of the cameras and lighting. I want to have you move a bit closer to the arm of the couch and look straight out to the target you see over there,” as he pointed to a relatively large red circle located near one of the cameras. I looked directly at the spot and Lester said, “Okay, smile. We are doing a little promo on you and all you have to do is look at the target and smile if you like. Are you ready?” he asked.
“Yes,” I said. He moved away from the couch.
“After about thirty seconds,” he said, “We got it. You can relax now, Mr. South.” He came back over to the couch and sat beside me. “Okay, here is how it works. Brad Williams will come out and sit right beside you in his chair,” pointing at the interview chair. “It will not be necessary for you to get up to greet him. We will give a countdown,” pointing over to an area that would be behind Brad, “over there.” The assistant producer will use his fingers like this,” he showed me his hand. He bent one finger down and then the rest, “five, four, three, two, one. The camera will then focus in on Mr. Williams, and then the two of you; after which the inte
rview will begin. All I ask of you is to look at Brad when speaking. Try not to look directly into the camera. Do you have any questions?”
“No, I think I understand what to do.”
“Great, I’m sure you’ll be fine,” as he stood and walked back to the cameras.
I glanced at my watch. It was 7:05 a.m. I looked around and it was a sea of people. There were cameras and wires everywhere. A woman came up to me and said, “Mr. South, I need to hook up this mike on your lapel. It is wireless and you can put this earpiece in your left ear away from the cameras.” She adjusted the mike on my lapel and I put the earpiece in my ear. She then asked me to say my name, which I did. She got a heads up sign from one of the technicians located in the control booth. She said, “You’re wired and ready to go, Mr. South.” She left to go to her position, which was in the control booth in front of the studio area.
I started thinking to myself, well here we go Jack! I felt in my pocket for the piece of paper with the information I was about to share and sat rather stiffly on the couch. I looked at my watch again and it was now 7:09. I looked up and saw Brad Williams coming towards me. Stopping in front of me he said, “Mr. South, Brad Williams.” We shook hands and he sat down. Two techs came over and checked his mike. He then leaned towards me. “We decided to start a bit early on your interview. Are you ready?”
“Yes, I am as ready as I will ever be.” I glanced at my watch. It was 7:11, not 7:20. I knew now that they were definitely going to try to trip me up.
Chapter 8
7:11 AM EST New York - The Network Interview Studio
My sight line was being directed by a person standing a bit behind Brad Williams. I noticed that my attorney was ready with the portable web-enabled video unit and he was right by the camera. Everything said would be captured on the video. I only hoped the quality would be acceptable.
I looked back to the camera I was supposed to be looking at. The person there was counting down on his fingers: five, four, three, two, one, and then Brad started talking.