Deception Read online

  Here’s what readers are saying about Randy Alcorn’s novels:

  “I have just finished reading Randy Alcorn’s new novel. Deception is the same high quality as Randy’s related novels Deadline and Dominion. All three are page-turners.… Randy is a gifted writer. I strongly recommend that you read his books.”

  CHUCK NORRIS, SIX-TIME WORLD KARATE CHAMPION, INTERNATIONAL FILM AND TELEVISION STAR, AND CREATOR OF THE wORLD cOMBAT lEAGUE AND THE KICK START FOUNDATION

  “Randy Alcorn’s Deception is a fiction thriller that delivers. It was as engaging to me as books by Crichton or Clancy. I really resonated with the main character, Ollie Chandler. He tells it like it is, with sarcasm and humor. I’m sure glad Randy can’t paint, or I’d be in big trouble!”

  RON DICIANNI, AWARD-WINNING ARTIST AND AUTHOR OF BEYOND WORDS

  “Randy Alcorn is amazing. He’s one of my all-time favorite authors.”

  KAREN KINGSBURY, BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE REDEMPTION SERIES AND THE FIRSTBORN SERIES

  “With humor, verve, and his usual attention to detail, Randy Alcorn has crafted a detective story that grips on page one and doesn’t let go. Ollie Chandler won my admiration and Mike Hammer, aka “Mulch,” won my heart as Deception explored the nature of man, the deceit of evil, and the breadth of eternity. Not to be missed.”

  ANGELA HUNT, AUTHOR OF UNCHARTED

  “Alcorn has written a novel that combines the suspense of John Grisham and the theological pondering of C. S. Lewis.”

  NEW MAN magazine for DEADLINE

  “[Deadline] is for clear thinkers who enjoy a good argument. There can be no mistaking—and there should be no ignoring—the vital message of this book.”

  FRANK PERETTI, BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THIS PRESENT DARKNESS

  “Randy Alcorn has hit it out of the park. Deadline is riveting. Motivating. Intriguing. Provocative. And it’s for the mystery lovers too. Many books feed the mind. Some feed the heart. Deadline nourishes both.”

  STU WEBER, AUTHOR OF TENDER WARRIOR

  “My hat is off to Randy Alcorn for his novel Dominion. Wow, what a book. It was a great read, and entertaining, fascinating, and educational as well. I enjoyed it immensely and learned from it too, and what could be better than that? We need more of such books.”

  DOUGLAS GRESHAM, AUTHOR OF LENTEN LANDS: MY CHILDHOOD WITH JOY DAVIDMAN AND C. S. LEWIS and JACK’S LIFE: THE LIFE STORY OF C. S. LEWI; co-producer, THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE

  “Alcorn’s writing remains top-notch, and he fills the pages with enough tension to cause ulcers.”

  BOOKSTORE JOURNAL FOR DOMINION

  “Astonishing book.”

  THE LAMPLIGHTER for DOMINION

  “Dominion is a murder mystery in the best tradition of the genre—but it is written with a steely-edged factualness that is nothing short of haunting.”

  WORLD MAGAZINE

  “This is one of those rare books that I (a woman) enthusiastically recommend to men but am confident women will enjoy as well … Alcorn takes the reader on a suspense-filled journey between heaven and earth, into the depths of darkness itself.”

  THE RIVENDELL REPORT for DEADLINE

  This is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogues are products of the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  DECEPTION published by Multnomah Books A division of Random House, Inc.

  Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from: The Holy Bible, New International Version © 1973, 1984 by International Bible Society, used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House

  Published in the United States by WaterBrook Multnomah, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House Inc., New York.

  MULTNOMAH and its mountain colophon are registered trademarks of Random House Inc.

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise—without prior written permission.

  For information:

  MULTNOMAH BOOKS

  12265 Oracle Boulevard, Suite 200

  Colorado Springs, CO 80921

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Alcorn, Randy C.

  Deception : a novel / Randy Alcorn.

  p. cm.

  eISBN: 978-0-307-56149-7

  I. Title.

  PS3551.L292D45 2007

  813′.54—dc22

  2006039133

  v3.1_r1

  OTHER BOOKS BY RANDY ALCORN

  FICTION

  Deadline

  Dominion

  Edge of Eternity

  Lord Foulgrin’s Letters

  The Ishbane Conspiracy (with Angela and Karina Alcorn)

  Safely Home

  Wait Until Then

  NONFICTION:

  50 Days of Heaven

  Heaven for Kids

  Heaven

  The Law of Rewards

  The Purity Principle

  Why Pro-Life?

  The Grace and Truth Paradox

  The Treasure Principle

  In Light of Eternity

  Money, Possessions, and Eternity

  Pro-Life Answers to Pro-Choice Arguments

  Sexual Temptation

  Women Under Stress (with Nanci Alcorn)

  Christians in the Wake of the Sexual Revolution

  To Diane Meyer

  Who lived with us as a teenager when our girls were small and will always be a sister and daughter to us. We marvel at the great things God has done in your life, Di. We’re among your greatest admirers. You’ve said for years that you wanted me to write a spin-off from Deadline and Dominion. Nanci and I can’t think of anyone we’d rather dedicate it to than you.

  Contents

  Cover

  Title Page

  Copyright

  Other Books by this Author

  Dedication

  Acknowledgments

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter 42

  Chapter 43

  Chapter 44

  Chapter 45

  Chapter 46

  Chapter 47

  Chapter 48

  Chapter 49

  Chapter 50

  Chapter 51

  Chapter 52

  Chapter 53

  Chapter 54

  Chapter 55

  Chapter 56

  Chapter 57

  Chapter 58

  Chapter 59

  Chapter 60

  Chapter 61

  Chapter 62

  Chapt
er 63

  Chapter 64

  Chapter 65

  Chapter 66

  Chapter 67

  Epilogue

  Discussion Questions

  About the Author

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  My heartfelt thanks to Doreen Button, who looked over the manuscript in detail and made suggestions at critical points, all the way through proofreading.

  Thanks to my friend and skilled editor Rod Morris for our partnership on yet another project. Thanks also to Julee Schwarzburg for her graciousness, attention to detail, and editorial input, as well as to Jennifer Barrow, for her outstanding copyediting. And to Rebekah Nafziger and Adrienne Spain for proofreading, and Pamela McGrew for typesetting.

  Thanks to Kevin Marks and Doug Gabbert, for your encouragement and patience with this project. And to Sharon Znachko, for all your work and your kind words … thanks, sis.

  I’m grateful to all those who have been part of the Multnomah family—including my friend Jay Echternach—and to my dedicated partners at WaterBrook who will help get this book into people’s hands. And to the booksellers, without whom it wouldn’t matter that I write books.

  Thanks to the DesignWorks Group and especially to Tim Green for his great work on the Deception cover, as well as the new covers for Deadline and Dominion. (And thanks to Lawrence and Robin Green, who get some credit for Tim.)

  Thanks to the staff of Eternal Perspective Ministries, who do so much for me and who put up with a lot while I was buried in this project. Specifically, thanks to my assistants, Kathy Norquist and Linda Jeffries; my secretary, Bonnie Hiestand; and our bookkeeper and diligent proofreader, Janet Albers. Bonnie in particular spent many hours deciphering my handwritten changes when I was reading the book aloud.

  Thanks to Diane Meyer for her interest in a spin-off book from Deadline and Dominion and her encouragement after reading an early draft. Also for her great job on the study questions. And to all the readers who’ve written me about those books, published in 1994 and 1996, who asked me to write another, not expecting to wait this long.

  Thanks to our dear friend Sue Keels, for coming up with the title Deception while we were brainstorming during a glorious vacation. Thanks also to my buddy Steve Keels, Sue’s husband, who regularly made helpful comments, such as “Aren’t you done with that book yet?”

  Special thanks to Detective Sergeant Tom Nelson, who helped me years ago with Deadline and Dominion and who cheerfully answered many questions over many months concerning Deception. Thanks also to my friends Jim Seymour, police officer, and Darrell MacKay, arson investigator, for your helpful insights.

  Thanks to Sarah Ballenger for her research on various questions. And to Amy Campbell for entering my manuscript changes on short notice, while trying not to let it spoil the book for her.

  Thanks to Tony and Martha Cimmarrusti, Carlos and Gena Norris, Stu Weber, Carol Hardin, Ken and Joni Tada, Sarah Thebarge, and our Sunday night football group, for comments they made that contributed to this book though they didn’t know it. Thanks to Dave Stout for introducing me years ago to one of Ollie’s mottoes.

  Thank you, Frank and Myrna Eisenzimmer and Randy and Sue Monnes, for offering me places to write that proved to be great sanctuaries. And to our EPM Prayer Partners, whose prayers as I wrote this book may prove to be the single greatest human contribution to it.

  Heartfelt thanks to my wife and best friend, Nanci, whose encouraging comments on the manuscript kept me going in rough times and who thoughtfully gave me permission to go back to work many times when neither of us wanted me to.

  Thanks to my precious daughters, Karina and Angela, who made valuable comments on the prologue, and to my wonderful sons, Dan Franklin and Dan Stump, whose lives and interactions contributed to portions of the book. Thanks to Angie also for the medical insights. Thanks to our grandsons, Jake, Ty, and Matt, endless sources of delight when I came in from my office needing a joy transfusion.

  I also want to acknowledge Rex Stout, creator of the Nero Wolfe mysteries, written in the 1930s to 1960s. Ollie, my viewpoint character, admires Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin. Now and then I’ve put into Ollie’s mouth some of Stout’s expressions, a tribute to him. I couldn’t give Stout credit each time, nor can I remember all I’ve absorbed from many pleasant hours reading his books. So I credit him here for what are probably several dozen of his phrases or ideas scattered throughout this book.

  Finally and most importantly, thank You, my Lord Jesus, for sustaining me through this project, which was delayed by innumerable unanticipated events in order to conform to Your perfect timing. I pray above all that You are pleased by it and will use it as You see fit.

  “Those who seek my life set their traps, those who would harm me talk of my ruin; all day long they plot deception.”

  PSALM 38:12

  “Messin’ with me’s like wearin’ cheese underwear down rat alley.”

  OLLIE CHANDLER

  Prologue

  “I fear that if the matter is beyond humanity it is certainly beyond me.”

  SHERLOCK HOLMES, THE ADVENTURES OF THE DEVIL’S FOOT

  IN A DARK ROOM punctured by a bare hundred-watt bulb, two newspaper clippings on the card table appeared whitish gray, four others dim and yellow. Agile fingers arranged them chronologically so the handiwork could be better displayed.

  Should they be placed in a scrapbook? What if they were found? Of all places, surely no one would try to break into this one. The world’s full of stupid people, but not that stupid.

  Most of the people in the clippings had been stupid. But over the years, one by one, they’d been abruptly liberated of their stupidity. And the world had been liberated of them.

  A penciled list of names dropped to the table, by the playing cards, next to the clippings.

  It was time for another stupid person to go away.

  But which one?

  The liberator brooded thirty minutes, forearm bulging, squeezing hard a small object.

  Finally, one name rose to the top.

  The mastermind wrote the name down, then covered it with the ace of spades.

  1

  “My eyes have been trained to examine faces and not their trimmings. It is the first quality of a criminal investigator that he should see through a disguise.”

  SHERLOCK HOLMES, THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES

  WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 6

  MY CHEST POUNDING like a dryer load of army boots, I knocked the noisemaker off its cradle, then groped for it in the darkness. Three enormous red digits—2:59—assaulted my eyes.

  “Hello?” The voice on the phone was deep and croaky. “Detective Ollie Chandler?”

  I nodded my head, admitting it.

  “Chandler?”

  “Yeah.”

  “You didn’t answer your cell.” His voice was a hacksaw cutting a rain gutter. “You awake?”

  “No. But … you may as well finish the job.”

  “In bed?”

  “Mowin’ the lawn. Who died?”

  I’ve been waiting all my life for good news from a 3:00 a.m. phone call. It’s been a wait of Chicago Cubs proportions.

  Many imagine that middle-of-the-night phone calls mean someone’s been killed. I don’t imagine it. It’s true.

  Jake Woods tells me there’s a God in charge of the universe. I’m not convinced. But if there is, I’d appreciate it if He’d schedule murders during day shift.

  “Victim’s Jimmy Ross,” Sergeant Jim Seymour said. I pictured him sitting home in his underwear. Not a pretty picture.

  “Drug dealer.”

  I didn’t shed a tear. They say cops are cynical. To me drug dealers are a waste of protoplasm. They should be shot, injected, then put on the electric chair at a low setting.

  “Officer Sayson’s the patrol,” Sergeant Seymour said. “1760 Southeast Clinton, apartment 34.” I scratched it down in the dark, postponing those first daggers of light.

  As I hung up, I sensed a presence in the dark room and
reached toward the nightstand for my Smith and Wesson 340 revolver. I saw the whites of two eyes three feet away. My hand clenched the revolver. Suddenly I recognized the sympathetic eyes of Mike Hammer, my bullmastiff, who spends his nights getting in and out of my bed, licking my toes to reassure me he’s back.

  Slowly I withdrew my hand from the gun, not wanting to send the wrong message to my bullie.

  What was wrong with me? How could I forget Mike Hammer, my roommate and best friend? I shuddered, remembering five years ago, when I drew the gun on Sharon when she came back to bed after taking Advil.

  The problem with morning is that it comes before my first cup of coffee. I stumbled toward the kitchen, fingertips on the hallway wall, stubbing my toe on the exercise bike Sharon bought me. I’ve used it twice in four years. I keep it around to maintain the illusion that it’s making me healthy. Since this helps me justify the next cheeseburger, it’s worth every penny she paid.

  I keep water in my top-of-the-line Mr. Coffee, poured to the ten-cup mark, with Starbucks French roast always waiting. In my quest for maximum darkness, I load the filter to the top. Whether it’s 7:00 a.m. or 3:00 a.m., I can throw the switch and, even though the world’s going to hell in a handbasket, coffee’s brewing … so there’s hope.