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GLENN KLEIER THE KNOWLEDGE OF GOOD&EVIL C H A D I I • U S A Books by Glenn Kleier The Last Day The Knowledge of Good & Evil This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author ’s imagination or are used fictitiously. THE KNOWLEDGE OF GOOD & EVIL Copyright © 2011 by Glenn Kleier All rights reserved. Chad II, LLC 9720 Park Plaza Avenue Suite 201 Louisville, KY 40241 http://www.kleier.com ASIN 0000000000 Kindle World Edition: Fall 2011 Produced in the United States of America 0 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 To all who confront dark nights of the soul ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This little allegory and I owe much to many people . Foremost, Albert Zuckerman, senior agent and founder of Writers House. Al is the compleat literary agent. A mentor and sounding board, with more than thirty illustrious years in this industry. An editor, with vast expertise as a playwright, professor of dramatic literature at Yale, and author of TV shows, novels, and nonfiction. And a tireless, enthusiastic advocate. His keen, comprehensive advice was invaluable to me. More- over, Al is a true gentleman and all-around nice guy. Thank you, my friend. I’m grateful to another legend in publishing, executive editor at Macmillan Robert Gleason. Bob has a substantial and distinguished biography himself, having edited many award-winning, bestselling books of fiction and nonfiction. He’s also an accomplished writer in his own right, with a dozen-plus novels to his credit. Knowledge benefited greatly from his experience and dedication. I’d like to recognize, too, Bob’s remarkable assistants, Ashley Cardiff and Katharine Critchlow. Ashley was an integral part of the process at Macmillan from the start, both administratively and editorially, helping to fine-tune many aspects of Knowledge. And Ashley took the baton to the finish line, going to great lengths to publish this book as beautifully as possible. I am most appreciative, ladies, you did an extraordinary job. Special thanks to longtime friends, Jean Amick and Dick Aylor of Kentucky Country Day School. Jean, Chair of the Foreign Language Department, and Dick, a Latin savant, assisted me with my French and Latin translations respectively, kindly polishing my rusty efforts—and without snickering. I wish to thank the dozens of good people around the globe who helped supply images for Knowledge. Their splendid contributions and credits can be viewed collectively at kleier.com/images. I also want to remember my dear mother, Mary Rose Kleier, whom I lost during the writing of this book. My eternal love. And my warm thanks to my father, Gene Kleier, and sons Ryan and Sean, who took time to read early drafts and offer helpful thoughts—as did my friend Dr. Ken Hodge. My most heartfelt appreciation I save for my loving wife. Thank you for serving as first reader, Pam, your perspective was indispensable. You are my muse. How fortunate I am to have the assistance of all these brilliant and generous people. What a fulfilling experience this has been. My love to all of you, always, GLENN NOTE TO READERS The Knowledge of Good & Evil includes a number of color and black-and- white photos, paintings, and illustrations embedded within the text of the story. Many, however, are too large and detailed to reproduce well in eBooks, and some eBooks will not display color. For readers who’d like a better look at these images, a web page is provided online at: (http://www.kleier.com). Identifying the images in the text are corresponding numbers in superscript ( 1, ,2, 3, . .). Although The Knowledge of Good & Evil is a work of fiction, the story centers on many actual events, people, and places. Much research went into the development of these aspects, and for those interested, more information is also available at the above-mentioned web page. We hope this collection of photos, paintings, illustrations, and additional background will enrich your reading experience. And the Lord God commanded the man, “Of every tree in the garden you shall eat, but of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil you shall not eat; for the day you eat of it, surely you shall die.” Genesis, 2:16– 17 And the serpent said unto the woman, “Nay, you shall not die. For in the day you eat thereof, your eyes shall be opened and you shall be as God, knowing Good and Evil.” Genesis, 3:4– 5 PROLOGUE Based on official police records, eyewitness testimony, journal records, and facts in evidence COTTAGE #2, RED CROSS INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE CENTER, BANGKOK, THAILAND, DECEMBER 10, 1968, AFTERNOON Father Thomas Merton stepped from the shower toweling his rugged face and gray crescent of hair that rimmed his head, blue eyes aglow with the fervor of his Great Secret. He hummed a Christmas carol the choir had sung for him at Mass this morning—“Angels We Have Heard on High.” If only they knew how fitting their selection was! One week ago while visiting a sacred cave in Ceylon, Father had stumbled into something he suspected no soul now living had ever seen. Surely something no living soul was meant to see. He’d entered Heaven through a back door, looked into the very mind of God, and escaped with a revelation so powerful it would change all humanity. Bring wars to a standstill. End forever the age-old hatreds between races, creeds, and cultures. Even more earthshaking, unlike revelations of scripture, his vision did not stand on faith alone. Anyone daring to follow Father’s path could steal into Heaven and see for himself. For the first time in history, to the utter negation of all nonbelievers—proof of God and the afterlife. The Secret burned in Father’s soul and he couldn’t wait to present it to the world. But a revelation of this magnitude demanded a proper forum, and to that end he was biding his time until tonight. As guest of honor at an international religious conference, he was to give closing remarks. And what a finale he would make it! Hundreds of spiritual leaders and media in attendance from all over the globe, none with a clue to the bombshell he was about to drop. The forum was hours off, however, and Father needed rest. Hooking his towel on the door he retired to the bedroom, padding naked across the terrazzo to where his pallet sat by an electric fan. Moments later he lay dead. But his Great Secret did not die with him. Father Merton left behind a journal . ONE The Near Future CBS AFFILIATE, CHANNEL 2 TV, LOS ANGELES, MORNING Grinning, Charles Dunn bustled into the little screening room, clicking on lights with a remote, feeling like he’d just won the Super Lotto. He checked his Rolex. Angela would be here soon, always punctual as a church bell. He lumbered down to the center row, shuffled to a seat, and plopped, smoothing his suit. Next week, the diet, he vowed. Impossible now with winter production racing to a close. He’d been gulping coffee and donuts for hours to keep his energy. Insane business, this, creating local TV programs to compete with national broadcast and cable—and at a fraction the budget. Living Nielsen-to-Nielsen not knowing if the shows you’d birthed and nurtured lovingly as a parent would endure. But it was moments like the one pending that made all the heartburn worth it. Charles had spoken to the home network in New York this morning, and he had incredible news for Angela. She’d no clue what awaited, joining him here simply to preview new footage for their series. “And to think,” he sighed, running a hand through his thinning hair, “I nearly let her slip through my fingers . .” It was scarcely a year ago that Angela had come to his attention, a talk show host for an obscure LA radio station at the time. Just another tongue clamoring to be heard on the crowded, late-night airwaves. Charles always kept an ear cocked for radio shows with TV potential, and he’d heard buzz about a new program catching on with area college students—often a bellwether of the next hot thing. But tuning in, he’d quickly tuned out. Probing the Paranormal. A weekly news-type format investigating things supernatural. Ghosts, clairvoyants, mediums, and such. Old hat. Cable TV had been working that shtick for years with lukewarm success. Nor was he that impressed with Angela, first blush. Fresh out of grad school, his sources told him, PhD in psychology, no previous broadcast experience. Hardly a springboard to TV. Not that she wasn’t talented. A silky, arresting voice. And clever the way she applied science and reason to topics seldom handled intelligently. But too much science and reason. More PBS than CBS. “Damn, did I whiff that one!” Two months later he was kicking himself in his big, professional ass. Driving to work one morning, glancing out his window at a billboard, he did such a double take he nearly pulled a muscle in his neck. Towering before him, the image of a stunning young woman with dark hair, arms folded, leaning against the call letters of her radio station. Bold words proclaimed: LA’s #1 Late-Nite Talk Show PROBING the PARANORMAL with Dr. Angela Weber He’d almost skidded off the road. Grabbing his cell, he’d arranged a hasty meeting, only to confirm how wrong his first impression had been.

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