The Faithful Remnant: No One Left Behind

By Albert O. and Donna T. Geraldi C.PhD.

The Manhattan Crisis and Beyond is a realistic fiction grounded in biblical research pertaining to the post-tribulation theory and will appeal to readers interested in eschatological information found in both the Old and New Testaments.

New York State Reservist Sergeant Robert Gaines, along with his NYPD partners Sergeant Tom Banks and Officer Pete Gallagher, and a United Nations security officer, Lieutenant Daniel Soto, must face all odds in their rescue attempt to save as many people in Manhattan from the threat of a nuclear attack on the city.

With the help of a wealthy Wall Street Broker, Michael Giordano, his family, and other resources, they develop an ingenious full-proof escape plan using the city’s underground transportation system and waterways.

After facing multiple challenges while attempting to escape, they finally locate themselves, their families, and their followers on a 1,000-acre mountain ranch in a small, northeast secluded Georgia town where they have a Lodge, several cabins, a medical clinic, and a church. There, they team up with Pastor John Banks, Sheriff Parker, Marine Major Bartlett, the National Guard, and local rebel groups to thwart the Turkish Emperor Salahadin’s Global Peace Keepers’ ambitious plan to invade, as they have done in Europe, major cities within the United States. Throughout the story, this small group of people face all odds in preparing themselves and others to survive the coming devastating end-time signs so that No One is Left Behind!

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Oct 31, 2023
• ISBN: 9798385007707

Albert O.

Albert O. Geraldi, husband and father, is a Christian and devout believer in the written Word of God. He is a retired decorated NYC Police Officer and Academy instructor who served in the Vietnam War as a Special Forces Green Beret A-Team sergeant. Albert Geraldi is a 9th Degree Black belt teacher in the Okinawan Martial Art known as Ryukyu Kempo, and is the founder of a martial art association Zenkokyu Ryukyu Kempo Karate-Do Renmei, Inc. Donna T. Geraldi, wife and mother, is a Christian and devout believer in the written Word of God. She is a former NYC Police Officer and Academy Instructor, and who received a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology, a Master’s degree in Social Work, and a Doctorate in Christian Counseling. Donna Geraldi is a Licensed Clinical Pastoral Counselor under the National Christian Counseling Association, a Commissioned Minister of Counseling, and a Florida Licensed Clinical Social Worker. She is also certified in Theophostic Prayer Ministry and is the founder and director of New Day Christian Counseling & Life Coaching Center, Inc.

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Copyright © 2023 Albert O. & Donna T. Geraldi, C.Phd.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents, organizations, and dialogue in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scriptures marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

ISBN: 979-8-3850-0769-1 (sc)

ISBN: 979-8-3850-0770-7 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2023917760

WestBow Press rev. date: 10/20/2023

CONTENTS

Chapter 1 Mountain Reserves

Chapter 2 A Typical Day

Chapter 3 Weekend Bbq

Chapter 4 John Banks, The Seer

Chapter 5 Wonders Down Under

Chapter 6 United Nations Contact

Chapter 7 Spiritual Guidance

Chapter 8 The Game Plan

Chapter 9 The Seer Arrives

Chapter 10 The First Seal

Chapter 11 The Hunting Lodge

Chapter 12 The Spokesperson

Chapter 13 The Second Seal

Chapter 14 Hospital Evacuations

Chapter 15 Special Assignment

Chapter 16 The City That Never Sleeps

Chapter 17 Incident At Hell Gate

Chapter 18 Pier 17

Chapter 19 Our Atlantic Voyage

Chapter 20 Our River Journey

Chapter 21 The Third Seal

Chapter 22 Appalachia

Chapter 23 Search Mission

Chapter 24 The Fourth Seal

Chapter 25 The Church

Chapter 26 The Manor

Chapter 27 The Statue

Chapter 28 Special Delivery

Chapter 29 The Two Prophets Of God

Chapter 30 The Fifth Seal

Chapter 31 The Hospital

Chapter 32 Wedding Day

Chapter 33 The Sixth Seal

Chapter 34 Finding The Light

Chapter 35 The Plan

Chapter 36 Project Roadblock

Chapter 37 Incident On The River

Chapter 38 Struggles Past And Present

Chapter 39 Surprise Guests

Chapter 40 The Battle At Stockbridge

Chapter 41 Good News From Atlanta

Chapter 42 The Seventh Seal

Chapter 43 The Second & Third Trumpets

Chapter 44 The Fourth Trumpet

Chapter 45 The Fifth Trumpet

Chapter 46 The Sixth Trumpet

Chapter 47 The Final Hour

About the Author

Dedicated to

The Faithful Remnant

"But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord,

whose confidence is in him.

They will be like a tree planted by the water

that sends out its roots by the stream.

It does not fear when heat comes,

its leaves are always green.

It has no worries in the year of drought

and never fails to bear fruit."

Jeremiah 17:7–8

ONE

MOUNTAIN RESERVES

T he winds picked up, sweeping the early morning mist aside. The temperature for late Spring was slightly above freezing in the Adirondack Mountains. Snow clung stubbornly to tree branches, and with each gust of wind, a fresh layer of snow dusted over every inch of newborn grass below.

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I am Sergeant First Class Robert Gaines, New York State Army Reservist. My teammate, Tom Banks, originally from Louisiana, and I are part of a twelve-man A-team in the NY Reserves Mountain Division Special Forces. When not on weekend war games, we work as cops in a mid-town Manhattan NYPD 13th precinct. In the Reserves, I outrank Banks by two grades; on the force, Banks recently passed the Sergeants exam, balancing our professional relationship.

The second day into the exercise, Banks and I found ourselves trying to keep warm on top of a mountain ridge after being separated from the rest of our team. It was so cold overnight that the soles of our boots had frozen solid to where we had to hold them over our fire the following morning, and we still heard them cracking with every step we took.

Being a demolition specialist in the regular Army, I knew how to work with explosives. So, I had secretly stashed a small block of plastic explosives in my Survival Kit Ready Access Module. It sounds scary, but it burns like Sterno if you place it in the hollow between a few large boulders. We could at least boil water for a hot cup of coffee.

Banks and I continued the mission on our own, marking soft targets for vulnerability while trying to evade the ‘enemy,’ the Fighting 69th Reserve Unit. Something, though, we noticed, was not quite right. Our orders were to radio our Support Central team coordinators before moving to the next target site. However, the 69th Unit was already there before us, making it impossible to access our assigned targets. So, we assumed someone inside Support Central was working in their favor.

What do you think? Banks asked.

What do I think? I repeated, squatting behind a large boulder to block the wind while flicking my cigarette lighter in a last-ditched effort to light the explosive. I think I’ve had about enough of this. If I don’t get this thing lit, we’ll have to surrender to get a decent cup of coffee!

Finally, the plastic lit, dispersing an intense blue flame. But I knew this wouldn’t be enough to survive the cold before we could locate the rest of our team, more importantly, before our supplies ran out. By noontime, we were so exhausted from trying to beat the cold; we finally decided enough was enough.

No, I mean, what we were talking about earlier. Banks said, trying to restart our last conversation.

Banks grew up in Louisiana surrounded by relatives who were devout Christians. His uncles were all preachers. He told me that they spoke endlessly about the Bible, especially the Book of Revelation and the End of Days.

With the water starting to boil, I focused on spooning coffee crystals into my cup, trying to recall the topic.

Everyone is entitled to their opinion. I finally said, turning my attention toward Banks, Look, there are a lot of Christian sects and Bible versions, and people interpret Scripture differently.

That’s true, Banks replied, now fixing his cup. Throughout history, religious clerics and zealots have tried to teach their interpretation of Scripture. But, Gaines, don’t you think if God wanted us to know the very thing that would save our lives, wouldn’t He make it understandable? Martin Luther, the greatest reformer of Christian doctrine, devoted his whole life’s work to spreading the gospel in a way that the common folk could understand. The Church declared him a heretic and an outlaw and even allowed people to kill him without repercussion.

The hot aluminum coffee mugs warmed our hands as we looked over the rugged terrain above the rising steam that seemed to defy the cold mid-afternoon air.

I see your point, I told him. But I believe that controversy and confusion exist because of varying interpretations and doctrines.

Yes, it does seem that way. Banks said, "Remember, most Christian sects, if not all, work for a common cause to win souls for Christ. In Mark 10:39–40 (NLT), Jesus told his apostles not to stop those casting out demons in His name because ‘whoever is not against us is for us.’"

I knew that once Banks started preaching, it would be a while before we would move on.

It’ll be dark soon. We should get off this mountain. I told him, not wanting to cut him off, but this conversation could wait until we were somewhere warmer.

Don’t call it in. I added quickly, I don’t trust whoever it is that’s compromising our position. We can tell them later that we lost radio contact or something.

It was a long hike down the mountainside, especially while maintaining cover. Once we got closer to ground zero, I saw through my binoculars a row of army trucks lined up along the road with troops milling about on foot.

Handing the binoculars to Banks, I said, Huh! D’you see? They’re probably waiting for us to call in our location.

As we made our way through the thick brush, we came upon a soft carpet of pine needles beckoning us to sit and rest momentarily. I thought about what Banks had said earlier. It’s true. If God wanted us to know something, He would explain it to us in a way we would understand, especially something as crucial as our salvation. But I’ve always found it hard to decipher Bible Scripture, except for Jesus’ parables and passages where angels explained things people had witnessed in their presence. The truth is, I want to understand it all, especially about the end time. My interest in survival tactics was why I enlisted in the army in the first place.

When I was younger, my grandfather told me about his childhood experience in the early 1950s during the Cold War between the United States and Russia. As a young boy, he lived under the threat of an atomic bomb and had to practice air raid drills in school. Students would hide under their desks or sit on the hallway floor with their heads tucked under their arms. Anticipating what was to come and seeing the fear in the other children’s eyes must have created a sense of urgency in him. The drills stopped when they finally realized whatever the survival method they chose, short of a bomb shelter, didn’t matter.

I sat back and lit a roll-your-own cigarette, intent on listening briefly to Banks’ take on the end times. Then, offering one to him, he declined with a concerned yet annoyed look, fanning the smoke away from his face.

I know, I know, this is my last one. I tried to convince him, I swear. I’ll quit when we get back.

Ironically enough, the same is true about our salvation. Banks continued, trying to read the puzzled look on my face, We can never do enough, Gaines! Listen to me! Whatever we do to save ourselves will never replace what Jesus did for us on the cross. All we need do is believe, stay alert, remain faithful, and watch for the signs until the day Jesus returns to meet him in the air.

I’m with you, brother, I said.

Seeing the sun nearing a far-off ridge, I realized that if we didn’t stop talking, we would lose the light and possibly never find our way off this mountain, no less get something to eat. I was starving.

Banks drew a deep breath through his nose and blew it out of his pursed lips, making a fluttering sound.

I know. I get carried away sometimes. He confessed. My uncles, especially my Uncle John, a seer and a healer, say that time is of the essence, so I’m doing my part to get the message out. Although he doesn’t call himself a Prophet, he’s been seeing things that concern me and my family.

There was barely enough light to continue downhill.

Our map indicated a town in the opposite direction of the Reservists, who were still awaiting news about our location. We continued walking in a southeasterly direction until we reached a stretch of road heading toward town. Seeing hikers and hunters walking along these country roads wasn’t unusual. So, we felt safe until a frenzy of dust slowly formed in the distance behind us. We knew the wind wasn’t strong enough to create such a stir, so we assumed some vehicle was heading our way.

You guys need a lift? A young man shouted out the driver’s side window of his pickup truck as he pulled alongside us, a large German Shepherd sitting next to him in the front seat. Jump in the back. I’m heading into town.

Relieved it wasn’t a military vehicle, we threw our packs onto the truck bed and introduced ourselves through the open rear window.

I’m Tim. My dad runs a greenhouse farm down the road. He’s been grooming me to take over after I graduate high school, but I’ve decided to join the Army instead.

Realizing we were soldiers, not hunters, he announced excitedly, I plan on becoming an army paratrooper. I’ve always wanted to know how jumping out of an airplane feels! What do you think?

Paratroopers are a long haul from recruitment, son. My advice, if you don’t mind me saying so. I said, Finish school. If you don’t, the most you will ever learn in the Army is how to clean a bathroom floor with a toothbrush. Besides, don’t you think jumping out of a perfect airplane is a little insane?

Never thought of it that way! Tim mumbled to himself, scratching his head and shrugging his shoulders.

Are you hungry? I asked him, smiling discreetly. Our treat!

He drove into a parking lot in front of a shiny metal diner, 1950s-style, that stood out like a sore thumb in this rural town. After locking our gear inside the truck cab, we entered the diner and found an empty booth by the window. Banks needed no help deciding quickly on a thick, juicy steak and a hot baked potato loaded with sour cream and chives. I echoed the order. While waiting for the food, the waitress Dolores kept the coffee hot and the water glasses filled while we continued discussing with Tim whether he should enlist in the military or go to college. When the food finally arrived, and I was just about to sink my teeth into a mouthful of steak, our Team Captain walked into the diner.

Attempting to hide his face behind a dessert menu, Banks gave up, saying, Oh, well. Let’s face the music. Quick, what’s our story?

Just tell him the truth, I replied calmly.

The captain spotting us, roared, his baritone voice sounding like a lion in heat, "So, there you are. It’s been a whole day since we heard from you. We were ready to send out a search party. Where’ve you been hiding? No, wait! Don’t tell me. I don’t want to know."

To tell the truth, Captain, I replied, Every time we called in our next location, Sir, the Reserves were ahead of us. So, I think there must be a plant in Support Central.

You’re good, Gaines. I suspected the same thing. He confirmed, The other day, I went into headquarters and saw a 69th Reserve Colonel looking at A-Team’s location charts. Don’t worry, boys. Just sit tight and enjoy your meal. You deserve it. But when you finish, get back to base. I’m about ready to call off this exercise.

TWO

A TYPICAL DAY

R ecently, the drive into Manhattan from Queens took a little longer each week. More people, lately, were driving into the city rather than taking the subway or Long Island Railroad.

Why now? I wondered as the decision to fight traffic or vie for a seat on a train seemed all the same to me.

Whenever Banks and I worked the same shift, I would drive about a half-hour, given the traffic, from my house in New Hyde Park, Queens, to his apartment in Rego Park. Rather than listen to the radio the whole way into the city, we usually talked. But this time, we listened as the news announced the United Nations was planning to form a special Ten-Nation Supreme Council.

This is serious. Banks said, turning the radio off, In the Book of Daniel 7:24, Daniel prophesied ten horns being ten kings and that a king, different from the others, will defeat three kings and speak out against God. The thousand-year-old prophecy is finally coming true with the Ten-Nation Supreme Council, which will inevitably lead to the coming of a Supreme Leader, the Anti-Christ.

I thought something seemed strange when the United Nations recently erected that statue of a cat-like creature with wings in front of the UN building! I said, then asked him. Isn’t that the symbol of the Babylonian Kingdom?

Yup, if that’s not a wake-up call, then nothing is! Banks answered. Daniel 7:4 describes the first of the four great beasts coming out of the sea as a lion with eagle’s wings. I don’t know, Gaines, but the shoe will drop anytime here in America as it already has in Europe and the Middle East. Unless people understand this, they won’t be ready for what comes next.

More like a parking lot, the slow-moving parkway allowed us to inch our way into the city. Apart from the stop-and-go horn honking traffic and my car’s droning engine, we sat in silence, mulling over what impact the mayhem overseas would have on the United States. But eventually, as usual, Banks fell asleep. I must admit, when he’s driving, I do the same.

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Turn that up! Shouted one of New York’s finest fifteen minutes before Sergeant Banks announced roll call. The East 21st Street 13th Precinct, home of the Gramercy and Flatiron districts, sported a new 75" flat-screen HD TV that seemed to be on day and night since they installed it weeks ago.

‘After the United Nations moves from New York City to Geneva, Switzerland, the plan to form a Ten-Nation Supreme Council will go into effect over the next few weeks.’ The evening news reporter announced.

Whether or not the Council will succeed, every UN member already started jockeying for a seat.

Okay, folks, that’s it! Banks shouted after