The Tears of Nero (The Halo Group Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page B

happened in Eden.”
    “Nero is religious,” Henry noted.  “Both of the questions he posed to us concern the nature of God.  Why does God allow bad things to happen to good people?  Why did God allow the serpent into the Garden of Eden?”
    “The questions could be related,” Sadie said.  “Adam and Eve were good people in the beginning and something bad happened to them.  They were tempted which caused them to sin which caused more bad things to happen to them.”
    “Did something bad really happen to them?” Edward asked.  “They were tempted but the undesirable stuff didn’t occur until they gave in to that temptation and ate from the tree.  They made their own bad luck.  The misfortune that befell them was a direct result of their disobedience.”
    “But why did God allow the serpent into the Garden in the first place?” Henry asked.  “If He knew that allowing the serpent to roam wild would eventually lead to the introduction of sin into the world, why didn’t He kill the serpent…or at the very least cast it out before everything went haywire?  Why create the serpent at all?”
    “God gave us free will,” Edward explained.  “He wanted us to choose Him….not have a choice forced upon us.  The serpent represented that choice.”
    “You speak like a man accustomed to giving sermons,” Henry noted. 
    “I used to be a preacher.”
    “Used to be?” Kelly asked.  “I’m sure there’s a story behind that.”
    Edward nodded.  “There is, but I’d rather not discuss it.  It all ties in to the picture Nero sent me.  Nero seems agitated by the amount of free will we’ve been given…or by our weakness to exercise that free will in a way that is pleasing to God.  He can’t understand why God allowed sin to infiltrate our lives at all.  By giving us a choice, He must have known so many of us would choose incorrectly.”
    Franklin frowned.  “Nero makes a good point.  Even if we choose the right path, that’s not a guarantee against calamity.  Sometimes we make the right choices and bad things still happen.  You were a preacher serving God, and your family still suffered.  Did the exercising of your free will result in your loss?”
    Edward’s gaze dropped to the ground.  “Of course not.  There was nothing I could have done.  They were killed by a drunk driver.  It wasn’t their fault.”
    “And it wasn’t your fault either,” Franklin said.  “Why would God allow something like that to take place?  Why allow sin into the world that would eventually spawn people like the drunk driver that killed your family?  God created mankind.  But He also created the tempting serpent.  Why?”
    “I hate to interrupt the discussion,” Henry said, his voice taking on an uneven note of panic.  “But am I the only one who dislikes the part of this story that involves snakes?  Everybody listen.”
    The foliage rustled on either side of the thicket where the sound system continued to pipe out Mozart.  “What’s that?” Franklin asked.  “Who’s there?”
    “Not who,” Edward said, seeing movement among the emerald fronds.  “ What .”    
    The noise was soft at first.  Like two sheets of sandpaper rubbing together.  The hissing grew louder. 
    “Here’s the real trap that’s been hidden underneath all that window dressing,” Edward said as something writhed across the jungle floor.   
    “I don’t like the sound of that,” Franklin said.  “It reminds me of that scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark.”   
    “I‘m not a big fan of snakes myself,” Edward said.  “We should make our escape now.  Everybody watch where you step.” 
    He and Franklin walked backward, their eyes scanning the jungle floor for any sign of movement.   Abruptly, Edward felt Franklin’s hand tighten on his shoulder.  “Look.  There.”  He pointed as the leaves of a fallen tree swayed.  Something moved.  Hissed.  Moved again.   
    “Over there too,”