Will Loomis is living with his mentally handicapped sister Violet, who wants a younger child to play with, so Will 'kidnaps' one (and then another) child from the local children's home. The child is told it is dead and gone to heaven. Will and Violet try to make their farm a little piece of heaven for the kids, while the authorities wonder what has happened to the kidnapped children.

Jack Morgan is a dog therapist, once famous for being able to read his dog's mind. Although Jack cannot read the minds of other dogs, he still operates a canine mind-reading business, without divulging his inability to customers. Mr. Mooney and his wife bring their dog to see Jack. Dissatisfied with Jack's inability to read his dog's mind, Mr. Mooney, who is a friend of the city mayor, threatens to have his business closed down. After the Mooneys leave, a wealthy man named Clyde Windsor brings his dog, Lucky, to see Jack, who is stunned by his ability to read the dog's mind. He seems worried by this fact and ends the session early. Before Windsor leaves, Jack informs him that Lucky is bothered by three individuals that live with him.

After millions vanish, a group of people must band together to form the Tribulation Force and prepare themselves for the worst seven years the planet has ever seen.

A year and a half ago, the globe was hit with the biggest catastrophe it had ever seen. Without warning and without explanation, hundreds of millions simply vanished off the face of the Earth. The world was in chaos like never before. Yet somehow one man seemed to rise to the challenge. One man had the strength and conviction to unite a shattered world. One man gave the world hope. That man was Nicolae Carpathia, who now rules the entire world.