Tim Washburn - Cyber Attack

—BREAKING NEWS—Multiple high-ranking officials confirm country facing cyber attack. Could be weeks before attackers identified. More details to follow…

—BREAKING NEWS—Finally a bit of good news on what has been the worst day in this nation’s history.

We have just learned that the floodgates at the Glen Canyon Dam have been closed. The worries about the possible collapse of the Hoover Dam have abated for now. More details to follow…

—BREAKING NEWS—Reports confirm USS Stark is responsible for attack on Norfolk Naval Station.

The new Zumwalt-class destroyer, the USS Stark , is now docked at Norfolk. We still have no news about what occurred and a full damage assessment of the naval base is now under way. There is no word about the fate of the crew aboard the beleaguered warship or any word about the ship’s future. Military experts say the investigation into the cause could last for months. More details to follow…

—BREAKING NEWS—Update on Seattle chemical plant explosion. Multiple fatalities confirmed at nearby water park. One mother is being hailed a hero.

We can now confirm that multiple fatalities have occurred at the WaveFront Water Park. Located a short distance from the chemical plant explosion, many of the deaths at the park were the result of chlorine poisoning. The exact number of fatalities is still unknown, but one mother killed is being hailed as a hero after she directed several children to climb to the top of the park’s tallest attraction to avoid the highly concentrated chlorine gas hovering near the ground. Included in the group of children are the woman’s own son and several of his friends. We are happy to report the children are all recovering at a local hospital. Names of the dead are being withheld until the next of kin can be notified. More details to follow…

Chicago

Peyton stirs awake and rolls over to find her husband propped up on an elbow and staring at her. “What are you doing, weirdo?”

“Looking at my wife,” Eric says. He leans down and kisses her on the lips. Last night they’d made love and it was extremely emotional and tender after all they endured yesterday. “Ready for round two?”

Peyton playfully pushes him away, “You tie that thing in a knot.”

Eric lies back down. “What do we do now?”

“Do you think Allison has changed her mind since Jordan is home?”

“I have no idea. What I do know is that it’s a long walk to your mother’s house. And with your lacerated feet and my bullet wound it’s going to be a slow, painful journey.”

“No one said we had to leave today,” Peyton says, rolling over to spoon with Eric.

“We might not have a choice.”

“I don’t think they’re going to kick us out on the street.”

Eric runs his fingers through Peyton’s hair. “They might. And I don’t know that I would blame them. It’s a hell of a lot easier to feed two people than it is to feed four.”

“Knowing how much Allison hates to cook, I’m betting they don’t have much food to begin with. It might be easier if we work together to find food.”

“You can count me out if you’re thinking of looting a store,” Eric says, lifting the gauze to check his wound.

Peyton leans over for a look. “Your wound looks clean and dry. Let’s hope it stays that way. Anyway, back to the food. It doesn’t have to be a store. We can look for empty houses or even the schools.”

There’s a soft knock on the door and Allison announces that they’re up.

Eric climbs out of bed and begins dressing. “How are you going to know if a house is empty?”

Peyton throws back the covers and Eric stops what he’s doing to stare at her nude body. “I told you to tie it in a knot,” Peyton says, climbing out of bed and pulling on her borrowed panties. “I guess we’ll have to stake it out for a while before we attempt to go in.” Peyton pulls on the gym shorts and the shirt. “I really need to pee.”

“Bathroom’s down the hall.”

“We can’t use the bathroom, Eric. There’s no water to flush the toilet.”

“Damn, this is going to be hard, isn’t it?”

“Yes.” Peyton opens the door and hurries down the hall. She says good morning to Allison and Jordan in the kitchen and slips out the back door and squats behind their garage. Coming back in, Eric slides by and heads outside to do his business.

“We’re going to need to figure out the bathroom issues,” Jordan says.

Peyton joins them at the table. “What? Like an outhouse?”

“Yeah, or something like it. Things will become unsanitary in a hurry if we don’t bury our waste.”

“I just had to pee,” Peyton says, slightly embarrassed to be discussing this topic. “I thought urine was sterile.”

Eric comes back in and takes a seat at the table.

“Urine is not sterile,” Jordan says. “Anyway, we’re off topic. We need to think about digging a latrine or something.”

“We?” Eric asks. “You guys aren’t kicking us out?”

“Hell, no,” Jordan says. “If what Peyton believes is true, we’re going to have to band together if we’re going to make it. We’ll have to come up with a set of ground rules so we’re not tripping all over ourselves, but foraging for food and water will have to be done in teams of two, just so someone can watch the other person’s back. Besides, Allison and I would kill each other if we’re stuck in this house together with nothing to do.”

“What’s the food situation look like?” Peyton asks.

“Grim,” Allison says. “We have some peanut butter, a couple of cans of corn, one can of green beans, and a box of cake mix. Everything in the fridge is spoiled.”

“Pretty slim pickings,” Peyton says. “Who do you know that was out of town yesterday?”

“The Wallace family from down the street flew out to California the day before yesterday,” Allison says.

Jordan pushes to his feet. “I guess we’ll start there. Eric, will you go with me?”

“Of course.”

“Don’t be so quick to answer. Are you willing to pull the trigger on the shotgun if you need to?”

Eric thinks about it for a moment. “I think so. I guess we won’t know until we face that situation.”

“By then it will be too late,” Jordan says.

“What about you, then? Would you pull the trigger if it meant killing someone?” Eric asks.

Jordan nods. “If one of our lives were at stake, yes. In a heartbeat.”

Eric runs his fingers through his hair. “Maybe I should be the gatherer and you should be the hunter.”

Jordan shrugs. “Works for me. Let me grab the shotgun and some extra ammo and we’ll take off.”

Boston

After hijacking the flight Michelle Miller and Carlos Torres had planned, Paige Randall and Hank Goodnight are now on the ground in Boston. Both had crashed as soon as the plane had taken off and they’re far from well rested, but they are functioning. Hank looks out the side window as the driver from the Boston field office turns into an industrial area northwest of downtown Boston. The driver badges his way past the police barricades and pulls the Tahoe to the curb just down the street from the FBI’s special weapons and tactics (SWAT) team’s van. Parked two blocks from the target building, it will be the staging area for the upcoming assault on the building. Piling out of the car, Hank smiles again at how tight Natalie’s jeans are on Paige. She catches his smile and shows Hank her middle finger.