“I’m worried. Very worried.”
“About?”
“Something is horribly wrong,” he said. “I’ve been watching the activity on the surface of the sun. The only activity has been the three CMEs that have come at us, each one exactly seventeen days apart. Nothing else has happened — no other disturbances, no fluctuations, nothing.” Dr. Spencer turned back to face Jake and Honi. “I know it doesn’t make any sense, but the only conclusion I can come to is that the CMEs have been artificially generated. I just don’t know how that could be done. I mean the timing is just too precise. Three solar storms in a row — exactly seventeen days apart? Come on!”
“And somehow,” Jake added. “Whoever has managed to do this, has found a way to make the storm bigger and more dangerous.”
“Yes, yes,” Dr. Spencer said. “It’s as if someone is trying to kill the Earth.”
“Would a 1.2 megaton hydrogen bomb be big enough to create a large CME?” Jake asked.
Dr. Spencer raised his right hand to his chin, stroking his whiskers as he thought. “Yes, yes,” he replied. “That would be more than enough. But that can’t work.”
“Why not?” Jake asked.
“Because the detonation would have to be on the surface of the sun, and the bomb would melt long before you could get it there. It wouldn’t work.”
“One last question,” Jake said. “How long did it take the CME to get from the sun to planet earth?”
Dr. Spencer referred to his notes. “Seventeen point six hours.”
Jake and Honi left and worked their way back to Alexandria and the NSA building.
“So what are you thinking?” Honi asked.
“I think someone has found a way to intentionally create an Extinction Level Event, ‘the Event’ Sylvia Cuthbert referred to, and we have less than sixteen days to stop it.”
While Jake and Honi were in D.C., they stopped in to update Briggs.
“This is extremely disturbing,” Briggs said. “You think Senator Thornton is involved with this mysterious group?”
“From what we can tell at this point, there are at least three different levels to the Phoenix Organization.” Jake said. “The lowest level is organized crime — the drug cartels, the Russian mob, the Yakuza, possibly the Chinese Triad. The middle level includes people like General Teague and Senator Thornton — people embedded within the governmental and military structure. The top level involves people at the highest levels of the financial sector — the central banks, large international banks and highly placed members of Wall Street.”
“Any idea who is running the whole thing?” Briggs asked.
“It may not be structured that way,” Jake replied. “In government and law enforcement, it’s a top down, hierarchal organization. My sense is the arrangement was born out of necessity, rather than a fixed plan. Money and a desire for power and control is the glue that holds the Phoenix Organization together.”
“So no cohesive or ethnic membership we can trace?” Briggs asked.
Jake shook his head. “Not that I can see at this point, which means there has to be some degree of mistrust between the different sectors of the Phoenix Organization.”
“But what you’re suggesting is typically a long-term divide-and-conquer strategy. We have, what, fifteen days?” Briggs replied. “There’s no time to develop that kind of surveillance and investigational task force.”
“No, there isn’t,” Jake replied. “Right now, we need to grab Senator Thornton and see what we can learn.”
Briggs blew air out through his lips. “Without a solid evidence trail, that’s not going to happen. You can’t go anywhere near him, you hear me?”
“I do,” Jake said reluctantly.
Briggs looked at Honi. She nodded.
“So how bad was the damage from the solar storm?” Jake asked.
“We’re still getting reports coming in, but right now seventy percent of the country is without electricity. The Department of Energy is saying we can have power restored to the major cities in two to three weeks, two months for everyone else. Stores are being looted or stripped of their inventory. Gang violence is running out of control, and police are overwhelmed. All fifty states have declared a state of emergency and all fifty governors are demanding to know what the feds are going to do about it.”
“Injuries?” Jake asked.
“So far hospitals across the country are reporting tens of thousands of cases of what appear to be radiation sickness. Beyond that I just don’t know.”
Honi’s phone rang. “Excuse me, sir. I have to take this. It’s Major Stafford.”
Briggs motioned to the door. She got up and left, closing the door behind her.
“Do you think the Phoenix Organization and the solar storm are connected?” Briggs asked.
“My gut tells me they are,” Jake replied. “But at this point, I don’t have any hard evidence connecting them.”
Jake heard a gentle knock on the door and Honi re-entered.
“Major Stafford is downstairs,” she said. “He says we need to go with him, right now.”
“I think we have the subject covered,” Briggs said.
Jake and Honi left and exited the southeast corner of the FBI building. General Davies’ black limo stood in the street with Major Stafford standing next to the back door. Both Jake and Honi looked at the small four-star flag on the front bumper and glanced at each other.
“We have a meeting,” Stafford said. “Immediately.”
Jake and Honi climbed into the back of the limo with Stafford right behind them.
“So where’s this meeting?” Jake asked.
“Not far,” Stafford replied.
The limo pulled out onto Pennsylvania, headed northwest, turned right on East Executive Avenue, left on Alexander Hamilton Place and swung right on State Place, pulling into the circular drive on the south side of the White House. Jake, Honi and Stafford got out, showed their ID packs to the Secret Service guards and were ushered into the oval office. General Davies sat on the couch and motioned for the three of them to take a seat.
“He’ll be in momentarily,” General Davies said.
Jake looked around at the room. It was oval, alright, with the Presidential Seal woven into the carpeting. A side door opened and the President entered. Everyone stood. General Davies and Major Stafford saluted. Jake and Honi simply stood at attention, not knowing what else to do. The President returned the salute.
“Please sit,” the President said. “General Davies said you three have made significant progress in investigating who is behind the current threat, and have identified high-level members of this phantom Phoenix Organization. Who else do you think is involved?”
The three glanced at each other.
“Senator Thornton,” Jake said firmly.
The President closed his eyes momentarily and nodded. “So what do you think is going on?” the President asked.
Jake hesitated as he put his thoughts in order. He took a deep breath and began.
“I think we are dealing with a trans-national organization that is comprised of some very wealthy families, international financial giants, central banks, people deeply embedded within our government and military, and an organized crime faction. I believe these people have somehow managed to create solar storms, are capable of enhancing the strength of those storms and are currently aiming the storms at planet earth. I strongly believe we have fifteen days or less to find and stop these people before we experience an Extinction Level Event. What I don’t know is why, sir.”
The President nodded slightly. “Do you think you can find the people responsible in time to stop them?”
Jake glanced down at the carpeting and then back up at the President.
“Honestly, sir, I don’t know. I don’t think we can without a lot more help.”