Andrew silently stared at the graphic, trying to wrap his mind around what he was seeing.
“This spread,” Hugo continued, “occurred before sunrise. As soon as the sun came up, the animals seemed to concentrate themselves in houses and other buildings, away from the light.” Hugo cleared his throat again, clearly shaken by the incredible information he was providing. “The spread has stopped, but whatever these things are, they’re still active. Some first responders have been attacked after entering darkened structures. They’ve reported smashed light fixtures in the infested buildings. It seems the animals have an aversion to light.”
Animals? A slight chill shot down Andrew’s spine. No, not animals. Smashing light fixtures indicated intelligence. “How many of these ‘large rodents’ are we talking about, Hugo?”
“Impossible to ascertain at this point, Mr. President. General Smythe will brief you in a moment on the actions we’ve taken to find out. For now, we know a large number of these creatures have completely devastated the population in a large portion of the Kansas City metro area. Inside the red-bordered area, sir, we estimate deaths could number in the hundreds of thousands.”
“You’re telling me that everyone inside that red circle has been killed?” Andrew asked.
Hugo cleared his throat once more, struggling to force the words from his throat. “The things aren’t just killing, sir. They’re eating. Feeding. It’s a massacre, Mr. President.”
A massacre. The room was silent for a moment as a flash of disbelief crossed the president’s face. None of this seemed real! A major American city, eaten alive? How could it be? “Okay, by the numbers,” Andrew said. “Let me hear it.”
Adam Williamson spoke next. “Mr. President, our embassies and consulates have been informed, worldwide. Chiefs of station in high-interest areas have their ears open and are listening hard.” He momentarily shifted his glance to Jake Kesting, silently communicating to the president that State and CIA were working hand in hand. “No information has been released to any foreign governments, nor have we received any inquiries. However, the press is starting to report on the situation, and we should be getting some questions soon.”
“Brief the Brits, Adam. Let them know what we’ve got so far. Don’t hold anything back.” To the room, the president added, “I’ll be addressing the nation at noon our time. Inform the networks and get started on a rough draft of my speech once we adjourn. For now, get a statement out that we’re taking immediate action to control the situation and to help the citizens of Kansas City. If this is out on the wires for too long without a word from us, we could be asking for public panic. We don’t need that again.” Every person at the table remembered the Cleveland attack, and how events had quickly spiraled out of control. So many innocent citizens had died, most because of a panicked rush to get away from the city. They all had clear memories of that day, a day that saw the United States suffer a severe radiological attack in the middle of a major American city. A city that was still uninhabitable in some areas, and would be for years to come. None of the memories were pleasant. But, as an administration, they’d learned from it, and sworn never again.
“And,” Andrew added, “those who wish us ill need to know now is not the time to decide to start screwing with Uncle Sam. I’ll make that clear as well.” The president turned toward his SECDEF. “Tank, what have you got?”
Tank leaned forward and adjusted his glasses. “Mr. President, activation orders have been issued to Guard units in Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado, Iowa, Illinois, Arkansas, and Oklahoma. The first Kansas and Missouri units should be in position to enter the city within the next couple of hours. A Civil Support Team from Fort Leonard Wood is on its way as well. They’re one of our specialized Army Guard units outfitted for detecting NBC — nuclear, biological, and chemical agents. All active duty units in CONUS have assumed DEFCON 3. Combat air patrols have been initiated over all major cities, no-fly protocols have been initiated with the FAA, and anti-air batteries are on alert around DC, New York, Philadelphia, Boston, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. NBC detection teams are on the streets in our major cities. The threat boards are blank. No indication this attack is connected to any foreign troop movements or hostile action. If this is the first shoe to drop, Mr. President, we’ll be ready for the second one.” Tank turned and looked at General Rayburn “Scythe” Smythe, United States Marine Corps, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who spoke next.
The general sat ramrod straight in his chair, always the Marine officer. His gray crew cut, jutting chin, and impeccable olive drab uniform made General Smythe look just right for the role — a perfect choice by a Hollywood casting director. The right sleeve pinned to his shoulder, however, removed any illusion of the sort. This man was a combat veteran, and he’d paid dearly for his service — an unspoken bond that he happened to share with his commander in chief. His booming, gravelly voice resounded around the room.
“Mr. President, none of the fixed NBC detectors in Kansas City were triggered prior to, nor have any activated since, the start of this situation. This suggests there are no known radiological, chemical, or biological agents present in the city. It does not, however, rule out the possibility that there may have been something else released that our current suite of detection devices cannot pick up. As Mr. Stone mentioned, I have deployed a sniffer unit to the city, and they’ll be taking readings shortly.” General Smythe looked down at his watch, strapped to his one remaining wrist. “They should be making their first report within the hour. If there’s something in the air that caused this, they’ll find it.”
The president swung his chair toward the general. “Are you telling me you believe these animal attacks were caused by a release of some kind of chemical or biological agent we don’t know about?”
The general shook his head. “No, sir, I am not. Right now, we’re faced with a situation that has no readily available explanation. I want to cover this particular base as soon as possible.”
“I agree, General. Continue.”
“We’ve established a cordon approximately forty miles from the center of the Kansas City metro area. Guard units have taken up positions on the major highways and are prohibiting entry to anyone other than official personnel. Other routes of ground transit will be covered as soon as we get more troops activated and on the move. The local police are covering until we get in place. The Guard units will also be available to handle any civilian personnel evacuations, if you deem it necessary, sir.”
“Good work, Ray,” Andrew said. “I don’t know if this is some sort of terrorist attack yet, but we’re going to treat it like it is until we know otherwise.” Terrorists managing to release a rampaging horde of killer super-rats in a major city was… well, unlikely, but then again, flying hijacked airliners into the Twin Towers and the Pentagon seemed unlikely on September 10, 2001, too. The shaggy, one-eyed mullahs crawling around in caves on the other side of the world could be quite creative at times, especially when it came to killing innocent people.
Andrew wasn’t willing to exclude that possibility. Not just yet.
He turned to his national security advisor. “Jessie, what’s your read on this?”
At first glance, Jessie Hruska didn’t appear as one might envision a senior presidential advisor. She was forty-three years old, much younger than the majority of her counterparts at the table. Her shoulder-length red hair, emerald eyes, and athletic figure were more fitting for a model gracing the cover of a fashion magazine than for the fiery, hard-as-nails political pit bull that sat three chairs down from the president of the United States. Many had underestimated her because of her youth and appearance, and they’d paid dearly.