Chapter 14

November 22, 7:03 p.m.

The boots of two UFOE soldiers crunched on the gradually thickening layer of snow on a deserted street. The silence in the outskirts of Osburg was in sharp contrast to the impending coup downtown. Citizens had shut themselves in their homes to avoid any unfolding chaos.

"Damn," one soldier said. "I wish we were downtown. You know, in on the action."

The other nodded, leaning against a lamppost. He pulled out a cigarette and offered one to his comrade. He lit both of theirs and took a pensive puff. "We're only out here in case Secretary McCord or her assistant happen to amble through here."

"And Anthony, the one who defected," the first said. "I trained with him once a few years ago. He was a nice kid, but he wasn't a revolutionary. Not like us."

They stood in the yellow-tinged light of the street lamps as they mused about the traitor when a flicker of movement caught the soldiers' eyes. A strange assortment of people were walking single file about two hundred feet ahead of them on the opposite side of the street. They stuck to the edge of the sidewalk, ducking out of the light as much as possible. It appeared that three were office workers of some sort, three were monks, and the one leading them was a man who towered over the rest by about a foot.

The soldiers glanced at one another. This was more than suspicious. They crossed the street to intercept the group, but they were marching briskly, almost a jog so that by the time the soldiers had crossed the street, they were already behind the group.

"Stop!" one of the soldiers shouted at them. The other put his hand on his gun.

"Stop!" he repeated. "We are UFOE soldiers, and we demand that you face us."

The group broke into a full on sprint. Without a second thought, the soldiers pelted down the street after them, raising their guns for a warning shot.

November 22, 7:04 p.m.

The crack of bullets shattered the still night air. Stan, one of the officers on duty that evening, frantically searched between the screens of various security feeds. A glimpse of movement caught his eye. He watched as a group of people ran from one screen to another, making their way towards the airfield's gates.

"Security," Stan said into his walkie talkie, trying to sound calm. "I have a group of strangers approaching the west gate."

"Open the gates! Please!" A frantic voice crackled through the security feed.

"I can't do that. It's not protocol," Stan tried to explain calmly. Back into his walkie talkie he added, "Security, they're demanding entrance. What do we do?"

"We don't have time for protocol!" the woman on the screen shouted. Despite the pixelation, Stan could tell that she was blonde and have a large purple bruise on the lower left side of her face.

"Sir, in the name of international security, let us in," she demanded. Her voice, though distorted, was beginning to sound familiar.

Stan narrowed his eyes. "Says who?"

"Secretary of State Elizabeth McCord. Now, open this gate!"

November 22, 7:06 p.m.

It was almost silent in the McCord house, save for the solemn sounds of a meal without Elizabeth McCord. Jason's fork scraped across his place as he disinterestedly moved his food into different piles. There were occasional sniffles from Alison's direction while Henry stared dully at the space behind her head. Stevie, who was now cutting her food into smaller and smaller pieces without actually eating any, had graciously invited Mr. Jackson over for dinner since he stopped by. He had said yes out of pity, but now he didn't know how to leave. The family looked so broken without Elizabeth that Russell felt guilty for advising the president to send her down to Osburg in the first place.

Russell's phone rang. Stevie jumped at the sound, but everyone else seemed oblivious.

"Excuse me," Russell grumbled and stepped in the hallway to answer the call. "Hello?"

"Mr. Jackson? My name is Officer Leigh. I'm calling from the American airfield in Osburg." She paused. "DS agent Frank, Nadine Tolliver, Matt Mahoney, Jay Whitman, Blake Moran, and Secretary McCord have been found. They should be back by mid-morning tomorrow."

Russell checked his watch. It was just after seven, and the flight from Osburg to DC was about 12 hours. "Why early afternoon? Shouldn't they get here by dawn?"

"They're taking a layover in Puerto Rico for a medical evaluation."

"Okay. Thank you, Dr. Leigh." He hung up the phone with a relieved sigh. He turned around to find four pairs of hopeful eyes looking back at him. "Your mom is coming home."

Stevie and Allison collapsed into their father's arms, the girls and Henry all weeping with joy. Jason, who also had tears in his eyes, tackled Russell into a hug who was momentarily stunned into silence by the teenage boy wrapped around his shoulders, but he eventually got his bearings enough to say, "I'm glad she's coming home too, kiddo."

I'm so sorry for the delayed update yet again! I promise it won't take me a month for the next chapter. I think there are only two chapters left, plus an epilogue. Thank you for your continued reviews, and let me know what you think of his chapter!