The Following Takes Place Between
12:00pm and 1:00pm on the day of
United States Presidential Elections
Glendale, California
12:00pm
Stephen, who was starting to sweat, wasn't sure what to make of the situation. He felt a number of emotions, he felt fear, anger, and most of all he felt betrayal. The same people that seemingly helped Kim into an internship were the same people that apparently murdered her. All Stephen could do was stare at Turner, who was in the other room, quickly packing up files.
Stephen wanted answers, it didn't matter if he was handcuffed or not. He then yelled out, "Turner?" Turner didn't respond. Stephen then yelled out again, "TURNER? You're not even going to look at me?"
Turner stopped, walked over to Stephen and pointed the gun to his forehead and said, "You need to stop talking, unless you want a bullet in your brain."
Stephen then said, "You bastard, you killed my wife...she trusted you and you betrayed her. How could you?"
Turner looked at Stephen's face and slowly began to move the gun away from his head. Turner said, "Look, I didn't kill your wife and that's the truth."
Stephen responded, "You expect me to believe that under these conditions?"
"Yes! As a matter of fact I do so you need to..." Just then Turner's cell-phone rang. Turner walked into the kitchen, put the phone to his ear and said, "Hello?"
A voice on the other end asked, "Where are you? You were supposed to be here by now?"
Turner replied, "I know, I'll still be there, I ran into a …...complication?"
"What kind of complication?"
12:06pm Turner then said, "His name is Stephen Wesley, he's Kim Bauer's husband. You the know? One of the ten that you guys took out in Russia?"
The voice said, "I thought we took of that in the files that we falsified. How did this happen?"
"Stephen is a doctor, sir and he started asking questions which is why he came over to my place. I didn't have a choice but to blow my cover."
The voice said, "Look, I'm not going to let this entire operation fall cause of one doctor, where is he now?"
"He's secure sir, I got to him before he found out any real information."
"Good, you need to kill him and dispose of the body."
Turner's heart started beating really fast as he said, "Um, that's not what I was brought in for sir." Turner had a gun and threatened Stephen with it but it was all just for show at the very least. Turner had planned on letting Stephen go as long as he kept his mouth closed. Killing him was something he didn't want to actually do.
The voice on the other end said, "Everyone is expendable, you know that, including you. Now, either you kill him or I'll find someone else to do it and if I do that they'll come after you too. Do we understand each other Turner?"
Turner took a deep swallow and said, "Yes sir, I know of a place that's discrete where I can do it."
12:09pm "Good and do it quickly, we need you here, the attack window is getting closer."
Turner walked out the kitchen and stared at Stephen for a few seconds and said, "Get up, we're going for a ride."
Los Angeles, California
A Disclosed Location
12:10pm
"WHAT IS THE TARGET?" Jack had yelled again to Ivanov. By this time, every finger on Ivanov's left hand was broken. Ivanov was crying and had blood pouring from his mouth.
Jack then said, "Come on Ivanov, I know you think you're making a statement but you know how this ends. Tell me what I need and all this stops."
Ivanov spat out some blood and said, "You think you know me Bauer? I'm just like you, I used to be a soldier in my own country. I've been captured before and I've been tortured before. You need to realize something, I'm here cause I want to be here. The days of your country holding my country hostage is over."
Jack said, "How can you say that? It was the government of Russia, your country, that caused the death of President Hussian. If anything, this Compact Act has only strengthened Russia."
Ivanov replied, "Call it whatever you want to Bauer, but today your country will fall to it's knees and that is a promise."
Jack began pacing back and forth as he said, "You know, several years ago someone from your country killed a very good friend of mine. Her name was Renee Walker and they shot her. The man who killed her had his stomach and intestines ripped out by me. Don't make the mistake of thinking for one second that I won't do the same to you."
At that moment Ivanov spat some blood on Jack's boots and smiled.
12:16pm Jack then went over to a table full of tools that was in the interrogation room. He picked up a machete and said, "Back in ancient China, the Triads would cut their enemies one-thousand times before killing them. They would avoid cutting any major arteries so their victims couldn't die before they were finished."
Just then, Jack took the machete and swung it right at Ivanov's chest.
Ivanov let out a scream that be heard throughout the entire building. The Attorney General and Agent Reese were looking on. "That crazy son-of-a-bitch!" Agent Reese yelled.
As Jack wiped some of Ivanov's blood off his shirt, he then said, "You've just experienced your first cut."
Air Force One
In Route to Los Angeles
12:18pm
President Garrison, who was now aboard Air Force One and in route to Los Angeles,was going over some last minute details regarding the homecoming ceremony for the twenty-thousand troops that were stationed in Russia for the last three years. The ceremony was taking place at the Staples Center and the troops were arriving within the hour.
Victor walked in the president's office and asked, "You wanted to see me sir?"
The president said, "Oh yes Vic, come in. How do you think I did at the press-conference?"
Victor, who had to be honest, said, "Well sir, I think you stood your ground against the republicans but only time will tell whether this will cost you election today. I will also say that it looked like as though you were indifferent about The Russian Compact which was not a good sign."
President Garrison stood up and said, "Well I appreciate your honesty Vic, I do. But I'm sorry to hear you say that cause I've decided to decommission the Compact Act."
Victor couldn't believe what he had just heard. Victor then said, "Sir..., Paul, you can't be serious, if you do this, it will give every anti-American group in that country permission to just take us hostage."
The president said, "Vic please, I've thought this through..."
Victor interrupted, "Russia needs to be stabilized to function and only we can do that. We can still win this election, so just give it four more years. I'm begging you Paul. I'm not the only person in this cabinet that feels this way."
The president said, "Look Vic, you're my brother-in-law and I love you but there's nothing left to be done in Russia. Russia needs to be it's own country again, there's nothing more we can and should do. I don't care what everyone else thinks, I'm the president and I've made up my mind. I'm making the announcement today at the ceremony, in front of the troops and the world. Now if you'll excuse me."
12:24pm After the president walked out of his office, Victor went into the lounge in the back of the plane. He was so angry that he didn't talk to anyone. He then told everyone that was in the room to leave. Victor began talking to himself, as though he was in a panic.
He then called someone on his cell-phone and said, "Its me, you need get that information ready for me now, the president just told me that he's going to decommission the Russia Compact Act."
The person on the other end said, "But I don't have all"the cards ready to play yet"?
Victor responded, "I don't give a damn, the president is going to announce this during the homecoming ceremony within the hour! This needs to happen before then."
Los Angeles, California
A Disclosed Location
12:27pm
"If he keeps this up, Ivanov will be dead before we can get any information out of him." Agent Reese had said to the Attorney General. As they were watching on the monitors, Agent Reese couldn't help but think that bringing Jack was a bad idea."
The Attorney General said, "We need to know what this man's plan is and Bauer is the only one that can do this, now I can lock you up with O'Brian or can do your job and shut your mouth. Bauer knows what he's doing."
Jack had cut Ivanov seven times and by now, Ivanov was a bloody mess and so was Jack. Ivanov began yelling, "COME ON BAUER, THAT'S ALL YOU GOT!" Jack wanted to continue cutting but stopped. His hands started shaking and he began to realize that he had to stop this.
Jack then dropped the machete and walked out of the interrogation room. He then walked into the room where Agent Reese and the Attorney General were and said, "I'm stopping. This isn't working."
The Attorney General said, "What the hell are you talking about Bauer, we need to know what the attack is. Get back in there and ask him some more questions."
Jack, who was dripping with Ivanov's blood, said, "No General, I want to ask you something. How did you apprehend this man?"
Agent Reese then said, "We found him in the Sun Rise Hills Mall, he was just standing in front of a security camera. We first found out about him from a Russian extremist website almost two years ago. We found out about several terrorist actions that he took part in. As we said before, he stole a private ship and it was destroyed. He said, once we took him, that something was going to happen on this day."
Jack said, "Ok well you need to approach this in a different way, did you access his phones logs to see who he talked to in the last week?"
Agent Reese replied, "He didn't have a cell-phone on him and we couldn't find anything."
"That doesn't make since, he's never been to this country and he instantly finds the Sun Rise Hills Mall? He must have talked to someone, you need to access the phone logs. If not a cell-phone, try pay-phones."
"Jack, we don't have access to all those phone logs at one time, nor do have anyone capable of accessing that information."
Jack then said, "You're wrong, you have Chloe."
"O'Brian? What makes you think she can be trusted with this kind of information?" Reese said.
"I used to worked with Chloe for years on operations just like this one. She can be trusted and she knows how to do this." The Attorney General wasn't too keen on the idea of bringing in an outsider to this operation. The General said, "I don't think so Bauer, we brought you here to do a job, not waste time on computers.
12:36pm Jack was growing very frustrated and said, "General, you brought me here against my will to help you and I'm trying to doing that. Trust me, when I tell you that this man wants to be here and I believe he's waiting for something, its your job to find out what that is. Chloe is the only person here that has the knowledge to access the information you need, in the little time that you have."
The Attorney General hesitantly said, "Fine, Agent Reese you get O'Brian and bring her in here."
He walked up to Jack and said, "We'll try it your way Mr. Bauer but I hope this works."
Jack then whispered to himself, "Me too."
Glendale, California
Highway 60
12:39pm
"You're going to kill me aren't you?" Stephen had said to Turner. Stephen, who was in the backseat of the car that Turner was driving, said, "Look, can you at least let me call my daughter."
Turner said, "You know I can't let you do that. If only you'd left well enough alone Stephen."
"How the hell can you say that, my wife was killed by you."
Turner then said, "I told you already, I didn't kill your wife. Kim found out information that she wasn't supposed to and so they took her out. Her and nine other students that we recruited as a matter of fact. But look at it this way, I'm doing you a favor."
Stephen said, "What do you mean a favor, you stood by and let my wife die, and now you're taking me away from my daughter. How is any of this a favor to me?"
"If you knew what was going to happen today, you'd wish you were dead."
12:43pm "Somehow I doubt that." Stephen replied.
Los Angeles, California
A Disclosed Location
12:46pm
As Jack brought Chloe some water he said, "Thank you for doing this Chloe, the sooner you get this information and stopping this attack, the sooner we can go home."
Chloe looked at Jack's shirt, which had blood stains all over it. She then looked at his hands which also had dried up blood on them. She then whispered, "Why are you even doing this Jack. These people kidnapped us and look at what they've done to you, you're now torturing a man. What if Ivanov doesn't even know anything, what if he's just playing you? What would Kim say to you?"
Jack said, "GOD DAMMIT CHLOE! Look I'm sorry but you think this is easy for me? Kim was all I had left and now she's gone, I don't know what else to do anymore. When we were at the funeral this morning, it just didn't seem real. But regardless, I couldn't live with myself knowing that millions of people died today and I could have prevented it."
"But from what I see, you could have killed him..." Jack interrupted, "Which is why I stopped. With the way I'm feeling, I knew I could have killed him, and to be honest I probably would have. Just do this for me Chloe and we can go home."
Just then Chloe said, "I think I found something."
The Attorney General and Agent Reese came over to the computer. Chloe then said, "I was able to hack into the Los Angeles phone logs and found a phone call that was made between Ivanov and another individual earlier today."
Jack then asked, "Were you able to trace the call?"
Chloe said, "Actually yes I was. The individual that Ivanov was talking to is unknown but I was able to trace the other end to Los Angeles Air Force Base."
Jack asked, "General, what's at L.A. Air Force Base?"
The Attorney General suddenly began to panic as he said, "Oh my god, its where the troops are stationed. The troops that are coming to the homecoming ceremony today with the president, at the Staples Center."
Agent Reese then asked, "What does this mean Bauer?"
12:51pm Jack replied, "It means you've found your location for the attack! You need to contact who's ever in charge down there and alert them of a possible terrorist attack on their base, now!"
Los Angeles Air Force Base
12:55pm
Captain Braggs had just got off the phone with the Attorney General, when his assistant walked in.
Braggs said, "That was the Attorney General on the phone, he says that he has reason to believe that there's going to be a terrorist attack today. Possibly here at the base."
Braggs's assistant then said, "Oh my god, you think we should take it seriously sir?
"With everything that's happening today with the election and the ceremony we can't afford to not take this seriously. We have over twenty-thousand troops here, I'm going to call the president. Alert the troops."
Braggs began to call the president, he said, "Hello? This is Captain Braggs, put me through to the president, its urgent." Just then Braggs felt a sharp pain in his neck. The pain was coming from a knife that had just been lodged into his throat, he looked up as he saw his assistant standing above him. The assistant then pushed the knife a little further for good measure.
Captain Braggs was dead.
12:58pm The assistant then picked up the phone and said, "Yes, this is Captain Braggs's assistant speaking. I just wanted to say that the Captain thought he needed to speak to the president but realized it wasn't as urgent as he thought. He also wanted me to let the president know that the ceremony is still on schedule."
The assistant then closed and locked the door to the Captain's office.
1:00pm