Chapter 399
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After some searching Eve found president Mason in the oval office. No meetings, no bodyguards. Mason just sat in his office, looking defeated. He'd clearly been in a recent fight, having defeated Walker, but he was still hurt. He smiled a little upon seeing Eve.
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Mason: Helloe Eve.
Eve: Hello mr president.
Mason: Are you going to kill me with that?
Eve: Maybe. You don't seem scared I might be a crazy murderer.
Mason: I don't think the fact that you want to kill me neccessarily means you're crazy.
Eve: Did you poison the rations?
Mason: I ordered it done.
Eve: And you murdere the refugee children here?
Mason: Yes.
Eve: Why did you have to tell us about the asteroid?
Mason: We actually considered trying to build the Arks covertly. We factored in what we needed, land, materials, labor. Once the Arks were complete we would need, fuel, cattle, trees. Even if we could do all that covertly, we could never convince six million people to leave their homes, their families, their entire lives behind without telling them why. We always knew there'd be collateral damage, we were just trying to minimize it.
Eve: Minimize? These last three years I've lost everyone and everything I ever loved. My parents, my home, my best friend, my dog. I found new friends during this time. Nadia, she saved my life and convinced me to convert to islam. Amy, the first girl I ever fell in love with and brought me into the militia. Jamal, my husband, the closest thing to a father that my child ever had. One by one I saw them all die, we were all better off not knowing. Tell me why I shouln't kill you right here.
Mason: I'll be dead in less than sixteen hours.
Eve: You're not going into the bunker?
Mason: No. The bunker will likely survive impact, the tidal wave. But afterwards, those inside will still die before long. What I did, it was partly to prevent a rush on the bunker. For me, it's over. My children are dead. Sharon shot Rebecca and Pete herself. Vice-president Allen shot Zoey, before turning the gun on herself. Today is the last full day of the United States of America. And I am this country's last president. Tomorrow morning I'm going to addres this nation for the final time, let everyone know it's over. Then, me and my wife would prefer to spend our final hour together. You can go into the bunker, try to survive as best you can. But they won't let you in if you murder the president. The choice is yours.