Rocky Mountain Die (30 page)

The general scowled. These idiots are more upset at being kept out of the loop than to hear what message the president of the United States has to deliver.

One reporter stood on a chair and started shouting. A Secret Service agent tased him. He hit the ground, and two agents flipped him and cuffed him. This sent a clear message that they meant business. The other reporters quieted down and began filing out of the room.

Once the room was calm, a handful of reporters were brought back in. The president addressed them, but the damage had been done. The press had already decided to make things as chaotic and hard to manage as possible. They were going to teach the government a lesson for cutting them out of the loop. They didn’t care that the worldwide panic they whipped up led to great losses, damages, and even suicides and murders.

§

“Those assholes.” The general was tired of watching the press act like children. They were reporting that the asteroid would cause global devastation and the extinction of mankind. He leaned against the kitchen counter, too pissed off to eat the sandwich he had just made.

The doctor had to agree. “They’re even playing footage from disaster movies, can you believe that? Honestly, I always thought we should tell the world as soon as we knew, but this reaction is criminal.”

“I know.” The general was looking at the sandwich. He and the doctor had had a few heated discussions about the situation. He was torn; she was steadfast that they should have told the world sooner than later.

She had just finished a jog and was sipping on a bottle of water. “It does seem that most people are getting the facts and behaving normally. I think in the long run things are going to be OK.”

“Yeah, sure, but the damage that’s being done… You’ve heard the stories—people are destroying their lives and careers, even killing people based on what the press is doing.”

She hated to see the general this angry and leaned against him. “In a few weeks everything will be back to normal.”

“For most people.” He bit into the sandwich, tasting nothing, as he was too annoyed and distracted.

“Well, for us anyway.” She tried to soothe him with reassurances.

He hugged her back, smelled her hair, and forgot all the bullshit that had just been filling his mind.

“Definitely for us.” He kissed her head. “We are going to be better than ever.”

But he was wrong. They would both be dead in a matter of weeks.

§

The day came, and the world held its breath. The asteroid entered the atmosphere and headed toward Eastern Europe—and that was it. There was a worldwide air of disappointment. The impact wasn’t evident to most people on Earth.

But, as people around the world settled down and began to put their lives back together, a group of nine men set a plan in motion. Their plan would cause an actual devastating global catastrophe.

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