"Right. But he'll also know that all of the DAR thinks I was. That I'm on the run, and that I'm being chased. That the agency I've served for years, the one I've killed for, has betrayed me. That's enough to make someone start thinking differently. And what a coup for him if I came over to his side! Think how much I could help him. Not only what I can do, but what I know."

"But for that to work-"

"Yeah. They're going to have to chase me. Really, truly chase me. I'll be designated a target. No one but Drew Peters will know the truth. Everyone will think I really went over."

"No!" Natalie yanked her hands from his. "No, are you crazy? They'll kill you."

"Only if they catch me." He tried a grin, aborted it quickly. "It's dangerous, I know, but I can do it. And it gives us a chance to get-"

"No. Take it back. Go to the director right now and tell him you changed your mind."

"I can't do that, Nat."

"Why not? Don't you understand? You have children. I hate John Smith as much as you do, but if I had the choice between him being dead or Kate and Todd having a father, I wouldn't hesitate."

"It's not that simple," Cooper said, and held her gaze. It only took a handful of seconds. He watched the revelation hit. Her mouth fell open and her eyes widened.

"Kate."

"Yes," he said. "Kate. If I do this, she won't be tested. Ever. That was my price. She gets to grow up and live a normal life. She won't be taken from us. She'll never see the inside of an academy."

Natalie steepled her hands over her nose and mouth. Her fingers were shaking. She stared at his chest. Cooper knew enough to wait her out.

"She's tier one, isn't she?"

"Yes."

She rolled her shoulders and straightened her back. "There's no choice?"

Cooper shook his head.

"The things we do for our children." Natalie managed a thin, tight smile. "When do you have to go?"

"Soon. I want to see the kids first."

"Do you want to...you could stay. The night."

A warm feeling bloomed in his chest. When they'd split up, they'd both agreed that sleeping together was a bad idea, that it would confuse the kids and maybe risk complicating the friendly relationship they had. It had been a mutual decision and a good one; much as they loved each other, neither wanted to be involved romantically, and so it had been years since they'd shared a bed. For her to offer that, now, tonight, it touched him. "That's a tempting offer. I really wish I could. But they're going to be looking for me."

"Already?"

"Soon."

"All right. You'd better come in, then. What are you going to tell them?"

"Nothing. Just that I love them."

She blew another breath, wiped at her eyes, then started across the yard. Her shoulders slumped and the muscles of her neck were coiled cables. Cooper caught up with her, took her hand, and spun her around.

"Listen," he said, then realized he had no idea what to say next. Tell her that there was nothing to be scared of? There was. Even as they stood here, Director Peters was designating him a target. The most powerful agency in the country would be hunting him, thousands of people with billions of dollars. And even if he could manage to escape them, he was walking into the monster's den and begging for an audience.

"I'll be okay," he said.

And for just a second, a tiny moment, he could see that she believed him.

It was enough.

PART TWO:.

HUNTED.

My fellow Americans.

Today our nation, our very way of life, suffered an attack of the most grievous nature. The victims were men and women of all kinds, all walks of life. Social workers and attorneys, bankers and artists. Mothers and fathers and brothers and sisters. Hundreds, perhaps thousands of lives were s.n.a.t.c.hed away in the most cowardly fashion imaginable-by terrorists who planted bombs in the heart of our great nation.

The individuals responsible want to disrupt our way of life. By killing innocent people, they want to cow us, like children afraid of monsters shivering beneath their blankets.

But this is not a society of children. We do not hide from monsters. We find them, and we defeat them.

Our intelligence community is united in the belief that this attack was perpetrated by gifted terrorists. Our military and security forces are the strongest in history. They are already at work to track down the people responsible. Make no mistake: we will find them, and they will be brought to justice. Anyone who aids them, anyone who hides them, anyone who supports them in any way will face our wrath.

Since the emergence of the gifted thirty-two years ago, our world has faced a challenge never seen in all of history. A small minority of human beings now possesses a ma.s.sive advantage. How can men and women on both sides of this divide live together, work together, form a single more perfect union?

The answers will not be simple ones. The road will be difficult. But there are answers. Answers that do not include bombs and bloodshed.

And so tonight, as our nation mourns its dead, I ask you all for tolerance and patience and great humanity. The gifted as a whole cannot be held responsible for the actions of a violent fringe. Just as those who hold hatred in their heart cannot define the rest of us.

It's said that the strongest partnerships are formed in adversity. Let us face this adversity not as a divided nation, not as norm and abnorm, but as Americans.

Let us work together to build a better future for our children.

And let us never forget the pain of this day. Let us never yield to those who believe political power flows from the barrel of a gun, to the cowards who murder children to achieve their aims.

For them, there can be-will be-no mercy.

Good night, and G.o.d bless America.

-President Henry Walker, from the Oval Office, on the evening of March 12.

March 13, 2013

Op-Ed: AMERICA DIVIDED, AMERICA EXPOSED

Since the end of the Cold War, America has been the world's only superpower. And yet yesterday we learned that we are vulnerable. That no amount of power can protect from a truly ruthless enemy, one willing to abandon the rules of warfare and attack the innocent.

In the days and weeks to come, there will be endless discussion of responsibility. As you read this, our intelligence communities are drawing up a list of likely suspects. One name is certain to top it: John Smith, the activist-turned-terrorist who has long embraced violence as a means to achieve his ends.

But if yesterday's attack showed us anything, it was that the problem is bigger and more dangerous than we imagine. The problem lies in the fact that we are two nations.

The gifted and the rest of us. And a house divided cannot stand.

The gifted are human beings-our children and friends. And most are as horrified, as hurt, by this shameful attack as the rest of us. But the fact remains that their existence is a threat to peace, to sovereignty, to our very lives...

March 15, 2013

WALKER CALLS FOR INVESTIGATIVE COMMISSION.

WASHINGTON, DCaSpeaking before Congress today, President Walker called for the formation of a bipartisan commission to investigate the March 12 explosion at the Leon Walras Exchange.

"The American people have the right to a full and complete account of the events of that day," said Walker. "How did this tragedy occur? Did our security agencies fail? Have they been compromised?"

The proposed commission would have a broad mandate, investigating not only the cause of the explosion, but also the actions of the intelligence community leading up to the attack, as well as police and federal response afterward.

The March 12 explosion, which left more than a thousand dead, is widely believed to have been the result of a terrorist bombing. To date, no group has claimed credit for the attack...

March 22, 2013

FOR MANY, MOURNING TURNS TO ANGER.

DALLAS, TXaTen days after the bombing of the Leon Walras Exchange, the shock many Americans felt is becoming rage and a desire for vengeance.

"We all know who did this," said Daryl Jenkins, 63, a truck driver and former Navy chief petty officer. "We've been nothing but generous to them, and the abnorms have repaid that with blood. I say it's time we showed them what it means to bleed."

Mr. Jenkins is not alone in his feelings. In this time of national anguish, many Americans are eager to act. From donating blood to joining the army, the attack has roused the country to action in a way not seen since Pearl Harbor...

April 22, 2013

BILL TO MICROCHIP ABNORMS INTRODUCED.

WASHINGTON, DCaSenator Richard Lathrup (R, Arkansas) today formally introduced a bill (S.2038) to implant a microchip tracking device in every gifted American citizen.

"The Monitoring Oversight Initiative is a simple, common-sense solution to a complex problem," Lathrup said. "With one stroke, we can dramatically reduce the risk of another March 12th."

The proposed tracking devices would be implanted in the neck, against the carotid artery. Powered bioelectrically, they would allow government agencies to track the exact location of implanted individuals.

The bill has numerous opponents, among them Senator Blake Crouch (D, Colorado), who last year became the first gifted member of the US Senate. "I mourn the tragedy of March 12th as much as the rest of America. But we cannot allow ourselves to follow this path. How different are microchips today from the gold stars Jews were forced to wear before the Holocaust?"

The allegation is one dismissed by supporters of the bill. "Yes, this sounds dramatic," Lathrup said, "but all we want is information to protect ourselves. These devices pose no threat to the gifted. Can they say the same to us?"

July 5, 2013

DEMONSTRATIONS TURN VIOLENT;.

1 DEAD, 14 INJURED.