33
THE MINE SHAFT
NSA Command Center
After Uncle Bill left the war room, the geologist, Branson, stood motionless. It was Jana who broke his fog.
“Dr. Branson,” she said across the video monitor. “That seems so formal. Can we just call you Branson? Look, I know this is a bit of a shock—”
“A bit of a shock? I’m a geologist! I’m not used to this crap. Why in the hell I ever signed on board the USS Colorado last year is beyond me. If I hadn’t done that, I wouldn’t be sitting in NSA headquarters with the knowledge that a terrorist is out there, ready to detonate inside the United States again.”
“I’m sorry,” Jana said. “We unfortunately have gotten used to this. We’re dealing with the same terrorist, the one who tried to detonate a nuclear device two years ago in Kentucky, and the one who
