The Slip

Chapter 9

9

AT THE DEFENSE ADVANCED RESEARCH Projects Agency (DARPA) Headquarters in Arlington, VA, 10 miles from the CIA Headquarters, Brian Storm had received a similar download from his superiors first thing that morning along with instructions that his group would focus on the same issue full time, working closely with the CIA.

As one of the top Program Managers at DARPA Brian had bristled when directed to drop his current projects. He had become used to little oversight and choosing the subjects and types of projects he and his teams worked on, a privileged and unusual testament to his intelligence and creativity. Upon review of the unfolding catastrophe at hand and its potential magnitude, Brian quickly checked his ego and spent the remaining portion of the morning extricating himself from his ongoing projects and getting a team transported to his office for a kickoff meeting with the CIA liaison at 11:30 am.

Brian was renowned for his eclectic selection of team members, often including specialists from disparate and unrelated fields. But his results spoke for themselves and Brian’s superiors had long since learned to leave him to his own devices.

Brian had private planes bringing in the team members who were far away to hit the 11:30 am kickoff. Things were moving quickly, and he would have it no other way. Thankfully DARPA afforded significant access to money and influence and he knew how to use it to get things done.

About to kick off the most important task of his life, Brian’s pulse quickened; he felt energized and guiltily excited for the challenge of solving what could be the largest attack on American soil in history.