Christopher Westin had informed each of the Joint Chiefs individually by phone during the previous few days that there would be a mandatory conference with the President on Friday the seventh of April. Therefore they had time to clear their respective schedules for the entirety of the afternoon. The highest ranking military representatives for each branch of the service were being summoned to the situation room beneath the White House for a meeting of the upmost secrecy at one in the afternoon, and they were to remain tight lipped about their destination. Within that summons President Harwell had also expressed with conviction that each General or Admiral could only bring a single aide to be present for the conference, and that it must be their most senior and trusted individual.

Once all had convened on the ground level of the White House, they descended to the situation room where a few technical support personnel awaited their arrival. A moment later President Harwell entered the room, and with Heath following just a few strides behind, he noticed that some of the high ranking military men showed visible, although subdued, signs of shock.

With all eyes shifting back and forth between him and the surprise guest, the President wasted no time in stating, “Alright, so now all of you know that reports as to the death of Agent Bishop were fictitious. Questions to that point can be addressed at a later time, but for now there is something of tremendous importance which needs to be discussed at great length. I will first take this opportunity to remind each of the Joint Chiefs, and those of you supporting our efforts during this briefing, that none of what is covered throughout the next few hours, or the status of Agent Bishop, shall leave the confines of this room until we are further prepared to act accordingly. Is that perfectly clear to each and every one of you?”

A verbal confirmation followed from each individual in the room before Jordan Harwell sat. Then he leaned back in his chair, turned toward Heath, and nodded.

With the signal to proceed from President Harwell, Agent Bishop stepped toward the large bank of viewing screens positioned at the far wall. As he then reached for the remote which would control the information projected on each screen, several of those present turned their heads toward Heath with a second expression of shock on their faces.

Their collective amazement came with good reason, for the task which lay before him was far from the norm for someone with his job classification. Although each and every person within the room certainly knew what Agent Bishop was, and therefore respected him for the protective service which he provided the President, that respect had limits. For the members of the Joint Chiefs who had been summoned to attend, their regard for Heath certainly didn’t include the thought of having him, as a mere Secret Service agent, present any type of briefing in the situation room. After all, the secure room had been built for the purpose of discussing intelligence gathering throughout the globe and the military actions which could be taken in response to a perceived or actual threat. That mindset was well justified based on decades of use within the situation room for those very purposes, but it had minimal if any impact upon how President Harwell viewed the current situation. He believed that regardless of their cumulative discomfort over who would be bringing forth the intelligence, the Joint Chiefs were about to receive a briefing which definitely fit into the established mold.

Turning to face the ensemble, Heath understood that unless the Secretary of Defense had informed any of the Joint Chiefs ahead of time, the content of his briefing would come as a surprise to all of them. However, and regardless of any forewarning which might exist, Heath was intent on educating them fully as the President had instructed. Therefore he would provide and detail evidence of undeniable guilt with regard to certain individuals acting on the supposed behalf of Texas.

After clearing his throat, Heath stated, “For those of you who may not know me as anyone other than a Secret Service protectorate for President Harwell, my name is Agent Heath Bishop, and yes, I’m alive. This will take some time to fully explain, but at the directive of President Harwell and with the help of others, I have put together a presentation for you. The contents of what you are about to see and hear will establish a body of proof with regard to those responsible for the terrorist attacks of November 2026. It is my belief, as well as that of President Harwell, that the actual culprit of those hideous actions against our nation will be a shock to all of you.”

Throughout the next hour Agent Bishop discussed his findings of the past seven months, while also answering a myriad of relatable questions from the Joint Chiefs. Heath began by explaining that he had been suspicious of the fault being placed upon Syria since before that time, and that he discovered a few abnormalities which caused further speculation. His belief in a separate culprit was then magnified when viewing the memorials for the fallen midshipmen at Annapolis and the cadets at West Point. From that day forward he began to piece together several scraps of information, and in time, felt that he should bring the subject matter to the attention of President Harwell.

Heath continued by stating that as a result of that briefing in early September of 2027, he had been instructed by the President to conduct a quiet and unofficial investigation to see if those random scraps could be linked into tangible strands of proof. Now seven months later, he and others had gathered a substantial amount of evidence from sources such as confessionals, interviews, photographs, and wiretaps. There was already enough to implicate an organization rooted in Texas as those who perpetrated the act of despicable treason against the United States, and more evidence was being obtained on a nearly daily basis.

After Heath concluded his presentation which linked multiple strands of evidence into the tight bundle which President Harwell sought, he handed a technician the remote and returned to his place behind the President.

The room remained silent for a prolonged moment even though there were several exchanged glances and positive nods from those with decorative shoulder boards.

Then President Harwell swiveled in his chair to face Heath and said, “Thank you Agent Bishop for the detailed briefing. That was excellent work.”

“Thank you Mr. President. It was my pleasure sir.”

Pivoting back to face those at the long conference table, the President added, “Well gentlemen, it would appear that we all have something new to ponder. Now I don’t expect any definitive response at this moment, but I do suggest that while we are all assembled, we attempt to hash out a rough strategy for moving forward. Then beyond this current setting, I suggest that each of you give this matter some serious thought in the coming days. ”

A sturdy and grizzled man with four stars on the shoulder boards of his Army uniform asked, “Permission to speak freely Mr. President?”

“Of course General, what’s on your mind?”

“What would be your intent sir? Some sort of retaliation?”

“Well yes General. If we can continue to gather and establish the most undeniable proof of guilt as Agent Bishop eluded too, then I would like the United States to be prepared for retaliation. I believe that would be appropriate, don’t you?”

“Yes Mr. President I do, but to what level sir?”

“That’s a good question General, and one that will require considerable thought on my part. However I don’t have any desire to mirror what was done to Syria fifteen months ago. There was too much loss of civilian life.”

With an understanding of the initial parameters set forth, the Joint Chiefs began to hash out a rough idea of what could be done if the President ordered any form of retaliation.

An hour passed with much debate, and then the Army General stated, “Mr. President. Although we all agree to a basic construct of how to move forward, more time will be required for each of us to smooth out several of the details.”

“I understand General. Do what you need to do, and we can meet again to discuss your suggestions. Shall we say two weeks from today on the twenty-first?”