9:08 A.M.
UNITED NATIONS SECRETARIAT BUILDING
FIRST AVENUE AND FORTY-SECOND STREET
NEW YORK CITY
The NYPD officer, Ricky, ran for a stairwell at the back of the UN building, following orders from Koch. He climbed as alarms roared inside the stairwell. He entered the third floor of the tower and moved down the hallway. He lock-picked a door and entered an empty office suite, some sort of ceremonial room, which appeared as if it hadn’t been used in a long time. An inner door near where he wanted to be was locked and he shot out the area around the steel door handle. He kicked in the door.
Ricky skulked to the window. He registered two school buses with men pouring out carrying automatic weapons. Ricky walked back, staggering a little, grabbed a satchel full of mags, went back to the shattered window, set the fire selector on a custom-rigged AR-15 to full auto, and started firing at the men swarming from the school buses—pumping bullets at the Iranians now attacking from street level.
Then he saw a man to his right and started targeting him.