AT THE SITUATION ROOM TABLE in the Whitehouse, men argued in deciding the fate of the victims, of the attacked cities in the west-coast — both the Joint Chief of Staff Chairman, General Taylor and the Director of National Economics, John Greenhill were in a verbal dispute...

They were both trying to get the attention of the seventy-four years old newly elected Commander in chief — President Walter Rosewood, who was staring blankly at a huge TV screen, with a paused still-image of the self-confession video of Dr Boris Yankoff.

The old man was pretending to be imperturbable — but, the real fact was that he was befuddled in thoughts of handling his first major national crisis, after a month becoming the steward of the land.

"But, we already have the CIA and other agencies working with the Russian government to hunt down the industrial terrorist Mikhail Mladic back in Moscow — and we also have dragnet for the whereabouts of Dr Yankoff, who is here in hiding in the US."

John Greenhill informed while he pointed at the TV screen, as he continued...

"That scientist is somewhere now in the dark, back in New York; despite coming out as a whistleblower with this video confession recording — the DHS still believes that he is a prime suspect — and the culprit, who was also a part of the terrorist group conspiracy in Russia...

"Even, Langley too has named him now as one of the most wanted in its manhunt list!"

But, General Taylor was irritated with his vague and penurious information...

"Greenhill, we are beyond that at this current stage. We can't be wasting time pinpointing who is to be blamed when that damn virus is spreading rampantly — with the current immense death rate damage is catastrophically alarming — it is time for us to go in and save lives!

"We need to call for an immediate evacuation now!"

The Army General noticed that the old President was not attentive — who was still staring at the TV screen in reverie, like a deer to the headlights of a car.

Greenhill next figured out, that the mass demotion decision would cause a major panic nationwide, he argued that things could be self-contained — by sending medical supplies to the affected areas — which would be cost-effective and would only cost a fraction of the taxpayers' money.

The economist wanted the resources to be focused on the CIA and FBI instead, based on the confession video Intel — with the Feds doing their task with the investigation at hand, to bring political justice in exposing the foreign traitors of the scientific community working in America. It will also be the world's marketing campaign — to promote the newly elected President Rosewood — in his homeland's role towards world justice.

General Taylor became agitated again by him, and picked the brown envelope in which Dr Yankoff's video came in — and tossed it — it slid across the long table towards Greenhill...

"You call this fucking Intel, Greenhill? We got it from a TV station, for Christ sake!

"Right now as we argue here — they would have already aired that video by now — and the nationwide panic of this biochemical attack has already begun!

"So, a mass evacuation is still the best alternative in this dire situation!"

Everyone's eyeballs that had been trained on a contrite messenger who interrupted — who entered the situation room — everyone recognized the cross-dressed, gay man — who was in the administration, as the personal assistant to the First Lady...

He whispered something into the President's ear, the old Rosewood nodded — and the messenger left the room.

Greenhill rationalized further and stood firm...

"That will be chaotic, General Taylor — and also how on earth are we going to do that?

"We don't have the means to evacuate every citizen from eight different cities that have been attacked in those six states, so far! That is close to a massive fifteen million people out there — and let's be objective here, with that size of the operation — it will take several weeks to mobilize it!"

The ardent General ignored him and stooped his head low — to connect his view to Rosewood...

"But we can't leave them behind to die, Mr President. The hospitals over there are piling up with the death of older men and children — mainly boys — and there are also with countless hundreds of stillbirth babies at maternity wards too — which are all affected by those yellow diabolic fumes."

Rosewood still remained silent from the argument.

"What I am saying is that those who want to survive the virus will need to evacuate soon — and we owe that to them...

"So what is your decision, Mr President?"

It took a moment for the President to finally start speaking, especially from the building up of stress into his ageing geriatrics...

"But, how are these evacuations going to happen, General Taylor?"

The sagacious Joint Chief of Staff Chairman briefed him of the operation in using all relocation means possible — by air, sea and road — but, with the current logistics, time constraints and resources — but, ninety per cent of the evacuees would still have to travel by land in their own vehicles.

He added that the US Army would marshal the entire journey with checkpoints set-ups to assist the efficiency of the evacuation flow — the willing travellers would also be provided with the provision of food, medical assistance and gasoline for their vehicles; until they finally reached their destination in the east coast.

"If we act now, there is a likelihood that sixty per cent of the fifteen million lives can be saved, Mr President." Taylor elucidated probability.

The entire operation proposition took a momentous moment to digest — and Rosewood then thought of the divinity instead, and the old man finally spoke...

"Funny, this coincidently reminds me of the book of Exodus — where the great prophet Moses did a similar cause of action at his time of crisis, to migrate the masses from certain death...

"...it was tyranny then — and it is terrorism today."

The old man stood up and eventually, caprice his orders...

"General Taylor will see to the immediate effect of this operation — with him in command with the backing support from the NSA.

"Also, set up a press conference later — and I will have to be transparent on this, and let the general public know that we are doing something in handling the crisis...

"Excuse me, gentlemen."

While gathering his papers, John Greenhill looked dissatisfied by the surmised decisions that had been capitulated. He watched the ceded whim President exiting through the door of the situation room — running over to his wife...

*

The same effeminate messenger saw the President walking over, escorted by two Secret Service personnel. He was standing in front of the Oval Office door.

"The First Lady awaits you, Sir."

Walter Rosewood nodded, entering his office alone. Ann was in the far corner of the room on the cell phone, she waved at her husband and she continued her conversation.

She had to truncate an emergency international Third World Children's Welfare Conference held in Copenhagen so that she could return to Walter's side for the current home domestic crisis — where after a couple of days of dealing with, the occurrence of massive death of children worldwide.

The President poured himself double bourbon and swallowed it fast...

He refilled a second and gulped it again. Ann noticed that he was inebriating himself, and she hung up her call. The president was about to replenish his glass again for his third, and his wife held his wrist. Walter then grabbed a bottle of mineral water in its place and settled on the couch. His wife spoke...

"How bad is it, Walter?"

The perplexed president rancour back softly. "A real disaster, I don't know-how in this day and age, this country can be so vulnerable again since the 9/11 attack — I have just been elected a month ago, and this is what I get?" He shook his disheartened head...

Ann Rosewood was briefed on the gist of the matters earlier, by the Secretary of State during her flight back to Washington from Europe. She then posed the question to her husband on the resolutions discussed in the situation room earlier...

"What have you decided to do now, dear?"

"Seriously, I don't know, Ann — for the first time in my life, during the last few days, I am cornered, deep in the far end by irrepressible situations, where I don't know what to do or say — things like, what if the virus attacks would soon reach the east-coast — then, will be even more millions of people falling ill, and dying here too?

"Oh God, this is beyond me, and I really don't know what I should do next..."

His words were coated by both of his feelings of helplessness and hopelessness — even for the current president of a stalwart nation.

"Don't say that Walter — just keep doing the right thing, as always."

Walter's face had ashen by the alcohol effect — his voice shook when he gave her instructions...

"Ann listen, if this pandemic continues, it will first kill all the male children and the older men (and who knows what next) — so, if anything happens to me — I want you to stay in office and finish the term! I want you to restore the order among the survivors — and, you do your best to bring things back to how it was before!" But, Ann then replied to her husband with nervous laughter...

"Come on, don't be silly Wally, nothing will happen to you..." But, her husband was dead serious, as he had devised a mission for her...

"Ann, listen please, this is deadly important — the country needs someone who is caring and also, with integrity and honour — and it needs someone like you. If the entire male citizens come to an extinct — you must then step up in those times of uncertainty, and lead this country...

"Ann, do you understand what I am saying?"

She looked back dumbfounded with vanquishing thoughts of herself — presently pushing into her mid-sixties — and bewildered by the thoughts of her task, as a future leader in a country of the outlived women and their surviving female children.

*

Outside the Capitol Hill, an unidentified suspect stepped out of a Ford that was parked on an uphill slope. The hand-brake was disengaged and the car slowly went down in reverse before picking up momentum. A small statue of the Virgin Mary was on the pedestal on the car's dashboard.

At the road intersection, a speeding town bus rammed into the side of the backing Ford. The bus driver hit the brake to a screeching halt — but the car rolled a couple of times before it turned belly-up — with the miniature holy statue upside down.

Pedestrians rushed to the scene of the accident to discover yellow smoke — seeping out of the trunk of the vehicle. It was followed by a lot of clamouring and panic from onlookers that afternoon at the east coast, with the biochemical attack that had finally breached into Washington D.C.