Read State of Emergency: Jack Emery 2 for Free Online

handlers to project strength. The press secretary whispered into her ear and left her alone at the lectern, while the agent stood off to the side. Richard watched her intently.
    “Good morning, everyone.” The President looked straight ahead with as much conviction as Richard had ever seen from her. “Today I’m here to speak to the American people about the most severe threat we’ve faced this century.”
    Richard smiled as some of the journalists looked up. The White House press corps gathered here nearly every day to hear the routine affairs of state, but it was rare that a briefing would begin with such a blunt statement. Given the events during that time period – 9/11, wars with Afghanistan, Iraq and China and attempts by the Foundation for a New America to control the country – it was a bold claim. Yet Morris wasn’t wrong.
    “The terrorist attacks that have swept our nation are unprecedented. We’ve been attacked before on home soil, but we’ve never before seen a chain of coordinated assaults like the one that we’re currently facing. The damage has been immense, from Cowboys Stadium to MIT to Walt Disney World. The attackers are well trained, well equipped and deadly. No group has claimed responsibility and we do not know their motive.
    “It pains me to admit that while the authorities are doing their best, they’ve made little progress. While investigations continue, I’ve had to escalate our response, to provide more security for our critical installations and on our streets. In doing so, I’ve tried to balance security against the impact on the daily lives of Americans. But it’s clear to me that traditional approaches aren’t working to protect us.”
    Richard felt a surge of satisfaction. For Morris to publicly admit that her administration was powerless in the face of such assaults was huge, and he knew better than anyone how far away they were from results. Since she’d authorized the deployment of the State Guard at the NSC meeting, he’d been working overtime to get things moving. Since the meeting, the attack on the Hoover Dam had only escalated things further.
    The previous evening he’d been working late into the night to get the State Guard deployed when Morris had called. She’d skirted around the issue at first, until she’d finally swallowed her pride and asked him what more could be done. It was the moment Richard had been waiting for. They’d talked for an hour about the possible contingencies and he imagined that her speech notes for this morning had been changed significantly after their conversation.
    Morris gripped the lectern. “The atrocity at the Hoover Dam was the final straw for me. That attack looks to have killed thousands and is the latest sign that nothing we’re trying is working. Given that, I’ve consulted with my advisors and searched deep into my soul to look for new ways, new ideas, to keep our people safe. We think we’ve come up with something, but it was a hard decision to make.”
    Richard snorted. Morris had been speaking to her advisors for weeks, since the commencement of the attacks. They’d come up blank and their inexperience and lack of imagination had cost the country dearly. In truth, he knew that he was the only one she’d consulted the previous evening, and was glad that his experience was finally being taken into serious consideration. He’d been available to her from the very start, but she’d neglected to seek out his advice. He’d served America for decades and only wanted it to be great.
    He sighed. It was a shame so few Presidents were up to the challenge. Most floated through their time in office like so much driftwood on the high seas, achieving nothing except in occasional, deferential nods to the Constitution, the Bill of Rights and the founding fathers. They told Americans what they deserved , but not what was necessary for them to have it, or to keep the country safe and prosperous. They ignored the fact that,