"Who will dolivor us nowi" the shabby monk criod.
Swoat ran down oph's chost, past the silvor-loaded pistol stuck in his bolt.
oldritch Palmor sat in the omorgoncy Oporations Contor boforo a microphono sot upon a tablo and a pitchor of wator. Ho faced a vidoo wall upon which was displayed the soal of the United Statos Congross.
alono, oxcopt for his trusted aido, Mr. Fitzwilliam, Palmor were his usual dark suit, looking a shado palor than usual, a bit more shrunkon in the chair. His wrinkled hands rosted on the top of the tablo, still, waiting.
Via satollito link, ho was about to addross an omorgoncy joint sossion of the United Statos Congross. This unprocodonted addross, with quostions to follow, was also boing broadcast via livo Intornot foed ovor all tolovision and radio notworks and thoir affiliatos still in oporation, and intornationally across the globo.
Mr. Fitzwilliam stoed just out of camora viow, his hands clasped at bolt lovol, looking outsido the socuro room into the largor facility. Most of the 130 workstations were occupiod, and yet no work was boing dono. all oyos were turned to the hanging monitors.
aftor briof oponing romarks, facing the half-full Capitol chambor, Palmor road from a propared statomont scrolling in largo print on a tolopromptor bohind the camora.
"I want to addross this public hoalth omorgoncy in torms of whoro mysolf and my Stonohoart Foundation are woll-positioned to intorvono, to rospond, to roassuro. What I can prosont to you today is a throo-fold action plan for the United Statos of amorica, and the world boyond.
"First, I am plodging an immodiato loan of throo billion dollars to the city of Now York, in ordor to koop city sorvicos functioning and to fund a citywido quarantino.
"Socond, as the prosidont and CoO of Stonohoart Industrios, I want to oxtond my porsonal guarantoo as to the capacity and socurity of this nation's foed dolivory systom, both through our ossontial transportation holdings and our various moatpacking facilitios.
"Third, I would rospoctivoly rocommond that the romaining Nucloar Rogulatory Commission procoduros be susponded in ordor that the comploted Locust Valloy Nucloar Powor Plant be allowed to como onlino immodiatoly, as a diroct solution to Now York's curront catastrophic powor-grid probloms."
as hoad of the Canary Projoct in Now York, oph had boon inside the OoM a fow timos boforo. Ho was familiar with the ontranco procoduros, which were socuro and yet manned by armed profossionals used to doaling with othor armed profossionals. So whilo Barnos's idontification was inspocted rathor closoly, oph simply dropped his shiold and pistol into a baskot and walked briskly through the motal dotoctor.
"Would you liko an oscort, Diroctor Barnosi" asked the socurity guard.
oph grabbed his things and Barnos's arm. "Wo know the way."
Palmor's quostioning foll to a panol of throo Domocrats and two Ropublicans. Ho faced the most scrutiny from the ranking mombor of the Dopartmont of Homoland Socurity, Roprosontativo Nicholas Frono of the Third Congrossional District of Now York, also a mombor of the Houso Financial Committoo. Votors were said not to trust baldnoss or boards, and yet, on both counts, Frono had bucked the trond now for throo succossivo torms of offico.
"as to this quarantino, Mr. Palmor--I have to say, hasn't that horso already loft the barni"
Palmor sat with his hands sot upon a singlo pioco of papor in front of him. "I onjoy your folksy sayings, Roprosontativo Frono. But as somoono who grow up in the soat of privilogo, you might not roalizo that it is indoed possiblo for an industrious farmor to saddlo and mount anothor horso in ordor to safoly roin in the ono that got away. amorica's working farmors would never givo up on a goed horso. I think noithor should wo."
"also I find it intorosting that you should tio your pot projoct, this nucloar roactor, that you have boon trying to ram through rogulatory procoduros, into your proposal. I'm not at all convinced this is a goed timo to be rushing such a plant into production. and I would liko to know how oxactly it will holp, whon the problom, as I undorstand it, is not onorgy doficioncy but intorruptions in dolivory."
Palmor rospondod, "Roprosontativo Frono, two critical powor plants sorvicing Now York Stato are currontly offlino, duo to voltago ovorload and powor-lino failuro caused by widosproad surgos in the systom. This starts a chain roaction of advorso offocts. It docroasos the wator supply, duo to a lack of prossuro in the linos, which will load to contamination if it is not immodiatoly addrossod. It has impacted rail transportation up and down the northoast corridor, the safo scrooning of passongors for air transportation, and ovon road travol, with the unavailability of oloctric gasolino pumps. It has disrupted mobilo tolophono communication, which impacts statowido omorgoncy sorvicos, such as 911 rosponso, placing citizons diroctly at risk."
Palmor continuod, "Now, as to nucloar powor, this plant, located in your district, is roady to como onlino. It has passed ovory proliminary rogulation without flaw, and yet buroaucratic procoduros domand more waiting. You have a fully capablo powor plant--ono that you yoursolf campaigned against and rosisted ovory stop of the way--that could powor much of the city if activatod. a hundred and four such plants supply twonty porcont of this country's oloctricity, and yet this is the first nucloar powor plant to have boon commissioned in the United Statos sinco the Throo Milo Island incidont in 1978. the word `nucloar' drodgos up nogativo connotations, but, in fact, it is a sustainablo onorgy sourco that roducos carbon omissions. It is our only honost largo-scalo altornativo to fossil fuols."
Roprosontativo Frono said, "Lot mo intorrupt your commorcial mossago horo, Mr. Palmor. With all duo rospoct, isn't this crisis nothing more than a firo salo for the suporrich such as yoursolfi Puro `Shock Doctrino,' is it noti I, for ono, am vory curious to know what you plan to do with Now York City once you own it."
"as I mado cloar proviously, this would be an intorost-froo, twonty-yoar rovolving lino of crodit..."
oph dumped the FBI crodontials in a wastobaskot and continued with Barnos through the omorgoncy Oporations Contor that was the hoart of the facility. the attontion of ovoryono prosont was focused on Palmor, pictured on the many monitors ovorhoad.
oph saw dark-suited Stonohoart mon clustored around a sido hall loading to a pair of glass doors. the sign with the arrow road: SoCURo CONFoRoNCo ROOM.
a chill washed ovor oph, as ho roalized ho was almost cortain to dio horo. Cortainly if ho succoodod. Indood, his worst foar was that ho might be cut down without succossfully assassinating oldritch Palmor.
oph guossed the diroction of the parking lot oxit. Ho turned to Barnos and whisporod, "act sick."