He looked over to Kate. “Perhaps it’s sinking in now. Why the military had to infiltrate the SSA. This is way beyond people disappearing. What’s happening now all over the world is a full-scale war on the people of this planet. And William Chance was our only chance of stopping it. And now you’ve set him loose.”

“Strange,” Kate said, taking a step towards him. “Agent Hallow let it slip that the military had even greater designs for him and the others. Are you worried because you think he’s dangerous, or because you’ve just lost your most powerful potential weapon against your enemies?”

“Agent Hallow spoke out of turn and is now relieved of his duties.”

“Small loss there,” Roxy muttered.

“It frankly astounds me,” Lynn began, “with everything that is happening, all over the world now, that the focus of our military is to use my grandson and the others in a war on other countries. Can you truly be that blind to what’s happening?”

“I’m not spending a lot of time on this, given that should your grandson trigger you, ma’am, then God knows what could happen to anyone near you. I can see by your expression that you understand. The world’s militaries have joined the small pockets of SSA agents in scrambling to find the individuals causing these disasters. What do you think power-hungry governments will do with that? Take North Korea—besieged by hurricanes. If they find the person causing them, what would they do with that kind of weapon?”

“My God,” Lynn’s hand rose before her. “This isn’t an attack on just one country. This is a global crisis—”

“And the United States will not fall. We had a real chance of stopping this until you undermined every effort to protect this nation. Four of them were gathered. We had a chance of determining what it is inside you that’s making this happen, maybe even remove it—”

“You can’t,” Lynn said, biting her lip.

The general stopped. “Whatever you know, Mrs. Roseworth, you’re going to tell us. Including the location of Don Rush and his sister Barbara. I think you understand why it’s vital we find him as well. You’re all going to tell us everything you know. Every one of you will do exactly as I direct from now on.”

“You don’t know us well. None of us takes orders from men very well,” Roxy said.

“We’re tracking that flight carrying your nephew. We have suspicions as to where they’re going. And it’s where you’re going to go to convince your grandson to turn himself in. That storm is just a taste of what he can do with those people. He has to be stopped. Don’t you see: He’s gathering them, just like we think they want him to do. He is not who you think he is at all.”

NINETEEN