Frank pulls himself together trying not to look out of the game. Eddie smith walks over to him with a scowl on his face. Frank braces himself for whatever is coming.

‘I can’t believe this shit Frank. How in the hell did Connor manage to get into the M.I.T building. I thought that M.I.T specialised in security, and a paranoid hick with a small army got in there?’ Eddie said, his scowl still embracing his face like a new found mask.

‘I don’t know sir. I’m sure this can be resolved. Is there any word on whether he has hostages?’

‘I’m pretty sure he has, I mean you don’t declare war on somebody without having an advantage, a bargaining chip that will make us play nice. The sort of upper hand that will stop us going in there and massacring his army.’

‘All bets are off then’ says Frank. Eddie looks at him as if to say yes, and he’s sorry for the inconvenience.

Thirteen

It’s been 50 minutes since Connor was plastered all over the news as the man to watch in America, as usual when a case like this pops up, the media did not help things with their incisive way of dramatizing an already dramatic enough situation. Frank was pondering that very fact while sitting down staring into his mug of black coffee in the canteen.

He had time to get a quick bite to eat before Connors next video, which he assumed would be in less than 10 minutes time. He looked at his watch, it was 2.50 PM. He thought to himself how long the day has been, even though it was barley done. After all there was still the whole night to keep him busy.

Nine minutes to go he thought.

There is not a whole lot a man thinks about when faced with these sorts of situations. Frank was thinking about how to escape the odds at hand, not how to overcome them. He was worried for his job security and couldn’t run the risk of getting found out. He didn’t want to be known as the guy that once had it all, a wife, a few kids and a promising career as a detective. He had already lost both his wife and children. She left him because he hadn’t left his work at work; he liked to bring it home with him, including all the pill popping that came with it. He needed this job. He needed to get Connor Chase and secure his future. Call it selfish but Frank didn’t care.

He looked down at his watch again. Eight minutes to go.

Time was moving slow. He sipped on his coffee and looked around the canteen, his eyes getting lost in the emptiness of the room. He was the only one there. He thought that maybe people didn’t have the stomach to eat or drink anything, but he wasn’t any one. He knew that he had to keep focused on the case and to do that he needed to do to look after himself. That’s when the guilt set in. Frank knew he shouldn’t have taken that hit of heroin less than an hour ago. He regretted it, the feeling of not being in control was weighing heavy on him.

He thought that maybe that’s what made him who he was. His demons ever present nipping at his subconscious at every chance they had. He thought maybe that’s what fuelled Frank McKenzie to spur on to victory. He realised that it would consume him and destroy him, but he needed that edge that normal detective’s didn’t have. Where there’s smoke there’s fire and he needed as much heat as possible going into this thing. Then it hit him.

Fourteen

Frank made his way to the incident room where he planned on talking to the DA. When he got there from the short walk from the canteen, he was too late. The news was on air and a live feed of Connor Chase was playing on the TV. What Frank wanted to say had to wait, Business had just picked up.

Connor was standing in the same room as before. Only 2 guards stood next to him this time. The space that the small army took up in the previous video was now vacant. Frank could only dare to think why. The sound of a static microphone was heard on the TV, and then Connor Chase cleared his throat.

‘I am here again with the pressing issue of why I’m doing this. As I can imagine that’s what’s on the end of everybody’s lips. As you can probably tell I’m not shy on showing my face. Be that as it may, my fellow helpers in this revolution are. They can wear their masks because I’m the one that everybody is interested in. Don’t get me wrong here, without my men I could not do this. It took 5 years of planning and the movement is finally underway. I have with me 45 men that are heavily armed. They shall remain armed until the last minute and they are willing to lay their lives down on the line. Our cause is a noble one. For every revolution there is a face behind it. Believe me when I tell you I am that face. That is the reason why mine is not covered. The ski masks on my men’s faces are symbols of what we want to achieve. Every man on earth has the god given right of being anonymous, a right that has been taken away through the advent of census collecting and information harvesting. I’m here today to let the US government know that this will stop and it will stop today! I have in my possession 193 hostages. They all work here and were easy pickings when we took this building by force. The US government values its citizens. And on the open market I know that if I had a document that contained information regarding 193 people then I would be a rich man. I’m not after money and as that will sure come as a shock to you; I am just as serious as someone driven by greed. I want change to take effect, I want the 28 amendment. It shall be a law in which every person has the right to their privacy at any means necessary. Just like I have the right to protect my home from invasion by force, my privacy and that of my fellow Americans will be protected my international laws. If you don’t have privacy then what have you got? If you don’t comply with my demands then I shall kill all the hostages. I’m going all in; I expect nothing less from the government. But please don’t waste my time by trying to be heroes. It’s as simple as this: YOU HAVE 7 HOURS TO MAKE THE AMENDMENT TAKE EFFECT. IF YOU DO NOT COMPLY, IT’S GAME OVER FOR THE HOSTAGES.’

The TV screen goes blank for a few seconds then it cuts back to the news station’s anchor man. Frank looks on at the TV screen in shock. He now knows that Connor Chase isn’t just some paranoid killer. The man Frank is after is the spearhead of a group of home grown militia. A group that by themselves prove a threat, but with the news coverage stretching far and wide, Frank fears that this group could cause a tidal wave of support from right winged nationalists who eat up his propaganda.

‘This is bad.’ He says to himself.

Fifteen

Frank is sat down in the temporary office of the DA at the central crime unit’s incident room. They call it an incident room, but it’s more like an incident castle. The building is basically an old fort like structure that has more history then the Germans.

Looking across from Frank was DA Eddie Smith. Eddie has a scornful smile on his face, accompanied by a light chuckle.

‘This ass hole is going to fuck with my patience. He surely can’t think that Washington is going to allow for this so called 28 amendment?’ asks Eddie.

Frank nods in agreement and doesn’t answer the DA. He knows a rhetorical question when he hears one. Frank knows that the DA just wants to blow off steam, so he lets him babble on some more. Frank’s not paying attention to what Eddie is saying anyway. He has too much on his mind, preferably how he is going to deal with Chase. Suddenly Frank’s trail of thought is thrown out of transit.

‘Hey Frank? Are you listening to me?’ Eddie asks.

‘Yeah boss. I’m just thinking that maybe we need to deal with this in another manner’

‘What do you suggest?’

‘Well sir, we are the ones giving Chase all of this exposure. I know we, the authorities aren’t, but the news channels are. There is a saying that people can get drunk with power, well my theory is that if we cut the press out of this then Connor and his men lose their power.’