Opening: 2061

In a comfortable Annapolis hotel room, high overlooking the Chesapeake, TASSIMA MILOVITZ, recently awakened and wearing little, opens a case on her bed. From within she withdraws components and assembles a CIEX-branded device resembling a rifle—though it has a long, compressed air tube for a barrel. To the current observer, we might assume it is a toy due to its synthetic materials and unthreatening appearance. After the rifle-device turns on, Tassima opens a small case and pulls out what appears to be a 6-inch long bullet (a self-guided micro-missile). She inserts it into a portal in the tube, completes the preparation, then sets the whole device on the bed such that it is pointed out of her open balcony door.

On Tassima's armscreen (thin touch screen on her inner arm) appears the image of a man, along with the name Sen. Walter Nicholls and the number BWS287665211456. Tassima taps the image, waits a moment for the tubed device to respond. Then she selects Manual over Auto, and begins to eat her breakfast. Occasionally she glances at the display on her arm. It reads "Searching".

35 miles away, inside the U.S. Capitol, U.S. Senator Nicholls of Texas walks with colleagues, angrily denouncing the idea of a trillion dollar no-bid contract for CIEX. As the Senator heads toward an exit, he smooths his grey hair and puts on a deep green bowler hat. (Bowler hats and well-appointed suits being the fashion.)

Just as he steps into the daylight (in Washington D.C.), a pale green light glows on Tassima's armscreen (in Annapolis). She casually finishes her bite, then taps the "Send" icon. The air-compressed gun quietly hisses from pressure and suddenly the micro-missile whooshes from the tube.

We stay with the micro-missile as it flies out over the water, banks and slows from the initial propulsion, then ignites its tiny rocket engine, accelerating itself rapidly until it is zipping just under Mach 1 across the terrain, small fins guiding it. As it flawlessly adjusts for buildings, rising and lowering, smoothly turning, we see it is heading for the U.S. Capitol.

Senator Nicholls is talking with a group of reporters. Once he finishes his opening remarks, the first question is asked, but before the Senator can complete his answer, a sudden impact nearly rips his head off. The blood-splattered crowd scrambles in horror, running inside the building. The bloody green bowler hat rolls into the street.

Back at the Annapolis hotel, Tassima finishes her toast while watching her armscreen. She gets confirmation of "TARGET DESTROYED," then walks onto the balcony with her coffee, appreciating the view.

One Month Earlier: AT The PRESIDENTIAL Inaugural Ball

The attendants at the crowded Presidential Inaugural Ball include:

• CHEN MENGSEI (47), President of the United States

• DIANE MENGSEI (40), the First Lady, and their two children, 10-year-old son, BOLIN, and their 14-year-old daugter, LIAN.

• PAT JOHNSON (53), Vice President of the United States

• SCOTT ROSE (48), (Samuel Scott Rose - 15 letters), CTO of CIEX

• ANGELA DERASMO (44), Director of the Secret Service, and wife of Wesley Orman

• WES ORMAN (44), (Wesley Mark Orman - 15 letters), was with FBI, now the new White House Chief of Staff, and husband of Angela Derasmo

• DONNA KARPER (50), (Donna Leah Karper - 15 letters), CEO of CIEX

• RYAN WESCOTT (64), Executive Director of EON, Ecumenical Order of the Nazarene.

• TASSIMA MILOVITZ (35), (Tassima Milovitz - 15 letters, if no middle name)

• BEN BELL (25), (Benjamin Lou Bell - 15 letters), First Lieutenant, U.S. Marines, son of one of the astronauts who died in the Lunalpha Disaster.

• SENATOR NICHOLLS (71)

• BIYU MENGSEI (38), sister of President Mengsei. A Chinese citizen, and officer in the Chinese People's Liberation Army.

CIEX CTO Scott Rose and Secret Service Director Angela Derasmo discuss the security there at the Ball, and what was installed that day in the White House. The focus of the discussion is on new CIEX technology deployed to protect President Mengsei's BWS (brainwave signature) from being captured.

During the evening, President Mengsei speaks with Ben, and Ben thanks President Mengsei for the special invitation that Ben received to attend this Inaugural Ball. Then the discussion turns to Ben's father, one of the astronauts who died in the Lunalpha Disaster 20 years ago (of which President Mengsei was the hero for having saved three astronauts from the tragic explosion). As they talk, Ben brings up his father's full-honors funeral at Arlington Cemetery where, at the graveside, a member of the military Honor Guard handed the then six-year-old Ben the tri-folded American flag from Ben's father's casket. Also attending Ben's father's funeral were Mengsei and Rose, both then 28-years-old. When the then-six-year-old Ben spotted the Hero of Lunalpha (Mengsei), Ben tried to give Mengsei the tri-folded flag from his father's casket. Before Mengsei could decline, Ben's mother stopped Ben. She told Mengsei that she only wished Mengsei could have saved her husband too.

Other discussions fall on EON Director Wescott and Tassima, a 'celebrity' social couple in DC circles. Their age difference, her exotic beauty and mysterious background, and him being the head of the powerful and radical Christian movement called EON, only add to the rumors of Wescott being secretly opposed to the new president, even though Wescott was one of the largest contributors to President Mengsei's campaign. Nevertheless, it's clear that Wescott and VP Johnson are allies. At one point, Tassima and Ben dance.

Biyu Mengsei notices that there are some bees in the ballroom. Attendants are dispatched to help eliminate them. Ben volunteers to help.

At one point, CIEX CTO Scott Rose and Biyu are seen dancing together. Biyu is wearing a dark navy dress. It is common knowledge, especially to President Mengsei and the First Lady, that Rose and Biyu are in love, but there is awkwardness as she is a ranking officer in the Chinese People's Liberation Army, even if she is President Mengsei's sister.

Scott Rose and Senator Nicholls have a tense exchange regarding Senator Nicholl's interest in investigating CIEX and their contracts, going all the way back twenty years to the Lunalpha Disaster.

CIEX CEO Donna Karper, Secret Service Director Derasmo, and Tassima, are all wearing different yet similar dresses, each slightly different shades of navy or midnight blue. Chief of Staff Orman, a drunk, had insisted that his wife, Director Derasmo, wear her particular blue dress.

An unidentifiable person, wearing what appears to be a dark navy coat or dress, brushes by Rose first, and then by President Mengsei’s son, Bolin, bumping into the boy slightly.

Bolin, already upset that the public has been predicting his death, tells the First Lady that he thinks one of those bees stung him, but then denies it when too much attention is paid to him by the Secret Service.

WATCHING INAUGURATION EVENTS FROM OTHER LOCATIONS

There is major concern now for President Mengsei's safety, and in particular the President's BWS getting compromised and a hit on him happening like it did to the Senator. Director Derasmo conducts additional investigations and the results are, once again, that the President's BWS is safe, that all coding of it that every happened has been erased, and any attempt to collect it now would be noticed and blocked.

Marcia sees all the national hysteria starting up over the coincidences, and finds her OCD kicking in. Here is a problem worthy of her talents, she thinks. Though considered crazy by many (she is certainly a-social), even within her Truth in Numbers group, Marcia has a gift for patterns. She begins by throwing out the notion that it could all be a "coincidence". To her, there must be someone pulling the strings.

Paul also sees the mass conspiracy reactions mounting. He calls his looney mom, knowing she'll be all worked up about it. The next day, while at CIEX (as part of the investigation team) Paul is asked by a CIEX Employee how many letters are in Paul's name. Paul says 16, that his middle name is Aaron. The CIEX Employee teases Paul, saying that it's only the extra “a” that keeps Paul from being a killer. Paul asks the CIEX Employee how many letters are in his name, but gets no answer. Others observe the two talking.

The next day, when genetically-enhanced DNA "sniffer dogs" are brought into the Annapolis hotel room, the FBI finds evidence that leads them to the CIEX Employee—who has not shown up for work. Paul is questioned by Director Derasmo about his private conversations with the CIEX Employee.

CIEX CEO Karper and CIEX CTO Rose learn that one of their CIEX employees is the key suspect.

INVESTIGATION INTO THE MURDER OF THE CIEX EMPLOYEE

Now the FBI investigation expands to the death of the CIEX Employee—their best suspect in the assassination of the Senator. This leads them to Paul (the DHS employee in the BWS Enforcement Division) due to his unusual behavior, his conversations with the CIEX Employee, and the CIEX Employee dying at Paul's apartment building. But they also consider that an unknown woman was seen on the security system at Paul's high rise apartment building that evening. To us the woman looks a lot like Tassima, or maybe Marcia, but the FBI and Derasmo have no idea who she is.

At his apartment, Paul succeeds in crafting an improved BWS code-capture-software and implants it into a basic wrist device. He then goes out on the street to try it out, capturing the brainwave signatures of many people, including those with protective headwear (bowler hats and scarves).

When the DHS and FBI, under the assigned leadership of Secret Service Director Derasmo, investigate the murder of the CIEX Employee, they get into Paul's apartment and discover what he is up to relative to BWS.

Paul tries to assure them it was an experiment, to do his job better at the DHS—looking for back door processes. He claims the CTO of CIEX (Rose) asked him to try to break their BWS capture system.

Director Derasmo talks with Rose, and Rose confirms the story. But Paul will stay on Director Derasmo's radar.

Marcia dives deeper into the statistical probability of a third Vice President Johnson also born in the eighth year of the corresponding century. The probability is 117.6 Billion to 1. But some other people named Johnson born in 2008 also went on to significant political success. Marcia begins looking at them, seeking any clues. Did any of them, and especially Patricia Johnson, benefit from any sleight of hand, beyond the usual political endeavors? Marcia also begins creating algorithms that process all 15 letter men.

CIEX CEO Karper demands a meeting with EON Director Wescott, and Wescott assures her that he knows nothing about the CIEX Employee death. This meeting reveals an ongoing collusion between these two, highlighted by the fact that Wescott's group, EON, is the prime shareholder of CIEX, controlling the board and thus the CEO. It's clear that Karper doesn't believe Wescott is so 'uninformed' as he seems.

Rose confronts Paul. In this confrontation, we learn that Rose had not instructed Paul to find a backdoor into their BWS capture technology. Rose is impressed with the device Paul is working on...though Paul lies, saying that he hasn't been able to get it to fully work. Rose now has Paul squeezed, working privately for him, or else Rose will reveal to the FBI Paul's lie (the lie about being instructed by Rose to do the backdoor BWS experimentation.)

President Mengsei gets in a virtual-presence-call with his sister, Biyu, but he is upset to learn that their virtual call is being monitored by the CIA (also in the virtual space).

Marcia discovers that in 2032, when Patricia Johnson was 24-years-old, Johnson was at a party in St. Louis where Johnson's girlfriend and a young man both overdosed on synthetic heroin and subsequently died. Though the police were summoned, no public record exists of the event, neither in Nazarene official records, nor in any other press coverage. At first Marcia assumes it was squashed when VP Johnson ran for Governor of Nazarene in 2056. But then Marcia realizes it was erased in 2033, just one year after it occurred. Other than Johnson being the daughter of a prominent Nazarene church leader (now deceased), there were no other VIPs at the party, and similar overdoses were regularly reported. So why would anyone care, at that time, to do a public-records-wipe (not an easy thing to accomplish)—long before Johnson decided to run for public office?

ROSE'S COLLECTING OF LUNALPHA HELMETS

STEALING THE PRESIDENT'S BRAINWAVE SIGNATURE (BWS) CODE

CIEX CTO Rose, an affable man carrying dark secrets, begins his own digging into the CIEX Employee's death. Rose discovers that the CIEX Employee was an entrenched member of EON.

Rose meets with his romantic partner (and President Mengsei's sister) Biyu in a virtual presence chamber and they have a form of 'virtual sex'—which is surprisingly "life-like". During that virtual encounter, Rose asks Biyu if the Chinese have found another helmet for him, adding that the remaining one that Rose is looking for belonged to Biyu's brother, Chen (President Mengsei). Biyu is confused because Chen came home with his helmet from the Lunalpha Disaster. In fact, Chen's "helmet of a hero" is on display at the Smithsonian. Rose says President Mengsei moved that helmet to the Oval Office, and that there was another helmet from Lunalpha that belonged to President Mengsei.  Biyu agrees to see what she can find (via the PLA and Chinese Space Program) thinking Rose is wanting to get it as a sentimental gift for her brother.

EON Director Wescott tells CIEX CEO Karper of the curious, old helmet shopping by her CTO (and best-friend of the President), Rose. Wescott says that his instincts tell him that there could be something to it and "suggests" Karper look into it. Karper says she's already aware of it, and that it's nothing, that Rose had found them all. "No," Wescott corrects her, "He's still looking."

A few days later, CIEX internal investigators confirm to Karper that Rose has indeed not stopped looking for helmets from the Lunalpha Disaster—that Rose is looking for one more—and now there are reports that the Chinese PLA are also looking.

Karper decides to meet with Director Derasmo. These two women don't like each other, and Derasmo thinks the whole Rose and helmet thing is nothing, that Karper is just trying to save her job (from Rose taking over CIEX) by painting Rose as being in collusion with the Chinese. But Karper explains to Derasmo that of the five who made it back to Earth (Rose, Mengsei, and the three rescued) from the Lunalpha Disaster, the only other helmet that Rose could be looking for is that of President Mengsei, and it's possible the helmet could still have President Mengsei's BWS.

Derasmo digs in: everyone knows Rose and Biyu love each other, and Rose has proven time and again not to be giving the Chinese U. S. or CIEX secrets—and Rose is certainly not colluding with Chinese operatives to steal one of the U.S.'s greatest state secrets: the President's BWS. Derasmo will do nothing that might embarrass her boss or his sister, and certainly not to help Karper win corporate gotcha points.

Later, when Director Derasmo does ask President Mengsei about his helmet from the Lunalpha Disaster, he shows it to her. Derasmo asks President Mengsei why then would Rose be looking for yet another one? President Mengsei almost reveals himself by his stammer, but then says he doesn't know. After Derasmo leaves, President Mengsei has Rose invited down from Boston to some Washington event.

When Wescott returns to CIEX for information, Karper at first lies about Rose and the fifth helmet. But then Wescott threatens to have her removed as CEO—if she gets to live at all—due to her not being a devout enough EON member, Karper caves and reports that yes, Rose is trying to find a helmet that likely was President Mengsei's—and yes, it may have President Mengsei's BWS still programmed into it—and the Chinese may be seeking it too.

A few nights later, after the Washington event, Rose and President Mengsei talk at the White House. In their conversation, we learn more about what really happened 20 years earlier in the Lunalpha Disaster. They have a code of silence between them, and Mengsei thinks Rose should know better than to be drawing any attention to those long-buried events.

Rose assures Mengsei the helmet was just to have been a gift to Mengsei, and that Biyu was helping him with it (which we know isn't the whole truth). Mengsei is upset at Rose's stupidity, for getting Mengsei's sister Biyu involved, and thus the Chinese PLA, and wondering how Rose thought Mengsei could ever explain having two helmets from that same day. He throws the one in the Oval Office at Rose. There is obviously significant tension on this subject between these two men.

Rose confesses that he wanted it to be sure President Mengsei's BWS was not still programmed within it. But even that doesn't make sense to Mengsei as no one would ever know that random helmet with no name tag ever was Mengsei's unless someone went looking—he and Rose are the only two people on Earth who know they switched their helmets before flying back to Earth. And why risk giving the Chinese PLA a head's up and compromising Biyu? For what? Outside the Oval Office, Chief of Staff Orman has overheard some of what was said.

Paul IS TARGETED TO BE THE PATSY

The widespread term among the conspiratorialists for a man with 15 letters in his name and thus a possible would-be-assassin-suspect is a "15". It's a bad thing to be a 15, as 15s are tracked, identified, and monitored by hundreds of thousands of strangers via the all-invasive Net (what the internet is called). This widespread activity is beginning to include female 15s too, and even non-American 15s.

New crackdowns are occurring against people harassing any 15.

President Mengsei's son continues to get worse and the best physicians are baffled by the underlying cause. The idea of the boy reacting from a bee sting still lingers—though President Mengsei still doubts the boy was stung—especially as the supposed bee-sting occurred too long ago to still be causing such a reaction.

The illness is kept a strict secret as Mengsei and the First Lady are already very upset with the popular declarations that one of Mengsei's children must die to fulfill what the masses see as a prophecy. When that "prophecy" gets to the ears of his kids, President Mengsei is outraged.

When Paul confronts his mother for spying on him, Paul learns from her that his middle name came from the first name of his maternal grandfather, Aron—but in the hospital, they incorrectly spelled the name the common way, with the additional "a", as in Aaron. Thus Paul's real name is Paul Aron Saltier—and thus he is a 15. 

Marcia turns to her group, Truth in Numbers, for help, and they come together to replace Marcia's stolen equipment. Though Marcia says it was just a thief, not believing in coincidences, she does feel certain that EON did it. That's exciting to her, because, if it was EON, then her new hypothesis must be right—EON contrived for Pat Johnson to be the Vice President.

Paul's mother invites Paul to meet her new friends at the DC chapter of Truth in Numbers—a fringe group of nutters who all think they can predict the correct "15", the person who will assassinate the President. Paul is not happy that these people encourage his mother. At the event, Paul meets Marcia and there is immediate chemistry between them.

To Paul's horror, in front of the group, his mother announces a "funny thing"—even her son is a 15. But don't worry, she says, he's obviously not the right color. Immediately there is a new take on Paul, even from Marcia. Paul is uploaded into the worldwide database of 15s.

This upload pops up on a holographic screen at EON, and is put in a digital report to EON's Director Wescott. Wescott is pleased, because with what CIEX CEO Karper told Wescott earlier about Paul (that Paul was being looked into regarding the CIEX Employee homicide), and Paul's name coming up on the 15 registry—Paul may be just the man for Wescott's purposes.

President Mengsei’S SON DIES

President Mengsei's son dies and the nation goes into mourning. CIEX CTO Rose is with his friend, President Mengsei, through the ordeal, and of course Biyu comes from China. It is noted that Rose is obsessively focused on helping Derasmo protect Mengsei during the funeral.

While there, Biyu gets a meeting with Derasmo, and tries to convince Derasmo that the Chinese government suspects the President's son (Biyu's nephew) was murdered. Plus, the Chinese want to offer their help in investigating the matter—from afar, perhaps they may see things more clearly. Derasmo politely declines and says there is no evidence of any foul play.

But privately Derasmo is conflicted—she is beginning to see potential suspects and possible traitors everywhere. In fact, normally this type of offer (one from the Chinese PLA) is something Derasmo would report to the NSA and CIA, but considering the circumstances, the unknown allies and foes, and who made the offer, Derasmo decides to keep it to herself.

On the streets, there is mass hysteria that the death of the President's son is "the sign" that the fates are repeating themselves. Surely now Mengsei will be assassinated. The worldwide conspiracy theorists are out in force. There is no privacy for any 15—they are tracked and identified by swarms of people who believe they're solving the assassination before it happens. All protections once afforded 15s are removed.

The First Lady tries to convince President Mengsei to resign, that it's bad enough that they lost their boy, why risk the rest of the prophecy coming true? But President Mengsei will not give in and scolds her for believing such nonsense.

Wescott tells Tassima that he needs no connection back to CIEX for LE POREM to be performed properly—thus Rose must go. Tassima offers to kill Rose, but Wescott says no, not before Rose finds President Mengsei’s helmet.

WESCOTT MOVES MORE CHESS PIECES

During a flight on a CIEX Supersonic, Low Orbit Jet to the funeral of the President's son, EON Director Wescott tells CIEX CEO Karper that CIEX should consider moving their headquarters to St. Louis, where EON is headquartered. Karper says Rose would never agree to such a move. Wescott then suggests that Rose should be tossed from CIEX, adding that the "rose" is turning into a "thorn". Karper refuses, that she won’t fire Rose, saying it would cause a huge renewal of focus from the FBI, and would likely get her fired too. But maybe that is Wescott's plan, she asks? Wescott denies it.

With her new, and even better equipment (now a full quantum computer), Marcia runs the statistical odds of all three Presidents, each 100 years apart, all losing a son while in office. The odds are astronomically against it being anything but by design. But by whose design?

• Random chance?

• Supernatural?

• Some form of quantum, dark energy, made evident only by its probative, century-long sine curve—a perfect, ever repeating phenomenon like the universal Golden Rule?

• Or could the boy's death have been orchestrated by EON, in addition to EON making Johnson the Vice President?

That last theory begins to fade from Marcia's internal plausibility rankings. Marcia goes to Paul's place and they discuss the odds. Paul's mother can't help but chime in with her latest theory: aliens.

Marcia has found a friend in Paul, an intellectual equal but also someone who doesn't dismiss her numerology as "unscientific". And in her, Paul has found a gentle, brilliant soul who accepts his long "disappearances" where he works on his "projects" without speaking a word to anyone else. While there, Marcia sees what we see: Paul is still working secretly at home on his BWS capture technology.

At the son's funeral, Wescott visits with a U. S. Senator from the State of Nazarene (and a devout EON member), and is observed doing so by Biyu.

The boy's death has also sparked a heated debate inside the DHS/Secret Service and the FBI—to take the Lincoln/Kennedy/Mengsei similarities seriously, or not. Secret Service Director Derasmo is highly skeptical that a 15 is to be suspected. Nevertheless, her concern is certainly high for an assassination attempt of any sort, from anyone, by any means, on any day—not just a person with 15 letters shooting Mengsei in the head on a Friday.

Nevertheless, Derasmo gives in and blocks President Mengsei from any appearances with his wife on a Friday. Derasmo thinks it's ridiculous, but can't avoid seeing the obvious coincidences and feeling the pressure. Mengsei is not happy that it will make him appear to also believe his fate is predestined. But the death of his son and the subsequent funeral have him too badly shaken, so he goes along with Derasmo's recommendations.

Now, for the first time, Derasmo has the Secret Service look hard at the top 15s that the conspiratorialists factions have identified. She favors the results being produced by the group Truth in Numbers. Derasmo is surprised to see Paul's name on that list. She instructs that Paul should be watched by the Secret Service, regardless of whatever the FBI is doing.

CIEX CEO Karper is told by a Nazarene Senator that the Senator will guarantee massive tax breaks and other financial incentives for CIEX to move headquarters from Boston, Massachusetts to St. Louis, Nazarene. CIEX CTO Rose strongly opposes the move, as it is just another effort by EON, and especially her 'master' Wescott, to take full control. Karper confides that she agrees with Rose and feels trapped.

Karper rejects the Nazarene Senator's offer, saying that Rose would make too much of a fuss, and besides, everyone knows Rose is to be next CIEX CEO, so his opinion will be consulted.

At home, Secret Service Director Derasmo gets heated pushback from her husband, Chief of Staff Orman, about the Secret Service's focus on the DHS employee Paul. Orman claims that Orman was told by DHS to get her to back down because Paul is one of the DHS's most useful, brilliant BWS techs, and is especially needed to protect President Mengsei's BWS.

But this second-guessing of Derasmo by Orman is a final step too far for Derasmo, especially Orman going behind Derasmo's back in the White House. The couple falls into a serious fight, leading to Orman storming out, claiming never to return, and Derasmo insisting that indeed Orman should never return.

Rose BECOMES CHIEF OF STAFF, ORMAN GOES BACK TO FBI, Karper TURNS ON Wescott

An ugly leak (by Derasmo one can guess) reveals that Orman had predicted President Mengsei's son’s death. It is too much and President Mengsei asks Orman to resign, to quietly go back to the FBI where he had been.

Wescott asks the Nazarene Senator find a way to suggest to President Mengsei that CIEX CTO Rose should be the new White House Chief of Staff. The Nazarene Senator convinces his good friend and fellow Nazarenes, VP Johnson, to talk to President Mengsei about it. That happens, and President Mengsei agrees, primarily because he wants/needs to keep the peace with the Nazarenes. But privately, President Mengsei is concerned about his old friend Scott Rose coming to work in such as sensitive and powerful position as White House Chief of Staff.

Rose leaves CIEX and goes to the White House as the new Chief of Staff. His relationship with Biyu is back in the press, with the usual detractors.

Chief of Staff Scott Rose and President Mengsei know President Mengsei’s BWS was once programmed into President Mengsei's old helmet on the moon. But they can't say anything as that would only bring up that whole issue in bad way. President Mengsei is surprised Rose is still looking for it, thinking they settled that matter earlier.

Rose says it is just for precautions, even though he is sure the BWS code was long destroyed by 20 years of exposure to radiation in space. He tells President Mengsei that was what was the case for the four Rose already found, and that he'll bring one in and show President Mengsei. But we see, at Rose's home, Rose secretly erase the codes from the other helmets, before bringing one in as 'proof' of them being radiation-wiped.

Derasmo sees Rose bring the helmet into the White House.

President Mengsei is convinced and agrees that if Rose can find Mengsei's real helmet from Lunalpha, that it's probably best to get it in and destroyed. President Mengsei, Rose, and Biyu (in China) meet in a highly encrypted virtual space to discuss it. Biyu convinces her brother Chen (President Mengsei) that no one knows why she is acquiring it.

Orman is angry. He thinks his ouster as Chief of Staff—especially due to "someone" (yeah, he's sure it was Derasmo) squealing on him just because he made a joke about the President's son—is all a plot by Rose and Derasmo to get rid of him and to thus get Rose in. He starts wondering if Rose and Derasmo are having an affair.

When Orman is back at what is now only Derasmo's place, moving his things out, Derasmo tries to make nice. Derasmo comments on men holding on to their silly treasures, and mentions seeing Rose bringing a helmet in that day to President Mengsei, and something about the Lunalpha Disaster.

Now the Nazarene Senator has gone back to see CIEX CEO Karper, and now re-ups his invitation for CIEX to move to St. Louis.

Karper says that now that Rose is gone, she is more inclined to agree to the move.

When Paul tries to follow Marcia's cold algorithmic logic, it doesn't make sense to him and he says something insulting. Marcia gets upset and they part. But afterwards, Marcia thinks she is onto something—what had really upset Paul wasn't her logic-path, but was her continually producing results that led to EON, and by extension to CIEX, being the nefarious orchestrator. So perhaps it was CIEX specifically doing this? After all (she reasons) Wescott is a primary shareholder of CIEX.

Orman communicates to Wescott.  Wescott is at his DC home, in bed with Tassima—that Orman now thinks he knows where the President's BWS can be obtained.

Orman, now back at the FBI, starts an investigation into the Lunalpha Disaster, against the wishes of his estranged wife, Director Derasmo. Orman and Derasmo file for divorce.

Things are coming clearer to CIEX CEO Karper now. She sees she's being played—something bigger is going on. She sees that Wescott's goal all along was only to get Rose in the White House. If CIEX really did move to St. Louis, all the better for Wescott. But the truth is that Wescott never really cared about that. So Karper backs out of agreement to move the company to Nazarene. The Nazarene Senator is upset, but sure enough Wescott isn't bothered by Karper's decision.

Seeing for sure she was but a pawn on Wescott's chess board, Karper is on a full war footing with Wescott—she wants to purge CIEX of EON influence. She begins firing people based on their religious affiliations to EON. Wescott warns Karper to stop.

INVESTIGATING THE DEATH OF THE PRESIDENT'S SON

Although President Mengsei's son’s death is considered a medical anomaly, if not suspicious, others in the Secret Service and the FBI come to Secret Service Director Derasmo, suggesting an investigation into poisoning, retracing evidence and everyone who was in possible contact with the boy. But Derasmo tells them not to, as that scenario was simply not possible, that the boy was well protected, that there is no way the Secret Service could have allowed that.

Derasmo is beginning to show cracks under the pressure. The idea that someone intentionally killed the boy just to make the events line up with Kennedy and Lincoln is just too outrageous and nonsensical to be taken seriously. And to say so would not only insult the Department of Homeland Security and the Secret Service, but the President and First Lady themselves.

Others push back, saying that perhaps Derasmo needs to take some time away, to gain clarity, because it's entirely possible that there is a killer out there. If they can find who killed the boy, then they can stop whomever may be planning to kill President Mengsei. Derasmo still tells them to stand down on the idea.

But the DHS begins the investigation anyway, and we learn that the idea is being orchestrated by FBI Exec Assist Dir - Criminal Services Orman (ex-husband of Director Derasmo). Orman now gets himself appointed as the head of the investigative team.

A new hunch by some on the team is that the boy was injected with a slow-acting neurotoxin. They go back to events where random people might have been in contact with the boy, and that leads them to the surveillance footage of the Inaugural Ball. Orman reminds them that bees had been seen there. They look on the surveillance videos for anyone usual getting near the boy. It shows nothing.

Orman notes that Ben was there—Orman had invited Ben to the Ball without clearing it first with President Mengsei. Now Orman summons Ben to the FBI. They seem to know each other. Ben describes the events of the evening, that someone had said there were bees—yes, he had seen one too—and then he left to get some help to get rid of them, but upon return found none. Orman concludes that it must have been a bee carrying some rare toxin that slowly got to the boy.

Derasmo is upset to learn that the FBI went against her recommendations, and especially upset that her ex, Orman, orchestrated it. But now Derasmo must deal with the evidence the team is presenting—but the bee thing is bothering her. There was something she had seen in some sweep of someone's home—yes, Paul's. She had seen a drone cyberbee at Paul's house.

Marcia has now begun investigating Paul due to his strange behavior toward her. When he is away from his home, Marcia gets Paul's mother to let Marcia stay back at Paul's place one night. In the middle of the night Marcia gets up and is about to go through Paul's things to see what she might learn....but....

Derasmo knows she can't get a warrant on such a hunch about Paul, and frankly wants to keep this to herself for now—the bee thing is probably silly—so Derasmo and one of her team have Paul sent on an out-of-town trip. While Paul is gone, Derasmo and one other break in and investigate Paul's apartment—unaware that Paul's mother now also lives there. Derasmo finds several drone bees there, and a couple with the capacity to carry a stinger of sorts, but the field test shows no evidence of a neurotoxin on them. Nevertheless, Derasmo takes one of the cyberbees with her. They leave behind evidence that would make it appear they are part of the CIEX team.

While Derasmo and her partner are there, Marcia and Paul's mother are hiding in a bedroom. They don't know who is out going through Paul's things, but later find evidence that it was someone from CIEX.

Paul is brought in for questioning by Derasmo, but he has an alibi for the evening of the Inaugural Ball (being at his mother's house with his mother), and Paul has a logical reason for why he has the drone bees. Derasmo must release Paul as there is no evidence that puts one of his cyberbees in the ballroom that night, much less any evidence of one of his having a slow acting neurotoxin on it.

Paul asks his mother if she heard anyone in the apartment the prior night, but his crazy mother won't answer until Paul gets Marcia to come there. Paul thinks it's all a ruse to get the two of them back together—but of course his mother just wants Marcia there to corroborate what happened. Marcia arrives and admits what she was doing, and she and Paul apologize and reconcile. But when Paul says it was the Secret Service who broke in, Marcia shows Paul the evidence that it was someone from CIEX.

A result comes back from the microscopic autopsy: the boy had an increased level of digital-lithium (D-L) made by CIEX in his system. D-L is embedded in the walls of the White House and other sensitive government buildings to block any access to any brainwave signatures (BWS) that are inside the building—the primary focus being to protect the President's BWS code from being stolen and/or tracked. But D-L can't be inhaled or otherwise ingested, so how did it get into the boy's body? Again the idea of a micro-injection is floated.

Derasmo and her team want to have the boy's body 'virtual mapped", down to the cellular level, for analysis. Derasmo gets her way, but can't get a proper virtual forensic reading by available technology. Derasmo turns to Biyu to help, and against Derasmo's instincts Derasmo sends the data to Biyu in Beijing who then has the Chinese use the same technology they developed for age-reversal gene therapy to examine the massive data file of the boy's virtual body, looking for any sign of an injection point.

Derasmo tests Paul's cyberbee, but this time not for a neurotoxin, but for D-L. Sure enough it has a trace of D-L concentrate on its stinger. But that still is not enough evidence to say it was the cause of anything.

Derasmo is re-watching security video of the Inauguration Ball when she comes across footage of the independent news reporters at the Ball. In those, Derasmo sees a cameraman temporarily put his camera down on a table, with it pointed at the crowd where the President's son was. Derasmo goes to the network and gets that footage shown to her—when the camera was temporarily set on a table. (Cameras in the 2060s never turn off, they are always recording whenever their lens is uncapped.) In that footage, she sees just the waist level of someone wearing shadowy dark blue get near Rose, then slightly bump into the boy. She watches it repeatedly. Derasmo cannot be sure, but it looks intentional.

Derasmo quickly starts looking at other photographs, seeing who was wearing dark navy at the Inaugural Ball. There were three women, CIEX CEO Karper; Wescott's date, whoever she is; Biyu, and herself. Derasmo goes to her closet and looks at that dress she wore and remembers that her ex Orman had insisted she wear it that night. But of course, that couldn't be her bumping into the boy. She would have remembered that, wouldn't she?

What's haunting Derasmo is that Biyu was in dark navy, that Biyu was close with Rose that evening, and that now Derasmo has turned over the only evidence of any such injection to Biyu and the Chinese. But Biyu would never kill her own nephew—nothing makes sense for Derasmo.

Compounding the problem, Derasmo realizes that there were many men wearing dark navy long coats that night at the Inaugural Ball—U. S. Marine officers, including one, Ben Bell, whom Derasmo had seen just the day before coming out of FBI headquarters. Derasmo inquires and finds out that Orman had sent for him.