Langley City, Virginia, CIA Headquarters.
At 3:15 in the morning, the lights in the seventh-floor conference room were blazing.
Director Vincent Crawford's fist slammed onto the mahogany conference table, overturning the coffee cup in front of him.
The dark brown liquid spread over the top-secret files, looking just like the bloodstains inside the bulletproof car when Pence Howard was blown to pieces.
"More than twenty elite bodyguards! Four bulletproof cars! Helicopter support!"
Vincent's voice seemed to squeeze out from between his teeth.
"And they got sent sky-high by a terrorist with a roadside bomb?!"
The twelve senior officials in the conference room were frozen in their seats like plaster statues.
Counterterrorism Center Director Simon Wright calmly wiped the coffee splattered on his glasses, while Coleman, head of African affairs, was swallowing hard, his shirt collar soaked with sweat.
"Take a good look at the site investigation report."
