The President is Missing

President Jonathan Duncan is being questioned as part of a congressional hearing, the first step toward possible impeachment proceedings. He is questioned about an alleged phone call that he placed on April 29 to Suliman Cindoruk. Suliman is the head of a terrorist organization known as the Sons of Jihad, and it is controversial and confusing that Duncan spoke with him.

Duncan refuses to confirm or deny whether the conversation took place. He is then accused of interfering in a military strike against Suliman, which resulted in the latter escaping alive. No one can understand why “an American president [would] dispatch US forces to save the life of a terrorist” (13).

President Duncan becomes increasingly frustrated and angry; the narrative reveals that he is merely practicing testifying in preparation for an upcoming committee hearing. Most of his aides and advisors think it is a bad idea for him to testify, but he is determined to do so. Moreover, Duncan is distracted by an unnamed but more pressing concern.

An assassin named Bach arrives in Washington, DC, to kill an unnamed high-profile target.