The President's Daughter: A Thriller

On a remote road near the American-Canadian border, two cigarette smugglers, Lloyd Franklin and his cousin Josh, are stopped by two men in white jumpsuits. When the strangers demand their truck, a confrontation breaks out. The smaller of the two men slashes Josh’s throat, killing him.

As Lloyd attempts to run, the taller, older man stabs him in the back, severing his spinal cord. The man tells the paralyzed Lloyd he will never walk again, then kills him. The two assassins, having used the jumpsuits to protect their clothes from blood, take the truck and drive away.

An hour after Mel’s departure, Keating showers and then clears brush on his property. As he works, he observes two of his Secret Service agents fishing on the lake as undercover surveillance. He reflects on his presidency, particularly his duty to authorize the Disposition Matrix, or “kill list.” He pauses to record a selfie video for his wife, Samantha.

His work is interrupted when he notices an unfamiliar flying object. It moves quickly and disappears, but the sighting leaves him with the feeling that he is being watched.

At the base of Mount Rollins, the two assassins from the border, an older man and a younger man, sit in a stolen Cadillac Escalade and monitor a live drone feed. Having researched Mel’s plans on the Dartmouth Outing Club website, they used the drone to surveil Keating’s home and then follow Tim’s car.

From their vehicle, they watch as Mel and Tim arrive at the trailhead, embrace, and head into the woods. The older man reflects on irony of using drone technology against the West, given that Western militaries have so often used drones to kill his friends. He confirms that Mel has no security detail, and they prepare to pursue her.

Mel and Tim hike up Mount Rollins, with Mel expressing happiness at being free from Secret Service surveillance. They find a secluded pool and stop to share a joint before swimming. They discuss a campus activist who recently tried to recruit Mel for a protest, an invitation she plans to decline.

Their peaceful moment is interrupted by the sound of approaching voices. Mel is gripped by a sudden fear, sensing that something is wrong.

At his home, Keating receives a call on his iPhone from a blocked number. The caller is Sarah Palumbo, the Deputy National Security Advisor, who is bypassing protocol to deliver a personal warning about a credible terrorist threat against him.

Keating finds Agent Stahl and briefs him. He orders protection for his wife and declares his intention to go to Mount Rollins to retrieve Mel. Stahl advises against this, arguing that the threat is likely a trap. Stahl promises to contact local and state police to get to Mel, and Keating agrees to wait.

Mel’s fears at the pool are realized when the men appear, one holding a pistol. The men force Mel and Tim to get dressed and march them down the mountain on a different path. Mel attempts to reason with the older man, asking what they want.

He informs her that this is happening because of her father and that he has waited a long time for this opportunity. When she hesitates, he threatens her to make her move faster.

The group arrives at the deserted Huntsmen trailhead parking lot, where the Cadillac Escalade is the only vehicle. Mel offers to go with the men if they release Tim. As she speaks, Tim prepares to use a hidden knife.

The older man seemingly agrees to Mel’s deal, making Tim promise to stay behind. After Tim gives his word, the younger man steps forward and executes him with a gunshot to the head.

Moments later, local residents Clem and Sheila Townsend are driving to the Huntsmen trailhead when a black Escalade speeds past. When they arrive at the lot, they discover Tim’s body and call 9-1-1.

State Trooper Donny Brooks is the first to respond. After hearing the Townsends’ account, he issues an alert to be on the lookout for the vehicle. While securing the area, Trooper Brooks finds a second knapsack. Inside, he finds Mel’s student ID, revealing that the former president’s daughter has been kidnapped.

Bound, hooded, and gagged, Mel is thrown into the back of the speeding Escalade. She fights to keep her mind focused, tracking their route by listening to road surfaces and counting seconds between turns, but soon realizes her captors are intentionally disorienting her.

Despite her fear, Mel resolves to remain calm and observant. She is determined to survive and refuses to be a helpless victim.

After a long drive, Mel is carried into a house in northwestern New Hampshire and locked in a windowless concrete basement cell. Once her restraints are removed, the younger man offers her water. In defiance, she spits it in his face. The Older Man informs her that she will be held there until her father meets their demands.

Left alone, Mel inspects the secure room. After a brief moment of despair, her fear hardens into resolve. She understands that she will have to find a way to rescue herself.

While Keating is working outside, he is swarmed by his armed Secret Service detail. Agents rush him under a bullet-resistant blanket into a hidden, reinforced-concrete safe room.

Alarmed by the lockdown, Keating demands to know what is happening. Agent Stahl enters and informs him that his daughter, Mel, has been kidnapped.

While briefing Keating on Mel’s kidnapping, Stahl is overcome with guilt. His thoughts drift to a meeting two months prior, when his superior, Secret Service Director Faith Murray, had ordered him to cease his unofficial surveillance of Mel. At the time, he had expressed concern that she was vulnerable, but Director Murray dismissed it.

Returning to the present, Stahl focuses on managing the security response. He feels he has failed in his duty to protect both the former president and his daughter.

In the safe room, Agent Stahl coordinates the defensive perimeter, noting that one agent is isolated in the main house. He dismisses an incoming call from Homeland Security Secretary Paul Charles. Agent Nicole Washington reports that an FBI Hostage Rescue Team (HRT) helicopter is en route.

After confirming that Samantha is secure, Matthew Keating takes command. He informs a stunned Agent Stahl that as soon as the HRT helicopter lands, he and Stahl are leaving on it.

At an archaeological dig site in Hitchcock, Maine, former First Lady Samantha Keating, now a working archaeologist, celebrates a discovery of 15th-century Basque tiles.

Her moment is cut short when a site volunteer alerts her to approaching men. A team of armed Maine State Police, led by Detective Sergeant Frank Courtney, runs onto the site. Detective Courtney informs Samantha that her daughter, Mel, has been kidnapped.

Hours after the abduction, Mel’s captors enter her cell with a video camera and a current copy of USA Today. They force her to hold up the newspaper and film her as proof she is alive. The Older Man states her father will soon receive the video along with their demands.

As they leave, Mel pretends to have a fear of guns and asks them not to bring firearms into her cell. They dismiss her plea but appear to believe her. Recalling advice Agent Stahl once gave her, Mel feels she has successfully deceived them.

Inside the safe room, Keating argues with Stahl, insisting he must leave to personally manage the response. He lays out a plan: They will take the helicopter to an airport, fly to Washington, DC, and set up a base of operations from which he can leverage his contacts.

Stahl resists, warning Keating that breaking protocol will cost Stahl his job and could be dangerous. However, Keating’s determination prevails. Stahl agrees to the plan, ordering an agent to retrieve Keating’s go bag and iPhone while he arranges for the HRT helicopter.

While waiting for the helicopter, Keating calls his friend and former Navy SEAL, Trask Floyd, asking him to arrange for a private jet in Manchester. Soon after, the HRT Black Hawk arrives, and its team secures the property. Keating and Stahl board the aircraft, which takes off immediately.

Once airborne, Keating opens his go bag. Inside are a SIG Sauer pistol and a disassembled Colt M4 rifle, showing he is prepared to do whatever it takes to rescue his daughter.