State of Terror

Ellen arrives at the Capitol and is seated in the front row. She is told that the president is furious that his speech has been delayed because of her late arrival. The other members of the cabinet comment on the bedraggled state of her clothing and criticize her trip to Korea, where diplomatic talks broke down.

Before the speech, President Williams greets Ellen with a palpable animosity. During the speech, she marvels at the spectacle and the tradition of the government. She is proud to have the opportunity to serve her country.

Dr. Nasrin Bukhari runs through alleys away from her destroyed home. She knows that her husband is likely dead or being tortured. She assumes a calm demeanor and boards a bus. As she rides the bus toward the border, she grips her satchel tightly. She loves her country and wants to protect it. Knowing that her husband may give up their plans if he is tortured, she decides to alter her preparations.

At the State Department’s Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs, an analyst named Anahita Dahir sits alone and watches the president’s delayed speech. Though President Williams is trying to set his administration’s agenda, the media’s focus is on the secretary of state.

Anahita receives an anonymous message composed of “a series of numbers and symbols” (14). Deciding that the message is spam, she checks with her boss, and he advises her to delete it. Anahita makes a copy, then deletes the message.

In the Oval Office, the president celebrates his speech with friends, family, and affluent supporters. He speaks about Ellen with his Chief of Staff, Barb Stenhauser, and they decide that Ellen’s failure in Korea and her late appearance at the speech will leave her politically “dead in the water” (17). Their plan all along has been to set up Ellen for a fall, thereby eliminating a potential political opponent while appearing to be magnanimous. However, Williams is angered by the surprisingly positive news coverage of Ellen’s debacle in Korea.

Ellen, Betsy, and Katherine gather to reflect on the speech, and the media’s criticism. She is still unsure why the diplomatic talks in Korea collapsed so dramatically. The news channel Ellen once operated (now run by Katherine) has no qualms about criticizing her. They leave the television running while Ellen reflects on her failure in Korea. However, the news unexpectedly praises Ellen for her hard work and claim that she is “willing to get into the trenches” (19).

Later that night, Anahita thinks about the strange message. She wonders whether it might have been from a journalist and old flame in Pakistan named Gil Bahar. Remembering their time together, she sends him a message on her telephone. In the early hours of the morning, he responds. He denies sending her a message but asks for help regarding a scientist. Anahita dismisses his request and thinks about Gil’s past. She knows that he was once kidnapped by the Pathan, the “most extreme, most brutal of the terrorists in the Pakistani-Afghan tribal area” (21) though he managed to escape unscathed. The last time he asked her for information, the subject of his request was assassinated three days later.

Nasrin uses a fake passport to board a flight from Pakistan to Frankfurt. She notices a man following her through the airport but dismisses her paranoia.

Boynton wakes Ellen in the early hours of the morning. He tells her about an explosion in London. She heads to the situation room in the White House with the president and the ranking members of the National Security Council. They discuss the bomb attack and view security footage of the moments before the explosion. Ellen senses the president’s lack of trust in her but does not have time to think about it as the information pours in. The British Prime Minister calls the president and the Security Council listen in. In a blustering tone, the prime minister admits that they do not yet have much information. Ellen suggests that the target of the attack might be the Geological Society, which houses uranium. The prime minister is convinced that another attack might take place.

After the meeting, Ellen speaks with General Whitehead, the head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He speculates that no person or group has claimed responsibility for the attack “because they don’t need to” (26). Ellen returns to the State Department offices and sits down for a meeting with the Five Eyes intelligence network, which includes representatives from the United States, Great Britain, New Zealand, Australia, and Canada. Despite their far-reaching intelligence networks, no members have any new information about the purpose or perpetrator of the attack. Ellen shares Whitehead’s theory, but she is interrupted by the news of a second explosion in Paris.

Anahita sits at her desk in the chaotic State Department and reviews all her recent messages.

Nasrin’s flight lands in Frankfurt. People turn on their phones and learn about the terror attacks in London and Paris. She spots a young man who seems to be looking at her with recognition and contempt.

Ellen meets with the president in the Oval Office. He wants an update, but she has no new information to provide. He reacts angrily, but she knows that he is afraid. Ellen slowly walks through a theory about the Paris bomb attack, but she needs more time. When she mentions that she is reaching out to journalists and former colleagues to collect information, the president asks about her son. Barb Stenhauser senses the hatred between the president and the secretary of state. Ellen is unwilling to contact her son because they are not on good terms. The president tells her to reach out to him, or she will be fired. Ellen does so, but the president leaves for a cabinet meeting before Ellen’s son replies.

Anahita realizes that the times of the explosions and the numbers of the busses exactly match the numbers and symbols in the cryptic message she received. She finds her copy and rushes to her boss. He is unavailable. Anahita worries, because the message seems to imply that one more explosion will take place. She leaves the office.

As Nasrin rides the bus from the airport, she is followed by a man. She focuses intently on her follower, but does not see a second man who is tracking her.

Anahita defies security protocols and rides an elevator to the restricted sections of the State Department. She pushes her way into a meeting to speak to her boss, Daniel Holden. She hands him the message, tells him there will be another attack, and is then ushered out of the room by security. Worried about the impending attack, she makes another call.

Gil Bahar rides a bus from the Frankfurt airport, carefully watching Nasrin.

Ellen joins a cabinet meeting. The president patronizes her, and the cabinet concludes that there will not be another attack. Afterward, she returns to the State Department and calls the director of National Intelligence.

Katherine Adams tries to bring calm to the chaotic new network as journalists scramble for information. Katherine receives a message from her old schoolmate, Anahita Dahir, who she only remembers because Anahita was frequently bullied. She calls Anahita, who demands to speak to Katherine’s mother, Ellen. Katherine agrees to meet Anahita first. The women meet outside the State Department as the time of the next attack draws closer. Anahita refuses to explain everything, but Katherine agrees to try and secure a meeting with Ellen. Inside, Anahita waits outside Ellen’s office while Katherine talks to Betsy.

Gil continues to follow Nasrin as she boards the next bus, still clutching her satchel. He sits in front of her in plain sight, while her other follower remains unseen. He types a message, saying that he is in Frankfurt. The number of their bus matches the coded message received by Anahita.

Ellen arrives in the office to meet with Anahita. Though Boynton dismisses Anahita, Ellen wants to listen to the information. Ellen quickly deduces the meaning behind Anahita’s information, and she shares it with her department. They begin searching for every bus which matches the coded message. While Ellen orders her staff to find out why the message was sent to Anahita, she tries to contact her son again but receives no reply. The State Department deduces that the only corresponding bus routes are in Rome, Madrid, and Frankfurt. Ellen orders her team to alert the police in each city, though only six minutes remain until the possible detonation. Anahita sees the list of cities and remembers that Gil is in Frankfurt. She contacts him, and he explains that he is “following [a] lead” (49). Anahita warns him that there may be a bomb on the bus. She receives no answer. She runs into Ellen’s office. Boynton reveals that Gil Bahar is Ellen’s son. Everyone in the room is shocked as the timer moves toward zero.

In Frankfurt, the bus stops. A man exits the bus but leaves something behind. Gil ignores his ringing phone until he notices Katherine, his half-sister, trying to contact him. He answers but hears Ellen telling him to get off the bus. He has one minute. Gil shouts a warning to the other passengers. He tries to warn Nasrin, but she thinks he is trying to kidnap her. The driver throws Gil from the bus and drives away. The timer reaches zero.

Ellen drops the telephone as the line to Gil is cut. She orders her team to help the German police and to find Gil. Anahita is told to keep trying to contact Gil while Ellen calls the president. She explains Gil’s proximity to the accident and offers to explain everything in the Oval Office. There, she gives a detailed but quick explanation of events leading up to the bombing. When she mentions Anahita’s name, the head of the CIA and the director of National Intelligence share a meaningful glance. As the president complains about the lack of information, Ellen decides to be brutally honest. She tells him that he is “four years out of date” (56), blaming the incompetency of the previous administration for destroying relationships, networks, and everything else the intelligence agencies depend on to source information. She excuses herself from the meeting, explaining that she must go to Germany. The president bemoans the sudden “breach of protocol” (57). Ellen glares at him and suggests that he try exercising his humanity.

Ellen returns to her office. Her team is beginning to think that the three bombs are part of a bigger plot; the three attacks show that the organization behind them is professional, capable, and willing to kill innocent people. The team is still working to find out more about the message to Anahita, but they cannot find Anahita herself, and Ellen begins to wonder about her background.

Katherine calls to tell her that Gil is alive but hurt. As she prepares to leave for Germany, Ellen is told that the coded message to Anahita might have come from a mole or a traitor within the mysterious terrorist organization.

Anahita is picked up by military intelligence and interviewed in a windowless room. She explains that her parents fled Beirut during the civil war in Lebanon and moved to Cleveland as refugees, which is where she was born. She claims to have no idea who sent her the coded message. However, she can’t explain why she made a copy of the message before deleting it. Ellen arrives and stops the interrogation, demanding that Anahita be released. She tells the interrogators that Anahita will be flying to Germany. Despite the insistence that Anahita knows something about the attacks, Ellen stands firm. She remembers the expression on Anahita’s face before the explosion. Ellen may not trust Anahita, but Gil’s survival is because of her actions. During the flight to Germany, Anahita wants to explain to Ellen that she is not hiding anything—but that isn’t true.