Chief Customs and Border Protection Officer George Allen closed the door behind her as she entered and took a seat at the conference table. Around the table were several of the Supervisory Customs and Border Protection Officers and another low level officer like herself to take notes. No sooner had she sat down than the lights dimmed and the flat screen monitor at the end of the room came on.
“At approximately oh three forty five this morning our border at Douglas Arizona was penetrated.” monotoned Allen. “Our only witness reports that a Semi and trailer jet black in color and bearing no markings pulled into a car lane and then opened fire with cannons from both sides of the trailer, heavily damaging the Port of Entry and killing one officer in the booth area that had stepped out to inspect the vehicles. The truck and trailer then proceeded with out further hindrance across the border and into the town of Douglas Arizona. The witness, a fellow border officer on break immediately put forth a call to the Douglas Police Department to assist.” On the screen images of the destroyed plaza played out for all in the room to see. Allen looked around the room for a moment to take in the expressions on those seated around the table. Most were professionals and continued to look unemotionally at him. The two lower ranked officers though had not been around long enough to hide their emotions during a crisis and stared back at him with open mouths.
“Two Douglas Police officers arrived on scene within three minutes and reported the destruction of the plaza and calling for all available units to respond. Approximately twelve minutes later the Douglas Police Department building was destroyed by explosives as of yet unidentified type.” The images changed from the plaza to the remains of the police station. A soft gasp was heard from the other end of the table. “A dispatcher was injured in the attack and Douglas Police Sergeant William Johns who was leaving the station at the time of the attack is reported missing. Cochise County Sheriff’s office was contacted and all available deputies were dispatched to render aid in the two attack locations.”
“What about cameras at both the port of entry and the police station?” one of the men at the table asked?
“The tapes from the port of entry have been secured.” Allen responded. “Those from the police station are still being obtained. It should be also noted that during the chaos of the aftermath of the two attacks the city of Douglas was further witness to hostile attackers. Witness reports a group of bikers rampaged across the city looting stores and tearing ATM machines out of several bank locations. At this time it has also been reported that at least twelve citizens were kidnapped or reported missing. One witness reports seeing the bikers loading the aforementioned black semi with the stolen property and kidnapped individuals before the truck then departed the city believed to be heading East on Highway 80. An APB has been issued for the truck and trailer with the Arizona State Police, and bordering county’s sheriff departments. A roadblock was established on highway 80 South west of the small town of Apache. The stretch between Douglas and Apache is desolate with very few turnoff that a truck would be able to go along. But so far no sightings of the suspect vehicle have been reported.”
“Our involvement?” asked another of the supervisors.
“At this time the incident is being classified as a suspected Terrorist attack by foreign agents now moving freely within the United States. The Secretary of Homeland Security has been briefed and is on his way to the White House as we speak. Under his directive we are to initiate an immediate investigation, coordinating with the Federal Bureau of Investigation on leads so that these terrorist can be captured before they can initiate any more attacks. All reports of this incident are currently restricted from the media, though for how long I can’t say. I am sure they will notice the Advisory Scale going to Orange and be knocking on doors to learn why soon enough. In the mean time all media sources are to be directed to the Media Relations Liaison at the Department of Homeland Security. In the mean time all supervisors are to report to their departments and begin work on finding out who perpetrated these attacks and where they have gone to ground. I want every available member of the CBO in the office immediately. All departments are to coordinate through my office.” Allen looked around the table for a few seconds and stared at the seated individuals. “Yesterday people!” he shouted. Chaos broke around the table as all seated began to jump out of their seats and move to the door and their departments.
“Officer Drake, you stay!” came the shout from Allen as she tried to make her way out the door with the rest. She stopped and was immediately bumped into by a couple of individuals directly behind her. After a brief moment of untangling herself she turned to face Allen standing alone in the room. “Close the door behind you and have a seat.” He directed her.
“I am sure you are wondering why you were in here.” Said Allen after she had sat down. She shook her head in his direction. She had wondered why a low level officer had been called into a Supervisor’s briefing. Normally her department sergeant would have briefed her after the meeting took place.
“Cindel.” He began. She cringed at the informal use of her name. A name she did not really care for to be honest. Her hippie parents had been huge fans of fantasy back in the seventies and made the name up because if sounded “elfish”. Since she had entered adulthood and had no middle name, she had simply used her last name.
“I have been watching your career for some time.” He said. “You are a gifted officer with skills that most of those above you could only wish they possessed. Yet your temper and impatience has been a serious concern with your supervisors and myself for some time as well. Unless you can prove you can control it, I am afraid you will never be able to get the promotions you want here.” Cindel’s face began to redden both from anger and embarrassment. She knew what he said was true, but he didn’t have to be so blunt she thought. She began to open her mouth to fire a retort back at him but was silenced by a stern look before she could.
“I would listen instead of talk if I were you right now!” he said sharply. “You know what I have said is true. Right now I have a dilemma. I have to have an officer in the air heading towards Arizona in the next thirty minutes. And I have many officers here who are more accomplished and better suited for this assignment then you. But they are all currently assigned to other investigations and it will take too long to retask everyone around so that there is no lapse in the investigations. To long for what is needed right now. Of those officers not on assignment you are the best we have. So until something can be done to free up a better officer, your it!”
Cindel stared back at him for a moment in shock, mostly from the brutally honest comments towards her then the fact she was being given her first lead assignment. Her mind raced to find the appropriate equally brutal response while her subconscious fought as hard as it could to lock her jaws and prevent the torrent from spewing into the room. Her already pale hands began to turn even paler as all the blood was squeezed out of them from her grip on the arms of the chair she was seated in. Allen noted this and saved her from herself.
“Unless at best you want to spend the rest of your career standing in a port of entry booth,” he said as her subconscious finally lost the battle of wills, “I would say thank you sir, I’ll do my best and leave to catch your plane!” Cindel looked at him for a second taken aback. Her mind raced for the response she had composed moments before, thought better of it and repeated his words. A smile broke across his face as she turned and moved to the door.
She walked briskly to her desk mulling over the conversation as she did so. She needed to stop and focus on the task at hand. At the desk she grabbed brief case and began placing the paper work being dropped on her desk concerning the case. A minute later she snapped it closed, grabbed the airline ticket from the officer arriving at her desk, and along with her travel bag moved to the door to catch her flight. Twenty minutes later she sat in a government small jet as it leapt into the air and raced west into the early morning light.
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