The Best Choice
I offered Elizabeth a brief greeting and went straight back to the truck, where I powered on the Nevada National Guard's shared radio. I tuned the channel and entered the Delta-Seven pattern code. A faint signal emerged through the crackle of static — the hard limit of HF shortwave.
After several calls, Gibson's voice came through the hiss of static.
The fact that he bothered to confirm the model number told me he had the voice encryption in mind.
Gibson's voice cut out in the static, then came back.
I scribbled down his instructions as fast as he gave them.
MODE: SATCOM
UPLINK: 03485
DOWNLINK: 02670
CRYPTO KEY: GOLD RUSH
RECONTACT: T+3:00
I switched the radio to SATCOM mode. The moment I entered the new frequencies and encryption key, the brutal static vanished as if it had never existed. Three minutes later, I pressed the transmit button again.
Gibson's voice dropped lower.
A thought struck me. I'd prepared in advance, but if Colonel Gibson hadn't given us that critical intelligence, I couldn't even begin to imagine how things would have gone. I was worried about him remaining in Nevada — but there was nothing to be done about it. I changed the subject.
A deep sigh came over the radio, and he continued.
I already knew what he would choose, but I had to ask. A faint, bitter laugh came through in Gibson's voice.
I had a lot of questions, but I couldn't ask any more. The phrase federal cooperation told me there was something behind it — but this wasn't the time to press.
The call with Gibson ended. I returned to the trailer alone and opened my laptop. Wikipedia was still up, thankfully.
I searched for nuclear power plants in the United States, and a familiar map filled the screen. Dozens of plants marked as dots across the country. The moment I looked at that map, a choking despair closed over me.
There was nowhere to run.
I traced our route with a finger. Over the Rockies, through Kansas and Missouri — nuclear plants sat along the path like landmines. If we stuck to the original plan and went all the way to Miami, we'd pass near at least fourteen plants, cutting through Arkansas, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, and Florida.
I closed the laptop quietly. This was a truth I could not share with the others. I couldn't be the one to snuff out a hope they'd only just begun to reclaim. And knowing wouldn't change a thing.
We cross the Rockies first. Everything after that, we discuss together when we get there.
That was the only choice I had — and the best one.
A communications method that uses military communications satellites as relays. Unlike HF shortwave, which is affected by ground-based relays and ionospheric conditions, SATCOM enables far more stable, clean, long-distance communication without terrain constraints. The National Guard is allocated these assets by the federal military for federal missions or state emergency response.
A U.S. agency under the President, responsible for coordinating the national response to disasters such as hurricanes, earthquakes, floods, and terrorism. In a disaster, FEMA supports state and local governments and serves as the control tower for disaster response — distributing relief supplies, rescuing and managing displaced persons, and restoring infrastructure.
An atmospheric dispersion simulation model developed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Used to predict how an air mass or contaminant released from a given point will travel and spread on the wind.