Page 1 of The Presidents Shadow

I CANNOT STOP thinking about college.

This afternoon is Maddy’s graduation from City College of New York, and the only person more excited than me and my wife, Margo, is Grandma Jessica.

Unfortunately, the day and time of the graduation conflicted precisely with a vitally important meeting I was scheduled to attend at Kyoto University, and I’d found myself split between the campuses.

When I mentioned this to my family, Jessica had the no-nonsense solution.

“Well, you can handle this conflict in one of two ways, Lamont,” she said, as she prepared to take our family dog, Bando, on his morning walk. “You can do the right thing or you can go to Kyoto University. I know you’ll do the right thing.”

And so I did the right thing. But… instead of going to Japan myself, I sent Jericho Druke, one of the best and the brightest members of my team.

I planned to attend the Kyoto meeting via Ultima-Vid, the newest incarnation of Zoom.

The fact that Jericho Druke would actually be sitting next to the chairperson of the Kyoto Nuclear Control Department at Kyoto U in the mountainous and beautiful Tamba Highlands of Southern Japan makes me feel like I’m missing out, but like Jessica said—I can miss out on work, or I can do the right thing.

The video meeting begins. The images are so crisp and clear I can even enjoy the beauty of the huge green mountains outside the building where Jericho and the Kyoto professor sit.

The rolling hills seem to teem with life.

The wind blows the leaves, and I think I can even spot some small creatures moving about in the treetops.

But an unnatural movement catches my eye, right before the unthinkable happens.

Incredible. The mountains begin to explode and crumble.

Great piles of rocks and trees and soil come racing down, the green colors of life overwhelmed by the brown of the earth and the gray of smoke.

Jericho and the professor jump up and rush toward the door.

But there is no time. No time to escape.

It all happens too fast. Tons and tons of debris crash through the windows.

Within seconds the building walls collapse.

Screaming. Sirens. The Ultima-Vid feed shows only a massive amount of rubble and dust and dirt.

It refuses to lose connection, forcing me to watch it all play out in real time.

I jump to my feet, screaming. Margo and Maddy come running into the room, only to stand in shock as they watch the destruction on the screen, the audio feed still filling the room with endless wails of both sirens and people.

I am beyond horrified. I stand helpless, wishing I could crash through the screen and do something, anything. Anything to help the thousands of people at the university who have been annihilated. And most of all, most of all… my friend, my colleague, the best and the brightest, Jericho.