Mrs. Jennifer West was as politically apathetic as you can be while living in the suburbs of Washington, D.C. Yes, her kids were in school with the sons and daughters of Congressional aides and White House staffers. So what? She wasn't one, and politics didn't affect her life too greatly.

Jen didn't follow political news more than the average citizen, didn't watch political speeches beyond excerpts on the next day's news, didn't go to political rallies. She voted, though. That's about it. And occasionally said hello the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development if they happened to meet dropping the boys at the high school during the morning rush.

Like this morning - a quick wave of acknowledgment as Caleb and Leo ran into the building together.

Much later, Jen was finishing the last of the dinner dishes, humming something tuneless. The distant DC sky was suddenly lit with the red glare of emergency lights, sirens' wails bursting the air. Sounds important - she reached out to turn on the TV just as Caleb yelled down the stairs - "Mom - turn on the news!"

And stood there, shocked. Hand over mouth, blinking black tears, horrifying news clips playing and replaying. Watching the Capitol building explode into a riot of smoke and flame and ash. Not believing that she's seeing one of the chambers come down. Over and over and over and over again. Wondering what happened, hoping no one was in the building.

Caleb thunders down the stairs - Mom - his hands a blur as he taps on his phone - Leo's dad was there -

Jen turns to her son, to ask why the Secretary was in Congress tonight but -

Red and blue strobe lights begin to sweep through their neighborhood. Caleb's lit with a sinister red glow -

there's a thunderous pounding on the door - Jen checks the windows to see -

the house is surrounded by armed guards. What the -

She opens the door.

"Matt Winters, United States Secret Service -" and he flashes an ID card at her - "I've come to collect Leo Kirkman -"

and Jen turns to Caleb -

standing frozen and lit alternately by red and blue. His face is confused, almost eerie in the lights from the armored vehicles -

And she looks back at the agents standing in the doorway -

"He's not here. He didn't come over tonight -"