Chapter 11

14th February 2050

Dr. Madison Orwell was sitting in a sofa. An NSA agent was sitting in front of him. There was no one else in the room. Dr. Madison looked very nervous and anxious. He was continuously staring into his feet. He suddenly sat up, looked around and asked the agent:

"Can I have some water or cola?"

Agent nodded his head. He then pressed a button on his earphone and said:

"Martha, can you please send a glass of water in main waiting for our guest?" He paused a little and shook his head like he could hear someone on the other side.

"Thank you." Agent said.

"They will be here in a minute." Agent informed Dr. Madison.

Dr. Madison nodded his head and went back in his previous posture.

"Water sir!" A polite female voice startled him. He looked up. A woman in formal black vest and black pencil skirt was standing right next to him. She was holding a tray with 4 half liter water bottles and a glass. Dr Madison instinctively tried to stand up to grab the tray, but she placed the tray on the table.

"Anything else sir?" She asked in same pleasant tone.

"No thank you." Doctor got a little embarrassed.

The woman turned around and walked away. He could hear her heels clacking across the room. He put out a small medicine case from inner pocket of his coat and took out a pill from it. He opened one bottle, poured some water in the glass, and engulfed the pill with water. He felt a little refreshed, after drinking water.

He sat up and leaned back in his seat. He wiped his face with his bare hands and looked around. It was the most formally decorated waiting room he had ever been to. It had black sofa set in the center, on which he was seated. A large wooden table with glass top was placed in the center of sofa set. It was formal and fashionable at the same time. There was an American flag at one corner.

"It is Pentagon after all." He thought.

He felt a little more comfortable now. He looked at the wall clock. It was 12 past nine. He got shocked. He looked at his wristwatch and it was consistent with the wall clock.

"I am getting already too late. Nadia must be waiting for me. They did not even let me inform her. She must be worried sick by now." He recalled. Nadia was his wife and he had plans with her for Valentine's day. He sighed audibly.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Dr. Madison was an internationally renowned Seismologist. He was 60 years old but looked a bit older than his age. He had very little hair on his head and too much fat around his waist. He wore a very expensive blue suit with red shirt and a blue tie with geometric pattern in red. Red was his favorite and blue was his wife's.

Dr. Madison had won a lot of awards in his life. He had a special place in the science community specifically for his scientific research and contribution in understanding the core of the earth. His research publication in 2048 "The earth is dying" created a huge wave of unrest even among scientific communities. It became the most discussed topic of that year. However, governments shook it off as a theory with no evident support.

Dr. Madison was working with a private research institute as a consultant for past 10 years. He also supervised PhD candidates attached with the instate. Today he was leaving work at around seven in the evening. He was already getting late. He had reservation at 8 o'clock at his wife's favorite hotel. He quickly walked towards his car parked outside the building. He started its engine from afar.

"Mr. Madison." He was about to sit in his car when he heard a voice from his back and turned around. A tall muscular man in black formal suit was briskly approaching him. He looked like he was in his early 50s or late 40s.