The President is Missing
James Patterson, Bill Clinton
Contributed by Andrea Barraza
Chapter 21-30
Summary

Lily, the president’s daughter, leaves the bar with the secret service. The president gets his phone and calls his doctor after taking his pills to raise his platelets count. The doctor tells him that he needs his transfusion since his conditions may be worse and he may experience some internal bleeding. The president says the doctor to stay with his phone. Later, Duncan goes to the Nationals Park where he is to meet Nina’s partner and takes his seat. Bach, the female assassin, is vomiting probably due to a sick stomach. One of the guards claims that Bach is in the first trimester of her pregnancy, but Bach responds making the guard claim that he does not intend to disrespect her. Through her earbuds, Bach receives information that she needs to take her position, which makes her set up her rifle and wait for her next move. She can hear some distant cheering from the stadium. At this point, Bach misses her music but has to keep listening to the following commands from her prompts. At the National’s Park, a man, Augie, sits beside the president and whispers the words, Dark Ages. The president asks him how he learned about those words and gave Augie one minute to explain or he would kill him. Duncan threatens to destroy his family, friends, brothers, and sisters if he does not tell him how he learned of the dark ages. Augie, Nina’s partner, draws a gun at Duncan. Duncan tells him that his people would shoot him if he attempted to kill the president. Augie wonders if the president came alone or with his agents since the terms of the meeting were that the president would go apart. Duncan insists on knowing how Augie learned of the Dark Ages and he realizes if not by hacking, there is a traitor in the white house.

The crowd at the park is cheering, and the president still insists on knowing how Augie learned of the dark ages. However, they discuss Sulliman and his connection with the sons of jihad. Augie says he was one of them but stopped. The two are planning to leave, but Augie tells Duncan to hold his phone, and he would realize the reason for keeping his phone later. Bach is still at the rooftop with her body aligned to the rifle. She is ready to pull the trigger waiting for orders and view of her target. Through her earbuds, she hears somebody say, “Headed for the exit” (Patterson and Clinton). She is ready to fire her rifle since she puts her hand on the trigger. Duncan and Augie move towards the stadium’s exit. The president is holding his smartphone. Augie is nervous and has his phone in his hand. Duncan cannot make out what Augie is doing with his phone. Augie looks and sees a van that appears to signal the. Duncan thinks that the driver could be Nina, Augie’s partner. Not everything seems okay to Duncan, which is the last thing he remembers before everything goes black. Katherine Brandt, the vice president of the United States of America, appears to be taking her oath of office and the president of America. However, she is taking the oath in her bedroom. Brandt considers herself a failure since she vowed not to endorse President Duncan but she did that. She thinks that Americans will link her to the president’s failures, which will ruin her reputation and eventually lose her supporters. Her phone rings, and before she answers, she says, “Here we go” (Patterson and Clinton). Shouts and screaming are extreme at the stadium's exit and the Capitol Hill neighborhood. Augie tells the president to use his phone to illuminate the street since lights are out. The president and Augie run to Nina’s van. Before taking off, Nina is shot dead. The president saves Augie, and the two go back to the street and hide near a trailer. Duncan takes Augie’s Glock and uses it to fire at some approaching people. The president notices that there is a sniper who is shooting at them and decide to remain in hiding behind a van since the sniper cannot kill. Secret service comes to their rescue, but the president refuses to head back to the white house. Duncan and his secret service detail drive to the highway. Duncan wonders Alex, one of his secret service agents, had followed him but he says he read the letter addressed to him by Nina. The president thanks Alex and warns him not to disobey him again. Duncan asks for Augie who joins him in the car. Augie blames the president for Nina’s death and wonders if he could still help Duncan with everything that happened.

Analysis

From these chapters, a reader can see that Duncan is willing to sacrifice even his health to save his country. His condition is deteriorating, and instead of canceling his meeting to attend to his health, he goes on with his plans since he feels that his country is more important than his health. Bach has the order to stay in position. Bach sets up her rifle implying that she is about to kill. From this, a reader does not yet know Bach’s target, but from the distant cheering from the stadium, one can assume that Bach is about to kill President Duncan. The president loves his country as seen in these chapters since he uses his force and authority to threaten Augie in search of information regarding the Dark Ages. Duncan is determined to save his country. The president is manipulative. He manipulates Augie that his men are watching him while a reader can see that the president is alone. However, this means that the president could use any form of tactic to stop the attack. Augie and Duncan are getting along well since they have discussed of Sulliman, the cyber-terrorist with the intention of taking America back to the Dark Ages.

The two leave and Augie appears to give Duncan some advice of holding his phone, which a reader and Duncan as well are yet to understand why. Bach is not working alone and has a coordinated team. Bach communicates to her side using the earbuds. She is ready to fire the rifle. Having in mind that Augie and Duncan are headed out of the Nationals Park, a reader can assume that the president may be Bach’s target. The chapter shows that an attack may be underway since everything appears tense. The mood surrounding the president is nervous, which makes a reader want to read the book further due to the suspension yielded. The chapter introduces a reader to the vice president. From these chapters, one can see that Brandt does not like the president and she wants to be president instead. Earlier, there was a traitor in the white house as the president asserted, which makes a reader assume that Brandt may be the traitor. Someone is trying to shoot the president. A reader can see that Bach’s target was the president though the authors did not mention it. The two go in hiding, and secret service rescues them. From this, a reader can see that the president is caring as he protects Augie from death. Besides, the president was a soldier since he uses Augie’s weapon comfortably when trying to conquer his enemies. The president could use Augie’s help evident from the happenings described in these chapters. Duncan requests Augie to be brought to him. However, Nina’s death hurts Augie who ends up blaming the president for Nina’s death showing that Augie is beginning to lose the president’s trust.

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