Third in Command

by Matthew Skala

Speaker of the House Anita Killington is thrust into temporary powerwhen a hostage situati on at a State Funeral leaves both the Presidentand Vice-President incapacitated. As she batt les to save the lives ofthe thousands of people held hostage, she realizes nothing is what itappears to be and nobody seems to be telling her the truth.Teaming up with a young Secret Service Agent and untrusti ng membersof her own government, Killington must sort through the evidence todetermine how security was compromised, who on the inside can betrusted, and what the real moti vati on behind the att ack is, all whileatt empti ng to avert a seemingly-related Internati onal crisis. One thingis for sure, getti ng there will be no easy task for the Speaker whoselimited ti me frame leaves the President, the hostages, and the nati onin jeopardy.From the majesti c beauty of the Basilica, to the deep-dark secrets ofthe White House bunker, to the backwoods of Maryland and the roughairspace above South Korea, one thing is certain; with every new pieceof informati on comes twists and turns that leave her trusti ng nobodyand questi oning the most basic tenets of her beliefs.

186 pages, Hardcover

First published February 15, 2011