The White House – Evening, June 1896
The atmosphere in the presidential office was suffocating. The room, normally quiet aside from the rustling of papers and the soft crackle of the fireplace, was now filled with the anxious murmurs of Matthew Hesh's closest advisors. The gravity of the situation had settled like a heavy fog over Washington, and the entire nation was on edge.
Matthew sat behind his desk, fingers steepled together, his mind racing. The forty-eight hours he had given Spain had passed.
And now, it was too late.
Bradford had made his move.
The Assistant Secretary of the Navy had gone behind his back, leaking classified documents to the Amerathian press. Newspapers across the country had published "new evidence" allegedly proving that Spain had intentionally ordered the attack on the USS Resolute.
The headlines were damning.
"Spanish Betrayal! Orders Found Directing Attack on Amerathian Warship!"
