Code of Honor

Kamran can see from Darius's face that he realizes where they are, too. Darius tries to speak but the gag makes it impossible to understand him. Darius then begins to tap out a code on the ground—the same code that he used in both the videos and to communicate with Kamran between the walls of their bedrooms, when they were children. At first, Kamran thinks Darius wants him to pretend to go to sleep, then realizes Darius wants him to roll over. Kamran does so and Darius manages to untie his brother’s wrists. Kamran then uses his free hands to untie his brother. Darius says he’ll look for the bomb’s timer, telling Kamran to search for an escape route.

Kamran finds a hole in the bottom of the stage that is barred; he’s able to open it with a good kick. Below, there is a cement floor and the overwhelming sound of music and shouting crowds. Darius returns, unable to disengage the bomb. They make a decision to go contact a security guard, and scramble out of the moving stage. They are almost immediately spotted by a security guard, who looks at them suspiciously—especially Darius, who is wearing a robe. Kamran tells the guard about the bomb, and the guard makes a phone call, recognizing Darius and believing they are the ones behind the plot. Kamran tries to argue with the guard, saying they are innocent, but Darius stops him: “Darius was right. It didn't matter what they thought of us right now […] [a]ll that mattered right now was getting everyone out of the way of the bomb” (243-44). The guard makes a call on his radio, but before he can communicate his message, a bullet hits him in the forehead, and he drops dead to the ground. 

Darius grabs the gun from the fallen security guard and spots a roadie with a gun in the stands, shooting at them. As Darius goes elsewhere to take out the sniper, Kamran fishes around in the security guard's pockets for the man’s cell phone. He tries to remember the number to phone Mickey Hagan for help, but in the heat of the moment, the digits get jumbled in his mind. He begins to get angry, then remembers Dane's words: “This is what Dane warned you about. The anger. You can control it” (246). Kamran finally remembers the number and a woman answers. Kamran is panicked, expecting an explosion at any moment. He asks for Mickey Hagan, and the woman replies, “One moment” (246).

Kamran gets ahold of Hagan, who makes a plan to get a bomb squad on the way and to get as much external support as he can to Kamran and his brother. Meanwhile, shots are being fired and security guards are scrambling everywhere. Kamran is terrified that one of the bodies will be Darius’s, but then sees his brother hiding behind a stand and turning back and forth, looking for the shooter. Kamran realizes, with terror, that the shooter is right behind Darius. He shouts for Darius to watch out, and the shooter turns his attention on Kamran. The shooter hits a speaker behind Kamran, giving Darius a moment to grapple with the man. Kamran runs up to Darius, dodging the swinging barrel of the terrorist's gun, until finally he is able to bash the man's head in with the end of a trumpet abandoned by a member of one of the marching bands. Kamran gets back on the phone with Hagan, who has sent a bomb squad. Kamran knows it won’t get there in time; Hagan tells him he has someone who might be able to help them diffuse the bomb more expeditiously. At that moment, a phalanx of security guards arrive with guns raised and demand that Kamran and Darius put their hands up. 

The guards immediately recognize Kamran from TV. He confirms his identity. They back off him, telling him that he’s been cleared by the CIA. Kamran gets back on the phone with Hagan while the guards haul off the shooter Kamran knocked out with a trumpet. Hagan asks Kamran who is with him; with a sinking feeling in his gut, he tells Hagan that only Darius is. Hagan asks if Darius is one of the good guys; Kamran says yes. Hagan then tells Kamran to put Darius on the phone, and to get himself out of there. Kamran agrees, and watches as his brother takes the phone. Kamran wants to help, and realizes that if he drives the stage into the middle of the field, he can save some of the stadium. However, the cart attached to the stage makes it move slowly. The scoreboard reveals they only have five minutes left to diffuse the bomb. 

With less than five minutes to go, Kamran is panicked. At least some of the crisis has been averted—the bomb threat had sparked a mass evacuation of the stadium, so hundreds of thousands of innocent people won’t lose their lives. Kamran continues to drive the stage toward the stadium’s center; as he does, he sees a reporter and camera crew coming down the field. He insists they go back to where it’s safe, but they don't listen. Suddenly, he recognizes the reporter—it’s Emily Reed, the beautiful ESPN newscaster. His mind flashes and he has a revelation, one that washes over him in waves of panic and confusion. He recalls Emily Reed's voice, and then the voice of the Black Widow: “I suddenly knew where I'd heard Bashira Ansari’s voice before. Emily Reed was the Black Widow” (254).