***
There wasn’t a face in the living room that wasn’t smiling. Amy was so happy she was crying. John and Kevin were fist pumping, Gabby and Emily were running around the couches, and the noise had woken Eric from his painkiller slumber.
When the moderator came back on and announced that Jones had left the debate, Brooke was in shock. The fact that he just disappeared like that without explanation said everything she needed to hear. She just hoped that the rest of the country heard it as well.
The news anchors from earlier reappeared on the screen to help fill the dead air. The two men were in shock, and the blonde woman who’d chosen Smith to win the debate was all smiles.
“That was the strangest ending to a debate I have ever seen,” the older man said.
“We’re receiving analytics from our online polls in regard to the debate, which had more than ninety million viewers. It is the highest-rated debate in history. We had a few questions on our polls tonight to see how the American people felt each of their congressmen performed. The first question was, ‘Which congressman aligned with your personal views?’ And the results are a staggering eighty-three percent for Congressman Smith.”
“Wow. That’s unbelievable.”
“The next question we polled with our viewers was, ‘Do you agree on the war with Mexico?’ The results here are a little more even. Sixty-one percent say ‘no’ while thirty-nine percent say ‘yes’. And our final question in the polls was ‘Given the chance to support Bill HR 285016, would you?’ This is by far the most interesting statistic: eighty-nine percent of viewers said they would. Eighty-nine.”
Another roar of cheers filled the living room. This was it. This was the beginning of going home. If people were willing to give Dr. Carlson’s method a try, then there was no reason the Southwest couldn’t rejoin the Union. There would be enough fresh water to last for generations to come.
Emily came up next to Brooke on the couch and gave her a big kiss on the cheek. Brooke picked up her daughter and lifted her into the air, twirling them both in circles. She pulled Emily in and squeezed her like she would never be able to let her go. Brooke just might be able to go home after all.