Lunch Kit

Originally Aired: June 9, 1949 Suspense #344, "Lunch Kit," brings a chilling tale of sabotage and betrayal at an atomic plant. Jonathan, a young man torn between duty and conscience, reluctantly helps his father execute a deadly plan. His father, a fanatic convinced that atomic fission will destroy the world, enlists an old-timer mechanic named Gus to build a bomb disguised inside an ordinary lunch kit. As Gus carefully fills a thermos bottle with nitroglycerin and attaches a detonator set to explode at 6:30 the next morning, Jonathan's anxiety builds. He must transport this deadly device to the plant where he works, all while carpooling with his talkative coworker Mike, who suspects nothing. Every bump in the road during the tense drive to the plant threatens disaster. Jonathan keeps the speed under 25 miles per hour while Mike complains about being late and the lunch kit rattles ominously in the dashboard. Once at the facility, Jonathan passes through the security gate with his innocent-looking lunch kit, the guard making small talk while death sits just inches away. The clock is ticking toward morning, and Jonathan must decide whether to follow through with his father's apocalyptic vision.