NoQS Agent Round: Homegrown

Title: HOMEGROWN
Genre: Adult Thriller with YA crossover potential
Word Count: 82,000

My MC and MA (main antagonist) are dressed as:

Dalton moved through the crowded hall, decked out in his Lady Liberty outfit; tablet, torch and all the trimmings. The flashing lights made him squint until he stood in front of a clone of himself. Under the cement-colored makeup, Aazam glared at him. Dalton wore the costume to celebrate America’s acceptance of all races, ethnicities, and religion, while Aazam demonstrated his contempt for the despised American Infidels against whom he has sworn retribution. There can only be one true Lady Liberty. The only option for both adversaries was; DANCE OFF!

Query:

An American teen is on the wrong side of an ISIS suicide bomb and only the unconditional love of his mother and Muslim girlfriend has a chance of saving him.

DALTON, an eighteen-year-old from Washington D.C. suffering from depression since the death of his father, finds peace in Islam. After his conversion, he comes to the attention of ISIS recruiters. They manipulate events around Dalton so he feels obligated to defend his new found friends and religion.

AAZAM, an ISIS Commander, has set in motion a plan to attack the International Coalition in their individual homelands. He will use Dalton and the other homegrown terrorists to make the West pay for their interference.

Once Dalton realizes the true goals of the extremists, he looks for an opportunity to escape the group. His mother finds an ally in DAANYA, a Muslim girl who warns her of Dalton’s involvement with the fanatical group. Together, they must stop Dalton before he does the unthinkable or gets himself killed.

First 250:

Ninety seconds; do or die. Dalton glanced at the scoreboard. There was less than a minute and a half to break the tie for the State Hockey Championship. The ice’s chill gave no relief from the heat his body emitted as he shook the sweat from his eyes. Using the break that the off-side gave him to recover, he tried to get his breathing under control as his chest pumped like billows from exertion.

This is it. We either end it here or take a chance in sudden overtime. Got to get the puck out of our zone. What would Dad do?  He looked up in the stands and the empty seat beside his mom played on his mind. The first tremor of concern rippled through him because it wasn’t like his dad to miss a game this important. Where the heck is he?

“Okay guys, let’s do this,” Dalton said, the letter ‘C’ on his jersey heavier than it had ever been. For a seventeen-year-old, being Captain of the team was a heavy responsibility, but he shouldered it well.

“Jaxson, we got this,” he yelled to the goalie. 

Jaxson shifted nervously on his skates, banging each post with his stick to center himself, his trapper raised at the ready.

The linesman slid up to the left faceoff circle, scanning to see if the players were in their positions.  Both Dalton and the opposing centerman faced off; muscles tense, sticks quivering.

The puck dropped.