The New York Times published a fictional piece imagining President Trump's assassination at the hands of a Russian and a Secret Service agent.

Novelist Zoe Sharp wrote the following narrative of the president's assassination:

The president didn’t seem to notice. He waved, in his desultory fashion. The Secret Service agents clustered around him, ushered him toward the armored limo idling outside at the curb. The Russian waited until they were a few steps past before he drew the gun. He sighted on the center of the president’s back, and squeezed the trigger. The Makarov misfired. The Secret Service agent at the president’s shoulder heard the click, spun into a crouch. He registered the scene instantly, drawing his own weapon with razor-edge reflexes. The Russian tasted failure. He closed his eyes and waited to pay the cost. It did not come. He opened his eyes. The Secret Service agent stood before him, presenting his Glock, butt first. "Here," the agent said politely. "Use mine. …"

The Times explained the reason for publishing the fictional piece:

Our focus here at the Book Review is on books and stories, but also on how the books being written and read reflect the world outside of books. And one of the biggest stories out there, of course, is the Mueller investigation and the relationship between Trump and Putin. It’s hard not to speculate about what might happen next. To that end, we thought: Who better than some of today’s most talented spy and crime novelists — Joseph Finder, Laura Lippman, Jason Matthews, Zoë Sharp and Scott Turow — to conjure possible outcomes?

The Times‘ presidential assassination fantasy comes in the midst of an investigation into who sent bombs to the homes and offices of several prominent political figures in recent days, including former presidents. Potential explosive devices have been sent to Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, billionaire liberal activist George Soros, former CIA Director John Brennan, and former Attorney General Eric Holder.

President Trump has promised to get to the bottom of who is behind the suspicious packages.