Inside the Kansas City home that Jovan Belcher fled, his baby daughter wailed, his mother was in hysterics and his girlfriend was quiet. Barely breathing.

This is what the NFL linebacker left behind on Saturday in a rush of violence that left many wondering why.

Few answers came from 911 tapes released this week by police. But the tapes provide a heartbreaking soundtrack of the fleeting moments the morning that police say Belcher killed his girlfriend Kassandra Perkins and then later turned the gun on himself just outside the front door of the Chiefs' practice facility.

"Oh my God. Oh my God. Kasi," Belcher's mother, Cheryl Shepherd, bawled. "The baby is crying ... Please get the ambulance here!"

Across the country, a sudden shift is taking place.

Bobbie Cleave, a retired teacher in Utah, has put off plans to get a badly needed car. Brian Chandler, a data manager in metro Atlanta, is delaying buying a house, despite needing space for his second child due any day now. Retired police officer Richard Huffman of Michigan may ditch plans to re-enter the work force.

And several families CNN spoke with said they're shrinking the gift pile beneath the Christmas tree.

As the nation approaches the so-called "fiscal cliff," people are taking steps to cushion their families from the plunge.

To them, the threat to the nation's economy requires preparation - particularly with President Barack Obama warning that going off the cliff could cost the average family of four more than $2,000.

But some say the fears are just hype.

Two Australian radio DJs made a prank call to the hospital where Prince William's pregnant wife, Catherine, is staying with acute morning sickness, claiming to be Queen Elizabeth II and her son, Prince Charles.

The DJs, from Sydney's 2Day FM station, succeeded in getting through to Kate's private nurse at King Edward VII Hospital and had a brief conversation that included some details of her condition, according to audio of the call posted online.

The hospital issued a statement Wednesday confirming that the hoax call had been transferred to a ward in the early hours of Tuesday morning and a short conversation was held with one of the nursing staff.

The hospital "deeply regrets" the incident, it said.

The talk in Washington is all about the "fiscal cliff" and what the president and Congress need to do to avoid it.  Watch CNN.com Live for continuing coverage of the fiscal cliff debate.

Today's programming highlights...

9:00 am ET - ISS expedition briefings - NASA and the Russian Federal Space Agency will announce a yearlong expedition by two crew members aboard the international space station beginning in 2015.  The crew members will speak out at 10:00 am ET.

FULL POST

Egypt's capital boiled Wednesday as protesters supporting and opposing President Mohamed Morsy geared up for demonstrations.

People angered by Morsy continued a sit-in in Cairo's Tahrir Square after a night marked by violent clashes outside the presidential palace.

Police fired tear gas Tuesday night after protesters broke through barbed wire around the palace building and hurled chairs and rocks at retreating officers. Opposition forces later were calling for a march toward the palace.

After the initial clashes, police withdrew behind fences and the large demonstration was peaceful for several hours. A few dozen protesters and a scattering of tents remained outside the Itihadiya palace Wednesday.

The Muslim Brotherhood, the pro-Morsy Islamist movement, called for a rally in front of the presidential palace Wednesday afternoon in support of the country's leader and against his foes in the street.

The story of American tech mogul John McAfee reads like a bestselling mystery: murder, poisoned dogs, young women and international intrigue fueled by weeks on the run.

But in the latest chapter of the saga, the millionaire says his month of evading Belize authorities is over.

And he plans to settle down in Guatemala, at least for now.

"I have a passport. I am in no trouble with the U.S. I can return any time I like," he told CNN en Español in Guatemala City on Tuesday evening. "I have been back to America many times since I have been in Belize. I have no interest of going this month or next but ... I can come and go freely to America any time I want."

McAfee has been on the run since Belize authorities said he is wanted for questioning in the death of an American businessman who was his neighbor in the nation's island of Ambergris Caye.

An intense typhoon has carved across the southern Philippines, destroying buildings, setting off floods and landslides and killing at least 95 people, authorities said Wednesday.

Typhoon Bopha struck the large southern island of Mindanao, which is rarely in the direct path of tropical cyclones, fueling fears that it could be as devastating as a storm that killed more than 1,200 people there almost a year ago.

Bopha, the most powerful typhoon to hit Mindanao in decades, had top winds of 175 kph (110 mph) as it came ashore over the city of Baganga early Tuesday. Millions of people, many of whom live in remote and unprepared communities, were in the storm's path, Philippine authorities and aid groups said.

"It really is getting to be a very, very big typhoon and it's just starting," Richard Gordon, the head of the Philippine Red Cross, said Tuesday.

Trees have been uprooted and fragile houses blown away on Mindanao, Gordon said, adding that the corrugated iron roofs of some buildings were being carried through the air by the wind like "flying machetes."

For weeks, John McAfee hid from authorities, donning a disguise and using disposable cell phones to communicate.

On Tuesday, the 67-year-old Internet security pioneer emerged publicly in Guatemala's capital, hundreds of miles away from the Caribbean island in Belize where his next-door neighbor was found dead.

McAfee's lawyer said he left Belize to escape police persecution and planned to file a formal request for asylum with Guatemalan officials Wednesday.

"He had to come here because it was the closest and the most immediate place to protect his life," attorney Telesforo Guerra told CNN en Español.

McAfee's arrival in Guatemala was the latest twist in an investigation that has drawn international attention and prompted the well known software company founder to go into hiding for weeks.

Belize authorities have said they only want to talk to McAfee about the November 11 shooting death of Gregory Faull, 52, an American businessman who was found dead in his home on the Caribbean island of Ambergris Caye.

A suspected serial killer has killed for the last time.

Authorities say Israel Keyes, who was arrested and charged in the killing of an Alaskan barista, killed himself while in custody.

Before committing suicide on Sunday, Keyes confessed to at least seven other slayings, according to the FBI field office in Anchorage, Alaska, which on Monday asked for the public's help with tracing Keyes' travels over the years in the hopes of identifying any additional victims.

He crisscrossed the country, and authorities may never know how many he killed.

"Based upon investigation conducted following his arrest in March 2012, Israel Keyes is believed to have committed multiple kidnappings and murders across the country between 2001 and March 2012," the office said in a statement. "Keyes described significant planning and preparation for his murders, reflecting a meticulous and organized approach to his crimes."

John McAfee, the Internet security pioneer wanted for questioning in the killing of a neighbor in Belize, is now in Guatemala City, said Telesforo Guerra, the former attorney general of Guatemala.

McAfee has hired Guerra as his attorney, Guerra told CNN en Espanol on Tuesday.

Belize authorities want to talk to McAfee about the November 11 shooting death of American businessman Gregory Faull, 52, who was found dead in his home near San Pedro, on the Caribbean island of Ambergris Caye.

On his website, McAfee commented about his relocation: "I apologize for all of the misdirections over the past few days. It was not easy to exit Belize and required many supporters in many countries.

If insanity is doing the same thing repeatedly and expecting a different result, then continuing negotiations on a deal to avoid the fiscal cliff might amount to little more than crazy talk.

The same players are arguing about the same issue - taxes - in a repeat of budget showdowns of the past two years that failed to reach a comprehensive agreement.

President Barack Obama's re-election in November, coupled with a perceived desire by congressional leaders to shed their reputation of dysfunction, raised expectations for a possible deal.

However, with four weeks to go until the automatic tax hikes and spending cuts of the fiscal cliff get triggered, the two sides remain unable to resolve a central issue - whether wealthy Americans should pay more taxes than they do now.

The NATO alliance weighed in on the Syrian crisis Tuesday, warning the Bashar al-Assad regime about using chemical weapons and mulling a Turkish request for Patriot missiles to defend its borders.

NATO's secretary-general echoed warnings from U.S. President Barack Obama that the Syrian government may be toying with the idea of using chemical weapons to crush the 21-month rebellion.

"The Syrian stockpiles of chemical weapons are a matter of great concern," Anders Fogh Rasmussen told reporters.

"We know that Syria possesses missiles. We know they have chemical weapons and, of course, they also have to be included in our calculations. And this is also the reason why it is a matter of urgency to ensure effective defense and protection of our ally Turkey," he said.

"Let me add to this that the possible use of chemical weapons would be completely unacceptable for the whole international community, and if anybody resorts to these terrible weapons I would expect an immediate reaction from the international community."

The Syrian Foreign Ministry denied that the country has any plans to use chemical weapons, state TV has reported. The government likewise has repeatedly stressed it will not use such weapons, if they exist, against its people under any circumstances.

But U.S. officials say "worrying signs" suggest otherwise.

Our colleague Kim Segal got these mugshots of two brothers earlier today accused of plotting to use an explosive device and conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists.

Raees Alam Qazi, on the left, is 20 years old and the younger brother. Sheheryar Alam Qazi is 30.

The talk in Washington is all about the "fiscal cliff" and what the president and Congress need to do to avoid it.  Watch CNN.com Live for continuing coverage of the fiscal cliff debate.

Today's programming highlights...

10:00 am ET - Lessons from Hurricane Sandy hearing - Hurricane Sandy has come and gone, and now the federal government is taking a look at how the country prepared, responded and recovered from the storm.  The House Transportation Committee holds a hearing on the issue.

FULL POST

Iran's navy has captured what it says is a U.S. drone after it entered Iranian airspace over the Persian Gulf.

However, a U.S. defense official, who could not be named because the official was not authorized to speak to the media, told CNN that whatever the Iranians claim to have, it is not an actively operating U.S. Navy drone.

"The U.S. Navy has fully accounted for all unmanned air vehicles (UAV) operating in the Middle East region. Our operations in the Gulf are confined to internationally recognized water and air space," the source said. The internationally recognized territorial limit is 12 nautical miles off the coast.

It is not yet clear whether any other branch of the U.S. military or government might have been operating a drone in the area.

Britain's Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, is spending a second day in a central London hospital Tuesday after being admitted with acute morning sickness.

Her husband, Prince William, arrived Tuesday morning to visit her at King Edward VII Hospital, after spending much of the day at her bedside Monday.

The news that he and Catherine are expecting their first child after 19 months of marriage was announced by the palace Monday as she was admitted for treatment, and followed months of tabloid speculation.

The duchess is likely to remain in hospital for several days, the palace said Monday.

Negotiations on a deal to avoid the fiscal cliff got a jump-start on Monday with House Republicans offering a counter-proposal to President Barack Obama, but continuing to reject his call for higher tax rates on the wealthy.

The GOP proposal would result in $2.2 trillion in deficit savings over the next decade, including $800 billion from tax reform, $600 billion from Medicare reforms and other health savings, and $600 billion in other spending cuts, House GOP leadership aides told reporters.

House Speaker John Boehner called it a "credible plan that deserves serious consideration by the White House."

The move followed a weekend of accusations by both sides that the other was not serious about reaching a deal to avoid the automatic tax hikes and spending cuts scheduled to take effect January 1 - what is known as the fiscal cliff that economists say will damage U.S. growth.

There was no immediate response to the Republican plan, which congressional aides said would be sent in a letter to the White House.

Syrian forces began combining chemicals that would be used to make deadly sarin gas for use in weapons to attack rebel and civilian populations, a U.S. official tells CNN.

The news was first reported on Wired's Danger Room blog and confirmed to CNN by the U.S. official.

The U.S. obtained intelligence over the past weekend indicating this concerning development, according to the official who had direct knowledge of the latest information. The intelligence, the official said, came from multiple sources but declined to provide any more specifics about how the U.S. learned the information.

The sarin gas, the source said, could most readily be used to fill artillery shells.

CNN reported on Sunday that U.S. intelligence is concerned about the Syrian government's intent regarding its vast chemical weapons stockpiles after what one senior U.S. official described as "worrying signs" of activity in "the last few days."  The revelation that the Assad regime is mixing chemicals underscores why the rising concern.

This story is developing. We'll bring you the latest information as soon as we get it.

The United States warned Syria on Monday not to use chemical weapons amid intelligence reports indicating President Bashar al-Assad's regime could be preparing to take that step as it escalates its fight against rebel forces.

"I'm not going to telegraph in any specifics what we would do in the event of credible evidence that the Assad regime has resorted to using chemical weapons against their own people," Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Monday. "But suffice it to say, we are certainly planning to take action if that eventuality were to occur."

The Syrian Foreign Ministry denied that the country had any plans to use chemical weapons, state TV reported. But U.S. intelligence officials say "worrying signs" suggest otherwise.

"This isn't just about movement, but about potential intent to make certain chemical weapons ready for use," an intelligence official told CNN on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.

The official declined to describe the intelligence and acknowledged that the United States isn't entirely sure what the Syrian government is up to, or who ordered the moves.

Britain's Prince William and Catherine Middleton are expecting their first child after 19 months of marriage, the palace announced Monday.

The royal revelation came as Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, was admitted to a central London hospital with acute morning sickness. She is expected to be there for several days, the palace announcement said.