* * *
Mobi, meanwhile, simply stared at the overhead screen and waited. There was nothing to keep the Chinese satellite up, which meant that it had to come done. But after several minutes it didn’t. Mobi watched as the seconds ticked by, sure that his calculations were off. Maybe he’d mis-assigned the entry angle or perhaps the velocity data had been compromised. Then something occurred that Mobi thought he’d only see in a dream. The satellite moved into a new orbit entirely. And that could only mean one thing — the bird had power. Somehow, somewhere, someone had sent the clear-code. The bird’s systems had rebooted. It was going to be a good day.
Alvarez entered Mission Control, a pair of scissors in hand. “You see that?”
“Yup.”
“You ever see anything so beautiful in all your life?”
“Nope.”
“Are you going to talk to me?”
“Depends.”
“On what?”
“Quiann.”
“I can’t really talk about it. Let’s just say our government asked me to contact him and I did.”
“Did they ask you to deliver the clear-code too?”
“Yes.”
Mobi looked straight at her. “Are you a traitor?”
“No.”
“Then who is?”
“Watch.”
Alvarez indicated the open door to Secondary Ops where Rand stood with his two security men. It didn’t take long before a group of uniformed military police approached. Rand raised his hands in protest, but he didn’t run. Perhaps he knew that there was nowhere to go. Within moments he was cuffed and led out of the room.
“Hainan island?”
Alvarez nodded. “They think that’s where he was recruited. He’s been trading secrets for money for years. Worried about his retirement, I guess. NSA wasn’t sure until they tapped the transmissions coming out of this facility.”
“Are you sure you’re not an enemy agent?”
“I’m sure.”
“Totally sure?”
“Hundred percent.”
“My bad.”
“No, Mobi. You did good. Really good.” Alvarez snipped Mobi’s plastic cuffs with the scissors. “Listen,” she said. “You want to get some chicken or something?”
“Yeah,” he said. “Some chicken would definitely be nice.”
* * *
Michael shifted uncomfortably in his seat. Compared with the evening’s earlier events, the border crossing had been uneventful. Prior to crossing, the Horten had been tarped over like any one of a dozen wide loads leaving the country that evening. Michael had then slipped into a specially designed compartment below the rear bunk in the cab of the truck. It was a tight fit, but compared to the tool chest, it felt like a protective cocoon. A few minutes later they were waved through the Friendship Pass and into Vietnam. With that, China was behind them. The driver had signaled Michael with a knock and he had slipped back out of his hiding place to find that they had just passed through the Vietnamese border town of Dong Dang. Now, less than ten minutes later, they had reached their rendezvous.
The driver pulled over beside a paddy field at a fork in the road. Before they even reached a full stop the doors on either side of the cab were opened from outside. Michael and the two Triad gangsters shuffled out and two new men, each of them wearing a coiled earpiece, took their places in the truck. They smiled and nodded coolly and Michael nodded back. Then, they closed their doors behind them and drove off in the truck, headed east this time, toward the Gulf of Tonkin.
Michael watched as the truck’s red lights disappeared in the darkness, but he knew that he too had to go. There were two cars idling on opposite sides of the road a hundred yards up. Walking at a brisk pace alongside the truck driver and his companion, Michael approached the nearest vehicle, a midnight blue BMW 7 Series sedan. Michael stopped outside the rear passenger door, staring down the tinted rear window in the moonlight. He considered knocking on the glass, but thought better of it when the window descended of its own accord.
Li Tung sat there, obviously fatigued, but relaxed, the makings of a smile on his thin lips. His normally perfectly coifed gray hair was slightly askew, but the dishevelment was more than made up for by the vibrant color in his cheeks. Michael thought that he looked years younger than he had that night outside Chungking Mansions.
Li looked Michael in the eye and said, “It is now I who owe you the favor, Mr. Chase.”
He then raised his window and the BMW quietly drove out of sight. The purr of the car’s engine still hung in the air as Michael heard his name called out in the darkness.
“Chase?”
“Yeah?”
“Time.”
Michael crossed the road toward the man’s voice and got into the rear seat of the second vehicle, a black Volkswagen Jetta. His work for the evening was done.
Chapter 60
Kate didn’t get as far as she had planned. Not because the motorcycle that was hidden in the hills near the reservoir didn’t start easily. Not because her route out wasn’t well planned. Not even because the trail had been blocked at one juncture and she’d been forced to detour en route to the airfield. No, Kate didn’t get as far as she had planned because she’d miscalculated. When she’d reached the airfield, the Bombardier Global Express jet waiting to transport her per her deal with her employer was parked cold, dust covers still protecting the engines.
At first, Kate considered the jet’s lack of readiness a small matter. She got off the motorcycle and entered the compact cinderblock control building proceeding with caution, but not alarm. True, the exchange of the Horten had not gone as planned, but upon consideration she didn’t believe that this in and of itself was enough to derail the deal. The Society, after all, had a reputation to maintain. Bad news traveled quickly in the Intelligence community. If the Society wanted to continue to use independent contractors it would need to honor its bargains. This, coupled with the fact that Kate had already proven her trustworthiness by delivering Michael’s father seven months earlier, shored up her resolve. The Green Dragon Society might not like it, but it was in their best interest to follow through with the promised fee and transport her safely out of the country per their agreement. It was as simple as that. But what Kate failed to consider was that her problem tonight might not rest with the Green Dragons. Because she had other enemies, enemies who were closer than she had thought. Kate heard the high pitched whistle of the dart a millisecond before feeling its insect-like sting. It was only when she regained consciousness, however, that she realized the trouble she was in.
***
“Hello, Kate,” a male voice said.
Kate heard the words before opening her eyes. When she finally managed to lift her heavy eyelids, her head throbbing in pain, she found herself cuffed to a metal chair. Though she couldn’t yet see her interrogator, one thing was clear: the job had the Company written all over it. From the abrupt take down to the barracks style interrogation room she now found herself in, Kate saw the CIA’s signature everywhere. Though she realized that by this point she could be anywhere in the world, her location was irrelevant, at least for now. The important thing was to make herself useful to them. She was after all in form, if not in spirit, still an MI6 Agent. The Americans, she calculated, would have to work through the logistics of that set of loyalties before pressing her too hard. And that thought gave Kate poise. But from the moment her interrogator revealed himself to her, she knew she had calculated wrong.