“It’s not a secret. The pirate saw bio-hazard signs and men in rubber suits on the Rising Star.” He quickly explained his theory about the ship and their unseen enemy.
Karen leaned back against the couch, staring off into space, and he knew her brain was working overtime to process the information, creating decision trees for investigations. Her eyes finally focused on him. “I can’t think of any nation that would do this. For all their bluster, North Korea seems fine with the status quo. The Chinese provide them just enough aid to keep their government from collapsing, because the last thing they want is North Korea as a failed nation-state on their border. They’re terrified that hordes of refugees might pour over the border.”
“Iran is playing the long game,” he said. “They want to establish control over the Middle East that will last for centuries. Any attack on the US will push us to sanction the Israelis to finally bomb their enrichment facilities. Plus, their knowledge of biological warfare is limited, based on our latest estimates.”
She took another swig of coffee. “We’re sure the Russians aren’t involved?”
He shrugged. “Smith says they aren’t. He seems quite sure. No, someone went to the trouble to purchase a bomb and also had a biolab. They’re determined.”
“And smart,” she said. “They concealed the owner of the Rising Star. They infected IC’s with malware.”
“They’ve got deep pockets,” he acknowledged. “Al-Qaeda would love to have the intelligence and money to pull this off, but it’s beyond them. So, having said that, who could it be?”
Karen shook her head. “It doesn’t fit any terror group we’ve profiled.” She slammed her coffee cup on the table and stood, pacing around the room. “This is exactly the thing we’re supposed to find. The unknown unknowns. Not a single digital model I have is helping.”
He understood her frustration. “It’s bad enough we didn’t find the bomb before it detonated. We’re lucky it didn’t happen here. We need to know what they were making on that ship and whether any of it made it off before it sank.”
She stopped pacing. “When all else fails, nothing beats hard work. I’m going to keep searching for the owners of the ship. Nothing can stay hidden forever. If there’s a paper trail somewhere, I’ll find it.”
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Huang Lei stood before his window, surveying the world below. Events were gaining speed, pushing his hand. He watched the ocean, the peaks and troughs of the waves as they crashed against the shore. The waves had battered at the island for thousands of years, but still the island resisted. It would ever be so, until the island was finally swept into the sea.
He had dared to push back at the ocean of data, hoping to change the landscape, but there were forces threatening to wash over him as easily as the ocean over the island.
Unlike the island, he could fight back.
His computer dinged and he took his seat. “You have the package?”
Liu Kong nodded. “I am at the facility. We will soon be ready for delivery.”
“This is good news. We are nearing our goal. The world will be remade, and it will be a better place. A more civilized place.”
“Thank you.”
“No, Kong, thank you. You’ve done as I asked, without question, all these many years. I call you my friend.”
Kong’s eyes widened. “I am honored.”
He smiled as his heart filled with love for the man he had plucked from the street. “I hope you succeed….”
Kong bowed his head. “I knew the risk and I would gladly bear it a thousand times. Great men do not ask to be great. They have it thrust upon them.”
“Who said that?”
“You did,” Kong said. “When you honored me by asking for help.” He bowed his head and ended the video conference.
Huang Lei smiled. His net worth was staggering, but it wasn’t money that made him rich. His father had told him that riches could only be determined by the love of good friends. If that was true, he was the richest man on earth.
John absently rubbed at the quickly-healing scar on his arm as Deion drove the Humvee from the runway to the underground base. They had been in the air for over twenty hours and John was glad to be back on the ground. It seemed the return trip took forever. Deion barreled down the underground tunnel and navigated the checkpoints until they reached the inner bay where Taylor and Mark helped unload the plastic cases full of Battlesuit gear.
Doctor Elliot greeted them, “You didn’t get the suit too wet, did you?”
A pair of technicians grabbed the plastic cases and put them on electric carts and headed to the lab. He watched them go, then smiled wearily. “Wasn’t my choice, Doc.”
Elliot slapped him on the back with a meaty hand. “Don’t worry. We’ll take care of it.”
He shrugged. “Sorry I lost the HK.”
“We’ve got others. Now, let’s get you to the lab and run some tests.”
Taylor and Mark both grinned.
“Better you than me,” Mark said. “I’m going to sack out for a week.”
“No, you’re not,” Deion said. “You’re both going with me. Steeljaw wants us in his office.”
Taylor and Mark glanced at each other, smiles fading. “You sure we’re not needed in the lab?” Taylor asked.
Elliot laughed. “Only John gets the deluxe treatment.”
John followed Doctor Elliot through the halls and tunnels until they reached the lab where Kara was waiting for them, dressed in her blue scrubs. Her face lit up when she saw him. “Good to see you made it back.”
He nodded, but before he could say anything, Doctor Elliot said, “Strip down and sit here,” pointing to the examining table.
John took special care to remove his prosthetic foot before stripping out of his fatigues and placing them on a metal table at the side of the room. Naked, except for his briefs, he hopped on his right foot until he reached the table and climbed up.
Kara took his hand and inspected the wound on his arm. It was shades of purple and yellow, but the colors were fading.
Doctor Elliot put on a headband with magnifying glasses and inspected the wound. “It’s healing nicely. I wish I could have stitched it up, but this will do. As it is, you’ll have a lovely scar to add to your collection.”
John sighed. His body was starting to look like a crazy patchwork of jagged white lines, from cuts and scrapes, to a waxy circle the size of dime on his left arm. “I’m gonna be more scars than anything else,” he said.
Elliot smiled, then pointed at his thigh. “How’s the leg?”
He lifted his leg and let it fall back. “Hurts worse than the arm.”
Elliot traced the diagonal scar across his thigh. “It was deep, but it looks like there’s no sign of infection. I read your mission report, you haven’t had enough time to properly heal. I’ll talk to Eric and see if we can get you downtime.”
When Elliot turned to take notes, Kara gave him a smile that warmed his heart.
Elliot took a vial of clear liquid from the cooler and handed it to Kara. “Give him this.” He turned to John. “We’re giving you a little kick start. Nothing major, just something to speed up the healing. Get something to eat and catch some sleep. Ten hours, at least. You’ll need it.” He nodded to Kara and left them alone in the lab.
After Elliot left, Kara leaned in and kissed him. It wasn’t their first kiss, but he certainly didn’t expect it. His eyes widened and he leaned in, tasting her lips. It was the nicest thing to happen to him in a long time and he tried to savor it, but it was over too quickly. She pulled back and he leaned forward, trying to kiss her again, but she stopped him with a raised finger.