“We found the code in one of our satellites a week ago. One that we use to relay GPS data to Predator drones. Then we checked a few other satellites. It was in all of them. Whoever put it there knew what they were doing. But we thought it was just a computer virus. Until today I had no idea what it could be for. Honest. You’re right, though. We were pretty sure that some foreign agency did it. We knew it was a countdown. At first, we thought the countdown was just going to keep resetting like you guys were talking about earlier. But then when my boss was gone, I figured out the timing. It was coded, but I ran it through a decryption program. Then I did the math. Six months. If this is the same cyberweapon that David was talking about, that’s how long we have until this war starts. And that’s why I have to get back to my wife. I need to be with her, Lena.”
Lena said, “What did the others here say about this when you told them?”
“Who? What others?”
“The other consultants here on the island. What did they say about this?”
Bill was embarrassed. He said quietly, “I haven’t told anyone else. Hell, my boss doesn’t even know all of that. I was going to let him know about the timing next week. He was out for a few days when I figured it out. Then Burns, my director, contacted me about this project. But he didn’t know yet either. Come to think of it, how did you—”
Bill never saw it coming.
Lena twisted her torso around, drove her arm forward, and snapped the bottom of her palm into Bill’s solar plexus with an impossibly strong force. A shot of agonizing pain and a rapid loss of the ability to breathe left Bill crumpled on the floor.
Bill tried to gasp for breath but his stomach muscles were cramped too badly. He vaguely understood that Lena was twisting his large body so that he lay flat on his back, the concrete floor cold on his neck.
He started to wheeze and she slammed her open palm into his nose, the back of his head beating against the hard stone. Then came a momentary flash of black and white stars and a ringing in his ears. Bill’s vision was a blur of dark computer screens and concrete flooring. The rain poured down loud on the roof. A clap of thunder sounded outside.
Lena was rolling him and tying his hands and feet with something tight. He just needed a minute to rest. She had to stop. His head hurt so much. Bill didn’t understand what was going on. Lena seemed like a sweet girl. She had smiled and listened to his story. He didn’t understand why she hit him. Bill felt a trickle of blood rolling down the back of his head, where it had hit the concrete. The cut must have been bad.
Lena stood over him and hissed, “Are you familiar with the blood choke? Your Marines call it that. I just adore the label.”
She pressed one foot into his chest, eyeing him like he was a prize deer she had just bagged. Her eyes were filled with a terrifying eagerness.
Bill lay on the ground, weak and not comprehending what was happening. He tried to get up but his head hurt, and Lena easily pressed his chest back down to the floor. His energy was gone and his head ached. Her hands crept over his neck. Bill instinctively tried to protect himself, but his hands and legs were tied up.
He watched as she crouched down over him, moving with the grace of a true predator. Her face got close enough that he could feel her breath. He couldn’t understand what was happening. The look in her eyes terrified him. Why was she doing this?
Lena whispered, “It’s alright. Just relax. Shhhh. Here’s what will happen. I’m going to squeeze your carotid arteries and stop the blood flow to your brain. It’s an extremely efficient technique. Much faster than cutting off the oxygen supply via your windpipe. You’ll then go unconscious, and I’ll have to decide what to do with you. I may kill you. I am not quite ready to make that call. I need to think on it. But with any luck, you’ll wake up good as new under close supervision. Now, it’s time to sleep.”
His eyes bulged with fear. Her fingers tightened around his neck. She squeezed hard enough that it hurt. He felt the blood pressure around his face and neck begin to rise. He squirmed with all of his might, but she was incredibly strong and had too much leverage. Bill’s vision grew dark. It felt like she was choking him, but he could still breathe… he could still fight… he could…
Lena rose and walked to the phone, lifting the handle to her ear. She spoke in Mandarin. “Contact the destroyer Lanzhou. Tell them that they must send their alert helicopter. It must land on the north end of the runway at one a.m. Be prepared to take a passenger in restraints. Call me if there are any problems. Once he is on the ship, await my further instruction. Keep him under observation. Do not let him speak with anyone.”
She looked at Bill’s limp body on the floor. Before hanging up the phone, she said, “Also — send a message to Mr. Jinshan. Inform him that I may need to move up our timetable. I have my doubts that the voluntary extraction of information will last a full three weeks.”
EPISODE 2
CHAPTER 5
I am not afraid of an army of lions led by a sheep; I am afraid of an army of sheep led by a lion.
David’s internal clock was all messed up. His nap earlier hadn’t helped. He tried to sleep but couldn’t. He checked his watch. It was almost 1 a.m. A cool sea breeze drifted in from the screened window. A bright half-moon lit up the sliver of sea that was visible from his room. The thunderstorms had passed.
He wanted nothing more than to be able to shut his eyes, fall asleep and then wake up and realize that this had all been just a bad dream. Like in the movies. David could open his eyes and see his wife lying next to him. His girls quietly sleeping down the hall. There would be no CIA operative named Lena, no Red Cell preparing for a future war with China. In his perfectly safe alternate reality, David would have never met Natesh or the Major or any of the consultants on this island.
David sighed. He had too much energy to sleep. And he still had remnants of jet lag from the flight halfway around the world yesterday. Screw it. He was going to take a walk outside.
He threw on his clothes and sneakers and headed down the concrete stairs and outside the barracks. Outside he could hear loud bird songs coming from the jungle-covered mountain. A few large moths fluttered around the light positioned above the barracks door.
David walked along the sandy path towards the beach. He had nothing better to do. Why not? The runway was in between the shore and where he was now. It was a beautiful night. He loved the way the air looked and felt so clear after a storm came through. It was like they sucked up all of the haze and humidity and left nothing but pure crisp air behind.
David walked past the Communications building and heard a rumble in the distance. At first he thought it was the buzzing of an air-conditioning unit or some generator attached to one of the buildings. Then the rumble grew into a reverberation. He recognized that noise. The reverberations got louder and changed pitch. A helicopter. And it was getting closer by the sound of it. Why would it be coming here in the middle of the night? An uneasy feeling grew inside him.
David stood on the gravel path and tried to look into the black sky above the ocean for any sign of an aircraft. Nothing. It was like looking into a black hole.
A set of dim blue lights flickered on at the end of the runway. He could just barely see them, but it was enough for him to notice. Had someone turned them on for the helicopter to land? David heard the sound of a door opening directly behind him, coming from the Communications building.