The lips snapped back to a thin line.
“The fact that you are on Chang’s ship tells me that my brother is no longer in the picture. He would never allow you to live if he were alive.”
“I’m afraid Chang became a victim of his own violent impulses.”
“Too bad,” the hologram said without sadness. “Chang was brilliant in many ways but too often impetuous.”
Austin’s jaw hardened.
“The murder of scores of innocent people,” he said, “is not what most people would describe as impetuous.”
“That’s because our family has always looked at the world in a different way from others. Pyramid Triad was in existence centuries before your rabble chased the British back to England. We have not survived all this time by being sentimental when it comes to the deaths of others, or even deaths in our own family.”
“Glad to hear that,” Austin said, “because you won’t shed any tears over the loss of your brother Wen Lo.”
“Wen Lo is dead too?”
“He ran afoul of the Chinese Army . . . another casualty of your insane scheme.”
“There was nothing insane about it. Our country’s leadership is extremely fragile. The government would have reacted violently to protests in the streets. We would have encouraged the mob rule that would have followed and then stepped in to end the epidemic and take over the reins of government. With the vaccine, we would have held the power of life and death over a billion of our countrymen. We would have offered the same choice to the rest of the world in exchange for money and power. The plan was well thought out. We didn’t anticipate the interference from you and your NUMA friends.”
“NUMA doesn’t deserve all the credit,” Austin said. “You planted the seeds of your own destruction when you decided to play at being a three-headed god. You’re not the first ones to appoint yourselves immortals, and you won’t be the last, which is why I will always have job security.”
“Did you say the same thing when your CIA unit was dissolved?”
“I’m happy to say that my work became no longer necessary with the end of the Cold War, but, from the sound of it, you’ve been digging into my past.”
“I know more about you than your closest friends, Zavala and the Trouts. I have studied your house on the Potomac via satellite. I know what kind of music you listen to, what kind of philosophy books you read. But some of your life is hidden in the shadows, which gives me hope.”
“Hope for what, One? You’re almost completely immobile. The best you can look forward to is being hired as a hat rack.”
“But you could change that, Austin.” The voice had become as soft as a snake rustling through grass. “My pharmaceutical company developed the virus, and, given some time and direction, they can work on an antidote to neutralize the effects of the toxin. I would reward you beyond your wildest dreams.”
“Seeing your Triad wiped off the face of the earth is the only reward I want.”
A flash of anger came to the staring holographic eyes.
“I could squash you like an ant, Austin.”
“You could, if you could lift a finger. So long, One. The toxin will keep you alive for a long time. Have a good life.”
Austin’s finger was poised over the button that would have ended the transmission.
“
“After dealing with you and your brothers,” Austin said, “I need a long, hot shower.”
“You can’t leave me all alone like this.”
The plea could have been genuine, but it made no difference to Austin. He felt only revulsion toward the freakish figure.
“Then I’ll make a deal with you,” he said. “Tell me where you are and I’ll relay the information to the Chinese government. You can take your chances with them.”
After a moment, the triplet reeled off an address in Hong Kong.
“Thanks, One. Now I’ll give you some good advice. Forget any thoughts about bribing your way out of this. The government is appropriating all your assets. You have nothing to offer them.”
“I will kill you, Austin. Somehow, I will find a way.”
“Good-bye, Dragon Lady.”
Austin pushed the button to halt the projection. The words came out of a formless cloud of dancing motes. It was a woman’s voice.
Zavala, who was standing off to the side, muttered something in Spanish.
Austin realized that he was soaked with sweat. Even separated at a distance of thousands of miles, he had never been so close to pure evil.
“I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds,” he murmured.
Zavala overheard him.
“What was that, Kurt?”
As if awakening from a dream, Austin said, “It’s a quote from the Bhagavad Gita. It popped into my mind just now. Did you jot down the address that thing gave me?”
Zavala held up a sheet of paper.
“What do you want to do with it?” he asked.
“When we get back to the
“Aye, aye, sir. What are you going to do in the meantime?”
Austin rose from his chair and headed for the door.
“Take that long, hot shower I talked about.”
CHAPTER 49
BONEFISH KEY, FIVE WEEKS LATER
SONG LEE WAS SITTING ON THE SUNLIT PATIO IN FRONT OF the lodge going over some notes when she heard the drone of an outboard motor echoing through the mangroves. Recognizing the sound of Dooley’s boat, she looked up and smiled at his impending arrival.
Dooley had been her main contact with the outside world since she had returned to the island to work on her medical text on ocean biomedicine. Returning to Bonefish Key had required determination. But the lab had been at the forefront of a science whose roots went back to the ancient culture of Nan Madol and the Micronesian islands, and it was the most compelling place for her to write.
Lee could not yet muster the courage to visit the barrier beach. She had no desire to see the cove where she had killed a man or to revisit the burned-out hulk of the cabin cruiser that had nearly been her funeral pyre. She still kayaked but stayed closer to the island. She went to bed early and was up with the sun, tapping at her laptop computer in the lab’s research library for hours on end.
The island was practically deserted. With the project at an end, Dr. Mayhew had returned to academia, and his team had scattered to the four winds. A small cadre stayed behind to tend to the specimen tanks, but the guards who had put in double duty as support staff had left. Dr. Lee enjoyed the camaraderie of a handful of technicians as they prepared their own meals.
Dr. Kane had visited the lab once. He had breezed in with a camera crew to film the lodge and lab buildings before he swept out again as if carried on the wind.
Although the governments of China and the United States were still nervous about telling the whole story of their secretive collaboration in stopping the near pandemic, the Herculean effort to stop the virus was big news
