“May not be as bad as that.” Harris thought for a moment before continuing. “He has a rather large ace up his sleeve.”
Pole held his cup in mid-air before it reached his lips. “What do you mean? He’s on record asking for Ollie Wilson to be dealt with.”
“That sounds very compelling, but …”
Pole interrupted. “Don’t tell me it is some operative you need to indulge.”
“Not me … not even the CIA.”
“Stop speaking in riddles, otherwise I’m presenting the evidence and getting a warrant.”
“Turner is central to an agreement that is about to be signed between China, the US and Europe.” Harris’s voice had grown serious. Pole mumbled a string of swear words.
“Couldn’t agree more with you, mate. Timing is essential … Nab him too early and he will use it to protect himself, and might even ask for a deal of some sort to exonerate him.”
Pole had been about to shoot Harris down for telling him how to do his job, but Harris was right. It was a waiting game.
“When is this goddamn agreement going to be signed then?”
“Actually, it’s a rather good agreement … but in answer to your question, Turner is in Beijing at the moment.”
“For how long?”
“How long is a piece of string.” Harris interrupted. “These things can take days even if the text has been well hammered … but I’d say a good week.”
“I need to show Marsh progress though …”
“Don’t worry. Someone in the UK government is having a conversation with Marsh, perhaps as we speak. Don’t be surprised if he doesn’t sound so keen suddenly.” Pole didn’t say anything, unconvinced.
“Perhaps you could use the time to cross the t’s and dot the i’s on the Wilson case. And before you tell me to mind my own business …” Harris’ voice had regained some of its cockiness. “You may even want to take a trip abroad.”
“Should I be asking why?”
“Yes, you should. Ms Wu has just left on a trip to mainland China …”
A kick in the gut could not have winded Pole more. Harris waited at the end of the phone.
“Look … she’s with the chap we have been monitoring for some time. He understands China very well. He will be a good guide.”
“Is it about her father?” Pole managed to ask.
“It is …”
“Do I detect a but?”
“Chengdu is the city of her ancestors, and that matters as far as the search for a father is concerned, but it also is …”
“… the place Viro-Tech is growing its lab presence.”
“Correct.”
* * *
A knock at the door startled the two women.
Licot poked his head in. “How are we doing?” His placid face couldn’t hide his happiness. They had been talking for more than two hours and now he had to interrupt, but Mingmei had been right to take the risk.
“Could you give us another few minutes please?” Nancy smiled at him. Licot nodded and disappeared back outside.
“Are you certain? It’s got nothing to do with your organisation, or even the people you’re trying to save.”
Mingmei shook her head. “Nancy …” The name was pronounced perfectly. She had rehearsed it for a while. “You know nothing about this city, and, from what I can tell, you don’t remember much of your Chinese. How are you going to find the place?”
“I know … no excuse to have let my Chinese lapse.” Nancy didn’t mind the comment.
“I was not trying to … make you feel bad. I simply know you can’t do this discreetly unless you’re with someone who knows the streets of Chengdu.”
Nancy smiled at the proper pronunciation of the city she was born in … a long vowel at the end and the voice raising up.
“Let’s say I agree.” Nancy turned serious again. “But I have to see the place for myself.”
“You sound like … Miss Marple …” Mingmei grinned.
“Now, young lady … I may be a single woman, and I am rather sharp when it comes to observation, but the comparison stops there!”
Mingmei kept her grin. “Of course, … Sis.” Her grin disappeared as soon as it came, but Nancy smiled back.
“Half-Sis would not sound as much fun …”
Mingmei beamed at her half sister for a short moment.
She became serious again. “There are cameras all over Century City.”
Nancy stood up, hands on hips, thinking. “Okay … I need your expertise but … I take the risk of being caught investigating this lab.”
* * *
“We have to make Turner feel secure, otherwise he will delay the signing of this agreement until he has come up with a plan.” Jack was on a call to Harris.
“Pole has already sussed that one out. One of the key witnesses is being moved to a witness protection programme.”
“Why should Turner not have wind of this?”
“Because that witness is supposed to have died in a bike crash.”
“I get it.”
“Any news on your front?” Harris was fidgeting at the other end of the line.
“I’ve looked at the line of code you sent me. I think it’s a password. I ran it past my crypto team and they came to the same conclusion. How about you?”
“I’m a little too much on the fringes of the China Project to start asking questions.”
“And you’re confident this guy Pole and his team are up to the task?”
“They are surprisingly sharp when it comes to tech matters … but I might give them the heads up on your suggestion.”
Harris batted a question from left field. “Have you asked Ms Wu for help?”
Jack smiled. Harris knew him too well. “I thought I could do with someone going to exactly the place I wished I could go myself. She has been a resourceful person and she’s got the grit for the task.”
“Hands off though … if she’s going to become a spook, I spotted her first.”
“Maybe, or do you already have some plans for her? I can’t help thinking that MI6 providing her with information is no free lunch.” It was time for Jack to turn the tables on Harris.
And it was Harris’s turn to
