Territories. They’re searching for you but they won’t find you. And since Mr. Herzog got away safely there are less of you for them to chase. When does he arrive in America?”
“Tomorrow.”
“Let’s hope for our sake he gets the guidance system from that Triad fellow and gets to China with it in one piece.”
“That’s putting it lightly,” Zdrok said. “If Herzog fails to do that, then the Shop is forever dead. I might as well go to Siberia, find a nice iceberg to sit on, and freeze to death.” He took a sip of bourbon and then asked, “What does your friend in Washington have to say about all this?”
The Benefactor gave Zdrok a sharp look. “Leave my Washington friend out of this. Suffice it to say our ally there is fully aware of the situation and is monitoring it closely. If help is needed, then our friend will supply it.”
Zdrok often wondered who the Benefactor’s contact in the American government really was. The person had powerful connections. It was because of this “friend” that Mike Wu had been able to become Mike Chan and secure a job within the NSA.
“Have you heard from Putnik yet?” the Benefactor asked.
“No. I have to assume he’s located Fisher and is putting together a plan to wipe the man off the face of the earth.”
“Putnik is the best at what he does. He’ll succeed.”
Zdrok stood with his drink in hand and looked out the Benefactor’s hotel room window and tried to admire the Hong Kong skyline. “You realize what General Tun will do if he doesn’t get the guidance system?”
“Yes.”
Zdrok turned to his friend and said, “He will crush us. He will alert the Chinese authorities to our presence and we’ll be doomed. Not just me. You, too, you know.”
“I’m aware of that. A lot rides on this deal, Andrei.”
“The general is already unhappy that the system is late. It should have been in his hands days ago. The MRUUVs have been built and are ready for use.” Zdrok turned back to the window. “I can’t wait to see them work. They are formidable weapons. Operation Barracuda, if it ever gets off the ground, will take the world by surprise. When it’s discovered that the Shop brokered the deal to create them, we will be back at the top of the game. Yes, a lot rides on the deal. That’s putting it mildly.”
In another part of Hong Kong, Jon Ming awoke in his spacious master bedroom also feeling anxious. He wasn’t afraid of the law, though. His home, a fortified mansion just south of the border between Kowloon and the New Territories, was perhaps the most secure private residence in the colony. Surrounded by an electrified security fence and watched by four armed guards around the clock, safety was not a cause for the Cho Kun’s concern. He was easily one of the most powerful men in Hong Kong. He was beyond the reach of the law. He had the respect of the politicians and judges. In fact, he could give
What worried Jon Ming was something more personal, more political, and more
Jon Ming knew of General Tun. General Lan Tun was the equivalent of the warmongering right-wing hawks that were so prevalent in the United States military these days. Tun was also a bigot. He looked down his nose at the Taiwanese and considered them to be inferior to the Communist Chinese on the mainland, even though they were of the same race. The fact that Taiwan had managed to stay independent of China for so many years irked him and he was very vocal about what should be done about it. General Tun was about to make good on his threats.
The Cho Kun had another personal reason for opposing General Tun. Jon Ming’s mother was Taiwanese and lived in a nursing home in Taipei. Although physically frail, she had full use of her mental faculties. Ming often spoke with her and had promised that one day he would move his “business” to Taiwan before she was gone. He knew that was unlikely but he dreamed of at least creating that illusion for her so she would believe he was near. He wanted to be able to visit his mother frequently before she slipped away.
Thus, it was imperative that General Tun not be allowed to attack Taiwan. Operation Barracuda, as Tun and the Shop called it, would be a foolproof and deadly means by which China could conquer Taiwan without interference from the West. Ming felt terrible that he had been instrumental in helping to bring about the situation. When he learned that the Shop was selling the Operation Barracuda designs and specifications to General Tun, he’d nearly had a heart attack. How could the Shop betray them after Ming had done so much to help the organization reestablish itself in Hong Kong? Ming cursed Andrei Zdrok and vowed to bring about the Shop’s destruction.
Ming was forced to close down GyroTechnics, the Triad’s technological development firm in the United States. This was a preemptive strike performed to stop the sale of the final piece of Professor Jeinsen’s creation to General Tun. The MRUUV guidance system was the most important component, and the Lucky Dragons had nearly unwittingly delivered it into the hands of the Triad’s mortal enemy!
The two Triad brothers in Los Angeles were now the targets of his wrath. One of them was in custody and would probably never be heard from again. No doubt he was singing to the authorities and revealing everything about his relationship with the Lucky Dragons. The other brother was hiding somewhere in L.A. and had the guidance system in hand. Ming had issued orders to the remaining Lucky Dragons in southern California to find Eddie Wu and recover the device before the traitor could sell it to the Shop directly. Surely by now Zdrok had sent a minion to California to pick it up. If Ming’s people failed to stop the exchange, then Ming would have no choice but to consider assembling a small army of loyal Triads to take on General Tun before the attack on Taiwan commenced.
Ironically, it was thanks to the Shop and their arms deals with the Triad that it was entirely possible for the Lucky Dragons to take on a Chinese army. Ming knew his men were fierce and loyal fighters. They would do anything he asked. He was the Cho Kun. Just last night there had been an initiation ceremony in one of the Triad’s many Lodges scattered throughout the colony. The three new recruits swore blood oaths to defend the principles of the Lucky Dragons. They were not like their American counterparts in California’s Chinatowns. American society had corrupted the Wu brothers, who were too easily swayed into betraying the Triad. The native Chinese Lucky Dragons would never do that.
Whatever the Cho Kun asked them to do, they would perform to the best of their ability. If it meant fighting to the death, then so be it.
28
As I’m driving back to the hotel, Lambert speaks to me through the implants.
“Sam?”
“Yeah?”
“We have information on upcoming American Airline flights from Hong Kong to LAX. The first one arrives around three o’clock today. There’s another at five. We have the passenger lists but nothing is raising a red flag.”
“Anyone can use an alias,” I reply. “What about security cameras at the points of origin?”
“Haven’t got ’em yet. There’s a lot of red tape involved in getting hold of those things quickly. We should have them in hand by the time the flights arrive. I want you to be at LAX and meet the first flight. If there’s no luck with that one, stick around for the other one.”
“Will do, Colonel.”
He gives me the airline and flight information. “Now you can go get some rest.”
“I want to get this empty shell to you. I’m dying to find out who the bastard is that shot at me.”
