It took two full minutes for the ramp door to fully open and provide a smooth path out the rear of the plane.
Then at last, when over their target, the strap disconnected. The long, elliptically-shaped bomb abruptly accelerated, leaving the ramp and disappearing into the night.
The Russian thermobaric bomb detonated at one thousand feet above the Acarai peak, releasing a brilliant orange mushroom cloud into the dark sky, along with a supersonic shockwave hot enough to evaporate solid rock.
88
A jolt from the truck’s old suspension shook John Clay from his unconscious state. His head rocked side to side from the continual shaking of the bumpy road, making it hard to focus. He could hear rocks pelting the inside of the wheel wells, indicating a rapid speed over a dirt road.
His eyes closed again for a moment before he was able to find the strength to force them back open. As the light began to sharpen, he tilted his head to see what appeared to be the dark shape of the driver against the bright front windshield. A second person was ahead of him in the passenger seat.
His next sensation was the pain. Every part of his body screamed out from under a thick wool blanket which covered all but his face. He tried to move but couldn’t. Not anything. Instead, he tried his mouth and managed a slight whisper.
On his third attempt, the passenger turned around and looked down at him.
“You’re awake.”
Clay fought to make his lips move again.
“Don’t talk, save your energy.”
The driver glanced over his shoulder at Clay and quickly turned back to the road.
A severe dip sent a wave of pain through Clay’s limbs, causing him to moan.
“Hang in there, man. We’re all trying to get you out of here.”
“W-what happened?” Clay whispered.
The Chinese passenger shrugged. “Hell if we know. Someone at the agency hit the panic button. Instructions are to find you and then get the hell out.”
Clay blinked slowly. His memory was a jumble of images and he was struggling to put them in order.
“Where’s Li Na?”
The other man looked at the driver before replying. “We don’t know. She escaped and disappeared into the forest before we could stop her.”
Clay shook his head. He could see the girl’s face, frightened and alone. “Stop.”
“What?”
“Stop the car.”
“Sorry, can’t do that. We have to get out of the country. There’s a team waiting for us in Huludao.”
Clay shook his head. “We have to go back.”
The driver abruptly pulled the truck over to a stop. He twisted around in his seat and Clay recognized him from Qin’s team. “Look, I don’t think you understand what’s happened here. A lot of covers just got blown to find you. Agents who can now be traced to a lot of others all over this region.”
The second agent in the passenger’s seat nodded in agreement. “Our only priorities are you and this case.” He held up the metal case.
Clay managed to angle his head and stare at it. “Did you open it?”
The agent lowered it. “Nope. Not authorized.”
Clay’s memories were coming back. “Check the case.”
“Sorry. I can’t do it. Our instructions are to get you, and this thing, out.”
“Listen to me,” Clay said louder. “We have to go back.”
The driver shook his head and put the truck back into gear. “I think you got hit one too many times in the head.”
Clay gritted his teeth in pain and took a deep breath. “If you won’t go back, then at least check the goddamn case!”
The agents both looked at each other. The second agent reached down and brought the case back up. After contemplating, he turned it sideways and opened the clasps, pulling the cool metal case open. He stared inside before turning it for the driver to see.
It was empty.
89
By the time the agents turned the truck around, Qin had already landed in Beijing. After being found and freed with the other soldiers, all he had to do was find a phone.
Less than a minute after his helicopter bounced lightly onto the tarmac, the side door was flung open by two airmen outside. Once on the ground, Qin was quickly escorted to a vehicle which sped across the base to a nearby lab.
He ordered the airmen to remain outside while he pushed through the double doors and ran up a flight of stairs. When he reached the room, a single technician was waiting for him with a very confused look on his face.
Unsure, the technician saluted and returned a nervous hand to his side. “You asked to see me, sir?”
Instead of replying, Qin closed the wide door behind him and locked it.
“Listen very carefully. You are not to repeat a single word of this conversation to anyone. Is that clear?”
“Y-yes, sir.”
Qin’s cold eyes bore into the man. “And any results you find will be erased.”
The technician nodded nervously.
With that, a wry grin spread across Qin’s face as he reached inside his jacket. He removed a red rag and began unwrapping it. When he uncovered the final layer, he held his hand below and rolled three clear glass tubes into his palm.
Qin waited impatiently. He watched as the young technician removed samples from each tube and used a swab to carefully place them on the ATP meters. Once in the luminometer, they watched the computer screen as the results were captured and displayed.
Qin squinted, trying to understand what he was seeing on the screen. Multiple lines rose and fell across a horizontal list of molecular compounds. It was clear that two of the compounds were in much higher concentrations than the rest. He pointed at them.
“What are those?”
The technician’s confusion was growing. “Those are Selenium and Iron.” He pointed to the others. “These, however, are all bacterium.”
Qin stepped closer, excitedly. “What sort of bacterium?”
“They’re called coliform.”
Qin paused and turned toward the technician. “You’ve seen them before?”
“Yes, sir. Many times.”
“What do you mean?”
The technician shrugged. “They’re common.”
Qin froze. Impossible. Deep down a sudden panic began to grow. “How common?”
“Very common. We find it in almost all forms of ground water.”
The panic was now overtaking Qin. “It’s water?”
“Yes. Judging from the Selenium and Iron, I’d guess a water source in close proximity to a mining operation.”
90
The CIA agent stumbled down the rocky path, keeping the flashlight pointed straight ahead. With one hand on the wall, he moved as quickly as he could without tripping over the larger stones.
The damp tunnel continued to descend for several hundred feet before he spotted the glimmering water. The agent hurried to the edge, and without the slightest pause, waded into the icy pool. He forced himself to remain still and scanned each side, until spotting a large boulder nearby. He crept forward and used the light to study a crevice between the boulder and the wall. Wedged into the middle of the crevice was a small drinking canister.
Exactly where Clay said it would be.
91
The blast was almost beyond comprehension.
As if in slow motion, the orange mushroom cloud had curled under itself, gradually turning red, then violet, then black, before finally dissolving into the night sky.