Lena said, “Chairman Jinshan recognizes that Russia needs assurances. We must have continued stability in our relationship.”
“Russia welcomes any Chinese action that keeps our relationship mutually beneficial.”
“Is your country worried about what will happen in the future?”
“Between friends? Yes. Absolutely.”
Any other Russian diplomat or intelligence officer would have denied it. But Kostya didn’t bother with that nonsense, knowing she would see right through it. This was why she liked him. A mutual respect, and a logical response.
Lena said, “You are worried that China will become too powerful, and you will have gone from a manageable American foe to a gargantuan Chinese ruler.”
“Again, not the way I would word it in front of our president. But yes.”
Lena said, “If things keep progressing the way they are, we will eventually reach that imbalance of power. But right now, you have leverage. And China has a military requirement that would best be served with Russian assets.”
“Our nation is not supposed to be involved in your war with the Americans. We made a deal to provide deterrence, not for the use of force.”
Lena said, “The Americans have built up their defensive capabilities in the Atlantic. It would be in our best interests if Russian forces assisted us in defeating these defensive systems, prior to a Chinese attack.”
Kostya looked at her sideways. “Atlantic bases? But your navy is moving northward in the eastern Pacific. The People’s Liberation Army is headed to Panama. Every intelligence service… hell, every newscaster in the world knows this.”
“Jinshan wants us to plan long-term. Plan for success. When we defeat the Americans in Panama, we will eventually need to invade their homeland. Russia has submarines and hypersonic cruise missiles that could be used to give a massive blow to critical American military installations at just the right time. The Americans will see us coming. And they will prepare. But a Russian attack…”
Kostya folded his arms, leaning back in his chair. “I suspect that my president will not be comfortable with this. As things stand, we have vastly improved our bargaining power with Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. Our economy and political strength has never been of higher standing. If we were to overtly take such an action, world politicians might turn against us.”
Lena flashed a seductive smile. “Who said anything about overt action?”
Kostya narrowed his eyes. “But you just said…”
“China could take credit for any military moves you made. General Chen would be more than pleased with that, actually.”
Kostya stared at her thoughtfully. “I see. Hypothetically, if we were to do this, what would Russia get in return?”
Lena crossed her legs and shook her head. “Kostya, my friend. You should know better than to give us your price at this stage. I tell you this because I like you. Make your military preparations now. Then, when we need it most, that is when you give us your asking price. China will have to pay it.”
Kostya sniffed, studying Lena. “You never fail to impress me.”
She took a sip of water. “Now, about the other things I asked you about.”
“Quite a list of requests.”
“The special weapons research…”
“Officially, the Russian government denies all knowledge of the biological weapons program you mentioned.”
“Unofficially?”
“It will cost you. And the idea that we would share such valuable classified military research in exchange for the promise of a future trade agreement is laughable.”
“I thought that might be a stretch. I’ll let my superiors know that you aren’t interested…”
Kostya said, “Well, I didn’t say that, did I?”
“Stop playing. What’s the ask?”
“Singapore.”
“What about it?”
“You have seized control, yet still hold back on exerting much influence on their governance.”
Lena said, “The frog won’t jump if you boil it slowly enough.”
“China hasn’t made it easy for international companies to compete. Singapore isn’t China. But its business enterprises have a disproportionately large share of the Asian market in some industries.”
“It is now Chinese-controlled. I would expect change.”
Kostya held up his hand. “Hear me out. If Russian businesses were able to gain equity positions in Singapore-owned companies, that could provide us with a strong economic return in Asia. It could be just the type of change needed to strengthen our relationship.”
Lena knew that the Russian businesses chosen to benefit from this arrangement would be sending huge kickbacks and dividends to the oligarchs, and to the Russian president himself. This was how the world worked.
“I will make the proposal to my leadership. What about the other request I sent you? Were your people able to find anything on him?”
“As a matter of fact, they were.” He checked his watch. “And if you hurry, you’ll be able to see for yourself.”
Lena left the meeting location and followed Kostya’s directions, walking as fast as she could without drawing attention to herself. She was making her way past a crowded subway exit when she spotted her target. Two black SUVs came to a stop one block ahead.
Minister of State Security Dong exited the rear vehicle, his security escorting him into the side entrance of a commercial building.
The SUVs then departed, and the building’s entrance door swung to a close.
Lena found it somewhat unsettling that Russian intelligence services would know his intended meeting location with such certainty. She would need to look into that. But what really made her curious was why the head of the MSS was alone in this part of town. At his level, people came to see him… unless he didn’t want to be seen. The location was only blocks from most of the international embassies. Kostya only gave her tidbits of information. The rest she must discover on her own.
Her father’s words passed through her mind. Find information we can use against Minister Dong. While she certainly didn’t feel loyalty to General Chen, her training as an intelligence operative told her that something about Dong’s current actions was off. And if he was doing something unscrupulous, it was in her best interests to get leverage on him, whatever she chose to do with it.
Lena walked past the subway entrance and into what used to be a Starbucks coffee shop. All American-owned restaurants had been renamed when the war began, their corporate ownership transferred to the Chinese government. The place was mostly empty. Lena ordered a cup of coffee and sat at a table by the window.
She waited for thirty-five minutes before Chairman Dong reappeared at the building entrance across the street. Almost instantly, the two government SUVs rounded the corner, picked him up, and departed.
After Dong left, Lena rose from her chair and walked toward the building. She headed down the adjacent alleyway to check for alternate building exits, finding three, and frowned. She wouldn’t be able to visually cover all four exits. On instinct, she moved to a park bench with a view of the alternate exits. If it were her, she wouldn’t use the same door as Dong to leave. She was counting on whoever met with him to behave the same way.
She removed her smartphone from her purse and powered it on. She always made sure to keep it powered off whenever she was doing street work to reduce the chances she could be tracked. Over the next twenty minutes, she took pictures of no less than eight people leaving the building.
The ninth departure was her mark. Lena knew this because she recognized the man. Oddly, she couldn't place his name.
Asian male. Medium height, medium build. Jet-black hair. He matched the description of several million Beijing men his age. But with China’s growing facial recognition capability, discovering his identity would be relatively easy.