Just from witnessing this exchange it’s obvious that the Shop is doing business with the Lucky Dragons. I’d bet a Hong Kong dollar that those crates are full of weapons. The Triad has to get gear from somewhere and the Shop doesn’t care who their customers are.
I aim my OPSAT’s digital camera at the group and snap a few photos. Then I pull out the Five-seveN and activate the T.A.K. audio component. Quickly sticking the earplug in my right ear, I’m now able to listen to what they’re saying and record the conversation as well. At first I’m surprised that they’re speaking English, but then I realize the Chinese guys don’t speak Russian and vice versa. Ah, yes, English, the universal language. That should tell you something about the way of the world.
ANTIPOV — as we agreed. Your order is now complete.
MING: Thank you. Please tell Mr. Zdrok that we appreciate the opportunity to do business with you. Of course, we will need to inspect the merchandise where we can do so in privacy.
ANTIPOV: I understand. I’m sure you’ll find it satisfactory. By the way, Mr. Zdrok asked me to tell you that he is sorry he couldn’t be here in person this morning. He had some urgent business to attend to.
MING: Don’t we all?
ANTIPOV: So, everything is good, then? This completes our end of the agreement. This is the final shipment of merchandise in exchange for the various installments of Operation Barracuda that you have graciously passed on to us.
MING: Agreed. As you know, we also eliminated the link. The American authorities should not be able to trace the professor’s trail. At least he won’t be able to talk about it!
ANTIPOV: (laughs) Why, Mr. “Wong”! The professor really believed he’d have safe passage to Beijing?
MING: (laughs) Apparently so.
ANTIPOV: Oh, well, he probably wouldn’t have liked working in Beijing anyway.
MING: I wouldn’t.
ANTIPOV: Of course not.
The men are silent for a moment as they watch the workers.
ANTIPOV: It looks as if your men are almost finished. I am obligated to bring up the issue of the final piece of the Barracuda project, which you still owe us.
MING: Don’t worry. We’ll be picking that up from California any day. I’m just waiting to hear from my people in Los Angeles.
ANTIPOV: Very good. Please keep us informed. Our customer is anxious to receive it.
MING: (coughs) Excuse me. I think I am fighting a cold. Speaking of your customer, may I ask who it might be?
ANTIPOV: Mr. Ming, you know we cannot reveal that. The Shop has built a reputation on discretion.
MING: Mr. Antipov, surely you can understand our concern. Operation Barracuda, as you call it, involves some serious technology that could very well be used against our interests if it was sold to the wrong people.
ANTIPOV: I appreciate your concern but again I must stress that we cannot reveal who the customer is.
Ming takes a step closer to Antipov and Herzog. Although Antipov is two inches taller, Ming is definitely the more threatening. I can hear the change in the man’s voice. He is not someone to cross.
MING: Fine. Keep your secrets. But I should leave you with a little word of advice. I do hope you are not selling the Operation Barracuda material to anyone in mainland China.
ANTIPOV: That sounds like a warning, not advice.
MING: Take it however you wish. Some of my sources have suggested that the Shop is dealing with that devil General Tun in Fuzhou. As you know, the Lucky Dragons have a relationship with a few friends in the Communist government in China, but those relationships go only so far. Triads fundamentally hate the People’s Republic and what it stands for. General Tun represents the worst of China. I shall go on the record here and now that if I find out the Shop is indeed selling this material to General Tun, the Lucky Dragons will not be happy with Mr. Zdrok. We will do everything in our power to stop it. Good day, Mr. Antipov. Mr. Herzog.
No shaking of hands, no friendly salutations. Abruptly, the three Chinese turn and walk toward the Rolls. I have to duck quickly to avoid being seen. After a moment I peer over the edge again and see that the Rolls is pulling out of the parking area and the two Russians are walking inside the building. This is my chance to get down.
Once I’m on the ground, I fish a homer from my backpack, activate it, and casually walk toward the Mercedes. I look around to make sure the Russians are out of sight and that the workers are paying no attention to me. In one fluid move, I crouch, place the homer under the car, stand, and walk away. The odds are heavily in my favor that I wasn’t seen.
“Anna, are you there?” I ask, pressing the implant in my throat.
“Hi, Sam.”
“I take it you received that little conversation?”
“Loud and clear. I’m analyzing it now.”
“And, Frances?”
I hear Coen’s voice a little clearer. “Yes, Sam?”
“I’ve placed a homer underneath the Russians’ car. I’m counting on you to track it and let me know where they go.”
“Already zoomed in on it, Sam.”
Satisfied, I make my way toward Kwai Chung Road, the outer perimeter of the container port, throw my sport jacket on to cover up the more superhero aspects of my uniform, and hail a taxi.
19
Mike Wu drove into Los Angeles on I-40 after crossing the Mojave Desert overnight. He hit I-15 at Barstow, drove southwest into the metropolis, took I-10 west to the 405, and then headed for Los Angeles International Airport. It had been a stressful trip and he was happy it was over. Pretty soon he would see his brother Eddie and he could get the hell out of the United States and over to Hong Kong where he would start a new life with a new identity.
The plan was for him to bring the final puzzle piece of Professor Jeinsen’s project directly to the Lucky Dragons. Apparently the device could be disassembled and packed in checked luggage without arousing security concerns. It was made simply of machine parts and a laptop computer. Eddie was taking care of a new passport and visa for him and soon Mike could kiss America goodbye. The most important thing was that Mike would receive his big payoff, from Jon Ming himself. For the last three years Mike had worked at Third Echelon for his regular U.S. government salary. His deal with the Lucky Dragons began with an initial advance of a reasonable amount of cash. But after final delivery of Jeinsen’s materials, Mike was due to receive three million dollars. Mike never understood why he had to wait until the end to get his money but that was the way the Lucky Dragons wanted it. In the meantime, Mike had done a little side transaction with the organization known as the Shop for a comfortable sum.
Mike Wu actually liked living in the U.S. He and his brother had been born and raised in L.A.’s Chinatown. Becoming involved with the neighborhood gangs began early in their lives. Mike, being the oldest, joined a Triad at the age of thirteen. Eddie had waited until he was sixteen but by then Mike was one of the major players in the gang. The Wu brothers joined the California contingent of the Lucky Dragons when Mike turned twenty-six. He and Eddie visited Hong Kong just before the handover and met Jon Ming. He gave the Wu brothers a great deal of responsibility running the American West Coast operations, tasks they shared with members already in place. When the Lucky Dragons became associated with the Shop, a new directive sent Mike to the East Coast as “Mike Chan,” and eventually he became a research analyst for Third Echelon.