“... leaving two dead and one seriously injured. The two men are still holed up
in the lobby of the apartment block, which has been surrounded by armed police
...”
As the camera zoomed in on one of the men inside the lobby, Joseph gave a strange laugh of recognition. “But thaf s impossible ...” The face on the screen had been that of Kao Chen, one of his men. But right now Chen was in Washington, along with Karr. It was they who had saved Wetton’s life. Again he spoke to the air. “Where are Karr and Chen?” “Washington,” came the immediate reply. “You want me to patch them through?” “No.” Joseph shivered. What was going on? Starships ... and now this. “Where is that building?” “Central Beijing. If s called the Tang Li Building.” “Buy it.”
There was no argument, just a pause, then. “We now own the Tang Li Building.”
“Good. Now lef s divert there. And get security there at once. Two dozen of our best men. And make sure the police don’t do anything stupid.” A pause, then. “Done.”
Joseph let out a breath, then sat back agaia Something was happening. Something he didn’t yet understand. But he would. He had only to fit the pieces together and it would all come clear.
On the screen, the camera panned across until it came to rest on the face of Gregor Karr, who squatted behind a barrier, a huge gun clutched to his chest That’s you, Gregor, he thought, narrowing his eyes. That’s unmistakably you. Yet if, at this moment, you’re in Washington, how can it be? Unless ... Joseph spoke to the air. “Emily? What have we got on multidimensional physics?”
“So what do we do now?”
Karr, crouched down behind the reception desk, glanced across at his friend. “I guess we wait and see. If they wanted us dead, we’d be dead by now.” That much was true. The cover in the lobby was poor. A good marksman would have had no trouble picking them off. And without exposing themselves fully, there was no way they could change that situation.
“Who were they, do you think?”
“I’d say they were working for whoever did that, upstairs.”
Chen gave the tiniest nod. One thing was sure. The men they’d run into weren’t Security. If they had been, they’d have been dead by now, because Security looked after its own.
Then again, there was little chance they’d get out of here alive. The only possible reason they were still alive was that someone wanted to know who they were, and where they’d come from. And as they had no intention of being taken, that left pretty few other options.
What wotdd I do? Karr asked himself.
He’d use gas, of course. Or stun guns. Or ...
He swallowed, saddened suddenly by the thought that they would die here, in a strange universe. And for what? Why, they wouldn’t even get the chance now to take a pop at DeVore.
Outside, beyond the security cruisers that surrounded the front of the lobby, a craft was setting down: a big, black, shiny thing that was different in kind from the bulkier, armoured Security vehicles. It looked the kind of thing a businessman might fly.
Karr raised his gun, looking through the sights as the craff s door hissed open then folded back into the roof.
A big man stepped out, a multi-coloured coat draped about him, its surfaces seeming to wink like a prism in the late afternoon sunlight The figure was unfamiliar, but the face, even without its bulging eyes, was unmistakable. “Kim!”
Chen raised his gun and looked through the sights. “It can’t be. Look at the size of him. He’s got to be six-six easily.”
But Karr was certain of it Staring at the man, he saw what the Kim he knew could have been under different circumstances. Saw just what physical handicaps he had overcome in their own world.
Whereas here, in this world ...
Kim was talking to the Security chief. Karr saw anger on the man’s face, but Kim stared him out, then gestured for him to go.
There was a moment’s tense eye to eye confrontation between the two, then, furious, the Security man turned on his heel and, gesturing angrily to his men, began to leave.
At the same moment craft were setting down. Men spilled out. Armed men, who looked to Kim for instructions. “What are they doing?” Chen asked. “I don’t know. But it looks like he’s taken over from Security. Maybe he owns the building.”
“Well... it looks like we’re about to find out He’s coming over. What do you want to do?”
Karr looked to Chen and shrugged. “I guess I’d better speak to him. Cover me.
But don’t fire unless they fire first”
Lowering his gun, Karr stood, then stepped out from behind the reception desk. Up ahead of him the outer glass doors of the lobby hissed open and the man in the many-coloured coat stepped through. He took a further couple of paces towards Karr then stopped, frowning.
“Gregor? What the hell are you doing here? I thought you were in Washington?”
Karr narrowed his eyes. “Kim?”
The man shook his head, then. “Do you know me?” “I think so. In my world your name is Kim. But you are not half the man you are in this world.”
At the mention of different worlds, this other Kim nodded, his eyes widening.
“So you are from elsewhere.”
Karr hesitated, then. “If you’re not Kim, then who are you? What do you call yourself?”
The man smiled, then put out a hand to Karr. “My name is Mister Joseph Josephs.
But you can call me Joseph.”
The girl’s mother was surprised to see him back so soon.
“Mister Huang ... Is something wrong?”
“We have to leave here earlier than we planned. Pack two bags, Madam Yin.
Essentials only. I can buy whatever else we need when we get there.”
The Madam looked alarmed. “Where are we going?” “To Tientsin spaceport I have a craft there. From there we’ll fly out to my country place, in Sichuan Province.”
“Sichuan?’ She stared at him, highly dubious now.
“Sichuan. Now get ready. And send the girl to me!” The tone of command in his voice - one he but rarely used - did the trick She turned and disappeared inside A moment later the girl appeared Her eyes looked tired, as if she’d just been woken.
“What is it?” she said, coming across and putting her arms about him, as if he had been her lover months and not a single day. “Mama says we are to go to Sichuan.”
“I have a summer place there. An estate. Up in the hills. You’ll like it I’ve horses ...”
“Horses?” She looked excited. “I love horses.”
The closeness of her aroused him. Despite the urgency of the moment, he wanted to fuck her once again. He reached down and placed his hands over her buttocks, the thinness of the garment she was wearing letting him feel the warmth of the flesh almost as if he touched it She looked up at him, wide-eyed. “You want to? Now?” He shivered, recalling how she had bewitched him the last time he’d been with her. “Not now,” he said, denying the need he felt. “Now go and help your mother pack. We must be gone from here.”
Fei Yen clung to him a moment longer, then turned and disappeared back through the door. Li Yuan stood there, staring at the doorway, then sniffed the air. Mei met. Plum blossom. He shivered, then turned, confused momentarily. Tongjiang. If they could get to Tongjiang they would be safe Even if the world collapsed about them.
The two men met on the apron just beneath the shuttle. Though they were dressed differently, they looked identical, and Wyatt, looking on, stared in disbelief. “Howard!” the two men said as one, embracing each other warmly. “You’re looking good,” the newcomer said, standing back a little. “So what’s happening here?”