Flags of Sin (24 page)

There
was a pause as Spock put the car in motion again, racing down the side street,
slowing at each intersection to peer up the road, but each time they found the
same thing.

A
blockade.

It was
clear the authorities were blocking any and all access to Tiananmen, but the
question was why? Why were they blocking off access and sending columns of
tanks and squadrons of helicopters because of a bunch of kids? He knew the
Chinese didn’t tolerate dissent, and would rapidly remove anybody who looked
suspicious from the square, but this seemed an overreaction, even for them.

And if
there was a coup, why would they converge on Tiananmen? It wasn’t a military
target, it was purely civilian. A coup should be taking control of the key
government and military installations, not public squares. He could understand
setting up road blocks, spreading your presence throughout the capital, but to
concentrate forces on Tiananmen made no sense.

Then
suddenly it did make sense, and his heart slammed against his ribcage as blood
rushed through his ears.

“Tell
them they have to get out of there, now!”

North-East Corner, Tiananmen Square, Beijing, China

“We’ve got incoming,” announced Dawson as he spotted the lead
chopper clearing the roofs of the Forbidden City to the north. Inspector Li
rolled over, climbing to his knees and looked as Laura twisted her head. They both
gasped.

“We have
to get out of here!” cried Laura, looking about desperately for a route, but
they all knew there was none.

Another
sound distracted Dawson, and he looked behind them to see a column of vehicles,
mostly troop carriers, moving toward them from the south-east side of the
square. They appeared to be People’s Armed Police as opposed to military, most
likely the standard riot squad response that would be deployed in the event of
a flash mob.

Dawson
pointed.

“Police
are arriving.”

“Thank
God!” exclaimed Laura, but he didn’t share her sentiment. These were lightly
armed police, who were riding into something far bigger than they had planned
for.

“They’re
going to be slaughtered.” He looked at their new arrival. “Inspector, you have
to warn them off!”

Inspector
Li looked at the arriving column and shook his head. “There’s no time!”

Dawson looked
at him, then over his shoulder at the flash mob that continued to party, their
numbers in the thousands, if not tens of thousands.

This
is going to make 1989 look like a random shooting.

Tiananmen Square, Beijing, China

Somebody had a boombox blaring the latest Gaga, and Li Juan belted
out the words along with all her friends. She couldn’t remember the last time
she had had this much fun. Whoever’s idea this had been was clearly a
partaay
genius, and should be getting full social cred tomorrow for their
accomplishment.

She was
so happy when her mother had let her go. She knew getting home so late would be
a little unusual, and if her dad, the disciplinarian of the household, had been
home on time, she had no doubt he would have refused her pleas.

But he
hadn’t shown up for dinner, and for that she was eternally grateful.

She
exchanged hugs with her friend Ching. They both tilted their heads back and
screamed at the night until they were out of breath, then broke down into a fit
of laughter as a tune from the Biebs roared at them, and as much as she hated
to admit it, she secretly loved Justin and looked about to make sure others
were singing before breaking out into full voice.

She
began rhythmically jumping in the air with the rest of the crowd, when she felt
her phone vibrate on her hip.

It was
her mother.

Aww,
Mom!

She
answered but couldn’t hear a thing, for which she thanked God.

“I can’t
hear you, Mom! I’m okay! We’ll be leaving soon and I’ll call you when it’s
quieter!”

She
tried to listen for a reply but there was nothing she could make out, so she
hung up and was about to shove the phone in her pocket and return to her
dancing and singing, when she noticed a message indicator. She hit the button.

12
missed calls

7 unread
messages

She hit
ignore, and slipped the phone back in her pocket, determined not to let her
overprotective parents ruin what was turning out to be the best night in her
sixteen years of existence.

They
worry way too much. It’s just a party. And in a public square. What could
possibly go wrong?

The song
ended and she stood with her feet on the ground, rather than splitting the time
between the concrete and the air just above it, and before the next song could
kick in, she heard the roar of an engine to her left. In fact, several more
large engines, like trucks, seemed to start, but were soon drowned out by the
next tune from a local band.

She
shouted in delight and grabbed her friend by the hands as they spun around in a
circle, her friend soon losing her grip and careening into the crowd. Fortunately
it was so thick with people, she didn’t actually fall, and was helped upright
by the others, as Juan grabbed her knees, laughing so hard she thought she
might puke.

And
that’s when she noticed her feet and legs, in fact her entire body, was
vibrating.

It
wasn’t in time with the music, it was something else.

And it
was ominous.

She
slowly reached into her pocket, and retrieved her phone. She opened the list of
text messages, and saw half a dozen from her mother, and one from her dad. She
selected it.

This
is daddy. Go home now. You are in danger!

Her
chest became tight and she stopped even the slightest movement that she may
have been involuntarily performing in synch with the beat. She pushed herself up
on her tiptoes to try and see where the sound she had heard earlier had come
from, but could see nothing but the crowd.
Why do I have to be so short?
She continued to peer through the throng, and for one fortuitous split second,
everyone dipped as they imitated the music video they all knew by heart, and
she alone stood erect.

And
cried out.

A row of
tanks lined the square, and their turrets were turning toward the crowd. She
spun around and saw the other side of the square lined with trucks, police
pouring out of them and spreading to the north and south sides of the square,
cutting off any escape.

But she
knew what she had to do. She grabbed her friend by the hand, and began to run
through the crowd.

Away
from the army, and toward the police. For the police were her daddy’s friends,
and if she could reach them, they might stand a chance.

Oh
Daddy, I wish you were here!

North-East Corner, Tiananmen Square, Beijing, China

Laura watched the trucks jerk to a halt and the police begin to pour
from the rear of the carriers, their crowd control gear at the ready, and their
weaponry apparently at a minimum. They were here to break up a party, not a riot.
She had no doubt they knew about the flash mobs, and the fact it was thousands
of children they were dealing with.

And she
had no doubt they had no idea what faced them on the other side of the square.

As the
police fanned out to their left and right, creating a cordon along the entire
eastern side of the square, she heard an ungodly boom, and she spun toward the
crowd to see a burst of dust and concrete, and something else, flying through
the air near the center of the square.

“What
was that?” she asked.

“A tank
just fired on the crowd,” replied Dawson. He dialed the phone and it was soon
answered.

“They’re
opening fire on the crowd. Do
not
approach the square. What’s your
location?”—he nodded—“Got it.” He flipped the phone closed.

“Where
are they?”

Dawson
pointed north. “Side street east of the Forbidden City.” Another boom, and this
time she was watching as the shell hit and bodies were blown to pieces, limbs
and other unrecognizable body parts, mixed with shattered concrete, tossed into
the air. Bile began to fill her mouth.

“We need
to stop this!” she cried, knowing how ridiculous it sounded. She turned to the
policeman. “You need to warn your people what is going on, what they’re getting
themselves into!”

But he
was already on the phone, shouting in Chinese, then furiously typing out a
series of text messages.

Automatic
weapons fire rattled across the square and the crowd finally began to realize
what was happening. Screams of terror pierced the night, and the crowd began to
surge, but in every direction. Those nearest the police ran away from them,
those nearest the army ran away in turn. Laura watched in horror as a young
girl was knocked down, then repeatedly trampled by the panicked crowd.

She
wanted to look away, to drag her eyes from the carnage in front of her, but she
couldn’t. It was a horror that demanded to be remembered, demanded to be
witnessed, and she, a historian, an archaeologist, was now witness to history,
a history so horrible, she wasn’t certain she wanted to survive, lest she
should have to remember the events of this night.

Dawson
slapped her on the arm.

“We’re
getting out of here, now.”

He
heaved the Ambassador over his shoulder, then rushed to the next planter,
dropping to the ground. He motioned with his head for her to follow, and she
grabbed the cop by the shoulder.

“Come
on, let’s get out of here!”

But he
shook his head.

“I have
to save my daughter!”

He
jumped to his feet, and rushed headlong into the panicking crowd.

7
^th
District Police Station, Beijing, China

“Why aren’t you at the hospital?”

Superintendent
Hong Zhi-kai stood behind his desk, having leapt to his feet the moment he
recognized Li’s voice. The paramedics who were supposed to have taken him to
the hospital had just left empty handed, and the officer whose car had been
“borrowed” stood in Hong’s office this very moment, his head bowed in shame at
having just been reprimanded for leaving the keys in the ignition and losing a
valuable piece of state property.

“There’s
no time for that!” yelled Li above a raucous noise Hong couldn’t make out. In
fact, he could barely make out Li’s voice.

“What’s
going on? What’s that noise?”

“Would
you shut up and listen, sir!”

Hong’s
eyes shot wide open, and he dropped in his chair. He couldn’t remember the last
time anybody had spoken to him like that, and was quite certain he had never
been spoken to like that by a subordinate.

“I’m
standing in the middle of a coup!”

Hong,
still stinging from the shock of the rebuke, took a moment to process what was
just said.

“Can you
hear me?” yelled Li.

“Yes,
yes I can,” muttered Hong as what Li had said sunk in.
But that’s
impossible.
“Please repeat what you said.”

“We’re
in the middle of a coup. Somebody is trying to take over the government. Our
men at Tiananmen Square are going to be slaughtered, tens of thousands of kids
are
being slaughtered! My daughter—”

Li’s
voice cracked, and Hong couldn’t be sure if it was the choppy reception, or Li
himself who stopped talking.

“Repeat
that last part!”

“My
daughter is among those being slaughtered. You need to notify the government
and have them send in the army. Our rapid response squad is trying to fight
tanks with rifles. They don’t stand a—oh my God!”

“What?”

“Helicopters!
Helicopters are opening fire on our men. You need to send help now! Tell them
the hostiles are flying gold flags on their equipment. Did you hear me? Gold
flags!”

“Gold
fl-flags, I g-got it,” stuttered Hong, still trying to process what was
happening. A pounding on the glass of his office caused him to jump in his
chair.

“Sir,
you have to see this!” said one of his men, pointing at the television screen.

Li’s
voice demanded attention. “Sir, I have to go, call in reinforcements, you’re
our only hope.”

“Okay,
Li, okay,” he murmured as he walked around his desk and into the outer office.
It was a YouTube video streaming on their smart TV. If he hadn’t just heard
what Li had said, he’d have no clue what he was looking at, but with a context
to put the confused imagery to, he dropped into the nearest chair, everyone else
in the room standing, mouths agape as they watched tanks firing upon a group of
teenage children, dancing only moments before.

Hong closed
his eyes, and imagined his own son, only thirteen, and prayed he was at home,
safe with his mother and mother-in-law. He reached for his phone when he
realized it was in his hand.

“Hello?”
he said, but there was no one there.

What
should I do?

He heard
his mother-in-law’s voice scream in his head.
Make a decision for once in
your life!

He
sucked in a deep breath then stood.

“Listen
up!”

The room
turned toward him. He pointed at his secretary. “Get me the Commissioner, tell
him it’s urgent.”

“But
it’s after midnight, sir.”

“Do it!”
he yelled. She jumped and grabbed her phone. Hong turned to the rest of the
room. “We are in the middle of a coup. Elements of our own armed forces are
attempting to take over the city, and are slaughtering our own men, and our own
children, as we just sit here. Li is on site, and just phoned in a situation
report. His own daughter is caught up in this mess, our own men are dying. This
affects us! This affects our families! This affects our country!” He strode
toward the TV, another YouTube clip playing showing a different vantage point
of the slaughter. “Call in everyone, I don’t care where they are, get them in
here, then notify the hospitals, the other stations, every government office
you can think of, and let them know what’s going on. The hostile forces are
flying gold flags on their equipment. That’s verified by Li on site.”