In the Grey (19 page)

“
Done,” the head of the
MSS said.

Max paused for a moment
before giving Alex an overly official nod. She smirked and he
smiled. She picked up the box.

“
Did you find this or make
it?” Alex asked as she peered into the box.

The technology agents
glanced at the head of the MSS. He nodded.

“
We found this one in our
offices,” the technology agent closest to her said.

“
Have you taken it apart
or disrupted it in anyway?” Alex asked.

“
No,” the technology agent
near the middle of the table said.

Alex clapped. The
nanodrone sprang to life. The Chinese agents gasped and leaned away
from the table. Raz took out his handkerchief and tossed it over
the drone. The drone dropped to the table.

“
It’s powered by a weak
photovoltaic cell,” Alex said.

She opened the
handkerchief and picked up the drone. Turning it over, she saw a
familiar blue dot on the bottom.

“
What does it do?” the
middle-aged woman asked.

“
At this moment, we don’t
believe it does anything but fly,” Alex said.

“
It emits a frequency,”
the technology agent seated next to the middle-aged woman
said.

“
Yes,” Alex said. “It
does. We believe that’s a kind of machine noise due to being
manufactured with low-quality parts. We’ve only just determined who
manufactured the drones. The US military drone experts have been
unsuccessful at attempts to arm the drone or give it the capability
of sight. Have you been able to?”

The technology agents
shook their heads, before the head of the MSS indicated they should
not answer.

“
And the person or persons
who manufactured the drone?” the head of the MSS asked.

“
Deceased,” Max
said.

“
The drone itself is an
engineering achievement,” the technology agent near them said. “We
have computer models for drones such as this, but we haven’t come
close to making one.”

“
Do you have any idea how
they got into your offices?” Alex asked.

“
We thought it must be US
intelligence,” the head of the MSS said.

“
Not to my knowledge,” Max
said.

“
Yes, the US intelligence
community denies all knowledge,” the head of the MSS said. “Why is
that?”

“
Because we aren’t sure
who commissioned them, purchased them, and placed them,” Alex said.
“I’m sure you’re aware that the drones have been found in various
strategic locations around the world.”

The head of the MSS
nodded.

“
Could they have been
commissioned by this Eniac?” the middle-aged woman said.

Alex shifted
uncomfortably.

“
We received the
anti-virus software from Agent Rasmussen last year,” the
middle-aged woman said. “We are grateful for your
assistance.”

“
Did you find the virus in
your nuclear arsenal?” Raz asked.

“
That’s correct,” the
middle-aged woman said.

“
We believe Eniac is
connected to the drones, but we aren’t exactly sure how,” Max
said.

“
We assure you that this
man and his followers are considered a threat to China,” the head
of the MSS said.

“
Do you know where he is
welcome?” Alex asked.

“
If I knew, I would easily
solve our mutual problem,” the head of the MSS said. “Would that
bother you?”

“
No,” Alex said. “A
problem solved is a problem solved. There are always plenty of
problems.”

“
How do you detect these
drones?” the technology agent near them asked.

“
We discovered a few
Belgian Malinois can detect them,” Alex said. “We believe that it’s
unique to the breed. However, not every Belgian Malinois has the
capability.”

“
You will loan us a dog?”
the head of the MSS said.

“
We will arrange for a dog
and his handler, someone you can trust, to help you clear out your
offices as we have cleared ours,” Alex said. “We will also provide
you with the information and the instruction to train your own
dogs. At this point, as you can imagine, our program is in its
infancy.”

“
I will contact your
secretary of state and start the official procedures,” said the
head of the MSS.

“
Thank you,” Alex said.
“Where is Steve Pershing?”

“
At this moment, he is in
a work camp in the Hamgyong Mountains,” the head of the MSS
said.

“
North Korea,” Max
said.

“
We have it on good
authority that he will be moved to Chang Bai Shan within the week,”
the head of the MSS said.

Chang Bai Shan, or White
Eternity Mountain, is an inactive volcano which towers
nine-thousand feet above Northeast China. The crater lake on top of
the mountain, critical to the mythology of both China and North
Korea, sits in both North Korea and China. Heavy snow makes it
almost inaccessible from late October to early May.

“
China?” Alex
asked.

The head of the MSS shook
his head.

“
We were given this
information by the North Korean government,” the head of the MSS
said. “We were told to tell you that the government of North Korea
had nothing to do with his capture and imprisonment.”

“
Then who?” Alex
asked.

“
They hired contractors to
assist them in extracting minerals from their mountains,” the man
with the broken nose said. “They have oversight on the contractors,
but not full control. It is their understanding that these
contractors took an additional contract to hold Mr. Pershing. The
North Koreans indicate that they are willing assist you in
regaining Mr. Pershing, however they are on a tight time schedule.
They will strike in the next day or so.”

“
That’s oddly cooperative
of them,” Alex said.

“
These are unusual times,”
the head of the MSS said.

“
We have found the
engineer who created the nanodrones,” Alex said. The technology
agents perked up. “He developed the drone as a kind
of . . . prototype. He wasn’t aware they were in
production. He is currently looking into their capacities. We can
make him available.”

“
In exchange for what?”
the head of the MSS asked.

“
Access to the contractor
who is holding Mr. Pershing,” Alex said. “Any documentation –
photographs, emails, phone – related to the capture of Mr.
Pershing.”

“
Done,” the head of the
MSS said.

“
If there isn’t anything
else,” Max smiled. “We’ve come a long way and could use some
rest.”

The head of the MSS stood
from his seat and the rest of the Chinese agents followed. After a
series of complicated half-bows and handshakes, they were back in
the elevator with the man with the broken nose and the two young
agents who had escorted them in the building. They met the
soldiers, who escorted them to their vehicle.

Alex turned to say
good-bye to the man with the broken nose. He nodded to her and
stepped into the limousine after Max. Raz glanced at Alex, and she
shrugged. She got in the limousine, and Raz followed. Assuming they
were being monitored, they said nothing. At the entrance to the
resort on the North Hot Spring Park, the man got out with
them.

“
You should find your
accommodations secure and comfortable,” the man said. “There is an
official dinner tonight to celebrate our mutual health. I will
return around nine to bring you. I will also return tomorrow
morning for early breakfast and bring you to your meeting with Mr.
Joiner. We can arrange our trip after your appointment
tomorrow.”

“
Thank you, sir,” Alex
said.

She prepared to bow but he
held out his hand. She took his hand, and he kissed the top of her
hand near the knuckles.

“
Tomorrow,” he said, and
got into the limousine.

They were escorted into
the resort and up to their rooms. As fitting with their status and
covers, they were given two adjoining rooms – a suite for Alex and
Raz to share, and a luxurious executive room for Max. They were
alone in their rooms before Max dared to ask, “Was that what I
think it was?”

“
He loves me,” Alex smiled
and held up a small piece of paper.

“
I can see you as
his
ernai
,” Max
grinned.
Ernai
was the term for a “little second wife”, a modern
concubine.

“
I’m over thirty,” Alex
said.

“
His
ex-
ernai
?” Max
laughed.

Raz put his hands on his
hips and turned away to keep from laughing. Alex waited to read the
note until she was on their balcony overlooking the Jialang River.
Max and Raz joined her there.

“
He wants asylum for his
mother,” Alex said. “You know, he has dual citizenship.”

“
He does?” Raz
asked.

“
He’s Steve Pershing’s
son,” Max said.

“
Officially, Steve
Pershing is a childless, professional black ops
director.”

“
Like the Mister,” Alex
said. “They have three kids?”

“
Four,” Max
said.

“
How do you know he’s
Steve’s son?”

“
Steve told us when we
were kids,” Alex said.

“
Not told us,
told us –
you know, in
words,” Max said. “Steve was always clear that he was his
son.”

“
Does he have a name?” Raz
asked.

“
The Chinese man who’s
nose was broken by Alex?” Max asked.

“
That’s what I mean,” Raz
said. “It’s too complicated for a sentence.”

Max smiled.

“
His US passport says ‘Ji
Song.’” Alex said. “His official name in China is Song
Ji.”

“
Family name is Song?” Raz
asked.

“
His mother’s name is Song
Fong,” Alex nodded.

“
He’s a member of the
Chinese Central Committee,” Raz said. “How did he get a US
passport?”

“
It’s not what you know,
but who you know,” Max smiled.

Raz furrowed his brow and
glanced at Alex. Lost in thought, she leaned against the balcony
railing to watch the river. He touched her lower back, and she
glanced at him.

“
They took Steve and
Trece,” Alex said. “Now we’re talking to Steve’s son who just
happens to have had the Fey Special Forces Team long-lost object.
That’s after we spent an hour talking about our top secret
nanodrones.”

Raz’s eyes reflected his
concern for her. She smiled.

“
It’s like a flakey
Parisian croissant,” Alex said. “Layers and
layers . . .”

“
You think there’s a gooey
chocolate center?” Raz asked.

“
Crap,” Max
said.

Alex nodded.

“
Crap croissant,” Raz
said. “Sounds delicious.”

“
Margaret is the only one
on the team who speaks fluent Korean,” Alex said. “The others can
get up to speed on the trip, but . . .”

“
Do we know the
nationality of the contractors?” Raz asked.

Alex shook her head. There
was a knock at the door.

“
That’s mine,” Max
said.

“
Expecting anyone?” Alex
asked.

Shaking his head, Max went
to the door. They heard him speak to someone at the
door.

“
There’s a car here to
take me to the US Consulate in Chengdu,” Max said. “Seems like our
little conversation wasn’t as private as we might have
liked.”

Alex leaned forward to
press her forehead against Max’s forehead.

“
I should be back for
dinner,” Max smiled.

He raised a hand in
good-bye to Raz and left the suite.

“
Work?” Raz
asked.

“
I need time to think,”
Alex said. “Do you mind if we . . . ? I don’t
want Sami to get mad or . . .”

“
She knows that we
cuddle,” Raz said.

He loosened his tie, took
off his shoes, and hopped on the bed.

“
Come on,” he said. “You
do your best thinking right here.”

Alex smiled. She slipped
off her shoes and lay down next to him. He put his arm around her
and she laid her head on his shoulder. A few moments later, she
realized that he was asleep.

Thoughts flew around her
brain like nanodrones. Every time she swatted one worrisome thought
away, another thought sprung up out of nowhere. She was about to
get up when the alarm on Raz’s watch went off. He kissed the top of
her head and went to shower for dinner. She waited until she heard
him step into the shower before placing a call to a Paris answering
machine.

“
Papa? I’m wondering if I
can come home to Paris after I leave China,” she said in French.
“Would you check with Mama? She said she might be traveling this
month. I don’t want to miss her. And you, of course. Love you, and
love to Mama.”