by HN Wake
Lily nodded. “Yes. And specifically molecular nanotechnology and surface science-study of how chemicals interface. When they meet. At molecule or atom level.”
“OK?” Mac struggled to follow her train of thought.
“Dongzhou-do you know Dongzhou?”
“Yes, China’s tech research park. Affiliated with the top universities. Scientific research.”
“Yes.”
“OK?”
“They have made breakthrough. In adhesion.” She walked two fingers across an upside-down palm. “They discovered how geckos stick on surfaces, how to walk upside down. They have identified in the nanotechnology--where the molecules connect on the surface—how the gecko sticks to a surface.”
“OK?”
“Also, skin of the gecko is…” She searched her mind for the English translation. “I don’t know how to say it. Water, liquid can go through skin.”
“Permeable?” Mac offered.
Lily nodded. “Yes. Permeable.”
“OK?”
“The gecko skin is also permeable. At the nano level.”
“OK?”
“The gecko skin is a perfect model. In phase one, at Dongzhou, they have been studying this model.” She drank deeply from her second glass of water. “They have used this science about the gecko skin to create an adhesive. Because they are working at nano level, they can create something so small it is invisible. They call it Gui. In English this is ‘phantom,’ no? No one knows there is phantom there. Gui. This is phase one. It is complete.”
“OK?”
“And because it is permeable, it can transfer something—anything nano--onto a surface with a touch. A phantom touch.”
“What would it be holding? What would it pass to a new surface?” Mac was struggling to understand.
“They are experimenting with many things. Small things. I don’t know. That is second phase. What it will deliver is second phase.”
“What kind of things are they thinking about?”
“I don’t know. But, it will be warfare. A weapon. Something biological. Germs?”
Mac’s heart rate picked up.
Lily continued, “Maybe technological. Pulses? Maybe? I have heard them discussing phase two. I do not know what they will put in the adhesive, what will be transferred.”
“Jesus.” Did the Chinese have an invisible delivery system for nano-level weapons? If so, it meant a tectonic shift in the age of warfare. Someone could simply walk in, tap a surface, and leave behind a weapon.
She asked, “Do you have access to files about this delivery system, this adhesive?”
“I have sample.”
“Here? You have a sample with you here, this weekend?”
“Yes.” Lily’s hands were still, but she was having difficulty swallowing. “I go with the sample to the US. This weekend. That is my offer.”
“You want me to extract you?”
Lily sighed, slumped, nodded. Her eyes looked sunken. It was as if having finally voiced her demand, she had expended the last of the energy that buttressed the calm facade.
She accepts they will kill her for treason, thought Mac. I don’t need to explain this. But she did.
“They will kill you.”
Lily nodded.
“You understand this is treason to the Chinese state?” Mac asked.
“Of course.”
“Have you thought this through?”
“Of course.”
“You will never come back here.”
Lily nodded.
“Your family, you will never see them again.”
Lily glanced away, nodded again. “I have no choice. They--”
At the front door of the suite, the suite’s key card lock pinged. Both women froze.
Mac grabbed her bag and sprinted into the dark bathroom. Inside, the harbour lights illuminated a gold sink console, a glass enclosed shower, and the long shadows from an oval bathtub on a cold marble floor. There was no place to hide.
The suite’s front door whooshed open. Mac slipped behind the bathroom door and peered through the crack. It was Gorilla. He barked something at Lily in Mandarin. She replied, “Shi, shi,” and tried to look bored. He stepped to a side table, grabbed a water bottle, and guzzled it. He grabbed a second bottle and headed back out of the suite.
Mac released her breath. If this were a honey trap, its execution was either exceptionally clever or shockingly poor.
She dismissed both possibilities; Lily was legitimate.
4
24:00 midnight
Mac flipped on the bathroom lights. Although dim, they reflected off the floor-to-ceiling window, creating a mirror image of the bathroom. She saw herself standing alone in the huge room.
Back in Langley, Odom picked up on the first ring. “Odom.”
“It’s big.”
“Talk to me.”
“I can confirm target is Fang Gaoli’s girlfriend. She travels with him. She is protected by his bodyguard. She is under constant watch.” She paused to pull her thoughts together. “Fang and Dongzhou have successfully trialed a new nano technology. It is an adhesive that can stick to anything but is also permeable. They have successfully completed the adhesive.
“They are experimenting with it delivering weapons. Nano-level weapons. This is phase two. She spoke of germs, viruses, pulse waves. I don’t fully understand the tech.” She took a deep breath. “The point is they have a delivery system that simply has to touch a surface to transfer something at the nano level.”
There was silence down the line.
She pushed the phone tighter to her ear. “She has the adhesive here in Macau and wants to be extracted with the sample. She comes with the sample. She wants out this weekend.”
“You find her story compelling, credible?”
“Yes. She knows enough to sound informed. And her position to Fang is credible.”
“Do you find her trustworthy?”
“Yes. She is showing the correct degree—in my opinion--of a philosophical, almost existential, understanding of the consequences of this decision.”
“What if this is a trap?”
“Then it’s a pretty elaborate one. But no way to know for sure. Fang could be behind this. But her emotions appear real to me. She seems exhausted.”
“We’ll need proof.”
“Understood.”
“You get the proof. I’ll start the approval process.”
Mac asked, “What’s the status on the passport?”
“They’re working on it.”
“Give me a name.”
Odom protested. “Mac--”
“Give. Me. The name.”
Silence.
She tensed, taking on the fight. “Odom. The last time you stymied me did not turn out well for either of us. And got an innocent brutalized.”
The shared memory was a constant reminder of their uncomfortable, arranged marriage.
He took a few minutes but then read off a name, “Herbert Linen,” and read off a telephone number in Macau.
Mac clicked off, rubbed her eyes, and pushed the black wig hair off her forehead. The tension in her neck was real, painful. As much as she relished the adrenaline, it was taxing to be ‘on’ for this many hours consecutively.
She rolled her head left and right; there were hours to go before this was done.
A deep voice answered, “Linen.”
“Herbert, I understand you’re working up an American passport. Requested out of Langley a few hours ago. This is Mac Ambrose.”
“Good to hear from you, Mac. Please call me Herbie. My dad was Herbert and it actually suited him, you know, from back in the day. He used to wear a yellow velour smoking jacket from the 1950s with those silk lapels? Herbert fit him.” He breathed in through his nose. “But nostalgia aside, good to hear from you. And yup, I’m your guy on the passport.”
In the midst of the tension, his campy monologue should have been jarring, but it wasn’t. Only someone with supreme
confidence would be able to joke at a time like this. Herbie was going to be an asset to this operation.
Mac said, “I appreciate your help. When will it be ready?”
“Not long. An hour, or two, max”
“Is Langley requiring their approval before you hand it over?”
“Of course.” He dragged the answer out with disdain.
“If I asked you—one field hand to another—to move without the approval?”
“My, my, my. You sure did pick the right guy to talk to tonight. I’m no fan of HQ.”
“Luck appears to be on my side.”
“Luck and the fact that HQ has run me through the ringer counterclockwise so many times my snot circles out of my nose the wrong way.”
In the low light of the Wynn VIP suite bathroom, she stared at herself in the window’s reflection.
He continued, “As a matter of fact, the last post they sent me to was Mali. Mali, Mac. Not exactly the hub of international espionage. And from there? Macau. I’m starting to think it has something to do with the letter M, but that would imply a real strategy of some sort, you know, pre-planning. And we are talking HQ.”
“My friend, Herbie, I hear you loud and clear. I am indeed lucky to have you on the other end of this line.”
“So, Mac Ambrose, my saga aside--to your request, I say no problem.”
“You’re a lifeline. I owe you.”
“That’s the way I like it.”
“You’ve got my cell number.”
“Yes.”
“Can you call me when you’re ready?”
“No problem.”
5
00:30
Reading Mac’s expression as she walked back into the living room, Lily concluded, “They want proof.”
Mac nodded.
Lily stood slowly, as if her muscles were sore, and wrapped both hands around the vase on the serving cart, transferred it to the coffee table. She twisted it so that the pale pink peony curved toward her. She raised her right hand, the fingers gracefully arched, and brought the inside of her wrist close to the flower, an inch from the curved petals.
It was the second time that night that Mac thought, Lily moves as if on stage.
Then, everything changed.
Did the petals just quiver?
Mac stepped closer.
The petals shuddered, a sudden, shocking convulsion.
Mac jolted.
The petals strained out to their full length, stiff and still. Then, as if with a great sigh that released their souls, the petals fell limp, dangling from the stem head; a surreal, horrific moment.
Tears welled in Lily’s perfect, black eyes. One escaped, sliding down the perfect, pale cheek. The facade of strength crumbled and her outstretched hand began to tremble. She held her wrist close to the limp flower; she knew what was coming next.
In the vase, the stem buckled and sagged, dropping the head upside down. A second later, a shrunken and wrinkled petal fell. A second and third and fourth followed. Soon two-dozen lifeless petals littered the table, fallen soldiers circling the wretched stalk.
Lily lowered her arm. Her mouth was dry when she said, “They don’t know I know this. About the flower.”
“Jesus H. Christ. What have they done to you?”
Lily leaned back against the sofa, wiped away the single tear trail, and fought for composure. “It has something to do with the sample. The adhesive. I don’t know all. I understand more than they know. I listen as they work. Something to do with adhesion. Geckos don’t secrete own liquid. Their skin draws away humidity, uses water already on surface.”
“How long has that been inside of you?”
“Three months. In the last days, I feel unhealthy. Something is wrong. With the sample.”
Mac’s chest constricted in sympathy. “Jesus Christ. Why didn’t you dig it out?”
Lily was passive, strong. “Then, I would have no proof of their success. I would have nothing to trade. Also, they told me if I cut it or bend it, it will release toxins.”
“That thing is your ticket out. HQ will approve this in a second. I’ll get you out tonight. I’ve got an alias being worked up for you. I’ve got a change of clothes in my bag. I’ve got cash. I can’t believe--” Mac paused, “What?”
The distance had returned to Lily’s eyes.
Mac remained still.
Lily licked her dry lips, “It is killing me. I heard them talking. Something has happened with the sample and my skin. It is taking the fluid from me.” She glanced to the petals and the dried flower stem. “It is absorbing fluids from my body.”
“Jesus.”
“He is watching me.”
“Fang?”
Lily nodded.
“How long do you have?”
“I don’t know. Not long,” Lily admitted.
“Why haven’t they taken it out of you?”
Lily blinked as she tried to focus on Mac. Her health was deteriorating, rapidly. She whispered, “They want to see what happens next.”
“They want to see how you die?”
“Yes. I think they want to see how I die.”
Mac shut the bathroom door softly as the call rang through to Langley. He picked up quickly. “Odom.”
“The adhesive is affixed to her wrist. She’s their beta tester.”
“What?”
“She’s their guinea pig. She is the fucking sample. It’s human-based, biological, and it’s on her wrist. You can’t even see it.”
She could imagine him in his dark, secure, basement office contemplating this turn of events. His silence angered her. Everything about this timid man angered her. Why couldn’t she have a different handler? How could she get the Mandarins to change him out? If she got Lily and the sample out safely, she would put in for a different handler and maybe this time they would listen.
She said, “She’s also dying.”
“What?”
“Within the last few days something has gone wrong with the adhesive sample. It’s killing her.”
“Are you serious?”
“That’s what she understands, yes. We’re in the middle of something big here.” She took a deep breath. “Odom, I need that approval to begin extraction. I need it now. And I need you to find out how I get this fucking thing out of her.”
“I’ll get back to you.”
Her anger rose. “Soon. I’ve got to work up a plan. I am not leaving her to these monsters.”
“I said, I’ll get back to you. Give me an hour. And Mac--”
“What?”
“Do not get personally entangled in this. We may not get approval.”
Mac jammed the call off.
She pulled out her Agency Blackberry and logged into an encrypted chat room.
“89, 42 here. You know anybody in biotech? Nanotech?”
A few minutes later her contact in the Agency’s IT department replied. “Maybe.”
She typed, “I have something. I want to run it up the flagpole. I may have access to a Chinese technology. Nanotech that secures a permeable adhesive to human skin.”
It didn’t take him long to reply. “WHAT?”
“Pipe down on the tech boner. I need to know what it’s worth.”
“It’s worth a mint! I can tell you that right now.”
“I need an offer.”
“Roger that. I have a friend who works at DARPA.”
DARPA was the research arm of the Department of Defense. Her fingers flew over the tiny keyboard.
“NO. It can’t be government.”
“42, you give me such little credit. :) DARPA funds private research.”
“I don’t understand.”
“I’m sure there’s a private firm working on what you’ve got. My DARPA friend will know who are the leaders in that field.”
Smart guy. She typed,“5% finders fee to you.”
“Now you’re talking. When do you need an answer?”
“Less than hour.”
�
�Roger.”
“And 89, ask them how we would remove it to get it to them. They’ll understand what I’m talking about.” Just typing that made her skin crawl.
“Copy that.”
6
02:00
The suite was darker. Only two lamps on either side of the room were lit.
“Now we have to wait for approval.” Mac slumped into a chair. The distance from the Virginia suburb had never seemed so far, the approval delay had never seemed so grueling. The intermission in the middle of the operation was always the worst, most draining part for the asset. She asked, “You OK?”
Lily nodded, pushed a strand of hair behind her ear.
“Tell me how it happened, how you came to be his mistress.”
“It is a long story to here. Even though I am not old. When I was first in primary school, the teachers told my parents I was different. They didn’t want to hear. They were very sad I was not a boy. All my life they regret I am not a boy.
“But the teachers work with me. They move me into class with bigger children. When I reach secondary school early, the teachers they tell my parents to get me help and my parents think maybe some day I will bring them pride.
“So my mother, she gets extra factory job to pay for a tutor. For my family secondary school was all work, all the time. I go to my gran’s house to work with tutor until it is time to sleep. My mother she is all the time at the factory. My father, he is a farmer. He is always in the field.”
She took another sip of champagne, then drew a long gulp from the water.
“We all worked very hard. There is not much sleep during that time. I took exams and got very high marks. My tutor and my teachers, they help me get into Beijing University.”
She said the University nickname with reverence.
“BeiDa. It is very rare for a farmer’s daughter to get to BeiDa. I stay quiet, work hard, do not waste time, have only one friend. BeiDa is precious to me. It is a way up for me and my family. It is the most precious thing to me.”
Lily’s gaze swept across the room. She continued, “That’s where he found me. He came in lecture hall. He walked up to professor, pulled him aside, spoke to him. Quietly. Then, professor started calling out names. All boys. They stood when he called their names. Proud. I remember thinking, will they call my name? But, I see they are only calling boys’ names.
