Jintao Read online

  “What did you just do?” asked Quan.

  “Energized the circuits.”

  “A smoke test?”

  “Correct. Looks like we have continuity—no visible shorts. Now to bring the reactor online.” At the control panel, he entered a series of commands. “Once it’s running, I’ll wake up the subsystems. I should record this session so we can review the data.”

  “That’s a good idea,” said Quan.

  Von Ang activated a small view field and linked up with the equipment.

  While von Ang began his tests, Quan opened his pouch and brought out a portable view field. Within seconds, diagrams were floating in air. Feeling restless, he said, “The schematics are here if you’d like to look at them. I’ll have a look around.”

  “I would have liked to have more time to study the plans, but all right,” said von Ang, preoccupied at the control panel.

  Walking in parallels, back and forth between the inside walls, Quan explored the vast, empty space. The floor was dusty and there was no sign of footprints other than his own. Walking the extent of the lower level he found nothing, not even a wrapper.

  Mounting the elevator, he called out to von Ang, “I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

  Back turned, the scientist raised a hand without looking up. “I’ll be here.”

  Quan walked through the fog to the other building and entered the upper level. It was a huge space confined by four walls and a roof that was so far above him it seemed to have its own atmosphere. His chocklight shot through the darkness, searching for anything that might be a clue to what he wanted to know. He searched amid construction materials neatly stacked in the center of the floor: pipes, I-beams, weldments, joists, and hangers. He descended to the basement level where he found another desolate place, dank and tomblike. He stood still for a moment and shouted out, “Hello? Are you here?”

  His com link bipped. It was von Ang. “The reactor is online and I’m ready to test the subsystems.”

  “Be there in a minute,” said Quan.

  For Quan, the trail had gone cold and he was feeling abandoned, like a boy whose father had left him in a strange place without warning. It was impossible to understand. His father was a puppet master with strings connected to so many things…

  Without a trace, he thought. Why?

  At that moment, a profound feeling of loneliness filled him. If only Sealy was there to comfort him… but she wasn’t.

  Von Ang looked up from the photonics rack as Quan arrived at the underground lab.

  “You reviewed the plans?”

  “Yes, and traced the electronics,” said von Ang. “I’m satisfied that I understand how the device works. I would have done it a different way but it’s fine.”

  “Is there any record of the last experiment?” asked Quan.

  “There are notes concerning the installation of the new component. Nothing after that.”

  “So, can you show me what the equipment does?”

  “Not quite yet,” said von Ang. “We’ll need a micro-scan of whatever subject we want to put in,” said von Ang. “It’s specified in the stabilizer plans. We’re done for now.”

  Yet another disappointment for Quan—no trace of his father and no demonstration.

  ~~~

  Coming off of the areopad, Quan looked at the window to his left the fog was lifting and the tops of the buildings were visible as the glide angled up into the sky. A digital compass attached to the dashboard began to recalibrate as the glide turned and von Ang’s fingers made subtle adjustments on the console. The craft headed on a course due east from the island. Moving out slowly over the water, von Ang said, “Best keep it at five knots.”

  “That’s fine. There’s no hurry,” said Quan, glad to have someone to talk with. “So, tell me what brought you to New Hong Kong.”

  “My first time here, I was a tourist. I liked the culture and the food, and, happily, work brought me back here again.”

  “I thought it might have been work. Of course, you could work anywhere. Why here and not Silicon Valley, or CERN?”

  “I consult in those places from time to time, but they can’t compete with what’s happening here. China is the tech center of the world. Every major innovation for the last twenty years has come from here. Entrepreneurs love China. The corporate tax is only ten percent and the country is awash with money, making it easy to get a new venture off the ground.”

  “True, plus the state takes care of health care, telecommunications, transportation, and central banking,” added Quan.

  “I especially like New Hong Kong because the culture is so diverse—so many interesting people. I’ve met Colombians, Koreans, East Indians, Germans, English, Spanish, and French.”

  “So, it’s not about the money?” said Quan.

  “No. It’s not my principal reason for being here, although I certainly don’t mind being paid well. The city is very cosmopolitan.”

  “Old Hong Kong is what inspired China to become more capitalistic. Private ownership is what started the whole profit-motive thing,” said Quan.

  “On the mainland, the communist party appears to still be alive and well.”

  “There’s an ongoing struggle between the authoritarian and democratic, between the capitalist and communist styles of government. It’s that mix that has made China so successful—perhaps the best form of government ever invented.”

  “Spoken like a proud nationalist,” said von Ang.

  “Not really. More accurate to call me a proud Hong Kongese.”

  “I like that.”

  “Do you have many friends here?”

  “A few—more like acquaintances, really. I’m usually so busy and, to be quite honest, Chinese people can be a bit standoffish.”

  “It’s a trust issue,” said Quan. “East and West are very different when it comes to trust. In the West, the default is ‘I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt, until you do something untrustworthy.’ In China, the default is more like, ‘I won’t trust you until you’ve proven you’re worthy.’ Eventually, they come around, but it takes a while. Don’t take it personally. The Brits have a saying. ‘The early bird gets the worm.’ The Chinese have a saying. ‘The early bird gets shot.’”

  “That’s funny. You know, I liked your father very much but I never got the impression that he liked me. I knew he respected my expertise but I always felt like a tool.”

  “You were a tool. You really can’t blame him. Executives need to be detached. Goes with the territory.”

  “I suppose,” said von Ang, turning on the autopilot.

  “You’re very smart,” said Quan. “You might be the smartest person I’ve ever met.”

  “I’m smart, yes, but certainly not the smartest. Drop me in a room with a hundred smart people and maybe I’m smarter that ninety-nine of them. But, you know, there’s always one.”

  “Do you have a theory about what happened to my father?”

  “I’ve thought about it quite a lot, actually, and I must admit, it’s baffling. Why would he just leave without telling anyone? If I may speak plainly?”

  “Yes. Of course.”

  “Today I saw how much you wanted to find some trace of him, but clearly no one has set foot in those buildings for months. I understand how difficult this may be for you to accept, but we might never know what happened.”

  “I’m not ready to accept that,” said Quan. “I’ll keep looking until I know what happened. Let’s change the topic. You mentioned culture and work. What other interests do you have other than work?”

  “I surf the web and chat with colleagues, listen to music and watch movies—helps with my Mandarin.”

  “And for companionship?”

  “Easily arranged.”

  “I see,” said Quan, curious about details but reluctant to ask.

  They were quiet for a while. Then Quan said, “We’ve got another five minutes. Got any good stories?”

  11.

  Ning brought food to
the great room where Sealy and Quan sat on the curved orange sofa. He was telling Sealy about the trip to Kau Yi Chau Island. His hopes of finding his father had been dashed but the equipment was still there, ready for use.

  “Experiments,” he continued. “If they’re successful, science buildings and comets will be named after him.”

  Sealy said, “That’s what your father was working on?”

  “Yes, assisted by two scientists. The physics behind what they were trying to do is amazing and I want to see what the machine does. I also haven’t ruled out the possibility that showhow the experiments are related to his disappearance.”

  “Really? But how?”

  “Not sure. Maybe industrial espionage. I don’t know. I’ve followed the trail as far as I can. I think I should hire a private investigator now.”

  “I thought that from the start. Leave it to the professionals.”

  ~~~

  McGowen arranged a trip to the island with Dr. Lee and his glide touched down at an aeropad two blocks from her home. When the glide door opened, she handed him a large bag containing micro-scans and specimens for the demonstration. He swung the bag over the passenger seat and let it down to the foot well behind the seat. Then he extended a hand to her. She glanced at the hand, uttered a small humff and pulled herself up into the seat without his help.

  Quan was waiting next to the tall metal doors when McGowen’s gray-green glide came in, drifting sideways onto the aeropad. As they disembarked, Quan asked, “You weren’t using GPS, were you?”

  “Nope. Manual nav, as you requested,” answered McGowen. “Mind telling me what we’re doing here?”

  “Following the trail,” said Quan as he swung open the tall metal door. “You’ll see.”

  Dr. Lee went in right behind him, followed by McGowen.

  Inside the building, the lift brought them to the basement level. Quan stepped out first, leading the way toward the brightly lit area where von Ang was setting up. He introduced the two scientists who were coincidentally both wearing white lab coats. Dr. von Ang and Dr. Lee shook hands while the big Scot walked around looking at the assemblage.

  “So, this is it, then—what your dad was working on,” said McGowen.

  “This is it,” said Quan.

  “It simulates what OB12 was doing?”

  “We’ll see.”

  “I suppose that’s useful. Never seen anything like it. Interesting.”

  Unpacking her bag, Dr. Lee said, “I brought three items and matching scans. I have a camera, a data recorder, and a chem panel.” Reaching into a side pocket, she retrieved a small black card and held it up for everyone to see. Handing the card to von Ang, she said, “This contains the scan data. I suggest we try the chem tests first. I think they’ll tell us the most.” She held out a flat square of clear plastic divided into nine chambers, a miniature chem lab. “Three inorganic solutions, three reagent substrates, and three metabolic enzyme preps.”

  “Alright,” said von Ang.

  Dr. Lee stepped back, joining Quan and McGowen. Their eyes were focused on the back of von Ang’s lab coat as he prepared the first test. He inserted Dr. Lee’s black card into an illuminated slot in the photonics rack. A mechanism inside took the card from his hand. He turned and placed the chem panel in the center of the tightly stretched mesh in front of the wave guide. The system came up to full power, and he turned to look at the others.

  “All right. The system is ready.”

  “Let’s do it,” said Quan.

  Von Ang touched the Go button and digits began to stream across the photonics rack. The wave guides hummed and squawked. Then, all of a sudden, the chemistry kit vanished.

  Quan stepped forward and passed his hand across the spot where the kit had been. It was unreal. “That’s amazing!” he said. “There’s nothing there.”

  “That part was predictable,” said von Ang, confidently.

  McGowen stepped close to the mesh and passed his hand over the same place, “Bloody amazing.”

  “Amazing and puzzling,” said Dr. Lee. “Now I see why we were asked to sign an NDA. I want to learn more about this.”

  The object reappeared and Dr. Lee cautiously touched it, then picked it up. She carried it to one of the lab benches and set it down. Revrieving a small chip from her lab coat, she inserted it into a port on the side of the test block. A small view field no bigger than her hand appeared in the air above the chem panel. She flipped through the readouts then said, “The reagents and enzyme reactions show no change.”

  “Will somebody please tell me where that thing went,” said McGowen.

  “We don’t know,” said Dr. von Ang.

  “Obviously it went somewhere. It wasn’t here a moment ago and now it’s back.”

  “This next item may answer that,” said Dr. Lee, placing a motion camera on the mesh.

  Quan folded his arms and watched von Ang finish the setup and initiate the next test.

  Within moments the object vanished, then returned. Dr. Lee retrieved the instrument, inserted the chip and watched the small view field display only static.

  “Disappointing,” said Quan. “Might as well do the last one.”

  Next they tried the densitometry recorder. It recorded only slight a fluctuation of density at the moment the system energized.

  “The readings are possibly caused by vibrations from the wave guides.”

  “We’re missing something, aren’t we?” said Quan. “The machine has an effect. We can see that. Objects disappear and reappear, but what’s happening? Isn’t there something more we can do besides turn this thing on and off?”

  “The stabilizer your father added gives us tighter control,” said von Ang. “That in itself will allow us to do more-advanced experiments. It’s going to take time.”

  Dr. Lee added, “You must continue to experiment until a measurable deviation appears. Then you will be able to construct a hypothesis.”

  “While this is truly fascinating, it does not help the search for my father.”

  The two scientists looked blankly at each other. Then von Ang spoke. “With your permission I’d like to continue the experiments.”

  “Certainly,” said Quan. “By all means, continue.”

  All were silent for a moment, until McGowen looked at Quan and said, “I’m glad to help in any way I can. Tell me what you need me to do.”

  “You really want to continue?” asked Quan, looking at von Ang.

  “Yes. As long as there’s more we can do,” said von Ang.

  “Finding my father is far more important than the science here, regardless of its value. This project was important to my him and for that reason I’ll arrange financing for it to continue. As for me, it’s a dead end. I need to devote my time to the search for my father.”

  No doubt the technology had value and Quan realized that wherever there was financial gain to be had, there were those who would stop at nothing to acquire it. What followed logically was the possibility that his father was victim of a plot to steal the technology. While theft was a motive he could pursue, it made sense to keep his small team of experts working in the hopes that a clue might still emerge.

  “Dr. von Ang, you and Dr. Lee should decide what to do next. You can experiment as you see fit, but please remember you are bound by a nondisclosure agreement. And please take precautions to avoid drawing any attention to this island. Please, no open com lines and no GPS tracking—and keep me informed.”

  ~~~

  Discouraged by the lack of evidence on Kau Yi Chau Island, Quan returned to the penthouse in a sullen mood. In the great room, he sat remembering his childhood—the joy he felt at the sight of his father arriving home and his father’s laugh when they played games. It seemed like very long ago, and now Quan faced life without knowing what fate had befallen his father.

  Sealy sat with him. “Are you all right, my love? I know this must feel like a setback, but at least you can check it off your list. You should take a break. What would yo
u like to do?”

  A muscle in his jaw tightened as he clamped his mouth shut. Nothing she could say or do would erase how ineffective he was feeling.

  “I so wanted to find an answer out there. It’s really frustrating. I’m trying not to be discouraged, but I feel like I’ve failed.”

  She reached out to comfort him, stroking her hand across his back. “You shouldn’t blame yourself. Even the professionals haven’t solved this.”

  Quan sat with hands clenched together in front of him, looking down at his feet. “Giving in is not in my nature. It’s not over,” he said. “There’s more I can do.”

  At that moment, Ning approached with a tray of tea and Quan looked up. “Ning. Call the detective you told me about.” His voice was harsh. “Ask her to come here. I have questions for her.”

  “Yes, young master. I will do it right away,” said Ning.

  Worried by the tone in his voice, Sealy said, “I’m concerned about you. It’s important you step back and rest. Clear your head.”

  “I wish I could, Seal, but now is not the time. I need to press on.” His hands were clenched so tightly that his knuckles were white. “If he’s alive, he may be in danger . . . or dying.”

  She nodded. “I understand, but a break would do you good. That’s all I’m saying.”

  He kissed her and managed his subtle smile. “I love you. I know you’re trying to take care of me.” He stood up. “But this needs to be resolved as soon as possible and I can’t relax until it is. I’m going to take a quick shower.”

  Sealy watched him leave. Then she took the warm cup in her hands and sipped tea while waves lapped against the simulated coastline.

  It wasn’t long before the entry tone rang and Lieutenant Zhao arrived at the penthouse. Ning opened the door and showed her into the great room.

  Sealy rose, introduced herself, and said, “Quan will be out in a few minutes. Please, have a seat.”

  The detective looked around the room. “I prefer to stand. I’ve been sitting at my desk all day.”