The Einstein Papers

CHAPTER 32

Six hours later, after the fake oil-service truck carrying the microbes left Al-Jizah, Egypt, it passed At-Tur. The road the truck followed paralleled the Gulf of Suez since crossing onto the Sinai Peninsula. Within the next hour the truck would follow the road turning east briefly at the southern tip of the peninsula. Next the truck would head north along the Gulf of Aqaba before continuing on until reaching Dhahab. A scorpion darted onto the road, then retreated. Nervously twitching, it darted back onto the road just as the truck passed. Crushed by the truck's tire, the scorpion was unceremoniously tossed to the side.

Chup Cho-Sing sat in the passenger seat and once again read the timetable Sun Tao had presented him before he left Beijing. "We are right on time," he noted to the driver, who glanced at his watch and nodded.

"Once we round the tip it should take another three hours to reach Dhahab," the driver said as he swerved to avoid a mound of sand that had blown onto the road.

"Then I will try to sleep," Cho-Sing said as he scrunched down in his seat and pulled his hat over his eyes. "Wake me when we are close."

In Beijing the sun was nearly below the horizon. Inside the prime minister's office the light was growing dim. Sun Tao smiled across the desk.

"Just like we planned, our SPD agents inside Israel report they have the bombs in place. They are standing by to activate them at our command," Tao said to the prime minister.

The prime minister nodded. "These oil-eating bugs, you are sure they will work?"

"We tested a small sample today. The results were horrifying. However, once they are in place two days from now, we'll know for sure they will work on the reservoirs."

"Your plan is outstanding. We blame the microbes in the oil on radical Israelis. Then the bombs we explode in Israel are blamed on Saudi retaliation," the prime minister said quietly.

"Yes," Tao said, "it would seem a flawless plan."

"Quite brilliant. The war that ensues should draw the Americans to the region and allow us the opportunity to liberate Taiwan. After the liberation is complete and we have strengthened our position we can move against Vietnam and the rest of Southeast Asia."

"We can be certain the Americans will rally their troops to protect their precious oil supply," Tao agreed, "and that will leave the Asian region with a limited United States military presence. Our advisors feel they won't try to stop us from liberating Taiwan unless they possess overwhelming force. It seems that for the last few years the Americans' policy is never to fight a war they are not sure they can win."

"All appears to favor our side," the prime minister agreed. "Have we heard from the courier who holds the Einstein papers yet?"

"Not yet. Our embassy in New York reported they were being closely watched by American agents," Tao noted.

"Those papers are the key to our ultimate success."

"I'm sure our courier Tsing realized the New York embassy was being watched and diverted to his alternate plan."

"The alternate location is Washington, D.C.," the prime minister noted. "Do we have a ship in place to facilitate the delivery of the papers and the couriers escape?"

"I have already taken care of it," Tao noted.

"The time will be tight," the prime minister noted. "October 1st is fast approaching." In the Middle East, three hours and twenty minutes later, the truck carrying the microbes pulled to a stop in front of a large canvas tent that was erected on the sands outside Dhahab. The air was tinder dry. The night sky was a black carpet dotted with the twinkling lights from thousands of stars overhead. From outside the tent the fuel oil lanterns lighting the inside of the tent made it appear to be glowing. On Chou-Sing's orders, several men raised the flaps of the tent and the truck containing the microbes drove inside. Cho-Sing motioned to the man in charge of the operation in Dhahab.

"Remove the vat from the rear of the truck, then begin to fill the smaller tanks as planned."

The foreman shouted instructions to his helpers to begin the work then followed ChoSing to a cooler of water nearby. He waited as Cho-Sing drank.

"Have you arranged the boat to carry us across the gulf?" Cho-Sing asked when he had finished and wiped the back of his hand across his mouth.

"Yes," the man said and the noise from a generator arose. This was followed by the sound of an air compressor filling its reservoir.

Cho-Sing nodded, then walked over to watch the operation in progress. A pile of stainless-steel tanks lay in one corner of the tent. The tops of the tanks were threaded and contained a valve stem that had been welded in place. After the men unscrewed the tops of the tanks, the microbes, which were suspended in a gray-green viscous fluid, were added until they reached a mark inside the tanks. Next the caps were screwed back on and the mixture pressurized with air from the compressor. As soon as the tanks were filled, they were reloaded in the rear of the six-wheeled truck.

Forty minutes later the flaps of the tent were pulled back and the truck drove to the water to meet the ferry boat that would transport it across the Gulf of Aqaba. Three hours later Cho-Sing and the truck were inside Saudi Arabia, driving toward the oil fields. The deadly cargo of microbes was reaching the end of its long journey.