War of Eagles

FORTY-SEVEN

The prime minister was in a pleasantly detached mood as his plane neared Xichang. He had been reading for pleasure, not for work, which was unusual. But it had been an intense few days, and a search for the historical Wong Fei Hung was a welcome distraction. Tales of the nineteenthcentury Chinese hero had been a favorite of Le’s when he was a boy. The son of one of the Ten Tigers of Canton, Wong Fei Hung was a healer, a philosopher, a martial arts master, and a defender of justice. He was also the subject of over one hundred feature films and four times as many novels, which had obscured his real-life accomplishments. Le Kwan Po found the real man even more fascinating than the fictional one, living quietly as a peddler of herbal medicines while battling tirelessly for the rights of his fellow citizens. Married seven times — the last, to a teenage girl — Wong Fei Hung was obviously a man of considerable strength and stamina.

Anita was sitting beside her father, and Paul Hood was sitting across the aisle. They were chatting amiably in English. Le Kwan Po was happy and surprised to see his daughter so relaxed. She had asked that Mr. Hood be seated across from her rather than in the section of the airplane reserved for dignitaries. That caused some indignant glances and awkward remarks from the European representatives, but Le ignored them. It was the privilege of a high-ranking official to be provocative. Besides, none of them had ever gone for a walk with his daughter.

Le had been tempted to ask what they were speaking about when the phone in his armrest beeped.

It was General Tam Li calling from Zhuhai. Chou Shin had been killed during an unannounced visit to the Zhuhai Air Base.

“I do not know why he was here,” the general said. “We are trying to ascertain whether there were explosives on board.”

Le Kwan Po’s first thought was that Chou Shin may have been planning another unworthy act, such as a direct attack on Tam Li. It would have been a blow to the general’s power base by hitting his eastern command hub.

It also would have been treason, Le thought. Chou Shin was many things, but he was not a traitor. The defense of China was as important to Communists as it was to the more progressive elements of government. Even so, there would have been no reason for the Guoanbu director to go there personally. Unless it was to gain access to a place where others could not go. Tam Li’s office, for one.

“I had been preparing to leave for the launch, Mr. Prime Minister, but I want to be here for the investigation,” Tam Li went on.

“I understand,” Le replied. “Let me know what you discover.”

“At once,” the general assured him.

“And General?”

“Sir?”

“Has Taiwan begun its traditional coastal exercises?”

“They have,” Tam Li replied.

“Then tell your bureau of information to inform the Defense Ministry that a government jet has crashed on the runway, nothing more,” Le said. “Until your white team finds the director’s remains and has confirmed his death, I do not want that information released.”

“Yes, sir. May I ask why?”

“Taipei may see the death of our military intelligence chief as an invitation to expand their mischief,” the prime minister replied.

“Of course.”

“I will speak with you after the launch.”

Le Kwan Po hung up. He turned to his left. Paul Hood was wearing a perplexed look. Anita regarded her father with open concern. Obviously, that was what had caused Hood’s expression.

“What has happened?” Anita asked.

“Chou Shin has been killed in an explosion,” he told her.

“One of his own design? An accident?”

“I do not know,” Le said.

“Are you going to tell the gentleman?” she asked, indicating Hood with her eyes. She obviously did not want to say his name, which he would pick from the unfamiliar dialogue.

“American satellites will surely have seen the explosion,” her father said. “I will have to tell him something.” He could see that Anita wanted to suggest something. “Do you have any thoughts?”

“Tell him the truth,” she said.

“Why?”

“He is an intelligence officer,” she said. “He might be able to give us insight into the actions of another intelligence officer.”

Le managed a small smile. “That is true. But that is not the insight we might need at this time.”

“What do you mean?”

“Chou Shin and Tam Li were bitter rivals,” the prime minister said. “It is the insight of a thwarted military officer we might need.”

“I believe our guest may know someone like that as well,” Anita said.

Le had to think for a moment. “The man whose company built the satellite?” he asked, once again avoiding any names.

Anita nodded.

“All right,” her father said. “Let’s have a chat with Mr. Hood. As quietly as possible, so the others do not hear.

Anita turned to Hood and said that her father wished to speak with him. Le took a moment to gather his thoughts.

He needed to find out why Chou Shin had gone to the base when he should have been flying to Xichang. It was unlikely that anyone at the Guoanbu knew. Chou Shin was a man who guarded his own activities as jealously as he kept secrets of state. Perhaps the intelligence director had contacted someone before leaving or while en route. The prime minister would have his assistant look into that.

Of more immediate concern, Le did not know whether Tam Li had simply decided to carry their feud to a new level. That was certainly a possibility. It was also the one that concerned him the most. Because if it were true, there was no telling where — or how — it might stop.