The Tiger and the Dragon
Page 1
The Tiger and the Dragon
Stephen Makk
Published by Stephen Makk, 2019.
Table of Contents
Title Page
The Tiger and the Dragon
Chapter 1.
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
HMS Holy Ghost.
Beneath Sunless Waves.
A Fall into Darkness.
USS Stonewall Jackson
The Kali Option.
Forbidden.
Ascension.
Grace, Collector of Evil
The Rebel.
Thanks for downloading The Tiger and the Dragon.
THIS IS BOOK 5 OF THE USS Stonewall Jackson series.
USS STONEWALL JACKSON. Book 1
USA
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0796CCTVJ
UK
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0796CCTVJ
Australia
https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B0796CCTVJ
THE SPRATLY INCIDENT. Book 2
USA
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07BPNP23G
UK
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07BPNP23G
Australia
https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B07BPNP23G
THE BLACK SEA HORDE. Book 3
USA
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07D634FF8
UK
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07D634FF8
Canada
https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B07D634FF8
Australia
https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B07D634FF8
THE IRANIAN BLOCKADE. Book 4
“THE BUSINESS OF A SOLDIER is to fight. Armies are not called out to dig trenches, to throw up breastworks, and live in camps. But to find the enemy, and strike him; to invade his country, and do him all possible damage in the shortest possible time...But such a war would of necessity, be of brief continuance, and so would be an economy of prosperity and life in the end. To move swiftly, strike vigorously, and secure all the fruits of victory, is the secret of successful war.”
GENERAL THOMAS J “STONEWALL” Jackson.
Cover by: https://laurareadauthor.com/
Foreword.
The dispute between Taiwan and the People’s Republic of China, the Tiger and the Dragon respectively is cool but could become hot.
It’s a struggle for the soul of Chinese nationhood. Both claim to be China, only one in the long term can prevail.
By downloading this book you’re probably interested. I’ve included links that guide you to a greater knowledge of the issues.
BUT IN A NUTSHELL:- After the rebellion in China early in the 20th century the communist rebels won and the legitimate Chinese government fled in exile to Taiwan. There, they ultimately founded a prosperous democracy, The Republic of China. Strongly allied to the USA.
The mainland is controlled by the communist party.
WE COMMONLY CALL THESE two: The Republic of China (Taiwan) and The People’s Republic of China (China).
Taiwan and China, both claim to be the legitimate government of China.
In the People’s Republic’s eyes, Taiwan is a renegade province.
In Taiwanese eyes The People’s Republic is a rebel regime.
REMEMBER, IT’S ALSO a battle between intelligence agencies, the Chinese Ministry of State Security, the MSS.
And the Taiwanese National Security Bureau the NSB.
Both are approximately analogous to the CIA.
“The battle for the mind begins before the battle of the fist.”
AS USUAL IN MY BOOKS, I do incorporate something of the real world in there. All devices used on the USS Stonewall Jackson are in service or being prototyped right now.
This book is about what could happen. The future is hard to predict, but flesh out the bones and something like this is an option.
STEPHEN MAKK. 2018.
HTTPS://WWW.SCMP.COM/week-asia/geopolitics/article/2156235/strait-talk-are-china-and-taiwan-brink-conflict
https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/china-taiwan-relations
Chapter 1.
Kawasaki Shipbuilding Corporation. Kobe. Japan.
YESTERDAY?
For Commander Nathan Blake that wasn’t anything like early enough.
He was keen to get his pride and joy the USS Stonewall Jackson back into service. At least it was now afloat here in Kobe bay at the home of one of its creators. It had been a rush, he’d been in Guam and was notified by the CNO to get his boat to Kobe quickly to have a new device fitted. The equipment and newly fabricated mast had been flown out to Japan and the Navy had borrowed Kawasaki’s equipment and men for the task. After all, they knew the Soryu class submarine that Jackson was based on. They’d helped create it. The US team were from Huntington Ingalls Industries and Boeing Directed Energy Systems. The device had been fitted but the sea trials had been a setback. He stood in the quayside watching the new mast raise and lower from her sail time after time.
“Hi, Commander Blake, it’s looking good now. I think we’ve got it sorted out.”
Nathan looked at the Huntington Ingalls Engineer, the man was grinning.
“Yeah? You sure?”
“It was a transient flow... Commander, it was an issue with hydraulic motor control. We had to fly in a modified control system and fit it, but it’s looking good now. The mast will retract and deploy reliably now I’m sure. Apart from that how did the sea trials go?”
“Ok, very good I must say, but we noticed some mast issues early on. Eventually, we just had to come into port.”
“Yeah, I can understand that. We’re sorted now. How was it going when it worked?”
“Good. We had the directed energy beam taking out Helicopters, aircraft and missiles out at seven miles range, more on clear days. Tracking was good and quick.”
“Good, we should be done here today, Commander.” Nathan went aboard looking at the mast raising and lowering as he descended the ladder from the sail. He walked into the control room. The chief Boeing Engineer stood watching one of his men securing the inspection hatch on their device.
“Commander, Hi, we’re done here, we got your software upgrade done, the tracking will be more accurate now plus a few other internals. The free electron laser will recharge faster now too. You’re the proud first user of the submarine-based directed energy weapon Vulture’s Stare.”
“I hope it’s as good as you guys say it is.”
“It’s been tested four ways and back at Yuma and China Lake. Static and fast-moving targets, both were taken out. You’ve a real fighting chance now against Helicopter and Maritime patrol aircraft. If you’ll sign this Commander, I’ll be off.” Nathan signed the work release. The Boeing people left the boat. Nathan gave Lt Cmd Larry Sayers a smirk.
“That’s it XO, they want us to run a few more trials offshore, but all things being well Vulture’s Stare is ours.”
“Yeah, it’ll be good to fight back at them sir.” Nathan knew it was now time to contact her.
“I’m just going ashore again Larry, get ready to cast off.”
“Aye sir.”
Nathan climbed the sail and walked out along the quayside, he took out his cell phone and dialled the National Security Bureau Officer. May Hsin was a member of
Taiwan’s secret intelligence service and had approached him in Guam, that was just before the CNO had ordered them to Kobe. The trip that she’d requested he make to Taiwan was on hold for now.
“Yes.”
“May, it’s Blake we’re done now. I’m in Kobe Japan, are we still on?”
“Yes. Get yourself and Nikki to the airport, you’ll find China Airlines tickets to Taipei waiting. See you soon.”
He’d have to think of a reason why Nikki had to go with him. He’d need to tell the XO something. But for proof that the trip was needed, that wasn’t a problem. Back in Guam May had him call the CNO himself at the Pentagon and he’d authorised the trip, so that was good enough for him. Why? he’d no idea, but he knew there was only one way to find out.
SAN FRANCISCO.
“KEEP STILL. I’M JUST finishing your left eye and that’s it.” The makeup artist finished her gold whisps with a flourish.
“There you are, have a look Tsai.”
Tsai Zhou, a gorgeous twenty one year old Chinese C-pop artist looked in the mirror and smiled. Her eyes, lips and skin looked perfect.
“You’re too good to me Liu.” The door opened and a man, young Chinese yet blond, looked in.
“Three minutes Tsai, you’re on.” She was bustled to the entrance at the top rear of the stage.
“Ready, now.”
Thousands filled the stadium in excited chatter, they knew the star was ready.
“Ladies and Gentlemen. It’s now the time, she’s here. We welcome Tsai Zhou.”
A great cheer went up, there was a flash on stage followed by billowing smoke. Down the steps she walked, one leg bare, one covered by her red and gold dress. The crowd erupted wild and screaming.
She walked up to the microphone.
“Jiujinshan wo ai ni. San Francisco, I love you. I love you.”
On a screen above the stage flashed the same phrase. 旧金山我爱你
The crowd roared. Tsai’s band kicked off her first number and the C-pop artist swayed her hips and pouted into the microphone. The crowd swayed and sang with her. It was going to be a hell of a night.
TSAI ZHOU SAT BACK in the limousine and puffed her cheeks, her head back against the rest.
The blond tour manager grinned. “You were a storm in there, you knocked them silly.”
“Yeah, it was a blast. I need some rest though.”
The limousine ignored the front entrance and pulled into the private parking area of the Fairmont Heritage Place Hotel.
The door was opened, her manager showed a pass to the attendant. They entered and took an elevator.
“I’m going to go to bed Saul. Where are we tomorrow?”
“Late start tomorrow. We fly up to Vancouver in the afternoon, you’ve a night off. You’re on there on Friday. After that, it’s two nights in LA. Get some rest dear.”
The elevator stopped, she walked to her suite and entered. The lighting was low, the room plush and inviting. Tsai took out a half bottle of white wine she’d placed in the refrigerator and poured herself a glass.
She looked around the room. It seemed the only place she got time to herself now, relaxing in a hotel. It was hard to believe just over two years ago she’d been singing at an ordinary club in western Wuhan. Her father was a truck driver and her mother ran a flower store. She’d been spotted one night by an agent visiting town and then, Pow. That was it.
From nothing to real stardom in no time.
She finished the wine, undressed, got into bed and turned out the light. Tsai was soon asleep.
SHE WAS PULLED ROUGHLY from the bed by a masked man. She started a scream, but his hand clamped over her mouth. Tsai was terrified with wide wild eyes, he wore latex gloves, why? He held her close and roughly quickly tied up her mouth with a gag. He was going to rape her, she knew. His eyes ran up and down her naked body, drinking in her sensuous curvy but slim form. The masked man dragged her to the bathroom. She was puzzled then terrified as she saw that he’d already run a bath, he must have been in here sometime. She was turned around and pushed backwards into the bath. She was soon up to her chest in warm water. The man took out a razor blade held in a plastic grip.
“No. No” she tried to shout. He slit her left wrist, took out another blade and slit her right wrist. He held her arms in the water. The man pulled a syringe from an inside pocket, took off the cap, removed a plastic restraint and injected her in the arm. He ran her fingertips around the body of the syringe. Tsai stared in horror as the water turned red with the blood flowing from her wrists. She struggled, but he held her firmly. Within a few minutes she felt herself getting drowsy, sleepy and then...
The man partially cleaned up the area surrounding the scene. He removed the gag and left the syringe on the floor by the bath. He stood and took a picture with his cell phone, then left the bathroom. He pulled on new latex gloves and looked through her underwear, he picked up the panties she’d worn that night. The man picked them up, sniffed them and spent long careful minutes tending to the frontal pad on the gusset. Satisfied he dropped them on the carpet and left the suite.
SUNLIGHT STREAMED INTO the SFPD Lieutenant’s office. He looked up.
“Ah, here you are. Look I’ve got a directive from downtown. You won’t like it Detective, but Three Joe’s from the Chinese consulate are going to be quizzing you.”
“What?”
“It’s that Chinese Pop singer thing two weeks ago at the Fairmont hotel. Any closer?”
“Yeah, got the toxicology report.” He tapped a file. “She pumped herself up with a dose of Max T and slit her wrists. Rich broad, she had more dough than she could use, full of money. Can’t see why she’d do that to herself, but that’s music deva’s, all of them are mad as a March Hare. I’d say it’s a shrink issue, she must have had a problem upstairs to whack herself like that. I’m going to close it.”
“I hear you Dhittha. But work with them ok? They’re Chinese Detectives from,” he squinted at the document, “Wuhan, Hubei province. They’ve got a translator.” The Detective pursed his lips in disapproval.
“If you want me to babysit slopes?” he shrugged.
“Downtown wants you to.” Three Chinese men turned up and asked questions and spent much time quizzing the Detective. Hours were spent accessing records taken after the crime. They wanted to talk to the Doc who carried out the autopsy. After three days they left. That afternoon the Lieutenant walked into the precinct squad room.
“How’d it go, Dhittha?”
“They wanted to go over shit we’d finished with a week ago. Asking all sorts of stuff, pulling papers. Checking prints. Regular pain in the ass. They got all excited over the broad’s panties, dirty bastards. Took pictures of the good luck signs she’d got in them.”
“Good luck signs?” frowned the Lieutenant. Dhittha waved his hand aside.
“Whatever, it was all Chinese shit to me.”
“Ok, you did your thing. Thanks. Now here,” he passed a case document, “there’s a DOA, downtown. An alleyway off East 21st Street, female Hispanic.”
XIUHAN. BEIJING.
LING SHIMING SAT AT his oversize wooden desk. His face a stern mask. He put down the report.
Opposite him sat a younger slim man, he wore a western shirt and tie, in contrast to Ling’s green buttoned up tunic. Ling was head of Bureau 4 at the Ministry of State Security, China’s equivalent of the CIA. He knew the investigation would be sensitive, she was one of China’s top stars and much loved by her fans. Tsai Zhou was a favourite of the Party Chairman’s daughters. It had landed in his lap as Bureau 4 was responsible for intelligence work in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau. There were suspicions that the region may be involved and there were political implications.
“So, you consider this accurate?”
“Yes Sir. The American’s had done a thorough job. We brought back some samples, and these were tested in the joke factory.” It was the name they gave to the analysis laboratories.
“Her murderer left no print
s, but these.” He indicated the photographs of Tsai’s panties, they contained two symbols, 台独 and a blue sky with a white twelve pointed star. Symbols of Taiwan and the Taiwan independence movement. “They point the finger sir.”
Ling nodded and slowly rubbed his forehead. “We’ve seen other indicators too. But it’s a big step to implicate the National Security Bureau. It may be sympathisers who did this, but the evidence is strong I agree.”
“She’d no affiliations or relatives from over there. The symbols and phrases she carried in her intimate clothing must have been planted. It may be a warning. Sir, Taiwan must be desperate.”
THE OLDER MAN STOOD and walked over to the window, birds flew and twittered in the trees. He clasped his hands behind his back and stared. He needed to apply his best judgment. Was the rebel province involved? But could it be another force?
That force maybe? He knew that there’s a minority out there who few knew about. Many senior figures, some of his colleagues in the MSS, didn’t know of their existence. He’d known people put to death for even having knowledge of them.
Ling stared fixedly at his country’s red flag with its yellow stars. Who was behind her death? To err could be a disaster. This was the last thing he wanted.
TAIPEI, TAIWAN.
WITH THE BOAT NOW UPGRADED and the XO handling the sea trials, Nathan and Nikki had spoken to their contact and here they were. She spooned up more of the Four Gods soup, rice broth, pork and barley.