Catalyst (Breakthrough Book 3)

by Michael C. Grumley

  Alison followed the captain’s gaze up one flight. “That’s fine. Can we remain outside?”

  Emerson nodded. “Of course. The wind is quite strong, but no one freezes in the Caribbean. Mr. Kenwood is setting up his equipment upstairs.” He looked around the stern. “I presume Commander Lawton has already reported upstairs.”

  “Yes. She headed up as soon as we arrived.”

  “Very good. If you’ll follow me.”

  They both fell in behind the captain and climbed up a white ladder, painted to match the hull. When they reached the next level, Emerson turned to face them before continuing. “I’ll let Mr. Kenwood know where you are. Is there anything else we can provide for you?”

  “Thank you, I don’t think so.”

  He nodded again. “Hold on tight.”

  After he had departed, Alison turned to Chris. “You ready?”

  He took a deep breath and wrapped his grip around the metal railing. “As ready as I’ll ever be.”

  “You sure?”

  “Yeah. I just never thought I would be back on this ship again so soon.”

  “Me either.”

  Chris looked down at Dirk and Sally, relaxed and moving slowly inside the tank. “Things are getting a little crazy, huh?”

  “You could say that again.”

  “Kind of…scary crazy.”

  Alison looked at him curiously. “What do you mean?”

  “I don’t know. Everything just seems to be happening awfully fast. The things we’re learning are way beyond what we ever expected.”

  “It’s true. But if we’re right about these plants…”

  “I’m not talking about the plants, Ali. I’m talking about,” he paused, shaking his head, “all of it. IMIS, the translations, Dirk, and Sally. We never dreamed of finding this much. Humans went for so long thinking dolphins were just smart mammals. A step above pets really. Now we find out they have culture, heritage, a history of their own.”

  Chris sighed. “It makes me think about how much history we humans have been ignoring, all around us. Every species has a history. A heritage. History isn’t just what’s happened or where we’ve been, Alison. History is about our place in the world.”

  Chris paused, trying to figure out how to put his feelings into words. “I guess what I’m saying is that it’s all kinda scary. It’s scary to find out how much exists around us that we’ve just been oblivious to. Or maybe apathetic. It also makes me wonder just how much more Dirk and Sally know.”

  “We’re finding out.”

  “We are. But it kind of feels like we’re stumbling backwards into all of it, doesn’t it?”

  Alison considered his question. “It does.”

  “It started out as exciting, but now it’s beginning to feel a little eerie. Do you remember that video we saw on the internet? The one with that dive team who was approached by a bottlenose?”

  “The one caught in the line?”

  “Right. It was caught in a fishing line and had a hook stuck in one of its flippers.”

  “Of course I remember. It was amazing.”

  “It was, right? I saw that again the other day and if you watch the video carefully, there are so many things that indicate a much deeper level of consciousness. How slowly it matched the diver’s movements. How close the dolphin was to him, like they were bound to each other. It worked together with him to get the hook out and the line removed. For those few minutes, they were partners. They just knew what the other was trying to do.” Chris shrugged. “Anyone can see it if they look close enough. It doesn’t take someone like us to show the world there’s a lot more there than we think.”

  Alison grinned. “And that scares you?”

  “No, not that. It’s how fast it’s all happening. How fast our world is changing. Just look at how fast IMIS is translating now. There’s a lot happening in this world that we don’t know about and it feels like it’s exploding.”

  He shook his head. “And the world doesn’t seem to do well with explosions in anything. What happens to us, Ali? What happens to all of us when the world realizes how deep this goes? It’s like discovering extraterrestrials. Realizing that we really aren’t alone in the universe. Hell, we’re not even alone on the planet. We never were. And IMIS is the catalyst for it all.”

  She looked back down at Dirk and Sally, thinking. “I know what you mean. It wasn’t too long ago that I thought the truth was more important than anything. That all the politics — all the cover-ups and deceit — would right themselves if there was enough truth. But now I’m not so sure. I’m beginning to think that truth, for all its virtue…is dangerous. For us and for them.”

  Chris nodded. “I think people can only absorb so much change at once. And as a society, probably even less.”

  “Maybe you’re right.” Alison’s eyes glanced back to the shore where she watched Echo Pier receding behind them. “It’s ironic, isn’t it? We tell stories and even make movies about how great a different future would be. But we rarely think about all the consequences.” Her eyes remained fixed on the horizon. “Remember when we first started this project? Remember all the research we did…and some of those crazy stories?”

  “How could I forget?”

  “Maybe some of them weren’t so crazy.”

  Chris frowned. “Ali, some of those people claimed dolphins could shapeshift into mermaids.”

  “I’m not talking about those. I’m talking about some of the others.”

  “You mean the ones about healing.”

  “Right. Some of those people claimed they were healed after touching dolphins.”

  What was left of Chris’s grin abruptly faded.

  “Maybe some of those people weren’t crazy, Chris. Maybe they can heal. If not directly then maybe indirectly.” Alison took a deep breath and turned around, leaning against the rail. “Now, thinking about what you just said, I think you may be more right than you know. Society doesn’t deal with change as well as we all think. At least not sudden change.” She looked up into Chris’s eyes. “What do you think would happen if people found out they can heal? What do you think happens to dolphins then?”

  Chris sighed. “Elephant tusks come to mind.”

  “And shark cartilage. And that doesn’t even work.”

  He folded his arms. “People would go crazy. When millions of those people think they can be healed from disease by getting a hold of a dolphin.”

  “Especially if it’s true.”

  “Exactly.”

  “And then there’s the plants. If they really are like what John recovered in Guyana, how in the world do you keep that secret?” She paused, thinking about John, and something he’d said just a few weeks earlier: beware the leap.

  “Explosions,” Chris said.

  “Okay, you’re right,” she said in a lowered voice. “This is getting scary.”

  “And we’re right in the middle of it.” He watched Alison become quiet and decided to change the subject. “Anyway, now that you’re sorry you asked…how’s everything else? How’s John?”

  “I don’t know.” She shook her head. “I haven’t talked to him in a few days.” She tried to convince herself it wasn’t a big deal. Just another routine mission that didn’t allow him to make calls. He’d said as much when they last talked. But something didn’t feel right. Something felt very wrong and she didn’t know why.

  48

  John Clay was also feeling worried, at the lights he and Tang were now seeing in the distance, above the trees.

  Helicopters.

  But these helicopters were not just searching. These were bigger…and they were landing.

  Apparently it was decided that stopping everyone was better than trying to find them from the air. Borger was right. Someone knew.

  The lights from the two large choppers descended and disappeared behind a dense patch of trees, leaving only a faint glow overhead to indicate anything was waiting on the other side.

  As Tang rounded a slight cu
rve, both men could see three sets of brake lights shining brightly from the cars ahead.

  “This isn’t good.”

  “No, it’s not.” Clay looked at the map on his phone again. They were less than seven miles away. Damn close. He immediately reached into the back and grabbed his bag.

  The road straightened, allowing them to see the first set of headlights shining at them. The bright white lights flashed off momentarily before resuming, indicating something had just passed in front of the distant vehicle.

  “Someone’s approaching on foot.”

  “Slow down.” Clay shoved the satellite phone back into a side pocket and lifted the heavy bag onto his lap. “They’ll see us if we stop.” He then reached up and turned off the interior lamp.

  “What are you going to do, jump?”

  “Yep.”

  “Okay, let me get closer.” Tang continued to slow the vehicle smoothly and drifted toward the edge of the road. They were now within a quarter mile of the blockade. Up ahead, flashlights appeared next to the first stopped car.

  “Keep your brights on until you get my door closed again.”

  Tang nodded. “Say when.”

  Clay quickly checked his feet and legs to make sure they were clear, then found the handles of his bag and cinched them together. “Go!”

  As soon as Tang turned on the car’s bright lights, Clay opened his door. In a split second, he jumped into the darkness and disappeared while Tang swiftly leaned over, fumbling for the door. His fingertips found a corner of the handle and pulled it shut, careful not to slam it. At an eighth of a mile, he turned the brights off and continued slowing behind the car in front of him.

  Tang fought his instinct to look back for Clay in the mirror just as one of the powerful flashlights moved further out into the road and shone directly into his windshield. The beam remained on him as he coasted in, behind the others, where he counted five soldiers on the road. Two were holding flashlights with two more gripping QBZ-95 assault rifles tightly in their hands. The fifth and closest soldier, with a flashlight already trained on Tang, turned back down the road as another car appeared in the distance.

  Tang could see the men were not in the mood for pleasantries.

  “Where are you going?” a voice barked from behind a flashlight.

  Tang feigned confusion and held up his hand to block the bright light. From what he could see, the man looked to be in his early twenties which probably meant he was inexperienced and hopefully unprepared for a driver taking the offensive.

  “What is this? What’s happening?” He kept his voice loud in an effort to mask any noise from the trees.

  The soldier’s pause behind the flashlight was brief. More brief than Tang had been hoping for.

  The man staring down at him was not a rookie. Instead, he peered at Tang with a look of bemusement. Without a word, he checked the empty passenger’s seat.

  “Where are you going?” he asked again, sternly.

  Tang didn’t take his eyes off him, even while a second flashlight appeared and began searching the rest of his car.

  “I’m going to visit a friend.” He remained calm, knowing that without the bag in the back seat their flashlights wouldn’t find anything…unless they opened the trunk.

  “And where is your friend?”

  Tang paused. His mind was racing, trying desperately to retrieve one of the towns Clay had mentioned.

  “Dadonggou.”

  The soldier’s mannerism did not change. He continued studying Tang and extended his hand. “Identification.”

  “What is the meaning of this?” he tried again.

  “It’s a security check.”

  “There has never been a check here before.”

  “How many times have you visited your friend?”

  “Many times. And there is no trouble in this xian.”

  “That’s right. And we are here to ensure it remains without trouble.” The soldier nodded, examining Tang’s ID. “You are a long way from Guangzhou.”

  Clay slid to a stop at the bottom of a steep bank. Much steeper than he was expecting, causing him to lose control and slide into a small creek with a splash.

  He quickly jumped to his feet and scrambled behind a nearby tree trunk. He waited for flashlights to appear over the edge of the road, but seeing none, Clay dropped his bag on the damp earth in front of him.

  Unzipping the bag, he pulled out a set of night-vision goggles and slid them over his thick dark hair. Next he retrieved a black matted .40 caliber and pushed it into the waistband of his pants before swinging the bag onto his shoulders again.

  He moved smoothly through the thick layer of needles and leaves, winding away from the road above him. Once beyond the glow of lights and the muffled voices, Clay broke into a sprint.

  49

  Qin peered out from the small window of the Harbin Z-6 helicopter into the near pitch-blackness below. There were now only occasional lights visible from the air, which gave the darkened interior of the cabin an eerie feeling. Only the thumping of the blades and the cockpit’s instruments were left to remind him that they were moving.

  The last three hours had unleashed a frenzy of activity. Once M0ngol had zeroed in on the American’s location, time was of the essence. They had to stop him before he reached the hospital.

  The mobilization took less than thirty minutes, but it still required time to travel the several hundred kilometers. Fortunately for Qin, there was a small team of Special Operations Forces on return from maneuvers at the base of China’s Guangxing Reservoir, close enough to intercept the American before he could.

  Qin checked his watch impatiently. He hated having to call Xinzhen, but he had no other choice. He needed transportation immediately…and men. And being a member of the Politburo, Xinzhen had as much authority as anyone within China. A level of authority that had a fully equipped Z-6 helicopter landing in the parking lot of the MSS building a mere half hour later.

  But now Xinzhen knew. Not everything, but enough to know what Wei had done and what was likely hidden in a small building in the middle of nowhere. Qin didn’t mention it was a hospital, nor that it was where he believed Wei’s daughter to be a patient. He’d been at the MSS long enough to learn that investigators never revealed everything, even to the Politburo.

  Especially since he now possessed information Xinzhen would kill over. He already had. And Qin was now walking a thin line between a being an asset to someone like Xinzhen and being a liability.

  He glanced up when the helicopter’s copilot waved to get his attention and pointed to his headphones.

  Qin nodded and glanced at the two men sitting next to him. Xinzhen’s men, both of whom were already aboard the chopper when it arrived at MSS.

  Together the men watched him stoically without saying a word.

  Qin raised the headphones and lowered them over his ears before adjusting the microphone.

  “This is Qin.”

  “Sir, we’ve stopped twelve cars. But no American yet.”

  Qin’s eyes narrowed. They should have been there by now. “Any gweilo at all?”

  “No, mostly locals. But two are from Beijing and another from Guangzhou.”

  “What kind of cars are they driving?”

  The soldiers on the ground paused. “Several Hyundai, GM, Nissan. And a Honda.”

  Qin remained, thinking, staring into the darkness with his coal-colored eyes. The man would have had to come in quietly. Unnoticed. And he’d need help to get here quickly. Which also meant help blending in.

  But in China, cars were not used for blending in. Instead, they were about status and prestige. Something that was especially true in Beijing. Cars were meant to be noticed, not overlooked.

  “How old?”

  “Hold old are the drivers?”

  “No. The cars.”

  The soldier on the ground turned and assessed the cars. “Most are new. Within a few years. The Honda is old. Ten, maybe fifteen years.”

  “
Who was the driver?”

  “A security guard. From Guangzhou. Says he’s visiting a friend.”

  “From Guangzhou?”

  “Yes.”

  Guangzhou was too far, Qin thought. Almost anyone traveling that far would have taken a plane over paying for two thousand miles worth of gasoline. Especially a lowly guard.

  “Where does he work?”

  “Ministry of Foreign Relations.”

  Qin’s eyes widened. His response was instant. “He’s a spy. Subdue him!”

  “Subdue him?”

  “Yes! Now!”

  Qin leaned forward urgently and slapped the copilot on the shoulder to get his attention. When the man turned around, Qin motioned forcefully toward the windshield. The message was clear: hurry!

  On the ground, Tang was standing nearby, watching the soldier. He couldn’t hear what was said on the phone, but the sudden change in the man’s expression was enough.

  50

  With his computer now secure, Borger was watching from his chair. The icon representing Clay’s phone had suddenly jumped off the road and was now moving very slowly.

  Another screen displayed the latest overhead shot from the satellite. He typed in the coordinates, which quickly zoomed the picture in. Most of the image was completely dark, except for two items.

  Borger picked up his phone and dialed.

  Clay was struggling up an embankment when the phone rang in his pocket. He pulled it out and answered without stopping.

  “Not a good time, Wil.”

  “Clay!” Borger shouted. “You okay?”

  He rolled his eyes inside the green-tinted goggles. “That’s debatable.”

  “I see lights coming in from the northeast. I think they’re helicopters.”

  “You’re a little late,” Clay replied, between breaths. He spotted a narrow path through the trees and plowed through several large bushes to reach it, where he broke into a run again.

  Borger zoomed out and examined a third light on the image. This one was further away and headed due north. “I have another one coming in.”