‘A treat,’ she said, standing before him, the fingers of one hand caressing his chest. ‘But come, let’s go through.’
She laughed, then pushed him through before her. It was a raw, strangely sexual laugh; one he had not heard from her before. It made him turn and look at her, as if to find her transformed, but it was only Fei Yen.
‘I’ve missed you,’ she said as she began to rub oils into his shoulders, his neck, the top of his back. ‘Missed you a lot.’ And as her fingers worked their way down his spine he shivered, the words echoing in his head. ‘Like breath itself, my husband. Like breath itself...’
Six hours later and half a world away, in the Mids of Danzig Canton, Marshal Tolonen was standing in the main office of the newly formed Wiring Project. He had seen for himself the progress that had been made in the three days since he had last visited the laboratories. Then there had been nothing – nothing but bare rooms: now there was the semblance of a working facility, even though most of the equipment remained in cases, waiting to be unpacked.
Tolonen turned as Administrator Spatz came hurriedly into the room, bowing low, clearly flustered by the Marshal’s unannounced arrival.
‘Marshal Tolonen, please forgive me. I was not expecting you.’
Tolonen smiled inwardly. No, he thought, you weren’t. And I’ll make it my practice in future to call here unannounced. He drew himself upright. ‘I’ve come to advise you on the last two appointments to your team.’
He saw how Spatz hesitated before nodding and wondered why that was, then, pushing the thought from his mind, he turned and snapped his fingers. At once his equerry handed him two files.
‘Here,’ Tolonen said, passing them across. ‘Please, be seated while you study them.’
Spatz bowed, then returned behind his desk, opening the first of the files, running his finger over the apparently blank page, the warmth of his touch bringing the characters alive briefly on the specially treated paper. After only a minute he looked up, frowning.
‘Forgive me, Marshal, but I thought the last two places were to be filled by working scientists.’
‘That was the intention.’
Spatz looked aside, then looked back up at the Marshal, choosing his words carefully. ‘And yet... well, this man T’ai Cho – he has no scientific background whatsoever. He is a tutor. His qualifications...’
Tolonen nodded. ‘I understand your concern, Shih Spatz, but if you would look at the other file.’
Spatz nodded, still uncertain, then set the first file aside, opening the second. Again he ran his finger over the page. This time, however, he took his time, working through the file steadily, giving small nods of his head and occasional grunts of surprise or satisfaction. Finished, he looked up, smiling broadly. ‘Why, the man’s record is extraordinary. I’m surprised I’ve not heard of him before. Is he from one of the other Cities?’
Tolonen was staring past Spatz, studying the charts on the wall behind him. ‘You could say that.’
Spatz nodded to himself. ‘And when will he be joining us?’
Tolonen looked back at him. ‘Right now, if you like.’
Spatz looked up. ‘Really?’ He hesitated, then nodded again. ‘Good. Then there’s just one small thing. A mistake, here on the first page.’ He ran his finger over the top of the page again, then looked up, a bland smile on his lips. ‘The date of birth...’
Tolonen looked away, snapping his fingers. A moment later his equerry returned. This time he was accompanied. ‘There’s no mistake,’ Tolonen said, turning back.
There was a look of astonishment on Spatz’s face. ‘You mean, this is Ward?’
Tolonen looked across at the boy, trying to see him as Spatz saw him; as he himself had first seen him, before he had seen the films that demonstrated the boy’s abilities. Looking at him, it seemed almost impossible that this scrawny, dark-haired creature was the accomplished scientist described in the personnel file, yet it was so. Berdichev had not been alone in believing the boy was something special.
Spatz laughed. ‘Is this some kind of joke, Marshal?’
Tolonen felt himself go cold with anger. He glared back at Spatz and saw the man go white beneath the look.
Spatz stood quickly, bowing his head almost to the desktop. ‘Forgive me, Marshal, I did not mean...’
‘Look after him, Spatz,’ Tolonen answered acidly. ‘Allocate a man to take care of him for the next few days until his tutor, T’ai Cho, joins him.’ He shivered, letting his anger drain from him. ‘And you’ll ensure he comes to no harm.’
He saw Spatz swallow drily and nodded to himself, satisfied that he had cowed the man sufficiently. ‘Good. Then I’ll leave him in your custody.’
Spatz watched Tolonen go, then turned his attention to the boy. For a moment he was speechless, still too astonished to take in what it all meant, then he sat heavily and leaned forward, putting his hand down on the summons button. At once his assistant appeared in the doorway.
‘Get Hammond in here,’ he said, noting the way his assistant’s eyes went to the boy. ‘At once!’
He sat back, steepling his hands together, staring across at the boy. Then he laughed and shook his head. ‘No...’
Now that the first shock was wearing off, he was beginning to feel annoyed, angered by the position he had been put in. Now he would have to return the money he had been given to put names forward for the vacancies. Not only that, but in the place of real scientists he had been lumbered with a no-hoper and a child. What had he done to deserve such a thing? Who had he angered?
He looked down at his desk, sniffing deeply. ‘So you’re a scientist, are you, Ward?’
When the boy didn’t answer, he looked up, anger blazing in his eyes. ‘I’ll tell you now. I don’t know what game people higher up are playing, but I don’t believe a word of that file, understand me? And I’ve no intention of letting you get near anything important. I may have to nursemaid you, but I’ll be damned if I’ll let you bugger things up for me.’
He stopped. There was someone in the doorway behind the boy.
‘You called for me, Shih Spatz?’
‘Come in, Hammond. I want you to meet our latest recruit, Kim Ward.’
He saw how Hammond glanced at the boy, then looked about the room before finally coming back to him.
‘You mean, you’re Ward?’ Hammond asked, unable to hide his surprise. ‘Well, the gods save us!’ He laughed, then offered a hand. ‘I’m Joel Hammond, Senior Technician on the Project.’
Seeing how the boy stared at Hammond’s hand a moment before tentatively offering his own, how he studied the meeting of their hands, as if it were something wholly new to him, Spatz understood. The boy had never been out in society before. Had never learned such ways. It made Spatz think. Made him reconsider what was in the file. Or, rather, what wasn’t. But he still didn’t believe it. Why, the boy looked nine at the very most. He could not have done so much in so brief a time.
‘I want you to look after the boy, Hammond. Until his... guardian arrives.’
‘His guardian?’ Hammond looked at Kim again, narrowing his eyes.
‘T’ai Cho,’ Kim answered, before Spatz could explain. ‘He was my tutor at the Recruitment Project. He was like a father to me.’
Gods, thought Spatz, more convinced than ever that someone up-level was fucking with him; willing him to fail in this. A boy and his ‘father’, that was all they needed! He leaned forward again, his voice suddenly colder, more businesslike.
‘Look, Hammond. Get him settled in. Show him where things are. Then get back here. Within the hour. I want to brief you more fully, right?’
Hammond glanced at the boy again, giving the briefest of smiles, then looked back at Spatz, lowering his head. ‘Of course, Director. Whatever you say.’
‘Well, Yuan, can I take it off yet?’
He turned her to face him, then untied the silk from her eyes, letting it fall to the ground. She looked up at him, wide-eyed, uncertain, then gave a smal
l, nervous laugh.
‘There,’ he said, pointing beyond her, smiling broadly now.
She turned, looking about her at the stables. The grooms were standing about idly, their jobs momentarily forgotten, watching the young Prince and his bride, all of them grinning widely, knowing what Li Yuan had arranged.
She frowned, not knowing what it was she was looking for, then turned back, looking at him.
‘Go on,’ he said, encouraging her. ‘Down there, in the end stall.’
Still she hesitated, as if afraid, making him laugh.
‘It’s a gift, silly.’ He lowered his voice slightly. ‘My way of saying that I’m sorry.’
‘Down there?’
‘Yes. Come, I’ll show you...’
He took her arm, leading her to the stall.
‘There!’ he said softly, looking down at her.
She looked. There, in the dimness of the stall, stood the horse he had bought her. As she took first one, then another slow step towards it, the horse turned its long white head, looking back at her, its huge dark eyes assessing her. It made a small noise in its nostrils, then lowered its head slightly, as if bowing to her.
He saw the tiny shudder that went through her and felt himself go still as she went up to the horse and began to stroke its face, its flank. For a moment, that was all. Then she turned and looked back at him, her eyes wet with tears.
‘He’s beautiful, Yuan. Really beautiful.’ She shivered, looking back at the horse, her hand resting in its mane, then lowered her head slightly. ‘You shouldn’t have, my love. I have a horse already.’
Yuan swallowed, moved by her reaction. ‘I know, but I wanted to. As soon as I saw him I knew you’d love him.’ He moved closer, into the dimness of the stall itself, and stood there beside her, his hand resting gently on the horse’s flank.
She looked up at him, her eyes smiling through the tears. ‘Has he a name?’
‘He has. But if you want to you can re-name him.’
She looked back at the Arab. ‘No. Look at him, Yuan. He is himself, don’t you think? A T’ang among horses.’
He smiled. ‘That he is, my love. An emperor. And his name is Tai Huo.’
She studied the Arab a moment longer, then turned back, meeting Li Yuan’s eyes again. ‘Great Fire... Yes, it suits him perfectly.’ Her eyes searched Yuan’s face, awed, it seemed, by his gift. Then, unexpectedly, she knelt, bowing her head until it touched her knees. ‘My husband honours me beyond my worth...’
At once he pulled her up. ‘No, Fei Yen. Your husband loves you. I, Yuan, love you. The rest...’ he shuddered, ‘well, I was mistaken. It was wrong of me...’
‘No.’ She shook her head, then lifted her eyes to his. ‘I spoke out of turn. I realize that now. It was not my place to order your household. Not without your permission...’
‘Then you have my permission.’
His words brought her up short. ‘Your permission? To run your household?’
He smiled. ‘Of course. Many wives do, don’t they? And why not mine? After all, I have a clever wife.’
Her smile slowly broadened, then, without warning, she launched herself at him, knocking him on to his back, her kisses overwhelming him.
‘Fei Yen!’
There was laughter from the nearby stalls, then a rustling of straw as the watching grooms moved back.
He sat up, looking at her, astonished by her behaviour, then laughed and pulled her close again, kissing her. From the stalls nearby came applause and low whistles of appreciation. He leaned forward, whispering in her ear. ‘Shall we finish this indoors?’
In answer she pulled him down on top of her. ‘You are a prince, my love,’ she said softly, her breath hot in his ear, ‘you may do as you wish.’
Joel Hammond stood there in the doorway, watching the boy unpack his things. They had barely spoken yet, but he was already conscious that the boy was different from anyone he had ever met. It was not just the quickness of the child, but something indefinable; something that fool Spatz hadn’t even been aware of. It was as if the boy were charged with some powerful yet masked vitality. Hammond smiled and nodded to himself. Yes, it was as if the boy were a compact little battery, filled with the energy of knowing; a veiled light, awaiting its moment to shine out, illuminating the world.
Kim turned, looking back at him, as if conscious suddenly of his watching eyes.
‘What did you do before you came here, Shih Hammond?’
‘Me?’ Hammond moved from the doorway, picking up the map Kim had set down on the table. ‘I worked on various things, but the reason I’m here is that I spent five years with SimFic working on artificial intelligence.’
Kim’s eyes widened slightly. ‘I thought that was illegal? Against the Edict?’
Hammond laughed. ‘I believe it was. But I was fortunate. The T’ang is a forgiving man. At least, in my case he was. I was pardoned. And here I am.’
He looked back down at the map again. ‘This is the Tun Huang star chart, isn’t it? I saw it once, years ago. Back in college. Are you interested in astronomy?’
The boy hesitated. ‘I was.’ Then he turned, facing Hammond, his dark eyes looking up at him challengingly. ‘Spatz says he’s going to keep me off the Project. Can he do that?’
Hammond was taken aback. ‘I...’
The boy turned away, the fluidity of the sudden movement – so unlike anything he had ever seen before – surprising Hammond. A ripple of fear passed down his spine. It was as if the boy was somehow both more and, at the same time, less human than anyone he had ever come across. For a moment he stood there, his mouth open, astonished, then, like a thunderbolt, it came to him. He shuddered, the words almost a whisper.
‘You’re Clayborn, aren’t you?’
Kim took a number of books from the bottom of his bag and added them to the pile on the desk, then looked up again. ‘I lived there until I was six.’
Hammond shuddered, seeing the boy in a totally new light. ‘I’m sorry. It must have been awful.’
Kim shrugged. ‘I don’t know. I can’t remember. But I’m here now. This is my home.’
Hammond looked about him at the bare white walls, then nodded. ‘I suppose it is.’ He put the chart down and picked up one of the books. It was Liu Hui’s Chiu Chang Suan Shu, his ‘Nine Chapters on the Mathematical Art’, the famous third-century treatise from which all Han science began. He smiled and opened it, surprised to find it in the original Mandarin. Flicking through, he noticed the notations in the margin, the tiny, beautifully drawn pictograms in red and black and green.
‘You speak Kuo-yu, Kim?’
Kim straightened the books, then turned, looking back at Hammond. He studied him a moment, intently, almost fiercely, then pointed up at the overhead camera. ‘Does that thing work?’
Hammond looked up. ‘Not yet. It’ll be two or three days before they’ve installed the system.’
‘And Spatz? Does he speak Kuo-yu... Mandarin?’
Hammond considered a moment, then shook his head. ‘I’m not sure. I don’t think so, but I can check easily enough. Why?’
Kim was staring back at him, the openness of his face disarming Hammond. ‘I’m not naive, Shih Hammond. I understand your position here. You’re here on sufferance. We’re alike in that. We do what we’re told or we’re nothing. Nothing.’
Hammond shivered. He had never thought of it in quite those terms, but it was true. He set the book down. ‘I still don’t follow you. What is all this leading to?’
Kim picked the book up and opened it at random, then handed it back to Hammond. ‘Read the first paragraph.’
Hammond read it, pronouncing the Mandarin with a slight southern accent, then looked back at Kim. ‘Well?’
‘I thought so. I saw how you looked at it. I knew at once that you’d recognized the title.’
Hammond smiled. ‘So?’
Kim took the book back, then set it beside the others on the shelf.
‘How good is your memory?’
‘Pretty good, I’d say.’
‘Good enough to hold a code?’
‘A code?’
‘When you go back, Spatz will order you not to speak to me about anything to do with the Project. He’ll instruct you to keep me away from all but the most harmless piece of equipment.’
‘You know this?’
Kim looked round. ‘It’s what he threatened, shortly before you arrived. But I know his type. I’ve met them before. He’ll do all he can to discredit me.’
Hammond laughed and began to shake his head, then stopped, seeing how Kim was looking at him. He looked down. ‘What if I don’t play his game? What if I refuse to shut you out?’
‘Then he’ll discredit you. You’re vulnerable. He knows you’ll have to do what he says. Besides, he’ll set a man to watch you. Someone you think of as a friend.’
‘Then what can I do?’
‘You can keep a diary. On your personal comset. Something that, when Spatz checks on it, will seem completely innocent.’
‘I see. But how will you get access?’
‘Leave that to me.’ Kim turned away, taking the last of the objects from the bag and setting it down on the bedside table.
‘And the code?’
Kim laughed. ‘That’s the part you’ll enjoy. You’re going to become a poet, Shih Hammond. A regular Wang Wei.’
DeVore sat at his desk in the tiny room at the heart of the mountain. The door was locked, the room unlit but for the faint glow of a small screen to one side of the desk. It was late, almost two in the morning, yet he felt no trace of tiredness. He slept little – two, three hours at most a night – but just now there was too much to do to even think of sleep.
He had spent the afternoon teaching Sun Tzu to his senior officers: the final chapter on the employment of secret agents. It was the section of Sun Tzu’s work that most soldiers found unpalatable. On the whole they were creatures of directness, like Tolonen. They viewed such methods as a necessary evil, unavoidable yet somehow beneath their dignity. But they were wrong. Sun Tzu had placed the subject at the end of his thirteen-chapter work with good reason. It was the key to all. As Sun Tzu himself had said, the reason why an enlightened prince or a wise general triumphed over their enemies whenever they moved – why their achievements surpassed those of ordinary men – was foreknowledge. And as Chia Lin had commented many centuries later, ‘An army without secret agents is like a man without eyes or ears.’
An Inch of Ashes (CHUNG KUO SERIES) Page 11