Night Tide
Page 32
!
“I’ll!make!a!fresh!pot.”!
!
She! leaned! over! and! kissed! me.! I! watched! her! walk! into!
the!bathroom,!my!heart!racing.!Drawing!a!deep!breath,!I!got!up!
to! make! more! coffee.! The! sound! of! water! running! in! the!
shower!stirred!my!imagination,!and!more,!I!realized.!Quietly,!I!
slipped!into!the!bathroom!and!stepped!into!the!tub!with!Reyna.!
I!wrapped!my!arms!around!her!and!cupped!her!soapy!breasts!
in!my!big!hands.!She!sighed!and!leaned!against!me.!I!bent!and!
kissed!her!neck,!one!hand!sliding!down!her!belly!between!her!
legs.!!
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!
“Mmm,!we!won’t!get!very!far!if!you!keep!that!up,”!she!said.!
!
She! turned! in! my! arms! with! eyes! closed! and! a! dreamy!
smile,! and! tilted! her! face! up! for! a! kiss.! Her! eyes! opened! and!
looked!up!at!me.!
!
“Damn,!you’re!big,”!she!said.!
!
Her!hand!brushed!me!and!she!blinked.!
!
“Oh!”!Fingers!grasped!me.!“Really!big.”!!
!
Another! laugh! bubbled! up! from! deep! inside,! and! I! kissed!
her! playfully.! We! lathered! each! other! with! soap! and! stood!
under!the!spray!locked!in!a!kiss!until!the!suds!rinsed!down!the!
drain.! After! toweling! off,! we! retrieved! our! clothes! from! the!
other!room,!dressed!and!brought!coffee!to!the!dining!table.!!
!
I! smiled! at! her.! “I’m! dreaming,! right?! How! did! you! find!
me?”!
!
She!covered!my!hand!with!hers.!“I’m!sorry.!I!should!have!
told!you!sooner.!I’ve!been!keeping!tabs!on!you.”!
!
I!stared!at!her.!“For!how!long?”!
!
“Weeks.”! She! dropped! her! eyes! and! pulled! her! hands!
away.!
!
“You’ve!been!following!me?!Why?”!
!
She! shifted! in! her! seat.! “Not! following! you,! exactly.!
Keeping! tabs! on! you.! Just! checking! up! to! see! if! you! were! all!
right!after!what!happened!last!winter.”!
!
“But!you’re!supposed!to!be!back!in!D.C.”!I’d!been!so!happy!
to!see!her!it!hadn’t!really!occurred!to!me!to!wonder!about!the!
how!and!why.!“Why! are!you!here?”!
!
“You’re!right,!I’m!not!a!field!agent.!But!I’m!good!at!this.!The!
DDNI! thinks! so,! too.! When! your! name! came! up! in! connection!
with!Langford…”!
!
She! tucked! a! stand! of! hair! behind! her! ear! and! gazed! out!
the! window.! ! “I! wasn’t! kidding! when! I! told! Langford! this! is! a!
matter! of! national! security.! I’m! not! sure! how! much! I! can! tell!
you.”!
!
I!pulled!back.!“You!don’t!trust!me?”!
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!
She!spread!her!hands.!“No,!no,!it’s!not!that.!Yes,!I!trust!you.!
I’m!worried!the!more!you!know,!the!more!danger!you’ll!be!in.”!
!
“Jesus,! Reyna,! I’ve! been! shot! at! more! times! in! the! past!
week! than! most! soldiers! in! Afghanistan! during! their! entire!
tour.!Like!you!said,!I’m!already!in!this.!Up!to!my!neck.!Throw!
me!a!life!ring!here.!Give!me!something!to!work!with.”!
!
“Okay,! okay.”! She! flicked! imaginary! crumbs! off! the! table.!
“DOD,! DARPA,! the! Navy,! they’ve! all! got! a! ton! of! research!
projects!running!on!new!stuff!all!the!time,!right?!New!weapons!
systems,!flight!systems,!navigation,!engines,!controls,!you!name!
it,! we’re! working! on! something! bigger,! better,! faster,! more!
lethal.”!!
!
She!waved!a!hand!in!the!air,!erasing!her!notes,!and!started!
over.! “Sorry.! I! almost! got! up! on! my! soapbox.! Not! important.!
Here’s! the! deal.! For! years—decades—we’ve! been! working! on!
new! technology! for! submarines.! Back! in! the! mid6’Eighties,! a!
defense! contractor! working! on! Navy! projects! seemed! on! the!
brink!of!breakthroughs!in!a!couple!areas!of!interest.!A!scientist!
on!the!contractor’s!research!team!thought!problems!they!were!
encountering!in!both!areas!might!be!solved!by!nanotechnology.!
Really!cutting6edge!stuff!at!the!time.”!
!
I!felt!a!sense!of!déjà!vu.!“What!were!the!projects?”!!
!
“Aluminum!seawater!combustion!systems,!and—”!!
!
“Aluminum!what?”!
!
She! pulled! her! earlobe.! “Aluminum! burns! at! high!
temperatures.!Raise!the!temperature!to!a!certain!point,!bring!it!
in! contact! with! seawater! and! you! get! a! controlled! burn! and!
instant!steam,!which!you!can!use!for!propulsion!or!to!drive!a!
turbine.!The!smaller!the!particles!of!aluminum,!the!easier!they!
burn,! giving! you! more! control! over! the! whole! combustion!
process.”!
!
“I!don’t!get!it.!I!thought!the!navy!switched!to!nuclear!subs!
because! you! can’t! burn! things! on! board! without! using! up! too!
much!air.”!
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!
“That’s! the! potential! advantage! of! the! system.! Burn! the!
aluminum! in! the! presence! of! water,! and! it! actually! uses! the!
oxygen!in!the!water!to!keep!burning.”!
!
“You’re!kidding.”!
!
She!shook!her!head.!“It!works,!but!no!one’s!developed!it!on!
a!large!enough!scale!yet!to!be!practical!on!board!a!sub.!We’ve!
been! looking! at! it! primarily! as! a! propulsion! system! for!
torpedoes.”!!
!
Sitting! up! straight,! she! shifted! gears.! “Okay,! so! the! other!
area!these!people!thought!they!might!lick!with!nanotechnology!
was!battery!storage.!When!you!think!of!rechargeable!batteries,!
what!comes!to!mind?”!
!
I! looked! at! her! blankly! for! a! moment.! “What! type?! You!
mean,!like,!lithium!ion?”!
!
She!gave!an!enthusiastic!nod.!“Exactly.!Remember!NiCads?!
Nickel6cadmium!batteries.!Not!many!around!anymore.!Nickel6
metal! hydride! rechargeables! replaced! them.! And! now! lithium!
ion!batteries!are!the!big!thing.!!
!
“Batteries! are! basically! containers! for! chemical! reactions.!
Reactions!that!are!reversible.!Apply!an!electric!current!to!the!
container! and! you! get! one! reaction! that! stores! that! energy.!
Release! that! energy—power! a! device! with! the! battery—and!
you! cause! the! reverse! reaction.! You! know! how! that! works,!
right?”!
!
I!spread!the!fingers!on!one!hand,!trying!to!remember!high!
school!chemistry.!“More!or!less.!A!positive!pole,!a!negative!pole!
and!an!electrolyte!that!carries!electrons!from!one!to!the!other.”!
!
“Close!enough.!The!point!is!that!the!more!surface!area!you!
have! on! the! cathode! and! anode—the! two! poles—
the! more!
electricity! you! can! store.! The! research! scientist! back! then!
theorized! a! way! of! creating! thousands! of! tiny! nanowires!
sprouting!out!of!the!anode,!multiplying!the!amount!of!surface!
area!in!the!same!amount!of!space.”!
!
“More!power!per!battery,”!I!said.!
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!
“Right.! Well,! longer6lasting! power,! anyway.! Batteries! that!
last! ten! times! as! long! as! existing! lithium6ion! batteries,! for!
example.”!
!
I! thought! about! what! she! was! telling! me.! “But! you’ve! got!
all!the!power!you!need!on!a!nuclear!sub.!It’s!like!having!your!
own!nuclear!power!plant.”!
!
“True.”!She!fell!silent!for!a!moment.!“Did!you!know!all!our!
nuclear!subs!have!diesel!generators!for!back6up!power!in!case!
a!reactor!fails?”!
!
I!saw!where!she!was!going.!Longer!battery!life!meant!a!sub!
could! operate! for! longer! periods! of! time! before! surfacing! to!
recharge.!Fuel!savings!would!add!up,!too.!
!
“There’s! more,”! she! said.! “Nuclear! subs! generate! noise!
from! pumps! and! turbo6machinery! needed! to! operate! the!
reactor,!even!at!low!power!levels.!As!silent!as!they!are,!they’re!
not!as!quiet!as!a!sub!operating!on!electric!power.!That’s!why!
both!projects!were,!and!still!are,!so!important.”!
!
“What!happened?”!
!
“The!defense!contractor!said!the!lead!researcher!working!
on!the!projects!had!gotten!ahead!of!himself,!that!he!wasn’t!able!
to!replicate!what!he’d!claimed.!The!company!fired!him.”!
!
“Let!me!guess,”!I!said.!“Kwan!Ji.!The!guy!whose!lab!blew!up!
at!Southern!Illinois.”!
!
Her!face!was!somber!as!she!slowly!nodded.!
!
“How!did!you!get!involved?”!!
!
She! swallowed! some! coffee.! “Several! months! ago,! we!
started! getting! back! chatter! that! the! Chinese! were! onto! some!
new!technology!to!extend!battery!life.!No!big!deal,!since!there!
are!research!teams!all!over!the!world!working!on!the!problem.!
I!mean,!think!about!it.!A!battery!with!ten!times!the!storage!life!
of!what’s!out!there!now!instantly!makes!plug6in!electric!cars!a!
viable!alternative!to!gas6powered!vehicles.!And!the!Chinese!are!
rapidly! becoming! big! players! in! the! auto! industry.! A! battery!
like!that?!It’d!be!worth!billions.”!
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!
“But…?”!
!
“The! chatter! was! coming! through! military,! not! industrial,!
channels.! That! piqued! our! interest.! We! looked! into! it! and!
learned! whatever! the! technology! is! the! Chinese! don’t! have! it!
yet.!They’re!trying!to!buy!it.!From!someone!here!in!the!States.”!
!
“That!still!doesn’t!explain!what!you’re!doing!out!here.”!
!
She!punched!me!on!the!arm.!“I’m!getting!there.!Be!patient.!
We! got! wind! that! the! FBI! planned! to! intercede! on! Langford’s!
behalf!and!push!for!clemency.!The!timing!seemed!odd.”!
!
“I!don’t!get!it.!Why!would!you!even!care?”!
!
Her!eyebrows!arched.!“About!Langford?!ONI!kept!track!of!
Kwan.! Southern! Illinois! didn’t! have! a! defense! contract,! but!
Kwan’s! research! had! been! promising.! When! his! lab! was!
bombed,!we!paid!attention.!And!when!he!was!killed!soon!after,!
it! looked! suspicious.! Langford! was! the! only! one! implicated! in!
the! bombing! even! though! some! environmental! group! initially!
took!credit.!!
!
“So,!now!we!hear!rumors!that!the!Chinese!are!trying!to!get!
their!hands!on!some!new!technology!about!the!same!time!the!
FBI! is! negotiating! for! Langford’s! early! release.! It! makes! us!
wonder!if!maybe!Kwan!wasn’t!further!ahead!than!we!thought!
at!the!time,!and!maybe!Langford!is!trying!to!broker!a!deal!with!
whatever!he!found!in!Kwan’s!lab!before!he!blew!it!up.”!
!
“You! think! Langford! set! that! bomb?! He! was! just! a! kid! at!
the!time.”!
!
She!just!looked!at!me.!
!
“Look,”! I! said,! “I! thought! Kwan’s! death! was! a! little!
convenient,!too,!when!I!heard!about!it.!But!Wink!couldn’t!have!
killed!him.!Wasn’t!he!in!jail!at!the!time?”!
!
“He! could! have! had! accomplices.”! She! paused.! “Why’d! he!
come! out! here?! Don’t! tell! me! just! to! visit! the! family! vacation!
home.”!
!
“You!heard!him.!He!came!to!find!the!people!he!took!the!rap!
for.”!
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!
“They! also! could! be! accomplices! who! left! him! twisting! in!
the!wind.”!
!
“I! just! can’t! see! Clayt! and! Connie! Jones! masterminding! a!
plot! like! this.”! I! shook! my! head,! feeling! like! a! dog! chasing! its!
tail.!!
!
“But!Colin!and!Corinne!Wilson!would!have!been!perfectly!
capable,”! she! said! softly.! “And! you! know! as! well! as! I! do! that!
there! isn’t! much! doubt! anymore! that! they’re! one! and! the!
same.”!
!
She! rose! and! walked! to! the! window,! standing! there! a!
moment!with!her!hands!in!her!back!pockets.!
!
She! faced! me.! “There’s! something! off! about! this! whole!
thing.!Your!friend!Langford—what!did!you!call!him?!Wink?!He!
gave! everyone! the! slip.! He’s! been! a! ghost! for! the! past! two!
months.!And!now!all!of!a!sudden!everyone!knows!where!he’s!
hiding!out?”!
!
“How!did! you!find!him?”!
!
“Followed!you,!of!course.”!She!grinned.!“I!told!you,!civvy,!
I’ve!been!keeping!tabs!on!you.”!
!
“You!tagged!my!car!again.!Like!last!time.”!Heat!crept!up!my!
neck,! sparked! by! anger! or! embarrassment,! I! wasn’t! sure.!
Maybe!both.!
!
She!nodded.!“But!that!doesn’t!explain!how!the!FBI!caught!
on.”!
!
Exhaustion!tugged!at!me!again,!fragmenting!my!focus!and!
filling!my!head!with!half6formed!purple!thoughts.!
!
“They!got!him!out!so!they!could!follow!him,”!I!said.!“But!he!
outsmarted!them!somehow.”!
!
She!frowned.!“What!do!you!mean?”!
!
“I! think! Drucker! is! convinced! Langford’s! innocent.! But!
Wink!knows!something.!He!learned!something!while!he!was!in!
prison.!All!that!time!to!think!about!what!really!happened!back!
then.! Something! changed.! Now! Drucker! wants! the! people!
responsible—the! Wilsons—and! he! thinks! Wink! can! lead! him!
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right! to! them.! So! he! arranges!
early! release.! But! whoever! was!
assigned!to!keep!an!eye!on!Wink!after!he!got!out!lost!him.”!
!
Reyna’s! eyes! brightened.! “Sure.! Drucker’s! wanted! to! get!
his! hands! on! the! Wilsons! all! this! time,! but! he! didn’t! know!
where!they!were.!So!he!let!Langford!sniff!them!out.”!
!
“Why!does!Drucker!have!such!a!hard6on!for!these!people?!
You!know!anything!about!him?”!
!
She! nodded.! “I! looked! him! up.! Drucker’s! old6school.! The!
agency! recruited! him! as! an! undercover! informant! to! spy! on!
student! radicals! at! Columbia! University! when! he! was! a! kid.! I!
think!he!was!barely!eighteen.”!
!
I! recalled! the! photo! I’d! seen! of! students! barricaded! in! a!
building! on! the! Columbia! campus,! a! younger! likeness! of!
Drucker!clearly!visible.!
!
“The!agency!moved!him!out!west!as!part!of!COINTELPRO,”!
she! went! on.! “He! infiltrated! Black! Panther! meetings! here! in!
Seattle!around!the!time!of!the!race!riots!the!summer!of!’sixty6
eight.!Later,!he!signed!on!with!the!agency!permanently.”!
!
“So!he!would!have!been!here!in!Seattle!when!the!Wilsons!
arrived!from!Madison!and!did!behind6the6scenes!work!for!SDS!
at!UW.”!
!
“That!sounds!right.!But!I!wonder!why!he!waited!till!now.!
What! changed?! And! how! did! he! get! wind! of! Langford’s! place!
over!here?”!
!
“The!technology!the!Chinese!are!after—maybe!the!Wilsons!
had! it! all! this! time.! Maybe! they! decided! whatever! Kwan! was!
working!on!was!valuable!enough!to!try!to!sell.”!
!
“And! that’s! what! those! goons! are! after.”! Her! voice! held! a!
note!of!excitement.!
!
“The!shooters?!Maybe.!Where!the!hell!did!they!come!from,!
anyway?!Seems!like!every!time!I!turn!around!they!show!up.”!
!
“You’ve!seen!them!before?”!
!
I!squinted.!“I!thought!you!said!you’ve!been!keeping!tabs!on!
me.”!
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!
Reyna!looked!quizzical.!I!filled!her!in!on!my!run6ins!with!
the! commando! team—the! assault! on! Charlie’s! parents! place!
and!the!attack!outside!the!restaurant.!Her!eyes!widened.!!
!
“I’m! sorry,”! she! said.! “I! had! no! idea.! I! knew! you! were!
Langford’s!friend!once.!I!thought!that’s!how!you!got!mixed!up!
in!all!this.”!
!
“I! didn’t! know! they! were! connected! at! the! time.! But! it!
looks!like!they!are.”!!