Dragon Head

by James Houston Turner

  “Let’s go with the secondary roads,” said Alpha. “Can you enhance the image to determine vehicle shapes?”

  Bravo worked the zoom function, which enhanced the satellite image to show the silhouetted shape of the first vehicle, which was a pickup truck bouncing along a dirt track among the groves. The image appeared jerky because of enhancement and reception speed limitations of their device.

  “Looks like a farm worker. Strike one,” Bravo said, zooming in on another pair of dots. They belonged to a larger vehicle – an SUV – on a paved, single-lane highway. “Nope,” he said, zooming in on the third pair of headlights. “There,” he said, pointing at the headlights, which were turning onto another paved road. “Boxy shape. An older van. Looks like our man.”

  Alpha punched the accelerator just as his cell phone rang.

  Bravo picked up Alpha’s phone and checked the Caller ID. “It’s from Shaw,” he said.

  “Put it on speaker,” said Alpha.

  Bravo did.

  “What’s the status on Babikov?” asked Shaw.

  Alpha said, “He knows we’re onto him and gave us the slip in a truck stop parking lot.”

  “I told you to stay out of sight!” shouted Shaw. “If you lose him—”

  “We won’t, sir,” Alpha cut in. “We’re tracking seven possibles via satellite, which we’ve narrowed to a single probable.”

  Shaw fumed for a long moment, then said, “Margin of error?”

  “Ten percent or less.”

  “Stay on course but don’t rule out the others until you’ve confirmed him to be your target. Error is something we cannot afford.”

  CHAPTER 47

  The sun was high in the sky when the Gulfstream parked on a yellow line at the airport’s diplomatic gate. Alice was waiting on the tarmac when the stairs folded out of the Gulfstream and touched down on the pavement.

  Standing at the base of the stairs with her arms folded across her chest, Alice was dressed in a tailored black business suit and black heels. Her long black hair had been pulled back in a ponytail that nearly hung to her waist.

  “You’re wearing your hair longer,” Wilcox remarked after descending the stairs. Striding toward her, he extended his arms to give her a hug.

  Alice batted his arms away. “Do not try charming your way out of this, Bill! Your president is accusing us of hacking your GPS.”

  Wilcox started to respond but Alice cuts him off.

  “Obviously, what happened is horrible. A thousand people were killed. But we are not responsible. Does anyone listen? No! Can anyone present the slightest shred of evidence that we were involved? No! Your president is threatening reprisals and many congressional leaders are echoing his thoughts. An international crisis between our nations is occurring and you decide to just drop in for an unsanctioned visit?”

  Wilcox again started to respond but Alice cuts him off.

  “Oh, but that’s not all, is it?” she continues. “You also want me to slip you and Colonel Talanov and two children into the country . . . off the books! I could strangle you right now!”

  Wilcox held up his hands in a pacifying gesture just as Talanov and the others joined them. Avoiding the heat of Alice’s glare, Wilcox introduced Alice as his longtime friend and colleague.

  “I demand you arrest these men,” Straw Sandal said, taking refuge behind Alice. “I was on vacation in America when they abducted me as their prisoner. You must arrest them!”

  Alice worked the screen of her phone and showed Straw Sandal the surveillance footage from Amber’s apartment. “Did your vacation include murdering a woman?” she asked pointedly.

  Straw Sandal looked away with a hardened glare.

  “Unless and until this footage is corroborated with additional evidence,” Alice warned Straw Sandal in Chinese, “it is not enough to convict you in a Hong Kong court of law. But that can easily change, especially if you or your father’s people harm any of these guests. Are we clear?”

  Straw Sandal glared at Alice but did not reply.

  “Are we clear?” repeated Alice emphatically.

  Straw Sandal grudgingly replied with a nod.

  “Shall we?” Alice said, ushering the group toward a glass door being held open by two armed guards.

  Wilcox fell in step beside Alice. “Remember the great time we had in Italy?” he asked brightly.

  “Don’t!” Alice hissed, holding up a hand, then gesturing everyone through the door.

  Once inside, Talanov, Straw Sandal, and the kids were directed through a security scanner. While they stepped through one at a time under the scrutiny of guards, Alice pulled Wilcox aside.

  “How dare you bring a Chinese citizen into this country as a prisoner, then have the audacity to ask that I admit you and Colonel Talanov and two children without passports, which of course you somehow managed to solve by pulling a hat off of a rabbit and getting Charlie – whoever that is – to email digital passports to my private number, asking if I could arrange visas for all of you until permanent documents could be couriered to my office.”

  “It’s rabbit out of a hat,” said Wilcox, “and it’s a reference to—”

  “I don’t care what it references!” said Alice in a harsh whisper. “You are not even supposed to be here. In fact, some of our sources in Washington claim you actually stole that airplane outside. Is that true?”

  Wilcox opened his mouth to reply but Alice held up a hand.

  “Never mind, I don’t want to know.”

  “Call it a goodwill visit,” said Wilcox with a smile.

  “The only reason we are allowing this – never mind your official title as an embassy wine attaché, which we both know is nothing but a ruse, is because I have known you for so many years.”

  “And what good years they’ve been,” added Wilcox.

  “Shut up, Bill. Good years or not, my superiors consider you to be a friend – one of the few we trust in your CIA – which of course we cannot admit publicly because you are CIA. But it is not just you that we are allowing into the country, is it? You are asking us to allow a former KGB colonel to come in with you. And not just any colonel, but one who is a notorious American spy. And if that isn’t enough, he also consults for the CIA. And if that isn’t enough, he is also wanted for questioning by your Director of National Intelligence. Is this true?”

  “Uh . . . not entirely.”

  Alice threw up her hands and stormed to the window and back. “Not entirely? What does that even mean? That it’s forty percent true? Seventy percent? Ninety percent? The only reason we are considering this insane request is because Diane Gustaves phoned me to personally plead your case, explaining how you were here with her blessing to help us identify and capture the monstrous hacker responsible for that airline collision. She concurs with your belief that Dragon Head is behind it, although Beijing disagrees. They believe the signal originated out of Hawaii by way of Australia.”

  “We’ve traced the signal to Shenzhen,” said Wilcox.

  “Which precludes Dragon Head from being involved. He never ventures beyond the confines of Hong Kong and Kowloon.”

  “Which would be the perfect cover were he able to mask the signal to make it look like it originated out of Shenzhen, or Hawaii, or wherever. Dragon Head’s behind this, Alice. You saw the evidence I sent. You identified the photos. You saw the video.”

  “A video is hardly proof. Videos can be staged by anyone with a camera and some actors.”

  “True, if that were all, but taken in concert with other evidence, it paints a picture we can’t ignore.”

  “What kind of other evidence?” asked Alice.

  “The same electronic fingerprints on both the virus that was planted in Diane’s computer system by Straw Sandal, as well as in the GPS hacking signal. Those fingerprints link Dragon Head with the hacking.”

  “As in functional code sequences? Is that what you mean?”

  Wilcox responded with a blank stare.

  “Never mind. You s
ay he kidnapped a young girl. Why would he do something like that?”

  “Dragon Head wants Talanov in Hong Kong.”

  “Why”

  “That we do not know.”

  “So the girl is his way of forcing Talanov to come here?” asked Alice.

  “Yes, and her name is Su Yin.”

  “Who is this girl to Talanov?”

  “Su Yin and her siblings, the ones over there who came with us, are the foster children of Talanov’s best friend.”

  “So, Su Yin is kidnapped, but in the process, Straw Sandal is captured?”

  “Yes, which is why the higher-ups in my government are so upset with me right now. They ordered me to bring Talanov and Straw Sandal to DC for questioning. Dragon Head, presumably, ordered Talanov to bring Straw Sandal with him to Hong Kong.”

  “Presumably?”

  “We’re assuming it was Dragon Head, because the kidnapper, Xin Li, who works for him, communicated the demands by threatening to kill Su Yin unless we complied.”

  “I can’t say that I disagree with your superiors,” said Alice. “although you didn’t hear that from me. From your point of view, Straw Sandal should have been taken to Washington for questioning. You cannot give in to criminal extortion, and you of all people should know that. Besides, with an issue like this, precedence must be given to the protection of many lives over the saving of one.”

  “Alex thinks he can do both.”

  “Both?”

  “He thinks he can rescue Su Yin and stop Dragon Head from bringing down any more planes.”

  “How does he plan to do that?” asked Alice.

  “Dragon Head needs something from Alex. We don’t know what it is, but we know it’s important. Otherwise, Dragon Head would not have resorted to such extreme measures to get him here.”

  “As in kidnapping a little girl?”

  “Yes. Dragon Head is holding Su Yin as leverage to force Talanov’s cooperation. But we’ve got Straw Sandal, which keeps Dragon Head from harming Su Yin.”

  “Like a bargaining chip?”

  “Yes!”

  “Allow me to reverse the situation,” said Alice. “Would you allow me to bring a United States citizen into America as a hostage, then allow me to retain that hostage as a bargaining chip while conducting my own private investigation of someone I claimed had committed a crime?”

  “Come on, Alice . . .”

  “Would you?”

  Wilcox scowled and looked away.

  “Do you see the position you have placed me in? I can allow you certain liberties, so long as you do not violate our laws, but I cannot allow you to retain Straw Sandal. She is a Chinese citizen. Nor do I have any warrants that have been issued in America against her or her father, which would justify further investigation on our part against your claims.”

  “Alice, please! The moment Straw Sandal goes free, we lose our leverage.”

  “And I am sorry about that, Bill, really, I am.”

  “Can’t you at least bring her father in for questioning? Or get a warrant and search his premises?”

  “Not without some kind of evidence that he is guilty.”

  “He’s holding a young girl hostage! Find her. She’s your evidence.”

  Alice gave Wilcox a you-should-know-better-than-that look. “We have rules of investigation here in Hong Kong just as you do in the States,” she said. “I can’t just kick in his door and hope to find something.”

  “We have security footage of his lover murdering a congressional secretary. His daughter was in that footage, and we have witnesses who saw Xin Li kidnap Su Yin. They’re right over there. Su Yin’s brother and sister.”

  “And I am telling you the law does not permit me to conduct investigations against our citizens based on claims made in America.”

  Wilcox bit his lip in frustration.

  “I realize this is a noble attempt to save a young girl’s life – which I admire, really, I do – which Colonel Talanov no doubt initiated by convincing you to fly him here on a Gulfstream you probably did steal. I am sorry, Bill, but officially, my hands are tied.”

  “That is bureaucratic bullshit and you know it. A little girl has been kidnapped and your main priority seems to be protecting Dragon Head’s rights and the rights of his daughter. What about Su Yin’s rights? What about the escalating tensions between our two nations because a hacker is operating here, in your own back yard, and making it look like you did it? Help me out, Alice. Unofficially is fine, but please don’t leave us floundering. We need your help.”

  “I will do what I can,” said Alice. “If someone has seen the girl in Dragon Head’s custody, then we can take further measures. But like I said, we cannot just kick down his door and hope to find her. As for Straw Sandal, officially, she is to go free.”

  “Officially? What exactly do you mean?”

  Alice glanced at her watch. “I must get back to the office.”

  Wilcox scrutinized Alice’s eyes in an effort to interpret what she had just said and not said.

  “Please don’t ask for clarification,” Alice said in response to his scrutiny over the sound of an airport announcement. “If you do, I will say what I do not want to say and you will definitely not like my answer.” And with a polite hand gesture, she ushered Wilcox through the security scanner.

  No one spoke while they walked along the lighted concourse, which was like a huge tunnel, with an arching roof that made the structure look like a gigantic fuselage, with geometric ceiling panels and a gray terrazzo floor polished to the sheen of a mirror. Arrival and departure gates were interspersed with boutique shops and flower beds bursting with color. Lighted panels on walls advertized famous brands.

  Moments later, the group stepped through some glass doors and out into the bright sunshine, which was filtered through the reinforced glass of a massive overhead canopy.

  “Since your passports have not yet arrived,” said Alice, “I can take you to a hotel that will allow you to check in without them.”

  “Accommodation has been arranged,” Straw Sandal said.

  The remark drew everyone’s attention to Straw Sandal, whose eyes were fixed on Talanov, as if warning him to comply.

  Talanov assessed Straw Sandal for a moment, then looked at Wilcox and nodded.

  “Then I guess we’re set,” said Wilcox with a smile.

  “Are you sure about this?” asked Alice. Her eyes were now laden with warning.

  After a quick glance at Talanov, Wilcox nodded.

  “As you wish,” Alice replied. “Call me once you are settled and let me know where you are.”

  “I will,” answered Wilcox. He gave Alice a kiss on the cheek just as an unmarked sedan stopped in front of them.

  Wilcox stepped over to the car and opened the door for Alice.

  “Be careful, Bill,” said Alice in a low voice before getting into the back seat. “If your suspicions are correct and Dragon Head has already killed over a thousand people in a midair collision, he won’t think twice about killing you.”

  CHAPTER 48

  Zak looked in his rearview mirror and saw a pair of headlights in the distance behind them.

  “They’ve found us, haven’t they?” asked Ginie, noticing Zak eyeing the mirror and looking back to see the headlights.

  “Hard to say,” Zak replied, turning right onto a smaller highway. “Bill’s phone is still disabled, so if they are following us, they couldn’t have found us that way.”

  “Then how?” asked Ginie, glancing out at the vast groves of citrus trees flanking each side of the highway.

  The highway they were on had a broad ribbon of gently graded gravel. Beyond the shoulder, the groves stretched off into an impenetrable darkness.

  “Aircraft or satellite imagery,” answered Zak, “and for them to have found us this quickly, I’m guessing the latter, which means they’re with the government.”

  “Why would the government be chasing us?” asked Emily.

  “I’m not
sure. So far, they’ve only been tailing us.”

  “But you don’t know why?”

  “No, I don’t,” said Zak, his eyes on the mirror, where he noticed the headlights turn the corner in the distance behind them. “They must have been watching us at the motel, and after we parted company with Alex and Bill, they stayed with us. The question is, why? They obviously know who we are – that we’re not Wilcox – and, yet, after we ditched them at the truck stop by removing the SIM card from Bill’s phone, they located us again. Why go to all of that trouble? We’re of no value to anyone, unless . . .”

  “Unless what?” asked Ginie.

  “Unless they need leverage with Alex. We’re to them what Su Yin is to Dragon Head, and Alex is caught in the middle. My God, that’s it. They’re keeping us on a leash in case they need leverage with Alex. Which means the government is very interested in whatever Alex is attempting to do in Hong Kong.”

  “What are we going to do?” asked Emily.

  Zak glanced at the dense groves bordering the highway. Just ahead was another highway that branched off to the left.

  “We’re going to lose them,” Zak replied.

  Less than a mile behind, Alpha had the accelerator pressed to the floor of the SUV.

  “They just turned left onto another highway,” said Bravo, his eyes on the jerky, real-time image of a van on the digital map illuminating the screen of his phone.

  “How far ahead?”

  “Half a mile.”

  “Where does that highway lead?”

  “Through more groves.”

  Seconds later, the SUV’s headlights illuminated an intersection of pavement branching off to the left. Alpha touched the brakes and accelerated around the corner. The SUV rocked to the right before leveling itself again.

  Alpha handed his pistol to Bravo. “When we get up behind them, I’ll swing left like I’m going to pass. When I do, shoot their rear tire.”

  Bravo popped the magazine out of Alpha’s pistol. It was fully loaded. After jamming the magazine back into the

  handle, he slid the metal lever and cocked the weapon. “Old habits,” he remarked when he saw Alpha grinning in the dim wash of the dashboard lights.