Death Minus Zero

“We like to keep up,” Manning replied.

“Kai has confirmed Chan as the man promoted to engage in the task of bringing a major military prize into Chinese hands. Chan is a rising star. Real go-getter. Zero would be the project to push him up the ladder.”

“After all this time?” McCarter said. “I can see where your line of thinking goes—”

“The Chinese went after Zero before because they saw it as a threat, especially in the Pacific Rim,” Valens said, cutting him off. “They have allies in that theater. Removing Zero would have maintained the statusquo. When we canceled their attempt, China lost face. That would have hurt. They withdrew active interest at the time, but I don’t believe for one second they forgot about Zero.”

“Put it on the back burner,” Manning suggested. “Went into slumber mode.”

“Exactly. The old Sleeping Dragon scenario,” Valens said. “Something China is very good at. Patience in all things. The long game. Gathering data. Waiting for the next opportunity.”

“You make them sound a little paranoid,” James said.

“Read up on it,” Valens said. “The debate is still going on but there’s a consensus that wars could be waged from space in the not-too-distant future. If that’s so, the nation with the technology is going to be able to call the shots.”

“As with Zero,” James said. “It gives us the advantage at the moment.”

“Which is why the Chinese may still have an interest. And with Kaplan’s sudden disappearance, it starts to make sense.”

“Are they thinking if they have Kaplan they can make him work for them?” Manning said.

“They won’t have taken him just so he can visit the Peking Opera,” McCarter returned.

“They may have Kaplan,” James challenged, “but it’s a long leap from that to having a platform of their own.”

“Maybe the idea is to coerce Kaplan into providing them with the information that might allow them to break into the system and gain control,” Manning said.

“No argument from me,” Valens said. “It would certainly be a faster way to get what they want. But just the thought of it happening is enough to make me nervous.”

“Next question...” McCarter said, moving on. “I can’t see the kidnappers staying in this country. They’ll want to get him clear of the US. That could be happening right now. If they get Kaplan out of the country, they have a whole world to hide him in. And we have a larger playing field to search.”

“The minute we realized he was missing there was a clampdown on exit points. Sea. Air,” Valens said. “And I know what you are going to say. There are no guarantees we’ll pick them up. If they work at it they’ll find a way to get him out of America. Let’s not forget private airstrips and failing to declare exactly who is on board and where a particular aircraft might be going.”