"Yes, Center."

SIXTY-ONE.

Domingo Chavez and Sam Driscoll sat in Gerry Hendley's office with Gerry and Sam Granger. For the first time in the two years Chavez had worked for The Campus, Hendley's laptop was not open on his desk. Instead he'd zipped it up in a leather bag and put the bag in his closet. It seemed a little paranoid to Ding, but there was a lot of that going around these days.

It was after eleven p.m., but no one commented on the late hour. The only topic of discussion was the potential to follow Mary Pat Foley's request for help inside China.

Granger said, "We've found a way to get you into Beijing, and I talked to the Red Hand representative and let him know we might be requesting their help."

Driscoll asked, "What's our access?"

"The Propaganda Department of the PRC is conducting a major charm offensive with other nations around the world. Trying to rally support for China and pull support away from the United States. They are inviting foreign media outlets to come to Beijing to learn about China from a Chinese perspective, not what Hollywood says about it."

Chavez said, "I've used media credentials as cover for status on more than one occasion in my career."

"Yeah, the Propaganda Department is pledging free movement of the press in China throughout this conflict."

Chavez said, "Yeah? I've heard other dictatorships say the same shit."

Granger conceded the point. "You can figure that every step you take will be with a government minder on your arm and clandestine surveillance will be monitoring your every move."

Driscoll said, "That sounds like it might interfere with our plans to work with a group of cutthroat criminals to link up with a group of armed rebels."

Chavez chuckled.

Granger laughed, too, then said, "Red Hand has a plan to get you away from the minders." He looked down at his notepad. "In Beijing the Ministry of Culture will offer you the opportunity to go on a number of media excursions. One of the excursions will be to the Great Wall. There is a main location where they visit, and a secondary, less traveled location. The name of it is listed here. You are to ask to see that portion of the wall."

Driscoll asked, "And then what?"

"Somehow they will get you away from the minders, at which point they will take you to the rebels."

"Tell me what you know about the rebel force."

"One of their number is a cop, and he's been alerting them to police crackdowns, government movements, and the like. They have been doing small-scale harassing actions against the government out in the provinces. They set some government vehicles on fire, blew up a couple of rail lines.

"So far Chinese state-run media has covered it up. No surprise there. But they are planning on acting next inside of Beijing, where there is a lot of international media and foreigners who can spread the word. That's their main goal, starting a small fire that will grow and grow like the protests grew.

"They claim to have a well-trained force of over three hundred rebels, as well as small arms. They want to hit back against the Chicoms."

Chavez was incredulous. "They want to take on the Army? Are they insane?"

Driscoll echoed the sentiment: "Excuse me if I don't faint from excitement. They sound like lambs to the slaughter."

Granger shook his head. "Obviously they are not going to topple the government with a counterinsurgency. Not with three hundred guys. Hell, not with three hundred thousand guys. But maybe we can use them."

"Use them for what?" Ding asked.

"If a shooting war starts, Mary Pat wants assets in the capital city. These rebels are in place and might be just what we need. It's hard to get a straight read on how successful they've been. The Chinese government makes out like they are a couple of mosquito bites, and the rebels are proclaiming that they are a gnat's-ass distance from toppling the Communist government."

Driscoll groaned. "I think we have to go on the assumption that, on this one issue, the official word from Beijing is closer to the truth."

"I agree. But even if the rebels aren't exactly an organized and elite fighting force, if we get over there with the right equipment and intelligence, we will provide a force multiplication effect."

Ding asked, "What are their politics?"

Granger shrugged. "Confused. They are against the government-on that they all agree. Otherwise they are just a disparate band of students. Plus there are some criminals in the mix, folks on the run from the cops, AWOL soldiers."

Chavez asked, "Are our document guys good enough to get us into Beijing?"

"Yeah. We can get you into the country, but you'll be going in light."

Gerry Hendley added, "Shit, you'll be going in naked. You will be foreigners in a city that is wary of foreigners."

Chavez said, "We'll need to bring Caruso back for this. He can play Italian, at least in front of the Chinese."

Hendley nodded, looked to Granger. Sam did not seem happy about it, but he said, "Do it. But not Ryan. Not there."

Chavez said, "Okay. We get Caruso, and I'll go. What about you, Sam?"

Driscoll was not sold. "Just trust the killers and thieves of Red Hand to take us to some untested rebel force. Is that the plan, basically?"

Granger replied, "You don't have to do this."

Driscoll thought it over and then said, "Under normal conditions, this would be way too thin to chance it. But I think we have to give it a shot." He sighed. "What the hell, I'm in."

Hendley nodded appreciatively, then said, "Damn lot of unknowns on this, guys. I am not prepared to green-light you for any action, but I will let you three go over there and sniff around. You meet with the rebels, send me your best impressions of what is going on, and together we'll decide if this is something that we can pursue."

"Sounds good to me," said Chavez, and he looked at the other two men on his side of the desk.

"Works for me," said Driscoll.

Granger stood up, signifying the end of the meeting. "Okay. Head down to operations and order a full identification portfolio for all three of you. Tell ops to double-time the credentials but do their best work. No one down there goes home until you have what you need. I don't care if they are here all night, you will get your credos. Catch any flak and have them give me a call."

Ding stood and shook Sam's hand. "Thanks."

Hendley shook the men's hands and said, "You guys just be careful. Pakistan in January was no cakewalk, I know, but the Chinese are several orders of magnitude more competent and dangerous."

"Roger that," said Ding.

SIXTY-TWO.

Mr. President?"

Jack Ryan woke to see the night watch officer standing over his bed. He sat up quickly; he was, after all, getting used to this. He followed the Air Force officer out into the hall before Cathy woke.

He joked softly as they walked: "I get more news overnight than during the day."

The NWO said, "The secretary of state wanted me to wake you. It's all over television, sir. The Chinese are saying American pilots are flying covert missions in Taiwanese aircraft."

"Shit," said Ryan. It was his idea, it was secret, and now it was on the news. "Okay, get the gang together. I'll be down in a few minutes."

- How did they find out?" Ryan asked the table full of his best military and intelligence advisers.

Mary Pat Foley said, "Taiwan is full of Chinese spies. Word leaked somehow. A Marine pilot was shot down and then rescued by a fishing trawler. That one event probably doubled the number of people who knew about the covert operation."

Jack knew the real world had a habit of intruding on his best schemes.

He thought it over for a moment. "I'm reading the daily reports on our pilots' activities. They are providing a real benefit to the ROC. Taiwan would have suffered tremendous losses to the Chinese if not for our operation."

Burgess agreed. "Taiwan is there for the taking. A couple dozen American pilots can't change that. But if the PLAAF had racked up another twenty-five air-to-air kills, the morale in the ROC would have already hit rock bottom, and there would be a groundswell of Taiwanese ready to throw in the towel. I'm very glad we've got our well-trained jet jocks over there giving it back to the Chinese."

Bob continued, "We neither confirm nor deny the story. We just refuse to comment on China's allegations. And we keep our guys over there."

Everyone agreed, though Adler looked worried.

The Commander of the Pacific Fleet, Mark Jorgensen, had excused himself from the videoconference just as Ryan entered the room. Ryan had been around long enough to know that admirals did not usually tell the President they had something more important to deal with unless it was indeed more important.

Now he was back on-screen. His voice was loud, almost angry, as he interrupted the secretary of defense, who had been speaking about the situation in Taiwan. "Mr. President, my apologies. The Chinese have fired more anti-ship cruise missiles against another Taiwanese ship. They struck the Tso Ying, a destroyer that was on patrol in the Taiwan Strait, with two Silkworm missiles. This boat was the USS Kidd before we sold it to the ROC some years back. The Tso Ying is currently disabled, burning and adrift. It has crossed the centerline of the strait and is heading toward Chinese territorial waters."

Burgess muttered, "God damn it."

Jorgensen continued, "Chairman Su has ordered the United States to stay out of the area. He just publicly threatened to launch an anti-ship ballistic missile, apparently the Dong Feng 21, against the USS Ronald Reagan or Nimitz carrier groups, if they move within the three-hundred-mile exclusion zone Su imposed last week."

There were gasps around the room.

Ryan asked, "What is the range of the DF 21?"

"Nine hundred miles."

"Jesus Christ! We could move the Reagan back to Tokyo Bay and they could still hit it."

"That is correct, sir. And it is a true carrier killer, sir. One DF 21 would sink a Nimitz-class carrier, and likely kill most everyone on board."

"How many of these weapons do the Chinese have?"

Mary Pat Foley answered this one: "Our best guess is eighty to one hundred."

"Mobile launchers?"

"Yes, Mr. President. Land-based wheeled mobile launchers, as well as submarines."

"Okay, what about our subs? We are operating undersea in the strait, yes?"

Jorgensen said, "Yes, sir."

"Can we help with the Taiwanese destroyer?"

Bob Burgess said, "You mean with the rescue?"

"Yes."

Burgess looked to Jorgensen. The admiral said, "We can launch cruise missiles against the PLAN if they attack the wounded ship."

Ryan looked around the room. "That's open naval warfare." He drummed his fingers on the table.

"All right. Scott, get Ambassador Li on the line right now. I want him to go to the Chinese foreign ministry this second and tell them that any further attack on the Tso Ying will be resisted by U.S. force."

Scott Adler stood and headed out of the conference room.

Jack Ryan addressed the others: "We are on the verge of open war in the strait now. I want every U.S. asset in the East China Sea, the Yellow Sea, anywhere in the Western Pacific, on the absolute highest state of readiness. If one of our subs attacks a Chinese vessel, then we can expect all hell to break loose."

- Valentin Kovalenko climbed into the passenger seat of Darren Lipton's Toyota Sienna at six in the morning. The Russian had instructions from Center. As always, he did not know the reason behind the message he was about to deliver, but he was placated in the fact that his Russian colleagues at the embassy had given him the go-ahead to do what he was told, so he did not question his directive.

He said, "You are to make an appointment with your agent immediately."

Lipton responded with his usual anger. "She's not a trained pet. She doesn't come the moment I call. She will be at work, she won't meet with me until after she gets off."

"Do it now. Have her come before work. Be persuasive. Tell her to take a taxi to this address, and you will meet her there. You'll have to convince her it is crucial."

Lipton took the printed address and looked at it while he drove. "What's there?"

"I don't know."

Lipton looked at Kovalenko for a moment, then put his eyes back on the road.

"What do I tell her when she gets there?"

"Nothing. You will not be waiting for her. Someone else will."

"Who?"

"I don't know."

"Packard?"

Kovalenko did not respond. He had no idea who Packard was, but Lipton did not need to know this. "I don't know if it will be Packard or someone else."