It took Cald ten minutes to reacrance to ty. A couple of sleek oblong taxis  taxi stand, trics idling. ang Lin  co t taxi. tomatic doors so traffic. Cald into taxi. ten man  spiky gray  trand of  of it, turned round and gave o need all ter.

    “Ni qu nar li a?” teettural dra truct, you’d find traces of some obscure nort.

    “Followo 4x4s,” Caldwell urged in  Mandarin.

    “t just sped off several minutes ago?”

    “Exactly.”

    “tes. Many PLA 4x4s in Beijing at time of t Caldhe rear view mirror.”

    “Five t an extra pair of eyes and catcion.”

    “Noalking,” to traffic.

    “ever,” Caldtered, settling back into ts of taxi. o see if o pay than enough.

    tely ing up. And Cald sure rail of tination  predict.  if t to ter to ting eye?   turn of events?  if  out of this alive?

    “Can you go any faster,” Caldinct note of impatience  into  like t. As muc  to admit it, he was scared.

    “I can, but it is impossible raffic and everytopilot for t ters. Anyraffic is good because it means c turning around. t, spat a t of took a sip out of a transparent flask of strong-looking tea. texture of burnt leatco ting time. taut silver  t.

    “Just find two cars ok?”

    “Sure. And stop looking back of ter-of-factly, leaning back in . Cald  laug cranky but ue to be appreciated at times like taxi opilot guided along by its sensors and t all t t ecion systems and carburetors t made some veo otripped ay. tly y o impose upon its citizens, Cald, stripping ty, leaving only pale scime to a common beat.

    “PLA cars, also autopilot?” he driver.

    “Of course, in Ne,” th a chuckle.

    “Indeed.”

    “h wish?”

    “No, I am a journalist ory,” Caldo telling trut tion in directions   it to go.

    “s in Nete.

    “No t are our cting closer to t vehicle?”

    “Just get ready to pay meter plus five th wish.”

    “OK. But enougalk. OK?”

    “ever you say. t of faded jade teet noticed earlier.

    “Journalist too.”

    “Can’t fool old man, deathe driver said.

    “?”

    “I see many eyes of  I see.” tapped alon-like tapered fingernail t ash.

    “And ?”

    “I see anticipation.”

    “Anticipation of w?”

    “Of w you are capable or incapable of giving.”

    taxi’s dased t topilot grid and sure enoug sem sceering raffic, exploiting gaps t ained by topilot system. ransformed, intent on making tra money at cost. It  of some casivation.

    Cald about  Mei Lin. as it t obvious? as sicipating somet? Sty good job of masking ill existed. Caldten tly sidestepped  dinner. It oo muce no tinental el, ily packing. t to c and meet  t.

    At t point   o call tel as soon as  t to find out   t?  to board a plane for S on tite for t t of tity t  a funny taste in h.

    For t time, Caldo s about   back. arted sinking into an abyss of despair and self-doubt.  afraid and o ing  important.  t suicide attempt notanding. No  Kenzo Yamamoto y to make a living  traigo  of one of t ten cars a paid to t idea and arted pumping like it he world.

    ***

    You don’t stroll into terminal at Ne. It sucks you in like a giant magnet and bombards you isements interlaced ure announcements. One could be forgiven for t tising jingles ant t announcements. ernational airlines moved among tors al form, all clamoring for a piece of tion. Cald rained on ty riding tors to ture terminal. y-five degree glide to t escalator s of y. trolleys, yet it  terrorist weapon.

    In ture terminal, t t Class counter of Sern Airlines. One of to a cotendant, ing at ter erials. icker and triangle-sickers if on tectors to t tape to tments. ted to t and to tem.

    One question kept repeating itself in Cald  sucs to be easily made. Maybe Professor Yao’s deato act mucs allo, ty. ever   officially sanctioned by t about t possibility, t made perfect sense.

    to t s on t? Caldoary card in one of s.

    “Zinental el, e .

    “Miss hsu, Room 2208, please.”

    “Please e.” Mando-pop assaulted Caldo telepe.

    “Mei Lin  c yet. If s reception axi ride from tsingo tel o t. tel er access to t ring roads t lead to t. t ringing and then someone picked up.

    “Mei Lin?”

    “e sir.”

    “Sure.”

    “I am afraid t  and is on o t. this is housekeeping.”

    “OK. thanks. Did she leave a number for a Mr. Caldwell?”

    “No sir, s.”

    Caldouco get on t plane ot became of tc c of sympaturned round and looked toer. ted at t departure display superimposed on terminal. tern Airlines fliging in forty-five minutes. t  started boarding. ts by ot only tern Airlines flig t Class ctendant t c chip.

    “t SA-809, right?

    “Correct,” terrorist. S to say somet, but errupted quickly.

    “I’d like to purcickets for t, please.”

    “tickets?” sing beo make sure t some diminutive person s seen  here.

    “Correct,” Caldo a tortured smile.

    “I’ll need t, sir. So I knoicket to,” s get to rebuff an attempt to cen.

    “Can I just pay for tickets and leave tly .” t occurred to Cald Mei Lin may not  to travel under her own name.

    “t is a  sir but ion. ill t ctendant was shrewd.

    “Yes, she will.”

    “Very convenient sir. If you  buying tickets, sir, it o use anoty’s credit c looks most unkindly upon credit caut mask of make-up stretco its limit. At any moment, Cald, cracks art to appear on  fissures ener. ttendant slid through a reader.

    “Oickets in your name?”

    “Really?”

    “Yes, a Ms. Zure lounge.” ttendant er came to life issuing ticket. Caldwell wondered w was going on.

    “icket and your boarding pass Mr. Joure lounge is upstairs to t.”

    “thank you.” Mr. Johnson? Ms. Zhu?

    “ sir,” ttendant said pleasantly. t in her eyes.

    Caldurned round, feeling tle eyes burning oure lounge.

    ***

    A fat balding middle-aged man o a garbage bin near trance as Caldered ture lounge. A globule of green blood-speckled po ts sure lounge for any sign of Mei Lin. And ting several roiced t botic tags on t be searc customs. Once again Mei Lin  she game was played.

    “t.”

    “Yes, I   have your cell number.”

    “Me too.”

    “Diplomatic tags? Don’t tell me  off.”

    “Sure, didn’t  to take c trying to impress me  talk about taking toms.”

    “s for you but I am not too sure about Ms. Zurned serious.

    “Someteresting. I overting. to be linked to someone called Major-general ang. One of told someone t t and  tal in a few hours.”

    “al?”

    “Yearange.”

    “Could er and not the AI?”

    “t’s . t talking among t an AI.”

    “Really? So  track.”

    “It oo muc leaves in less ty minutes so ter go.”

    “Sure.”

    to ture gate and boarded tes later tered t class compartment and took ts several ro. Mei Lin looked at Caldwell and smiled.

    “You t I am thinking?” she asked.

    “Yup, I  some of your eavesdropping toys.”

    “Never leave  them,” Mei Lin said mischievously.