“You have other leads to pursue?”
The general leaned forward in his chair. “Yes, a particular possibility with which I believe you can assist. Several weeks ago, assets in Hong Kong reported the arrival of a CIA officer on a limited temporary assignment, somewhat unusual, coinciding with the approximate time frame of the shady contact between an unknown Chinese official and an unidentified Russian.” Bozhe moy, my God, they’re already looking at Nate, she thought. Chinese counterintelligence is insidious. Keep fishing, you must learn as much as you can.
“We have no information on this officer,” said Sun. “He apparently has never operated against the People’s Republic, but I kindly request SVR traces in the event you have a file on him. Beijing would like to review his biography, operational history, and, most important, whether he speaks Russian.” Nate’s delo formular, the operational file, is five volumes, it will make the MSS swoon. Respond now, she thought, you have to agree, no other response is possible.
“Of course, General,” said Dominika. “Please send me this American’s name and I will personally run full traces on him for your review.”
“Thank you, Colonel,” said the general.
“And what will be your course of action?” said Dominika.
“Our priority, of course, is to identify the traitor. If the American CIA officer has indeed recruited an agent, he knows the name. Beijing has directed an asset to develop a relationship with the American, to attempt to elicit the name of the turncoat.”
“It will not be easy,” said Dominika. “In my experience, the Americans are disciplined and cautious.” The ultimate irony, thought Dominika. A hundred years ago, I was sent to elicit the name of Korchnoi from Nate. Look how that turned out.
“Our operatives are very effective,” he said. “I have heard about your service and its methods, so I know you will understand. You are not the only ones who employ what I believe you call Sparrows.”
“Sparrows,” said Dominika, swallowing hard. “They were effective in their day. Sexual attraction can be a powerful tool, but times have changed, and methods have evolved over the years.”
“Most interesting. But our Sparrows—we call them Zhènniǎo—are occasionally called upon to perform functions beyond mere seduction and coercion,” said the general. Dominika felt her foot bouncing.
“Zhènniǎo translates as ‘poison-feather bird,’?” said the general. “Part of an ancient mythology.”
“What are you saying?” said Dominika.
“Whether our operative is successful in eliciting the name of the mole from the CIA officer or not, his complicity is clear,” said the general. “She will be ordered to assassinate the American. She is highly trained in the requisite skills.” Wonderful. A Chinese female assassin running loose, a goddamn poison-feather bird, whatever that is.
“You know your procedures best, General,” said Dominika, casually, feeling her heartbeat behind her eyes. She was gently trying to talk this down, with no effect. “I might mention that we have long observed an unspoken rule that we do not offer violence against opposition officers. We view it as counterproductive and costly.”
“I understand. Sadly, the result of this policy of restraint did not, as we know, stave off the dissolution of the Soviet Union, a somber historical lesson noted by our own politburo,” said the general, displaying uncharacteristic candor. “We believe that it is salutary occasionally to send a dramatic message to the enemy to deter future offensive action, especially inside China.”
“I am not convinced it is a wise course of action,” said Dominika.
The general shrugged. “Beijing insists,” he sniffed. “But I would like to propose something a little out of the ordinary.”
“You have all my attention,” said Dominika.
“Would you consider coming to China—Hong Kong—to advise us on the counterintelligence phase—the entrapment—of the operation against the American? Your service has many years of experience operating against America and Americans, especially CIA. We would look forward to your guidance and, of course, to exchanging methods and techniques. You would be the esteemed guest of the minister.”
What was this? An intricate CI trap? Some way to link Nate and her, some triple move by Gorelikov to incriminate her? Don’t be paranoid, your security is intact. These Chinese were devious and intricate, but they’re not stupid. A rare invitation to China to observe MSS operations would be a triumph. Putin would marvel at her acumen and skill; no senior SVR officer had ever before been invited to monitor an ongoing compartmented activity.
“This indeed is an extraordinary request,” she said. “It would be fascinating to share observations and techniques, with the caveat that I do not wish to be party to any lethal operation.”
“We can accommodate you with great pleasure,” said the general, glowing yellow. It was unclear whether he meant MSS would shelve plans to assassinate Nate or that she would be ushered out of the room before Miss Poison Pussy was let off her leash. Could she convince them to forego assassination?
“I thank you for your kind invitation,” said Dominika. “It’s an inspired idea, General Sun. I believe I can secure authorization from the director [I really mean from Putin] for this trip.”
The general bowed his head. “I am delighted we will have the opportunity to host you,” he said. “There is some need for haste, however; our operative has already made contact with the American. Would it be even remotely possible for you to fly to Beijing tomorrow? It is an eight-hour flight, with an additional three hours to Hong Kong from Beijing.”
You’ve got no SRAC, you put a hold on personal meets. Even if there were time for you to put down a note—there wasn’t—it would be days before a Moscow officer could get black and retrieve a message that Nate is a target and should be yanked out of Hong Kong immediately. If she knew him, Nate’s probably trying to develop this Zhènniǎo. Idiotka, all you can do is go to Hong Kong and somehow try to warn Nate, or spoil the approach without burning yourself. She could not bear the thought of both Gable and Nate being taken away from her.
“I will be ready tomorrow,” said Dominika.
* * *
* * *
Dominika called the Kremlin. Gorelikov was delighted with the prospect of her Hong Kong trip, and said he would inform the president, who would also be greatly pleased at her remarkable progress. It was unprecedented that a senior SVR officer was even invited to China, much less asked to advise on an entrapment operation. “Your specialty,” crowed Gorelikov, to which Dominika silently told him to go to hell, and thought sadly of Ioana and all her sister Sparrows.