The Project 01 - White Jade

out. We matched it up with Choy. We sent people over to the Consulate yesterday.
    " They were told Choy was no longer in the country and had left two days before for the People ' s Republic, so there had to be a mistake in the identification. The Consulate representative said several weapons used by the security guards had been stolen a week before, so perhaps that was why Choy's prints were found. He expressed his sincere condolences over the death of our police officer and offered any assistance he might be able to provide. Then he showed our agents the door. "
    Nick had to say something. " Can 't you get a warrant? "
    " Not for the Consulate. It's off-limits. We don ' t want any incidents here. "
    " Shooting a cop isn ' t an incident? "
    " Not big enough. "
    " What about Wu and Connor? "
    " There ' s no hard evidence. Anyway, Choy is gone and there 's nothing we can do about it. "
    Jordan looked at Carter as if it were all his fault. " What I want to know is why the Chinese are throwing grenades at you and in general making a whole lot of trouble. "
    Harker said, " T ell him about the book , Nick ."
    " What book? " Jordan ran his finger under his tight collar.
    " A n ancient book that belonged to Selena ' s uncle ," Nick said. " The Chinese were looking for it when they killed him. H e hid it in California . We went there to retrieve it . T hen Choy showed up and you know the story.
    " They were after the book, because why else drive up there? We think the attack here in DC was an attempt to kidnap Selena and get the location of the book from her. "
    " What ' s in it that they want? "
    " We don ' t know yet. We ' ll find out, now that we have it. "
    " Where is it? "
    Selena held up the book. " Right here. "
    Two old pieces of wood with yellowed pages between. It had already cost at least eight lives and might cost more before they were done.
    Jordan loosened his tie. " I've been authorized to brief you. My unit tracks Asian criminal or terrorist activity. S omething 's up involving the Chinese Triads and Wu is mixed up in it. We followed him to a meeting with the T riad bosses from San Francisco , Oakland , New York , and Houston . That ' s a big deal. They never get together like that. "
    Jordan looked around the room, then at the Director.
    " Why is a senior officer from China ' s military intelligence ordering sanctions and meeting with Chinese criminals ? You want to help me out with that? "
    Harker tapped FDR ' s pen on her desk while she considered what Zeke had said. Carter watched her. He knew the look. The analyst in her was computing possibilities. Debating how much to say , whether to bring him in. She made up her mind.
    " We've received some new intelligence but we haven't had time to analyze it. W hat I'm about to tell you is speculation. You need to bear that in mind."
    Jordan nodded .
    " It's possible there is a group plotting to take power in China . The meetings Wu had with the Triads could have something to do with that."
    "A plot to overthrow the Chinese government?"
    "Yes. Colonel Wu is part of the group we're concerned about. It's led by General Yang. Head of their MI. "
    Jordan frowned. "T he Triads don't like Communists. They'd like to see a change in government over there. "
    "Could be where the money comes in," Ronnie said. "The money he stole from Selena's uncle. Pay them to do something. "
    Harker tapped on the desk. " H ow could the Triads help Yang? Maybe in China, but here in the States? Why would he need them for anything? "
    Selena brushed hair back from her forehead. "How do you take over a country as big as China ? If we knew that, we might get an idea of what Yang wants from the m ."
    Jordan said, "How do you take over China ?"
    Carter said, "You take out the heads of the government, all at once. You make sure the military is on your side, especially the army."
    Ronnie picked at a surfboarder on his shirt. "You need surprise , " he said.
    "That's a given." Carter tugged on his ear. "Let's assume a coup was in progress. Go back to our original question; what could the Triads do here to support Yang over there?"
    Jordan loosened his tie a little more. "What does Yang need to pull it off besides surprise?"
    "Well, he needs time," Carter said. "Once he sets things in motion, the clock starts ticking and he wins or he goes down. He needs time to consolidate control and get his hands on all the strings."
    The Director tapped her pen. "What would upset his time