Shadow Zone (30 page)

The phone rang.

Gadaire answered it. “Right on time. Funny, you’re quite punctual when I have something you want.”

Nibal Doka ignored his sarcasm. “My associates are intrigued by your proposal. They’re interested in exploring this further.”

That’s what happens when politicians allow foreign ambassadors to be chosen by bribes, Gadaire thought sourly. They wind up with imbeciles like Doka. “ ‘Interested’ and ‘exploring’ are code words for ‘a waste of my time,’ ” Gadaire said. “Do we have a deal or not?”

“You’re promising something that has never been done before, and you expect my associates to wire you a quarter of a billion dollars in advance. Surely you can understand their hesitancy.”

“If I were a merchant they had never done business with, then yes. But I have a reputation and experience. I’ve been in this business for over ten years, and I’ve had dealings with each and every one of your associates. I’ve always delivered for them and all my clients. My reputation depends on it. Why would I endanger that?”

“They want a demonstration.”

“No free samples.”

“Who said anything about free?”

That’s what he had been waiting for. “I’m listening.”

“Give us an example of what your TK44 can do on a limited basis, and we pledge to move forward and give you free rein to initiate the other plan you mentioned.” He paused. “The destruction would have to be significant.”

Gadaire sat in silence for a moment. Considering the money involved, he had suspected they would put him to some kind of test. Not an unreasonable demand, and he’d already made preparations to meet it. “For the right price. I could get started right away.”

“And what is that price?”

“Five million dollars. That will buy them a very dramatic demonstration that India will remember for centuries. And when I succeed, we immediately move forward with my original proposal. Two hundred and fifty million for India’s entire coastline.”

“You have a deal, Mr. Gadaire. Five million dollars will be wired into your account within the next hour.”

Damn.

He was taken aback by the quick acceptance of his terms. That meant Doka was authorized to pay more than just five million. No matter. Small potatoes compared with the bigger prize that awaited him down the road.

“A pleasure doing business with you,” Gadaire said. “Please give my regards to your associates and tell them not to make any vacation plans that involve India. It may be in some turmoil for the foreseeable future.”

He hung up and sat there, trying to control his excitement. Everything was falling into place. Thanks to Devlin, he had a choice test site that he could hand over to Doka on a silver platter. And Lampman had promised that he’d have the TK44 process finished in a few days.

No, not in a few days. He had to have it now.

He quickly dialed Lampman. He couldn’t remember if Lampman was teaching a class that day, but he didn’t give a damn one way or the other. He could tell his students to go to hell.

Lampman answered. “Good morning, Gadaire.”

“Tell me I didn’t just promise something that we can’t deliver.”

“It depends entirely on what you promised.”

Lampman sounded strange, Gadaire thought. Confident, cocky, even. A far cry from the contrite little man who had been so terrified after losing those samples. As a student of human nature, he knew this could be a sign of excellent news.

“You told me you wanted some clues from the historical record,” Gadaire said. “I gave it to you. I trust it was helpful.”

“You could say that. As encouraged as I was by my initial experiments, I’m even more encouraged now, Mr. Gadaire. There’s something you really should see.”

“Are you in your lab?”

“Actually, I’m outside the city. Can you come right away?”

“You’re summoning me?”

“Consider it less of a summons and more of an invitation. I can take pictures, but I think you’d rather see this for yourself.”

The nerdy little bastard was positively giddy. That alone might make the trip worthwhile. “Where are you?”

“I just sent you an IM with my GPS location. It’s kind of in the middle of nowhere, but the phone should give you good directions.”

Before Gadaire could reply he heard the instant-message-notification tone. “Okay, I’m on my way. Don’t be alarmed if a few friends get there before I do.”

CHAPTER
15

Dunslaughlin, Ireland
3:14
P.M.

Gadaire’s car rolled to a stop on the country road eighteen miles northwest of Dublin. Two of his bodyguards stood at the roadside with Lampman, and two more rode in a car behind Gadaire.

He glanced at the area on either side of the desolate country road; it had been a good five minutes since he had last seen a sign of civilization.

“You weren’t kidding about your friends arriving first,” Lampman said. “You didn’t tell me I’d have to put up with the most invasive pat-down I’ve ever had in my life. I thought I was going to have to endure a cavity search.”

“You actually might have enjoyed it. My men are exceptionally good in that area. Excuse the precautions. A man in my business is frequently a target, so I rarely accept invitations that put me in isolated areas.”

“Then you should consider looking for another line of work.”

“Retire? It’s a thought. It might depend on what you’re going to show me today.”

“Then you may be on your way.” Lampman smiled. “You were aware that I was less than enthused when you gave me the information from that trellis. I was skeptical. I had a tough time believing that something so simple could have triggered this effect. And even if I had accepted that premise, I seriously doubted that a scientist of the time could have figured it out.”

“But he did?” Gadaire said.

Lampman motioned for Gadaire to follow him down the dusty road. “We’ve seen Oxygen Minimum Zones, or Shadow Zones, in our oceans before. What usually happens is that nitrogen-rich pollutants cause huge populations of plankton to grow on the water’s surface. Those plankters decay and fall to the ocean floor, where they are decomposed by billions of microbes. It’s a feeding frenzy. The trouble is that those microbes also consume oxygen. Lots of it. They consume so much oxygen that there’s none left for anything else in the area.”

“That’s what happened in Marinth?”

“I don’t think so. Not exactly. We saw this happening with phosphate runoff from laundry detergents. Once sewage-treatment plants were improved, and phosphate levels subsided, these pockets healed relatively quickly. In Marinth, things were much more serious. The coastal regions didn’t heal for many years, perhaps even centuries. Once this Marinth TK44 alga was activated, it apparently spread like nothing we’ve ever seen. It just continued to spread and breed micro-organisms that leached all the oxygen from the waters.”

“This part I know.”

“Then you also know what activated this destructive property. You found a hint in that trellis.”

Gadaire smiled. “Corn?”

“Sounds ridiculous, I know. But it’s true. Corn is something that can exist only with human helping hands. It doesn’t grow in the wild. It was developed just in the past few thousand years from a wild grass called teosinte.”

“I thought it came from Mexico.”

“It did, and it spread through the Americas. Europeans weren’t even introduced to it until a few hundred years ago. But after Marinth was discovered, we found out that they also cultivated teosinte to develop a type of corn of their own. A close cousin, if you will. We knew it happened late in the history of their civilization, but it now appears that it helped end their civilization.” He shook his head. “Such a humble thing to cause the fall of the most glorious culture known to man.”

“How could that have happened?”

“The Marinthians had begun burning the stalks and cobs in their ovens. It’s possible that the resulting air pollution settled on the coastal waters and activated this alga. Or perhaps they tossed the stalks and cobs into the river as waste. Either way, this Marinthian educator was right. That was the beginning of the end.”

“Are you sure about all this?”

“As a scientist, I want to know why this effect happens. I still don’t know, and I won’t until I can get more of the TK44 alga to study. But for your purposes, I can tell you it works. And it works quickly.”

“You seem very positive.”

Lampman smiled and gestured toward the small pond that had just appeared in Gadaire’s line of sight. “Why don’t you take a look?”

“You’re joking, right?”

Lampman shook his head.

Gadaire felt a jolt of excitement as he walked quickly to the water’s edge. The pond’s water was dark green. Hundreds of dead fish, frogs, and insects floated in the muck.

Gadaire looked at Lampman. “You’re telling me that you did all of this?”

“That’s exactly what I’m telling you.” Lampman held up a small stack of eight-by-ten photographs. “Here it is, just forty-eight hours ago.”

Gadaire took the photos. He hardly recognized the clear water and beautiful, tranquil image. He glanced up. “Forty-eight hours?”

“It should have taken weeks to reach this stage. I told you, it’s like nothing we’ve ever seen.”

Gadaire knelt at the water’s edge. “You mixed the alga samples with actual cornhusks?”

“I did that in the lab, and after I observed a strong reaction, I synthesized a chemical solution with some of the elements that could have caused it. As soon as I can narrow down the element—or elements—that are activating the alga, I can be more efficient.”

“This is fantastic,” Gadaire whispered.

“I told you it was worth the trip.”

“Absolutely.” He looked down at the dead water, sucked of every gasp of life. “I was afraid I might have to pull back if you didn’t come up with something. But now I can go forward.”

“Well . . . not quite. Not yet. You’ll need massive quantities for the kind of operation I think you have in mind.”

Gadaire waved his arm over the pond. “What about all this?”

“It’s a start, and you’ll eventually be able to grow and harvest all you need. I can help you with that . . . for a substantial increase in my fee and certain other considerations.”

Gadaire’s eyes narrowed. “What considerations?”

Lampman smiled. “I don’t want to be an employee. I want to be a partner.”

It was what Gadaire had been expecting for some time. Lampman was hungry and wanted to feed. “I pay you well.”

“But my duties have expanded. You have me not only doing vital research but analyzing coastal waters for potential breeding grounds for the alga. Naturally, it made me curious as to what you’re doing in India. I’m not a fool.”

“I’ve never thought you were.” Throw the bastard a bone. He wasn’t going to live long enough to enjoy it. “Perhaps I might let you have a small percentage of the profits if you agree to get your hands dirty and help me with information on how to produce and safely harvest this alga. You can do that?”

Lampman was beaming. “I told you that I could.”

“How quickly?”

“We can create a TK44 algae farm here and perhaps in nine months or a year we . . .”

“That’s not soon enough. I can’t wait that long.”

He frowned. “You have no choice.”

“I always have a choice. Tell me my options.”

“There’s only one place on earth where you can get the amount you need. Marinth.”

“Then you’ve just made my choice for me. Prepare to work your ass off . . . partner. I’m going to need all the information I can get about how to grab the alga safely and get out quick.” Gadaire turned and strode back toward his car. “I’m going to Marinth.”

“Yes!”

Elijah Baker hung up his phone and strode back into the living room of his suite. “Hannah Bryson has been spotted in Athens,” he said to Anna, who was curled up on the couch. “She was seen down at the docks where Melis Nemid’s ship is moored. I’ve sent Mendoza to follow up.”

“Then we’ll have her.” Anna swung her feet to the floor, her face lit with eagerness. “And Kirov?”

“We don’t know yet. He hasn’t surfaced.”

“The lab at the museum?”

“Off-limits. Once Mendoza gets there, he’ll find a way to explore that possibility. My agent on the ground couldn’t get in to check.”

“Then he’s a fool. I’d find a way.”

“I don’t doubt it,” Baker said. “But then he doesn’t have your . . . talents.”

“You’re talking about sex?” She smiled as she slipped on the heels she’d kicked off earlier. “Sex is helpful. But it’s brains that carry the day. I think you’ll agree I have both. Gadaire is so sure that they’re somewhere in Scotland, but I had a hunch she’d stay near Melis Nemid. That’s why I suggested you send a man to stake out the Athens museum. And it paid off, didn’t it?”

“In spades.”

“You should listen to me more often, and I’d have my darling Vincent delivered to you tied in lovely pink ribbons.”

“I have my own plans.” And he still didn’t know how much he could trust Anna. He’d been trying to get the goods on Gadaire for years, and it had been a nightmare of frustration. Gadaire had been virtually untouchable because of his connections with high-ranking government officials who used him for their covert operations, providing guns and ammo to U.S.-supported rebels in third-world countries and similar tasks. Every time Baker tried to arrest him, he’d been released within hours. But when Baker had gotten wind of the Marinth case, he’d seen his chance. Ecoterrorism on a grand scale. He would get his conviction. No one would be willing to help Gadaire on this one and risk their own careers. It was time for the big push.

Anna smiled. “Yes, and I’m sure your plans are brilliant. If you’d share them with me, I could find ways to make them better. Why else did you come to me?”

Why? He’d approached Anna to appeal to her supreme ambition. He hadn’t been disappointed. In exchange for her help, he’d told her she’d be exonerated of all charges against her and Gadaire. The weapons business would be dismantled, but she’d retain control of the other business that she owned jointly with Gadaire, a business worth close to a hundred million dollars. She’d get her independence and wealth. Baker would get his conviction. Gadaire would be destroyed. Perfect.