Nexus

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The elevator door opened, spilling Kade out into the lobby. Serenity package turned up high, best shirt on, Nexus transmissions suppressed. The driver was there, waiting for him in black suit and tie, white shirt, black gloves and cap. He was Confucian Fist. A clone soldier.

The driver smiled, waved, and approached him. "Mr Lane?" He had a distinctly Chinese accent.

"Yes?"

"My name is Feng." He tipped his chauffeur's cap to Kade. "I have the honor of being Professor Shu's driver. Would you come with me, please?"

"Sure." Kade followed Feng out the door. The rain had stopped and the clouds had parted a bit. The sun had just set, and an orange glow came from the west.

The car was a lustrous black Opal sedan. Top of the line Chinese luxury. The plates were Chinese. They'd brought it all the way from China.

Feng held open the rear door while Kade stepped into air-conditioned luxury. The interior was dark wood and leather. Soft classical music played. Condensation beaded on two unopened bottles of sparkling water. The windows were tinted.

Feng slid into the driver's seat.

"Where are we going?" Kade asked.

"Thonburi," Feng replied. "Just across the Chao Phraya river. A very good restaurant there – my favorite in Bangkok!"

"How long to get there?"

The Opal pulled silently away from the curb.

"Maybe twenty minutes," Feng replied. "Faster if traffic is good."

Kade leaned back into the seat. "Thanks." Something occurred to him. "You've been here before?" he asked.

Feng nodded. "Professor Shu comes to Bangkok often. I come with her."

"How long have you worked for Dr Shu?"

"Three years. Best boss to work for." He grinned into the mirror for Kade's benefit.

"And before that?"

Feng nodded again. "Army, special forces. Still am. Special protection unit."

"Special protection unit?" Kade inquired.

"Oh yeah. We take care of important people. Keep them safe."

"Dr Shu gets military protection?"

"Oh, yes. National treasure. Brilliant scientist. China's future depends on science. She's so important, you should be honored having this dinner with her!"

"Oh, I am. Shouldn't you be protecting her right now?"

Feng laughed, glanced over his shoulder. "Yeah, maybe. But you know, she's tough. Very good at taking care of herself." He paused a moment, eyes back on the road.

"How come she isn't with us now?"

"Oh, she had meeting earlier close to where we going. No sense her coming back downtown."

Kade felt bold. Was it the serenity package? Did it matter? "Have you ever had to protect her from a real threat? Like someone attacking her?"

Feng paused for moment, answered more slowly. "Sorry. Can't talk about that. Operational details. Secret."

Interesting, Kade thought. Does that mean yes?

"Would you take a bullet for her?" he asked.

"What, you mean if someone try to shoot her? Get in the way myself?"

"Yeah."

Feng laughed. "Hopefully, I shoot him first." He made a pistol shape with his thumb and forefinger, held it up to show Kade, mock fired it at some target out the windshield.

Kade laughed to keep it light. He felt calculating, clear. He could get used to this state of mind.

"What if that wasn't an option? What if the only way you could see to save her was to get between her and a bullet?"

Feng made a face in the mirror. "Mmm, bad option, you know. I get shot, saves her for a second. Then what? Better hope I have backup. Otherwise, it only slow the shooter down. Better I take him out. Best defense a good offense, you know."

He paused.

"But yeah. I do it. I take a bullet, if there no other way."

Kade nodded to himself. He remembered Becker's question. Why would someone want to create hundreds of men with the same DNA?

He studied Feng. Clones engineered for extreme loyalty. Same genes, same training. Identical, predictable behavior. Perfect soldiers.

Do I believe it?

"What were you doing before the army?" he asked casually.

"Oh, I was just a kid before army. Grew up near Shanghai. Big family." Feng laughed to himself. "Really big family. Lots and lots of brothers." He laughed again, like that was the funniest thing in the world. Even through the serenity package, Kade felt a shiver up his spine.

They drove on, the orange glow of sunset warring with the neon lights coming on above them. The day's rain turned the streets into a glistening river of light, alive with reflecting reds and blues and greens and slowly deepening orange.

Feng made a left turn, and suddenly the view changed. They were driving onto a bridge crossing a brown river. This must be the Chao Phraya. Ahead of them, the sky reflected the final vivid rays of the recently set sun. Backlit in orange was a temple, a central structure like a pyramid with a spire rising from its apex, like the Eiffel Tower cast in massive and intricate stone, painted amber by the sunset and the lights at its base. Four smaller towers surrounded it, perhaps a hundred feet tall each. The central tower was the tallest thing on the western bank of the river.

"Wat Arun," Feng said quietly. "The Temple of the Dawn."

"It's beautiful," Kade said sincerely.

Feng nodded. "That's where Professor Shu is now. She meet us at the restaurant."

"Is it close?"

"Right there," Feng said, pointing at the river bank ahead of them.

The restaurant was called Ayutthaya, after the ancient Thai capital. It occupied a gorgeously ornate three-story building situated on the bank of the river, a few hundred yards north of Wat Arun. Red-skinned, gold-armored demon statues flanked the open double doorway, their five-foot-long swords held in two hands, points in the ground and hilts at their chests. Feng closed the car door behind Kade as he emerged, took him by the elbow to the maître d'.

"Guest for Professor Shu," he said.

A man-sized golden Buddha sat cross-legged on a stone just inside the doors.

"Oh, Mr Lane?" The hostess wore a long, flowing Thai dress in gold. Her hair was demurely pulled back into a bun. She was stunning.

"Yes, that's me." No stutter. No stammer. His voice sounded deep and confident in his own ears. I could get used to this.

"Please come with me." She lifted a menu and smiled winningly at him.

"See you after dinner." That was Feng.

"You're not coming up?"

"I'm just the driver, not an important person like you." Feng gave him the merest of bows and backed towards the car.

Kade turned to see the hostess waiting. She smiled again and turned to lead him into the restaurant. The dress hugged her shape. The sway of her hips was intoxicating.

Keep it down, buddy. There's more than one way to lose your cool.

They rounded the Buddha and the restaurant spread out before them. Floor-to-ceiling windows were cast open to the warm night. They framed the river and the Grand Palace beyond it. Through more windows to the south the spire of Wat Arun rose above the west bank. Gold and orange lanterns illuminated ornate tables with tourists and Thai alike.

They crossed a tiny bridge – over a softly gurgling stream that ran through the dining room and emptied itself into the Chao Phraya below.

She's trying to impress me, Kade thought to himself. Shu. She's recruiting.

The hostess led him up to a rooftop deck. There was a cool breeze from the river. The sky was darkening as evening turned to night. All sorts of delicious scents assailed him.

Do I want to be recruited?

The hostess steered him towards a table at the south-eastern corner of the rooftop, where the most majestic view of the river and temples would be. Su-Yong Shu rose to greet him, a wide smile on her face. She looked relaxed, confident, and elegant. Elegant and dangerous, Kade thought.

Show time.