and waited for the call to go through. “Even has a speaker function.”
“Well, well, well.” The speaker projected the world-weary voice of Mobley with surprising clarity. “Did you get kidnapped by the Chinese? Or were you just too busy to call?”
“Your first guess is closer,” Jill responded. “And, by the way, you’re on speaker. Conti is here. I was kidnapped — but not by the Chinese. He saved my ass, so watch what you say.”
“Kidnapped? No shit. By whom?”
“South Africans.”
“Aha. South Africans. I thought they might be involved in this.”
Conti and Jill glanced at each other in surprise. “You did?” she asked.
“Yeah,” Mobley said. “There’s a lot going on back here. Is there a chance anyone else can hear this conversation? Other than Conti, that is?”
“No. We’re out in the middle of the woods. What’s up?”
“I found out who you’re chasing. Brace yourself.”
“Who is it?”
“The Panchen Lama.”
“You’ve got to be kidding!”
“No. The authentic Panchen Lama. Second most important religious leader in Tibet. Been under house arrest in China for the past twenty-five years.”
Jill and Conti stared at the phone, dumbfounded. Conti spoke for the first time. “That’s crazy. We don’t know even know what he looks like — or if he’s still alive. Nobody’s seen him since he was five years old.”
“The Chinese Ambassador himself visited me half an hour ago. First time he’s ever come to Langley. Apoplectic. Somehow the Lama escaped from his compound in Sichuan. They moved him there a few years ago because they thought he was becoming friendlier to their point of view. They’d planned to introduce him to the Tibetan public next year — as a modern leader who sees things their way. Everything was going according to plan. Until he disappeared last week.”
Conti rubbed his temples. “And now he’s running around the hills of Italy in the company of some radical monks? If it’s true, the Chinese must be petrified there’ll be trouble back home.”
“It’s already started. The Ambassador told me that the ‘splittists’ — that’s what they call the Tibetan nationalists — are hacking into the Chinese Internet spreading the rumor — well, the news — that the Panchen Lama had escaped from China and is about to lead them in an uprising for independence.”
Conti whistled under his breath. “Jesus!”
Mobley went on. “A monk incinerated himself today in Lhasa. And there have been some small demonstrations. A few Chinese-owned stores looted. They aren’t exactly acting like Buddhists. And the political fallout is starting here in Washington too. I’ve gotten calls from half the Foreign Relations and Intelligence Committees.”
After a moment of silence while they processed this new information, Jill spoke up. “Why in the world are the South Africans involved?”
There was no answer for a moment. Then Mobley said, in what seemed like a chastened tone. “Yeah, the South Africans. I’m working on that. Just stay out of their way for the time being. Gotta run. White House is on the line. Stay on top of this and don’t talk to anyone but me.”
13.
Jill disconnected. “That was strange, wasn’t it?”
“What?”
“Mobley’s not telling us everything he knows. Not by a long shot.”
“But what he did tell us is incredible. The Panchen Lama on the loose. Imagine if they can’t get him back.”
Jill fussed with her now buttonless camo shirt, finally tying the tails together in a sort of Caribbean look. “I had an in-depth assessment of Chinese strategy done last month. They’re staking a lot on Tibet. It’s key to their development plans for the next century. Minerals of all sorts — and water, that’s the big thing.”
“Water?”
“The rivers that supply most of Asia rise in the Himalayan plateau. It’s a giant freezer storing fresh water for the entire continent. And, of course, the population isn’t getting any
“Well, well, well.” The speaker projected the world-weary voice of Mobley with surprising clarity. “Did you get kidnapped by the Chinese? Or were you just too busy to call?”
“Your first guess is closer,” Jill responded. “And, by the way, you’re on speaker. Conti is here. I was kidnapped — but not by the Chinese. He saved my ass, so watch what you say.”
“Kidnapped? No shit. By whom?”
“South Africans.”
“Aha. South Africans. I thought they might be involved in this.”
Conti and Jill glanced at each other in surprise. “You did?” she asked.
“Yeah,” Mobley said. “There’s a lot going on back here. Is there a chance anyone else can hear this conversation? Other than Conti, that is?”
“No. We’re out in the middle of the woods. What’s up?”
“I found out who you’re chasing. Brace yourself.”
“Who is it?”
“The Panchen Lama.”
“You’ve got to be kidding!”
“No. The authentic Panchen Lama. Second most important religious leader in Tibet. Been under house arrest in China for the past twenty-five years.”
Jill and Conti stared at the phone, dumbfounded. Conti spoke for the first time. “That’s crazy. We don’t know even know what he looks like — or if he’s still alive. Nobody’s seen him since he was five years old.”
“The Chinese Ambassador himself visited me half an hour ago. First time he’s ever come to Langley. Apoplectic. Somehow the Lama escaped from his compound in Sichuan. They moved him there a few years ago because they thought he was becoming friendlier to their point of view. They’d planned to introduce him to the Tibetan public next year — as a modern leader who sees things their way. Everything was going according to plan. Until he disappeared last week.”
Conti rubbed his temples. “And now he’s running around the hills of Italy in the company of some radical monks? If it’s true, the Chinese must be petrified there’ll be trouble back home.”
“It’s already started. The Ambassador told me that the ‘splittists’ — that’s what they call the Tibetan nationalists — are hacking into the Chinese Internet spreading the rumor — well, the news — that the Panchen Lama had escaped from China and is about to lead them in an uprising for independence.”
Conti whistled under his breath. “Jesus!”
Mobley went on. “A monk incinerated himself today in Lhasa. And there have been some small demonstrations. A few Chinese-owned stores looted. They aren’t exactly acting like Buddhists. And the political fallout is starting here in Washington too. I’ve gotten calls from half the Foreign Relations and Intelligence Committees.”
After a moment of silence while they processed this new information, Jill spoke up. “Why in the world are the South Africans involved?”
There was no answer for a moment. Then Mobley said, in what seemed like a chastened tone. “Yeah, the South Africans. I’m working on that. Just stay out of their way for the time being. Gotta run. White House is on the line. Stay on top of this and don’t talk to anyone but me.”
13.
Jill disconnected. “That was strange, wasn’t it?”
“What?”
“Mobley’s not telling us everything he knows. Not by a long shot.”
“But what he did tell us is incredible. The Panchen Lama on the loose. Imagine if they can’t get him back.”
Jill fussed with her now buttonless camo shirt, finally tying the tails together in a sort of Caribbean look. “I had an in-depth assessment of Chinese strategy done last month. They’re staking a lot on Tibet. It’s key to their development plans for the next century. Minerals of all sorts — and water, that’s the big thing.”
“Water?”
“The rivers that supply most of Asia rise in the Himalayan plateau. It’s a giant freezer storing fresh water for the entire continent. And, of course, the population isn’t getting any
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