The rain fell in a steady pulse, resoaking Malone's still-damp clothes. But at least the air was warm.

Pau Wen pointed toward the museum. "We have to go. The exhibits will soon close for the day."

Tang studied the monitor, pleased that Viktor Tomas had delivered Pau Wen, Cotton Malone, and Ca.s.siopeia Vitt, exactly as promised. He was dividing his attention between the northern landing field and what Ni Yong was doing on the west side of the mound. His vantage point offered him the perfect perch, and he ordered the men working the cameras to not lose sight of either scene.

He'd a.s.sumed command of the museum security force knowing that no one would question his authority. Nor would anyone contact Beijing. The only person who could give him orders was the premier himself, and that was highly unlikely. The old man rarely concerned himself with politics any longer, and Tang had stopped paying attention to the premier's daily activities. They simply did not matter.

Ni Yong and Pau Wen.

They mattered.

And he now had both men directly within his sight.

His gaze switched back to the screen with Ni Yong. He watched as Ni scaled a rickety steel fence and dropped to the other side. He needed to head that way and see what was attracting his nemesis' attention. He'd been told there was nothing there, just a deserted storage area, yet that "nothing" was fenced, watched, and shielded by an order from the capital.

On the monitor he saw Pau and his three companions walk through the rain toward the Pit 3 hall. The same one where the imperial library chamber had been located. Where the watch had been found.

Interesting.

FIFTY-THREE.

Malone was amazed by Pit 3. It was the smallest of the three excavated sites, and a placard noted in English that this was the underground army's command center, complete with high-ranking officers, an imperial guard, and a chariot. Visitors filled a catwalk that encircled the excavations fifteen feet below. Weak sodium-vapor lights cast the surreal scene in a harsh, yellowish green glow. The air was moist and humid, the rain tapping on the ceiling high overhead in a constant drumbeat. A rich, earthy scent filled his nostrils. The lack of climate control was surprising considering that, surely, the whole idea of enclosing the pit would have been to keep moisture at bay.

Pau led them to the railing as a tour group moved farther along the walk. "This pit is unique in size and composition."

Malone a.s.sessed the layout. Many of the terra-cotta figures stood without their heads. On the paved floor below, shattered pieces of other figures lay in piles, like a puzzle poured from its box.

"Only 68 warriors were found here," Pau said. "Many thousands fill the other two pits. Here we found the underground army's imperial guards, its generals, the elite."

Malone studied the chariot, which sat at the center of the pit, at the base of a partially excavated ramp that led up to ground level.

"I was here in 1979 when this pit was first located," Pau said, "but it was not fully explored until the mid-1980s, at about the time I left China. So I have only seen photographs. Notice anything?"

Eight soldiers stood to the left of the center chariot, none to the right. All of the remaining soldiers filled two recesses on either side of the U-shaped pit.

"Why is there n.o.body on the right side of the chariot?" Malone asked.

"There's something else," Pau said.

"The chariot is c.o.c.keyed to the ramp," Ca.s.siopeia said.

Malone saw that she was correct, making it impossible for the wheels to exit the pit without colliding with the ramp's wall. To negotiate the exit, the chariot would have to veer left.

"I noticed that from the images," Pau said. "For a people who were so careful with every aspect of design, that error could not have been unintentional."

"So the hole in the earthen wall, to the left of the chariot, is important?" Malone asked.

Pau nodded. "The designers sent a message that something important was located to the left. A few days ago, that chamber you see was rediscovered."

"Looks like a mess," Viktor said.

Malone, too, noticed the cables, shovels, rakes, and piles of dirt on either side of the opening, and what appeared to be a charred electrical box. "More like a fire."

"Accidents do happen," Pau said.

But Malone was not fooled.

"You knew the moment that chamber was found, didn't you?"

"More important, Karl Tang knew. He was here, and he set the fire. He intentionally destroyed Qin Shi's imperial library."

Malone wanted to inquire further, but now was not the time. "This place closes in forty-five minutes."

"We must enter that opening," Pau said.

Malone again studied the layout. Two additional ramps led down to the pit's floor. Both were blocked with chains that could easily be hopped. At least four closed-circuit cameras were visible, though there were probably more, the ones in sight sending a message that people were watching, the ones out of sight providing the best views. He counted six uniformed guards patrolling the catwalk and G.o.d knew how many plainclothes men scattered about. The crowd was quiet and orderly.

"We need a distraction," he whispered.

Ca.s.siopeia nodded. "I was thinking the same thing."

"Be cautious," Pau said. "The security personnel here will react to anything rash."

"And if we're caught?" Viktor asked.

"Then we shall be arrested, and we can see if you are truly a friend or foe."

Malone liked that prospect regarding Viktor, though being detained in China sounded like a bad idea, especially given that they were here illegally and at least two of them were armed.

"I'll take care of the distraction," Viktor said.

"I thought you might," Malone said.

"I have a feeling you three don't want me along anyway."

No, Malone thought, he didn't.

"I'll be outside when you're through with whatever you plan on doing. I'll make some noise, but not enough to get arrested."

Viktor shuffled off, dissolving into the crowd, working his way to the other side of the catwalk.

"We need to avoid the ramps," Malone said. "Too obvious. Let's use that ladder." He gave a slight motion of his head to where a short length of chain blocked metal rungs. "Get down quickly and into that hole in the ground before the cameras regroup."

Pau and Ca.s.siopeia nodded their a.s.sent.

Malone carried the two flashlights inside a pack slung over one shoulder, colored in the army's distinctive green with a red star. His gun remained nestled beneath his wet shirt.

A shout rose in the hall.

Malone saw Viktor flailing one arm in the air, and spewing out loud Chinese. It appeared he'd taken offense to something one of the visitors had either said or done.

Viktor shoved a man.

More words.

The crowd's attention zeroed in on the disturbance, as did security. All six uniforms rushed toward the rapidly escalating situation.

Malone waited for the cameras to angle toward the excitement, then whispered, "Go."

Ca.s.siopeia hopped the short length of chain and climbed down.

Pau Wen followed.

Malone kept watch. No one seemed to pay them any attention. As Pau found the ground, he slid down the ladder behind him. Together they hugged the earthen wall and avoided the half-restored terra-cotta figures lining the way.

Ca.s.siopeia entered the portal.

Before Pau disappeared inside, the older man grabbed one of the shovels. Apparently tools were needed, so Malone grabbed another and entered the dark s.p.a.ce.

Tang watched Viktor Tomas on one monitor and Pau Wen and his two companions on the other. He'd inspected the library chamber thoroughly, prior to ordering its torching, and discovered that nothing of interest, besides the ma.n.u.scripts, lay inside. Pau knew the ma.n.u.scripts were gone, burned away-they'd discussed it on the phone-yet the first thing Pau had done on reentering China was head straight there.

Why?

"Order the building evacuated," he said. "Station a man at all exits and several on the catwalks. Keep this camera focused on that opening. If anyone emerges, have them immediately arrested. If they become a problem, shoot them."

He tightened his grip on the pistol.

"I'm headed there now. I want that building empty by the time I arrive, except for the foreigner who started the disturbance. Keep him inside."

Malone surveyed the tight s.p.a.ce, maybe ten feet square, the floor and walls rough bricks, the ceiling stout timbers, one section long ago collapsed.

"I first came in through the break in the top," Pau said.

Three pedestal-like tables fashioned from stone stood empty, the floor littered with ash, the air thick with the smell of soot.

Something had definitely burned here.

"These tables were once covered with bamboo strips and silks, all with writings from the time of Qin Shi. His imperial library. Karl Tang ordered it destroyed two days ago."

"Why would he do such a thing?" Ca.s.siopeia asked. "How could they be a threat to him?"

"Anything he cannot control is a threat to him."

Malone heard the din of noise from outside begin to recede. He stepped to the exit and peered upward. "People are leaving."

"I imagine Tang ordered that. Which means we have little time."

"For what?" he asked.

"To leave."

FIFTY-FOUR.

Ni waded through a tangled mess of wet gra.s.s and approached the second of the three low-slung structures. Rain continued to fall. Vegetation had long ago consumed the outer walls, leafy vines thick from ground to roof. Most of the windows remained intact, the panes smeared with a layer of wet grime. He spotted beetles and mosquitoes smashed thick into torn screens.

He approached the wooden door. No lock prevented access, as he'd been told, so he shoved it open. Rusted hinges fought back, then gave way. The door jogged enough for him to slip inside.

He forced it closed once more.

Light from the filthy windows was filtered a gray-brown. Shadows consumed the room, which measured perhaps five meters square, one wall collapsed onto itself, exposing the weather and what lay behind the building. Plows dotted the blackened earth floor, everything dusted with a wet layer of rust and soil. A ma.s.s of clay pots and jars, piled in pieces, rose against one wall. Cobwebs consumed the corners.

He eased himself through the break in the outer wall, back out into the rain. For what he sought lay outside.

He heard the voice on the phone, from earlier.

"I employed spies to monitor what Pau Wen did at the mound site," the premier said. "He came to think that no one watched, and that may have been true of Mao and Deng, but not of me. I watched closely."

"And what did you learn?" Ni asked.

"Pau found a way into the tomb mound. Which surprised me. Qin's tomb was reported to contain large amounts of mercury. Yet he personally entered, staying inside for several hours one day, reappearing out of a hole in the earth near what would later become Pit 3. Strange occurrences likewise happened during the night for the next week, though no one officially reported anything."

He wanted to know more.

"Men and equipment working in the dark. Workers present who were not part of the site's labor force. One of the disadvantages of our form of government was that no one would have ever reported what they may have seen or heard. Pau was in charge and no one challenged him."

"Except you."

"I conducted a probe, but it was weeks later. We could not locate where Pau had disappeared into the ground. So much digging was occurring, the area ridden with deep gashes carved from the earth, it was impossible to know. But I did discover something else, years later. I was ordered back to the tomb mound by Beijing. This was after Pau had fled China. I was told to find a way inside the mound, and I did."

"Why has no one ever spoken of this?"

"There is a good reason for the secrecy."