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The route took them past historic temples, palatial government structures and even a sprawling concrete building that had once housed the largest slaughterhouse in the world. It was now renovated and filled with upscale shops and restaurants, including several that offered vegan or vegetarian fare.
They stopped briefly at the Oriental Pearl Tower, the most famous landmark in Shanghai. A bundle of spheres and huge tubular supports that rose fifteen hundred feet into the sky.
“It looks like a science experiment gone awry,” someone on the bus said.
“A Buck Rogers rocket ship,” someone else suggested.
Paul and Gamay pretended to be impressed with everything they saw, but all they really cared about was the last leg of the journey, when the bus would drive through downtown Shanghai and right past the building that contained the American Consulate.
They were closing in on that block now, the traffic slowdown giving them a chance to study the surroundings. The view was less than enticing.
“So much for the Consulate,” Gamay whispered.
Paul nodded grimly. Scores of Chinese police and soldiers had been stationed around the building and at every intersection leading up to it. Barricades had been erected and Chinese officials could be seen checking the passports of anyone seeking to be let through. “All in the name of safety, no doubt.”
The bus came to another traffic light and stopped. As it idled there, Paul noticed another couple pointing out the security teams. He leaned toward them. “Any idea why all the soldiers are down here?”
The couple turned his way. Based on the maple leaf pins they wore, he figured they were Canadian. “I heard something about terrorist threats on the news,” the woman said. “It’s just horrible, really. The police were at our hotel this morning and I’m told they’ve surrounded the Canadian and British consulates as well. We’re thinking we’d rather have gone somewhere else for our vacation. But now we can’t even get home or meet our friends in Beijing because they’ve closed the airport and the train station.”
“I hadn’t heard that,” Paul admitted. “We’re due to fly out tomorrow.”
She offered a kindly smile. “You’d better check with the airline, sonny. I was told we might be stuck here for a week.”
Paul sighed as if it were a mere delay in the travel plans. “I guess I should,” he said. “Might I use your phone? I’m afraid ours was stolen.”
Paul’s overall impression of Canadian citizens was that they were always willing to help out. By far the most polite people he’d encountered in his travels.
“Won’t do you any good,” the husband said. “They’ve shut down the cell phone networks citywide.”
“And the internet as well,” the woman said. “It’s like we’re living in the Stone Age.”
“Or 1993,” her husband said.
Paul had to laugh at that. The Stone Age was not that far back, apparently. “Are the landlines still working?”
“That’s what we used,” the Canadian woman said. “Called from the hotel.”
He thanked them for the information and sat down beside Gamay. “Guess what?”
“I heard,” she said. “Someone’s pulling out all the stops. Think all this is for us?”
“Seems that way,” he said. “With the whole city in an electronic deep freeze, we’re going to have a problem getting this information out. We can’t even use an internet café like we did in Cajamarca.”
Gamay didn’t answer right away. She was staring straight ahead. “Not everything is frozen.”
She pointed to a small TV screen in the back of the seat. It was tuned to the international feed of CNN. A reporter was conducting a live broadcast, referencing the internet blackout and the terrorist danger.
“The networks are still up,” she said. “They have their own satellites. Direct links to Washington and New York bureaus. If we could borrow one for just a minute . . .”
She didn’t need to finish. Paul knew what she was getting at. “It’ll be risky, but I’ve never known a reporter who didn’t want a world-class scoop. If we made enough big promises, we might find someone willing to help.”
“And if we could find a mobile truck,” she added, “we wouldn’t even have to set foot in a big, easy-to-surround building.”
Paul turned his eyes back to the reporter on the screen. “That shouldn’t be too hard. Recognize th
e location?”
“Should I?”
