False Horizon - Alex Archer [92]
Annja felt sick at the thought that she’d eaten a peach off of one of them a few hours earlier. Had she known about the nuclear waste, she wouldn’t have been so gung-ho about it.
“The resort itself was obviously designed to help us offset our costs. And we know the lure of Shangri-La is so great that we would draw hundreds of thousands every year. But more importantly, if the technology worked, then we would put it to use in certain other areas of our country where the land is less than optimal for growing food.”
“This is insane,” Annja said. “You’re talking about burying nuclear waste in the ground. The consequences of that would kill thousands.”
Tsing held up his hand. “We are talking about burying it, but not in the manner you think. We don’t just lob it into the soil and be done with it. We plant a containment device that not only keeps the waste from leeching into the soil, but generates and channels incredible energy. Not only does it enable the soil to grow warmer and more fertile, but we also thought we could siphon off some of the heat to help keep houses warm. Imagine being free of oil as a heating implement. The savings alone in that field would amount to hundreds of billions of dollars.”
“But at what cost?” Annja asked.
Tsing smiled. “Well, there’s the rub, as you say. We needed workers to handle it and we would have to swear them to secrecy. The only way to guarantee that they didn’t talk was to move their families in with them. They would work at the resort and reap the benefits.” He frowned. “Speaking of which, where are all the workers?”
Mike cleared his throat. “They’re dead.”
Tsing whirled around. “Dead? How? There were six hundred of them stationed here. How did they die?”
Mike pointed at Vanya. “She had them killed.”
Tsing turned back on Vanya. “You did what? You killed them? My God, woman, there were children with their parents here.”
“Not any longer,” Mike said. “Every last one of them is dead.”
Tsing leaned against the wall. “This is not the news I was hoping to hear.”
Annja shook her head. “I find it difficult believing you, considering you threw a man off the roof the night you met with us.”
Tsing sniffed. “The man I threw off the roof worked for Vanya. He was attempting to penetrate my organization. When we got wind of it, we took care of matters. He was an interloper. Had I known I had not one but two such traitors in my midst, I surely would have delighted in taking care of the other one, as well.”
Hsu Xiao spit in his direction. “You make me sick.”
Tsing laughed. “Yes, well, funny how times change, isn’t it? I can vividly recall you begging me to do some very interesting things to you. Such a dirty little girl you are.” He glanced at Vanya. “I’m assuming you trained her to do that, as well.”
Vanya glared at him. “Hsu Xiao is a true servant of the people.”
“Yes, whatever. Save me the propaganda speeches, would you? It seems to me that we have a few things to clear up here.”
Annja smiled. “This ought to be good.”
Tsing looked at Mike. “Where are the bodies of the workers? They will need a proper burial and my superiors will need to be informed.”
Mike shook his head. “Well, then you’ve got a serious problem.”
“Why is that?”
“Because Einstein over there had the bodies thrown into the treatment facility beneath us.”
Annja thought she saw the color drain from Tsing’s face. “Please tell me that you’re lying.”
“I wish I was, but it’s the truth. Ask Tuk and he’ll confirm it.”
Tsing whirled around and stared at Tuk. “Is it true?”
Tuk, despite his obvious hatred, nodded. “I saw the bodies on the security cameras inside the mountain.”
Tsing turned around and looked back at Vanya. “You did this?”
Vanya smiled. “I did.”
“You know what this will do?”
“Of course.”
Mike nodded. “Yeah, see, that’s the other problem. By my watch, if I was reading those levels right back in the computer room, we’ve got maybe ten minutes before this place starts to melt right into the earth or blow up. Either way, it’s not going to be a good