Urumqi

By Ken Varnold

While working at the Chinese National Observatory in the frontier city of Urumqi, American astrophysicist Dr. Luca Barnes makes the find of a lifetime when he discovers the asteroid of our nightmares that will arrive in twenty years. He and his Chinese host, Dr. Zhao Lin, collaborate and present their findings to the Chinese government, after which Lin disappears and Barnes finds Chinese authorities on his trail. Barnes escapes to America, where he hopes to reveal his findings to his own government, so a plan to destroy or divert this massive object can be developed. But he runs headlong into todays America, where rivalries have grown severe and his very own brother betrays him. As the years pass and his efforts are thwarted, Barnes learns the painful lesson that it is not the calamity we fear that will be our undoing, but rather our response to it. Urumqi is the journey of one man who learns his limits and, sadly, the limits of those he holds most dear.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Aug 3, 2015
• ISBN: 9781503586406

Ken Varnold

Ken is a writer living in the twin cities of Minneapolis/Saint Paul, Minnesota. A native of Galesburg, Illinois, he has lived in Minnesota since 1966. He attended the University of Minnesota, obtaining a BA in Child Development. After a varied career ranging from social services, law enforcement, investigator, actor, playwright, and poet, he proudly adds novelist to the list. Urumqi is his latest work. You can find more at www.kenvarnold.net.

Book preview

Copyright © 2015 by Ken Varnold.

Library of Congress Control Number:   2015911368

ISBN:      Hardcover      978-1-5035-8641-3

                Softcover        978-1-5035-8642-0

                eBook             978-1-5035-8640-6

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

See more of Ken’s work at kenvarnold.net

Cover art by Marlena Myles

Rev. date: 07/22/2015

Xlibris

1-888-795-4274

www.Xlibris.com

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Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapter 33

Chapter 34

Chapter 35

Chapter 36

Chapter 37

Chapter 38

Chapter 39

Chapter 40

Chapter 41

Chapter 42

Chapter 43

Chapter 44

Chapter 45

Chapter 46

Authors Notes

In February, 2013, the world was witness to the natural event of an asteroid exploding over a Russian city, and recorded on the dash cam of a moving vehicle. It was later estimated this object was only about seven meters in diameter, a wee mote in the vastness of space. Yet it could shake the ground, shatter windows, and utter a blinding light before it disintegrated without even touching the ground. Weekly, we see stories of what if a truly large asteroid was to approach our planet. As a writer, what if is the key to imagination, to paraphrase Rod Serling.

I am the constant observer, looking for the patterns we humans create in our lives that swirl like myriad eddies around us. It was an easy jump from the scary hypotheticals the media throw out regularly, to wonder what if this actually happened. No joke, no kidding, no second chances or rewinds, and no playback for the hungry mob. Simply…the end. The lights go out. God, looking vaguely like Dumbledore, takes a last look at his experiment in the bottom of the trash bin, replaces the lid, and walks away brushing his hands as he goes.

Make no mistake; this is not a story about an asteroid. It is a story about us. Because it does not matter what happens to us, nearly as much as what we do about it.

What if?

Dr. Luca Barnes is about to find out. And so, I hope, are you.

Tis a vile thing to die, my gracious lord,

When men are unprepared and look not for it.

Wm.Shakespeare - Richard III

Chapter 1

Why Urumqi? That was the question my friends asked. Why would I want to go live and work for two years in perhaps the most remote city in the world? I sought, and was granted, a fellowship to work there at the Chinese National Observatory. Back home a divorce was pending, plum career assignments were going to my colleagues, and I wondered if I had lost my way. I needed to walk away for a while. Just a little while. I was thirty-eight and disillusioned. Urumqi offered a respite and escape, and a time to rethink my priorities. I wanted rest and simple research in a place where I didn’t know anyone and they didn’t know me. That’s what Urumqi offered. Looking back, it was probably not the best career choice.

My sponsor was Dr. Zhao Lin. During our time working together at Lowell, we had become great colleagues and good friends. I called him Doc. Even after he returned to China we kept in touch. When I emailed and asked if he had any opportunities there he invited me to work. So I began doing simple, wide-lens scans of space, documenting how it looked at that moment in time. I would study the detail, note any changes, then catalog and file the digital photos for future reference. It was mundane, but it was enough for me. Almost like starting over.

One day I noted a faint smudge. I magnified it. I compared it to photos from days and weeks before. It was there. I superimposed the images over each other. It looked like it had moved. When I showed Doc what I found he opened his desk and removed an envelope with photos he had printed and saved. We took them to a wide table and laid them out in order from earliest to last. Something was moving out there, an object big enough to see even at this great distance.

It was a clearly defined arc of an object in deep space. We asked the computer to move it forward in both time and distance. On its current heading, the arc passed into the inner rings of our solar system headed for the sun.

The only problem was that on the way to the sun, there was another object in its path.

Earth.

How big do you think this is? I asked him.

Hmm…ten, maybe fifteen kilometers.

We stared in silence. It was what I thought too and we both understood what this meant. The asteroid that erased the dinosaurs was only about seven to eight kilometers in size. This one was at least eight to ten, probably more. Allowing for any errors we ran the projections again. And again. Until at last, he sat pinching the bridge of his nose, his eyes closed. When the printer started reeling out the pages I grabbed them and sat back down.

I hope we made a mistake, I said, cutting to the final calculations and comparing them to the previous analysis.

I don’t think so, he replied.

The combined data only reinforces what I found.

You’ve known about this… I said looking at him.

He only nodded.

We wanted to be wrong. We ran all the data again allowing for every variable we could think of, and there are only so many. Hours later we sat back in silent agreement the news was not going to get better. At the very least, in twenty years this object would pass closer to the earth than anything has before. And even the smallest error at this distance could be catastrophic.

Doc, we have to tell someone, I told him.

He liked it that I called him Doc. He had lived in the states for several years. It was how I met him. We worked together at the Lowell in Arizona and on one of our weekends I offered to take him to Tombstone. He had heard of Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday and was excited to go. What struck me funny was that he actually loved Doc Holliday. I started calling him Doc as a joke. He liked it so much I just kept it up. He thought it fair since he had his PhD in astrophysics. Go figure how a Chinese intellectual became fascinated with one of our legendary gun fighters. The first time I saw him make his right hand into a gun shape, put it by his side then draw it and say bang! I almost fell off my bar stool. Then he pretended to blow the smoke out of the barrel which only added to it. It was a good laugh. We weren’t laughing now.

Let’s wait, Luke. Take another week or two and get more readings. We must keep this to ourselves for now.

And then? I asked him.

Then we will have to report it. It is possible someone else has found it already. We can watch and wait. We have some time. I will begin writing the report.

I understood. Why should we be the spoilers, the messengers of Armageddon? If we were right, we had twenty years and after that…well, there would be no after that. It was likely someone else would discover it when it got a little closer and they could have the devil’s name.

If you were in America now, would you report it right away? he asked me.

I would. I feel responsible, I told him.

And what would the American government do about it?

It didn’t take long to reply.

In our country, we would inform everyone. Get confirmation from others. The president would contact world leaders and our government would take the lead in finding a way to knock this thing out of the sky one day.

The United States is fighting two wars. Do you think this would take precedence with your president and your congress?

Yes, I said confidently, they would.

You’re sure, he stated.

Yes. What will your government do?

I don’t know, he said, looking out a window to the parking lot.

You’ll have to tell them eventually.

I know.

We decided to wait. I want to make it clear this was no conspiracy on our part. We wanted to do the right thing. It was up to Doc to inform his country if it came to that.

We locked up and went home for the night. At least Doc went home. I wasn’t in the mood to go back to my hotel room. He drove me back into the city and dropped me off in front of the hotel. He didn’t utter a word as he drove and I didn’t either. I watched him drive away. I turned and started walking to a different destination. Two blocks down was a friendly bar and they served beer. They had Bud Lite, like water with alcohol to me. They also had Tiger Beer, an Asian beer that came in a tall bottle. It was better if not great.

The walk gave me time to think. Back home, Anna and I had drifted so far apart. My work, her work, there are many reasons why marriages fail. In time the reasons don’t even matter. I had nine more months in Urumqi and divorce papers waiting when I got home. After ten years of marriage we had been unable to produce a child. This bothered her more than me. It became the main reason for the divorce. That, and my frequent travel around the country on the teaching circuit.

These thoughts ran through my mind as I walked down the street. I got to the front door and went inside. The main floor was about three steps down from the entrance and I could see her across the room serving drinks at the bar. Her name was Lijuan. I called her Li and she always smiled at this. She was the bartender, the real reason I went there. I began shouldering my way through the smoky room, nodding in apology with those who turned to look. I found a seat and sat down. Li wore a tight black silk dress that almost touched the floor, stopping just above her ankles. Her hair was pulled into a bun and held in place with a couple of chop sticks. Her eyes caught the light and lit her face. She was at the other end of the bar, the lighting underneath lit her face from below. She was smiling at two guys flirting with her. They finished talking and she turned to prepare their drinks. Her eyes scanned the bar. When she saw me she blushed and smiled. The smile remained while she fixed the drinks. She knew I was staring at her. One of guys grabbed her wrist as she set the glasses in front of them. With her other hand, wet from ice, she flicked some cold water in his eyes and he let go.

She turned and walked the length of the bar, her eyes and smile fixed on me. Her head was up a little high as she looked at me. She knew I liked her. I hated being that obvious. Nothing had even happened between us. Just a frequent ritual of me sitting down, ordering a beer and flirting. On slow nights it had given me a chance to talk to her. She was divorced, two years older than me and she had a daughter. She worked here in the evening. During the day she was an interpreter for the American Embassy. She spoke good English.

What’s your pleasure sailor? she said when she reached me.

She always called me Sailor when she flirted. I loved it.

A Tiger please?

You referring to me or a beer? she asked.

I don’t know. Can I get you?

She didn’t answer, just stood there smiling at me and raised her eyebrows a bit.

I’ll take the beer then, I finished.

She brought it, put it down in front of me and winked as she turned away. I watched her for a few minutes as I sipped the beer. I studied the people sitting at the bar, then looked out across the crowd talking, laughing, some dancing. They were relaxing after living their day, dealing with their life issues whatever they might be.

That’s when it hit me again, the idea that they and I have a finite number of years and days left and I was the only one with the secret. It soured my mood for several minutes. What would they do if they could know what I know? I felt they should know, they have a right to know. And each second ticking by meant that asteroid was closing in on us.

You ready for another sailor?

She was standing right in front of me again. My beer was gone. I had finished it without thinking. I put some cash on the bar. When she bent across to pick it up, she hesitated and looked at me.

Three AM, she said.

Huh?

It is the time I leave work, she said.

She stood pulling the money with her. She did not look back. I checked my watch. It was 2:10 AM. Did I hear what I thought I heard? I must have been staring because after she served two women sitting together she glanced my way and winked again.

At 3:00 AM, I was still there. Night was my element. You can’t see stars during the day. My work often went to first light the next morning. When she finished closing down the bar and the bouncers were easing the last customers out of the bar she looked at me. She beckoned me with a nod.

We walked a few blocks to her building where she led me inside.

My daughter is with her father for a few days, she said as she opened her apartment door.

She poured a small glass of white wine and then left the room. We were on the nineteenth floor. I heard the shower come on. A short time later I saw a reflection in the window. It was the naked mirror image of her. She walked up behind me, took my arm and led me to her bed.

When I woke the next morning she was already up. She had left a jar of Nescafe on the counter and a hot pot ready to go. I could hear water running in the bathroom. I lay there, looking at the ceiling and recalling the night before. We made love like two refugees with our first plate of food. I wondered what, if anything, this might mean. Starvation makes allies of quite different people. I got up to make some coffee. In the middle of my coffee preparation she came out wrapped in a short silk robe and looked at me sitting in my skivvies at the table. I was just taking a sip of the hot brew.

She came over to me, bent down and kissed me. Her hand slipped between my legs. When I extended my arm around her she was naked under that smooth, silken robe. In no time we were back in bed. This time was shorter and no less pleasing. She was on top of me. Her eyes closed and found exactly the right spot she had discovered last night. In no time, I was bucking and groaning. I exploded inside her. She moaned and slammed herself onto me. I pushed up. She landed hard on each downward thrust until she lay on me shuddering, her arms wrapped around the small of my back, her faced nuzzled into my neck.

Good morning, she whispered, out of breath and without looking up.

Good morning, I whispered back.

I want you to know I do not do this often, she said.

Me neither.

Why did you stay last night? In the bar I mean? she asked

I was hoping it would lead to this, I said to her.

Oh, an honest man.

Usually, I offered.

Only usually? she questioned.

I have my moments.

So tell me honest man, who else is out there that you hope leads to this?

No one. You should know I am married, at least for now.

I should have known, she said and rolled over on her side.

I have only nine months left here and when I return to the U.S. I have divorce papers to sign. My attorney is holding them.

She looked at me again. She lay there studying my eyes for several long moments. Then she looked away again.

Please believe me, I said to her.

I do.

Where did you learn English so well?

My ex-husband was British. We lived in London until…until we didn’t. I took my daughter and came home. My husband did not seem to mind. He is still good to her and comes to visit her twice a year.

Are you still married? I asked.

I have no idea, she said and jumped up, running off for one last, brief shower.

By the time she returned I was back at my coffee and she had dressed.

I must go pick up my daughter. There is a clean towel in the bathroom.

Thanks, I said. I think I will just go back to my place. I need to have a meeting this afternoon at my office.

And your work is?

I work at the observatory. I’m an astronomer, an astrophysicist.

An educated man too.

Sometimes, I said.

Sometimes?

I have plenty of days when I feel pretty stupid, I told her.

This is life. Everyone is stupid when it comes to life.

Before I could respond she stood and headed for the door, cutting me off.

Will I see you tonight? she said as she walked away.

I looked at her. How could I resist?

Somehow, I said.

She turned and blew a quick kiss as she opened the door.

It locks when you pull the door shut, she said looking back.

By the way, what is your name…your full name?

Barnes. Dr. Luca Barnes.

See you later Barnes, she said, making her exit.

Chapter 2

Doc and I took readings every day for weeks and were able to pinpoint the asteroid’s location. We had to be discreet. The telescope was used by other scientists doing their own studies and we didn’t want anyone else to know what we were doing. With each passing week and every observation we found nothing that would contradict our first conclusion.

I stood on the walk one afternoon in front of my hotel. Doc would be along soon to pick me up. The sun was bright and beautiful. I paid little attention to the cars and pedestrians passing me, the usual cacophony of any city street. Even the passing buses blasting diesel fumes didn’t distract me.

My mind drifted to Li. Much as I was beginning to like her, I didn’t know about her daughter. So far we had not discussed her, more my idea than Li’s. I knew that if we continued I would meet the girl eventually. And then what? My remaining time in China was down to eight months. I shouldn’t make promises to anyone.

Getting ahead of yourself Luke ol’ boy, I muttered.

I checked my watch. Doc was pretty punctual and I still had a couple minutes before he was due. I looked up and scanned the street. I saw his car about a half block away and inching toward me so I took a closer step to the curb to wait. The street was jammed and would be for another hour. On the far side of the street a government car was parked with two policemen loitering on the sidewalk. One of them smoked a cigarette while they chatted with each other and ignored the traffic.

Doc finally pulled up and I jumped into the passenger seat while he checked traffic and began to pull away.

Good afternoon, I said.

Ni hao, Doc replied.

I looked back to help him watch for a gap in the traffic flow and he was controlling it pretty well. He pulled out, and the car behind let out a quick, irritated honk of its horn. Through a gap in the traffic I saw the two Chinese policemen getting into their car. When I looked back a minute later they had maneuvered to the lane beside us, several car lengths behind.

I glanced over at Doc. His mood seemed subdued and he looked lost in thought. I stayed silent for a while in case he needed some space. If he was thinking about something personal I didn’t want to be rude. We rode like that for almost fifteen minutes while he found the way to the highway that led us out of the city to the observatory. I watched the city go by as traffic began to thin out. The silence was making me uncomfortable. Doc usually talked a bit about his day. Something his wife did or a conversation with his kids. His oldest, number one son, as he liked to call the boy, would be going off to college in the coming summer. His second and last child, a girl, was in her mid-teens and it was driving him crazy keeping boys away from her. These conversations often sparked longer chats about our respective families. His silence this morning was not characteristic.

I contacted our government representative this morning, he said at last.

I knew he had to do this. The observatory is overseen by the government. New scientific discoveries must be reported immediately. They would remove him from his position if he did not do so.

You told them about the asteroid.

Yes.

Again, he fell silent.

And? I asked him.

The regional party boss will come tonight to see what we found. We must accommodate him when he does.

Is he a scientist?

Doc looked sideways at me, the small sneer was clear for me to see.

He is a dogmatic bureaucrat and less intelligent than my dog.

I looked at him. His blank face told volumes.

I hope they don’t bug your car, I told him.

Me too, he said, still looking forward, keeping his eyes on the road.

Will he want to look at it? All we have to show him are several pages of calculations.

We will show him the calculations and explain what they mean. If he wants to look, I will need your help to prepare the ’scope.

No problem Doc just let me know what you need.

Thank you Barnes.

We finished the trip in silence. I understood the seriousness if he failed to alert the authorities. I didn’t know how he managed to be a scientist with a government motivated by political dogma. Of course, they are all motivated by political dogma, as I was to learn.

We spent the rest of that afternoon before dark cleaning up the area before the officials arrived. There were loose papers, cup stains on the desk, these kinds of things. We swept floors and made sure all the trash bins were empty.

We stopped about seven PM to eat our lunches. By eight o’clock the sun would be down and darkness would cover the land. The clear skies continued so we were hopeful we would be able to show the officials something interesting when they arrived. Doc did not know when they would arrive so we prepped the equipment. He went up to check the telescope and set controls to locate the asteroid. It would not reflect well on us if we could not show it to the dignitary.

It wasn’t until almost 10:00 PM that we heard vehicles outside. I didn’t know what I was expecting, but it was not a caravan of five SUV’s, each filled with at least four men. Soldiers climbed out of four of them. They surrounded the second vehicle and formed a perimeter, rifles at the ready. The driver exited that car, walked around to the passenger side and opened the door. A somewhat rotund man stepped out. The driver made a quick bow and they began walking to the front door behind two of the soldiers. When I glanced at Doc he did not appear surprised. He had put on his tie and suit jacket and combed his hair. He walked to wait in front of the doors. As the dignitary walked in behind his minions who had opened the door for him, he paused a few feet in front of Doc. Doc bowed. The official nodded.

Doc said something and gestured toward me. The official looked at me without expression. I made a small bow and waited. He disregarded me and turned back to Doc. He said something to Doc who again bowed and made a short reply. Then he turned and began to lead them through the building to the observation room. Doc glanced at me and gave me a little nod. I fell in behind the small group of men and followed them.

My discomfort grew by the minute and I wanted to hide in a closet. Throughout the one hour meeting I served as Doc’s assistant. He was explaining and gesturing to the screen images, doing a little teaching along the way. The official asked questions. I stepped in and did as Doc asked when he needed to move on. I had the feeling it would enhance his image with this guy if he made it clear he was in charge. I was happy to help him.

Doc led him step by step through our discovery process. When he got to the part about merging my data, the official glanced over at me and stared. When the screen finally came up showing the projected arc of the asteroid, the official paused and stared at it for a full minute. He finally looked at Doc with a small change in his demeanor. He asked Doc a few questions. Then he stood. Doc jumped to his feet. The official gave him a nod and turned on his heels, again ignoring me. The minions fell in step and made a line for the front exit. We followed behind like a couple of beggars. When he reached the front doors, the official turned and looked at Doc. Doc looked like he was afraid to move. The official muttered something to Doc, who nodded. Within seconds, the group of men was gone. We heard the SUVs start up and soon the noise of their engines trailing away into the night.

A full minute later, Doc and I were still standing there staring at the door. I was almost afraid to move and I think he was too.

What the hell was all that about? I asked him finally.

I don’t know.

Luke, you must be sure of one thing. Don’t tell anyone. Not even your colleagues in the U.S., no one here, not anyone.

He was staring at me now.

Sure. Ok. No problem. What’s going to happen next?

He looked away from me.

I don’t know that either.

That was it, end of conversation. We turned and went back to work. We had a scan to finish and make sure files were put away and we didn’t talk the rest of that night. When we left after cloud cover had moved in and obscured the sky. He drove in silence all the way back to town to my hotel.

Good night Doc, I said getting out.

See you Monday, he said without looking at me.

I wish I had known then I would never see him again.

Chapter 3

It was a Sunday evening. We were sitting in the restaurant of my hotel. Li had spent the weekend with me, her mother caring for her daughter at their apartment. I looked across the table at her. She was talking. I watched her mouth and her eyes as she told me a story of her childhood. I noticed the little gestures she made with her hands as she talked. I saw the way her small earrings jiggled from side to side when she became animated during the story. She had begun by telling me how her father was killed during an uprising in Urumqi. Her father was Uyghur and her mother was Chinese, a forbidden relationship at the time because the Chinese looked down on them. This conversation that had started with such a somber topic changed as she talked. She told me stories about him, how funny he was and the things he did to entertain his children. She stopped to giggle at various points in the story.

Your father sounds like a good man, I said when she had reached the conclusion.

He was.

It has been a nice weekend. I’m glad you came here, I told her.

I’ve had a nice time too, she said.

We’ve hardly been out of bed.

I didn’t need to do any sightseeing, I grew up here, she said and winked.

I poured a little more wine into her glass and poured the remaining amount into my own, emptying the bottle. We sat staring at each other. I almost had to bite my tongue to avoid saying too much.

I don’t know what… we both started together.

I laughed. She smiled.

She reached across and wove her fingers into mine.

Don’t say too much, Luke, she told me.

I understand what this is. You will leave in eight months. Go back to your life in America.

I sat like a lump. I squeezed her fingers a little tighter.

Let’s not spoil this with anything. No empty promises, she said.

What if… I started to say.

Stop, she said.

She had a way of locking on my eyes that made me think she was reading my mind.

Li, I didn’t expect to… I started.

Before I could say more, a shout erupted in the lobby. We, and everyone around us, looked in that direction. One of the bellman was trying to grab a woman running away from him. She looked distraught.

Come on, I told Li and started to rise.

Why? she asked looking at me, our hands still joined on the table.

I have to go there, I said, trying to get my hand free.

That’s Bei, Doc’s wife, I told her.

She broke the grip and I walked out, weaving between the tables on my way to the doors. Another bellman joined the first and they tried to restrain Doc’s wife, her voice rising in protest as she twisted trying to break the grip.

Stop! I know her!

Bei!

Barnes! Barnes! she began shouting when she saw me.

I took one of her arms and gave the bellman on that arm a cold stare. He let go. Doc’s wife