The Money Is Green (32 page)

The colonel winced at the mention of Madam Chen. Her status within the Party assured him that his career was probably over. “I understand, Comrade Wing. Let me know if there’s anything else you want me to do with the body.”

“For right now, leave it in the infirmary until further notice. You will hear from me as soon as I receive instructions.”

♦

The scent of cherry blossoms from thousands of fruit trees left a pleasing scent in the air as the gentle breeze carried loose blossoms into the sky. A parade of dignitaries, all dressed in formal attire, meandered down the wide boulevard, cutting though the center of the immense orchard. The start of the summer festival was underway, and every high-ranking Party member was in attendance. Mei Chen and her husband, Ho, were at the forefront of the parade, waving half-heartedly to the throngs of people gathered on both sides of the street.

Mei had a fake smile planted on her face as she turned from one side to the other, pretending to be enjoying the spectacle. She heard her husband’s hushed voice speaking to her as he leaned in next to her ear. “I have heard disconcerting rumors, my dear, about your recent activities,” he whispered as they walked. “Many of the Party are very concerned about you. They are not looking favorably at what you are doing.”

She turned slowly, her fake smile never wavering. “Why do you pay attention to such gibberish, husband? There are many jealous people in the Party who would like nothing better than to take over my position. They can’t and they know it, so they try to make up gossip. It’s beneath you to listen to that and take it seriously.”

“Oh, but you are so wrong, my dear,” he said softly as he bowed to the crowd. “True, there are jealous people in the Party, and there is
no doubt that some would like to replace us and take our positions. But new things have surfaced recently that have drawn unwanted attention shined on both you and me.”

Mei raised her chin defiantly. “Really, and what might have happened recently that is causing such a fuss? I’ve been busy with my factory and haven’t had time to do anything scandalous.”

“Your friend, Mr. David Wilson, has been missing for about three weeks or so.” They continued walking the same steady pace. “There’s talk that you wanted to take over half of his properties and when he refused you put him in prison. Some of his friends and family contacted the British Embassy, and the embassy staff have been making inquiries. Uncomfortable inquiries. Scotland Yard has been alerted and they are also asking questions.”

Turning to him, her face expressionless, she said in a firm voice, “Mr. Wilson is a big boy. He can handle himself. I did make him a proposition to buy half of his hotels and he was giving it some thought. He never turned me down.” She turned back to the crowd and waved again. “Where he is right now, I couldn’t say. I haven’t talked to him or seen him in weeks. He’s got interests all over the globe. More than likely he’s with a women at one of his exotic resorts.”

They turned a corner and headed down another street as the crowds excitedly waved and cheered when they came into sight. “Maybe you are correct and he is on holiday,” Ho said quietly. “But I would hope you will take this matter seriously. If you have had anything to do with his disappearance, you must correct it immediately and let him go free. Stop interfering with ownership of businesses. This does not reflect well on the Party, and they are watching you. And if they are watching you, they are watching me. Don’t think that I won’t do what I need to do to protect myself, even if it’s from you.”

She stopped, glaring disdainfully at him. “Look at you, you fool,” she hissed. “You wouldn’t be near where you are without my pulling the strings.” She felt her face heat up from anger and she stared
straight ahead as she started walking again. “Don’t even think of threatening me, as I will leave you in the dust so fast your head will swim.”

“Always so confident, Mei,” he said, his irritation growing. “You are not aware of the many people you have stepped on who are waiting patiently for the perfect moment to destroy you. Your family connections will not save you from your enemies, and you have many. There is talk in the Party that you might have committed treason to the State. You have been playing a very reckless game.”

♦

Two hours later, the dignitaries had gathered in the main dining room of the Hong Kong Polo Club. Four long rows of tables sat parallel to each other, brimming with food set on silver platters. Servers in dark coats, starched white shirts and dark trousers, carried magnums of champagne and kept the patrons’ glasses full. A string quartet played softly in the corner of the room and the air was filled with laughter and music.

Mei was chatting with another woman when she looked across the room to see Ho talking with Xi Ping, the Head of the Party. The conversation seemed to be intense from the look on the men’s faces. What a pathetic creature Ho is, she thought. Who does he think he is, telling me what to do with my business? If he had half an ounce of sense, he would help me rather than hinder me. All he’s interested in is being the next President, and he doesn’t care whose ass he has to kiss to get there. What a joke. I would hope he realizes he’s not going anywhere without my help!

Looking out as she sipped her champagne, she spotted Tan Wen standing near the wall at the entrance to the room. Their eyes locked and she could tell he needed to speak to her. She excused herself and followed him as he walked out of the room. He reached the main door to the club and held it for her as they stepped outside.

Pulling a pair of Gucci sunglasses out of her tiny purse, she slipped them on to buffer the bright sunlight. “Well, Tan, what an unexpected pleasure. What brings you to the Polo Club?”

“Let’s take a walk, if you don’t mind, Madam Chen,” he said as he walked with her toward the garden area of the club, where a huge fountain sprayed water into the air in the center of a large pond. Colorful Mandarin ducks paddled aimlessly in the water, dipping their beaks down every so often to take a drink.

When they reached the edge of the pond, Tan stopped and looked back toward the clubhouse to see if there was anyone around them. Seeing no one, he put his hands behind his back and spoke in a serious tone. “We have a problem, Madam Chen. Mr. Wright has died.”

Her face never changed expression. “How did this happen? Your instructions were to get a signature from him, not kill him.”

Tan put his head down and explained what had transpired. After he finished, he said in a lowered voice, “I am sorry we let you down, Madam. I will do whatever you ask to make this right.”

She put her hands behind her back and paced in front of the pond. Tan followed at her side. “What are you going to do with the body? His body must never be found.”

“I understand, Madam, and I will make sure it will not surface. I’m in the process of creating a fake itinerary for him to be out of the country as of two weeks ago. We will have witness statements saying he was in other parts of the country. It will look like he disappeared some place other than Hong Kong.”

“What about Jason Ballard and Brian Thompson?” she asked, her face flush with anger. “Tell me at least that you have kept them in China.”

Looking over her shoulder at another couple who had stepped outside the building, Tan shook his head. “No, we couldn’t keep them. Someone alerted the US Embassy and they sent some personnel over to the airport and escorted them to a government jet. Without starting an international incident, there was nothing we could do to stop them.”

Nodding, Mei stated, “It was good that you didn’t interfere at the airport. Where are they going? We need to get to them. They both know too much and must be stopped. What do you suggest?”

“My sources tell me their flight plan was to Tokyo and then on to San Francisco. They also tell me that Brian Thompson is already in Tokyo and will join Jason for the flight to San Francisco. I don’t think trying to mess with them in Japan would be a good idea. The Japanese are very touchy about us doing things in their country without their prior approval. We can get them easier when they land in the US. Once we get them, what do you want done with them?”

Mei started to walk slowly along on the edge of the lake, her hands folded across her waist. “What I want is for them to be permanently eliminated without repercussions. I don’t want David Wilson’s disappearance or this incident to touch me or anyone associated with me.” She stopped and looked Tan in the eye. “You failed me last time with David Wilson. How can I be assured you won’t fail in this also?”

Bowing slightly, Tan responded, his voice void of emotion, “With due respect, Madam Chen, you sent Mr. Wilson to jail, where he was tortured in order to comply with your demands. It was unfortunate the torture did not produce the results you desired, but torture is torture, and sometimes it gets out of hand. What you are asking is less complicated. We can take these two out without creating a scene and without drawing attention.”

Still staring at him, she replied sharply, “Failure is not an option. If you need help, I have some sources in San Francisco who specialize in this sort of thing. If you want, I can place a call and maybe you can work together.”

Tan bowed at her slightly. “I would be honored to work with any of your people in the US. I am sure these are competent people that you work with.”

A majestic swan swam about a foot from the water’s edge and started squawking loudly. Mei and Tan stepped back away from it.
“You don’t happen to have any swan food with you, do you, Madam Chen?”

Looking at the swan she answered, “No, I don’t, but that bird would look better coming out of an oven on a silver platter.”

F
ORTY
-T
HREE

T
he massage table sat in the middle of the room covered in clean white sheets. Soft music played from a Bose sound system located on a small dresser in the corner of the room. Cheap oil paintings of seascapes from San Francisco’s coastline hung on the light-colored walls. A petite young woman, dressed in a white terrycloth robe, her dark hair pulled back in a ponytail, stood passively over the table, leaning into the brown body of Congressman Waters as he lay face down on the table, a small white cloth draped over his lower torso. She rubbed his shoulders with deft hands.

Smiling, he reached down and ran one of his hands up the back of the young woman’s thigh as she massaged him. “I’ve been thinking about his all day, Kay,” he said to her as he rubbed her up and down. “You do this so effortlessly, you put me in a trance.”

Without moving his hand, she answered sweetly, “Eugene, you’re a naughty boy. Every time I start to give you a massage, you want to rush right into hanky-panky. Relax and enjoy the music. We can get to that later.”

Congressman Waters turned his head and looked up at her. “You mean we can get to that after I pay you in cash for the extra services. I know how you work, Kay.”

Kay threw her head back and laughed. “Of course I negotiate and you pay up front. It’s just smart business. If I wait to collect ‘til after you’re done, you won’t be so anxious to pay up.” She leaned down and whispered in his ear, “This way everyone is happy. You pay, you come, you go. It’s all good.”

“Indeed, it is.” He continued rubbing her thigh. “You just have a way of making me want you badly.”

The cellphone sitting on the table next to his car keys started to ring. Kay picked it up and handed it to him and he answered.

“Congressman Waters,” Madam Chen said. “It’s been a couple of weeks. How is everything?”

Sitting up, he waved at Kay to leave, and she turned and quietly left the room. “Madam Chen, it’s good to hear your voice. Everything is grand. I assume you’re calling to check on our final operation before we take a break in the action.”

“That wasn’t the purpose of my call, but since you mentioned it, fill me in.”

The congressman reached for the glass of water sitting on the nightstand and took a sip. “We’re scheduled to run the largest cargo to date tonight. Over fifteen hundred guns: AR-15s, pistols… You name it, it’s in the shipment. Your plane will be flying out of Stead tonight at around eleven o’clock, and by 9:00 tomorrow morning everything should be unloaded and into the right hands.”

“That’s excellent, Congressman. There are no worries about anything?”

“No, Madam, we’ve been very cautious. No government agency has even heard of us or what we’re doing. So far everything has worked out very cleanly.” He curled his hand with his fingers and checked out his fingernails. “So, what was the real purpose of your call, Madam? How can I be of service to you?”

A pause greeted him over the phone and then she began to speak in a monotone. “Two men are arriving in San Francisco tonight from Tokyo on a specially charted jet. Their names are Jason Ballard and
Brian Thompson. I want them taken care of immediately. Call your friend Wo Sung and see what he will charge for the job and then have him handle it.”

The congressman’s ears perked up. “Isn’t Jason your president at Soltech and isn’t Brian Thompson your partner at Inter-Power? My office was very instrumental in getting Inter-Power the BLM land lease for the Copper Mountain project. It would be very ugly if any of this was traced back to me.”

“I understand, Congressman. That’s why, when you speak to Wo, make sure he doesn’t leave any traces. It’s very important this job is carried out quickly and quietly.”

The congressman scratched his thigh as he sat on the edge of the table. What is this all about? Why is she trying to get rid of two high-profile guys in the green industry? “Madam Chen, I’ll call Wo right after we hang up, but I must caution you about being reckless. I don’t know your motivation for this job, but I think you should give it some thought. These aren’t just average people we’re talking about.”

“I appreciate your concern, Congressman, but trust me, you need these guys gone too. They know too much about a lot of things we’re doing. I want to be on the safe side.”

“What about Jason’s daughter and the girlfriend? When we last talked, Wo was to have them picked up and held while you dealt with Jason. Wo hasn’t been able to get the daughter since she’s still in the hospital, but she should be getting out soon. Do you still want to proceed with that plan?”