by Kailin Gow
A smile slowly came to his lips as he thought of that long ago visit. His father had often spoken of the factory that made rice noodles and Leo had always been curious to see how they were made. His father had finally agreed to bring him along for a visit.
In his boyish and naïve mind, he’d imagined rows of regular kitchen stoves, each with a cook standing behind it stirring pots of boiling water. On entering the fascinating factory, he’d marveled at the immense vats, the automated packaging machines and the rolls and rolls of plastic that were to form the packaging for the individual servings of rice noodles. Spices and flavoring were quickly dropped into tiny envelopes and sealed before being added to the packaging.
“Wow, Father. Everything goes by so fast,” he’d told his father who’d simply patted him on the head.
Once in their individual packets, the noodles headed to the shipping department by way of conveyor belts where they were packed into boxes by the dozen. What intrigued Leo, however, was a group of women sitting at a table to the side who randomly took a packet from the conveyor belt and opened it.
“What do they do, Father?”
“Quality control.”
“They taste the noodles?” Leo said, his eyes wide with envy. “Can I taste one, too?”
With uncustomary patience, his father led him to the women and offered him a packet of ramen noodles. Like the women at the table, Leo pulled apart the packaging and broke off a piece of noodle to put it in his mouth. Giving the women a nod of approval, he was rewarded with a round of amused laughter.
“When I get big, I’m going to make good food, too,” he told the women. His love of food and his desire to see his creations eaten all over the world had begun on that day. Just as so many ramen noodles were to be shipped to America, he wanted to send tasty sauces and spices. And for every packet of rice noodles shipped to Europe, he wanted to send prepared soups and stews, and so much more.
“You’ll be running plenty of factories when you grow up,” his father said.
“Not only that. I want to be a chef. I want to create foods.”
His father chuckled. “Believe me, you’ll have plenty to keep you busy just running this factory. Being a boss isn’t easy. You have to know what sells, and what doesn’t. You have to know which products do well and where. You have to find the best possible ingredients at the lowest possible price in order to keep profits high.”
“I want to make good food no matter how much it costs.”
“Just remember to charge your customer the difference. In packaged foods, many people are looking to save a buck. They want good taste at a low, low price.” His father picked up a packet of seasonings. “See this? The best way to make a few herbs and spices go a long way is to add plenty of salt. Salt cost nothing. Spices can be expensive.”
But before Leo could break open the packet of seasonings and lick his finger to dip it inside like he’d seen the women do, his father pulled him away with a firm hand.
Several years after that visit, as a mature teen, Leo had peeked into his father’s office, the very office he now called his own.
“Sales are down in America, Europe and Australia,” a man said.
“Then again, if you look at the production from Dui Fong, we’re having trouble keeping up with the demand,” another man said.
“Yes,” his father said. His tone was grave, even more so than usual. “I never thought that product line would take off, but…”
“But an increase in health conscience shoppers has made it a hit.”
His father nodded, his fingers clasped in front of him. “The success of Dui Fong doesn’t make this any easier, but it has to be done. We have to close Da Hwa.”
The office fell silent for a long moment, as if the men inside mourned the death of a company, but even then, Leo suspected there was more to the story than just customer preference.
His father’s health had declined considerably in the past years and he’d been increasingly absent from the office, leaving major decisions to a handful of trusted men. Leo couldn’t help but wonder if those men had been as stringent and diligent in their decision making process as his father had always been.
“I’ll start the paperwork and see how many orders we can cancel,” the man said.
“Try to cancel as many as possible,” his father said. “We’re losing money with every order we fill.”
It had taken over a year and a half to finally fill the last of orders that would have been too costly to cancel and close the factory, leaving hundreds of employees with no work and no means of feeding their family. That was five years earlier and Leo still felt the sting. Although he’d been in Tibet filming a movie at the time, he’d heard of the closing, the news had been that big. Every paper had talked about the effect on the local economy.
Many had openly blamed his father for his carelessness, callousness and complete lack of empathy when they learned that despite having known of the impending shut down for well over a year, the managers had refused to let the employees know anything until the day they were handed their last paycheck and thanked for their years of loyal dedication.
The press had had a field day with the heartlessness of the company’s methods. Distressed by it all, his father had sought to hire back as many employees as possible in other companies under the Lee Holdings umbrella, but he’d been advised against it, and had ultimately followed that advice. Money was growing tight and it wasn’t time to be overly charitable.
“Over there,” Peter said, breaking Leo from his reverie.
The factory came into view and Leo was flooded with a fresh wave of childhood memories.
“Peter,” Leo said. “Why’d they pick Da Hwa factory? I mean, I get how they might want to make a statement, but why go to the trouble of coming all the way out here?” The truth was, Leo wanted to know just how much Peter truly knew about Da Hwa.
“Look around. The place is deserted. We’ve been driving for over half an hour, and we’ve barely seen a handful of cars in the last fifteen minutes.”
Leo looked around. The small but efficient little town that had been built for the employees of Da Hwa and had thrived for well over twenty years was no longer. The skeleton of many buildings remained upright while others had been completely leveled. “It’s a desolate place. For a while there were even rumors the place was cursed.”
“All the more appealing to the unsavory crowd, you know what I mean?”
Leo nodded.
“Criminals love to be away from it all when it comes to their dirty business. No witnesses. No one to hear the screams of their victims. No cops around. Nothing. Just pure obscurity and an easy way out.”
The appeal of the area’s isolation made sense, but there were plenty of faraway places. No, Leo felt certain there was more to the choice of location than that. The more he thought about the life and death of Da Hwa, the more certain he felt the connection between the factory and the criminal ring was an important one.
The leader of the crime ring in France had turned out to be the trusted employee of his victim and had been embezzling for years before finally resorting to kidnapping.
Leo didn’t want to suspect one of his father’s trusted employees of being so dishonest, but he couldn’t afford to be so naïve as to believe it couldn’t happen to him. He tapped the back of his steering wheel to activate his hands free mobile phone.
“Ned Liu,” Leo called out to his phone.
Startled, Peter looked at him a moment before realizing what he was doing.
The call was put through and the phone rang.
“Liu,” Leo said the moment he picked up. “I want you to pull up everything you can find on the Da Hwa factory closing; all press, interviews, news items… everything.”
“Yes, sir. Anything else?”
Leo thought a moment. “Do you know who was in charge of Da Hwa at the time it closed down?”
“Hold on…”
The clickety click of computer keys came through the
phone.
“All right. Here it is… Horace Su.”
“Horace Su?” Leo repeated, trying to put a face to the name.
“Yes, sir. If you’re interested to know, it seems he was more than just a manager. If I remember correctly, he was your father’s classmate in college and a fellow scientist. In fact, he even helped Lee Holdings branch out into food development and preparation.”
“Go on.”
“Well, I know he had his own lab at Da Hwa, and this was where he concocted all of the new food items that eventually made it to market. He won a lot of awards for his creations, and many of the products went on to be imitated, but never quite duplicated. He had strict rules when it came to guarding his secret ingredients. He had a knack for making good tasting food at a good price.”
“So, what happened? Why did Da Hwa ultimately fail if his creations were so in demand and so protected?”
“He grew old, became weak and easily fatigued. He also became increasingly confused. He simply wasn’t able to keep up with the continuous new lines of food items other companies were coming up with. Ultimately, he made a costly mistake, insisting a new herb would be the latest health craze, but under closer inspection, the new herb proved to be slightly toxic; not enough to kill anyone, but just enough to sound the alarm to consumers around the world; Da Hwa was potentially poisoning its clients. Everything went downhill after that. Your father had no choice but to fire him.”
“How did he take it?”
“Some say he was relieved. He hadn’t wanted to let your father down by resigning, but knew he was no longer productive.”
“But the factory still closed down.”
“It was too late by then. Everything was falling apart and regardless of who took over, the factory was doomed.”
“Thanks, Liu. Don’t forget to get me everything you can find on the closing.”
“Will do.”
Leo hung up just as the old factory came into view.
“Turn here,” Peter said. “There are no windows along that wall. No one will see us coming.”
Leo steered the car where Peter pointed. “Now what?” he said as he parked the car in the shade of the decrepit building.
“Do you know how to fight?”
Leo scoffed at the question. “What kind of a question is that? Of course I can fight.”
“This isn’t a movie set. This is the real deal.”
“Why does everyone keep telling me that? Don’t you think I can tell the difference?”
“Honestly? No. I don’t think you realize how dangerous it can get out there.”
“I’m highly trained in martial arts. It’s not just for the camera. I don’t have a stuntman who steps in and does all that. It’s me.”
“Yes, it’s you, but the bad guys are just actors who are told to be careful not to hurt you all while making it look as if they’re kicking your ass.”
“Just get out of the car, will you?” Leo opened the door and got out, eager to show the uppity cop just what he was made of.
Peter came up beside him and they headed to the main entrance of the factory.
“Stay close,” Peter said as he pulled out a gun. “And don’t get any fancy ideas of playing the hero. I don’t want the blood of the heir to Lee Holdings on my hands.”
“I’ll do my best not to get killed on your watch,” Leo said with a sarcastic smirk. “Lord knows I wouldn’t want my death to tarnish your impeccable reputation.”
“You're lucky I let you come out here at all. I should have left you at the hospital.”
Leo tried to stay calm, but grew increasingly irritated by Peter’s condescending manner. “There’s no way in hell you could have kept me from coming. I’m here to save Zara, and I’ll do whatever it takes.” He turned to look directly at Peter. “What I’ve inherited has no bearing on what I’m willing to do for her.”
Peter stopped and turned to him. “So. I was right.”
“Right about what?”
“You. You and Zara . You have the hots for her, don’t you?”
“What business is that of yours?”
“Don’t sidestep the question, and don’t deny it. I’ve seen that look that comes over you every time I mention her name.”
“Yeah, right.”
“Admit it. You want her. You crave her. You’ll do anything to have her.” A look akin to jealousy took over his features for a fraction of a second before the professional police officer returned. “Well, you’d better get in line, because you're not the first.”
“You mean you?”
Peter took a half step close, but stopped himself and backed away. “She’s taken. I didn’t spend three years at the Hong Kong police force for nothing. Just keep that in mind.”
They’d reached the side entry, and Peter put a cautionary hand out in front of Leo. “Focus. This could get ugly fast. Our main objective is to get Zara out safely. We’ll deal with whoever’s behind this once she’s out of danger.”
“Thanks for making that clear,” Leo quipped. “I thought we’d just stepped out to stretch our legs.”
“Stop playing the wise guy,” Peter said. “This is…”
Just as Peter fell silent, Leo caught an abrupt movement from the corner of his eye and turned to see a man in a black windbreaker and jeans jump on Peter, knocking him to the ground.
Peter struggled as the man tried to grab his gun.
While Peter dealt with the assailant, Leo ran into the factory, eager to find Zara. Inside he spotted a limp figure sitting in a darkened corner of the room. Even through the gloom, he knew it was Zara. Seeing her in that chair, her head hung long and her hair obscuring her face, Leo immediately feared he was too late.
His heart clenched at the thought any harm had come to her because of him.
“Zara,” he whispered as he hurried beside her, brushing her hair out of her face. “Oh, my God, Zara. Please…”
She groaned and feebly raised her head. “Wha…?”
“Zara.” Peter ran his hand over her cheek.
“Leo. How d’you…?”
He silenced her with a kiss, a kiss he’d been thinking of since meeting her at the hospital that morning. He savored her sweet lips and tasted her tongue, aroused by the slow dance their mouths embarked on.
With difficulty, he pulled back and reached back to find her wrists were tightly bound. “We’ve got to get you out of here.”
A gunshot rang out, quickly followed by a heavy and sickening thud. Seconds later, the door opened and Peter ran in, his smoking gun still in his hand. It took him a moment to assess the situation, but once he saw Zara, he ran to her, efficiently shoving Leo aside.
“Zara, are you all right?” He quickly worked to free her wrists. “Did you see who did this to you? Do you know where they are?”
Before she could answer a single question, he pulled her out of the chair and into his arms. His lips clasped over hers and his hands ran up her back, squeezing her to him. “I knew I’d find you,” he said as he dropped a series of tender kisses along her temple. He sensually massaged her shoulders then brought his hands to her wrists, rubbing them with loving care.
Stunned by the spectacle, Leo stared at the couple in disbelief. He’d suspected something between Peter and Zara, but hadn’t really expected such passion between the two.
Adding to his astonishment was seeing Zara completely give herself to Peter. He wanted to see her fight Peter off, ask him what the hell he was doing, who the hell he thought he was. He wanted her to disentangle herself from his hold and come running to him. Instead, she kissed Peter back.
It’s Peter who finally pulled away from her. “Don’t ever pull a stunt like this again,” he said in a reprimanding tone. “I know how much you want to get the guys behind all this… I know you want to get your hands on the men who killed your parents, but…”
Leo stared at Peter then turned a confused look to Zara. She’d never mentioned her parents’ death was connected to this crime ring
.
“I know how important this case is to you, but I want you to remember just how important you are to me.” Peter pulled her closer to him, his hands sliding down to her ass and pulling her into his crotch. “Baby, when this whole thing is over…” He bit down hungrily on his bottom lip. “I can’t wait to settle down with you, to have you in my arms every night. The sooner we get this case solved, the better.”
She pulled back to look up at him, and Peter quickly snatched her lips with his, covering her mouth in a hungry kiss which she greedily returned.
Leo wanted to retch. He was in shock. So she really was involved with Peter. Peter said they were practically engaged. But how could she have reacted to his moves on her the way she did? Leo wanted to believe it was because women have always found him irresistible, but with Zara, he wanted it to be real. It had to be real. She wasn’t an actress nor a model who wanted to use him to get into acting. Her body’s reaction to him was real, and he knew despite her current display of affection for Peter, she was still attracted to him no matter what.
He watched as Peter’s hands rubbed and squeezed Zara’s ass in a sensual mix of bringing back circulation to her lower bottom, while he kissed her. Leo’s hands clenched. He wanted to be the one holding Zara and molding her ass to his crotch. No longer able to stand the sight of the loving couple, he turned to inspect the factory his father had once run with such a tight and expert hand.
But his eyes were blind to everything around him. All he could see was Zara in Peter’s arms.
He was relieved to find her alright, but felt awful. Why had she allowed him to kiss her when he’d found her. She hadn’t fought him off, had never mentioned another man in her life.
Could she be that good at playing the role assigned to her? He’d asked her to be the candy on his arm, and she’d dutifully obliged… heated kisses and all. Or did she have any feelings for him. Anything at all?
Damn it.
No matter how he looked at the situation, he felt like crap. He had never felt so dejected by a woman. He had never wanted a woman as much as he wanted Zara.
