by Zen Cho
“I won’t call you sister, since you asked,” she said. “But think about my offer. It is not a condition. Either way, I will pay. But Heaven wished us to meet today. These things don’t happen for no reason.”
Now, her eyes on Fung Cheung, Guet Imm said, “Yeoh Gaik Tin made us another offer. She wants a spiritual adviser.”
Fung Cheung raised an eyebrow. “A spiritual adviser? What for?”
“To join her staff,” said Tet Sang, before Guet Imm could reply. “To these rich people, piety is just one more thing to collect. A religious in the house makes them look good to their friends. So, we’ve agreed to supply her with a nun.”
Guet Imm’s head came up. “You have?”
“Sister Guet Imm is going to stay with Madam Yeoh,” said Tet Sang.
“What?” said the brothers.
“What?” said Guet Imm.
Fung Cheung was the only one who showed no surprise. “Makes sense.” Guet Imm’s career interested him less than the arrangements for collecting the remaining monies from Yeoh Gaik Tin. “Tomorrow, how many people should we send? I can go also. I’m interested to meet this Madam Yeoh.”
Tet Sang had no chance to answer in the clamour that rose from the others.
“Sister is leaving us?” cried Ah Boon.
“But sister, you haven’t finished teaching me yet,” protested Ah Hin. “There’s still three more chapters of the Baby God book to go.”
“What are you talking about?” Guet Imm said to Tet Sang. “Madam Yeoh wanted you!”
“Yeoh Gaik Tin wants a nun,” said Tet Sang. “I told her already, I am not a nun. You are.”
Guet Imm had lost all her usual calm. Her eyes flashing, she said, “So what, I’m supposed to turn up at her house and ask her to let me stay?”
“Why ask? Tell her you’re staying,” said Tet Sang. “You didn’t ask when you joined us.”
“And you never wanted me here,” said Guet Imm in a cold fury. “You don’t need to say. I know! You couldn’t wait for a chance to get rid of me, and now you have it.”
This was all so unlike Guet Imm that it distracted Ah Hin and Ah Boon from their distress.
“Don’t be upset, sister,” said Ah Hin. “You have misunderstood Second Brother. He is thinking of your benefit.”
“It is a good thing for you,” said Ah Boon. “Better life than being on the road, having to sleep in the jungle and run from the mata.”
Guet Imm ignored them.
“But what if I don’t want to go?” she said to Tet Sang. “Hah, you never thought of that, did you? You can’t force me!”
Fung Cheung took it upon himself to intervene.
“Sister Guet Imm, nobody is forcing anybody,” he said, in a maddeningly reasonable manner. “But if Madam Yeoh is paying us five taels plus and forgiving our debt, she must have what she wants. This is a good solution for everybody. It’s not like you could have stayed with us forever. As Ah Boon says, this is no life for a nun.”
“I sat alone in a cell for ten years,” said Guet Imm. She was still looking at Tet Sang. “Compared to that, this cannot be considered a hard life. Of all people, you should know that, brother!”
“Enough, sister,” said Tet Sang. “It is for the best.”
“That’s right,” agreed Fung Cheung. “Ah Sang has settled everything. There’s no need to argue so much. Sister Guet Imm can go to Madam Yeoh’s house with the men tomorrow to deliver the relics, and then she can stay.”
He turned to Tet Sang. “You and I should go tomorrow, but who else?”
Before Tet Sang could answer, Guet Imm said, “Do what you want, brother—leave me behind, get rid of the treasures, pretend you don’t have a past. It won’t work. You’ll bring yourself along wherever you go, and the deity will find you there.”
She turned on her heel and stormed off into the trees.
A stunned silence followed Guet Imm’s departure. It was Fung Cheung who broke it.
“Women!” He shook his head. “It’s time Sister Guet Imm moved on. I don’t know why she’s making such a fuss. If I could stay in a rich woman’s house and chant scriptures for my rice, I would want also.”
Tet Sang made an affirmative noise, since Fung Cheung had said this for his benefit. It did not make him feel any better, but his feelings did not matter. Nor did Guet Imm’s indignation at having her fate decided for her, justified though it was.
When she calmed down, she would see this was the right decision for both the group and herself. She was becoming the focus of the men’s discontent at the hardships and misadventures that were necessary incidents of a life like theirs. In time, the resentment would inevitably spread from Ah Yee and fester, even if Guet Imm behaved herself—which seemed unlikely, given her prior record.
Tet Sang did feel some unease when Guet Imm did not return to the camp at nightfall. This was shared by Fung Cheung.
“Should have taken the sarira from her,” he muttered. “The Yeoh woman said she would pay even if there was no nun, right?”
“Don’t worry,” said Tet Sang. “She won’t have run off.”
But he had a restless night, plagued by dreams of the past. The next morning, Guet Imm still had not appeared.
Ah Hin was distressed enough that he forgot the deference the brothers usually showed Fung Cheung.
“Big Brother should have been more patient,” he said at breakfast. “What if Sister Guet Imm has been attacked by a wild animal?”
“Then I feel sorry for the wild animal,” said Fung Cheung, but he was uneasy. He glanced at the surrounding forest into which Guet Imm had disappeared.
Ah Yee had made breakfast with his eyes downcast, apparently as oppressed by Guet Imm’s absence as everyone else, but he could not resist making a contribution.
“She should know better than to go off by herself,” he said. “This is the jungle, not her tokong.”
Ah Hin gave him a reproachful look. “Spiritual people are sensitive. Otherwise, how can they hear the voice of the god? Sister Guet Imm has brought us good luck. If she’s in trouble, it will be our fault for not looking after her.”
“Sister Guet Imm can look after herself,” said Tet Sang.
But in truth, Fung Cheung only echoed his thoughts when he said, “Someone should go look for her.” Fung Cheung added, with a feigned air of unconcern, “We don’t want to miss our appointment with Madam Yeoh.”
“I’ll go,” said Ah Hin.
Fung Cheung nodded, glancing at Tet Sang. “Maybe you should go also, Ah Sang.”
After a moment’s deliberation, Tet Sang shook his head.
“I’m the one who made her angry. Sister may not want to see me. Most likely she’s sulking somewhere. Better if Ah Hin goes and talks to her alone. But call us if you need help,” he said to Ah Hin.
Ah Hin nodded.
He had only been gone for a short time when they heard a bloodcurdling yell from the trees.
Fung Cheung started to his feet. “Was that Ah Hin?”
The second scream removed all doubt.
“Help, help!” shrieked Ah Hin’s distant voice. “Bandits!”
“You all pack up and go,” said Tet Sang to Fung Cheung. “I’ll go find Ah Hin and the nun.”
Fung Cheung nodded. The men had already sprung into action, breaking down the camp. Without looking around, Tet Sang reached out and grabbed Ah Yee by the scruff of the neck before he could sidle away.
“You’re coming with me, brother,” he said.
He’d acted on a mere suspicion, but it coalesced into certainty when Ah Yee yelped, “What for? What did I do?”
“Guess we’ll find out,” said Tet Sang grimly. “Come on.”
* * *
There were five bandits, all armed. One of them was holding his gun to Ah Hin’s jaw.
“So, there are more of you,” said the bandit. “Where’s the nun?”
Tet Sang said, “What nun?”
The bandit who was holding Ah Hin hostage looked like someone’
s little brother—his moon-shaped face seemed too youthful for a life of armed aggression. His scowl made him look petulant rather than menacing, but there was nothing childlike about his gun or the way he yanked Ah Hin’s head back. Ah Hin whimpered.
“There is a corrupt nun who plans to sell looted tokong treasures to the Yeoh family,” said Little Brother. “The Yeohs are collaborators with the imperialist oppressors—running dogs of the Protectorate. Those treasures belong to the people. We’ve been asked to save the treasures and exact justice.”
“Who asked you?” said Tet Sang, glancing at Ah Yee. Guilt was written clear across his face.
Even to vent his lingering spite against Guet Imm, it was a bizarre thing for Ah Yee to have done. He must have known that the bandits would not approve of Lau Fung Cheung’s group either, as contractors who accepted jobs from both sides of the conflict. The Reformists hated businessmen.
“It wasn’t me, brother!” gasped Ah Yee.
“We have people everywhere,” said Little Brother. “We know everything the Yeoh family is doing.”
Tet Sang thought of the servants who had poured tea and served kuih at Yeoh Gaik Tin’s house. He should have thought of the risk of being overheard. If he hadn’t been so taken aback by being recognised …
“That brother,” said Little Brother, nodding at Ah Yee, “just told us where to find the nun only. And he lied! She wasn’t there!”
“I didn’t,” said Ah Yee, wincing. “I won’t dare to lie. It was a mistake!”
“Give us the nun and the treasures, and we’ll let you go,” said Little Brother to Tet Sang. “The brother explained the nun misled you. In the new republic, the people’s faith in the gods will not be exploited in this way. To ensure this, corrupt monks and nuns must be punished.”
“We will cooperate,” said Tet Sang. “But we haven’t seen the nun since last night.” He was watching Ah Hin’s face and saw the flicker in his eyes. Luckily, the bandits wouldn’t have seen it, since Ah Hin was facing away from them. “She took the treasures with her.”
“Really?” said Little Brother sceptically.
“Yes,” said Guet Imm.
She dropped on Little Brother’s head, flicking the gun out of his hand. Both went down together in a confusion of robes and limbs, from which Ah Hin was ejected. He crashed into the undergrowth, crying out.
Tet Sang grabbed him, but, “I’m okay?” said Ah Hin, feeling himself for any injury. “I’m okay! Help sister!”
Ah Yee had vanished, but Tet Sang had no time to worry about that now. He wrenched the gun out of the nearest bandit’s hand, kicking him in the stomach and using the gun to clock the next man over the head.
“Take that fellow’s gun,” Tet Sang said to Ah Hin. That was three bandits dealt with, including Little Brother, and one gun … “Where’s your friend’s weapon?”
While Ah Hin scrabbled around in the undergrowth, Tet Sang turned to check how Guet Imm was doing. She had managed to pin Little Brother to the ground.
“Bitch,” gasped Little Brother. “The deity will punish you for betraying your Order!”
“Brother, you have misunderstood,” said Guet Imm, with an extreme mildness that spoke of profound annoyance. “I am the Order—and all others like me.” She looked up, meeting Tet Sang’s eyes. “What do you think the deity bequeathed her relics to us for, if not for us to benefit?”
She was holding Little Brother’s arms down, but she must have relaxed her grip briefly. He lunged out of her grasp and scooped up the gun Ah Hin had failed to find. He wriggled around, cocking the gun.
“Guet Imm!” shouted Tet Sang—too late, he thought, but time had taken on a curiously elastic quality. By rights, the gun should have gone off even as he yelled.
But Little Brother froze. As Tet Sang blinked, the gun went flying.
Guet Imm laid her hands on Little Brother’s head, as gently as though she were giving him a blessing. There was a loud crack.
It was a sound Tet Sang had heard before—the unforgettable, final crack of a neck breaking. Ah Hin staggered back, his face grey with horror.
The bandits knew the sound too. There were two remaining on their feet. One turned and fled through the trees, but the other raised his gun, pointing it at the back of Guet Imm’s head.
“Sister,” gasped Ah Hin. He was cowering on the ground, so shaken his voice came out in a whisper. He tried again: “Sister!”
Tet Sang didn’t waste his breath on trying to warn Guet Imm. He lunged, meaning to shove her out of the way of the bullet, but she disappeared even as he dived.
It was not that she moved quickly. She winked out of existence. Tet Sang rolled as he fell, managing to avoid Little Brother’s corpse. Guet Imm reappeared behind the bandit who had tried to shoot her.
The bandit looked understandably startled. Tet Sang didn’t see what Guet Imm did, but the bandit screamed, dropping his gun. The nun’s hand flashed out, jabbing the bandit in the neck. His eyes rolled up and he slumped to the ground.
“Still got who else?” said Guet Imm. She wasn’t even out of breath.
Tet Sang got to his feet. Little Brother was unmistakably dead. The two bandits Tet Sang had downed should be alive—he hadn’t aimed to kill either—but if they were conscious, they had too much sense to betray it.
“There was one more fellow,” Tet Sang began, when they heard the sound of running feet. Ah Hin tossed him one of the guns he’d got off the bandits, but it was Fung Cheung and Rimau who burst out of the trees.
“Ah Sang, how?” said Fung Cheung. He looked at the bandits strewn on the ground and lowered his parang.
“We’re done for now,” said Tet Sang. “Ah Yee came to find you?” Fung Cheung nodded. “The others?”
“Told them to go off first,” said Fung Cheung. “We can catch up with them at— Shit.”
He’d noticed Little Brother’s corpse.
“Where’s the fifth man?” said Guet Imm to Tet Sang.
Tet Sang jerked his head towards the approximate direction in which the bandit had gone. “Went off.”
“So, he’ll go and tell his brothers we killed one of their own?” said Fung Cheung. “Shit!”
“They know a nun killed him,” said Guet Imm, speaking slowly and distinctly for the benefit of the bandits still living. “I am not part of your group. We are strangers who met on the road.” She gave Tet Sang a pointed look.
“You killed him?” said Fung Cheung incredulously.
“Broke his neck,” said Ah Hin. He looked at Guet Imm, woebegone. “Sister, you’re a witch?”
It was more of a lament than a question. He did not really expect an answer, and Guet Imm gave none.
“What happened?” said Fung Cheung.
“I found sister,” said Ah Hin. “But we just started talking only when the bandits ambushed us. She—” He waved his hands. “She disappeared! Just lenyap like that!”
“Sorry, brother,” said Guet Imm. “I had to go keep the sarira away, make sure they were safe. I came back as soon as I could.” She knelt by Ah Hin. “Are you hurt?”
But Ah Hin flinched away. Guet Imm’s face went blank.
“If there was a survivor, the bandits will be coming back,” said Rimau to Fung Cheung. “We have to get out of here.”
Guet Imm said, “You have time.” She looked off into the trees, but there was a distant look in her eyes. It wasn’t the trees she saw. “Their camp is not so close and the bandit is getting lost. He’s not clever at navigating the jungle. It’ll take him a while to get back to his camp.”
Rimau and Fung Cheung exchanged a look.
“How do you know?” said Rimau.
“I can see it,” said Guet Imm. She got up and dusted herself off. “The deity grants certain powers when there is need.”
Her tone was matter of fact. Rimau and Ah Hin shifted, uneasy, but Fung Cheung was not superstitious. He looked irritated.
“If you could do magic all along, why didn’t you defend yourself at the coff
eehouse?” he demanded. “You could have just cursed that customer!”
“Brother has not been a waiter before, so you won’t know,” said Guet Imm. “But you’re not supposed to curse your customers. You’re supposed to serve them.”
“The fight started in the first place because the customer said you hexed him!”
“He never proved it,” said Guet Imm. “Anyway, if it happened, a small jampi to teach a man to keep his hands to himself is not the same as cursing that man to win a fight. Shaping the air is not for coffeehouse brawls. The deity lends us these powers so we can protect others, not for selfish purposes.”
While Fung Cheung sputtered, Tet Sang said, “Those powers would have been useful at Sungai Tombak.”
Guet Imm’s face had been as smooth as the surface of still water, but this introduced a ripple. Her eyes dropped to Tet Sang’s waist, where his wound was, under the bandages and robes.
“Yes,” she admitted. “If I had known … but I was being careful. I was scared you all wouldn’t understand.”
She turned to Fung Cheung, bowing.
“Forgive me, brother. I’ve only been causing trouble since I joined you all,” she said. “You should go now. Leave Kempas before the sun goes down and keep to the roads. You will be okay. The deity has shown me.”
After a moment, Fung Cheung nodded. But Rimau was not a believer in the Tang deities.
“Even if we leave, where can we go?” he said. “The mata are chasing us. Now the bandits will be looking out for us also. There’s nowhere on the peninsula where we will be safe.”
“The bandits will be chasing me,” said Guet Imm. It was a command, not a statement. She looked meaningfully at one of the bandits on the ground, who was blatantly observing the proceedings, having forgotten he was meant to be unconscious. He hastily shut his eyes and slumped.
“I’m the one who killed their brother,” Guet Imm continued. “And I’m the one who betrayed the Order, according to them. You are laypeople I misled. As for the mata…” She looked thoughtful. “Wait here first.”
“Sister…” said Fung Cheung, but Guet Imm was no longer there. Fung Cheung looked around, stunned.
Even to Tet Sang, more used to wonders, it was startling—the abruptness with which Guet Imm was carved out of the world. At his tokong, there had been proficients in shaping the air, but they had not been encouraged to display their abilities where there was no need. The most he had seen was votaries levitating briefly while meditating; they had never got very far off the ground, and not for long. Guet Imm’s gifts from the deity were on a different level.
