by Will Thomas
“I would like to do as you wish, but I belong to another now. I cannot always do your bidding.”
My employer shook his head. I thought that would be all, but Barker suddenly went off in Cantonese, or perhaps it was Mandarin. He was from Foochow and she from Peking. Fu Ying responded in kind, and it went on for at least five minutes. Whatever language they were speaking was an excellent one for arguing.
As I understood Barker, he had chastised her for not seeing him, rather than to make her break her promise. I’m not saying the man is perfect. He can have a monumental rage at times, most often at himself. I have seen him punch a brick wall that he knew he could never break down.
Personally, I believe he loved Fu Ying, as only a father can. She had come to him a terrified fourteen-year-old girl. If the dog she cared for died, or if she displeased her owner, she could be killed. She was engaged for a time to the previous assistant to Cyrus Barker, but he had died in the line of duty. The Guv bought a house for her in Limehouse among her own people. If there was any drawback it was that he was an adult male who had no way to understand a female less than half his age.
The argument wound down. Barker stopped pacing and Fu Ying regained her composure. I admired her courage. Barker’s Chinese name means “Stone Lion.” He could roar with the best of them.
Barker sat and our hostess poured more tea, though by now it was lukewarm. We drank it, and pretended that nothing untoward had occurred. We were all civil again.
“If the vow should be lifted, I expect to be told,” Barker said.
“I shall, sir,” she replied.
“No. You will.”
The Guv lifted his cup. “I will not ask why you were there. What happened in the room, as you recall?”
“I climbed the building to the roof,” she answered, setting her cup on a table. “It was absurdly easy. Then I climbed down the largest chimney, which was still rather tight. I had no more set foot in the cold grate than a shot was fired very close to me in the room. I saw a man run past. Then I saw the ambassador fall. He saw me, too. He fell to the floor and reached out to me for help. Me, a stranger dressed in black, standing in the fireplace. I debated whether to help him, but he died just a few seconds later. Naturally, someone would be coming at the sound of the shot. As quickly as possible, I climbed the chimney walls and hurried away.”
“You accomplished nothing,” Barker stated.
“True, but I got away. I was not captured, as you were.”
Another slight, I thought. How the mighty have fallen.
Barker threw back his head and laughed. “So I was. Have you heard since then what had been happening at the embassy?”
“There is no way to know. My husband tells me everything at the embassy is in turmoil. I understand General Mononobe has sent a telegram all the way to Tokyo as well as a courier. There is no telling how long either will take.”
“I gather your husband sent you to find out when the delegation might go to the Inn of Double Happiness.”
“Perhaps.”
“The information must be very important to him.”
“I cannot say.”
Barker crossed an ankle across his knee and folded his arms.
“He has purchased a great deal of property in Limehouse and Poplar lately.”
“He has. He is a successful businessman.”
“Is he at the inn today?”
“No, he is busy at the docks.”
Barker ran his finger along his nose. “Has he overspent, in your opinion?”
She shrugged.
“Sometimes it is necessary to invest. There is no way to know if it will profit.”
“Are you taken care of here? Do you yourself need money?”
“Sir, I could not take another farthing.”
Barker had settled a substantial dowry on Fu Ying, which still made her uncomfortable.
“Codswallop. If you need anything, you know how to ask. Is everything well?”
“It is,” she responded.
Right, I thought. She wouldn’t ask for help. She’d grit her teeth and hope for the best.
He rose from the chair and she did likewise. She put her hand on his arm and he patted it.
“Come, Thomas.”
I nodded at Fu Ying and then turned and followed after my employer. We stepped out of the building into a stream of Chinese sailors, either coming from a ship or going to one. Barker towered over them all.
“She wouldn’t tell me,” he said, when we were out on the street. “She always has before.”
“Do you still think as well of K’ing as you once did?”
“He is young. He will make mistakes. I hope he will be prudent overall.”
“Do you worry about her?”
“I don’t worry at all. Who by worrying increases his stature? I pray for her. I offer her help. What else can I do?”
“Yes, well, I worry for her, and she isn’t even my responsibility.”
“You still believe she married poorly. Do you think Ho the better man?”
“Ho? Good heavens, no. I mean, he might be a better man, but a husband for Fu Ying? Decidedly not,” I said.
“I must admit there are activities about the tearoom that I find unsavory. I have spoken to him about it.”
“Yet you allowed her to marry a man who owns an opium den.”
“Opium dens are not illegal, lad. Not yet, anyway. And he has expanded.”
“Yes,” I said, as we walked around the docks. “Into a gambling hall and a public house, without getting rid of the den. It’s the same old activities with a new layer of gilding.”
“What would you have me do? Kick in the door, take Fu Ying by the wrist and drag her out of there?”
“It may come to that if worse comes to worst.”
“You worry too much.”
“There is too much to worry about.”
“Are all Welshmen so gloomy?” he asked.
“We have to be. We are realists. Perhaps she didn’t need a wealthy husband. She needed to work with one side by side, starve with him, strive with him, and ultimately succeed with him. She would have babies they couldn’t afford and have been deliriously happy.”
“You believe her marriage is loveless? You believe I have turned her into a bauble?”
I shrugged my shoulders. “She didn’t look particularly happy. And I wouldn’t want my wife climbing down chimneys, no matter how skilled she might be at it.”
“Perhaps I made a mistake,” he conceded. “And perhaps not. K’ing could grow sleek and fat and become the first MP for Limehouse. It’s a gamble, really.”
“Could you speculate about why she was there?”
“I could if I thought it would do any good. She could have been sent to kill someone, but I believe her conscience would be troubled by doing so. I doubt she would do that unless forced, or she would tell me if she were in trouble, even as independent as she is. That leaves three possibilities: she was sent to see something, to speak to someone, or to take something. If so, her mission failed. She barely had time to move before a man was shot.”
“That’s if we believe her story. She might have had more time in the room than she claims.”
“True. I did not see her enter, only leave. The timing is suspicious in that she left immediately after the ambassador died. On the other hand, if you were dressed as a thief in a fireplace in a room where a man has just been killed, would you not beat a hasty retreat?”
“I would.”
Limehouse was dank and oppressively warm. I wished I could remove my jacket, but the Guv has standards.
“What kind of object might be there?” I asked. “It might have to do with his business. The entire house is full of dozens of works of art. I wonder which is worth the most?”
“Probably the Buddha head with lapis lazuli eyes.”
“Wait,” I said, stopping under one of the few street lights in Poplar. “K’ing is a businessman. He is not a thief as a rule, though he might hire s
omeone if whatever he needed was important. It might have to do with his business. He wouldn’t scrutinize a piece of art without assessing its value.”
“Agreed. Something to do with business and something to do with the Japanese, though since he is a Chinaman, one would expect him to despise the Japanese.”
“Perhaps he has set aside the traditional prejudices of his forebears for business interests,” I said. “By the way, thanks for informing me about Bok Fu Ying’s visit to the embassy.”
“As I recall, I didn’t.”
“Exactly,” I said.
CHAPTER NINE
Private enquiry work is not the kind of employment that adheres closely to a schedule. Some things take longer than others, and when one is obliged to investigate something, there is traveling time and road conditions to consider as well. Barker claims that he would like nothing better than to sit on the private throne in his office and have all information come to him, but I knew better. A couple of hours in his green leather chair makes him anxious to be up and about again.
The following morning, Barker reached a long arm, snaring the telephone set on the edge of his desk, and growled a telephone number into the operator’s ear.
“I would like to see you, sir,” he said into the receiver when the call went through. Then after a few seconds, no more than five, he hung the earpiece back onto it.
There are protocols in place for using the telephone set. They were printed and given us along with the set when it was first installed in the office. It is polite to identify oneself to the operator so the listener is not deceived into believing the speaker is someone else.
Barker rose and prepared to leave the office. I had a ledger book in my lap. Sighing, I tossed it on my desk and hurried after him. It had begun to rain. I hailed a cab just before he did and climbed aboard with no idea of where to tell the driver to go. Barker shouted, “Limehouse!” and offered a sovereign if he got us there in twenty minutes. Then he sat back and watched the silver rain coming down just inches away.
We were soon on our way to Limehouse and I sat there, wondering at his motives. Did he need to consult again with Ho or were we to speak with his ward again?
We passed down that great artery of London, Commercial Road, as we traveled through Whitechapel and Poplar before reaching Limehouse. There we rolled right by the entrance to Ho’s and Three Colt Lane. That left only one possible destination, the Inn of Double Happiness.
“You intend to speak to K’ing,” I said.
“I do.”
The street was nondescript, a warren of buildings facing in every direction. It was easy to get lost here. I imagined that may have been one reason this location was chosen. The inn itself was something of a disappointment, for anyone expecting an Asian fantasy. There were no standing arches, no scooped roofs or pagodas. Limehouse is as Asian-looking as Barnstable. The inn was large, however, having once been a warehouse on the docks of Limehouse Reach. There was plenty of room for gambling tables, exotic food, and in the cellars below, an endless supply of opium pipes.
“We are here to see Mr. K’ing,” Barker announced to a young Asian woman at the entrance, who appeared to be a sort of hostess. I raised a brow. There was a time when Fu Ying was practically the only Chinese girl in all of London. Now there were several.
“Do you have an appointment?” she asked.
“We do. Tell him his father-in-law wishes to see him.”
The young woman came from behind a standing desk. “Wait here. I will inform him at once, sir.”
She hurried off.
“Father-in-law?” I asked, looking at my employer. “That’s a term you haven’t used before.”
“It was expedient. It will get us in the door.”
We looked about. Nearby, a group of men laughed over a game. At another table, there was an open bottle with a kanji label on it. I lifted it and sniffed. It was sweet and alcoholic, but I could not place the aroma.
“Plum wine,” Barker murmured over my shoulder. “There are no grapes in China.”
There were lavish carvings everywhere, and painted scenes of a romanticized countryside. Above the entrance through which we had passed was a small shrine with Oriental figures I could not recognize and in front of which joss sticks were burning.
The girl returned and bowed to us, as befitted the father-in-law of her employer. “Mr. K’ing will see you, sir. Please follow me.”
We were led down a hallway. I’d been to the inn before, when the only decoration was netting and packing boxes. Now, it was almost sumptuous. K’ing had been investing a good deal of money.
We were led through a door into K’ing’s office. He had spared no expense. There were jade and ivory carvings and hanging lamps. He sat behind a table that rivaled Barker’s in size. There were thick carpets under our feet and a bearskin rug.
“Gentlemen,” he purred. “Won’t you come in and have some tea?”
Barker and I removed our hats, but retained them. I stared at K’ing intently. A few years had changed him physically. He shaved his head now, and had grown a mustache. He was still wearing his tortoiseshell spectacles. His face was gaunt, which made his brow and forehead more pronounced.
The girl poured tea for us, then as soon as we held our cups, she returned to her post.
“My dear father-in-law, to what do I owe this unexpected visit?”
“We have been retained to investigate the death of the Japanese ambassador.”
K’ing sat back in his chair. “I see. You came because you have heard that I had dealings with the embassy. It is so. I have spoken with a General Mononobe. However, I was not fortunate enough to meet the ambassador before he was shot.”
“I will not argue that fact,” the Guv replied. “Under what conditions did you and the general speak?”
K’ing’s eyes narrowed. I hazarded a guess that he had been having his own way for too long and was now unaccustomed to a challenge.
“He had lunch with me. We discussed having a party here for the embassy, but nothing was actually decided. Then the ambassador died, so our plans fell through.”
“And yet you sent your wife to find out more about the embassy’s plans in London.”
K’ing smiled, as if the Guv were somehow quaint. “Mr. Barker, as usual, you are remarkably well informed. I assume my wife told you about my little request.”
“Only after I confronted her,” Barker replied. “You see, I was across the street when she left the building. I watched her do it. Her methods are unique. After all, I taught her.”
“Fu Ying has grown sloppy. I should have expected it.”
My face colored just then. No man should deliberately insult his wife in front of other men. However, I wasn’t there to correct his lack of manners. I had my pencil and pad out, and was taking notes. I would leave Barker to do the correcting.
“She was unable to collect information for you regarding the general’s plans, due to the sudden shooting. Did she tell you she saw anything?”
“She heard the shot, and the sound of footsteps,” K’ing answered, “but by the time she bent and looked into the room, the ambassador was breathing his last. At least she had the presence of mind to climb back up the chimney.”
“Her arrest would have been difficult to explain for either of you. Is there a particular reason you saw fit to use my ward on such a dangerous mission?”
“She asked to go. I told her I would send someone else, a thief whom I have employed on one or two occasions, but she insisted. Her skills were going unused, she said. She wanted to help me. She is my wife.”
“And my ward.”
K’ing shook his head. “No longer. She is of age, and she is now my wife, my property, according to both English and Chinese law. I am within my rights.”
“Mr. K’ing,” Barker rumbled, “do I look like the sort of person who gives a tinker’s damn about rights? She may be your wife and your property, but her interests are still under my protection, and if I thought she
were being taken advantage of and her liberty endangered, it would grieve me, sir.”
K’ing held up a hand. “It is my intent neither to grieve you nor to endanger my wife,” he said. “I care very deeply for her. I was reluctant to send her to the embassy, and I see that my fears were justified. It is not my fault, sir, but yours. You left her to languish in Limehouse with little to do. You trained her in no other occupation save that of a boxer. You dressed her like a perfect doll with no plan for what to do with her when she reached marriageable age. When I first met her, true, she was a beauty, and arguably the best fighter in Poplar, but she was adrift. When we wed she threw herself into good works among the poor population here. As she told me, she wanted to feel needed.”
There was silence in the room then. K’ing actually looked over at me, as if he had said too much. Barker sat there in that immobile way he has, save that his index finger made abstract designs on the edge of the desk. Barker told me once that when someone criticizes you, you must take it to heart, and try to see yourself from his or her point of view. I wondered if he would follow his own advice. The Guv has a temper he bottles up most of the time, but I’ve seen it blow up as well.
“You are correct,” he said. “I had never raised a young girl before and I did it poorly. I dressed her well and gave her a house to live in, but I rarely saw her. I was establishing the agency. I thought she would fare best among her own people, but perhaps it would have been best had she stayed in Newington.”
K’ing looked away uneasily. Barker is the still water that runs deep and just then he caught a glimpse below the surface.
“Nothing dangerous happened to her anyway,” he assured us. “Fu Ying escaped safely and came home. I regret sending her out, but she survived.”
Barker nodded.
“I realize that I have no claim upon you or your wife now, but I ask that you refrain from involving her in the more dangerous aspects of your work.”
K’ing gave a slight smile, as if at some private joke.
“I believe I can safely promise you that. Also, I acknowledge your claim upon Fu Ying. She loves you like a father. I would not stand between you. For one thing, as you yourself will understand, I am very busy, and any time you give her is appreciated.”
