She Walks the Line (Harlequin Super Romance)

by Fox, Roz Denny

  “It’s Cullen. Mei Lu, are you there?”

  “Uh, w-we’re not meeting until noon, right?” she stammered.

  “That’s why I’m calling. Belinda woke up during the night with a terrible earache. I had to take her to Emergency. The on-call doctor gave her an antibiotic, but because the eardrum is so inflamed, he felt she should see her own pediatrician today.”

  So much for her rampant and outrageous thoughts. “Oh, Cullen, I’m sorry. Do you want to call me after you get an appointment? My schedule can be flexible.”

  “The twins’ doctor is in Austin. I’m packing to leave now. I’ll phone him from the road. I’m sure his staff will work us in.”

  “You mean you don’t have a doctor in Houston? If the kids are with you all summer long, I should think you’d want someone closer than Austin.”

  “I’ve never needed a doctor before today.” He sighed. “I phoned their mother to update her and said I’d take Belinda to my own doctor, but Jana carried on so much…well, it doesn’t matter. It’s easier just to drive to Austin. I’ve made the trip so often I could probably drive it in my sleep. But here’s the problem—depending on what the doctor says, I may stay overnight at Jana’s. She’s still in Thailand, but I have a key.”

  “I see. So you need to postpone our meeting…until when?” Mei Lu was surprised by the disappointment that washed over her.

  “Just until tomorrow. Say, three o’clock?”

  “Fine. That gives me more time to make inquiries among merchants near the club.” Mei heard someone speak to Cullen in the background, and he covered the receiver and said something back.

  “Sorry, Mei Lu.” He said into the phone. “Freda’s asking about packing for the twins, but they have plenty of clothes in Austin. I do have another question for you. After I got home last night, I phoned my Interpol contact. Brett said he’s aware that tongs are mixed up in organized crime. I was sure you said ‘triad.’ Are they connected?”

  “No. Tongs are the equivalent of our street gangs, Cullen. Triads are old, venerable secret societies that evolve out of a common practice in China called guanxi.

  He repeated gwan-chee, and murmured, “Yes, I’ve heard of it, although I don’t know a lot. Tell me about it.”

  “I don’t know if I can explain it briefly, but I’ll try. Guanxi is a centuries-old remittance system that guarantees the reciprocal exchange of favors and an automatic acceptance of one’s family. Over the years, triads have evolved beyond blood ties. That’s what makes them so difficult to investigate or track. For instance, take you and me. If you did me a favor today, here we’d say ‘I owe you one.’ Half the time it’s a meaningless phrase. In a Chinese triad, that favor would be remembered, maybe even written down. You might never need me to return the favor directly, but say your children or a cousin or a good friend needed help. They could show up on my doorstep with a letter such as the ones carried by our couriers, and I’d be expected to make good on the favor I owe you.”

  “Good God, that sounds complicated. How can anyone keep track?”

  “Years of practice. Can you see how beneficial such a method of support would be among non-English-speaking immigrants? What guanxi does is ensure familiarity and a stable source of income in a foreign culture. Now maybe you can understand why I said getting any information in these tight-knit circles may prove next to impossible.”

  “Are we talking Asian Cosa Nostra?”

  “No, although some triad networks operate with a hierarchy and probably have a secret oath. Triads more often come from specific regions.”

  “So,” Cullen mused, “if you go back to the waitress and find out from her what region of China our courier with the tiger tattoo is from, we can work backward and locate his triad? Then we find his family. Very likely, they’re our smugglers.”

  Mei Lu laughed. “If only it were that simple, Cullen. Remember, I said guanxi doesn’t necessarily run a straight course. It’s what makes the triads almost impenetrable. You break off one piece and the trail ends.” She paused for a moment. “Reactions like fear, anger, sadness are schooled out of triad members. Displaying negative emotions causes one to lose face. The need to maintain personal pride and dignity comes from centuries of hardships endured by the Chinese. Face has an importance equal to life itself, Cullen. Loss of face is considered the most terrible weakness, and may disturb others in the triad, causing them to lose face, too. The waitress took my money, but she let me see her fear. I can almost bet she went inside and quit her job. Today, her sister, her cousin or a friend will replace her. Someone stronger who won’t crack under my questioning.”

  “That’s hard to believe.”

  Mei Lu could hear Cullen’s frustration. “It wouldn’t be if you grew up in a traditional Chinese home and were surrounded by people who were entrenched from birth in those beliefs.”

  “You’re not like that at all. You wear your emotions on your sleeve. Yet you claim your family is traditional.”

  “My mother, mostly. As I mentioned—”

  “Sorry.” He broke in. “I hear Belinda crying again. I really have to go. But the more I learn, the less I like about this case. Do you have something else you could work on today? Then tomorrow I’ll pound the pavement with you.”

  “This is my only case at the moment, Cullen. And for the reasons I’ve just explained, I may have better luck conducting this part of the investigation alone. Also, I doubt Belinda’s ear is going to be better by tomorrow. And I’m sure she’ll want you to stay close by.”

  “You’re probably right. Listen, why not pay a visit to your father today, as well? You said you’d rather do that alone. Before you get huffy and think I’m insulting your dad, all I mean is that with his contacts in the import-export business, maybe he’s heard something through the grapevine. It’d be a big help if we had even the slightest idea of when the next museum piece might hit Houston.”

  Mei Lu sighed. “Okay. I’ll add it to my schedule. Although I’m sure that if my father heard about any movement of ancient artifacts, he’d notify someone.”

  “The police? As you remind me often enough, Mei Lu, you are the police, and he dislikes the fact that you are. In any event, you have my cell number if you need to discuss the case. Even if you don’t, I’d like to hear from you this evening.” He hesitated, then said gruffly, “Humor me, huh? I want to know you’re all right. Last night after I left your house, I drove out along Bellaire. I don’t mind admitting that I was uncomfortable at the thought of you digging around there.”

  Mei twisted the phone cord. The excitement she’d felt on hearing his voice returned. Did his remark mean he was worried about her?

  “Drive carefully,” she murmured. “Oh, tell Belinda I hope she feels better soon. I never had earaches as a child. But a cop I worked with on patrol, his son was plagued by them. They finally had to put tubes in the boy’s ears.”

  “I frankly don’t know if Belinda’s had problems before. If she has, Jana wouldn’t bother to tell me, and Belinda’s never said anything herself.”

  Once again Mei Lu detected frustration in his tone. “It must be difficult to share custody,” she said softly.

  “You don’t know the half of it. And if it weren’t for Jana’s parents wielding such clout, I probably could’ve gotten full custody. But that’s another story. I wish you success today. Just…take care.”

  Mei Lu’s tongue seemed stuck to the roof of her mouth. She hadn’t imagined his meaning that time. Cullen cared about her personal safety. But perhaps that was as far as it went. She shouldn’t make more of it just because the man happened to send shock waves through her. She, who had next to zero experience with these kinds of feelings.

  Determined not to dwell on something she couldn’t control, Mei hung up, climbed out of bed and dived into a cool shower. She came out shivering and still pondering her reaction to Cullen Archer.

  Her next attempt to cleanse him from her mind was more drastic. She phoned her parents and arranged to visi
t them before she tackled finding others who might have been in the nightclub parking lot on the night the courier died. Mei usually made excuses not to go home. Whenever she entered the residence where she grew up, she instantly became the daughter of the house again, and consequently her ideas and suggestions counted for little. Even her absent brother’s opinions carried more weight.

  Today’s visit began the same way. Her father smiled in welcome. Her mother entered the room behind him. Aun clapped her paper-white hands and a housemaid Mei had never met instantly appeared with a tea cart.

  Mei sat, but only after Michael Ling had pulled out a carved teakwood chair. Even then she sat rigidly, her spine never touching the pale-blue satin brocade chair back.

  After her mother had filled three antique cups from the matching pot, Michael cast another smile toward Mei Lu. “From the suddenness of your visit after weeks of absence, Daughter, is it fair to assume you’ve decided to return to Ling Limited where you belong?”

  Mei nearly dropped her cup. She recovered and managed not to spill tea on the wooden table. It was impossible to miss the deep frown creasing Aun Ling’s face. Plainly she was unhappy with her daughter’s clumsiness.

  “After six years, Father, I hoped you might see that I’m happy in my work. As you would’ve seen had you come to my promotion ceremony last week.”

  “Bah,” Aun said unexpectedly. “You should be in China, following your brother’s lead. He’s found a proper bride in Beijing. I have someone in mind for you, Mei Lu.”

  Mei Lu couldn’t resist countering sweetly, “What would I do with a proper bride, Mother?”

  “No need to ridicule your mother,” Michael said tartly. “You know we wish both of our children eventually to make happy unions.”

  It was on the tip of Mei’s tongue to ask if her father was happy himself. But it would provoke him, and she’d come for another reason. Why cause more hard feelings?

  “Tell me about Stephen’s fiancée. I tried calling him several times after he left a message on my recorder saying he was getting married. He’s never in his office, and he hasn’t returned my calls. He didn’t even tell me her name. Does she work for the company? I don’t know why I expected that she’d live in Hong Kong. Beijing, you said?” Mei’s ever-analytical mind processed that new fact, but she wasn’t altogether pleased with what the facts suggested.

  Aun clapped her hands again. She carried on a brief conversation with the housemaid. The woman left and returned almost at once, to set a thick envelope on the tea tray. Mei’s mother opened the envelope and removed a photo, which she handed to Mei Lu, picture side down. According to the daintily brushed Chinese characters on the white surface, the enclosed was a likeness of Li-li Yu, and she was twenty years old.

  “She’s so young,” Mei gasped. “Stephen is thirty-two.” Glancing up, she noticed her mother and father both pursing their lips. “I can’t help it. I find it very surprising. When we worked together, Stephen dated modern, savvy women his own age.” She’d turned the picture over by the time she’d finished her diatribe. It didn’t surprise Mei to see how beautiful Li-li Yu was. Her brother had an eye for beauty, whether it came to silk, jade, pearls or people. She’d always known Stephen had good taste. Had he also developed a taste for museum treasures?

  Where had that traitorous thought come from? Looking down at the photo, she saw a gorgeous, serene face staring back at her. A woman in traditional coolie pants, unlike any worn here. Li-li’s hair was twined in a long, single braid. “She’s exquisite,” Mei murmured, fighting the nagging suspicions that crowded in. “I’ll send Stephen a note of congratulations,” she added, checking to see if the Chinese script bore any resemblance to the letters found on the dead couriers, then returning the photo to her mother.

  A sense of profound relief washed away the tightness that had come into Mei Lu’s chest. It was plain that the delicate strokes on the back of the photograph were far more feminine than the squared-off characters in the two letters she’d seen.

  Nevertheless, she needed to broach the subject and be done with it. From the way her father repeatedly looked at his watch, her visit must be keeping him from a prior commitment. But he would never rush her. That simply wasn’t his way.

  Mei took a last sip of tea. “I’m working on a new case. One that might interest you, Father. Rare artifacts have been taken from China. They’re turning up in Houston. Well, I don’t actually know that the pieces are. But a former art dealer in the city was approached, a man who had heart surgery a little while ago and gave up his business. That smuggler—the one who approached him—and a second were murdered.”

  Aun gasped. Her lips moved, and for a moment she said nothing. The teacup she held clattered against the thin porcelain saucer, or against the five rings she wore on her fingers.

  As her husband and daughter sat staring, Aun recovered. She bowed her head. “My husband, you must make your daughter leave this police work. She is not safe. What kind of world approves of letting young women deal with death?”

  Mei shook her head. “Mother, it’s all right. I spent a lot of time training for this career. I’m also working on this case with a man attached to Interpol. He’s experienced at tracking stolen art. He…we…neither of us will take chances.”

  Her father rose suddenly and lifted the cup from Mei Lu’s hand. “Come, Daughter, we will go down to the gallery where we’ll speak further. It’s impossible to think any reputable dealer would find a buyer. But there’s no need to upset your mother.”

  Mei recognized her father’s tone. The subject was closed. In that respect, Mei didn’t admire him. Before she’d broken with the firm, she’d learned that business woes were never discussed at home. Michael protected his wife from all concerns about money, as well. Aun was only ever touched by the pleasant side of doing business. She hosted dealers and prominent customers. Mei never understood why her father kept her mother in the dark; it wasn’t how Mei wanted to live. Which was another reason she’d left the business.

  “I have my car, Father. I’ll follow you,” Mei Lu said. “Mother, I didn’t mean to upset you. Please don’t worry about me. I’m quite capable of taking care of myself.” She left quickly, dropping a kiss on her mother’s cheek.

  At the gallery, her father escorted Mei directly into his office. He gave her no time to chat with his personal assistant, or the sales staff with whom she’d once worked. Michael shut the door.

  “Tell me, who dares to do such a thing? We at Ling’s have spent our lives elevating our gallery to a prominent level in this community. Who is compromising our reputation?”

  “I don’t know who, Father. So, you haven’t heard of anyone seeking buyers for museum pieces? You haven’t been approached?”

  “My daughter, you should not have to ask the ridiculous. I would shake such a person by his slimy ears.”

  Her smile was grim. “In my heart I knew that. But you must be careful if anyone should contact you. Two men tied to this smuggling died violently. If you hear anything, call me at once. It’s my job to handle these kinds of criminals.”

  “And have your mother filling my home with smoke from a hundred bronze Hsuan Te incense burners? She would lay offerings for your safety—and my demise. You cannot ask that of me, Daughter.”

  “Then will you contact Chief Tanner if you hear anything? I know you’ve met her at various city functions.”

  “I have. If the need arises I will take proper steps. Will I know these items on sight?”

  “Most definitely.” Mei Lu quickly ran down the list of the pieces she knew had been stolen.

  Her father turned ashen. “Impossible! Those are priceless icons. It would take someone very brave or very stupid to move such objects through Customs.”

  “But there are collectors who would pay any price to own even one, right?”

  He nodded. “I know of some, although we’ve long since parted ways. No…don’t ask me their names. I’ve drunk tea from their pots, and they from mine. I will
make discreet inquiries to see if the men I know have recently acquired anything of great value.”

  “How—?” Mei started to press for his method, but his face turned stony, and she knew that would be overstepping a daughter’s bounds. Lowering her eyes at once, she murmured, “Thank you.” Soon after that, Mei voiced her goodbye.

  She left feeling better. She had trusted him implicitly, but it strengthened her faith to hear his shock and to see the genuineness of it in his eyes.

  Now, if only she’d be able to repeat the experience with her brother. Mei couldn’t shake the image of Stephen’s serene, too-young fiancée, a girl who wore the plain cotton garb of the poor working-class Chinese.

  Mei recalled an argument with her brother, which had been the catalyst for her leaving Ling’s. On a buying trip into China, Stephen had ended up with three very old ivory combs. Mei had run across them accidentally when she’d been hunting in the warehouse for a particular lavender jade vase. Her brother claimed he’d purchased the combs with other items from a farmer, who swore they were made of bone. Mei hadn’t believed Stephen. She’d demanded an appraisal. Such overt distrust had resulted in a major disagreement. She’d threatened to quit before, but this time Stephen merely said he wouldn’t have any trouble running the operation alone. Mei had left Hong Kong in a flurry of hurt feelings. But she’d never told their father any of this—partly because she knew her parents would side with her brother.

  As she dialed his number and again only reached his answering machine, she wondered if those three combs had been the start of something bigger.

  Several weeks after she’d entered the Police Academy, Stephen phoned unexpectedly to make amends. He admitted he’d failed to inspect everything he’d bought from the farmer. At the time, his explanation had sounded plausible to Mei. Especially when Stephen said he’d been embarrassed by the error. He thanked her for not telling their father. She knew how hard her brother worked to please Michael. Now, though, Mei Lu wondered if she hadn’t been too gullible.