The Benefactor

by Don Easton

  Chapter Fifty-Eight

  Detective Wilson placed Jia-li in an interview room separate from Mia’s, then headed for his office to talk to Jack. On the way, he was joined by Laura and Connie, who had been at a nearby coffee shop.

  “Anything new in the search for the Chinese couple from the restaurant?” asked Laura.

  “No, I checked a moment ago. They’ve disappeared,” replied Wilson. “We’re also having trouble identifying the body in the alley. There is no identification, wallet, or keys on him.”

  “We only know him as Mr. Frank,” said Laura.

  “Yeah, that’s what Mia told me, too,” replied Wilson, “as well as her mother, Jia-li.”

  “You’ve spoken to Jia-li?” asked Laura, in surprise.

  “Jack brought her in a couple of minutes ago. She’s in an interview room,” explained Wilson.

  “So she’s not co-operating,” Laura said, frowning.

  “No, I think she is. She suggested that one possible way to help us find the Chinese couple would be to watch the port to see if they try to board any Chinese-based ships that are docked. Not a bad idea.”

  “Unless it is a ruse to use up manpower and have us looking in the wrong place,” said Connie.

  “Jack believes she is being honest,” replied Wilson.

  “Why did he bring her in?” asked Laura.

  “He didn’t say yet. He’s waiting for me in my office, let’s go find out.”

  “Did Mia give you a complete statement?” asked Connie, as they walked toward Wilson’s office.

  “Yes … and I think it was an honest one,” replied Wilson.

  “Be interesting to compare it with Jack’s, once you get his,” mused Connie. She caught Laura’s glare and added, “Don’t give me that. You know him better than anyone.”

  Seconds later, they joined Jack in the office. He was sitting and reviewing his notebook, but glanced at Connie and said, “I thought you might show up.”

  “I heard about the excitement,” replied Connie, while sitting down. “I thought maybe Wilson and I should collaborate on some things.”

  “Yeah, she has a real interest in comparing the statement you’ll give with that of Mia’s,” replied Laura.

  Jack frowned at Laura. “Statements should be compared.”

  Laura felt irritated. Is he chastising me for warning him … or for not trusting his judgment to have known the statements would be compared … Probably the latter …

  “First of all, why did you bring Jia-li in?” asked Wilson, as he sat down behind his desk. “Does she have a role in what happened?”

  “You might say that,” replied Jack. “She murdered Lok Cheng in his flower shop last night. She admitted it to me and is anxious to give you a statement and confess.”

  Wilson, Laura, and Connie all looked at each other in surprise. Connie was the first to respond. “My God, Jack! You brought in a live one. This is a real turning point for you!”

  Jack ignored Connie and turned his attention to Wilson. “Jia-li was spying for the Chinese,” he said, gravely. “Lok Cheng was her former case officer. She did not want to spy when she moved to Canada, so Cheng murdered her husband without her knowledge as an inducement to keep her on the hook. She clued in when Mia sent her the enhanced photo.”

  “I’ll take a statement from her immediately,” said Wilson, getting to his feet. “Has she been warned?”

  “Not yet, but sit down. There is more to discuss.” Jack waited until Wilson sat down again and said, “Murdering a man who murdered your husband … how much time do you think she will actually serve?”

  Wilson glanced at Connie, then shrugged. “I don’t know … maybe seven years.”

  “Providing the statement you take is admitted and she’s convicted,” added Jack.

  “Of course,” replied Wilson.

  “She sent an email this afternoon to the Chinese, outlining the meeting I was having tonight with Frank and Wong. She made it clear that she and Mia were no longer going to act as spies. Ultimately, her email saved my life. I think the benefactor, as they call their agency, ordered a hit on Frank.”

  “That’s nice, but it doesn’t detract from the fact that she knifed some old guy in the throat,” replied Wilson, “even if he was a spy.”

  “Mia also saved my life tonight. Twice. She had a chance to flee, but opted to come back and shove me down a basement stairwell out of the way of gunfire and a second time in the basement when she grabbed a bad guy’s gun and got the drop on him.”

  “Makes the daughter look good, but it has nothing to do with the mother,” replied Wilson. “I’m sorry, you must feel like you owe them, but if you think those are mitigating factors, that is something for a judge to decide upon sentencing.”

  “You’ve done well, Jack,” said Connie. “Don’t screw it up by talking like this.”

  “So you think we should trust the justice system?” replied Jack, looking at Wilson.

  Laura rolled her eyes. Oh, man … here it comes …

  Wilson shrugged. “We have to do the best with what we have.”

  “What if I told you that Jia-li has given me the names of six people she recruited who are spying against Canada and are in positions to do dramatic damage to our economic stability and military operations? Albeit, some don’t realize they are being used.”

  “You want to cut a deal with her?” asked Wilson. “I think I would need the names to pass on to the Crown and let them decide.”

  “That could be a problem,” replied Jack. “This is too big for the local prosecutors to decide on their own. They will need to go to Ottawa. The names I have been given are big enough that the people doing the deciding could be some of the same people who are working for the Chinese. Jia-li gave me six names. I am sure others have been corrupted whom Jia-li knows nothing about. Actually, I even have a seventh name. Mia admitted to me that she recorded a sexual encounter two weeks ago with Sterling Wolfenden.”

  “The Member of Parliament?” asked Wilson.

  “The one and only.”

  “Can you give me the other six names?” asked Wilson, reaching for a pen.

  “I’ll give you three of them,” replied Jack. “They alone are enough for anyone of pragmatic intelligence to guarantee she will not be charged. The other three I will hold in abeyance.”

  “Why?” asked Wilson.

  “Because I don’t trust our justice system. Once there is signed documentation saying she will not be charged, only then I will release the other names. In the meantime, they can know that I am dangling three more names over their heads. Something I’m sure the media would be most interested in if they ever found out.”

  “I understand,” said Wilson, nodding.

  “Of course, having a decision made not to charge her would take months,” replied Jack, “and the spies would no doubt be putting in overtime until then, perhaps corrupting others as well.”

  “What are you getting at?” asked Wilson.

  Jack looked at Connie. “Any suggestions? One of the names I have been given is a Supreme Court judge and another is a politician who works for the Minister of Justice.”

  “What do you mean, do I have any suggestions?” replied Connie, defensively. “These aren’t our decisions to make. You should spill the beans on everyone. Not just three.”

  “We have all cut deals with criminals in the past,” noted Jack, “either to work our way up the ladder or to make a deal to save time in court. Should we risk jeopardizing Canada’s future by going through channels? We know that in time, the outcome should favour Jia-li by giving her complete immunity from prosecution. Unless, of course, the decision is made by someone who does not understand the big picture and says she should be charged.”

  “A charge that could still be tossed out in court,” noted Wilson. “I see what you’re getting at.”

  “I don’t,” said Connie.

  “Do you think she should be charged?” asked Jack.

  “She likely won’t b
e, but that’s not our decision to make,” said Connie. “It’s up to Ottawa.”

  “Do you trust the people in Ottawa more than you trust the people in this room?” asked Jack.

  “Well …” Connie paused as she looked around the room, before swallowing and continuing, “no, but …”

  “Do all of us agree that ultimately Jia-li shouldn’t be — and likely won’t be — charged in consideration of her co-operation?” asked Jack.

  Wilson and Laura both nodded and everyone turned to stare at Connie. Her face took on an ashen hue and her voice was a whisper. “How can we not go through channels?” She looked at Wilson. “You’re investigating a guy being murdered in his flower shop. If you don’t solve it, someone else will come along.”

  “Not if I were to say that when I was in the alley with Frank that he confessed to murdering Cheng,” said Jack. “Kind of a dying confession, in a way.”

  “Oh, fuck,” muttered Connie.

  After a moment of silence, Wilson cleared his throat and said, “Given what you have told me, I could live with that.” He looked at Connie. “Providing the four of us agree and everyone keeps their mouth shut.”

  Connie felt the pressure mount as all eyes stared at her. Her mind replayed what she had been told. It makes sense, but it isn’t right …

  “It isn’t technically right,” said Jack quietly, “but I feel it is morally just.”

  “I’ll never be able to sleep at night,” replied Connie.

  “I bet you’ll find that you’ll sleep really well … once you make the right decision,” said Jack.

  Connie remained silent a moment longer. “Okay, I’m in,” she said, with her voice cracking as her mind told her she was going against everything she believed in.

  Everyone else in the room took a deep breath and slowly exhaled.

  “Jack, I’ve got one question,” said Wilson. “You obviously felt Jia-li shouldn’t be charged. Why didn’t you simply say that Frank told you he did it? Why did you involve us?”

  “Connie told me she respects you,” replied Jack. “I figured if you suspected I lied to you that it would be too easy for you to put the pieces together. Airport video of Jia-li flying back from Calgary early. Perhaps DNA or some other evidence. Not to mention that she would blurt the truth out to you if you interviewed her.”

  “Yeah, well why did you have to let me in on it?” grumbled Connie.

  Jack looked at Laura and said, “You tell her.”

  “He wanted you to see the big picture,” Laura said with a smile.

  Moments later, Jack met Jia-li in the interview room and took a seat facing her.

  “Well?” she said. “Let’s get on with it. Are you going to take my statement?”

  “No,” replied Jack. “There is no need. You won’t be charged with Cheng’s murder in exchange for your co-operation.”

  “You … you can’t know that yet,” replied Jia-li, looking inquisitively at Jack. “You could never receive authority for such a request this fast.”

  “I was never one to trust authority to start with,” replied Jack. “After talking with you and Mia tonight, I am even less inclined.”

  “But —”

  “It’s okay. The investigating officer has agreed that your co-operation is more valuable than putting you in jail.”

  “But I have already told you everything,” said Jia-li.

  “I know, but I only told them half of what you told me,” replied Jack. “They agreed that was enough.”

  “Half?” asked Jia-li.

  “Once I am positive that you are in the clear, I will provide everything you have told me to the Integrated National Security Enforcement Team for follow-up. INSET includes agents from the Canadian Security Intelligence —”

  Jia-li burst out crying so Jack moved his chair beside her and put an arm around her shoulder and hugged her. “Everything will be okay,” he whispered. “Mia will be joining us in a moment. Think about how you will tell her.”

  “I can’t,” she cried. “It’s too awful.”

  “You must,” replied Jack. “You have raised her to be an operative. It will not take her long to figure it out. It is best she hears it from you.”

  “But —”

  Wilson knocked lightly on the door before opening it. He ushered Mia into the room and left again, closing the door behind him.

  Mia saw the grief on her mother’s face and rushed to her side. “Mom, everything will be okay. Please tell them what they want to know.”

  “She already has,” said Jack. “It’s you she needs to talk to.”

  “I don’t know where to start,” said Jia-li, looking at Jack.

  “Tell her everything you told me tonight,” he said. “Start with your own loss of innocence when you were a child … when your parents worked for Intelligence. If you prefer to speak in Chinese, go ahead. I’ll wait outside. Open the door when you are finished.”

  “I am done speaking Chinese,” said Jia-li. “From here on in, it will be English.”

  Jack nodded, then left the room and closed the door behind him before taking a seat at a nearby desk. Over the next half hour, he heard Mia’s anguished cry when she learned her mother had committed murder, then overheard Jia-li’s reassurance that all would be okay.

  When the room became silent, Jack opened the door. When he saw Jia-li holding Mia’s head to her chest while stroking her hair, he knew that things would work out for the two of them.

  Three weeks passed before Connie walked into Jack and Laura’s office and tossed a newspaper down on his desk. “Did you read it?” she asked. “About Wolfenden?”

  Jack nodded. “It was on the news last night. He is stepping down and retiring for personal reasons.”

  “Yeah, real personal … and intimate,” she said, pulling up a chair. “I wonder if his wife knows?”

  “She does,” replied Jack. “Less chance of him being blackmailed if the truth is already out.”

  “You certain?” asked Connie.

  “I’m certain,” replied Jack. “Rose used to work for INSET. We have our sources.”

  “And the others who were corrupted?” asked Connie.

  “I don’t know,” replied Jack. “Some will have their security clearances lifted, others may be allowed to continue, depending upon their co-operation. Some don’t even realize they were set up. It’s all political and dirty.”

  “Wilson and his guys did come up with Mr. Frank’s address three days later,” said Connie. “He worked as a consultant for a communications security firm. They reported him missing, but by the time Wilson got to his address, it had been cleaned out. Or at least his computer had been taken.”

  “Yes, we heard,” replied Jack. “He had also assumed the identity of a child who died forty years ago from a heart disorder. They still don’t know who he really is, other than he lived alone.”

  “I doubt they ever will,” said Connie.

  “So much for any loved ones in China bringing the body home,” added Laura.

  “Also no sign of the Chinese couple,” added Jack. “I’m betting they’re back in Bejing.” He gave a lopsided grin. “Maybe I should send them a thank-you card through the Chinese Embassy.”

  Connie eyed Jack silently for a moment as she brooded. “This big picture you talk about is a dirty one,” she said.

  “Sometimes,” admitted Jack. “It never seems easy, that’s for sure.”

  “What if I had refused to go along with your big picture?” asked Connie. “Knowing our past history, I’m surprised you let me in on the decision.”

  “Perhaps he knows you better than you think,” noted Laura.

  Connie pointed her finger at Jack and hissed, “Yeah, well, don’t think for a moment that I would ever let it happen again!”

  Jack looked at her and smiled politely.

  Epilogue

  Former Chinese spies have reported that China has more than one thousand spies in Canada, more than in any other country outside China. The Canad
ian government fears that the Chinese have stolen considerable business and industrial secrets from the country. Richard Fadden, the head of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, implied in a television interview that various Canadian politicians at provincial and municipal levels had ties to Chinese Intelligence. In another interview, he claimed that some politicians were under the influence of a foreign government, but he withdrew the statement a few days later. It was assumed that he was referring to China because in the same interview he stressed the high level of Chinese spying in Canada, although he did not specify which country’s government. His statement was withdrawn a few days later.

  In 2009, Canadian researchers found evidence that Chinese hackers had gained access to computers possessed by government and private organizations in 103 countries, although researchers say there is no conclusive evidence that China’s government was behind it. Beijing also denied involvement. The researchers said the computers penetrated include those of the Dalai Lama and Tibetan exiles.

  In 2011, Canada suffered a major systems breach when hackers cracked computer security systems at the Department of Finance and Treasury Board. The departments were hit hard by the attack, as computer systems were shut down while security loopholes were closed. Communications Security Establishment Canada insiders say they know who the culprit was. The information was never made public, but the perpetrator is broadly thought to be China.

  A Canadian Broadcasting Corporation news release dated May 15, 2012, in part notes:

  The former head of U.S. counter-espionage says the Harper government is putting North American security at risk by allowing a giant Chinese technology company to participate in major Canadian telecommunications projects.

  The Canadian government itself was hit with its worst-ever hacking attack from China, penetrating the highly classified computer systems in at least three federal departments: Finance, Treasury Board, and Defence Research.