Desert Jade

by C. J. Shane

  Zhou figured that if he was right about what Ting's gang was doing in this region, then she had probably worked out some kind of deal with the Mexican drug cartels as well as Mexican officials. The Sinaloa Cartel controlled this region along the U.S.-Mexico border. He imagined bribes to the cartel were standard practice, or perhaps some cooperative business arrangement existed that involved sharing profits. He wondered how long that kind of business arrangement could last. The drug cartels were nearly as violent as the triad gangs and not very open to sharing anything. He wondered if Ting were brazen enough to openly defy the Sinaloa Cartel. True, the area just south of Arizona was somewhat disputed because the Sinaloa Cartel had lost some influence there in the last year or so. But if Ting went up against Sinaloa, it might be her undoing. Zhou sighed. Or maybe she was trying to create a partnership. There were too many unknowns at this point.

  Up until the fight in Jade’s backyard, Bao and Ting had not known Zhou was sent here. Bao also never saw Jade up above him on the roof. Good thing, that. She might be dead now if Bao had seen her. Zhou regretted that he’d been forced to fight Bao. He’d have much preferred that Bao not know he was on the scene. But it couldn’t be helped. Zhou saw the woman on the roof before Bao did. Zhou had to distract him before he could hurt her – and knowing Bao, he would definitely have hurt her had he known she was there. So Zhou engaged him. Bao was good at his gong fu, but Zhou was better. Zhou's master at the police academy was the best in Beijing and one of the best in China. Zhou’s master had learned from the Shaolin monks. Zhou learned from the best of the best, and he kept his skills honed with constant practice. Of course, if Bao carried a gun, it just made things a bit more challenging for Zhou. He welcomed the challenge.

  Being in the uncomfortable position of acting as bodyguard and being unable to carry out his investigation wasn't Zhou's only problem. He was a self-aware person who had been trained to notice where his thoughts were going. Paying attention was important to survival. No, not “important.” Paying attention was crucial to survival. If he wasn't paying attention, if he wasn't focused, if he allowed his mind to wander, the results could be lethal.

  That brought him to his second problem. The young woman Jade definitely made his mind wander. She reminded him of that red-headed woman on a horse farm that he’d known when he was investigating for Interpol in Wales. Yet Jade was…herself…like no other woman he’d known. Or maybe it was just a case of deprivation. It had been a long time since he'd been with a woman, maybe nearly a year? He couldn't remember. Too much travel. Too much work. No personal life at all. Too many nights alone.

  No, it wasn't just deprivation. It was her. This woman. Against his will, Zhou was attracted to her. When Jade slipped and fell off the ladder, and he reached out and caught her, holding her in his arms had an unexpected effect on him. She was soft and warm. She smelled good. She had this incredible wild halo of orange-red hair like nothing he had ever seen. The halo hung in ringlets around her face. Her skin was so fair with freckles across her nose and cheeks. Her face had the perfect shape of a watermelon seed so admired by the Chinese. Her mouth, her lips, her emerald green eyes....she was so beautiful. He wanted to know everything about her.

  And therein lay the problem, Zhou thought. How could he protect someone for whom he had this instant attraction? A moment of inattention could be deadly to both of them. He would have to work diligently to keep his attraction in check so that he would not endanger her and himself by becoming distracted.

  Zhou let his thoughts go over the events of the day. He had been completely surprised to see Bao at the airport. He ducked behind a pillar and managed to avoid being seen. He followed Bao out of the airport and across Tucson until Bao parked in front of Jade's house. Zhou drove past Bao, who never noticed Zhou in the rental car. Bao had always been an arrogant bastard who was so interested in himself that he often failed to notice what was going on around him. It wasn't that hard to understand how he had failed to notice Zhou. Zhou found the alley behind Jade’s house and went over the adobe wall without being detected.

  Bao was tall and well-built with long dark hair that hung fashionably at his shoulders. He was considered very handsome. In fact, Bao had often been compared favorably to heart throbs like Huang Xiaoming. Bao wore expensive Italian suits and shoes and was often seen along the French Riviera and other upscale vacation spots in the company of beautiful women.

  And Bao was a known triad 49er, which meant that he was at a lower level in the hierarchy. Even so, he was suspected of several assassinations. The word on the street was that he enjoyed killing.

  Bao didn't stay in Jade's house long at all. Maybe ten minutes. Zhou speculated that Bao had something specific he was looking for, but he left empty-handed. That meant he would definitely be back. Again, Zhou wondered what Jade could have that was of interest to a Hong Kong triad gang. Zhou hoped he would have the opportunity to ask her some questions so he could find the connection.

  Next he thought about Letty Valdez. He had never seen a woman like her either, but she was nothing like Jade. He guessed Letty to be almost two meters tall, close to 1.8 meters. Despite her height, she moved at times deliberately and with grace, like a cat, and at other times, with military precision. Her skin was dark with a reddish cast, her nose and cheekbones prominent, her eyes were black, as was her hair which hung long in a thick braid down her back. Letty was far from the Chinese ideal of fair-skinned, delicate beauty in a woman, and yet there was a presence about her that Zhou liked. She seemed very intelligent and capable. She seemed trustworthy.

  It was quite clear to Zhou that Letty Valdez was far less open to him than was the gentle Jade, who took him into her kitchen and fed him like an honored guest. Letty had an unusual job as private investigator. Perhaps it made her somewhat suspicious of everyone. Or maybe she just didn't buy his particular story. Zhou was very curious about what kind of work she did as an investigator. This profession of private investigator was fairly new in China and typically associated with business investigations for corporations. It was obvious that Letty had phoned someone about him when she left Zhou alone with Jade in the kitchen. And Letty got an acceptable answer – for the meantime, anyway. He was going to have to prove himself to Letty eventually. He knew that. He also wondered why Jade had called her friend Letty before calling the police. He wondered if there were cultural differences he was missing, or if there were a deeper story here...something between friends. Overarching everything was the mystery of why a Hong Kong triad criminal had come to Jade's house.

  He looked at his watch. Nearly twenty-two hundred hours now. It was getting colder.

  Suddenly the back door opened, and Jade came out. She walked directly to him and laughed.

  "I see you, Zhou," she teased. He found her so very charming.

  Zhou stood and smiled. "I am watching. You are safe."

  "You are so sweet to stay here and take care of me," she said, "but you're going to freeze to death. Come on inside. I'll make you some hot tea. I have some green tea. Would you like a cup?"

  "Yes, please." He followed Jade into to her kitchen again. This would be a good opportunity to ask Miss Jade some questions.

  She led him into her living room where a small fire burned in an adobe fireplace. The glow of the fire flickered in the darkened room.

  "Sit here. I'll be back in a minute."

  Zhou looked around. As best he could see in the dim light, her house was spare and simple, decorated in the Spanish style popular in this part of America. He read that the region was called The Southwest. Navajo Indian rugs covered parts of the Saltillo tile floor. He could see a short hallway and doors that led to what he guessed were two bedrooms and a bath. Moments later, Jade returned with two cups of steaming hot tea on a tray with sugar and lemon.

  "You are not concerned that Miss Letty will be angry you invite me into your house?" Zhou said as he sipped his tea. Ah, so good to have real Chinese green tea again. No sugar. No lemon.

  Jade sho
ok her head from side to side.

  "Oh, Letty and the others, Maggie and Seri, sometimes treat me like a child. I'm an adult. I can make decisions on my own. And I decided to invite you in, Zhou. I feel like I can trust you. Letty will just have to deal with that."

  She paused and added as if she needed to explain.

  "They've been very protective of me since Carlos disappeared. They just want me to be happy again."

  "Who is Carlos?"

  "My husband."

  Zhou felt his emotions go flat. Ah, married.

  "Carlos disappeared a little over a year ago."

  Zhou sat up straight. Very interesting.

  "Where is he now? Why did he leave?"

  Jade sighed deeply.

  "Okay. I guess I'll just start talking and tell you about me and my life. Maybe you can figure out what's going on. But if I tell you about me, then you have to tell me about you? Deal?" She smiled at him.

  "Yes, but not many things to tell."

  "Oh, I doubt that. You are a very interesting person, I think."

  Zhou smiled again. Not good. He must stay focused.

  Jade stood and went to a heavy wooden chest against the wall. She retrieved a thick photo album and brought it to him. She sat next to him on the couch and opened the album. Their knees touched.

  For nearly an hour, Jade talked about her life. Born Mary Catherine O'Reilly, she came to be called Jade as a baby. Her parents had hired a Mexican nanny who treated Mary Catherine's colic by putting jade amulets on her stomach. The colic went away, and her grateful parents, who didn't believe for a minute that a jade amulet was responsible for the cure, started calling her "Jade." The nickname stuck. Then when she was only five years old, her dad was sent to Australia for a year to work as a business consultant. Her parents hired a Chinese couple to take care of their daughter and their home. The Chinese couple called her Jade, as she had already told Zhou. By the time the little red-headed Irish-American girl went off to elementary school, she had a new name, Jade O'Reilly.

  Zhou surmised also from Jade’s commentary that her parents were affluent and not very engaged with their daughter. They hired others to take care of her as a child. And now, though it was a significant holiday season in America – Christmas and New Year’s – their daughter was alone. Yet they chose to go on a vacation without her.

  Jade showed him her childhood pictures and then photos from high school. There was a boy, a Mexican-American boy who appeared for the first time in those high school photos. After that, he was in almost all the other photos in the album.

  Jade and Carlos had been high school sweethearts from the age of sixteen. Two days after they graduated from high school, they had a big wedding at San Augustine Cathedral, and Jade acquired a new name, Jade Lopez. She pointed to the photos of her wedding.

  "That's Maria, the mother of Carlos. And those are all his siblings and cousins. The Lopez family is big. They still treat me like one of their own even if ...," Jade frowned, then continued.

  "My parents live back East now,” Jade continued. “They moved after Carlos and I started college. They were both from Boston originally, and Daddy kept some business interests there. After I married, they decided to make Boston home base. They still keep a house here in Tucson and come out often especially when it's cold back East. By now they thought they'd have grandchildren, and Carlos and I planned to have a big family. But no kids came. I guess there's something wrong with me."

  Zhou let her talk and when she got to the end of the photo album, he began asking questions.

  "You work. What are you doing?"

  "I am a teacher. I teach small children. They are third graders – eight and nine years old. Yesterday was the last day of school for fall semester. We have a two-week holiday now for Christmas and New Year's, then I'll go back to school in January. I have a ton of photos of my students, but I think I've shown you the most important photos already."

  "Why were you on the roof?"

  "I just like it up there. I go up after school often and drink a beer and watch the sun go down on the Santa Catalina Mountains. The view is very nice. I'll take you up there tomorrow."

  "You said one year has passed since your husband disappeared. Please explain."

  "I can't explain! He was here one day, and then he was gone. He went to work, and he didn't come home. By midnight, I was frantic. He had never done that before. He just didn't come back. Ever." Jade clasped her hands together in her lap. "There's something else you should know. Carlos had just won a big grant to start an after-school program for the kids on the southwest side of the city. Carlos is a social worker. He wanted to give the kids something fun and safe to do after school. Otherwise, a lot of them get involved in gangs or some other kind of trouble."

  Zhou noticed that Jade began to rub her fingers nervously.

  "When Carlos disappeared, the money disappeared, too. The cops think he skipped out with the money."

  "Skipped out? I do not know the meaning of 'skipped out.'"

  "The cops think he took the money and left to go live some rich person's life somewhere in a new place…...without me."

  "Do you believe this?"

  "No! Carlos loved me and I loved him. He would never steal that money."

  "What does Miss Letty think?"

  "Letty and my other two friends, Maggie and Seri, won't say so to my face, but I know what they think. They all think Carlos is dead. They think his body is out there somewhere in the desert. Even Carlos's mother, Maria, thinks he’s dead. They all think that someone stole the money and killed Carlos. They think we'll never know what happened to him. They think I should get over Carlos and forget him. Recently Maria even suggested that I think about finding another man and getting married again. But I can't just forget."

  She suddenly unclasped her hands.

  "Don't get me wrong, Zhou. My friends and Carlos's family have all been very good to me. This would have been much harder without their support. But the bottom line here is that my husband disappeared without a trace and so did a huge amount money. I don't know what happened to him or the money."

  Zhou decided to try another approach. "Do you know any Chinese people?"

  "No, not really. Well, one year I had a little Chinese boy in my class. His name was Li. His parents were graduate students at the university. I went to the Chinese Culture Center last year for Chinese New Year's. I went with Letty and her brother Will. I didn't really know anyone there. Oh, and I met Seri's friend. He was a visiting professor this past year at the university. Professor Wen. I think he’s returned to China already. That's all."

  "Did Carlos know Chinese people?"

  "No, he never mentioned anyone. And I knew most of the people he knew. I know what you're getting at. You're trying to find out why there was some strange Chinese man in my house. I have no idea!"

  They sat together quietly.

  Zhou said, "It's late. I return to sleep in your ...what do you say...patio?"

  "Yes, patio. It’s a Spanish word. But it's cold out there. I think you should sleep on the couch."

  "No, I think Miss Letty will not approve if I sleep here."

  Jade laughed, too. "You are probably right about that. She'll have a fit if she comes over here in the morning and finds you asleep on my couch. Letty is a very serious person. I don’t know if she’s always been like that or not. I didn't know her before she went into the Army. Maggie introduced us after Letty came home. I think she saw some terrible things there in Iraq. I wish I could make her smile more. But now I've just added to her problems. I called her because I didn't know who else to call. I don't trust the cops. They gave up on finding Carlos, and I think they suspected me for a long time when Carlos disappeared."

  Hmmm, Zhou thought. So Miss Letty had been in the U.S. Army and had served in a war zone. Interesting.

  Jade looked directly at him. "Okay. Your turn. Tell me about you."

  Zhou felt a sudden pang of shyness. He opened his hands in front of him i
n a gesture of helplessness.

  "I am a boring person. I work all the time. I don’t have an interesting life. Not like you."

  Jade laughed. “Most people wouldn’t think an elementary school teacher’s life is all that interesting. But an Interpol Chinese cop who travels around the world is most definitely exciting,” She paused. "Okay, start from the beginning. Where are you from originally?"

  "Before I was born, my parents lived in the countryside near a small farming town called Zhou Zhi, west of Xi'an. It is the mí hóu táo capital of the world."

  "Mí hóu táo?"

  "Yes, a fruit about this size," He made a fist. "Maybe a little smaller. Fuzzy…is that right? fuzzy?” Jade nodded yes. “Fuzzy on outside, green inside with small seeds."

  "Kiwi fruit?"

  "Yes, exactly! That’s the word for it.”

  "Go on."

  "My parents had been sent down during the Cultural Revolution. They worked on a farm there. Then Mao died, and Deng took the leader position. My parents were allowed to return to Nanjing, which is their home town. My father was rehabilitated soon after that. I was born in Nanjing. When I was at school, my coach identified me as a good prospect for a special school to study gong fu. At age 11, I entered the school to study.”

  “What is gong fu?”

  “Martial arts. You Americans call it kung fu. Gong fu is Mandarin. Kung fu is the Cantonese language that is spoken in southern China and Hong Kong. You Americans watch Hong Kong movies so you call it kung fu. But really the more common term is gong fu. You know, like the Shaolin monks?”

  “Yeah, I’ve heard of them. So you studied martial arts?”