Desert Jade

by C. J. Shane

  They made plans for the next day. Again, the phone rang.

  “Hello, Miss Valdez. My name is Clarice. You don’t know me, but I’m friends with your brother Will. We’re in the cycling club together. Will was attacked earlier this evening.”

  “What!?” Letty was immediately very alarmed.

  “He’s okay. He’s at the hospital, and the docs say he can go home now. I can bring him to your house. Is that okay? I can be at your house in ten minutes.”

  “Yeah, that’s good. That’s faster than I can get there, so please don’t leave him alone until I arrive. Okay?

  “Of course. I wouldn’t leave him. Never. He’s sort of stoned anyway. They gave him midazolam before they put his shoulder back into the socket, and the drug made him silly. He giggles about everything.”

  “His shoulder! What happened?”

  “He was on his bike and stopped at Himmel Park. He said he tried to help this girl, and some Chinese dudes jumped out of a van, grabbed the girl, and one of them came up to Will and dislocated Will’s shoulder. That’s the extent of his injuries. He’ll be okay except he has to keep his arm in a sling for a while. It’s going to hurt, too, when the drug wears off.”

  “Okay, I’ll see you in a few minutes. Thank you.”

  Yet another Chinese connection, but this time the connection was way too close to home.

  Letty locked her office and headed home as fast as she could safely drive.

  Chapter 10

  Letty made it back home in record time. She arrived just as Will’s friend Clarice was opening the passenger door of her silver-colored Volkswagen hatchback. To Letty, the car looked like a newer model that had seen some country backroads in its brief life, probably transporting bicycles and riders. Dried mud and dust decorated the car, and a long scratch could be seen in the paint of a rear passenger door. Clarice held Will’s arm as he lifted himself to his feet. He staggered against the open car door. Clarice was medium-height, about five feet eight inches, and slender, not really big enough to keep Will upright if he fell. Letty moved to his other side and slipped her arm around him under his non-injured arm.

  “Oh, there’s my big sister! Hi Letty!” Will was grinning. “See! There’s Clarice. She was at the hospital, too. I don’t know why.”

  “I was at the bike shop when you called for help, so I volunteered to come and pick you up and take you to the hospital.”

  “You did?” Will look confused. “I went to the hospital?’

  Clarice laughed. “Yes, you did. Your shoulder was dislocated, and you had to see the doctor. Remember?

  “Oh, I just remember playing basketball in the bed. That was fun.”

  Clarice looked at Letty and grinned.

  Letty asked, “What’s this drug you mentioned on the phone?”

  “Midazolam, also called Versed. They give it to patients just before surgery, or in this case, before putting his shoulder back in the socket. It reduces anxiety and pain. Also it’s sort of an amnesiac drug. He’s already forgotten a lot of his hospital experience. The drug will wear off soon.”

  “Yeah, I can see he’s out of it. Why do you know so much about this drug?”

  “My dad’s a doctor. Let’s get him inside and see if he can tell you what happened to him. He told me he was trying to help a girl get away from some bad guys.”

  They entered the house just as Millie came rushing forward to greet them, tail wagging enthusiastically.

  “Hold on, Millie,” Letty said. “I’ll feed you in just a minute.”

  “Oh, my god. What happened to this dog?” Clarice asked.

  “She had a rough time before we adopted her. I’ll tell you about her later.”

  They helped move Will toward the couch and managed to get him seated. Clarice sat down next to him, and Letty sat in a chair opposite.

  “Will, do you need any water or anything?” Letty asked.

  “No. Where’s my bike?”

  “It’s in the back of my car. I locked it up. Don’t worry. The bike is fine.” Clarice answered,

  “Will, what happened?” Letty leaned forward.

  “I’m so tired, Letty.” Will leaned back and his eyes closed.

  Clarice took over. “Will told me he was in Himmel Park when he saw a girl trying to get away from three men. They were all Chinese, he said. Two of them grabbed the girl and forced her back to their van. They pushed her in while a third man came up to Will. He grabbed Will’s hand and pulled. Will said it was a quick, violent move that dislocated his shoulder. Will said the other guy just laughed when he saw the look of pain and shock on Will’s face. Then this man turned and walked away. He got into the van, and they all drove away. That’s when Will called the bike shop.”

  “He didn’t call me?” Letty asked. She was dismayed at the thought that he considered his bicycling pals his go-to people, not his big sister.

  “Will said he tried calling you first, but your phone was on voice mail.”

  Oh, damn, Letty said to herself. She had turned the phone off when she was doing those interviews, and she’d forgotten to turn it back on until only a half hour earlier at her office.

  “Will called the bike shop. I happened to be there so I said I’d go get him and take him to the emergency room. He was hurting pretty badly by that time. Later, I tried to call you, and you answered.”

  “That’s all he said?”

  “Yes, as soon as we got there and Will was examined, they gave him the drug. He was pretty goofy after that. They took him in and put his shoulder back in the socket. It didn’t take long at all. He couldn’t tell me anything else. He just kept saying that he had to tell his sister Letty something important.”

  Letty took a good look at Clarice. She was about Will’s age, young, athletic, and self-possessed. She was very fair with dark hair and green eyes. She was pretty in a quiet kind of way, not the type you’d notice up against a glamorous blonde. She radiated self-confidence and intelligence.

  “Thank you, Clarice. You’ve been a really good friend to Will.”

  “Oh, he’d do the same for me. All of us in the bike club know we have to be ready to help in case anyone gets hurt. I always thought that would be a bike wreck, but I was there for Will when he called. I took a first aid course, and I know how to do CPR. My dad made sure I know the basics.”

  “Okay. Let’s leave him alone for a while so he can sleep. I have to feed this dog now.” Millie had been at their feet the whole time, listening and wagging her tail.

  As Letty prepared Millie’s food, Clarice asked, “What happened to this dog? She’s really beat-up looking.”

  Letty conveyed the story of how she’d found Millie in the desert, and her guess that Millie had been used as bait in a dog-fighting ring.

  “Assholes,” was Clarice’s response. “So how did she get the name Millie?”

  “Really her name is Milagro, but Will shortened it to Mille.”

  “Milagro? That’s a Spanish word, right?”

  “Yes. It means ‘miracle.’”

  “I need to learn Spanish. It’s on my list.”

  Letty smiled. So Clarice was a no-nonsense, make-a-list-and-get-it-done kind of person. Letty liked her already. She took the dog bowl out to the back porch with Millie at her heels.

  Letty offered Clarice something hot to drink. Clarice chose hot chocolate. A few minutes later, Millie returned through the doggie door with a full stomach and a grin on her pit bull face.

  “Come here, baby,” Clarice said to Millie in a soft voice, and Millie happily complied. Clarice began stroking the dog’s head and ears and back. Millie leaned against Clarice’s knees.

  “Clarice, did Will have enough sense to show the hospital his insurance card?”

  “Yep. I helped him with that. Your family is covered by the ACA, right?”

  “Yes, and let’s hope Obamacare survives. No way can I afford regular insurance costs.”

  Clarice sipped her hot chocolate and continued to caress Millie.
/>   “So, are you a student at Will’s high school?”

  “No. I’m a student at the University of Arizona. I’m actually only six months older than Will. The difference is where our birthdays fall on the calendar.”

  “Where are you from? You have some kind of accent. I don’t know what it is.”

  Clarice smiled. “I’m from Boston, and I spent a lot of time in Connecticut. Boston is what you are hearing.”

  “You came all the way to Arizona to go to college?”

  “Yes, I needed to get away from home. I have a big family. Every single one of them has a strong opinion about me and what I should be doing. I want to decide for myself how to live my life. I spent my junior year abroad in France, and I got a taste of freedom there. When it came time to go to college, I wanted to go far away from Boston. I chose Arizona because I like to do outdoor things, and I wanted to escape the snow. My parents are still pissed off at me. Everyone in our family goes to…,” she hesitated, “to some Ivy League school. I decided on Arizona. I’ve been here since August. I met Will at the bike shop soon after my arrival in Tucson.”

  Letty appreciated Clarice’s openness, although she wondered how two such different individuals could become friends. Was it long-distance bicycling that brought them together or something more?

  Suddenly, Letty and Clarice both heard a thump. They ran into the living room.

  Will was removing his shoes, and he had tossed one of them across the room.

  “I can make a three pointer,” Will said.

  “Will, try to focus. What happened to you?” Letty asked.

  Will still looked a little confused.

  “Okay, I’ll try.” He rubbed his eyes.

  “You were at Himmel Park,” Clarice prompted.

  “Yes. On the way home from the bike shop, I got something caught in the gears. I stopped off at Himmel Park to get it out. It was dark already. I have this little flashlight. So I was over on the south side of the park. You know where all those trees and oleander bushes are? It's pretty dark there."

  "Yeah. Then what happened?"

  "I bent down with my little flashlight to adjust the gear, and all of a sudden this white van pulled up in the parking lot across the park. The side door slides open, and this girl jumps out. She started running away from the van and toward the south side of the park but not directly toward me. I don’t think she ever saw me. She tripped and fell, then got up and ran again. In the meantime, these three dudes jumped out of the van and chased her down. One of them slapped her a couple times, and then they picked her up and put her back into the van. She was struggling the whole time.”

  “Did the men see you?” Letty asked.

  "Not at first. My flashlight was off then. They weren't looking my way anyway. They were focused on the girl. Those dudes were really serious about getting her back in the van. Then I came out of the shadows and yelled at them."

  "What happened?"

  “Two of them ignored me and carried the girl to the van. The third guy came toward me smiling. Yeah, he was smiling,” Will frowned. “Before I could say or do anything, he grabbed my hand and arm, and he jerked really hard. The next thing I knew, I had a dislocated shoulder. Then the scumbag laughed. He turned, and he just walked away. Very casual-like.”

  Letty shook her head. She didn’t like this.

  "That's not all. The girl was dressed in one of those tight Oriental-style dresses with the slit up the side and a high collar. The light was low, but I could see that the dress was made of red silk. She looked Chinese, and the men did, too. And really they looked a lot like those Chinese people in that movie that you and I watched."

  Letty knew he was referring to Wong Kar Wai's art film classic In the Mood for Love.

  She felt a sense of dread fall over her. Too many coincidences in one day. Too many Chinese people in one day.

  Will looked at Letty and said pointedly, “Remember what you told me yesterday about those Chinese dudes?”

  Letty nodded, avoiding Clarice’s questioning gaze. “Anything else you can tell me? We’re going to have to make a police report. What more do you remember?”

  “The man who jerked my arm had on a white suit. Good looking. His hair was a little longer, enough to make a short ponytail. Not as long as yours or mine, but not like you usually see on Asian men.” Will slumped back against the couch. “I’m tired.”

  Letty turned to Clarice. “I’m working on a case that could involve some Chinese gangsters. It’s best you forget what you’ve heard here from Will. And both of you. No talking to your co-workers at the bike shop. We don’t want to get them involved. After this is all over, you can tell them all the gory details. And Will, if you run into these guys again, do not approach them. Don't try to rescue anybody. Got that? You, too, Clarice.”

  Both Will and Clarice nodded their heads in assent.

  “Actually, I’m the only one who knew about the Chinese,” Clarice said. “Will told Ron at the bike shop that he’d fallen off his bike and was hurt. It was after Will was injected with the Versed that that he told me about the Chinese men and the girl. Then the drug took over. He was out of it after that.”

  Letty was relieved. “That’s good. The fewer people that know about this, the better. I’m sorry you got involved, Clarice.”

  “No problem. I know when to keep my mouth shut.”

  Will sat up and dug into his back pocket. “Oh, yeah. I forgot. Letty, I found this on the ground where they picked up the girl." He opened his hand to show her a necklace. It was a jade amulet on a red silk string. The red silk string was broken.

  Letty took it and turned it over in her hand. "Good. I'll try to find out what this is." She pocketed the necklace. Zhou would see this tomorrow.

  “I’m going to call the police now and report what’s happened. They will likely want to come by here in the morning for your statement.” Letty went into another room, made a quick call to the police, and set up an appointment.

  When she returned to the living room, Millie was sitting between Will and Clarice on the couch.

  “Good grief,” Letty said. “That dog knows she’s not supposed to be on the couch. Will, I think you need to rest now.”

  Clarice stood and reached into her backpack. “Your sister is right. You need to go to bed. Here are the meds your doctor gave me. Read the instructions and follow them. The meds are for pain.”

  “This is going to hurt?” Will made a face.

  “Yes, tomorrow especially, but you’ll get well fast,” Clarice said reassuringly. “Okay. I’m outta here. I’ll bring your bike back tomorrow when I come to check on you.”

  “Don’t forget me,” Will looked worried.

  Clarice laughed. “No, silly. I won’t forget you. I’m not the one taking drugs.”

  She leaned down and gave Millie a goodbye pat. “Bye, bye, miracle baby.”

  Just at that moment, Eduardo knocked and walked in the door.

  “Clarice, this is my brother Eduardo Ramone. He has a twin sister named Elena. Eduardo, this is Clarice, a friend of Will’s.”

  Clarice shook Eduardo’s hand. “Eduardo Ramone,” She looked at the ceiling and repeated his name as if it were the first word of an epic poem. “What a great name.” She looked at all three siblings. “You three are all so good-looking!”

  Will laughed. Eduardo laughed. Letty felt herself grimace. One of those unexpected and unwanted memories came back suddenly to haunt her. Those memories felt like a knife in her gut. She’d never thought of herself as good looking until Chava came along. He told her that and more. He called her “chulita.” Sexy girl. She could feel his arms around her. So much pain came with the memory. The grief of knowing that he was gone forever, lost in the sands of Iraq, was almost too much to bear.

  Clarice said her goodbyes again and closed the door behind her.

  Letty turned to Eduardo. “Help me get Will to bed, and then we can catch up.” Letty and Eduardo pulled him up and steered Will to his bedroom. They
maneuvered him into bed and covered him with a blanket. Safe in his bed with Millie in her bed nearby, Will fell asleep almost immediately.

  “Want something to eat? I haven’t eaten and I’m starved,” Letty asked her brother.

  “Sure,” Eduardo responded.

  Letty threw together a quick meal. They ate in silence for a few minutes. Then Letty gave Eduardo a review of what had happened to Will. She left out the part about Chinese criminals, and only described the assault as involving a possible abduction that Will had the misfortune of encountering.

  Then she said, “Okay, what’s up with you? You said you need my help.”

  Eduardo, normally a calm, very quiet young man, suddenly looked very anxious. “I rescued this migrant in the desert about a week ago. She had run out of water, and she was in bad shape. She’s a bit younger than me, only 17. She’s from Chiapas in southern Mexico, and her name is Esperanza. She stayed with Uncle Mando and Valerina for a few days to get stronger. Then she asked me to take her into Tucson to her coyote. When they were still in Mexico before crossing the border, he told her that he had a job for her in Tucson. I was really reluctant, but she said her family was desperate for money. Her little brothers and sisters aren’t getting enough to eat. So she was determined to find a job. I gave her a cell phone and taught her how to use it. She promised to call me. But she never called.”

  Letty shrugged her shoulders. “Are you sure this is a problem? Maybe she just found a job and decided to move on.”

  “No,” Eduardo hesitated. “I don’t know how to explain. This is different. She’s different. We have something between us. I’m sure she would have called if she could.” He looked down and pressed his palms together.

  Letty couldn’t remember a time that she’d seen her normally serene brother so distressed.

  “Earlier today I went to the place where I dropped her off. This rough-looking guy answered the door. He said he didn’t know anything about any girl named Esperanza and that I should get lost. When I pressed him, he pulled a gun on me and slammed the door in my face.”