by Matt Lincoln
“We’ll see about that,” Rucker retorted. “We have a hell of a mess on our hands, and the mayor and governor are demanding answers. If you can’t give them, I have to. Why me, you ask? Because it’s in my precinct. You people don’t get to keep me out of the loop and then expect me to sit back and accept that. I am over it.”
I moved around Diane and got in Rucker’s face. “We are dealing with a crime that involves a murder victim from Hong Kong. That puts this in our jurisdiction, end stop.”
Diane put her hand on my arm. I looked over to find her glowering at me. “I am handling this, Ethan. You go take care of that woman while I iron things out with the detective here.”
Rucker smirked, but an order was an order. I nodded at Diane and led Holm and Terry out of the waiting room. A nurse directed us to a small meeting room a short distance away and let us in for a discussion with Terry.
“Do you need an advocate or attorney, Terry?” the nurse asked. She gave Holm and me a side-eye. “You don’t have to be alone with these men.”
Terry gave each of us a meaningful glance and then shook her head. “They’re doing their job, Anna, but thank you.” She took a seat, placed her hands on her lap, and met the nurse’s eye. “Please let me know as soon as there’s news about MJ.”
“I’ll do that.” Anna went over to the door and stopped to glare at us. “You two lay one hand on that girl, and I don’t care if you’re God’s own police, you will pay.”
She whooshed down the hall before either of us could answer. I turned to Terry.
“How does she know you?” I asked.
Terry swallowed and sniffed. “I’ve brought MJ to the ER more than once. Anna kind of watches out for him when we come in.” She looked up. “She used to go to protests with us before her bosses warned her not to get arrested again.”
“When did this happen?” Holm asked as he took one of the four seats in the room.
“Right after the Dragon Tide project began.” Terry stretched her fingers on her denim-clad thighs and then curled them under her palms. “MJ and I think that Zhu figured out where she worked and complained to a person on the hospital board. Anna was pretty outspoken, but she has a kid and can’t afford to lose her job.”
“That’s a lot of influence to have over firing someone.” I followed Holm’s example and grabbed a chair. “Who was the board member?”
Terry scrunched her face. “I can’t think of the guy’s name, but he has something to do with building permits and all that.” Her face cleared. “I’m sorry, but that’s all I can remember.”
“It’s okay,” Holm told her. “We’ll find out.”
“Okay, enough about Anna,” I said with a firm tone. “Tell us what you were thinking by going with MJ instead of getting help to stop him.”
Terry scoffed and held her hands out. “I wasn’t going to get him arrested. He’s too sick. I didn’t know anyone else who would help. MJ is keeping the cancer quiet, even though my classmates and the administration know. He’s really private, so he doesn’t have a lot of people he’ll confide in.”
“Are you sure he didn’t say anything, anything at all, about what he was looking for?” Something niggled at the back of my mind, but I couldn’t quite grasp it. “Maybe he dropped a hint without realizing it.”
Terry closed her eyes in thought. Her lips moved in fast, silent words. After a moment or two of this, her eyes popped open.
“There was one thing, but I don’t know that it’s helpful,” she admitted. “I didn’t think anything of it, but looking back, it could mean something.”
“Like I said, anything at all,” I repeated.
“He said that Miami limestone isn’t as strong as people think.” She shrugged. “I’m not sure what he meant by that. Everyone knows the water is coming up through the porous limestone. I figured he wanted to see if the water under the hotel came from beneath.”
Zhu’s video about Adapta-Build tech made it sound like water penetration wasn’t a concern to future developers and inhabitants. The building was made to keep water out from all directions, and all towers were required to have pilings drilled down to over a hundred and fifty feet.
“That water came from the breach in the Seascape attraction,” Holm reminded her. “It was dry before that.”
“Are you sure?” Terry asked. “MJ wasn’t so sure. He wanted to sneak in a week or two to find out if there was moisture at the lowest level. He never said anything about the pilings, though, just the lowest levels. They should’ve been fine, like the other towers.”
“Adapta-Build is supposed to be more resilient than any other coastal construction,” I pointed out. “I haven’t heard that this particular building had any more trouble than regular towers. If there was water intrusion at any point, that would mean Adapta-Build was flawed from the get-go.”
Terry’s enthusiastic nod assured me we were getting closer to answers. The enthusiasm died, however, and she looked toward the door. Her jaw trembled.
“I should’ve tried harder to stop him from diving.” She wiped at her eyes. “Or maybe this was the best thing. If this kills him, isn’t it better than suffocating from the cancer?”
I couldn’t argue with that logic. James was doing what he hated and loved at the same time. In the eyes of the law, what he did was wrong, but he and Terry had valid points.
“I wish you two would’ve come to us rather than go search on your own,” I told her.
“I’m sorry, really.” Terry balled her fists. “I’ve told you all I know. Can we go back to the waiting room?”
Holm and I looked at each other, and he gave a slight nod.
“We don’t have any more questions for now.” I stood, and Holm joined me. “Let’s go see how he’s doing.”
The three of us went back to where a pair of Metro officers had taken Rucker’s place with Diane, whose frown and crossed arms did not bode well.
“Rucker left these fellows here to arrest Miss Schwartz for trespassing at the Dragon Tide crime scene,” Diane announced. “I assured them that we’re taking care of the situation.”
One of the officers shifted his weight and cleared his throat. “I’m sorry, ma’am. Detective Rucker wants us to keep you here until we have a federal judge’s order to remand Miss Schwartz to Metro Police custody.”
“Why does he want this so bad?” I asked the officer.
He shook his head. “You’d have to ask him, sir.”
I turned to Terry. “Have you met Detective Rucker before?”
“No.”
From the befuddled look on her face, I believed her. Holm waved me over to a corner as Terry chose a seat between the officers and Diane. He tapped on his phone and then showed me.
“Marlin Watts is on the hospital board,” he said in a low tone.
“He’s the city inspector James saw with Zhu.” I glanced over at Terry. “Her friend pissed off Zhu, and Zhu talked to Watts. If they’d fired her outright, it would’ve called more attention to the problem, but a warning wouldn’t turn as many heads.”
Holm nodded. “I think we need to have a little chat with Watts. Think the boss can handle a grumpy old detective’s turf play?”
“Oh yeah,” I said with a laugh. “She handles our bullshit all the time.” I frowned. “I’m more concerned about what we’ll find from Watts.”
CHAPTER 19
“How long until the wake starts?” Holm asked me on the way out of the hospital.
I checked the time on my phone. “About five hours. Why?”
“Let’s talk to Ken and Mei Liu,” he suggested. “From what Alice says, they’re pretty lackadaisical about his father’s passing.”
“‘Lackadaisical’?” I echoed. We reached the car, and I opened my door to let the worst of the heat out. Holm did the same for a cross breeze.
“Yeah. They’re not showing a lot of gumption about all of this.”
“I know what it means,” I said with a laugh. “You haven’t been the type to use big,
fancy words is all.”
Holm adjusted his shades. “Dad told me about a word of the day app, and I installed it. Today’s word is ‘lackadaisical,’ and it stuck in my mind because that’s how Alice’s parents are acting. I’d think they’d be grieving and upset to lose the head of the family like they did.”
“Maybe they’re grieving in their own way.”
From his expression, I suspected Holm didn’t believe that any more than I did. John Liu’s death seemed more like an advantage to their interests than anything else.
“Mei is putting a lot of effort into putting on the wake,” I pointed out when Holm didn’t answer. “Alice is upset they didn’t fly the body out of Miami, but it seems to me that bringing in all these Bamboo Dragon people is just as much work.”
“I still think we need to talk to them,” Holm insisted as he got into the passenger seat. “We’ll check with Watts first to see if he’s at his office and then go interview the Lius.”
I got in and set the air conditioner to full blast. “That’s not a bad idea.”
I dialed Watts’s department and got a receptionist. He said that the inspector was out for the day, so I set up to meet him the next morning. Once done, I put the car in gear.
“To the Lius’ house, we go,” I told Holm. “Call Birn to see if they have time to take Alice home. She ought to have some measure of safety there with those toughs looking out for the family.”
Holm nodded and made the call as I drove. Alice’s house was in a quiet suburb north of the city. I pulled into the driveway next to a catering van. A hearse sat in the lawn next to the garage, and a white banner was hung over the front door. In most cases, I wouldn’t make such a visit hours before a funeral or wake, but Holm was right. It was the closest we’d get to catching the lackadaisical couple off guard.
Mei met us at the door before we got a chance to ring the bell. She wore white capris and a black blouse. A pearl strand hung around her neck.
“What do you want?” she barked.
“I’m Special Agent Ethan Marston—”
“I remember. You’re the one who pulled John from the water.” She sniffed at Holm. “And you’re the one who pulled David’s corpse out.”
I cleared my throat. This was going to be boatloads of fun. Tiny paper boatloads. “We have questions for you and your husband. It shouldn’t take too much of your time.”
She gave a dainty little snort and gestured us inside. “I knew we’d have to talk to you, but I didn’t expect this intrusion today.”
“There has been a lot to do around this case, and some of the leads are timely,” I told her. She raised a finely shaped eyebrow.
“We understand it’s an inconvenience,” Holm added as we entered the house. “You have our condolences for your loss.”
“This way,” Mei instructed. She walked across the white tile with sharp, short steps. “My husband is in the other room, reading his newspaper. Please come in here, and I’ll go fetch him.”
Her words dripped with exasperation. If Mei was like this all the time, it was no wonder Alice wanted to be away from her house. The very idea of a spiteful parent staying on my houseboat was enough to annoy me.
“Thank you,” I offered, but she either didn’t hear or ignored me.
“Have seats. May I offer you tea or coffee?” She clasped her hands before her. “The caterers brought more food than we can handle. The roast pig won’t be ready for a few hours, but we have other options.”
“No, thank you.” Holm chose a comfortable-looking white overstuffed armchair, and I took the next one over. “We just ate,” he lied.
A few moments later, raised voices came from another part of the house in a mix of Cantonese and English. I never learned the language, but I knew enough to distinguish it from the other Chinese tongue of Mandarin.
“Sounds like Mr. and Mrs. Liu have a difference of opinion,” I muttered to Holm.
He cocked his head and concentrated. Holm always did better with foreign languages than I had. While he wasn’t conversational in much more than English, he had learned enough to get the gist in a few areas of the world during our time with the SEALs.
“She’s telling him to watch what he says.” Holm’s voice was just above a whisper. “He’s telling her not to be a bitch.”
“Well, then.” So the parents weren’t getting along at the moment. I wondered if that was an ongoing thing. That was a question I ought to ask Alice about. Speaking of… “What did Birn say about bringing Alice home?”
Holm looked at his phone. “He texted that they’d be here, um, half an hour from now.”
Mei reappeared, and an aging man dressed in black slacks, a black shirt, and a white tie trailed in her wake. A large man loomed behind Ken and leaned against the end of a hall.
“I’m Ken Liu,” the man with the white tie said. He held out his hand. “I saw you at the hotel the other morning but didn’t get to thank you for your attempt at rescuing my father.”
I stood and clasped his cool, dry hand. His grip was nothing special, but he held on long enough to catch my eye and then nod.
“I did the best I could,” I told him. “He showed a lot of bravery when he tried to save David Zhu.”
Ken released my hand. “I don’t know that I’d call it bravery.”
He shook Holm’s hand and then went over to the sofa that matched Alice’s white armchairs. He shoved the blue accent pillows aside and then sat. Mei settled in beside him.
“Why’s that?” I asked with genuine curiosity.
“It was the honorable thing to do,” Mei answered with a scoff. “If he hadn’t at least tried, it would have endangered his relationship with Shawn. They have been associates for decades. Some might say they were like brothers.”
“What about you?” I gestured to them both. “What do you think of that relationship?”
Ken shrugged. “Shawn has worked with us over the years. He’s helped contract some of our projects.” He glowered at Mei’s sharp glance. “Import and export is part of our business, and we have state-of-the-art warehouses.”
Holm perched on the edge of his chair. “Some might say that your trade includes questionable merchandise.”
Mei got to her feet. “Did you come into my daughter’s home just to insult us?” The big guy outside of the room stood up straighter as Holm also rose.
“No, ma’am.” I got up and spoke in a conversational tone. “We came here to get more information that could lead us to the person or persons responsible for the breach in the Seascape Tunnel.”
Mei backed down with a nod. “Let’s keep on topic, then. Our family’s business has nothing to do with that unfortunate accident.”
“It wasn’t an accident,” I informed them.
Mei gasped and covered her mouth. Ken’s mouth set into a firm line for a moment and then relaxed into a frown as his wife sat back beside him.
“How?” Ken whispered.
“There was an explosion,” Holm said as we both retook our seats.
Ken and Mei looked at one another, and each spouse looked as confounded as the other.
“We had just gone outside,” Mei said without looking away from her husband. “I get claustrophobic, so I needed some air.”
“That’s right.” Ken reached over and squeezed her hand. “You said something exploded, but then we saw the water go crazy.”
Mei pulled her hand away. “As I recall, you told me an explosion was impossible.”
Oh yeah, there was definitely tension between those two.
“We understand that given the type of businesses your father was involved in, he may have made some enemies in New York and Hong Kong.” I met Ken’s eyes. “I need you to think who might go to the lengths of arranging his death in Miami.”
Mei recovered her composure enough to scoff. “Who wouldn’t? I’d look to Shawn, if I were you. He and John would have everyone believe they were friends, but the truth is that those two were at each other’s throats constantly. Ev
ery new deal had to be bickered over in the worst terms.”
She took a breath as if to say more, but a glance at us seemed to quell her rush. That was quite the turnabout from the nicer terms she used a minute earlier. Ken, however, shook his head.
“That was how they’ve always worked,” he told us. “My wife is the only one who can’t see that it was how they did things. Why would Shawn invite all of us down if we weren’t friends?” Mei crossed her arms. “Besides, woman, you’re missing the obvious. Shawn’s Seascape thing was destroyed. Now his hotel is gone, too. Even if he hated my father, that would’ve been a ridiculous move.”
I chose not to clue them in on the fact that Ken was the one Zhu hated.
“If you didn’t shove all your duties onto other people, you might see what I see,” Mei spat.
“I fulfill my duties,” he retorted. “I work hard to provide you a privileged life, woman.”
Mei half rose and lifted an open hand. Holm rose from his seat, and I almost joined him, but she sat her ass back on the couch and let her hand drop.
“Do not contradict me again,” she hissed at Ken.
He glared ice daggers at his wife, but she acted as if nothing had happened.
“Mrs. Liu, do you hit your husband often?” I asked matter-of-factly as Holm remained standing with his arms crossed.
“What happens in my home is none of your affair.” Mei got to her feet again. “If I’d known this would turn into an interrogation, I would’ve demanded a warrant. You can leave now.”
“No.” Ken stood and faced her. “They want answers to my father’s death. I want answers. Gentlemen, please continue.”
Despite her husband’s words, Mei stormed out of the room, and seconds later, a door slammed down the hall. The Lius’ bodyguard uncomfortably shifted his weight. I wondered how often this scene played out before their employees.
“If you need help, Mr. Liu…”
He waved me off. “No, no. She has a temper, but she usually keeps it under control.” His smile was less than convincing. “She sees me as weak, and maybe I am, but I learned the art of delegation at a young age. One must keep his fingers in many pies in order to succeed.”
