“We were...”
“And what kung fu school did you go to? They never taught you how to block? You are terrible at kung fu. You should work in a bank. But you are already too old to change jobs. Do you have a girlfriend? Probably not with a haircut like that. Your head looks like an egg with hair.”
Wu Feng smiled to himself. He loved Sun Yi so much. He knew that it was the adrenaline, but right now he felt alive and connected to everything. He thought of Lu Lei, and wanted to hug her, glad that she was safe with the Nelsons.
Sun Yi’s body locked up. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught a black object that should not have been there. She knew it, even in that split-second. Her head turned. She screamed. The front seat passenger’s head whirled to the left to see. The sound hit them, even before the physical jolt. Their arms were suddenly in front of their faces.
The black Mercedes plowed straight into the driver-side. Shattered glass filled the air. The small car changed direction from forward to sideways. Spines cracked and splintered on impact.
The force of the speeding Mercedes lifted the car, carrying it through the air toward a wooden telephone pole. Limbs flailed limp. Bodies were flung toward the shredded side of the car.
The telephone pole loomed tall and strong as the two cars hurtled the two meter distance toward it. The broken bodies flew around the inside of the crumpling car like clothes in a tumble dryer.
By the time the telephone pole brought the two cars to a violent halt, the four inside the compact were already dead. The driver of the Mercedes had lost consciousness. His forehead lay on the horn.
First on the scene were people who had been on the street at the time of the accident. A few shopkeepers had gone back into their shops. A small crowd had formed within five minutes, but most onlookers chose to move on quickly after glimpsing the shocking scene inside the destroyed car. Mothers shielded their children’s eyes as they hurried past the accident. A few people had stayed by the Mercedes, choosing not to touch the driver despite the continuing din of the horn, still depressed by his head. He was not moving. Some people surrounding the compact car had stayed, despite the horror inside. Most had made their way off, covering their mouths, wide-eyed.
Blaring sirens grew closer. The driver’s eyes fluttered open.
A middle-aged passer-by was standing by in case the driver needed help. “You have been in an accident. The ambulance is on its way. You have been unconscious for only a few minutes.”
The driver lifted his head off the horn, and the noise stopped. He slumped back into the seat and groaned a little. He felt groggy. His neck hurt. His windshield was a spiderweb of cracks, but it had not broken.
“The other car?” asked the driver.
“Do not worry about that, sir. Just relax and wait for the... here they are.” The man stepped aside to let the two ambulance staff in.
Another ambulance had pulled up on the other side of the wreckage. One of the staff walked around the wreckage, looking in to assess each victim. He reached in, perhaps to take a pulse, but retrieved his hand, solemnly shaking his head.
The police arrived a minute later and moved the onlookers back. Two officers looked at the wrecked car, then approached the Mercedes. The medical staff deemed the driver to be in relatively good shape, just with some minor head and neck trauma from the airbag. They pulled the gurney from the ambulance.
“Chief? Is that you? Are you okay?” one police officer asked.
“Yes. Get me a cigarette.”
The officers both went for their inside jacket pockets, pulling out their packets of cigarettes, offering them to the Chief, whose face was bleeding.
“Menthol?” asked the Chief. The officer nodded apologetically, putting his back as the Chief took one of the other’s.
“The other car?” he asked them.
“All dead, sir. No seatbelts. No airbags. Four people. It’s a mess in there.”
The gurney’s wheels rattled over toward him and the police moved back to make room. The Chief grunted in pain as he got out of the car with the help of a steadying hand from one of the staff. He moved to the gurney and lay down on it. He felt relieved that Wu Feng was gone. He was sorry about Sun Yi and about the two officers in the car, but when the little girl, Lu Lei, came to mind, he could think only that her life would now be worse, and that he had done that to her. He hadn’t decided how he felt about that yet.
The police investigator worked the scene of the accident until midnight. He made a note that there were no skid marks from the Police Chief’s Mercedes, a heavy, diesel powered vehicle, which they estimated to have been doing over 80kph. The driver of the compact car had not braked or swerved, indicating that she had not seen the car coming from the side. Her blood would be tested for alcohol content.
They took a blood sample from the Chief, but refrained from using the breathalyzer. Any indication that he was drunk would need to be covered up. The only witness who admitted to having seen the accident gave his statement. Word had gone around the onlookers that the surviving driver was Beijing’s Police Chief. The statement asserting the guilt of the Chief would be tossed or filed away in a classified drawer. The four victims were taken to the morgue.
The Chief spent the night in hospital. He awoke, groggy from the sleeping pills the nurse had given him. His nostrils filled with the pungent smell of the disinfectant which drifted from the corridor into his private ward when the nurse came in to check on him.
“Good, you are awake. Do you have a headache?”
“Yes.” The Chief winced, squinting when the fluorescent lights flickered on.
“The Doctor will be in to see you in a minute. Can you sit up for me?”
The Chief’s mind was awash with images of violence. His head throbbed as his thoughts flitted to what he had neglected to do last night.
The doctor smiled as he entered the room.
“You are a lucky man.”
The Chief didn’t bother smiling back, but managed a shallow nod.
“Lucky you drive a nice big western car.”
The Chief grunted, not liking the Doctor’s chirpy demeanor.
“Still, that airbag must have hit you pretty hard. You will have bruising and probably some neck and back pain for a little while. Besides that, you are fine. You can go home. Take the pain killers the nurse will give you. Rest and do light exercise morning and night. Maybe tai chi would be the best. My wife and I do it every day. Do you know tai chi?”
The Chief’s eyes narrowed, answering silently for him.
“Take it easy, then. Perhaps a walk around the block. Nurse? Five hundred milligrams, three times a day. Give him a neck brace.”
Before getting in the taxi, the Chief tore off the neck brace and hurled it toward the hospital. Damn tai chis, they are everywhere.
Feeling the aches in his back and neck as the taxi lurched forward toward home, he thought of Lu Lei, wondering who would break the bad news to her.
The housekeeper greeted him at the door. She had been keeping Wei Bao busy learning new characters. The boy’s facial bruising had gone a shade darker, though his swelling was gone. The Chief smiled at his son. “We seem to have matching faces now.”
The Chief’s nose and cheeks had been burned by the airbag. His son stared at his face, noticing his red nose and crimson cheeks, not seeming to know how to react.
“Have you eaten yet?” the Chief asked, meaning the question for the housekeeper.
“He didn’t eat much. Maybe if you sit down with him, he will eat more.”
“I have some phone calls to make,” the Chief said as he walked to his office and closed the door behind him. He had to track down the third of his little crew, who was the only remaining witness to last night’s activities. He had been on the ground recovering from the sustained choke-hold when the Chief had taken off in his Mercedes, initially with the intention of just driving home.
8
Bad News
Casey’s eyes felt heavy as she wat
ched Lu Lei enjoy her breakfast. The Master had called them during the night with the shocking news about Lu Lei’s parents. Matt poured his third cup of coffee and flinched at the sound of the intercom. Casey went to buzz the Master into the building.
“Who’s that?” Lu Lei asked.
“It’s the Master. He’s coming to pay you a visit.”
Matt moved to the couch and waited in silence, thinking about what the death of a loved one could do. He had lost many friends along the way, but an only child losing both parents before her sixth birthday... It was impossible to fathom. They had all decided to let the Master explain things to her. He was like a grandfather to Lu Lei, and he was now the closest thing she had to real family.
The Master was taking a surprisingly long time to get from the lobby to the front door. Casey looked through the peephole to check, and was surprised to see him quietly standing at the door, head bowed, eyes closed. She walked away from the door, allowing him to take whatever time he needed. Casey was just thankful to have been spared the duty.
“I wish I had a dog. I love dogs,” Lu Lei blurted.
Casey thought, Might actually be a good idea.
The knock was gentle. Matt opened the door. The Master bowed once before embracing Matt. Casey felt the warmth of a tear rolling down her cheek and wiped it away quickly. The Master came in and greeted Lu Lei with a hug.
“Lu Lei, today you will not go to school. You shall spend the morning with me, and we shall see about the afternoon. I have things to tell you. Changes in your life have come, little one. Bring your tai chi uniform. We will practice today. Just the two of us.”
After the two of them left, Matt and Casey sat down together at the table.
“Do you think we can do this?” Matt asked. “The Master seems to be quite sure that it’s our destiny to take her on. He truly wants her with us.”
“It’s going to be fine. We’ll explain it to our friend back at Langley in terms of adding to our cover story. You’ve got to admit that it does make us more believable to the Chinese, right?” Casey offered.
Matt nodded, unconvinced. “Roet might not understand. He’s young for a case officer. I’m of the opinion that if he gives us any shit, we’ll just dig our heels in. What’s he going to do? Pull us out?”
Matt continued, “You’re convinced that we’ll do a better job of bringing her up than the Master? She’s going to sustain some serious damage from this. It will be a rough road.”
Casey shrugged, shaking her head. “I feel like we can do it. He’s right about one thing. He’s eighty. It’s hard to keep up with a six-year-old. He said that he doesn’t know how long he’s going to last. Even if he made it to ninety, she would only be fifteen then. I don’t know, Matt. He seems to think that it was meant to be, and I’m inclined to agree with him. Aren’t you?”
“It feels right. I think her parents would be fine with it. She’d be safer with us, given that the government is coming down on her people. We can take her to the States if things get dangerous for her—that is, if we can adopt her.”
“Good. We should try to start the paperwork as soon as possible. Let’s make sure Lu Lei doesn’t end up in the system.”
Casey got up, walked around the table to Matt and sat in his lap, wrapping her arms around his neck. “I love you,” she said and kissed him on the lips.
The Master wandered with Lu Lei toward the local park. They walked at the same pace. His age and her size made it so. She listened to the Master’s version of life and death as he searched for the kindest route to her understanding.
“During every person’s life there comes a moment when they leave to be reborn into the next life. Did you know that the caterpillar becomes a butterfly?”
Lu Lei replied, “No, but I would be happier to be a butterfly.”
“The transformation is neither a sad moment nor a happy moment for that person. It is merely a moment. But, those of us who they leave behind may experience great sadness. This is normal. We must feel what we call ‘grief.’ The important thing to understand is that these feelings will pass in time.”
Lu Lei asked, “Do you think the other caterpillars are sad when their friends turn into butterflies?”
“They might be very sad, but life continues for them,” the Master replied, “they just keep... putting one foot in front of the other..” the Master frowned at himself, “and that is what we must also do when our loved ones pass on to the next form they will take. We must go gently forward, putting one foot in front of the other, while being kind to ourselves during this time of sadness.”
They walked in silence for a while. Lu Lei was thinking about the caterpillars, imagining their tears as their friends flew off with their beautiful new wings.
“Let us sit on this bench. I have to tell you something, little one. You are about to experience many big changes in your life.”
Lu Lei looked up at the Master so innocently that he now felt unsure whether he could say it.
“What changes?” her little voice inquired.
“Last night your mother and father... became butterflies, Lu Lei. They were driving their car and another car hit them so hard that they did not live through the accident. They have moved on from this life. We will not see them again except in our dreams and in our imaginations. We will all be very sad for a long time about losing them. We who know and love you are going to watch over you from now on.” The Master looked down into Lu Lei’s eyes and could see that she didn’t understand. This was as he had expected.
“Was it my fault?” she asked.
“No, Lu Lei, it was not your fault. You must never think that, because it is not true. Now, listen to me because this is very important. Casey and Matt Nelson have asked me to ask you... if you would like to stay at their house for a while.”
“No. I want to go home.”
“You may change your mind at any time. Let us go and practice at the studio.”
The Master had known that he was ill-equipped, but had felt that it would be a kinder blow to Lu Lei’s psyche to receive this from him than from a stranger with a degree.
Casey wondered how the Master was breaking the news to Lu Lei. She picked up the phone and dialed. Matt’s idea to get a recommendation from their doctor for a child psychologist made sense. The death of both parents would scar any child, no matter what support network she might have. They were going to need every bit of help and advice they could get. There was also the “intelligence” agency to deal with, as Matt referred to them, using air quotes. They were expecting resistance from Marcus Roet. Working for the CIA brought out the patriot in Matt, but it also inspired the disgruntled employee in him, and having this new handler made both of them consider getting out of the business.
“So? What did our doctor friend have for us?” asked Matt.
“He gave me a name. A woman... which I think might be better, right?”
“I guess.”
“Meanwhile, he advised that it’s best to maintain Lu Lei’s normal schedule for now. Keep the tai chi classes and school going. We need to provide a safety net while she takes on the new information. We can all meet the lady shrink tomorrow after school.”
Matt paused for a moment and pointed out, “It’s likely that Lu Lei won’t want to come and live with us. At this age, her decisions will not be logical. She won’t understand that we are her best bet.”
Casey replied, “Let’s be patient with her until she comes around. Maybe she can stay with the Master for a bit and make her mind up in her own time.”
It was decided that Lu Lei would take only one day off from school and that she should return tomorrow. The Master practiced with her all morning and then took her to the Barbecue Couple’s apartment, and they all spent the rest of the day together. The decision was made to wait until Lu Lei met with the psychologist before anything more was said about the sudden absence of her parents. In spite of the Master’s morning chat, Lu Lei was acting as if she was oblivious. They did their best to go
with her attitude, and somehow maintained a positive mood, despite the shock that they were all feeling.
During lunch at a restaurant, Matt left the table and called the factory to tell them that neither of them would be in for a couple of days. The Master asked a student to take the reins of one of the tai chi classes for the next couple of days, promising to be there tonight at the beginning of class to update everyone.
He had not yet spoken to Matt and Casey about the details of the accident, so they were not aware of who was driving the other car. He was waiting for their initial wave of feelings to pass before the tragedy was further infected with the news that had filtered back to him last night from some of the witnesses with whom he was acquainted. The Chief causing such a car accident with his adversaries was so coincidental that the community consensus would likely deem it ‘an assassination.’
Questions about the other two fatalities had not been answered. Nobody knew the two other passengers in the back of the car. The Master felt that, in the big picture, none of this should be important, but somewhere along the line Lu Lei would start asking questions. The time to find answers was now. They owed it to her.
The Chief sat at a corner table of an empty bar. He was early for the meeting with the surviving officer who he had brought along last night to issue the beating. This one’s name was Cheng Li, the one he had tasked with following Wu Feng over the last few days. The Chief ran through the possibilities in his mind.
Cheng Li could testify that the assault was ordered by the Chief of Police. He had the potential to stir up an uncomfortable inquiry into the events leading up to the crash. The investigators must already know that he had not touched his brakes because there were no skid marks. He had been speeding. What they didn’t yet know was that he had spun his tires in the gravel at Wu Feng’s house when he’d driven off, which would place his car there.
Surviving Spies (Irving Waters, Spy Fiction Series) Page 9
