by Mark Green
Fender held up Rupert’s mobile phone, displaying a picture of Maddie for Rod to examine. ‘She’s in imminent danger. Do you understand the context of the word imminent?’
‘You want to find her, pronto.’
‘Correct. So, take a look and—’
‘She jumped onto the minibus after we left the hotel, in Bangkok. She was being chased by a taxi, with that guy in the back.’ Rod pointed a shaking finger at Rupert.
‘Excellent. How long was she on the bus?’
‘All the way here.’
‘To Battambang?’
Rod nodded.
‘Do you happen to know where she is now, or who she’s with?’
He shook his head. ‘I think she was catching another bus this morning. I should have been on it too. But—’
‘You got side-tracked.’
‘Er, yeah.’
‘Okay, Rod. You can put some clothes on while I take a look at your mobile phone.’
‘I don’t have one.’
Fender raised his eyebrows, retrieved his own smartphone from a pocket and tabbed through several commands. He glanced up at the erratic ringtone emanating from the far side of the room. At Fender’s instruction, Rupert stepped around the bed and delved through a pile of clothes, plucking a smartphone out from under a pair of grubby underpants. Rupert dangled the phone between a thumb and finger and passed it to Fender. Rod’s eyes darted nervously between them. He sank further back against the headboard, pasty faced.
‘Passcode?’
‘Five, one, three, seven,’ he croaked. ‘How’d you get my new number?’
Fender scanned through the recent call logs, text messages and contacts list on Rod’s phone. He completed his inspection and tossed the phone onto the bed. Rod reached out, clutching it. ‘Get dressed, we’re nearly done – it’s unnerving talking to a naked teenager.’
Rod crept off the bed, crouched down and scrabbled through the pile of clothes, pulling on a pair of board shorts and a grungy tee-shirt.
‘A few more minutes of your time, Rodney, then we’ll leave you to indulge in the rest of your day.’ Fender pointed his phone at Rod, selected the camera function and began video recording. ‘Mister Sharp, please purge your brain cell. I’d like some information relating to the other travellers on that minibus. Firstly, a description of each of them. Then some answers to my questions, such as: did Madeline like or dislike any of the others in particular? Who did she hang out with over the last few days? That sort of harmless stuff.’
A little while later, Fender pulled the hotel bedroom door shut and strolled along the flaky-paint corridor. Rupert trotted along dutifully by his side.
‘He looked petrified.’
‘A happy-herb pizza, a beer or three, he’ll get over it.’
‘What next?’
‘It’s time for a coffee. We’ll collate what we have, then make a decision.’
‘About heading north or south?’
‘That, and other things,’ Fender replied, shooting Rupert an ominous look.
• • •
The bus creaked and groaned on its handbrake, the bodywork vibrating as the engine shuddered and died. Maddie opened her eyes, blinking slowly. She turned her head to glance out of the window at the assortment of other buses parked up, from which multinational travellers spilled out, milling around outside.
‘You’ve been asleep for the last three hours,’ said Charlie, standing to reclaim his bag.
‘Really …? Must be your scintillating conversation.’ Maddie yawned as she stretched. She looked up at Charlie, caught his puzzled expression. ‘What?’
‘Nothing. We’re here, in Siam Reap. The holy temples await, your majesty.’
Maddie watched him waltz away down the coach. She pushed up in her seat and shuffled into the aisle.
‘How are you doing?’ asked Rose, perched on the seat in front.
‘Good, thanks. Caught up on some rest.’
‘Ah-hah. I thought you’d want to stay awake, participate in some scintillating conversation.’
Maddie smiled, leaned towards her. ‘What do you think sent me off into such a deep sleep?’ She flexed her eyebrows and headed off down the bus towards the door, leaving Rose smiling behind her.
• • •
‘It’s the usual eclectic, random mix,’ mused Fender. ‘Twelve travellers on the bus, now confirmed, plus Maddie. Exclude her and our young friend Rodney leaves eleven. Of these, we have six who we know are still in play because we’re tracking their phones. Six phones, minus one, currently static here in Battambang. That leaves five. Two are currently still heading south towards the capital, Phnom Penh, with three near the Angkor temple complex at Siam Reap. If your fiancée’s intention is to head home, the capital is favourite. If, however, she’s getting into the budget travel scene, she’s most likely been drawn to the temples at Angkor.’
Fender leaned back in his chair, scanning the neatly laid out files on the table in front of them. ‘So let’s look at who we know is heading in each direction. First off, Kao Yeung. Female, Chinese. Next, Melanie Bannister, American. It’s possible they are travelling together, but unlikely given that they arrived in Southeast Asia from different countries of origin. Also, Melanie has a pre-paid bus transfer to Kampot. On the bus north, three mobile signals: Barnaby, Victoria, and Charles.’
‘Is it time to toss a coin?’
‘Not necessarily. Who’s Maddie most likely to travel with?’ Fender studied the paper files spread out across the table. ‘Two girls of different nationalities heading south to the capital, both fairly close to Maddie’s age. Or, a mixture of genders and greater age ranges in the other group, heading north. My instinct would be the northern bus. If she’s hooked up with a guy, he’s most likely on that route—’
‘Maddie’s taking a break as a negotiation tactic, she’s not going after other guys!’
‘Perhaps, but you’re her fiancé – your pride wouldn’t allow you to think dispassionately. You need to distance yourself from emotional attachment for a moment and apply calculated logic.’
‘Still the same reasoning from me. I know Maddie.’
Fender studied Rupert. ‘Explain.’
‘Maddie is … cautious. Vis-à-vis other men.’
Fender’s eyes narrowed. He watched Rupert intently. ‘The reason being?’
Rupert broke eye contact. He looked away across the adjacent tables in the small café and slowly shook his head. Fender eased back from the table, dropped his hands into his lap, a few inches from his belt buckle.
‘Tell me …’
Twenty-Three
‘Hey, Gabby. How many hours to go now?’
‘Thirteen hours, fifty-two minutes.’
‘Exciting!’
‘I know! It’s so close now that I can almost taste his first kiss … sooo exhilarating. I’m getting a tuk-tuk to meet him there early tomorrow morning. Do you want to catch a ride into the temple complex with me?’
‘Are you sure? It’s your special day …’
‘Actually, I’m getting a tiny bit nervous. If he doesn’t show, it would be nice to have a friendly face close by. Would you be willing to hang around for half an hour, just in case?’
‘Of course, I’d be honoured! It’s so romantic.’
‘Or foolhardy. At my age you’d think I’d know better than to pin my hopes on an old flame. But I have to find out.’
‘Taking a chance is living. Boredom suffocates the soul,’ agreed Maddie, her features frozen in a wistful expression.
‘Interesting …who’d you get that philosophy from?’
Maddie flicked her eyes at Gabby, held her gaze. ‘You,’ she said quietly. ‘Thanks for the offer of a ride tomorrow morning, I’ll be there.’
• • •
Maddie opened the bedroom door and peered out into the corridor. Charlie, Victoria and Barney stood waiting, all wearing a change of clothes.
‘We’re heading into town for some food, would you like to
come?’ asked Victoria.
‘Oh, um … thanks for thinking of me, but I think I’m going to grab something local, get an early night—’
‘After the amount you slept on the coach?’ Charlie rolled his bottom lip, sullenly.
‘No worries, we’ll see you in the morning,’ said Victoria, already turning to leave.
‘This princess, not needing beautiful sleep. Come, party with us peasants.’ Barney offered his open hands theatrically, swooping down into a low bow.
‘Thanks guys, but my alarm’s set for four-thirty, to catch the sunrise—’
‘Four-thirty. Are you nuts?’ Victoria pushed her hand under Charlie’s arm, tugging him away. ‘We’ll catch you there, later tomorrow.’
Barney watched Victoria lead Charlie away. He pulled a puffer fish face at Charlie’s forlorn glance over his shoulder, then turned to face Maddie, his head cocked to one side, looking her up and down. ‘If mind is changed, lovely boy Charlie is bedded in twelve, okay?’ Barney held both his arms out, offering a comical double thumbs-up, then he skipped off down the corridor, sporadically spinning around, screeching and slapping the walls like a court jester on an amphetamine and LSD cocktail.
Maddie watched him pinball down the hallway, shaking her head, breaking into an amused frown. She stepped back and closed the door, making sure to lock it.
• • •
Maddie zipped up her fleece, wrapped her arms around her chest and peered through the darkness beyond the hotel’s dimly lit façade.
This is certainly different from a normal Wednesday morning …
She blinked back to reality at the whirling rattle and popping sound of an approaching tuk-tuk, its single motorbike headlight dimming as it slowed to a stop beside her.
‘Morning!’ whispered Gabby, grinning at her from the back seat.
Maddie stepped into the carriage, straight into a welcome hug. ‘This is Dal,’ said Gabby, giving the driver a thumbs-up sign as he turned to look over his shoulder. Dal nodded, smiling at Maddie, then revved the engine and steered the tuk-tuk out into the street. ‘It’s nearly time!’ Gabby squealed over the noisy engine, passing headlights dancing in her glistening eyes.
‘Are you nervous?’
‘Hell, yes!’ Gabby lay a hand over her heart. ‘It’s going crazy, beating a zillion miles an hour. I feel just like a teenager – tingly stomach cramps, sweaty palms.’
‘It’s a good sign,’ said Maddie, mirroring Gabby’s infectious grin.
The tuk-tuk pulled out of a side street, joining the main three-lane road, jostling for position with other motorcycles, coaches and taxis. The increase in speed forced a cooling breeze through the carriage.
‘I can’t wait to see him, find out what’s been going on in his life …’
Maddie nodded, drinking in the muggy, early morning air. She glanced left and right, squinting through the passing headlights which illuminated everyday life on the street. People were sleeping rough on the pavement, the lucky ones laid out in hammocks strung up between lamp posts and garden fences. An old lady scrabbled around in the gutter, searching with her fingertips, her milky eyes staring off to one side. The tuk-tuk whizzed on past, Maddie’s hair flailing, buffeting her face in the airstream whenever she turned to catch a longer look at life in downtown Siem Reap. She watched street food trailers being wheeled across the pavement – fragile-looking glass cabinets on trolleys beside a single gas burner stove. Several were already lit, large pans sizzling over bluey-yellow flames. On the road, the traffic steadily increased intensity. More vehicles, more urgency, more chaos.
‘We must be close to the entrance now,’ said Gabby, an excited twang to her voice.
Maddie nodded, her eyes sweeping across each side of the road. They passed a billboard advertising a free cello concert, a fundraiser for the children’s hospital. In a side street, more hammocks had been strung out between power line poles, streetlight columns and fences, precariously attached to anything static. Children slept on car bonnets, their heads laid back against the windscreen. A mother sat on an upturned wooden fruit box beside a camping gas stove, peeling vegetables which she dropped into the pot while her kids slept on a blanket next to her. Countless people in dire poverty, yet apparently coping with remarkable resourcefulness. Maddie watched it all, mesmerised.
The tuk-tuk slowed, easing to a crawl behind a tourist bus that belched thick acrid smoke. Seeing a gap, Dal pressed the horn, pulled out and accelerated, the tuk-tuk’s small engine squealing. Cutting back in from the outside lane as it filtered off right, they crawled along again, tight on the bumper of a taxi in front. Another few hundred feet and the taxi banked left, allowing the tuk-tuk to push on, until a few minutes later it peeled off the main road, slowing under the guidance of a female security guard waving them up to the entrance gate to the Angkor temple complex.
Dal turned and grinned at Gabby. ‘You pay, there. I wait, okay?’ Dal gestured towards the rugby scrum of coaches, taxis, tuk-tuks and mopeds parked up opposite the payment booths.
‘Nearly time – so excited now!’ Gabby hurried over to the nearest ticket kiosk to join the queue. Maddie followed her, pausing to study the sign displaying entrance costs.
‘What’s your plan? Are you just here for today, or longer?’ asked Maddie, scampering up to Gabby’s side.
‘Good point, I’d not even thought of that … maybe just the day. See what happens, in,’ Gabby checked her watch, ‘about twenty-three minutes!’
Maddie nodded and turned back to look at the ticket information, the remains of a smile creasing her lips. ‘I heard the others chatting about the temples and I’ve been reading up about them. The general consensus was to spread a visit over three days. I’ll work out what I do next after that.’
‘Sounds like a plan.’
Maddie followed Gabby up to the ticket counter and counted out eighty US dollars.
‘Come on, the sun will be up soon!’ Maddie accepted Gabby’s outstretched hand and ran with her towards the waiting tuk-tuks, heading towards Dal. They climbed aboard, Gabby squeezed Maddie’s hand. ‘Right here, right now!’
Dal manoeuvred away from the waiting area and nipped in behind a long line of tuk-tuks, all chugging slowly along the long tree-lined road, the darkness gradually diluting as night gave way to dusk. Maddie leaned outside the carriage, peering along the motorcade. ‘It goes on forever.’
Gabby checked her watch. ‘Fifteen minutes – sooo close!’ She glanced to her right, the first hint of hazy dark-blue diluting the black, glimmering over the horizon. ‘Nearly sunrise, hope we make it …’
Maddie ducked her head out again. ‘The queue is picking up speed, we’ll be okay.’ She turned to smile reassuringly at Gabby, matching her grin.
• • •
Maddie sank back against a tree trunk and gazed out over the lake. It formed part of a vast moat around the imposing stone towers and rugged perimeter wall guarding the entrance to Angkor Wat. She checked her watch: 5:36am. Nearly time.
Twenty yards away, not far from the elevated stone walkway that led across the water to the temple entrance, sat Gabby. She perched on the low wall bordering the water, waiting. Maddie watched her stretch out her hands, fingers spreading over the rounded edge of the wall, arms straight, pushing her back upright. Barely a wisp of breeze teased across the water surface, only the faintest oil painting orange-peel texture distorting the reflection of the nine stone steps meeting the lake’s far shore. Above the steps, the perimeter stonework rose, robust and proud, protecting the temples inner grounds. To the right of the third pine cone-shaped tower peeked a warm yellow glow, spreading a bright radiance that shimmered across the water, a pink tinge transcending the yellow, gaining in intensity, blooming into a deeper, darker red.
Maddie turned to her left at the sound of a squeaky wheel. The troublesome bearing calmed its protest as sandaled feet stopped pedalling, freewheeling the bike to a standstill. The wiry man stepped over the low crossbar and leaned the bike onto its st
and. He knelt down and locked the back wheel, then stood up and turned towards the east. He stood there for a moment, perhaps preparing himself. Then he turned and scanned the handful of people sat on the lake’s perimeter wall. There. His footsteps scuffed on the dusty stone promenade.
Maddie grinned at the breaking dawn, adjusting her gaze to Gabby, who turned away from the magnetic spell cast by the palate of pastel colours oozing across the sky, bathing the greyscale stone perimeter in bright, warm, sunlit tones. She watched Gabby drop her gaze across the water, the dark tiers of the tower’s reflections ebbing now in tandem with the rising sun, pulling her focus back to the approaching footsteps. Gabby smiled and turned, her eyes meeting his as he stopped, a few yards away. She gazed into the depths of his dark brown eyes, his mop of hair long and greying, pulled back in a loose ponytail. Rutted laughter lines scored his face, deepening as his smile grew, matching hers.
He eased himself down onto the step beside Gabby, holding his unblinking gaze. His hand reached out for hers, their fingers entwining. She nodded lightly, then cast her gaze back out over the water, watching the kaleidoscope of rich sunrise colours stretch farther out over the lake, illuminating the walled temple, red ripples texturing the patchy cloud overhead.
Maddie grinned, wallowing in a warm fuzzy sensation as she observed their joint profiles. Gabby tilted her head, resting it against his shoulder. Maddie allowed her smile to dissipate slowly. She rolled her head away, watching the light spreading long shadows, a warm breeze rippling the lake’s surface, shimmering the towers into a distorted reflection as the sun broke away above the treeline, majestically spreading its tentacles of light, warmth and optimism.
• • •
That hypnotic vibration of the motorbike’s powerful engine, the four-stroke throb resonating up through the seat, tingling into her stomach, agitating with prickly stabs and a plummeting-roller-coaster sensation. He rocks the bike forwards, jolting off its stand. Her arms, slipping around his waist, snuggling up to his muscular shoulders as he revs the throttle, smoothing the engine, the exhaust roar pulsating through her hands and feet. He releases the clutch, the bike surging forwards, her heart soaring …
