by Ian Hamilton
“Let’s not go there just yet. Let’s back up,” Ava said. “Tell me, do you recognize the girl in the video, and do you know when it was shot?”
“She’s an actress. I met her seven or eight years ago, when things were crumbling with Lau Lau. I was out of control and quite unstable. We went to her place after a day’s work, had a few drinks, did a few lines, and went to bed. That’s all I remember. I never saw her again.”
“Do you remember her name?”
“No, but I’m sure I can find out.”
“And you had no idea you were being filmed?”
“Of course not, and I wasn’t so unstable that I wouldn’t have noticed something like that. Besides, the quality is so crummy that it was obviously shot with some cheap hidden camera.”
“I think you’re right that the quality is poorer than you’d expect from any professional,” Ava said. “But what’s strange is that if it was a setup, if the plan was to film you in such a compromising act and then blackmail you, why would someone wait this long to do it?”
“It doesn’t make sense, does it.”
“I don’t think it does, unless you’re prepared to believe in incredible coincidences,” Ava said. “And Uncle used to say that believing in coincidences was a way of hiding from unpleasant truths.”
“God, I don’t want that video to become public,” Fai said in a rush. “And it’s not because I’m having sex with a woman. I know that, sooner rather than later, I’m going to have to come out. I’m getting emotionally and mentally prepared to do that and I believe I can live with the consequences. But when I do come out, I want it to be under my terms, and I want it to be as dignified, as classy, and as graceful as possible. I want to do it with pride, not with apologies. That video cries out for apologies, because the woman in it looks so fucking tawdry and desperate. I don’t want that to be my legacy.”
“Then we need to accept reality and deal with the hand we’ve been dealt,” said Ava.
“How do we do that?”
“We need to find out who sent the disk and who controls the original, and then we have to find them and make the video disappear.”
“Is that possible?”
“Anything is possible,” Ava said, with more confidence than she felt.
Fai nodded in a way that implied she wasn’t so convinced. “Do you think it was Mo who sent it?”
“Given the timing, he seems to be the most likely candidate, but I don’t think we should automatically leap to that conclusion,” Ava said. “For one thing, if it is him, why is he asking for money instead of using the video to get us to back down on exposing his son?”
“I don’t know.”
“Neither do I, which is why we need to find out who actually sent you this video and what their real intentions are.”
“Fuck,” Fai said as she extracted herself from Ava’s arms and rolled to the side of the bed.
“What don’t you like about that as a plan?” Ava asked, surprised by her reaction.
“Earlier today, when we were walking on the wall, and tonight at dinner, I was so happy. I thought that with Mo and all that shit behind us, we would now be able to focus on each other and enjoy all the small things that make a relationship work. Then this happens . . .”
“We’ll deal with it.”
“But I have all this baggage, and I hate it. I hate the life I had that contributed to it.”
“There’s no point in berating yourself. We all have baggage.”
“Except your baggage has no impact on us.”
“Not yet, but it could, and then you can help me deal with my shit,” Ava said. “Right now, let’s forget about the past and focus on what we need to do to make this go away.”
Fai shook her head. “If it is a blackmailer, and if money is all he wants, I might be able to come up with the five million.”
“Don’t worry about the money. I can cover it.”
“No, no, no!” Fai shouted. “If you want to help me locate this guy and work out some kind of plan for dealing with him, I’m all for that. But I won’t accept money from you, and I don’t want you to mention it again.”
“However you want to handle it is fine with me,” Ava said.
“Good. Now how do we go about this?”
“Before we start, you should know that things could get ugly.”
“It’s ugly enough already. I think I can cope with whatever happens,” Fai said. She turned so that they were face to face, their breaths intertwined. “How do we start?”
“He left a phone number for you to call. Let’s do it so he can confirm that you got the DVD and you understand what he wants,” Ava said. “You’ll tell him you’ll pay, of course, but you need to do some negotiating.”
“Negotiating?”
“Yes. At the outset I think you should tell him that five million is too much for you to raise, and that all you’re prepared to pay is two million.”
“What if he insists on five?”
“Insist right back and try to get him to compromise. If he won’t, then you tell him that you might be able to raise two million in a week, but for five million it could take a month,” Ava said. “This is all about buying the time we need to locate the son of a bitch, but doing it in a way that won’t piss him off or make him think that you’re playing games. You need to sound upset and a bit scared, but despite all that he needs to feel that you’re being co-operative.”
“I get it,” Fai said.
“Then let’s make the phone call.”
“Ava, could we trace the phone number?”
“I’m quite sure it’s a throwaway phone and that this is the last time he’ll use it. If he wants us to call him again at the same number, then he’s a fool and we will find a way to trace it.”
Fai licked her lips. “My mouth is dry. I need a drink. I’ll make the call from the kitchen.”
Ava followed Fai down the stairs, noticing that she seemed steadier now. Her initial reaction hadn’t been surprising, but she needed to be strong, to gain some control over her emotions, Ava thought. And she was going to have to show some resiliency, because this problem wasn’t going to have an easy or efficient resolution. By its very nature it was messy and had the potential to get messier, but Ava wasn’t about to say that. This wasn’t the time to risk undermining whatever confidence Fai had.
When they reached the kitchen, Fai went to the fridge and took out a bottle of sparkling water.
“We need the phone number from the video,” Ava said. “I’ll get it and be right back.”
She went into the living room and turned on the television and DVD player. The first part of the video featured a man wearing a balaclava, standing against a blank wall as he delivered his message in a muffled voice. Ava wrote down the phone number he recited and then returned to the kitchen.
Fai sat at the table with her phone and a glass of water in front of her. She looked more nervous than she had when she’d left the bedroom.
“I was thinking that you might tell the guy you have a girlfriend here with you,” Ava said. “You don’t have to tell him my name unless he asks, but it would give you a reason to put the call on speakerphone and give me an excuse to ask some questions.”
“He might not like that.”
“Then he’ll tell us, and you can speak to him by yourself. If I want you to ask him something, I’ll whisper.”
“Okay.”
“Good. Here’s the number.”
Fai lifted the glass to her mouth and drained half of it. Then she shrugged, put the phone on speaker mode, and called the number.
“Is this Pang Fai?” a man’s distorted voice asked.
“It is.”
“And the number you’re calling from, can I reach you on it anytime I choose?”
“It’s the only phone I have.”
&nbs
p; “The line doesn’t sound right.”
“I have it on speaker mode. I have a girlfriend with me. I need her for support, as I’m sure you can understand.”
“Who is she?”
Fai looked at Ava, and Ava thought of several options before deciding that there was no value in telling a lie. “My name is Ava Lee, and can I say that your line doesn’t sound right either. We can barely understand you.”
“I have my reasons for disguising my voice,” he said. “Where are the two of you right now?”
“Sitting in the kitchen of my home,” Fai said.
The man became quiet, and Ava wondered if he could possibly be trying to confirm that. Then he said, “This is unfortunate.”
“What is?” Ava asked.
“This entire event.”
“Do you mean our conversation?”
“No, the situation in which we find ourselves,” he said. “I want you to believe me when I say that I don’t want to bring any harm to Pang Fai personally or to her career. I have nothing but admiration for her and her talents, but my personal circumstances force me to forget that.”
“And by personal circumstances, you mean you need money?”
“I do.”
“I can’t pay you five million,” Fai said quickly.
“You must have that much.”
“I don’t. I might be able to borrow it in bits and pieces from friends, but that would take time. All I can come up with on my own is about two million, and it’s not readily at hand. I would have to sell some things.”
“I want the five million. I can’t settle for less.”
“I can’t guarantee I can raise it.”
“You have to try.”
“It will take time.”
“How much time?”
“A few weeks.”
“No,” he said.
“I’m sorry,” Fai said. “If you want five million, I can’t do any better than that.”
“Then we have a problem.”
“You mean you have a problem,” Ava said. “You need money and Pang Fai is prepared to give what she can, but you can’t wait. Are things really that desperate?”
“My situation is no concern of yours. You should be worried about what this could mean for Pang Fai.”
“Believe me, we are,” Ava said. “But look at things from our side. Even if we pay you what you want, what guarantee do we have that the video won’t be released or that you won’t come back for more money?”
“You have my word.”
“We don’t even know who you are.”
“Fai knows me,” he said. “Why do you think I’m disguising my voice?”
“What!” Fai said.
“You worked with me.”
“I’ve worked with a lot of people.”
“And I’m one of them, but that’s all I’m prepared to say.”
“Since you want to characterize yourself as an acquaintance, even a colleague, can you find some room to compromise?” Ava said.
He paused and then said, “What do you have in mind?”
“Three million in two weeks.”
“Not enough money and too much time.”
“Three million in one week.”
“That’s better, but how about four million in five days?”
“It would be tough,” Fai said.
“But not impossible?”
Fai looked at Ava, who nodded.
“We’ll try,” Fai said.
“You’ll have to do better than try if you want this to end well,” he said.
“I’ll do everything I can.”
“I don’t want to hurt you and I know how devastating it would be if this video fell into the wrong hands. So please, for all our sakes, come through with the money,” he said, then paused. “I’ll be phoning you five days from now. Be prepared for my call.” The line went dead.
Fai’s head snapped towards Ava. “Well, I didn’t expect that,” she said.
“It was strange,” Ava admitted.
“And a little encouraging.”
“Do you mean the fact that he claims he doesn’t want to hurt you?”
“Yes. And that he knows me and worked with me,” Fai said. “So this isn’t just some criminal with no sense of morality.”
“Or else he’s a very clever criminal who knows how to spin a tale.”
“You weren’t even a little encouraged?”
“Fai, we don’t know who this person is and we don’t know how he got his hands on the video. We also don’t know how many copies he might have made and who has them, and we have no idea what he’s actually going to do if we pay him the money in full and on time.”
Fai’s shoulders slumped and her head fell towards her chest. “I guess I’m looking for silver linings.”
“I don’t mean to sound negative. Something good did come from that call.”
“What?”
“We now have five days to find him.”
( 25 )
Ava left Fai in the kitchen while she went up upstairs to get her Moleskine notebook. She didn’t actually need it, but it gave her time to gather her thoughts. She had been more encouraged by the phone call than she let on, but her old work habits were still with her. During her years with Uncle, one of their most difficult jobs was managing the expectations of clients who assumed that because Uncle and Ava had taken on their problem, it was on its way to being solved. Uncle promised them nothing but their best efforts and kept expectations as close to zero as he could. It was a policy that had nothing but upsides. If they failed on a job, the clients weren’t surprised and normally attached no blame. If they were successful, it was as if they’d wrought some miracle. It was a lesson Ava had learned so well that when she was in the field working on a job, she even practised it when she was communicating with Uncle. She knew it occasionally frustrated him, but it also made it possible for him to be honestly obtuse with the clients. Now she was operating in the same manner with Fai. The truth was, she couldn’t bring herself to do it any other way.
Ava believed Fai had probably been correct in her assessment of the man they’d called. He’d been polite enough — the furthest thing from a foul-mouthed thug. But did that mean he’d told them the truth about having worked with Fai? The revelation hadn’t been necessary, and she couldn’t help but wonder if it was a deliberate plant, intended to mislead. But even if it wasn’t, and even if his conversation with them had been reasonable — subject matter aside — did that make him potentially more or less dangerous?
“I’ve made tea,” Fai said as Ava returned to the kitchen.
“I’ll have it later,” Ava said. “I want to talk to Mr. Fan. Which house is his?”
“Why do you want to talk to him?”
“I have some questions about the package and the man who delivered it.”
Fai nodded. “He lives two doors to the left. Do you want me to come with you?”
“No, what I want you to do is find the name of the woman in the video, and once you’ve done that, find out how we can contact her. You may have to watch the DVD again to see if it jogs your memory.”
“I don’t want to watch that video again. And besides, I have a better idea,” Fai said. “I have a rough notion of which year that happened. I have records of every film I’ve made, including cast lists, some of them with photos. I’ll go over the ones from that time period. I’m sure if I see her name or get lucky and find a photo, I’ll be able to make the link.”
“We will still need to know where she is and how to get in touch with her.”
“If she’s still active in the business, I should be able to locate her online. If she isn’t, I may have to call around.”
“Be careful who you call and what you say. You’ll need a reason for looking for her that sounds plausible.
”
“I’ll come up with something.”
“Anyway, I may be back here by the time you need to do that.”
“Do you really think Fan can help any more than he has?”
“He probably saw more of the person who made the delivery than he realizes,” Ava said. “Now I’d better get going before it’s too late in the evening to be making house calls.”
Fai walked with her to the door, opened it, and said, “His light is still on. It’s the green door.”
The rain had stopped but the air was damp and cold. Ava was beginning to wonder if Beijing ever had weather that encouraged people to go outdoors. She hurried to Fan’s door and used the lion-shaped brass knocker that was fixed at eye level. She counted to ten and then rapped it hard twice more. The door opened a crack and she saw part of Fan’s face. The door swung open.
“Ms. Lee. I didn’t expect to see you again tonight.”
“I’m sorry to bother you, but I have some questions about the package you delivered to Fai.”
Fan took a step back into the house. “Come inside. It’s cold out there.”
“Thanks,” she said as she entered.
The house was constructed identically to Fai’s, and probably to every other house surrounding the courtyard, but it was so crammed with stuffed furniture and bookcases that it seemed smaller. Everywhere she looked there were books — in and on top of the bookcases, stacked on several coffee tables, and strewn across a sofa.
“Would you like some tea, or something stronger? I have beer.”
“No, thanks. I don’t think I’ll be here that long.”
“But at least you’ll sit,” he said, removing books from the sofa to create space for her.
She sat down, and he sat in an easy chair to her right. An ashtray on one of the chair’s arms was full to overflowing with cigarette butts. That surprised her, since she couldn’t remember seeing him smoking and had never detected any cigarette odour on his breath or clothes.
“Now, what can I do for you?” he asked.
“I’m curious about that package — actually, about who delivered it.”
