Black Karma (7 page)

“Have you talked to Professor Chen?” she asked.

“We haven't been able to contact him. I don't suppose you know where we can find him?”

“We'd hoped to find him here,” Lee answered. “Have you checked his home address?”

“Officers have done a safety check at his residence, but there was no response. We're pursuing a warrant, but that takes time.” Giving them a meaningful look, he handed them back their identification and Lee's gun as he spoke. “Here's my contact information, in case you remember anything,” he said as he handed Bai a business card. Before she could grasp the card, the sergeant flipped it. An address had been scrawled across the back. “Inspector Kelly at SFPD asked that I assist you in any way possible. I'm sure you'll keep me informed if you find anything.”

She nodded as she tucked the card into the pocket of her jacket along with her driver's license. “Have you been able to identify the victims?”

“They were carrying identification. We have names and addresses, but we don't know why they were in Chen's office or why they were killed. When the medical examiner works up a time of death, we'll have a better idea of when they died. We're still looking at video from the cameras.”

She patted her pocket holding the sergeant's card. “Thanks for the card.”

Sergeant Meadows frowned before speaking. “When a brother asks for a solid, you do what you can. Kelly vouched for you. That address is the best I can do.”

Lee exchanged a questioning look with Bai. She had her own misgivings. They were obviously being maneuvered into investigating Chen's whereabouts. The police had literally invited them to break into a private residence. Her gut instinct told her to walk away, but she couldn't do that. Giving up wasn't in her nature.

Chapter 8

Daniel Chen lived in a cottage in the Berkeley Hills. The neighborhood behind the campus featured scenic walking trails and picturesque parks. Narrow streets wound through wooded hillsides. Houses blended into the natural landscape by using organic materials like shingles and stone. Many of the homes were architecturally stunning, if you could find them.

Lee pulled off the road at a widening of the street allocated for parking. The Coupe de Ville barely squeezed into the shallow set-aside. Bai followed him in exiting the car via the driver's door.

“Are you sure this is it?” she asked.

He looked around at the surrounding woods. “According to my GPS, this is the address Sergeant Meadows provided.”

Trees and bushes screened the hillside to obscure whatever lay on the other side of the foliage. A path, paved with stones, wound through shrubbery to disappear into lush greenery.

Bai nodded at the trail, the only visible access through the verdant growth. “I think it's the yellow brick road for us, Dorothy.”

Lee didn't look happy. “I don't like anything about this. I don't like the fact we're here at the behest of the police. I don't like that we're on our own in an isolated neighborhood. And, I don't like all these trees. They make me nervous.”

“Wasn't there a poem about how wonderful trees are?”

“You're probably referring to the poem by Joyce Kilmer.
I think that I shall never see A poem lovely as a tree, A tree whose hungry mouth is prest Against the sweet earth's flowing breast
, et cetera, et cetera,” Lee recited. “With all due respect, it's pretty obvious Joyce Kilmer wasn't worried about snipers. Do you realize the word ‘ambush' contains the word ‘bush'? Coincidence? I don't think so.”

She nodded sympathetically. “If the trees scare you, you can always wait for me in the car. Of course, you might miss out on the chance to finally meet the mysterious Daniel Chen. I have to admit, I find myself more than a little curious.”

He scowled. “I said I was nervous, not scared.”

He turned to lead the way. As he stepped onto the path, he reached into his jacket and pulled out his gun, which he kept at his side pointed at the ground. Bai's eyes scanned the dense foliage as they walked in a generally upward direction. About thirty paces up the hillside, the path opened into a large clearing surrounded by evergreen trees. In the center of the clearing sat a very large stone cottage. An asphalt drive meandered down the hill from the other side of the residence.

“The road must loop around,” Lee observed. “I think we've managed to come in the back way.”

“That's the problem with GPS. It can't tell the back door from the front.”

The house looked like a storybook dwelling made of gray stone and rough-hewn timber with a red slate roof. A second story boasted gabled, leaded windows looking out over a green expanse of lawn. A cloudless day allowed the sun to bathe the clearing in light. Serene and secluded, the house was set apart from the world, a secret hideaway in the forest.

“Being a professor at Cal must pay well,” she said distractedly. “Let's take a look around before deciding whether or not to announce ourselves.”

They walked to the side of the house where the black asphalt driveway ended. A late-model Lexus sedan sat in the drive next to the entrance of the home.

Bai looked from the car to the house. “The reasonable thing to do is knock on the front door and see if anyone's home.”

“I agree,” he replied.

Lee slipped his gun into the holster inside his jacket as they walked yet another stone path leading to the front entrance. They stepped up onto a porch covered in gray slate, where he pressed his finger against a doorbell set into the wood trim of an arched doorway. They waited, but no one answered. He pushed the bell again. When no one responded, he put his hand on the wrought iron handle of the door and pushed. A bolt clicked and the door opened.

He turned to her. “Haven't we been here before?”

“This does have a certain sense of déjà vu all over again.”

He retrieved his gun from its holster, this time bringing the pistol up to his waist. He let the barrel of the gun lead the way as he stepped through the doorway. She slipped her knife out of the sheath in her sleeve and palmed the blade at her side as she followed.

They stepped into an entry hall of sculpted hardwood walls and granite flooring. To the right, a large formal living room touted overstuffed furniture facing a fireplace massive enough to stand up in. Lamps, appearing to be real Tiffany, sat on end tables. The place smelled of money.

Lee gestured with his head toward the back of the house to let her know the direction he intended to go. She jerked her head up to indicate she'd take the top story. Separating wordlessly, they moved quickly and silently to search the home.

She stepped on the edges of the treads to avoid squeaking boards as she carefully worked her way up the stairs on the balls of her feet. When she reached the top of the stairwell, she opened the first closed door to discover a guest room with a bare closet and empty shelves.

Two more empty bedrooms and an unoccupied bath led her to the one remaining door at the end of the hall. She entered a large master suite that looked to be three or four times the size of the other chambers. A big four-poster bed with heavy red curtains anchored the center of the room. Curiosity drew her in as she pulled a curtain aside to reveal rumpled quilts and red satin sheets.

A click . . . the safety catch releasing on an automatic weapon froze Bai where she stood. A woman's voice from behind queried, “Can you think of a good reason why I shouldn't shoot you?”

Bai thought for a moment. “I can think of a lot of reasons you shouldn't shoot me. Where would you like me to start?”

“You can start by turning around,” the voice ordered.

She turned to face a very pretty woman, probably in her early- to mid-twenties, Chinese, and naked. Being naked didn't seem to bother her.

“Who are you?” the woman demanded.

“Bai Jiang. I'm looking for Daniel Chen. The door was open.”

The hammer ratcheted back on the small automatic pistol in her hand. “None of those is a good reason.”

Bai hastily replied. “If you want a really good reason, how about a man standing behind you with a gun?”

The woman grinned. “Nice try.”

The sound of Lee's cocking his pistol managed to get her attention. Bai smiled and shrugged. The naked woman frowned as the barrel of her gun dipped before coming up again indecisively.

She gestured with the gun in Bai's direction. “He shoots me. I shoot you.”

“Works for me,” Lee stated flatly.

Bai frowned. “I have a better idea. How about nobody shoots anybody? This is all just a big misunderstanding. We're here to make sure Daniel Chen is all right. Two men were found dead in his office this morning. People are concerned for his well-being.”

The woman looked torn. She stepped away from Bai but kept the gun trained on her. “How do I know I can trust you? If I lower the gun, you could kill me, or worse.”

The comment struck Bai as odd. “What could be worse than being killed?”

The woman hesitated. She chewed on her lower lip. “You might shame me.”

It took Bai a moment to piece the words together. She looked at Lee. He chuckled.

“That would be a first,” Bai blurted. She looked at the confused woman and shrugged. “It seems neither one of us has any desire to shame you. Sorry.”

The woman turned to look at Lee with an appraising stare. He shrugged an apology. Her gun barrel dropped to point at the floor. His gun dropped in response.

“I don't believe we've been properly introduced,” he said with a smile, “though I feel like we're on familiar terms. We can wait, if you'd like to put something on.”

Dropping all pretense of fear, she shrugged and turned to casually walk toward the back of the room, where she disappeared into what Bai assumed to be the master bath or perhaps a dressing room. When she returned, she wore a white terry robe and no longer carried the gun. She took a seat on the bed facing them.

Lee put his pistol back into its holster. Bai kept her knife concealed in the palm of her hand.

“We're sorry for intruding like this,” Bai said. “Like I said, my name is Bai, and this is my associate, Lee. We're looking for Daniel Chen.”

“Are you the police?” The young woman pulled a cigarette from the pocket of her robe and held out a lighter to Lee as she put the smoke to her lips. He obliged and accepted the lighter. She cupped her hands suggestively around his when he lit her cigarette.

“No. I'm a
souxun,”
Bai replied.

The woman seemed to consider the explanation a moment before discarding it. “If you're not the police, then you're trespassing. Leave before I have you arrested.” She turned to Lee. “You can stay.”

“I thought this was Daniel Chen's house,” he replied.

“This is my house. Daniel sometimes stays here.”

“Aren't you afraid of being shamed?” Bai asked.

The woman looked annoyed.

“Call the police,” Bai insisted. “I'd like to hear what they have to say concerning the ownership of this house. Who knows? Maybe we'll all make the five o'clock news.”

The woman's head turned to meet Bai's gaze with a frosty glare. Bai smiled. A proper upbringing didn't bar illicit affairs, but it did frown upon scandal.

“What do you want to know?” the woman asked bluntly.

“What's your name?” Bai asked.

“Wen Liu.”

“This is a beautiful home, Wen. Yours?”

“It belongs to my parents.”

“Where are your parents?”

“They live in Hong Kong.”

“Is Daniel Chen your boyfriend?”

Wen looked thoughtful. She turned to look at Lee before answering. “We're not exclusive.”

“When was the last time you saw him?”

“Several days ago.”

“Has he called?”

She shook her head, her expression suggesting she'd lost interest and patience with Bai's questions.

“When do you expect him back?”

Wen smiled and shrugged while blowing smoke in Bai's direction, a symbolic gesture that wordlessly ended the interrogation. Bai pulled a business card out of her pocket and handed it to the recalcitrant woman. “If you see or hear from him, give him my number. Tell him I can help.”

“Help with what?”

“He'll know. Just tell him.”

Wen looked at the card with indifference but put it into the pocket of her robe anyway.

Bai started for the door then turned back on impulse. “Listen. I don't want to scare you, but it seems Chen crossed some very bad people. If we could find this house, so can they. If you have someplace else to go, this would be a good time to be there. We can wait while you pack a bag to make sure you leave here safely. I'd feel better knowing you weren't staying here by yourself.”

Wen looked at Bai then at Lee, who nodded almost imperceptibly. The nod seemed to do the trick. She stood and walked into the back while they waited. When she came out a few minutes later she wore what was clearly very expensive designer clothing and carried two Louis Vuitton bags.

“I'm ready,” she announced.

Lee carried her bags and led the way. They walked down the stairs and out to her car, where he tossed Wen's bags into the trunk and closed the lid.

Wen hesitated. She looked Lee up and down with a calculating stare.

“If you change your mind, give me a call,” she said, pressing a card into his hand.

“How romantic,” Lee replied, palming the card.

Frowning, Wen flopped herself into the driver's seat, backed out of the drive a short ways, and spun the car around to drive up the hill before turning onto the road without a backward glance.

“What do you make of that?” Bai asked.

“Spoiled, rich, sexually promiscuous, and potentially dangerous. She wasn't afraid when I held a gun on her. She seemed to be enjoying it. The only thing that frightened her was the thought of going public. She has something to hide.”