Reign of Coins (13 page)

Chapter 14
 

We spent much of the day with Ms. Cheung. The morning meeting with her grandfather had left us all uneasy. Some of what Cheung Yung-ching had revealed from his hospital bed was familiar to Sulyn, as evidenced in her eyes and facial expressions. Yet, other things he spoke of seemed to stretch her ability to believe it all. Certainly she had grown up listening to family history that was as frightening as it was fascinating…even if she thought much of it was fabricated.

Since Sulyn wasn’t scheduled to return to her job at the Exhibition and Convention Centre until the afternoon, and it wasn’t quite 9:30 a.m. yet, I suggested she show us the sights the locals favored. I had some idea of what was relevant to Hong Kong natives from my visits during the past several centuries. But, my absences between those visitations often spanned several decades, or even longer.  Sometimes entire generations had disappeared between my trips to this region of the world. Not to mention, my last visit had been more than one hundred years ago—long before any of the current citizenry were born.

Sulyn turned out to be a fabulous tour guide, and she seemed to truly enjoy taking us to her childhood haunts along the city’s outskirts. Alistair smiled ear to ear—both from her slightly flirtatious attentions and the fact he received a better taste of Hong Kong than he would’ve gotten had we explored the city on our own.

We ate lunch at the famed
Café Grey, where I must say the seafood was as enjoyable as anything I’ve tasted abroad, lately. Sipping cocktails, we learned much more about our new friend than I expected. It started with an almost trite question from my boy, about what it was like growing up in a family requiring bodyguards twenty-four/seven.

“It wasn’t easy…and the only friends I had until I entered college were from families chosen as acceptable to my parents,” she told us, staring off absently at Victoria Harbour. I doubt she even noticed the ships preparing to port. “I almost moved to the United States, and had a scholarship offer from U.C.L.A.”

“It sounds to me like you may have some regrets in not pursuing that opportunity,” I said, pausing to sip from my first bourbon on the rocks in nearly a month. “What kept you from going?”

“My mother and father were gunned down while riding the ferry across the harbor.” Her voice sounded hollow, as if the vivacious spirit of this lovely woman had been suddenly sucked out of her body. “It happened that summer…. We don’t have near as many violent crimes as you do in the States, and I knew without my grandfather telling me that it was a contract killing. I’ve since learned it happened in retaliation for something Cheung Yung-ching did many years ago.”

“I’m so sorry to hear this,” said Alistair.

I murmured the same thing. She nodded as tears filled her eyes.

“It’s okay…you are among friends,” he said, gently. “Friends who have seen the worst wickedness the world can offer. But, also the good—such as a beautiful soul as yourself.”

“I have a younger brother, and he managed to break away from this place,” she said, when able to continue. She tried to smile. “He’s studying architecture in Hawaii.”

“Not a bad way to go for a young man,” I said, raising my glass in salute. “I can tell you are quite fond of him.”

“Yes…I really miss him.”

I thought those would be the words that led us back down the unhappy trail. But, Sulyn remained upbeat for the rest of our visit—which lasted until it was time to return to the coin convention. She especially enjoyed hearing stories about my beloved Beatrice, and as told by Alistair, since I missed being around during his later formative years. My heart ached for that missed opportunity—especially as my boy related how his mother would make him laugh and lift his spirits when things didn’t go as well as he would’ve liked during secondary school in Glasgow.

I prayed silently the miracle happening for my son would soon replicate itself in Beatrice. I’d gladly wait centuries—if that’s what it took—for her to look at me as she once did, and to be the lovely young woman again that I’d deserted so long ago.

Shallow. I see it now, although it had been a way of emotional survival that had served me well for centuries. I guess it goes to show I was never truly in love until I met Beatrice. Perhaps the greatest mercy I could’ve offered her was to turn around and walk out of that crowded, post-war pub in Glasgow before she and I locked eyes and I said hello….

“Son, are you ready to go?”

Alistair shook me from my downward spiral, and Sulyn looked on compassionately. If not for Amy Golden Eagle’s hold on my boy’s heart, they’d make an intriguing pair that could be a great looking couple in just a few more months of age regression for Alistair. I smiled at the thought he certainly wouldn’t be calling me ‘son’ in public for much longer.

“Yeah…bottoms up.” I downed the rest of my bourbon.

I needed the kick to forget about the past I couldn’t change, and prepare for what the near future held. Christian Morrow would be gracing us with his vile presence very soon. Would Viktor Kaslow follow with an encore performance?

I shuddered as we stepped out into the sunshine and our waiting limousine. If Kaslow was lying in wait for our arrival at the convention, at least we’d go out in style.

Yeah, bad joke. It wasn’t funny to me either.

Thankfully, when we arrived at Sulyn’s place of employment, I didn’t sense danger. Despite Kaslow’s recent surprise visit the other night, I remained confident my survival instincts would give me a heads-up if serious peril was in the air. I detected nothing—at least not a predatory scent as we stepped out of the limo and entered the building.

“You’re late!”

Christian Morrow tapped his diamond-studded Rolex while acting like an impertinent asshole. He needed to be taught several lessons in humility and kindness, and I’d gladly volunteer to do it if I thought that shit would take to his stubborn soul. But arrogant idiots like him were best suited for the trash-heap.

I glanced at my watch and looked up at the much bigger timepiece on the wall. We were less than two minutes behind schedule.

“She isn’t late, mister,” I said, which drew an immediate worried look from my boy. “Sulyn had something important to take care of for me and my dad first. Hopefully, that’s not too big an issue for you.”

Yes, it did make me feel a little better. All in all, I thought it was a fine job of getting this jerk to back off. Of course, if my so-called ‘dad’ had been anyone other than someone he esteemed as important, this little exercise would’ve likely worsened things. Morrow gave me a slightly dirty look and nodded to Alistair in a semi-friendly manner. No real harm done, though he didn’t bother to regard Sulyn…at least not until she addressed him.

“Follow me to where we convened yesterday,” she told him, and then motioned for us to come along again. Morrow didn’t put up a fuss this time. “The remaining collection you inquired about yesterday afternoon has already been delivered, and the cases are set up.”

We followed her across the open hall to the boardroom. Mr. Lao waited for us, looking almost as surly as Morrow.

“Everything is ready for your viewing,” said Lao, quietly. He offered a slight bow to Morrow and to Alistair, and might’ve done the same for me if not for our ‘male debutante’ brushing by him as if he wasn’t there.

“This is everything?” Morrow acted supremely disappointed despite the presence of seven glassed cases carefully positioned along the length of the cherry table dominating the room. Yet, I sensed he fully expected to find this arrangement to look exactly as it did.

“It is the rest of what my grandfather is willing to share for viewing,” said Sulyn, with a little more sternness than I expected. Her boss seemed taken aback, as if he’d be left alone to sooth Morrow’s ruffled feathers.

“Where are the Mongolian items?” Morrow moved casually from case to case, paying little attention to any of the cases’ contents. “Other than common money pieces and the artifacts from yesterday, I see very little that speaks to what
should
be here. Do you always treat the world’s more esteemed collectors with such shabbiness?”

Careful, jackass…. It wouldn’t take much to take those patent leather Testonis and shove them far enough down your throat to where a call to Kaslow would remain a muffled whisper forevermore.

“On the contrary, Mr. Morrow, we have taken great pains to show you nearly three hundred coins unseen outside my family’s walls in more than a century,” she said, her tone cool but professional. “However, if you would rather rejoin the rest of the convention, I will be more than happy to immediately return these items to my grandfather’s estate.

For a moment, he looked like he might ask her to do just that. But then he hesitated, snickering softly. “Give me a moment to take a closer look…in case I missed anything of interest.”

Moving around the table, he paused to study a particular item or two. When he returned to where she stood, he regarded her with more hostility than before.

“I want you to deliver a message to your grandfather, if you would be so kind,” he said, his lifeless tone undermining the positive inferences of his words. “I want to see whatever he has available that pertains
personally
to Genghis Khan. Am I clear?”

Sulyn said nothing, but accepted Morrow’s business card. He turned and offered another respectful nod to Alistair before walking out of the room without acknowledging anyone else. Lao’s complexion had turned almost as ashen as Alistair’s skin tone in midwinter.

“I’ll be expecting Cheung Yung-ching’s call this evening,” Morrow called over his shoulder. He strolled casually across the hall. I wondered how long it would be before Kaslow showed up at the Exhibition and Convention Centre to pull a Valentine’s Day massacre.

“What a charmer that young man has become,” observed Alistair, shaking his head. “He wasn’t like that when I knew him during his time at Georgetown. I remember him stating once that while he wanted to please his father, he didn’t want to be anything like him.”

“My, how time has changed that perspective,” I deadpanned. “He’s a lot like his dad, from what I’ve read about Jeremiah Morrow. Most of us, it seems, are destined to be like our parents. But, in his case, I’d hardly expect him to want to leave this life before he’s forty, which seems destined.”

“Do you need our assistance in getting this stuff back to your grandfather?” asked Alistair, moving over to the glass case closest to him. “This doesn’t have to be a complete waste of time. In fact, I see some items here that I’d be honored to have a closer look at.”

It was the perfect response to lift Sulyn’s spirits, and for much of the next two hours, she and he discussed the items in each glassed case in the room. Mr. Lao, meanwhile, excused himself to oversee other business in the convention center. Content to stand back while they enjoyed each other’s company, I kept my eyes, ears, and intuitions alert for the emergence of a certain Russian menace that certainly knew by now where we were.

Chapter 15

“Don’t worry, they should be here at any moment,” said Sulyn.

It was after dinner and the three of us waited in a deserted parking lot for her personal guards to arrive. A poorly lit and crumbling parking lot, I should say, and located in one of the seedier Hong Kong neighborhoods. The shipping warehouse Cheung Yung-ching had mentioned earlier that day stood ominously before us, like a malevolent sentinel sworn to protect its darkest secrets.

It occurred to me that it would’ve been prudent to find out exactly when Cheung’s brother ceased coming to this place. Especially if Yung-fa was as frail as Yung-ching before he died. He might not have conducted business at this address in many years.

For the moment, I wasn’t as worried about Kaslow ambushing us as I was about the ancient floorboards giving way. Sulyn had advised the office sat on the top floor of five. But, without obvious signs of electricity, we’d scale the stairs in darkness. Not a significant problem for my eyes, which have operated in dimness for many years. However, worrying about anyone else’s safety, while keeping an eye out for an assassin’s laser sight beam escalated the risk factor.

“Will your guards be bringing flashlights?”

I tried not to come across as abrasive, but sitting in front of a dilapidated building in a bad neighborhood, where even the locals knew better than to venture onto a deserted street, was asinine. No streetlights either. Just our fancy limousine idling while we awaited reinforcements to keep the city’s hoodlums at bay. We might soon be General Custer and his Seventh Calvary waiting for help on Last Stand Hill.

“Here they come,” Sulyn
advised, as a pair of headlights appeared at the end of a long row of empty buildings. “They should have everything we’ll need. If they don’t, I’ll send someone to get it while we wait.”

Her eyes twinkled with excitement. Alistair seemed to be looking forward to what lay ahead, as well. Here I thought it would be just me with the butterflies, since I was getting closer and closer to retrieving my coin from its hiding place. Even so, I couldn’t shake the feeling we should be proceeding with more caution, or not at all, before daylight.

When the silver late model Lexus pulled up next to us, it appeared Cheung Yung-ching had sent his fiercest guards. Sulyn leaned over the front seat and advised the limousine driver something undecipherable to me. The driver, a young man who looked barely old enough to chauffeur a car like this one, nodded in response. He removed something wrapped in dark cloth from the glove box and set it next to his lap. She smiled at him before exiting the car with Alistair and myself following close behind her.

Moments before I joined everyone in the eroded parking area, I noticed a small Glock peering out from under the cloth. A larger risk factor to this little trek than our hostess would freely admit, Sulyn averted my probing gaze by asking her guards to produce their flashlights. Two powerful halogens no bigger than any of our pinkies reflected near-blinding beams off the building’s dingy windows.

“It has been awhile, but I can lead us to Cheung Yung-fa’s office,” said Sulyn, as we headed up the short flight of crumbling cement stairs to the door. “It doesn’t look like anyone has been here lately, so that bodes well for us.”

Not sure I’d agree with her assessment, but the place did look abandoned and forlorn. Even so, someone with Kaslow’s skill set could easily infiltrate a target area like this, collect the desired prize, and be on his way without any obvious signs he’d ever been there. Or, he could be waiting for us to enter the building and then Bam!

The thing that did bode well for us was how Morrow sounded yesterday and this afternoon, as if he had no idea where the map was actually located. That meant Kaslow didn’t know either. We were safe until the moment one of us held it in our hand.

“Watch out for rabid vermin on the loose,” I said, playfully, though my boy shot me a look imploring me to shut the hell up.

“Hopefully, we won’t come across
any
vermin—animal or otherwise,” she said, unlocking the door. “Follow me.”

She took my son’s hand in hers and they stepped inside, followed by one of her guards. The rest of the armed foursome pulled up the rear behind me.

Talk about a ramshackle hellhole. It looked like no one had been here in many,
many
years. Once inside, something scurried past my feet and Alistair’s. A mirthful moment followed, when he nearly jumped into Sulyn’s arms. Certainly, he’d see things differently. I stifled a snicker, but one of the guys behind me didn’t. My protective paternal instincts almost kicked in, until I saw Sulyn wrap her arm inside of his to pull my boy closer to her. The poor kid would be just fine.

Several more critters scurried across the floor, but Alistair was paying more attention to the enormous webs we passed as we reached the stairs.

“It looks worse in here than I expected,” Sulyn admitted. “Grandfather said it shouldn’t be as bad upstairs.”