The Profit Motive, page 20
part #2 of Sterling and Mason Series
CHAPTER 31
Wenzhou City, Zhejiang Province, China
“What the hell were you thinking, leaving her?” Adam shouted at Jie.
“Did you see who it was?” Byron asked.
The policeman shook his head, his expression making Adam sorry he’d shouted.
“It must have been Zhang, on his way back.” Adam felt like kicking something and glared at Danny, who cringed.
“We take him,” Jie said, “make him tell.”
“Torture him you mean?” Memories of questioning insurgents who’d captured a platoon member flooded back.
“We can use him to exchange for Kate,” Byron said.
“Where are we going to keep him?” Harry, who’d been silent since Kate disappeared, spoke.
“Why don’t we keep him here?”
“What if Zhang comes back?” Jie asked.
“We’ll be waiting,” Byron brandished his Type 77, “but we’ll need better firepower.”
Adam felt sick as he imagined what might be happening to Kate. “That won’t work, the police will be here soon.”
“We won’t get him out before they do, so either we hand him over or …”
“We can’t do that,” Adam said. “What if he mentions we’ve got guns? We could get rid of them before they arrive but it could still be awkward.”
Harry explained this to Jie and after a lengthy discussion Harry said, “ The inspector will tell the police he was alone with Miss Kate at the other end of the alleyway when she disappeared. You two and the prisoner will have to hide and I’ll stay and answer the door if the police make a house-to-house search.”
Jie left to contact the police and Adam looked at Danny. “We’ll gag him.” He descended into the cellar and searched through the drawers under the work bench until he found a roll of duct tape.
Danny shouted out and struggled.
“You can either co-operate or I knock you out. The way I feel there’s a chance I’ll do you serious harm. Your choice,” Byron said.
Danny stopped struggling.
“So you speak English.”
“Yes,” Danny replied, as Adam tore a piece of tape off the roll.
Once they’d gagged him, they secured his arms and legs, and Adam threw him over his shoulder before carrying him down to the basement. The nausea gripping Adam intensified. Not only had he failed to rescue Oliver, but they’d lost Kate. Could things get any worse?
The headlights of Jie’s car picked out an overgrown roadway with vegetation poking through the concrete. In the seat behind Jie, Adam peered into the darkness, his limbs heavy. Next to him, Harry sat behind Byron, his knees scrunched up. The silhouette of a cargo barge appeared at the edge of the beams and Jie slowed, coming to a halt at a decrepit gangplank with broken handholds. The boat sat bow-first at a dilapidated quay.
“Nice,” Byron said.
“Very secret.” Jie sounded defensive.
“I’m sure,” Adam said. “Shall we go?” He picked up two torches from the back seat.
Adam followed Jie, who stopped at the bottom of the gangplank, looking unenthusiastic. Adam tested the footing and mounted the ramp. The boat rocked as he stepped aboard and he helped Jie off the gangplank. The deck sloped away from the quayside at a slight angle.
Jie shone his torch at the wheelhouse and they headed toward it. Jie entered the cabin, beckoned Adam in and closed the door before lifting a hatch in the floor. The stench of oil and grease attacked the back of Adam’s throat. Jie shone his torch into the space. The room would once have held the engine; the bolts that had secured it to the floor stuck up like fingers. Bits of metal which looked like engine parts covered the floor. Jie climbed down a short steel ladder bolted to the side. His head brushed the ceiling. Adam joined him, gagging at the stink and wishing he had breathing apparatus. He examined the chamber, a steel box two metres by three, wondering how the policeman had come across this place.
Once they’d collected the debris into a pile, Jie climbed the ladder and Adam passed the pieces of metal up to him. While Jie threw them over the side, Adam examined the metal walls of the engine room. Despite being pockmarked with rust, they seemed solid.
Jie threw the last pieces overboard, returned to the hold and gestured at his ears. “You go, listen.”
Adam climbed out and Jie shouted, banging on the bulkhead. Adam replaced the heavy cover, and the sound faded. Once he left the wheelhouse and closed the door, he couldn’t hear the policeman. He completed a circuit of the deck. Faint noises reached him near the stern where air intakes for the engine came out. He doubted if anyone passed here and, even if someone did, they wouldn’t hear whatever sound came out of the stern. Adam shivered, the thought of what lay ahead weighing heavy. He returned to the wheelhouse and opened the hatch. Jie stopped making a racket.
“Very good.” Adam gave him the thumbs-up and helped him out. Now to get Danny. He signalled to the others, and the torchlight glinted off the windscreen.
“Everything okay?” Byron waited beside the car.
“Hunky dory.” Adam stared into the surrounding blackness then opened the boot. Danny lay in the bottom, trussed up in two hessian sacks. Between them they lifted him out and draped the squirming man onto Adam’s shoulders. “Keep struggling and I’ll drop you,” he said.
Danny stopped.
Harry stood to one side, trying to appear useful.
“You’d better stay here in case anyone comes,” Adam said.
Harry gave him a grateful smile. Adam carried Danny to the boat, Byron helping him negotiate the sagging gangplank. Once they’d got him into the engine compartment, the three of them stood looking at him, Byron and Adam hunched over in the low space. Jie passed his torch to Byron and untied the ropes. They removed the sacks. The lump on Danny’s left cheek, where Jie had hit him during the earlier interrogation, seemed bigger. The look of terror on his face as he examined his cell reminded Adam of the day he’d spent with the Mines Rescue Service when one of his colleagues discovered a previously hidden fear of confined spaces.
Jie uttered a stream of words at Danny, who looked even more alarmed. Adam tensed, a sick sensation in the pit of his stomach. The thought of what Kate might be enduring banished any sympathy for the young man.
Jie lit a cigarette.
Adam, conscious they were in a confined space, reached out a hand to stop him but Byron put a hand on his arm. “You’d better replace the cover.”
Adam didn’t move. However distasteful, he wouldn’t shirk his responsibility.
“Go on, there’s not enough room for all of us.”
As the biggest, it made sense for Byron to leave, but Adam didn’t argue. He got out and placed the cover across the opening. Danny spoke in a panicky voice then cried out. Adam pushed the cover into place, cutting him off. Maybe his claustrophobia would persuade him to tell them where Zhang was holding Kate. The original plan had been to exchange him for Kate, but they had to find Zhang before he harmed her. To do so, they had to make Danny talk. A faint scream cut through the silence. Feeling sick, Adam left the wheelhouse and closed the door.
The clang of the hatch falling into place made the metal walls of the cramped room reverberate. Byron didn’t suffer from claustrophobia, but even he felt a tremor of trepidation. Danny let out a whimper. In the torchlight, a wisp of cigarette smoke rose from Jie’s hand. The sweet odour of burning tobacco helped disguise the older oily stench.
Jie’s hand moved to Danny’s head with deceptive speed. He grabbed a hank of hair and pulled his head back. Danny screamed and, upstairs, a door slammed shut. Byron didn’t blame Adam: he’d be out of there if he had a choice, but sometimes you have to make difficult decisions. Adam could do it, but he’d suffer far more afterwards. Byron compartmentalised much better.
Jie shouted at Danny in Mandarin, gripped his head tight and brandished the lit cigarette in front of his eyes.
Danny screamed a reply but obviously not one to Jie’s liking, because he moved the cigarette closer.
Tears streamed down Danny’s cheeks and he appealed to Byron. Byron glared at him. Jie moved the cigarette closer and asked what sounded like the same question.
Danny’s reply made Jie frown. He glanced at Byron in exasperation, but Danny noticed and taunted him. Jie hesitated. He wasn’t going to do it.
Byron ignored the clammy sensation across his back and moved at speed. He wrapped his right fist round Danny’s neck and drove him backwards, slamming his head against the bulkhead. His head slumped as he lost consciousness for an instant, but Byron held him upright. He handed the torch to Jie and gestured for the cigarette.
Jie gave it and Byron held it close to Danny’s cheek. “I know you speak English. Look me in the eye and tell me you don’t think I’ll do this? This is just a job to me and you’re an obstacle. One I’m happy to tread on. Now, where would your friend take a prisoner?”
Danny stared back with a look of pure hatred.
Byron moved the cigarette closer.
Danny’s expression changed. “Okay, okay, I’ll tell you.”
Byron didn’t move. “Tell him.”
He held Danny, keeping the cigarette tip in the same position, while the young man spoke to Jie. Sweat soaked Byron’s back, but he kept his expression neutral.
“Okay, Mr Baron, I know where they go,” Jie eventually said.
Byron dropped the cigarette on the floor, hiding his relief: they might need to question Danny again. “Sit,” he growled, releasing his grip.
Danny massaged his throat and, taking deep breaths, slid to the floor. Byron took the torch off Jie, and followed him up the ladder.
Adam waited on the jetty. “Has he told you?”
Jie nodded. “Yes, outside city.”
“Let’s go.” Adam headed for the car.
“Have we got any water?” Byron said.
“There’s some in the car, come on.”
“For him.” He jerked a thumb back at the ship. Much as he wanted to find Kate, they had to make sure Danny survived.
Adam returned at a run, an almost full two litre bottle in his hand. Byron rinsed his mouth and took the rest to their prisoner. After passing it to him, he secured the hatch and rushed back to the car which waited with engine running. He jumped into the passenger seat and Jie hit the accelerator.
The stench from the filthy toilet filled the room, even after Kate lowered the lid. Long-ingrained habit made her reach for the sink by her side until she remembered there was no water. She backed out of the cubicle, closed the door and started back toward her sleeping mat, placed as far from the toilet as the chain securing her ankle allowed. The darkness meant either it was still night or she was in a blacked-out room. Or underground. She shuddered and continued shuffling forward, arms outstretched.
The mat caught under her foot and she stopped, breathing hard. Rustling in the dark corners told her she wasn’t alone. She lowered herself to the ground but misjudged the height and landed with a jolt. Pain sliced through her head. She gasped, keeping still until it passed. The lump on the back of her skull seemed the size of a duck’s egg and her hair felt like a piece was missing. Without light and a mirror, she couldn’t be sure.
Her head stopped spinning, and she reached for the bottle of water, dribbling a small quantity over her fingers. There wasn’t much left, but when would her captor return? She remembered him standing over her yesterday - she assumed it was yesterday - as she lay semi-conscious. The fantasy of overpowering him lasted until she carried out a search of her prison. The parts she could reach contained nothing useful as a weapon.
She thought again about attacking the only door she’d found, but all she’d managed last time was to break most of her fingernails. And anyway, unless she got the chain off her ankle, there wasn’t much point. Trying to get the chain off the bracket on the wall had been equally fruitless. Despair washed over her but, with an effort, she held back tears. I will not give up.
A rumble from her stomach reminded her she was hungry. A small quantity of fish-flavoured rice remained in the bowl and she scooped it into her mouth with her fingers, ignoring the thought of millions of germs on her skin. She finished and washed the salty taste away with the last of her water.
What would happen if Zhang didn’t return? A vision of her emaciated corpse being found months later flashed through her mind. Would he leave her here? That depended on why he’d brought her. If he had tried to kill Dad, it must have been to stop him talking about what he’d found. Did whoever paid him know Oliver had sent her an email? If they did, then they’d have told Zhang to kill her too.
So why would he kidnap her? Money. He must intend to collect a ransom. The flashes of light after she’d arrived now made sense. The thought of Christina receiving a picture of her unconscious body and a demand for money made her sick. Who would she take it to, Daniel or Simon? And would Uncle Ian get involved? With her and Oliver out of action, he was sure to.
Luckily, the company cash flow was strong at the moment so a ransom wouldn’t cause a problem. With a jolt, she remembered something Simon had once said when they were kids. They were watching news of the kidnapping of a mining company’s senior executive in an exotic corner of the world. ‘I’d never pay a ransom,’ her teenaged brother said, ‘It only encourages others to do the same. If nobody paid, all this would stop.’
But would he have the same view when it was his own sister? She scanned her mental list of those who could be behind what had happened to Oliver. It couldn’t be her brother. It made no sense. If he wanted her out of the way why would Zhang ask him for a ransom? Unless the photo wasn’t to prove she was alive.
A sound broke into her thoughts. It wasn’t the scratching of her roommates. Footsteps and low voices. Then a crash followed by metal tearing and pieces of broken masonry filled the air. She threw herself flat, closing her eyes, covering her head. It stopped. She raised her head. Light leaked in round the edge of the roller shutter and a shadowy figure appeared.
“Adam?”
The intruder didn’t respond.
CHAPTER 32
Sunday 10 June 2001
Wenzhou City, Zhejiang Province, China
Tang fought through the morning traffic - even on a Sunday it didn’t seem easier. She couldn’t remember looking forward to coming in to work less. She really liked working with Jie and wondered how he was coping, feeling guilty she’d not been in touch. Not only was Rong a misogynist, he was Jie’s opposite in many other ways. The bollocking the man had given her after they’d questioned the English woman had gone round her head all weekend. Even now, the memory of it made her hot. What most annoyed her was she’d been in the right.
She could do nothing about it. She daren’t ask to work with another officer, despite Feng’s insistence she did so. If she did, life would become intolerable and she’d have to leave, which, come to think of it, would suit Feng as she’d then have to get what he called a ‘proper professional’ job, something he considered more suitable for a woman. Well, she wasn’t giving up the career to which she’d devoted so much time and energy. She parked in the station car park and made her way into the building.
Rong still hadn’t arrived, so it gave her time to work on the theory she’d pondered since Friday. Avoiding her colleagues in the canteen, she headed straight for her office and spent over an hour on it until Rong appeared in the doorway.
“There you are. I don’t know what you got used to with Jie but I start at nine sharp.”
“But I - yes, sir.”
“What’s this?” Rong pointed at the papers on the desk.
“I’m working on a theory about who might be behind the disappearance of the Englishman. Inspector Jie Gang—”
“Hah! You heard what that old fool’s done? He’s been moonlighting, working for the man’s daughter.”
Tang didn’t believe it. Jie always criticised people who took outside work, describing them as ‘Job Thieves’. “I imagine he was just helping her—”
“You need to examine your loyalties, young woman. That fool will not be coming back. Not only getting four colleagues killed, but also taking money off tourists. That alone is enough to get him sacked.”
No point in arguing with Rong. “Do you want me to continue investigating the daughter, sir?”
“His daughter, why?”
“ You told me to investigate her contacts.”
“You misunderstood me, Sergeant.”
“I don’t think so.”
“Are you questioning me?” Rong slapped the desk.
Tang’s face grew hot. “No, sir.”
“Good.” Rong adjusted his tie.
“So do we go back to looking at Zhang, the man who tried to attack the Englishman in hospital?”
“Possibly… if it was him. But the team investigating into the men Jie got killed is also looking for him, so we don’t want to duplicate their work. Anyway, we have a more pressing investigation. If you’d bothered getting here on time, you’d know the daughter’s disappeared.”
“How?”
“Your friend took her to a rough part of town, left her alone in the car and some thugs kidnapped her.”
“What about the two Englishmen?” Adam and Byron struck her as good men to have beside you in a tight spot. They’d appeared unfazed when facing Zhang, and by the shootings, administering first aid whilst she’d been too shaken to act.
“Nowhere. You can’t trust men like them if someone offered them money to look the other way.”
Tang needed to speak to Jie, find out what happened. “What’s your theory, sir?”
“She’s a beautiful woman and there’s always demand for those, especially an exotic one.” Rong leered.
Tang suppressed a shudder. “You don’t think it’s linked to her father’s disappearance?”
“It’s a possibility we can’t discount, Sergeant. Rule nothing out until you rule it out.” Rong gave what he must consider an enigmatic smile.
Pompous ass. “Very wise, sir. What direction should our investigations take?”
Rong looked smug. “Actually, I have a theory someone took her father to get her here.”
