Gold Mountain (18 page)

Then Jake Pandora murmured, “I’ve got your back, Miss Hudson,” and I felt a quick confidence. A completely unsupported confidence built on nothing except the cool self-assurance, the challenge, and the hint of respect I heard in Pandora’s voice. Yet his words combined with a mental picture of the little face of Suey Wah restored my balance, and without further hesitation I entered the room behind Wing Chee.

Chapter Seven

P
andora did not wait for the door to close behind us before he addressed Wing Chee curtly. “Money has passed hands between you and a man named Ivan Fletcher. Who provided you the cash?”

“The Chinese prefer a less blunt approach to important dialogue,” I murmured to Pandora. He did not look at me but kept his gaze fastened on Wing Chee’s face.

“No doubt, but I’m not Chinese. We Greeks are more direct.” To Wing Chee he added, “From the amount of money that’s been supplied over the past months, I know you must have a backer.”

The Chinese man gave a typical shrug to indicate his unconcern. “I am not without resources, but even if what you say is true, why is it any concern of yours?” His English was impeccable.

“You made the mistake of using my steamers in your illegal dealings.” Pandora’s voice held an edge of fury that none of us missed, especially the man standing in the room’s far corner, the man we had met upon arrival. I saw him stiffen and take a step forward. Wing Chee’s bodyguard, no doubt, and quite prepared to ensure his master’s safety, whatever it took. Apparently Pandora didn’t miss the man’s movement, either, because he softened his tone before continuing.

“Like you, I have a certain pride in my name. If you tell me who is behind the trade in Chinese girls, I’ll do my best to keep you and your establishment out of the discussion when I bring the matter to the attention of the immigration authorities. I don’t think you want the federal government investigating any of your enterprises, do you? They have little patience with anyone who violates the Exclusion Laws.”

Wing Chee recognized the offer for the olive branch it was and replied carefully, “As I told you before, Mr. Pandora, I run a legal business and have no reason to fear anyone’s investigation.”

“But such an investigation can be so inconvenient,” I interjected, “and so messy. Federal officials in and out of the building; your books examined; your staff questioned again and again. That kind of presence makes customers very uncomfortable. And I understand an investigation can continue for years. Once your name is on someone’s desk, I’m told it never goes away. Unless you cooperate, of course. The government has a long memory, both for its friends and its enemies.” The look I saw in Wing Chee’s black eyes made me realize how very much he disliked me.

“I have business partners in city government who would speak in my behalf.” A hint there? I wondered.

Jake Pandora must have wondered the same. “Do you? In any specific area?”

“As a business man, I deal with a number of people for legitimate reasons. The Board of Supervisors, the mayor’s office, law enforcement, city financial leaders. I cooperate with all of them.” The finality of Wing Chee’s tone told me we would get no more information from him, but Pandora must have missed the inflection.

“Be more specific. Your eastern inscrutability doesn’t impress me. Give me a name.”

Wing Chee hesitated and in the pause that followed, the man in the corner stepped closer to say, “No more talk.”

I saw Wing Chee’s face tighten at the words and a flicker of—if not fear, certainly uneasiness showed before he dropped his eyelids briefly. When he looked at us again, he showed no trace of emotion.

“Chong Lin is right. I have already given you more time that I had to give.”

I took a closer look at Chong Lin. He wore traditional loose pants and a canvas jacket with black bands tied around both upper arms. The most noticeable feature about him was the way he had tied his queue up on the top of his head. Not a traditional way of wearing the braid and a practice with which I was unfamiliar. When I met the man’s look, he did not drop his eyes, which would have been another traditional response, but instead stared at me with the same expressionless look I had just seen on Wing Chee’s face. I had to adjust my opinion—this man was not Wing Chee’s bodyguard or even his friend. Of the two of them, it was not Wing Chee who held the upper hand.

“You fear this turtle man and his black dragons,” I said on impulse, guessing at Chong Lin’s black armbands. I recalled the gang’s name from Suey Wah’s story and remembered that she had been sure the name frightened Wing Chee. “But you should also fear the Chinese Squad and the immigration authorities. They can hurt you, too, and we can make sure they do.” From the slight twitch of Wing Chee’s face, from the sudden widening of his eyes and the swift curtain of impenetrability he drew across his expression, I knew Suey Wah had been exactly right. The man was deathly afraid of the black dragons. I had the experience to recognize such a look of bone-deep terror and shivered at the sight, perhaps at the memory, too.

Jake Pandora must have felt my quiver because he put a hand on my arm, ostensibly to guide me toward the door but perhaps to steady me, too. He threw Chong Lin a casual, examining glance before we moved toward the door.

I resisted the pressure of Pandora’s guiding hand long enough to say to Wing Chee, “I am looking for a girl. Her name is Mae Tao. She is about nine years old, short and plump, with round, pink cheeks. She loves to talk and tell jokes and was a bossy little thing already years ago. I know she arrived in San Francisco this spring aboard the Pandora Two. I will pay for information about her, pay even more for the child herself.” I knew Wing Chee wanted to ask how much I was offering but was not going to do so with Chong Lin standing so close. I lowered my voice so only he could hear and said in Chinese, “Double her cost. No questions asked. No report about it to the officials. You have my word and you know where to find me.”

“You stay with the old
fahn quai
.”

I smiled. “Not so old but otherwise you have it right. Cross her and you will think you’ve crossed the devil.”

Pandora gave my arm another inelegant pull and this time I obeyed, exiting into the hallway ahead of him, very conscious that as we departed he had “my back” as he’d put it earlier—in a literal sense walking directly behind me, his intention to shield me from the presence of Chong Lin, who followed us out of the room and walked a few paces after Pandora, a quiet and ominous shadow of dark intensity.

Neither Jake Pandora nor I spoke until we sat in Casey’s cab and knew we were well on our way out of Chinatown. Then Pandora asked, “What exactly are the black dragons?”

“A tong, but that’s all I know,” I explained. “I was told Wing Chee was terrified of them and he was. Did you notice?”

“Yes.” After another silence, Pandora said, “Casey’s planning to drop you off at the mission, or did you want to go to Grove Street?”

This time his easy knowledge of my habitats didn’t bother me at all. I knew I should still be suspicious of him, still wonder about his involvement with the illegal smuggling of humans and the threatening visit Quentin Farmer had made to 920, but I wasn’t and I didn’t. His recent actions and words to Wing Chee had seemed convincingly genuine. If Jake Pandora was involved in anything reprehensible—and I was sure he had been so in the past and might still be dabbling in something illegal—whatever he was guilty of was not buying and selling little girls for slavery and prostitution. I had detected a sincere disgust in his tone when he mentioned the practice and talked about Ivan Fletcher and his despicable actions. Even if I misread the depth of Pandora’s aversion, I believed he would never have involved his own transport line in the practice. I wasn’t entirely convinced Jake Pandora was an honorable man, but he was certainly a business man, shrewd and in his own way as ambitious as Colin O’Connor. He had a plan for the Pandora Transport Line, and he was not about to jeopardize his vision for the future, which as far as I could tell included a money-making enterprise emblazoned with his name on every vessel and a house full of children emblazoned with the same identification.

“920, please. What’s our next step?”

“
My
next step is to go back to some of my contacts with the name black dragons.” At my indignant look, Pandora said, “You may not realize it, but there was no guarantee we were going to get out of that place with our skin intact, and I’m not prepared to be responsible for your safety again.”

“No one asked you to be responsible for me,” I retorted, stung by the patronizing tone I heard. “I could have held my own without you being there. Probably could have done better. You’d still be letting Wing Chee prattle on to you in the deceptive babble he passed off as Chinese if I hadn’t called his bluff, and I’m the one who knew about the black dragons. As far as I can tell, your contribution to this venture was woefully lacking.”

He opened his mouth to respond with equal scorn but then surprised me by agreeing. “You’re right. You were indispensable and I beg your pardon.”

“That’s all right, then,” my words a churlish grumble before I caught his eye and suddenly felt laughter well to the surface. “What a bad-tempered team we make, Mr. Pandora!”

“You’re absolutely right about that, too, and call me Jake. My father’s been dead for years.”

I didn’t think to reciprocate a similar invitation because I was too busy wishing he hadn’t agreed with me so readily or so earnestly, but I kept that thought to myself. I had stated the obvious and he had concurred. Progress of a sort, I supposed, and it would serve no purpose to stir the pot again. We might as well both bask in our feelings of superiority over the other. Besides, I found being in charity with Jake Pandora and his returning the feeling to be quite a pleasant sensation. Rare but undeniably pleasant. I wondered how long the time of grace would last.

“I’ll be in touch,” Pandora said as I stepped out of the cab after it came to a halt in front of 920.

Once on the ground, I rearranged my hat, said, “Sooner rather than later, please, or I’ll go ahead on my own,” and walked toward the mission’s front door without looking back. I thought I heard him make a comment behind me but couldn’t make out the words and didn’t bother to ask him to repeat them. Why allow reality to intrude on our mutually charitable moods, however fleeting they might be?

Miss Cameron appeared to be waiting for me when I returned to 920 and her greeting held relief. “Dinah. Good. I was getting worried. I’ve received confirmation from a source I trust that the summons to Woon Ho’s establishment was a ruse meant to draw both of us away from the mission.”

“But why?”

“To allow Mr. Farmer and his accomplice Mr. Chanyu another opportunity to search for Suey Wah. Those two scoundrels appeared on the doorstep as soon as we were out of sight. They showed another warrant signed by Judge Mackiver and they were accompanied by police who were much less sympathetic than the previous searchers. Frances did her best, but she was unable to stop the men from threatening our girls with all sorts of dire consequences if they did not reveal Suey Wah’s whereabouts. One or two of the little girls were still crying when I returned. Frightened to tears. The idea!” I had never seen Miss Cameron as angry as she was during the recounting of Quentin Farmer’s return invasion. “For our lack of cooperation, Judge Mackiver has threatened a contempt order. That crook is an embarrassment to the city. I would love to see him disbarred completely. It’s a wonder he can move about at all with his hand in so many people’s pockets! It must be such an uncomfortable posture.”

I listened until she ran out of words and then prompted, “But who—?”

“I don’t know, but I’ve asked several of our staunchest Chinese supporters to help me find out what and who is behind this ruthless search for Suey Wah. How fortunate the child remains safely sheltered!” Her words took both our thoughts to the same place at the same time, and we stood simultaneously.

“I must get home!” I didn’t need to explain any further; Donaldina nodded her understanding.

“If there has been any indication of trouble on Grove Street, Dinah, let me know at once. I have many connections and I’ve just begun to martial my forces.”

I hurried home, my heart in my throat most of the way, and only when Ruth appeared from the kitchen in answer to my loud, urgent call did I begin to calm. Suey Wah, enveloped in an apron much too big for her, followed my sister out into the hallway, both their faces showing nothing but a natural combination of puzzlement and alarm at my rushed entry.

“Are you all right?” I demanded. “Has your afternoon been uneventful?”

“Except for Suey Wah’s small mishap with the flour canister, it’s been very uneventful, Dinah. What’s wrong? You look as if you were chased by banshees.”

I thought of Quentin Farmer’s dark, foxlike face and the grim presence of Chong Lin that hinted at violence and danger. “I believe I would prefer banshees,” I said quietly to myself before I turned to face the hallway mirror, pulled out my hatpins, and shook loose my hair. “There’s nothing wrong. I don’t know why I was worried. My sensitive feminine temperament, I suppose.”

Ruth gave an unladylike snort. “That’s rich, Dinah. Now come into the kitchen and see what Suey Wah and I have been up to. Do you recognize the smell of Mother’s oatmeal cookies? We’ve had fun, haven’t we, Suey Wah?”