Part 17 (1/2)
Tuk glanced around at the lush valley. ”I'm not exactly sure where I am, to be honest with you.”
”You're not still by the plane, are you?”
”No, no. I found a cave for the three of us to take shelter in. We spent the night in it.” He paused. How was he going to put this in such a way that the man on the phone didn't think he was completely insane. ”But then something...happened.”
”What happened?”
”Mike was near death, but holding on. Annja and I slept, and in the middle of the night Mike disappeared.”
There was a pause on the phone. ”He disappeared? How is that? He couldn't have just gotten up and walked off. Not in his condition.”
”Yes, I know,” Tuk said. ”We didn't at the time, of course, and we searched frantically for him. But we couldn't locate him.”
”So, he's dead, then?”
”No. He's alive and well.”
”You're not making much sense, Tuk. I'm at Jomsom now and will be coming for you shortly. But I need you to tell me where you are exactly.”
Tuk sighed. ”I understand, but it's not as easy as that because I'm not sure where we are. I mean, I know where we are-I'm just not sure how we got here. That's what I'm trying to say.”
”All right, then. Where are you?”
”In a place called Shangri-La.”
Tuk heard the sharp intake of breath on the other end of the phone. ”I think you'd better explain yourself a bit more carefully, Tuk. And I sincerely hope you're not lying to me.”
”Why would I do that?” Tuk asked. ”After everything I've done already. I have no reason to lie.”
”Fair enough. Tell me what happened.”
”Annja and I searched the cave and came across two yeti.”
”Abominable snowmen?”
”Yes. I realize it sounds ridiculous but please hear me out.”
”I'm listening.”
”They were standing in the cave and then we smelled something like flowers. It was some type of gas. When we awoke, we were here in this beautiful land. I have no idea how we came to be here. One moment we were in the cave and the next we were here.”
”All right.”
”The thing is,” Tuk said, ”this is apparently my home-where I'm from. I'm surrounded by people who look just like me.”
”You mean they're small like you?”
”Yes, exactly that. And an outsider who broke the rules here apparently kidnapped me as a child. He took me out, which is how I came to be in Katmandu. He died, and I was left to my own devices. But I'm home now. It's absolutely incredible.”
”I see.”
Tuk frowned. For some reason, he'd expected a different reaction from the man than what he seemed to be having. Tuk sighed. ”I'm sorry if that disappoints you, but I am truly amazed at this place.”
”I have no doubt that you are, my friend.”
Tuk paused. ”What is it? I feel like there's something you're not telling me.”
After yet another silence, the man cleared his throat. ”Do you remember what you told me about the woman in Tsing's apartment? The one who rattled your nerves a good bit?”
Tuk s.h.i.+vered at the sudden recollection of her and her fingernails. ”Yes. I remember.”
”I did some checking on her.”
”And?”
”It took me a considerable amount of time, but I managed to dig up a few things. I don't think you're going to like hearing any of them.”
Tuk looked across the way at the party still raging in full force. Katmandu and the penthouse infiltration seemed years ago and a world away from where he stood just then.
”Tell me.”
”The woman's real name is Hsu Xiao. She is what is known as a Black Pole.”
”I'm not familiar with that term.”
”Most people aren't. The term itself derives from Red Pole, which in Chinese Tongs is an enforcer. The leg breakers. If you owe them money and don't pay, the Red Pole pays you a visit.”
”I see.”
”Hsu Xiao doesn't break legs. She kills. She is-according to my sources, anyway-one of the most highly adept a.s.sa.s.sins in this part of the world. Her skills are highly prized.”
Tuk was alarmed. ”It didn't much appear that Tsing prized her lethal charms all that much.”
”That's because Tsing doesn't know what her true nature is. She has concealed it from him.”
”Why would she do that? Is she going to kill him?”
”No, I don't think she is. If she were going to kill him, she would have done so already. She's had plenty of opportunity to do so and hasn't yet acted. This leads me to believe her real target isn't Tsing at all.
”Then who? Which person would Chinese organized crime want to kill?”
”Well, that's the other thing I discovered. She's not working with any form of Chinese organized crime.”
”Then who is she working for?”
”The Communist Chinese government in Beijing. Hsu Xiao is a high-level operative for the intelligence service. She works exclusively in covert operations, liquidating targets of opportunity that her government deems acceptable.”
Tuk's stomach ached. ”It still doesn't explain why she would be at Tsing's penthouse. Who would she be after and why would she be there?”
”I'm not quite sure yet.” The man paused. ”I have another question to ask you.”