Jade’s initiation lasted over a year and aptly complemented her former two-year stint at the Thai Tourist Bureau as a hostess. Paul taught her how to take advantage of her spectacular looks, casting her as a sophisticated combination of European savvy and Thai mystique, and how to rely on her quick wits when confronted by a situation she had never encountered before. Under his attentive tutelage, she learned to appreciate the difference between Italian-made Armani pants and the poor imitation sold all along Sarong Road. She learned to wear Colette Dinnigan dresses and stiletto heels, Levis 501 and impeccable white T-shirts to set off her striking hair and edible skin. Paul Patek also helped her apply for a passport and then took her to Paris, several times, staying alternatively at the Hilton near the Madeleine and at the Plaza Athenee on the chic left bank. He also introduced her to London’s Kensington, Chelsea and Notting Hill neighbourhoods, New York’s Upper East Side, Milan’s Via Montenapoleone, Prague’s nightlife and Berlin’s underground clubs, as well as familiarised her with Beverly Hills’ finest hotels and hang outs, in fact taking her almost everywhere they were bound to do business at one time of another.
Paris though remained Jade’s favourite city. Only there could she really indulge in harmless fantasies about possibly meeting her father at the terrace of a café or in the queue at a movie on the Champs Elysees. With Paul as a guide, she had visited countless monuments and museums, yet, in her naiveté, never noticed that his keen knowledge of the Pere Lachaise cemetery and its crematorium was perhaps well beyond that of a mere layman. She called him Ajarn Paul, the respectful title given to a teacher, and grew to trust him. For the first time in her life, she felt safe whenever she was around him, and in turn, Paul knew, without the shadow of a doubt, that he had made the right choice for his new protégée. Over the next few months, her unwavering loyalty and ingenuity proved invaluable and quickly paid back the money he had invested in her education. He silently applauded his infallible knack for choosing the right people for the right job, at the right time. Rarely had his instincts failed him. He believed that it was why, at the head of one of Thailand’s largest cartel of drug smuggling and money laundering, he was now not just a very rich man but a very powerful one at that. In his opinion, it would not be long before this wispy girl would turn into one of his greatest assets; all he had to do in exchange was to treat her with respect, give her some of the fatherly protection she had craved all her life, pay off her mother’s modest cottage as well as provide the latter with the opium she could no longer live without. In fact, Jade’s mother’s addiction had turned out to be both the perfect leverage and the best incentive in keeping the young woman honest and motivated. Moreover, he had come to admire both her fragility and her passion, her defiance and her resilience, a combination he had found irresistible. All in all he had grown quite fond of her.
On this particular night, Paul had congratulated himself on his new recruit more than once. Indeed, on that first night back at his house, he knew that Jade would have little trouble in convincing either one of the two boys to adhere to their scheme. He had instigated the trip to the National Park because he knew not only that the scenery never failed to impress the neophyte but was likely to provide many unforgettable backdrops for a budding romance. When he retrieved the luggage the young men had left behind from the hotel lockers he had taken the precaution to measure them both and guess as to their approximate weight as well. His investigation revealed that they were indeed both French nationals and thus wasted no time in renewing his contacts at the French Embassy. With measurements at hand, a custom-made coffin could be fitted quite quickly. It was just a simple matter of biding his time. When on her way back from their expedition, Jade called him to warn him that she would ‘disappear’ for a couple of days, he clasped his hands, a beaming smile on his rubicund face: she would only re-emerge with good news.
Indeed, their little trips abroad most often times took four months in the planning, yet the rewards proved infallibly worthwhile. Sometimes though luck was on their side, with a fortuitous accidental death adding to their business forecast; the circumstance usually led Jade to put their current victim on hold, in order to add the unexpected trip to her schedule. In the case of accidental deaths, she would never meet the families, only supervising the hand-over at the mausoleum, taking a return flight home almost immediately. To avoid raising suspicion with immigration though, she invariably entered the various countries they did business with through different ports of entries; her cover as a Thai travel agent for the Royal family, scouting for appropriate locations and checking the viability of various hotels and venues, was regardless an impeccable one and had so far held up to scrutiny.
Chapter VI
Jade’s Web
After three days in Louis’s company, during which they barely crawled out of bed, except for refreshing swims in the hotel pool, Jade nonetheless suddenly left one afternoon, pretexting guilt over her lack of communication with Paul and for holding his car ransom for so long. She should have also called on her mother, who would undoubtedly be sick with worry by now. Having understood the importance of family in Thai culture, Louis reluctantly let her go. That night, he dined with Jacques instead. The latter had spent his time editing and had barely registered his friend’s absence. During dinner, Jacques took the opportunity to let Louis know that he needed to return to Paris shortly since the co-sponsors were keen to view some of the footage to date. Moreover, his last documentary was now in post-production and he needed to supervise the finishing touches. Having received that very morning an open-ended invitation from Paul to stay with him anytime he so wished, Louis was incredibly relieved at the news: accepting the invitation meant spending more time with Jade. There was nothing he wanted more and with Jacques overseas, his conscience was now clear. He told Jacques as much and said that he would wait for his return to resume their filming. By leaving the majority of his equipment behind, Jacques would be able to travel light and he soon agreed that it was in fact the best solution. He promised he would be back in the New Year at the latest. They would then travel up north to Chang Mai for a couple of weeks.
Jacques was indeed already convinced they would not need much more footage than a fortnight up north to finish the documentary. They had just finished sipping their espresso when the maître D’ approached their table, indicating there was a phone call for a Mr Jacques. The phone was taken to their table and Louis was surprised to hear Jacques apparently accept an invitation. He frowned his disapproval.
“Come on, I’m not tired, are you?” pleaded Jacques. “It’s still early. Paul Patek has just invited us to come over for a drink,” he announced excitedly. “Apparently he has a few other guests over. Other fellow travellers and a big wig from the ABC he would like to introduce me to. Let’s put on a more appropriate shirt and then we’ll just go, what do you think?”
“Why not?” replied Louis bemused but pleased at the idea of seeing Jade much sooner than he had anticipated. She was always on his mind and the last few hours without her had stretched interminably.
“How are you boys?” boomed Paul’s voice as they approached the open front door. “Nice to see you again. Jade has given me an update on your activities and all seems to be quite under control,” he added with a discreet wink in Louis’s direction, who was not quite sure on how to interpret the man’s bonhomie. What did Jade tell him exactly? Surely she did not share the last three days locked up in his hotel room?
“Let me introduce you to a few friends here,” said Paul, ignoring Louis’s puzzled look. “There are a few people from the French Consulate, and the American Embassy and over there is Ron Jones, from the ABC, with whom I spoke of your project. I hope you don’t mind,” he added, addressing Jacques.
As Paul made the introductions, Louis looked for Jade, who seemed to have vanished. When she finally appeared in the living room, sheathed in a lotus pink dress, her hair captured in an elaborate bun, which trapped small orchids, pinned with tortoise shell combs, she too
k his breath away and his heart began to beat uncontrollably.
Oh my God! he thought, I’ve really fallen in love with this girl! I can’t believe it.
The realisation made him light-headed and slightly nauseous. He excused himself and walked to the open veranda.
“Are you all right, my darling?” she murmured, coming up silently behind him.
“I’m fine,” he answered somewhat brusquely. “I just needed some fresh air. I will return shortly.”
“I missed you,” she said, softly closing the screens behind her. Louis turned around and they stole a chaste kiss, away from prying eyes.
When a couple of hours later Paul’s guests departed, he asked the boys if there was anything else he could help them with. Jacques then told him of his plans to return to Paris for a few weeks to finish another project. Surprised but rather pleased by this new development, Paul turned to his other young guest and asked him whether Jade had already extended an invitation to stay with them.
“She has,” assured Louis, “It’s very generous of you and I’d be keen to accept, but on one condition.”
“And what would that be?” asked Paul bemused.
“That I might be of help to you in any way you may see fit. I’m not in the habit of bludging off people.”
“Don’t worry, my boy,” replied Paul suppressing a cough and with a twinkle in his eyes. “I’ll be sure to ask for your help if I need it. When did you intend to leave, Jacques?”
“If I could find a flight, as early as tomorrow. Or the next day if that proves impossible.”
“Everything is possible in Thailand if you know the right people. Jade, can you please check the Thai Airlines schedule for tomorrow? And now what about a real man’s drink, instead of this civilised cocktail hour Dom Perignon stuff? We should celebrate the coming together of your project, don’t you think? And bid you farewell?”
“Couldn’t agree more,” replied Jacques, whom, even though he enjoyed the vintage champagne which his host always seemed to have in abundance, had nonetheless grown rather fond of the local whiskey.
“Please help yourself to the bar while I retrieve my special cigarettes.”
After a couple hefty drags and a few sips of whiskey, Jacques inadvertently brought up the subject of the little jade pills, completely forgetting that as Jade’s uncle, Paul might strongly object to his niece partaking in any kind of substance abuse. Shaking his head, Louis tried and warned him to stay-off the subject, but it was too late.
“Little jade-coloured pills, really?” repeated Paul, frowning. “Are you referring to those in the shape of the mathematical infinity sign?”
“Exactly!” replied Jacques excitedly. “Jade offered it to us almost every night when we were away, and I’ve got to say that thanks to her we were able to gather some pretty amazing footage! I also can’t deny that whatever is in those pills makes you feel damn good. And unlike this stuff, neither sleepy nor paranoid,” he added, waving the joint in Louis’s direction.
“Did she end up revealing its composition?” interjected Paul curiously.
“We didn’t even ask, I must admit,” replied Jacques laughing. “We assumed that it was some sort of concentrated form of the Lipovitan we shared here with you on our first night together. It made us feel just as energetic and alive! In any case it was great. Too bad they don’t seem to be available in Europe; it would certainly make painstaking editing go a lot faster,” he added laughing again.
“Oh, I believe they’re around,” said Paul enigmatically. “In fact, I’m really glad you enjoyed them. You see; I manufacture them. I’ve baptised them Infinity. But the drug is still in its trial stages. It was very naughty of Jade to use you as guinea pigs…” he added, throwing a mock frown in her direction.
“Don’t chastise Jade on our account! I really don’t think we minded,” replied Louis with a broad smile. “They seem to have a few more side effects than the Lipovitan, though…” he continued dreamily, remembering the acrobatics of the past three days. Paul, who understood perfectly the innuendo, was quick changing the subject by suggesting to Jacques that if it were to be his last night in Bangkok, perhaps he would like to indulge another one and take a prolonged night tour of the city to taste its more exotic pleasures. Jacques eagerly nodded his approval and Louis looked at Jade to see whether she minded.
“I’ll come too,” she said to allay Louis’s fears. “Give me ten minutes,” she added sprinting out of the room. “A night on the town requires something a bit less formal.”
Bangkok by night is one of the country’s highlights exalted by tourists for years to come. The two worldly Frenchmen hardly expected to be enthralled by the titillating sights they heard so much about, and thus Paul, aware of their blasé attitude when it came to any city’s underbelly, particularly delighted in revealing to his guests its many facets. Within two hours, the boys conceded defeat; not only were they stunned by the fast pulse of the city but they also had to admit that by comparison their life up to that point had been truly sheltered. Everywhere they went and everywhere they looked, pleasures of the flesh were unabashedly peddled. Louis was shocked by how young some of the women appeared to be and when questioned on the subject, Paul confirmed that most would have yet to hit puberty. Jacques was likewise puzzled by the many young boys who seem to take notice of him and was astounded to learn that they too were for sale. Jade added to the conversation by pointing out the transsexual prostitutes of whom they were many, teaching them how to spot the tell-tale Adam’s apple and the deceivingly muscled legs. The two friends were then quick staying well away from their forthright advances. After hours of trawling from one bar to the next, the boys however, were no longer in any condition to pick the sub-currents of quiet desperation, fear and anxiety in the eyes of the girls who promised them paradise and beyond.
After sampling many of the most reputed bars in the city and watching many unforgettable and astonishing shows, Paul dropped off the boys well after five in the morning. Jade did not stay with Louis that night; they all agreed that she best see Paul safely home; even the old man had had his full quota of drinks for one evening. When a few hours later, the phone rang in Jacques’s room, he learned that a Thai Airlines flight had been booked in his name for 4:00 pm that very afternoon. Likewise, Louis received a message that a limousine would pick him up around the same time and take him and his luggage straight to Paul’s house. With threatening hangovers, the two friends nonetheless shared their breakfast, reliving some of the previous night’s highlights. A quick swim in the hotel pool almost managed to set them right and Louis even found the time to write a handful of postcards for Jacques to mail on arrival. In his mind, it was a quicker way than rely on the Thai post.
Slightly after 1:00 pm that afternoon, a limousine, courtesy of the hotel, pulled up to drive Jacques to the airport. The two young men hugged their good byes and promised to see each other soon. Louis, in charge of securing the equipment Jacques had left behind, took his time, daydreaming about Jade: he could not wait to be with her again and idly wondered whether Paul would object him officially dating his niece. After all, he considered himself a man of means and substance and had hoped he had dropped enough hints for Paul to be reassured of his lineage and social position. Something had happened between him and the exotic beauty, and he was not quite sure what it was. He had definitely fallen in lust with her on that very first night, when he had spilled his chequered past, but he had since irrevocably fallen in love with her. Completely bewitched, he felt he could no longer exist without her. He only felt truly happy when she breathed the same air as him, and only under the influence of the little jade pills could he envision being without her for more than a couple of hours. He was hooked both on love and on the magic pill, yet he still ignored how treacherous both would end up to be. As he packed, the mere thought of his lover gave him an uncomfortable erection and it necessitated a long cold shower before he could finally check out and stand ready in front of the hotel’s lobby doors,
film cases packed at his side.
For the next few days, under the pretext of a trip abroad, Paul excused himself, affording Jade and Louis free run over the property. The young lovers enjoyed playing house, filling their days with their lovemaking and their nights with dancing, long promenades, sightseeing and endless talking. They cooked for each other, read novels, watched movies and listened to Paul’s extensive musical collection. By now Louis was thinking of Jade as no other than an extension of himself. In his soul, it seemed as if he had always known her. He spoke of Karma and destiny while she enigmatically smiled back at him. He could no more imagine living without her than he could recall his life before her. In matters of love, she was a skilled and patient teacher, introducing him to the Art of the Kamasutra. She also taught him Ashanta Yoga to improve his flexibility and continued meditation to strengthen his mind. Time passed quickly; it was filled with endless sensorial peaks accompanied by an almost unbearable sense of wellness.
An early phone call one morning precipitated Paul’s return. All of a sudden there was a flurry of agitation, a lot of whisperings, mysterious coming and goings and Louis felt suddenly shut out. The American Consul came to visit twice and each time, the two men locked themselves in Paul’s office for the better part of an hour. At dinner that night, Jade told Louis that she unexpectedly needed to go and visit her mother. Apparently, she had slipped and broken her collarbone and requested her daughter’s presence in hospital. Louis offered to come with her but Jade gently dissuaded him. She argued it was too soon for him to meet her mother and she insisted that current circumstances were not favourable in the least: she described her mother as not the easiest of women and disapproval on her part would undoubtedly cast a shadow on their relationship, which would be hard to overcome. She explained she would be gone only for a few days. Louis’s eyes clouded with resentment but he was left with no choice. Paul though assured Louis that he would make sure that time flew by in her absence.
The Samui Conspiracy Page 13