Flower Girl: A Burton Family Mystery

by David Marshall Hunt

  “I contacted Hamish who was in Macao at the time and told him about Courtney Grey's and Ahmad Khamal's insatiable propensity for virgins. Hamish's Singapore agents immediately began digging into background information on Khamal and Courtney in addition to their constant surveillance. He soon discovered that the Khamals had trafficked in slaves since the eighteenth century, perhaps even farther back. The dhows rounding the Horn of Africa at the Red Sea often carried their human cargoes to destinations set by slave traders and pirates which included the Khamals.

  "The next day Hamish filled me in on Courtney's latest tryst. As the day progressed, I followed my usual routine and realized, via my six direction training, that someone was watching me. Seated in a back booth at the coffee house were Courtney and Khamal. This time they were with two other young girls. I was sick of following them, not being a voyeur, so I called Hamish. He put another colleague on their trail and did some discreet videotaping of their activities."

  "Damn, will these droit du seigneur perverts never learn?" I said.

  He told me he was caught up in the painful memories of the loss of Anne and Maria Cruz. "The two women who took a chance and married me, both giving me daughters, my family."

  Then, Reddy drew my attention back to his day at the Singapore coffee house. "The girl in the red shoes with the red purse returned. Still preoccupied, I missed her departure; however, as I looked out the window onto Orchard Road, she came out from the shadows across the street from the coffee house and quickly turned into a side street.

  "I paid my tab and tailed her. What I hoped to find wasn't clear. I trailed thirty meters behind the young lady. Dressed in red as she was, she’d be easy to follow. However, after following her at a safe distance for two kilometers, she merged into a crowd and there were at least five other women similarly attired so I had to pay closer attention to details if I was to stay with her to her destination. I thought I had lost her in another crowd, then, suddenly she reappeared with a shopping bag overflowing with diapers. I approached her slowly. She was shaking. It was Nurse Chao."

  “Nurse Chao is the red shoes girl. I get that." I said, "but, why was she afraid of you?"

  "My thoughts exactly, it wasn't easy to calm her and convince her that I was on her side. I shared some of our story and experiences with the Parks’ child slavery business and slowly she relaxed. Then she took me to see her thirteen year old sister and the baby, and I knew I was making some headway towards trust. The child was a beautiful boy with one blue eye and one green eye and blonde hair."

  "I guess the Grey family eye gene has been perpetuated," I said. "He has to be Courtney’s child."

  "Yes, at least I now know why she was so scared of me. She thought I was working for Courtney Grey and the Parks who would sell her sister's child into slavery." The call from Reddy seemed to be at an end so I started to ring off as Shy and Comet sashayed up to me, ready for our morning run. Then Reddy's voice returned.

  "It turns out that the red purse girl was more than a sister protecting her step sister's child," Reddy said. "She was a drug courier for one of the interns at the Parks’ Clinic. Another dead-end I thought. I still planned to keep an eye on her and ask Hamish if he could find someone to ensure her protection. However, serendipitously, on that same day, Hamish called me on my satellite phone. He had translated the Mandarin documents liberated from the Park's Singapore Clinic, and they describe each of twenty patients of the Parks’ Clinics whose cause of death was 'still-born.' He wanted to meet immediately, and I agreed to see him at the coffee house on Orchard Road in the morning."

  The next morning Reddy learned from Hamish that three of the twenty cases were at the Parks’ Singapore Clinic where Dr. Sincere Kim Park signed off as attending physician on the death certificates. The paperwork on the three cases of infant death also noted, 'fetus cremated.' Worse, all twenty infants were girls, and all but two were of mixed extraction, what are called exotics.

  Hamish also was headed to pick up some pornography, call it investigative video material, on Courtney Grey and his Arab buddy at play. While Reddy was tracking the red shoes girl, Hamish's agents had videotaped the trysts of Khamal and Courtney. "Their own proclivities were giving us the clues and info we need to bring them down." Reddy concluded.

  Reddy finally had the documents that tracked Zinni's daughter to of all places, Cheju-do Island. The original documents were under lock and key at Hamish's, and a copy was sent to Berkeley at Dalisay's Oakland Clinic and kept in a safe room.

  The documents revealed the truth about Dr. Evel Park and his child slave trade. He specialized in mixed race children who were difficult to trace with regard to ancestry and more easily could pass in a higher class social environment when called for. Dr. Park specialized in child brides. He spent years with each of his precious girls preparing them as brides for wealthy clients whose custom of multiple wives was well known. Malaysia was a popular source of clientele. Several clients had been Arab sheiks, even a prince or two. Some Japanese businessmen kept second homes in southeast Asia with their illicit child brides. Park once serviced the needs of an eighty-five year old man from Deliverance, Utah.

  I marked the Zubaida case accepted, and Reddy began formulating a plan to rescue her granddaughter from the Parks’ Home for Girls compound in Cheju-do.

  "Check out the copy of the documents from Hamish," Reddy said. In addition to the "still-births" list which clued us that Zubaida’s granddaughter was alive and being transported to the Parks’ Home for Girls on Cheju-do Island, there was a second list labeled ‘completed sales.’ A file in this second list read, ‘Sale completed to E. G., Euros 150k, 17 May, 2009ce. Letia, blonde, aged 13, parents both deceased, of Swedish and Philippine ancestry- attending physician Dr. Evel Park Jr.’

  "Get in touch with Hamish. He can fill you in on the rest of the document story."

  I left a message for Hamish. He got on a secure line and called me at my place in Berkeley a few hours later with some exciting new information on the Zubaida case.

  "I have verified that the initials EG on the Parks’ Clinics documents we liberated in Singapore is Edvard Grey," Hamish began. "Grey took delivery of Letia, a thirteen year old girl I am about to tell you about. She was delivered from Cheju to here in Seoul. They married and honeymooned on Cheju-do for three days, then immediately departed for parts unknown in Russia."

  "Damn, why weren’t we invited to the wedding?" I said with a smirk.

  Hamish added, "Letia is a Philippine/Swedish girl who was ten when Grey put a down payment for her services as a child bride. However, here comes the surprise. Grey underestimated his child bride. Letia tipped me off that she was not a willing partner for Grey. She sent me a series of coded messages, begging for my assistance. While I searched for a reliable and safe way to respond, Letia's language instructor acted as her messenger; and I was later able to bribe one of the martial arts instructors at the nearby dojang to assist.

  "Letia was resigned to her role as his wife, but she hated Edvard. Her messages told me that he was cruel to her, frequently leaving her alone for many weeks at a time. Near her wedding time, a nine year old from the Parks’ Home for Girls who was to be one of Letia's flower girls, brought me a final message containing a blueprint on the layout of the compound known as Parks’ Home for Girls and Clinic on Cheju-do. The Parks had added several underground rooms and some hi-tech security systems, as well as guard schedules and guard-dog modifications, concertina wire barriers, and a double chain link electrified fence with a dirt path in-between.

  “Letia's messages also indicated that Singapore was the Park's family business record center. Apparently they did not want to keep records in Seoul where the local police had been snooping around their clinic a bit more often than usual. She had put herself in grave danger."

  Hamish took the next flight to Singapore and orchestrated the break-in of the Parks’ Singapore clinic that resulted in the discovery of the documents he shared with Reddy. Hamish also left a few clever
clues that indicated that it was the Singapore Police, perhaps in collaboration with the ROK police who had perpetrated the break-in.

  "Hamish has a dark sense of humor," I said.

  "Yes, nevertheless his little ploy threw suspicion away from Letia," Reddy replied. "The man is a genius. Along with the other evidence, that blueprint gave me the confidence that we are ready to spring Zubaida's granddaughter."

  I sensed that Reddy was eager to return to Cheju-do to fine tune and then execute his rescue plan. He had bumped heads with their operations before, fourteen years ago when he rescued me, but the new blueprints were going to be invaluable in breaking into their compound and rescuing Zubaida's granddaughter. Putting their child bride slavery ring out of business was on his mind and mine; however, for now our focus was on rescuing the child.

  "I should be back in Berkeley in a few days,” Reddy said. “I still recommend that you do not share this latest info with Princess Zubaida and Zinni. I will contact them face-to-face when we know more. My best regards to Dalisay and Angie. By the way, is Angie still hanging out with that CIA guy?"

  I really liked Reddy’s tone of total confidence. He did not say, "If we are successful in rescuing Zubaida's granddaughter." However, I sensed that something else was on Reddy's mind. For the second time he said to me, "You're ready, Shannon. We’ll talk more en route to Cheju-do." I knew better than to press the issue; however, my curiosity and anticipation was surging. I wanted to shout out, “Who's my target?” However, I was also thinking, at last I shall visit my mother's grave.

  Chapter 7: Cheju-do Island

  Exactly when Reddy returned from Singapore is a mystery, but he did call in irregularly with updates on the Zubaida case and to let us know he'd be back in the Bay area soon. Okay, so he wasn't yet perfect at keeping his family informed of his whereabouts, but what else would we expect from an ex-agent sniper.

  Reddy bursts out of his basement hide-away looking disheveled as if he hadn't slept in a week.

  "How's Michaela coming along?" I asked nonchalantly.

  "I got in at 4am this morning and stayed up until I finished my work on her. She's good to go."

  I looked at Shy and Comet and said, “Great watch dogs!"

  Being dogs, they totally ignored my sarcasm.

  Reddy abruptly changed the subject. "We need to take off for Cheju-do Island in a few days. Can you get away from your lab job without creating too much attention? Sarge just finished removing the pontoons and adding extra fuel tanks to the Pilatus PC12 for our flight to Cheju-do. The man is a genius with bush aircraft and he has increased the range of the Pilatus PC12 to nearly 2,200 miles. He’s flying her to Oakland day after tomorrow. When can you be ready to leave?

  I thought, 2,200 miles range. That can’t be enough to get across the Pacific Ocean via the Ring of Fire. However, I let it drop for now. "Speaking of Michaela and those who covet her, before I go anywhere with you, I want some answers to a mystery that has been puzzling me."

  "Shoot!" Reddy replied.

  "The Burton family, such as it is, has enjoyed two months of bonding and training time at Skeleton Lake for each of three straight years." I asked Reddy, "Why hasn't the CIA discovered our regular summer visits to Skeleton Lake?"

  "It helps to have a contact in the CIA who keeps them chasing false leads," Reddy replied. "Besides, if you can't figure out where I am most of the time, what makes you think they can find me?"

  "Okay, so you keep me in the dark as to your whereabouts just as a part for me to play in your little game of hide and seek," I replied.

  "I told you I like remote places. Someday maybe I’ll share some of my magic." Reddy was genuinely smiling; it was a devilish sort of smile. Reddy's voice remained calm as he continued, "Actually, my main strategy is just to keep moving; however, I built a small home on Cheju-do Island off the southern coast of the Korean peninsula. The house is near the southern base of 6,000 foot high Halla-san Mountain, a dormant volcano. It is sixty kilometers from Udo Island and Seongsan Ilchulbang, another volcanic crater, close to Sunrise Peak which overlooks the emerald green waters of the China Sea in the Korean Straits. We get sunrises and sunsets that are stunning. Cheju is full of history about mermaids and women pearl divers, archaeological and legendary tales. Meanwhile, you can expect a call from Hamish; we have some arrangements to complete on the Zubaida case."

  I should have asked him "what arrangements?" However, I was too excited about visiting Cheju-do Island to ask. I have longed for years to see the place where Reddy buried the ashes of my mother and me.

  "Okay, I'll call my boss at the Berkeley Labs and say that I’m taking a month of my accrued vacation time, no details. I've been continuing my research on Korean history with an emphasis on the contributions of women, and I just heard from Rhyly earlier in the week that she’s researching Korean women during Silla dynasty times. She actually suggested doing an historical tour of Silla era artifacts and sites. She's arriving in Berkeley to give a lecture at UC on Friday; can she come with us to Cheju-do?"

  "That should work out," Reddy said. "However, I need her to do us a favor and fly here with Sarge. Sarge was going to deliver the PC12 by himself; however, he’ll be glad for the company. He can get Rhyly qualified to fly the Pilatus PC-12 and she can be our co-pilot on the four day flight to Cheju." It was as if he’d planned this all along. Was this a sample of his magic? Damn, he’s grinning again.

  Meanwhile, I called Rhyly and told her to cancel her commercial flight and get together with Sarge. She sounded really excited. She had finished her RVU teaching duties until July when she would again honcho the Moosonee Factory archaeological dig for Professor Craft.

  "Okay, Rhyly's travel arrangements are set. More importantly, you’re assuming that I want to visit your hideaway on Cheju-do Island; however, I must insist on visiting my mother's grave. June 2nd is nearly upon us," I replied.

  "After we take care of business, we will visit Anne's grave," Reddy said with another big grin, adding, "What are you waiting for? Pack lightly or whatever you want. The PC12 can handle the weight."

  Sarge filed a flight plan from River View to Oakland with Rhyly as co-pilot. She landed the Pilatus PC12 at Oakland International and checked in with Reddy and me by cell phone. "We’ve arrived. Sarge is staying with some friends in San Mateo. Shall I take a taxi to your place?"

  "Let's meet at the Clinic. It’s right near you in the old Oakland Naval Yards. After we visit Dalisay at her clinic, we can head to my place in Berkeley. See you soon." I rang off.

  "I'll bet you’re really pumped up about visiting your mother's grave," Rhyly said as she gave me a hug and I tried not to cringe.

  By the time we arrived at my place Rhyly had already come up with a flight plan and suggested we depart from Oakland International Airport (OAK), first refueling at Vancouver/ Richmond, BC (YVR), then refuel in Juneau, Alaska (JNU), with another refueling stop in Bethel (BET) in west Alaska on the banks of the Kuskokwin River (inYupik, Kuskokwin meant a slow moving thing), then across the Bering Straits, flying over many of the Pacific Ring of Fire active and inactive volcanoes to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky (PKC) on south Kamchatka Peninsula, with a final refueling at Hakodate, Hokkaido, Japan (HKD), then on to Cheju-do Island, Jeju International Airport (CJU). The extra fuel tanks that Sarge added made this route possible.

  Reddy never flinched. He just said, "Sounds good to me. File the flight plan for a take off in two days."

  Rhyly asked, "Can we spend a couple of days checking out the brown bears and volcanoes near Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky (PKC)? Also, there is an Ainu village near PKC that I would like to visit, part of my research."

  "Great idea," Reddy replied. "We'll do it on the return flight."

  I couldn’t let the mileage thing drop, so I asked, "You said Sarge increased the PC12 to a flight range of 2,200 miles. How will that get us across the Pacific?"

  "Rhyly Raincrow, copilot here. Good question, young lady. Your pilot will be Reddy Burton. We have one passen
ger, Shannon Burton, cargo manifest attached. Flight Plan: Pilatus PC-12 tail # N577RB, depart Oakland (OAK) 11 May for Vancouver BC (794 miles) to Anchorage (1,326) to Kamchatka Peninsula (1,794) to Northern Hokkaido/Hakodate (1,310) to Cheju-do (966). Total miles 6,000 plus. We will be in Cheju-do in five days."

  "I get it, we will be hopping across the Pacific via the Bering Straits at less than 2,200 miles per leg with a few hundred miles of fudge factor on the fuel allowance for each leg," I said.

  Two days later (11 May 2014), Reddy was eager and happy to get back behind the controls of the Pilatus PC12. I was even more eager to visit Anne's grave. Rhyly was excited about making a tour of Silla era artifacts and sites. Dalisay was busy packing and keeping Shy and Comet out from under foot. I was sure they thought they too were going for a flight.

  We said our goodbyes to Shy and Comet. Clearly disappointed that they were not joining us, sad eyed and tails down, they watched from the driveway as we headed for Oakland International Airport. I was certain that Dalisay would take good care of them and run with them in the hills each morning.

  Rhyly filed the flight plan with Oakland Tower while Reddy and I loaded our bags and sniper gear into the PC12 and completed a pre-flight check. I asked Reddy, "How do you plan to get these weapons cases through customs in Cheju-do?"

  "Hamish has it covered."

  We departed from Oakland on time for Vancouver with Reddy in the pilot's seat. I could think of only two things, visiting my mother's grave and who might my target be? I was pretty sure it would be one of the Parks, but which one, Sincere or Evel Junior?

  Rhyly took the controls and flew the leg from Vancouver to Bethel, Alaska. Reddy got in back with me away from the engine noise, and we discussed the plans that we hoped to execute to conclude Zubaida's case. Reddy was planning ahead for a getaway after hopefully rescuing Zubaida's granddaughter from the Parks’ Home for Girls on Cheju-do Island. He did not want to be reliant on commercial flights for our getaway. That’s why the PC12 arrangements were so crucial.