Cold Secrets (Cold Justice Book 7)

by Toni Anderson

  People were always the weakest link. Man’s curiosity and ingenuity battled constantly with safety and security. Hell, just look at the origin of the name “Trojan.”

  He eyed Nelson Shaw narrowly and nodded toward the photographs. “Who are these guys?”

  “I believe these are the people behind the murder of your agents and police officers.” The HK police detective arranged the photographs but Lucas didn’t recognize any of them.

  “How do you know?” He sounded surly even to his own ears.

  Sloan glanced at him in surprise.

  Nelson Shaw’s expression became amused. “Have you heard of the old saying, the enemy of my enemy is my friend?”

  “These people are your enemies?” Lucas asked.

  Nelson nodded. “The Dragon Devils were the scourge of mainland China for many years before they expanded their horizons.”

  “Dragon Devils? I’ve never heard of them,” said Lucas.

  Nelson inclined his head. “Few people have. Fewer still mention their name to the police.”

  “You obviously know who they are, but you’ve never been able to catch them or stop them?” asked Lucas.

  Nelson lost his smile. “We’ve come close on occasion.”

  “Not close enough,” Lucas said coldly.

  Nelson’s initial good humor frosted over. “An experience I believe you share, Agent Randall.”

  The guy was right, and Lucas gave a sharp laugh. “You have any names?” So far these offenders had run rings around them, and he wanted some way of rounding them all up and putting them in prison where they belonged. And if the Chinese authorities wanted to help, he was all for it. As long as they didn’t want anything in return.

  “The Devils ran away from mainland China to Hong Kong in the seventies and set up shop. When Beijing regained the territory in 1997 the Devils moved on to Taiwan, but they operated across Asia, transporting heroin and other drugs. They set up gambling dens, extortion and prostitution rings, and human trafficking.” Nelson’s features were suitably sober. He pointed to a picture of a middle-aged man. “This is the last picture taken of the man believed to be the leader, Yu Chang. Chang was in Macau in 2003 doing business with some other criminal elements. We had a man on the inside who managed to sneak this picture out. The next day our undercover agent was discovered in six parts, laid out on the beach like he was sunbathing. His eyes and tongue had been removed while he was still alive—it’s one of their signatures.” Nelson’s tone was carefully flat.

  Lucas’s gaze flashed to Sloan. They hadn’t released that detail about the Susan Thomas murder, but it was an unusually barbaric MO for this part of the world.

  “Is Yu Chang still in charge?” Lucas stared at the man’s image. He’d be in his late sixties by now, maybe his seventies.

  “We don’t know. We do know the organization is fiercely loyal to its leader but we aren’t sure who the leader is. They are notoriously secretive about their operations—more so than most secret societies.”

  “What makes you think the Dragon Devils is the gang behind the Chinatown brothel bombing?” Lucas asked.

  Nelson pursed his lips. “We have no proof, but we do have circumstantial evidence.”

  Sloan blew out a big breath that deflated her whole body. They’d been hoping for a solid lead.

  Nelson pulled out an old photograph of Ray Tan. “This man who died was a known associate of the Dragon Devils in 2003. He was an enforcer for their gambling operations in Macau, but we lost track of him. He came to our attention again when he was assassinated on the street yesterday.”

  Information clicked into place. “And that’s why they killed him,” Lucas said. “Because they knew he had valuable information he could use to barter for his freedom.”

  “Ray Tan would never have betrayed the Devils. No one would. You’ve seen what happens to those who do.” Nelson was unsmiling as he held Lucas’s stare.

  Lucas looked away. Yeah, he’d seen what happened to those who crossed these people. With a series of brutal murders, the perps successfully created an atmosphere of fear and terrified silence. The longer they remained fugitives the more frightened the community became and the more incompetent the FBI looked.

  Sloan’s phone buzzed. She checked it and swore. “Mayor Everett is in the SAC’s office and wants an update. Fuentes, you’re with me. Randall, carry on talking to Detective Shaw. Get as much information as you can about this organization.”

  “We are happy to offer any assistance we can,” the detective said formally.

  “Thank you. If we can definitively connect the Dragon Devils to the brothel we can start accumulating more information from other sources. We appreciate your help.” She shook Nelson’s hand, and she and Fuentes left.

  Lucas and Nelson assessed one another as the door closed.

  “I’m the leading expert on the Devils,” Nelson said quietly.

  “Why haven’t we heard of them before?” Lucas didn’t bother to hide the fact he was unconvinced.

  Nelson gave a small laugh that didn’t sound amused. “The Chinese leaders do not want people to know that someone has bested their efforts to track them down for nearly fifty years.”

  Lucas frowned. “How have they eluded capture for so long?”

  Nelson shrugged. “They’re very rich and very careful. They fly under the radar. The gang members are more terrified of their leadership than they are of the authorities. Whenever we get information on them they shut up shop and move on. Disappear. They’re smart. They don’t take chances. And they always seem to know more than they should about our activities.”

  “You think they have someone inside your police force?”

  “Yours, too,” Nelson said. “They know everything my department does. They probably know my seat number for the flight back home.”

  “They murdered a bunch of law enforcement officials here. That’s not exactly flying under the radar.”

  Nelson inclined his head. “Maybe I’m wrong about their involvement. I just know I’ve been searching for this gang for many years now.”

  Lucas raised his brows. The guy couldn’t be over thirty.

  Nelson spotted the skepticism. “That man who took the last picture of Yu Chang?”

  Lucas nodded.

  “My father.” Nelson’s expression didn’t alter, but the timbre of his voice changed. “He was an undercover detective with the HKPD. I was sixteen.”

  “I’m sorry for your loss,” Lucas said carefully.

  “It was a difficult time.” Nelson’s smile was stoic. “I loved him, and I didn’t let his death define him, but I want his killers brought to justice.”

  That convinced him more than anything else the man had said. Lucas leaned over the photographs. “Tell me everything you know.”

  Nelson’s stance slumped. “The problem is that even after many years of hunting these people I know very little,” he admitted. He spread out the photographs on the table. “These are people we believe were involved in running the Dragon Devils’ operations in Macau in association with Ray Tan in 2003.”

  Lucas squinted hard at the images, then pointed to one. “Thirty pounds heavier, and he could be a person I saw at the brothel.” The man who’d secretly visited Becca’s room.

  Nelson nodded excitedly. “Xiang Cho. You saw him?”

  “Yep. He’s heavier and has a lot less hair than in that photo.”

  “He’s a very dangerous individual. Was in the military for many years. Mean as a snake, but not as smart as one.”

  “Experienced with explosives?” Lucas asked.

  Nelson nodded.

  Lucas would give every penny he had to spend ten minutes alone in a room with the scumbag. He stared at the other photos but didn’t recognize any of them. “If this guy, Yu Chang, is no longer in charge of the gang, who’s his most likely successor?”

  “The Devils were started by Yu Chang’s grandfather in the fifties. Its leadership has passed strictly within the family ever
since.”

  “Their own little dynasty? So I take it Yu Chang has a son?”

  Nelson pulled out another photo from his file. A teenage boy with an arrogant smirk who might have been one of the men Lucas had seen in the brothel. “Yes, but the rumor is the entire family was caught up in the tsunami of 2004. We have no firm sightings of any of them after that event—just whispers. They went even further underground, and became almost mythical in how they operated. But someone survived—the empire appears to have expanded dramatically over the last few years, and it’s become even more powerful with the advent of the internet.”

  So they probably had someone good with computers working for them, just like Ashley hypothesized.

  “One interesting thing.” Nelson pulled out another photograph. “Yu Chang had a sister, Jun, who died in an airplane crash in late 2003.”

  Lucas dropped to his seat and tried to pretend it had been intentional. The photograph showed a wedding portrait of a tall Chinese woman and a blond white guy with a California tan and teeth.

  “Jun and James Britton. They had two kids, Andrew and Jenny.”

  Another photograph, and Lucas took a sledgehammer to the chest. The kids smiled out of separate school portraits. The boy looked the older of the two and wore thick glasses. The girl had ebony hair that was almost long enough for her to sit on.

  He knew those eyes, the line of that elegant neck, the slope of that nose. If it wasn’t Ashley Chen, she had a twin.

  “What did Jun’s husband do?” Grit invaded his throat.

  “James Britton ran a computer company out of Silicon Valley.”

  He taught me code as soon as I could write.

  “The police reports suggested the plane crash wasn’t an accident,” Nelson told him, but the words echoed down a long tunnel of denial.

  Lucas took a moment to absorb the information. “What happened to the children?”

  “They went to live with their uncle.”

  “Their uncle the suspected leader of a Chinese organized crime family? How is that even possible?”

  “Yu Chang probably paid off someone in the States to make it happen.”

  Lucas stared at the man with fury in his heart. “I’m going to need a name.”

  Nelson inclined his head slowly. “The rumors were that the girl, Jenny, perished during the tsunami. There were reports her brother and her cousin were searching for her in the aftermath.”

  Keep an eye on Ashley Chen.

  Every detail of her life is accounted for, and it all fits together perfectly. It’s like the whole thing has been choreographed.

  Lucas felt like a fool. He’d been so quick to dismiss a guy he’d gone to war with—whose instincts were razor sharp and honed by a lifetime of experience.

  Was it possible that Special Agent Ashley Chen was Yu Chang’s niece? Was she working for the other side? Feeding them information? The realization he’d been within minutes of telling her about Becca made bile rise in his throat. He pictured her talking to Ray Tan on the street yesterday—remembered how the shooter had held fire even though she was standing right in front of him.

  He’d been such a goddamned idiot.

  Had she seduced him on purpose? To have an inside line to the heart of the investigation? Or maybe because Mallory mentioned she suspected someone had survived that explosion? Had she searched his room? He thought hard, but there was nothing there that she wasn’t already privy to.

  Lucas wanted to excuse himself, but he couldn’t leave the Hong Kong detective alone. He needed to take his suspicions to Sloan. Still he hesitated. Ashley had done a lot to aid this investigation, and if he was wrong he could ruin her career for nothing except the fact she resembled a dead woman.

  But what if he was right?

  He needed to find out where Ashley was, who she was, and exactly what she was doing.

  He took photographs of several of the images and sent a quick text to the one person in the world who would trust him without asking too many questions. Alex Parker.

  Nelson watched him speculatively. Did he already know about Ashley? Had he expected her to be here? Was he thinking of using this photograph to blackmail Lucas or the FBI? Was she actually working for the Chinese government?

  “What do you want in exchange for this information?” Lucas asked brusquely, clenching his fist inside his jacket pocket.

  “My government wants the Dragon Devils brought to justice and put out of business and will help in any way it can.” Nelson lost all trace of affability as he held Lucas’s gaze. “I want revenge for my father’s death.”

  Lucas let out a breath he hadn’t known he was holding. “Revenge?”

  Nelson shrugged. “Retribution.”

  There wasn’t much difference in his book.

  “I’ll let you know what we come up with.”

  “I want to be there when you arrest them,” Nelson stated firmly.

  “I’ll take it up with my boss.” Lucas wasn’t making promises he might not be able to keep. He moved to show the detective out. Lucas had a hell of a lot to do, first tracking down the agent who’d rocked his universe last night.

  The detective paused in the doorway, a frown marring his brow. “My mother cried every night for a year when my father was murdered. She cried again when I joined the force, but I promised myself and her I’d find his killer and make sure his sacrifice wasn’t for nothing.” He held Lucas’s gaze. “I know you don’t trust me, but remember, I came to you with the first solid lead you have.” He offered his business card. “I’m staying in Boston for a few days in case there are any developments. Contact me if I can help.”

  Lucas took the card and showed the guy all the way out to the street and watched him walk away. Then he called Parker.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Brandon couldn’t believe Jenny was alive. And that selfish, annoying bitch was not only alive, she’d faked her own death, changed her identity and joined the goddamned FBI. It was a ballsy move by the pampered princess, but his little cousin had never lacked balls. She made her brother look like a pussy.

  Andrew was a pussy, but he was also the only person on the planet, besides his father, Brandon gave a damn about. And that made this situation difficult.

  Andrew had been devastated by the time he’d finally accepted his sister was dead. Brandon had physically dragged him away once the risk of disease had grown too high in a place where the scent of human decay had filled the air.

  He walked through the busy kitchens of the hotel where Ashley was staying as if he belonged there. White shirt and black pants made it easy to blend in. In the corridor beyond the main kitchen, a row of room service carts lined the wall.

  “You.” A red-faced chef carried a large tray of food through the swinging doors and placed it gently on a cart. “Room 441. Where’s your uniform?”

  Brandon smiled boyishly. “I’m new. Housekeeping told me to wait here for instructions.”

  The chef’s eye twitched with his opinion of housekeeping. He went back inside the kitchen and returned a moment later, thrusting a red jacket into Brandon’s chest. “Hurry up. Room 441. Before it gets cold.”

  “Yes, sir.” Brandon buttoned the jacket as the man went back to his cooking. The guy would piss himself when he realized who he’d been talking to. Brandon took the cart and pushed it to the service elevator just down the hallway. It was almost too easy. He started whistling as he pressed the button, enjoying the scent of the freshly cooked meal. He’d been living on Ramen noodles for the last week and was sick of it. Being on the run and hiding in a dump of an apartment in Cambridge was not his idea of fun. He watched the numbers climb. Jenny, Jenny, Jenny—he couldn’t wait to see the look on her face when she saw him.

  They should be using the fact she was alive to their advantage. If it was up to him he’d either blackmail her into working for them, or simply leave her alone, let her think she was safe. That way he could kill her at a more convenient time—maybe when the entire law enforcemen
t community of the United States wasn’t looking for him. He’d like to spend his time conveying his anger about the fact she’d lied to them. That she’d disrespected his father, her brother, and him by being a conniving little slut. He wished she’d died in that fucking disaster in Thailand. He still had nightmares about the wave, not that he’d ever tell anyone. Then he’d been forced to sift through bodies like trash. He shuddered.

  Yeah, if he was in charge, Jenny would pay for her deception in blood. But he wasn’t in charge. Not yet.

  His father was obsessed. He’d almost died of grief when they’d lost her.

  Now the old man wanted her back. He wanted her punished. But mostly he wanted her.

  Brandon had heard the stories about how his father had gone insane with fury when Jun had met an American boy in college and quickly married the guy. He’d broken every piece of furniture in his home. Brandon suspected the only reason the old man hadn’t killed James Britton was because his father’s mother had forbade it.

  Honoring parents was everything in Chinese culture, even for men like Yu Chang.

  Brandon didn’t think it was a coincidence that less than six months after his grandmother passed, so had the American. But Yu Chang’s grief at Jun’s death had been genuine.

  Only the fact Jenny looked so much like her mother stopped his father from unraveling completely. Once he’d seen photographs of the girl, he’d paid huge sums of money to buy off lawyers and officials to get Jun’s children under his roof, and he’d seemed genuinely happy when they’d arrived. The fact the old man wanted to fuck Jenny was sick, but Brandon didn’t give a shit. It wasn’t an affliction he shared. His cousin’s headstrong ways and defiant manner were decidedly unattractive. He just wished she’d stayed dead.

  Brandon shuddered deliciously as he thought about what Yu Chang would do to Jenny, but was less enthralled with what his father might do to him if he didn’t bring her home. His father was seventy-three now, but he still controlled the Devils with a fist of iron.