by Cole Reid
Thinking about women in general made him think about Marti in specific. He didn’t think much about her. He only thought it would be good to talk to her when Open Gate was closed. She was housemistress. She could keep a secret, even if he wasn’t supposed to tell her about the project or his role in it. He was beginning to find Mason’s debriefings inadequate. Talking about what happened or what went wrong would no longer do. He wanted to talk about how he felt. He felt tired. He closed his eyes and joined Diana in a shallow sleep.
It wasn’t the next morning when they woke up. It was the late evening. Diana wanted to drink water to combat the effects of too much alcohol. Xiaoyu knew the effects only because Georgia had forced him to get drunk and then answer questions. All part of his training. While Diana drank water, Xiaoyu mixed another cocktail to take the edge off and shallow the depth of his deception. He thought about how his sister had deceived him. Now he saw how it ran in the family.
“Do you have any brothers or sisters?” asked Xiaoyu.
“I was born in ’75 before the One Child Policy so my mother was allowed two of us,” said Diana, “Me and my little sister.”
“How old is she?” asked Xiaoyu.
“Two years younger,” said Diana, “What about you?”
“Older sister,” said Xiaoyu.
“Where is she now?” asked Diana.
“In America,” said Xiaoyu.
“Are you close to her?” asked Diana.
“We don’t speak,” said Xiaoyu, “We haven’t spoken in years.”
“Why is that?” asked Diana.
“It’s just the way it is,” said Xiaoyu.
“Do you miss her?” asked Diana.
“I don’t know,” said Xiaoyu.
“Wow,” said Diana.
“Why?” asked Xiaoyu.
“You don’t even know if you miss her,” said Diana, “I wonder what that says for me when you’re back in Hong Kong.”
“I’ll look back and say it was fun,” said Xiaoyu. Diana couldn’t help but laugh. After all, she had agreed that they were in it for the fun.
“What will you say?” asked Xiaoyu.
“When you’re back in Hong Kong?” said Diana, “I’ll say…I’ll say who was that mystery man anyways.”
“And who will you say this to?” asked Xiaoyu, “Yamila?”
“She’s more prone to ask about what just happened,” said Diana, “The girl’s very physical.”
“I noticed,” said Xiaoyu.
“Shut up,” said Diana.
“Well I wanted to ask you something,” said Xiaoyu.
“What?” said Diana.
“Is it too late for me to go home?” asked Xiaoyu.
“I wouldn’t go out by myself this late,” said Diana.
“Does that mean I shouldn’t either?” asked Xiaoyu.
“It’s dangerous,” said Diana.
“Maybe Yamila is out there waiting to kick my ass,” said Xiaoyu, “You did say she was physical.” Diana started laughing a tired laugh.
“Stay here then,” said Diana, “She’s a vampire. She’ll be gone in the morning.”
The morning was awkward Diana wanted to go out for breakfast but Xiaoyu used the excuse that he should go home and change. He only had his sweaty clothes from the previous day when they were rock climbing. They compromised. Diana would take a shower at her place before going back with Xiaoyu to shower at his place. Xiaoyu showered long. Diana joked that it was longer than her shower and she was excused for being a girl. What she didn’t know was that it wasn’t just a cleansing it was a transformation. The skin of Guo Bai came off so that Xiaoyu could shower. He dried himself and sprayed the skin back on. When he came back out, there was no sign of a missing man. The fact that Guo Bai had gone and come back again was forever past tense.
• • •
Sundays were interesting for any newly formed couple. It was the day not planned for. Breakfast was had at an open café on the outskirts of the city. Xiaoyu had never let the idea of being at work completely go. Being Mason’s man wouldn’t let him. He gave himself personal congratulations. The mission was unusual given his resume. He could see he was doing well. He thought back realizing he never had good friends but great teachers. Master Song. Georgia. Even Deni Tam had taught him about betrayal and how still it could lie. Some lessons couldn’t be learned any other way, if learned proper. He tipped his hat to all of them sipping an espresso—Georgia-style. He shifted the conversation to work. She had asked about his and there was little he could say given the private nature of his work. She said she was proud of her ascension. She had been promoted every year. The work was grand. It involved finding solutions to problems on a daily basis. The solutions had to be creative and she liked using her creativity. Creativity got her promoted. She didn’t say too much more. Apparently, there wasn’t much more to say.
• • •
Meeting at The Doorbell Drippery became a strange event. It wasn’t casual anymore. It was routine. But it was nice. The science of pretending was aided by routine. On the weekends, they explored the city. She took him to other parts of the country as well. Weeks went by. He was sure he played the romantic angle correctly but wasn’t sure about the other angle. Two months had gone by and he hadn’t breached the topic of Malpen’s server. Georgia said she was able to get men to share their secrets in the passenger seat of her car. Perhaps women were different. Perhaps Georgia hadn’t mentioned everything. Either way, Xiaoyu wasn’t progressing. He wasn’t sure he wanted to. His initial reservations resurfaced with added emphasis. Diana was just as human as he was. She had similar insecurities. He had solved his conflicts with violence. Diana didn’t have the luxury. With Diana, Xiaoyu began to see himself as somewhat fortunate. Most of his problems growing up were solved by accurately aiming his fists. Diana’s existence had been infinitely more complicated. She had to deal with relationships and the emotions they brought about. Most of his relationships ended abruptly. His sister left. He left his grandparents. His mom and uncle died. Uncle Woo died. He killed Deni Tam. Xiaoyu hadn’t thought of life in terms of a compilation of relationships. He had no idea how he would be with the people in his life who weren’t dead, especially his sister. He was angry at her for years. But when given the choice to help her, he did. After that, so much anger went away. It couldn’t be sustained. He had to assume she was doing the best with the life he was able to keep her in. Diana had a lot of anger toward her parents and her sister. One of the reasons she left Jiang Cheng was to show her sister how much could be achieved with hard work. At least, that’s what her parents wanted. Her sister had always been doted on by her parents and Diana was always the one they never worried about. She was bright. She’d be ok. The result was Diana having a general feeling of being neglected and trying to earn her parents’ respect outright. She even had issues at work. She felt pressured by her boss. Xiaoyu mentioned she was promoted every year. She replied he didn’t know what a woman had to do to get where she was. She measured herself by her own achievement. Xiaoyu found it easiest to draw information out of her and not ask direct questions. But it would take longer than he had, to get the access he needed. For a week, he played his position thinking how to move up field.
Mason called. It was a Friday evening. He was at the embassy and told Xiaoyu he should come. Xiaoyu’s rented apartment was northeast of the city center near diplomatic space. Most of the embassies were huddled around The Malay Regent Golf Club. The US Embassy was just off the green. Xiaoyu flashed an ID card and was waved through by a uniformed guard. He headed to the same room as his first time at the embassy. Mason was there along with Joe and the two Secret Service agents, Alex and Bobby. They had arranged themselves in similar fashion as before. Mason and the agents were drinking coffee. Joe was by the computer when Xiaoyu walked in the door. The Secret Service agents remained silent. Mason opened up.
“We’ve got a new development, Ray,” said Mason, “It will change your role but not much. Joe.”
“You remember the day you, Mason and I went rock climbing with Diana and her friend?” said Joe.
“Yamila,” said Xiaoyu.
“That would be her,” said Joe.
“What about her?” asked Xiaoyu.
“How does Diana feel about her?” asked Joe.
“It’s complicated,” said Xiaoyu, “They’re friends but Diana feels Yamila is constantly trying to be the better. Almost as if Yamila is her friend because she makes Yamila look better.”
“Complicated would be the right word,” said Joe, “I had her followed. We wanted to know more about her and her friendship with Diana. We go through the whole laundry basket.”
“While I go through the underwear drawer,” said Xiaoyu. The Secret Service agents chuckled. Mason gave Xiaoyu an interested stare. He was surprised Xiaoyu was learning sarcasm. If indeed he meant to be sarcastic. Joe made a few strokes at the keyboard to bring up a window with a frozen video.
“It’s typical procedure to checkout a target’s contacts,” said Joe, “Checkout your target’s contact.” The video was a minute and forty-eight seconds long. It showed Yamila entering an exercise studio. She entered the studio with a large heavy black gym bag on her shoulder. Despite being a natural athlete, she struggled to carry the bag. It was that full.
“This is time-lapsed,” said Joe. The video showed Yamila exiting the studio forty-six minutes after entering. Her hands were free.
“That’s Yamila,” said Joe, “Here’s this guy.” The video was cut and pasted. The last image was of a man with sunglasses exiting the studio with a bag that looked identical to the one Yamila had when she entered.
“If you look at the time on the bottom of the screen this guy leaves less than five minutes after Yamila enters with the bag she brought in, “ said Joe, “Then she leaves forty-five minutes later, no bag.”
“Probably stayed for a workout,” said Alex.
“Probably,” said Mason.
“Who is the guy leaving with the bag?” asked Xiaoyu.
“He’s a ranking member of the Kejadian Tempatan,” said Bobby, “They’re local mobsters running a few rackets around the city and surrounding areas, mostly washaterias and liquor stores. They push drugs through their stores and have a local protection racket. There’s ample evidence of their involvement with the illegal DVD shops. A lot of the arrests have been of confirmed members and associates.”
“Do you have any guess what might be in that gym bag, Ray?” said Mason.
“You flew me here because of counterfeit bills,” said Xiaoyu.
“That’s our best guess,” said Alex.
“It fits with our theory,” said Bobby.
“And the theory was that Malpen is printing the bills and passing them along to local gangs,” said Mason, “They get flushed in the police seizures, who don’t have the processes to tell the bills are fake. The cops work the bills back in the system. Good quality fakes.”
“This kind of thing hasn’t happened over night,” said Alex, “Not even the last eighteen months. They’ve spent years working on this setup. And your gal’s been working there for years.”
“Ray, remember how we said it had to be someone at the top at Malpen,” said Mason, “Diana has been promoted every year for the last five. She’s now a senior systems analysts. Who has the power to promote her? How does she get promoted every year? Is she really that good?”
“You think she’s helping counterfeit and they reward her with promotions,” said Xiaoyu.
“It fits the theory,” said Mason.
“If we assume what’s in that bag is counterfeit cash,” said Joe, “It had to come from somewhere. And we know the link between Yamila and Malpen. We went rock climbing and had lunch with them. They were sitting on the same side of the booth.”
“What do you think, Ray?” asked Mason. Xiaoyu took in a breath.
“I think it would explain the way Diana feels about Yamila,” said Xiaoyu.
“How so?” asked Bobby.
“Diana is very serious about being successful,” said Xiaoyu, “It’s why her parents wanted her to work for Malpen in Kuala Lumpur. It’s company headquarters. If this is as you say, Yamila knows she’s cheating. Diana’s not moving up because she’s successful. She’s being rewarded to keep her mouth shut. That would cause the kind of anxiety Diana has about Yamila.”
“Yamila also knows enough to send Diana to prison,” said Bobby.
“That’s a cat fight waiting to happen,” said Alex, “That’s some pent up rage looking to get out.” Joe laughed.
“If that’s fake cash in that bag, there’s no way Diana doesn’t know about it,” said Mason.
“Then I ask,” said Xiaoyu.
“Remember this situation has its political sensitivity,” said Mason. Xiaoyu looked at Mason. Alex and Bobby looked on.
“Let’s go for a walk through the building, Ray,” said Mason, “You haven’t really seen it.” The look Mason gave was all he needed to give. Xiaoyu was closest to the door. He stepped out first and Mason followed.
“Excuse us,” said Mason as he exited the room.
“Keep going,” said Mason. They walked down the hall and around the corner.
“I don’t want the Service guys to hear,” said Mason.
“Did you know Yamila and Diana were involved?” asked Xiaoyu.
“As much as we could know,” said Mason.
“You didn’t tell me,” said Xiaoyu.
“You would have been impotent if I did,” said Mason, “You had to be organic. If you’re thinking about what we know here, you’d be mechanical. You can be saved by ignorance.”
“Did Georgia teach you that?” asked Xiaoyu.
“Experience taught me that,” said Mason.
“Why are we in this hall?” asked Xiaoyu.
“Their theory is accurate because we gave it to them,” said Mason, “They’re worried about politics.”
“What are we worried about?” asked Xiaoyu.
“Nothing,” said Mason, “We don’t exist.”
“Then what’s our priority?” asked Xiaoyu.
“Yamila,” said Mason, “Not Diana.”
“Why not?” asked Xiaoyu.
“She knows more,” said Mason.
“How do you know?” asked Xiaoyu.
“Diana is an employee at Malpen,” said Mason, “She knows they’re counterfeiting. That’s nothing to us. There’s more counterfeit dollars circulating in the US than Malpen’s likely to ever print. The Secret Service is going to make some deal, probably here in this building. Malpen will stop printing. The US and the Malaysians will negotiate some bilateral trade treaty heavily favorable to the US government. Diana will be sent back to China. And what the fuck? They’ll slam the Kejadian Tempatan. Yamila will get arrested and the KT will have everything thrown on them. But what we won’t know is what else they’re doing with the counterfeit money. Not all of it was seized in the raids.”
“How do you know?” asked Xiaoyu.
“We’ve done our inventory homework,” said Mason, “Well the Service boys did half of it for us. The police records show how much fake money was seized. We and the Service boys both agree there had to be much more printed than was actually seized. Even Yamila making the drop on that video, you think that’s the only drop point? We need to track where all the money goes. She can help. Not Diana.”
“But the Secret Service will track it as well,” said Xiaoyu.
“They won’t,” said Mason, “They’ll simply cut their deal with the Malaysian government. Malpen is too economically important to the Malaysian economy to get caught up in a scandal like this. Like I said, the KT will take the fall. The Service and Malaysian cops will take photos with the seized cash. The media will call them heroes. They’ll say the whole thing has been shut down. The Secret Service doesn’t have the resources or ability to track every fake bill. They don’t try. The US Treasury redesigns the bills often enough to wash out fake bills. That’s how they fight
it. The system tolerates a certain amount of fake money. It always has. The Service guys are here to make sure the Service looks good.”
“Why should we continue if the Secret Service stops?” asked Xiaoyu.
“Counterfeit money isn’t a stopgap,” said Mason, “It’s an open gate. It facilitates other illegal activity. The Service is just here about the money but we pick up where they leave off. The Kejadian Tempatan has ties to radical groups in South Asia. We need to know what they did with the rest of the cash.”
“Yamila knows more about that,” said Xiaoyu.
“More than Diana,” said Mason, “She’s not an KT member but she’s an associate.”
“Let’s go back to the room,” said Xiaoyu.
“Why?” asked Mason.
“I need some help from the Service men,” said Xiaoyu.