Inside, the walls were a dirty beige and the floor was composed of gray stone. Lo went to the desk and explained that David was here for Governor Sun. The woman made a call, rattled off a few high-pitched phrases to the investigator, and pointed at the straight-back chairs that lined an adjacent wall.
“She says you are to wait here and I am to wait outside,” Lo explained. “Someone will be with you shortly.” Before David could say anything, Lo exited the building. David did as he’d been told. Five minutes turned into fifteen. Despite the open windows and the fan whirling overhead, the room was desperately hot. Every few minutes someone opened a door, peeked out, stared at David, then closed the door again.
Finally Assistant Secretary Gao emerged, her high heels clicking efficiently on the stone floor. She wore a light suit and somehow managed to look cool. “I’m sorry to keep you waiting, Mr. Stark. I was not told of your arrival until just now.”
David found this unlikely.
“Please come with me.”
Again David obeyed.
But instead of going to Governor Sun’s office, he was led into Assistant Secretary Gao’s. “Please be seated,” she said. She sat down behind her desk, pushed an intercom button, and spoke a few words. A minute later a pretty young woman arrived with a thermos and cups. After the tea was poured and the girl left, Amy asked, “How can I help you?”
“I need to meet with Governor Sun.”
“What is this in regard to?” she asked earnestly.
“He has asked me to represent him on some matters. I’m here to go over them with him.”
“I’m familiar with all of the governor’s affairs. Please feel free to discuss them with me.”
Hulan had often talked about Chinese bureaucracy and how it was designed to move sluggishly, create the most paperwork, and aggravate, thereby controlling the petitioner. No wonder guanxi—connections—were so important. People did anything they could to circumvent bureaucratic layers and go straight to the top, whether in a hospital emergency room or in a business situation such as this.
“With all due respect, Assistant Secretary, I think it prudent to wait for Governor Sun.”
“I believe Governor Sun himself told you that if you had any problems you should speak to me. That is my job and I’m here to help.”
How tempting it was to just open his briefcase, toss Sun’s documents on Amy’s desk, and ask her what they meant. She was bright. Like most women in similar positions, she probably did more work and knew more about Sun’s affairs than he did. Still, if Sun had committed a crime, then David would be violating China’s judicial code in discussing these affairs with the assistant secretary.
“I’ll just have to wait for the governor.”
“Then you’ll have to wait a long while. He has already left for Knight International.”
“But you said that I should come right down and I’d be able to see him.”
“Unfortunately, he was unable to delay his departure. Mr. Knight wanted to meet with him before the ceremony started. If you’d gotten here earlier, then perhaps he would have been able to see you.” She glanced at her watch, then offered helpfully, “You’re going to be late if you don’t hurry. I’m sure you don’t want to miss anything.”
“I’ve been sitting out in your lobby for the last hour,” David said coldly.
“This is unlucky, but as I said before, I didn’t know you were here.” In light of the two phone calls that had announced his arrival, as well as the numerous people who had taken a gander at him, this seemed disingenuous at the very least.
“And, I might add, as I was sitting there, I didn’t see Governor Sun leave the building.”
Amy smiled at David in a pitying way. “Attorney Stark, surely you don’t believe that a building such as this would only have one exit.” She paused, then added, “Perhaps if you come back on Monday or Tuesday, the governor will be able to accommodate you.” She opened the top drawer of her desk, pulled out an appointment book, opened it, and looked at David expectantly.
Again, this kind of runaround was common in China, but it wasn’t common to David. Not only was he used to appointments being met—certainly as an assistant U.S. attorney he was accustomed to being treated with respect—but he was feeling very much at the mercy of circumstances. So, he did the one thing he shouldn’t have. He lost his temper.
He stood, leaned over the assistant secretary’s desk, and said gruffly, “Tell your boss I’ll see him later. Tell him it won’t be so easy for him to avoid me. Tell him…” David looked down at Assistant Secretary Gao. She looked frightened, and he wondered just how far he could or should go. He wanted the urgency of his message relayed, and he wanted to guarantee a prompt response. The only way to do that was to shade the truth. “Tell him I understand what he was doing. Tell him I have other documents that will be of great concern to him.”
David didn’t wait for a response, sensing that the impact of his words would be greater if he walked out. Once he had left, however, he felt anxiety bubbling up in him again. Miss Gao was young and, for all he knew, inexperienced. What if she didn’t understand the seriousness of his words? What if she dismissed him as just another rude American? As David stepped back into the sweltering heat, he knew he’d done the best he could given the circumstances. But after the revelations of last night, he’d hoped to grab the loose ends, examine them, make sense of them. Instead it was quarter to eleven, he was sweating like a pig in a government courtyard, and all that he’d accomplished was a conversation that by Chinese standards could only be considered ill-mannered and lacking finesse.
16
BY THE TIME DAVID AND INVESTIGATOR LO REACHED THE compound, the festivities were in full swing. A podium, dais, dance floor, and seating for two hundred had been set up under a canopy. Balloons swayed in the hot air. Streamers billowed from poles, and posters of Sam & His Friends stood on easels in a semicircle next to the dais where Henry and Doug Knight sat with Governor Sun Gan and Randall Craig. Music played from loudspeakers, and on the dance floor a group of about twenty girls dressed in colorful costumes came to the end of an acrobatic routine. The audience, which seemed to be made up almost entirely of Chinese women, politely applauded.
Sandy Newheart saw David and waved him over to the front row. As David sat down, Sandy whispered, “You’re late.”
“Sorry,” David said. “It couldn’t be helped.”