The Scottish Banker of Surabaya

( 51 )

It was noon when the plane began its descent over the South China Sea to Chek Lap Kok. The sun was high in the sky and the sea glimmered in shades of gold and green. It was a beautiful day, and down below most people were basking in it.

She sped through Customs and Immigration and turned on her phone as she exited Baggage Claim and walked into the cavernous arrivals hall. She saw Sonny standing under the Meeting Place sign, dressed in his usual black suit, white shirt, and black tie, his face grim. He started to walk towards Ava as soon as he saw her. She reached up and kissed him on the cheek. “Thanks for coming,” she said.

“I’m glad you’re here,” he said, reaching for her bag. “Did you talk to Uncle this morning?”

“Yes, I did. Why?” Ava said, surprised by his question.

“What did he tell you?”

“About what?”

“Why he couldn’t come to the airport this morning.”

“He doesn’t always meet me, Sonny.”

“He does if he is able to.”

Ava heard the strain in the big man’s voice. “He told me he couldn’t come because he was meeting a friend from Shanghai today.”

“He told me the same story,” Sonny said.

“Story?”

“It’s a lie. He went to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital. There is no friend from Shanghai.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“I followed him this morning.”

“Without him seeing you?”

“I borrowed a car.”

“He also told me he was going to Guangzhou and that he would probably stay overnight,” Ava said.

“He will be staying overnight, but at Queen Elizabeth. He’s getting radiation therapy, and they’ll keep him for at least another day.”

“And how do you know that?”

“My friend, the woman, was with me. When he got out of the taxi, she tailed him inside. He registered at the front desk. When he left, she waited for a few minutes and then went to the desk. She said she was with her uncle, Mr. Chow, and that he had obviously signed in and gone on ahead. She asked where she could find him.”

“And they actually said ‘radiation therapy’?”

“They did.”

“Let’s head there now,” Ava said.

Sonny turned and walked towards the exit without saying a word. The Mercedes was parked at the curb. He opened the back door for her, putting her bag on the front seat.

Traffic was light, and they sped across the Tsing Ma Bridge. “Where exactly is the Queen Elizabeth Hospital?” Ava asked from the back seat.

“King’s Park, in the southern part of Kowloon.”

“I need to change before going to the hospital, so we’ll go to the Mandarin first. My other clothes are still there. I didn’t check out when I left yesterday.”

He looked at her in the rear-view mirror, his eyes questioning. “Are you really going to the Queen Elizabeth?”

“I am.”

“He’ll be angry.”

“I don’t care.”

“Well, he loves you enough that he’ll probably forgive you.”

“How about you? Do you want to come in with me?”

“Me? No, me he would never forgive.”

“That’s not true.”

Sonny shrugged his massive shoulders. “Maybe it isn’t, but I still can’t do it.”

“Which part of the hospital is he in?” Ava asked.

“R Block — that’s where I think all the cancer patients go. It’s fifteen storeys high. Hard to imagine how many sick people there are that they need a building that size.”

“And you said he was getting radiation therapy?”

“Yeah.”

“Then I’ll find him.”

“Ava, I called the hospital this morning to ask about visiting hours. They’re only from five thirty to seven thirty.”

“I’m not waiting until five thirty. I’m going there after I change.”

He looked at her in the mirror again and then fixed his gaze on the road.