Liang’s eyes glittered with greed but he said cautiously: ‘You must be corrupt if you can afford a watch like that.’
‘It was a present from my wife.’
‘Then she must be corrupt.’
‘My wife is Tao Ting.’
‘From Love in the Palace?’ Liang was thrilled. ‘I love that show!’
‘She plays Sun Mailin.’
‘I know! The emperor’s favourite concubine.’
‘You could call her for me on your phone.’
‘You mean I could speak to her?’
‘If you want. Then pass the phone to me.’
‘Oh, wait until my girlfriend hears about this!’
‘I’ll write down the number for you to dial.’
Liang hesitated. ‘I’ll take the watch as well, though.’
‘All right. As soon as you pass me the phone.’
‘Agreed.’ Liang dialled the number Kai gave him.
A moment later Liang said: ‘Am I speaking to Tao Ting? Yes, I’m with your husband, but before I pass you to him, I just want to say that my girlfriend and I love the show and it’s such an honour to speak to you – Oh, you’re very kind to say that, thank you! Yes, here he is.’
He gave the phone to Kai, and Kai gave him the Rolex.
Then Kai said: ‘My darling.’
Ting burst into tears.
‘Don’t cry,’ said Kai.
‘Your mother told me they put you in jail – she says it’s your father’s fault!’
‘That’s true.’
‘And the Americans have destroyed half of North Korea with nuclear bombs and everyone says China will be next! Is that true?’
Kai felt that if he answered honestly she would become even more upset. ‘I don’t think President Chen is so foolish as to let that happen,’ he said, not really telling a lie but not telling the truth either.
‘Everything’s going crazy,’ she said. ‘All the stop lights in Beijing have been turned off and the traffic is gridlocked.’
‘That’s the Americans’ doing,’ he said. ‘Cyber war.’
Liang took off his old watch and put on his new Rolex. He held up his wrist, relishing how it looked.
Ting said: ‘When will you get out of there?’
Never, Kai thought, if the old Communists fire a nuclear weapon at the US. But he said: ‘If you and my mother put pressure on my father, it might not be too long.’
Ting sniffed noisily and managed to stop crying. ‘What’s it like in there? Are you cold? Are you hungry?’
‘It’s a lot better than the average prison,’ Kai said. ‘Don’t worry about my comfort.’
‘What’s the bed like? Will you be able to sleep?’
Right now Kai could not imagine sleeping, but he supposed nature would take its course sooner or later. ‘The only thing wrong with my bed is that you’re not in it.’
That made her cry again.
Liang stopped admiring his watch and said: ‘Not much longer. The other guards will wonder what I’m doing.’
Kai nodded. ‘Darling, I have to hang up.’
‘I’m going to put your photo on the pillow next to me so that I can still look at you.’
‘Just lie still and think about the good times we’ve had together. That will help you sleep.’
‘I’m going to see your father first thing in the morning.’
‘That’s a good idea.’ Ting in person could be very persuasive.
‘I’ll do everything I can to get you out of there.’
‘We can hope.’
‘We must think positively. I’m going to say goodnight, and see you tomorrow.’
‘Sleep well,’ said Kai. ‘Goodbye, my love.’
*
For the first time, Pauline held a meeting in the Situation Room at Munchkin Country. It was a replica of the one in the White House. The key people were there: Gus, Chess, Luis, Bill, Jacqueline and Sophia. Tension was high but they still did not know what China was going to do. It was the middle of the night in Beijing and perhaps the government there would make its decision in the morning. Until then there was little the US could do but fight off cyberattacks, which, so far, had been a nuisance but not crippling.
Pauline returned to her quarters to have lunch with Pippa. They ordered hamburgers from the canteen. Then Pippa said it: ‘When will Daddy get here?’
Pauline had been expecting this. She had been trying to reach Gerry but he was not answering his phone. Now she had to tell Pippa the truth. So be it, she thought.
She said: ‘Daddy and I have a problem.’
Pippa was puzzled but also troubled. She could guess that this would be bad. ‘What do you mean?’
Pauline hesitated. How much would Pippa understand? How much would Pauline herself have understood at the age of fourteen? She was not sure: it was too long ago and, anyway, her parents had never split up. She swallowed and said: ‘Daddy’s fallen in love with someone else.’
Pippa looked bewildered. Clearly she had never imagined this. Like most children, she unthinkingly regarded her parents’ marriage as eternal.
She said: ‘He’s not leaving us, is he?’
Pippa would see this as Gerry abandoning her as well as her mother. But Gerry had not said he was moving out. ‘I don’t know what he’s going to do,’ Pauline said truthfully, though she might have added that she could guess. ‘All I know is that right now he wants to be with her.’
‘What’s wrong with us?’
‘I don’t know, honey.’ Pauline asked herself the question. Was it her job? Was the sex dull? Or did he simply fancy something different? ‘Maybe nothing,’ she said. ‘Maybe some men just need change.’
‘Who is it, anyway?’
‘Someone you know.’
‘Really?’
‘It’s Ms Judd.’
Pippa burst out laughing. She stopped just as suddenly. ‘It’s ludicrous,’ she said. ‘My father and my school principal. Sorry I laughed. It’s not funny. Except it is.’
‘I know what you mean. There’s something grotesque about the whole thing.’
‘When did it start?’
‘Maybe during that trip to Boston.’
‘In that crappy hotel? Imagine that!’
‘I’d rather not dwell on the details, honey, if you don’t mind.’
‘It just feels like everything is falling apart. Nuclear war, and Daddy leaving us, what next?’
‘We still have each other,’ Pauline said. ‘I promise you, that isn’t going to change.’
Their food arrived. Despite her distress Pippa ate a cheeseburger and fries and drank a chocolate shake. Then she went back to her room.
Pauline finally got Gerry on the phone. ‘Couple of things I need to talk to you about,’ she said. She felt stiffly formal, which was strange with the man she had been sleeping with for fifteen years. She wondered whether Ms Judd was in the room with him. Where was he, anyway? Her place? A hotel? Perhaps they had both gone to her friend’s winery in Middleburg. It would be less dangerous than downtown Washington, though not much.
‘Okay,’ he said warily. ‘I’m listening.’
She could tell from his voice that he was happy. Happy without me. Is it my fault? What did I do wrong?
She shoved those foolish thoughts aside. ‘I’ve told Pippa what’s happening,’ she said. ‘I had to. She couldn’t understand why you weren’t here with us.’
‘I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to dump that responsibility on you.’ He did not sound very sorry. ‘I’ve told the Secret Service, not that they hadn’t guessed.’
She said: ‘You still need to talk to her. She has a lot of questions and I can’t answer them all.’
‘Is she with you now?’
‘No, she’s in her own room, but she has her phone, you could call her.’
‘I will. What was the other thing? You said you had two.’
‘Yes.’ Pauline was determined not to quarrel with the man she had loved for years. If it was possible, she wanted them both to think fondly of their time together. ‘I just wanted to say thank you,’ she said. ‘Thank you for the good times. Thank you for loving me as long as you did.’
There was a short silence, and when he spoke he sounded choked up. ‘That’s a wonderful thing to say.’
‘You supported me for years. You deserved more time and attention than I could spare. Too late now, I know, but I’m sorry about that.’
‘You don’t have anything to apologize for. I was privileged to be with you. It was mostly good, wasn’t it?’
‘Yes,’ said Pauline. ‘It was mostly good.’
*