“Come quickly,” Vikram instructed, ushering them all in.
“What is this place?” Astrid asked.
“This is the pump room that controls the intake for the two ponds,” Vikram said as he led them toward the back of the space, which was cramped with machinery. Behind a large round pipe going into the ground, a barely discernable panel opened to reveal a dark gaping void. “This is where we’re going. Each of you take turns—there are ladder rungs against the inner wall of this pipe.”
“Is this what I think it is?” Nick said in astonishment.
Vikram smiled. “Come on, Nicky, you go first.”
Nick hauled himself into the small crawl space and climbed down what seemed like a dozen or so rungs. After landing on solid ground, he helped Astrid find her footing as she descended the steps. When the four of them finally made it down, they found themselves in a small steel-walled vestibule. An old sign nailed against one wall read in English, Chinese, and Malay:
DANGER! NO OUTLET!
CHAMBER WILL FLOOD DURING VALVE RELEASE!
Vikram pushed against one of the wall panels, and it opened to reveal a well-lit tunnel. Nick, Astrid, and Colin entered with mouths agape, stunned by the existence of such a space.
“No. Fucking. Way!” Colin exclaimed.
“This tunnel leads to Tyersall Park, doesn’t it?” Nick asked excitedly.
“It goes right under Adam Road and puts us within the grounds of the house. Let’s go, we don’t have much time,” Vikram said.
As they made their way through the tunnel, Nick looked around in wonderment. There were spots of mold along some of the concrete walls and the ground was caked in a layer of dirt, but overall the tunnel was remarkably well preserved. “When I was a little kid, my father used to tell me stories about how there were secret passages in Tyersall Park, and I just thought he was pulling my leg. I begged him to show me one, but he never would.”
“Did you always know this was here?” Astrid asked.
“Not until yesterday,” Vikram said. “Ah Ling told me about it. Apparently this tunnel was used during the war by your great-grandfather Shang Loong Ma. That’s how he got in and out of the property and was never once caught by the Japanese.”
“I’ve heard there are tunnels similar to this. There’s supposedly one that leads from Uncle Kuan Yew’s house on Oxley Road to the Istana,” Astrid commented. “I just never imagined Tyersall Park would have one too.”
“Incredible! I can’t believe this whole elaborate plan—just to see your grandmother!” Colin remarked to Nick.
“Yes, apologies for all the cloak-and-dagger. Ah Ling and I needed to devise a way to get messages to the both of you without incriminating ourselves. Tyersall Park has been on complete lockdown for the past few days, as you are well aware,” Vikram said with a grin.
“I’m so grateful, Vikram.” Nick smiled back at him.
They arrived at the end of the tunnel and faced another set of rungs. Nick went first, and when he was out of the shaft, he looked down at Astrid as she climbed up. “You’ll never believe where we are!”
Astrid climbed out of the shaft and found herself standing in the middle of hanging orchid plants. They were in their grandmother’s orchid conservatory, and the large round stone table carved with griffins at its base in the middle of the conservatory rolled to the side to reveal the entrance into the tunnel.
“I’ve spent countless hours sitting at this table, having afternoon tea with Ah Ma!” Astrid exclaimed.
Standing on lookout at the door of the conservatory was Ah Ling. “Come, come, let’s get in before it gets light and people start waking up.”
When they were all safely ensconced inside Ah Ling’s room in the servants’ quarters, she wasted no time in explaining her plan. “Colin, you should stay here in my room, out of sight. I will take Astrid and Nicky up to Su Yi’s bedroom. I know a special route that will let us enter from the balcony outside her dressing room, and Astrid, you should go in alone first and be with her when she awakes. She will usually wake up after you draw the curtains open. She’ll be pleased to see you, and then you can tell her that Nicky is outside waiting to see her. This way she won’t get a shock if she wakes up and sees Nicky standing right there.”
“Good thinking,” Nick said.
“Madri and Patravadee know about the plan. They are stationed right outside her door in the sitting room. Usually the nurses will check on her every fifteen minutes, but today they will block the nurses from entering. Professor Oon usually does his first check-in at seven thirty. Now, Astrid, I am counting on you to be outside Su Yi’s bedroom at seven thirty to intercept him. I’ve seen how he defers to you.”
Astrid nodded. “Don’t worry, I’ll deal with Professor Oon.”
“The other thing is Eddie. These days he likes to be the first to visit Su Yi in the morning. But I got Ah Ching to make his favorite crepes with Lyle’s Golden Syrup this morning, so I will tell him he needs to eat them while they are hot. I’ll try to keep him at breakfast as long as possible.”
“Maybe you can slip a sedative into his crepe batter,” Nick suggested.
“Or something to give him explosive diarrhea,” Colin said.
They all laughed for a moment, and then Ah Ling got up from her chair. “Okay, everyone ready?”
Nick and Astrid proceeded up the servants’ staircase to the second floor, following quietly behind Ah Ling as she expertly guided them through the service hallways until they found themselves on the balcony outside Su Yi’s dressing room. Astrid opened the door as quietly as she could and tiptoed in. The cool, mosaic-tiled space adjoining Su Yi’s bedroom smelled of jasmine and lavender water. She stood by the doorway, peeked into her grandmother’s bedroom, and saw Su Yi’s lady’s maids silently prepping the room for the morning. Madri was spritzing a beautiful pot of orchids with water, while Patravadee was tidying up the nurses’ station.
The minute they saw Astrid, they nodded at her and pulled the curtains open. Then the two ladies slipped out of the bedroom, closed the door behind them, and stood guard diligently outside. A nurse could be heard behind the door asking, “Is Mrs. Young awake yet? Are you getting her breakfast?” One of the lady’s maids replied, “She wants to sleep a little longer today. We will send for her breakfast after eight.”
Astrid headed first to the side table, opened a bottle of Adelboden water, and refilled one of the cups. Then she took it over to Su Yi’s bedside and sat down in the chair beside her.
Su Yi’s eyelids fluttered open, her eyes hazily registering Astrid beside her.
“Good morning, Ah Ma,” Astrid said cheerily. “Here, drink some water.”
Su Yi accepted the water gratefully, and after satiating her parched throat, she looked around the room and asked, “What day is it today?”
“It’s Thursday.”