"Why didn't the Chinese guards stop them?"
"They had some sort of identification papers. Maybe the Chinese service is working with them. I don't trust the Chinese, not one of them." Kang turned on the engine. It coughed, just like it had at two in the morning in Kanggye. "No sense in hanging around here. Let's go back to the city."
"Wait, I've got my own car."
As I started to open the door, Kang accelerated past a minibus and out onto the road. "Leave it. Get a new one."
"Are you crazy? Pak will bounce me on my head if I leave that car here. I'm not even supposed to be driving it half the time."
We were speeding past the first set of nondescript concrete apartment buildings beyond the airport, and Kang showed no sign of turning around. "Don't worry about Pak. I told him you need a new car. It's banged up anyway. What did you do, drive into a ditch?" We braked suddenly, crossed over the center line, and slid off onto a dirt side road, past a traffic policeman who was standing at a checkpoint. The policeman looked blankly at Kang and then put his face back toward the main highway. Kang drove to a small stand of trees, pulled behind them, and turned off the engine. From the direction of the airport, two black Mercedeses sped past. The second slowed for a fraction at the checkpoint, but when the traffic policeman waved in the direction of town, the car accelerated again.
"I'm guessing you didn't want that Finnish detective here." I watched Kang slump down in his seat and pretend to relax once the two cars were out of sight.
Kang's lips toyed with smiling, then dropped the idea. "Well, I'm guessing neither did you." He drummed his fingers on the steering wheel. "It would have been one more person I'd have to keep safe from snakes. Anyway, the two of you might have stumbled onto something that doesn't concern your investigation. But, no, I didn't stop him. And I never tamper with Foreign Ministry communications."
I opened the door. "See you around, Kang. I've got to get back to my car and then tell Pak I don't have to babysit for the next three days."
"Sometimes you don't listen very well, Inspector." When Kang reached over to pull the door shut, I saw he was wearing his shoulder holster, which was a surprise. The number of people authorized to wear concealed weapons in the capital is limited, very, very limited. "Your car is not where you want to be right now. I don't think it would have been a big explosion when you turned the key. They wouldn't have wanted to injure a lot of foreigners. But you might have needed the cuffs on one of your pant legs brought up several centimeters, like maybe to your knee. And any passenger in the car would have had his eyebrows singed." He rolled down his window to let in some air. "Now they're going to have to figure out what to do with your car. I hope the tank wasn't full. Waste of gasoline. I'll bet they drain it."
It took a minute before I felt like speaking. "Thanks. I owe you. I thought you said you couldn't help me here in the capital."
"I can't help you on the case, but Finland is important to my operations.
I can't afford to have the Finns mad at us and tightening up on regulations."
"So why didn't you want that Finnish detective here?" Kang's fingers were drumming the steering wheel again. "Don't tell me he works for you."
This time Kang smiled. "Okay, I won't tell you that. Next subject.
We need to talk."
"I doubt it. If Pak wants to work with your department, that's his business. If you and I can work out a deal on our own, that's fine. Like I said, I owe you." I could feel my blood pressure rising, and from the way Kang glanced over at me, my voice must have been following suit.
"But I draw the line, a thick black line, at working with my former brother. I'll save us some time. Don't bother raising the idea."
"Believe me, Inspector, I don't like your brother. We've tangled more than once. He and his comrade friends get in my way. When it's only a nuisance, I can ignore them, but every so often they threaten my people by compromising an operation. Your brother is right on the verge of doing that. He is still your elder brother, incidentally."
I meant to laugh cynically, but the sound got stuck in my throat.
"So you think I'm going to talk to him again? Have a fraternal chat?
You must be kidding."
"Inspector, there are several threads here. I'd say you are starting to realize they come together in an odd way. You might actually reach some conclusions before it is too late. Meantime, your brother is about to cause me serious trouble. If you think that by keeping him off your investigation you've accomplished something, you're wrong. But that's your problem. If you rile him up, he'll get in my way. That's my problem.
See what I mean?"
"I scared the piss out of him."
"Bravo. Not good enough. We need him neutralized." Kang paused.
"Don't worry, I'm not talking about anything physical."
"Too bad."
"Wow!" He sat back. "A pair of scorpions. Do me a favor, put it aside for now. Whether and why you dislike him is not my business.
But I need him off my back, and I need you to help me figure out what will make him crawl back into his hole on his own."
"Rat poison."
Kang sat still for a moment, took a deep breath and exhaled, and then turned the key in the ignition. The engine sputtered once and came to life. "Pak said you were unreasonable on this, but I said you'd help. I guess not." He ignored the traffic policeman's salute as we passed, turned onto the highway with a squeal of the car's old tires, and drove with bored, silent concentration the rest of the way into town.
When we got to the bridge across the river from my apartment, Kang pulled over and reached into the backseat for a small package. All he said was, "I think this is for your picnic." Then he got out of the car and walked to the riverbank.
I wasn't sure what he meant. The package was bulky, wrapped in plain brown paper. Inside was a hand-knit sweater. There was no note, but there didn't have to be. Maybe there was still a trace of her perfume on it, or maybe I only imagined it. The sweater looked like it might be too big. But it was blue.
5
The next morning it was raining and windy. I rode my bicycle to the office. The traffic lady was not there, but my satisfaction at crossing the intersection aboveground was short-lived. An army truck spewing black smoke threw up a sheet of water as it passed me.
Pak looked up from his desk as I stood in his doorway. "You are puddling on my floor, Inspector. Go dry yourself off, and get some hot tea. They might still have some in the traffic unit." As I turned to start down the hall, he stopped me. "Where are you going?"
"You told me to get some tea."
"Forget the tea."
"So, you heard about the car."
"The car has been taken off our books. There isn't much left of it, anyway. The damage you did to the left fender by driving into that ditch has disappeared. Likewise the left fender, along with much of the left side of the car. I hope the gas tank wasn't full."
"You mean it exploded? Who turned the key?"
"No one, as far as I know. Must have been a stray radio signal. Very sloppy job." Pak looked back down at his desk and I thought I was dismissed, but he looked up again. He pursed his lips, which he only does when he is thinking about how to say something delicate. "Kang is an ally. We have very few. He has helped us. He asks for our help, we give it, no matter what, and not just grudgingly."
I nodded. No sense in fighting this again, especially when being noncommittal would suffice. "Tell Kang I'll give it some thought."