That was six centuries ago.
Ahn the Righteous Fist found a suitable hiding place for the jade skull and some of the more valuable pieces of their treasure trove. Afterward, he and his followers settled on a nearby island, an island more suitable to agriculture. Their goal was to bide their time and eventually return to China and reclaim the throne of the Sung dynasty. But with constant warfare in China-and a new dynasty in power called the Ming-the moment never seemed auspicious. In the years that followed, the men of the Ahn family took Korean wives. Life went on. The grandiose goal of reclaiming the lost Dragon Throne was forgotten.
More than a century later, a monastery of devout Buddhist monks was established on the island of Bian-do. The monks took it as their mission to protect the jade skull, along with the remaining Sung artifacts. The ones they could find, anyway. Some of the riches had been so cleverly concealed that all memory of their whereabouts had been lost.
The descendants of the admiral, Lady Ahn's ancestors, stayed on, becoming farmers and fishermen like everyone else in the area. But they never forgot their heritage, their lineage that led directly to the emperor of the mighty Sung dynasty.
From generation to generation, they kept their secrets.
Lady Ahn's family always had relatives in the monastery who kept them apprised of the monks' activities.
Occasionally Japanese pirates landed, stealing many of the remaining treasures. Over the years, the monks became adept at fending off the pirates. But for the last couple of centuries it seemed that nothing of the riches of the Sung had escaped the thievery of others. And the jade skull of Kublai Khan appeared to have been lost. Or at least that's what everyone thought-until a few months ago.
A young monk had been excavating a new meditation chamber beneath the mountain of Bian-do. Buried beneath a giant rock, he discovered an iron box that contained the jade skull of Kublai Khan.
The monks of Bian-do are honest men, unconcerned with the wealth of the world. But inevitably, word of their precious discovery reached the nearby islands.
It was commonly believed that the Tomb of Genghis Khan held enormous riches, many of them looted from the Chinese people. Looted, even more specifically, from the Sung dynasty.
When he died, Genghis Khan's body had been carried back to Mongolia by trusted lieutenants. These lieutenants went far into the plains and beyond the mountains, searching for the ideal spot to bury the great Khan and his wealth. After the burial, most of the warriors who had accompanied Genghis Khan to his final resting place were executed, along with thirty "moon-faced" virgins, to service the great Khan beyond the grave. The secret of the whereabouts of the Tomb of Genghis Khan had been buried with them.
The only map that remained was the etchings on the jade skull.
Why had none of Lady Ahn's ancestors retrieved the skull and claimed the riches of Genghis Khan for their own?
For one thing, over the years the Buddhist monks of Bian-do had become fierce in their protectiveness of their holy artifacts. They allowed no one on their island, and myths of strange beasts protecting their wealth had sprung up amongst the fishermen on nearby islands.
And Lady Ahn's ancestors had become complacent. They prospered and lived well as yangban, the educated landowning class. None of her ancestors had had the nerve to risk it all and go off after the treasure of Genghis Khan.
And this lack of nerve had caused her family to weaken. Now, all that was left of a once-proud clan was her frail old mother, living alone on Sonyu Island, and herself.
But she wasn't weak, Lady Ahn said. And when I saw her smooth jaws set in place like cement, I knew she wasn't.
Ernie grew bored at her long-winded explanation, and his liver was crying out for poison. Before I could ask all the questions that were tumbling through my mind, he waved down a waiter and ordered another round.
After that, Ernie and Fifi pretty much stayed on the dance floor. Unless Ernie could talk her into returning to the table so he could quaff down about half a liter of suds. I'd never seen him dance so much for any woman. But apparently, Fifi, with her knockout looks and her sinister, almost evil way of looking at a man, had clamped a firm hold on Ernie's gonads. She seemed to be sizing him up as if she were preparing to eat him.
Lady Ahn and I danced only once. A slow dance. My hand felt so good on the back of her waist, and her body fit so perfectly against mine, that I became feverish with desire. What with the lack of sleep and the booze, I barely managed to stay on my feet.
Almost a month ago, when Lady Ahn had first approached Herman the German in Seoul, her plan had been to set up an escape route for the jade skull. Once she possessed it, she could slip the skull past Korean customs without being noticed. She never intended to cause Herman so much grief. She never intended for Mi-ja to be kidnapped.
Who were these men who had kidnapped Mi-ja?
Her unblemished face crinkled. She wasn't sure, but she thought that these men were her fault, too. When she had started making inquiries about the best way to smuggle an antique out of Korea, people were naturally not willing to open up to a stranger. So she'd explained about the value of the jade skull, keeping her stories as vague as she could. Apparently, they weren't vague enough.
Over the centuries, fabulous legends concerning the Tomb of Genghis Khan had circulated through the antique markets of the Far East. Once Lady Ahn's story hit, the word spread swiftly. To Hong Kong. To Singapore. To who-knows-where.
Apparently, Ragyapa and his Mongolians had taken the rumors seriously. When they located Herman, they believed he possessed the jade skull. Or if he didn't, he would know where to get it. In some sense they were right. Herman did know how to get in touch with Lady Ahn. Ernie and I were living proof of that.
Where was the skull now? I asked Lady Ahn.
Still on the island of Bian-do.
How was she going to get it? Lady Ahn hadn't decided yet. She had still been formulating a plan when all this happened.
When Fifi's high heels finally started to dig into her foot bones, she came back to our table, sat down, and allowed Ernie to rest for a while.
I gave him a rundown of all I had learned from Lady Ahn. He sipped on his beer and watched her.
"If we help you latch onto this skull thing," he said, "will you turn it over to these guys in exchange for the kid?"
Lady Ahn lowered her eyes. "I will have to think about that," she answered.
"After we free Mi-ja," I said, "we'll go after these kidnappers with the entire U.S. and Korean police forces backing us up. They'll never be able to slip out of the country. We'll trade the jade skull for Mi-ja and then we'll retrieve it. We'll return it to you."
"No one will allow you to return it to me," she said evenly.
She was right about that. Once officialdom sniffed that much wealth, there was no way they'd return it to a private citizen.
I looked at Ernie, asking silently for a decision. He thought for a moment, then nodded. I turned back to Lady Ahn.
"They won't have to know," I said. "We'll keep the cops out of it. Once we free Mi-ja, Ernie and I will catch these Mongols and retrieve the jade skull for you."
Lady Ahn gazed deeply into my eyes, measuring my willingness to go through with such a risky plan.
"I will consider your offer," she told me.
When we returned to Fifi's Hooch, I felt awkward because sleeping arrangements hadn't been settled. Ernie didn't hesitate. He scooped up Fifi, carried her into the bedroom, and slammed shut the paper-paneled door.
Lady Ahn and I looked at one another. I took a step forward. She held up her hand.