“This thing makes me want to sneeze,” he said, trying to be light-hearted. “I’ll go first. You follow in about two minutes,” he said as he slung the haversack over his shoulder and walked with a sailor’s roll back into the street and to the front of the apartment building.
Without looking in either direction, he walked up the steps and across to the lift. He punched the button for the top floor; he would walk down the four flights to Ling’s apartment hoping that anyone observing would be deceived by his ploy.
It took only a couple of minutes for him to the reach the top in the lift and then trot back down the staircase to Ling’s floor. He stepped cautiously onto the landing; there was no one in sight so he walked casually along the corridor, passed Ling’s apartment and stopped two doors further down. He looked back and observed the door; it looked to be secure.
The lift doors suddenly opened and Ling in his “coolie” disguise appeared and scurried towards the apartment.
Ling produced his key and advanced on the door.
Alex sensed there was something wrong but couldn’t see anything obvious.
“Stop!” he commanded.
Ling froze in his tracks.
“There’s something not right here.” He moved over to Ling and looked closely at the door. Then he noticed the faint odour of propane gas as it filtered from underneath the door. “Gas,” he warned.
Ling sniffed the air.
“My God you’re right. Let’s get out of here.”
They dived for the stairwell; somehow they managed two flights before the explosion shook the building.
“Stop right here,” Alex shouted as they scrambled down the concrete steps onto the ground floor.
Ling stopped and looked back in alarm. “What is it?” he panted.
“I think we’ve been set up. They are probably waiting for us outside!” Alex reached for his mobile phone and dialled Ming-Ho’s café; his daughter answered.
“We need a favour in a hurry,” Alex pleaded. “Ling’s wife is waiting for us at my hotel. I believe that she is in great danger. Could you get her out of the hotel without being recognised and then keep her at your place until we get there? I’m sorry to ask like this but we have a problem of our own at the moment.”
“Don’t worry we’ll get her!” she assured him confidently. “What’s her name?”
“Mui. I’ll get her to wait in the lobby. There’s a small meeting cubicle on the right hand side as you enter — she’ll be waiting there for you.” Alex remembered the tiny meeting room tucked just around the corner and out of sight from the reception desk. It was the best he could think of.
“I’ll call you on your mobile when she’s safe. Good luck yourselves.” She replaced the receiver and immediately ran out of the café.
Alex telephoned the hotel and asked to be put through to his room. “Yes?” Mui answered cautiously.
“It’s Alex. Listen Mui you are in great danger. You have to get out of there. I’m sending a friend around to collect you; she is Ming-Ho’s daughter. You must get out of the room and I mean immediately. I’m sorry but your life is in danger; you must wait in the little meeting area, just to the right of the entrance doors. Is that quite clear?”
“What about our things?” she pleaded.
“There isn’t time. Go there now please” Alex insisted
Ling looked on anxiously. “Do you want me to speak to her?” he whispered.
Alex, holding his index finger to his lips, shook his head silently. “Good. Thank you. We will try to collect your stuff later. See you shortly,” he said confidently into the instrument and then terminated the call. “Don’t worry she’s leaving now.” He pocketed the phone. “I’m sorry to say it but it looks as though someone has latched on to us as well; so our disguises were a waste of time.” He winced as he pulled the moustache painfully from his lip.
“Do you think they might still be watching the building?” Ling asked.
“Almost certainly,” Alex replied pensively. “So I suggest that we just run out into street and walk away, one on each side of the road. Like that we may be able to spot if we’re being followed. I’m afraid you’re going to have to be the bait. I’ll do the ambushing bit, OK?” Alex grinned.
“OK but if anyone gets too close…” Ling patted the pistol clipped to his belt.
Alex nodded understanding.
“OK let’s go.” They ran through the main entrance to the street; curious pedestrians were already being pushed back by police officers. The sound of fire engines approaching filled the air as they stood, looking momentarily lost, before being shepherded to a corner where the other dazed occupiers of the apartment building had been assembled. It was only a matter of seconds before Alex and Ling moved into the growing crowd of onlookers.
Ling, acting as the bait, forged ahead, trying to be as conspicuous a possible and hoping to be recognised by their assailant. Alex followed but on the opposite side of the street. He stopped after a few metres and waited in the doorway of a café.
With all the curious pedestrians homing in on the fire, no one else was walking in their direction, so the dark haired, stockily built European was quite conspicuous.
Waiting to be sure that the man was alone, he nearly missed the other one. Dressed in typical Chinese labourers’ overalls and carrying a tool bag, he appeared to be merely ambling along against the human tide. But something about his steady gait alerted Alex so he let him pass, then slipped unnoticed across the road and followed. As they approached the waterfront the flow of people towards the fire had almost stopped. Alex couldn’t see Ling any more so moved up close to his target.
As the man stepped off the pavement to cross to the entrance of a dingy narrow side street. Alex jabbed his revolver into the startled man’s kidneys and turned him into the alley. The man recovered quickly and kicked out with a vicious open fist jab, catching Alex on the side of the head and momentarily regaining the advantage. Alex fired the gun, hitting the man in the pelvis.
The close proximity of two men’s bodies strangely muffled the noise of the shot. The man grunted, his legs collapsed and he fell to the ground grabbing at his hip. The tool bag clattered onto the cobbled surface, spilling out an automatic machine pistol fitted with a silencer and several clips of ammunition. The man tried to grab the gun but Alex smashed down on his hand with his own weapon. The man fell back in surrender and his cap slipped back revealing him to be another European. Alex looked up and checked to see if they had been observed; the alley was empty. The whole incident had taken no more than fifteen seconds.
“You better start talking pal. That wound will bleed you to death in no time at all!” Alex smiled down at the man.
“Fuck off,” he spat back in English, though it was obvious to Alex that he was from another European country.
The man winced as the acute stabbing pains from the smashed bones started, taking his breath away.
“OK, that’s fine. You can stay here until someone finds you. If you’re still alive, they might get you to hospital or they might just strip you and leave to die. You can’t be sure here can you!” he taunted and smiled again.
The pain was becoming unbearable now, as the man tried to move his legs but they refused to obey his will.
“OK, what do you want to know?” he muttered, hoping to gain something from his impossible situation.
In fact he knew very little, only that he had been paid to blow up the apartment and eliminate the two men.
“How did you recognise us?” Alex asked.
The man produced the photographs; he almost laughed.
“I followed you from the hotel — in fact I nearly missed you when you put on your disguises!” He gagged with pain. “Are you going to call an ambulance now?” he asked, looking up hopefully.