Hua whistled.
“Problem?” I asked.
“He is whistling because this Fang’s area is where half the government lives. It’s for party members with power. Those with real connections,” Zhang Daiyu replied.
“Then we better make sure we don’t upset anyone,” I said, climbing into the van.
Zhang Daiyu and Hua exchanged hesitant looks before following me into the vehicle. Hua said something in Mandarin as he slid behind the wheel.
I looked at Zhang Daiyu expectantly.
“It’s better I don’t translate that word for word. It’s enough for you know he asks questions about your sanity.”
I smiled. “He’s not the first,” I said, as Hua stepped on the accelerator and we drove away.
Chapter 74
When we arrived at Zizhuyuan Subdistrict we saw that the place oozed wealth and power. Even the night couldn’t obscure it. From the expensive European SUVs and sports vehicles glimpsed in private parking garages to the perfectly manicured public areas, plush canopies over the grand apartment-block entrances, LED street lighting... a sense of opulence pervaded everything.
It was late and the streets were quiet. There were lights in the windows of many of the high-rise buildings around us, and at the top of each penthouses that glowed like dwarf suns.
Hua stopped outside Fang Wenyan’s building, an impressive black skyscraper that resembled a giant aftershave bottle with gold trim here and there.
Hua peered toward the entrance, and I followed his gaze to see a man in a black suit seated at the desk in the lobby.
“How do you want to do this?” Hua asked.
“Too risky that way. I don’t want Fang to know we’re coming. Drive around,” I said. Hua put his van in gear and moved on.
The building occupied its own block and was surrounded to all sides by landscaped grounds extending to the street. There were no sidewalks, just a path from the road to the main entrance, and at the rear of the building a driveway leading to a service entrance and underground parking garage.
“What do you think?” I asked.
“It’s an infrared remote,” Hua said, gesturing toward the grille that covered the entrance to the garage. He pulled over near the start of the driveway and went into the back of the van. “Hold on one minute.”
I heard him rummaging through things and looked at Zhang Daiyu who shrugged.
Hua emerged with a device covered in buttons.
“It’s a universal remote,” he revealed, and pointed it at the grille while pressing a button.
The metal barrier started to rise almost immediately. He steered us onto the drive and down into the garage.
The vast space was full of expensive imported sedans, sports models, and motorbikes. We parked in a delivery spot near the elevators and climbed out of the van.
“We’d better hurry,” Zhang Daiyu said. “They will have good security.”
“Better than average,” Hua noted, pointing at the alphanumeric keypad above the elevator call button.
“Can’t you use the universal remote?” I said light-heartedly, and he replied with a frown of disapproval.
I knew full well there was no way to access the elevators without physically inputting the correct access code, likely personalized to lead direct to your own floor.
“We’ll take the stairs,” Hua said, gesturing to a door a few feet away leading to a metal stairwell. Access was controlled by a key-card reader. He pulled a credit-card-sized device from his pocket as he approached the door and ran it over the reader. I saw some red and green lights flash on the device. After a few moments the door buzzed open.
“Come on,” Hua said with a smile.
Zhang Daiyu and I followed him into the stairwell and we started up the first flight. According to the information we had from Fen, Fang Wenyan lived in the penthouse on the twenty-fifth floor. It was a long and tiring climb, made worse by the humid, close conditions in the stairwell. By the time we reached the top, we were breathless and sweaty.
I took point and listened at the stairwell door. Nothing but silence, so I lowered the handle and pushed gently. The door swung slowly open and I stepped into a bright marble lobby. Zhang Daiyu and Hua followed me toward the solitary door that stood opposite the bank of three elevators. The door was black and double-width, set in a matching black wall. It looked ominous.
Zhang Daiyu produced a set of lock-picking tools from her pocket and went to work on the door.
A minute later, I heard the lock snap open and she pushed the door ajar. The sound of a television came from inside. Zhang Daiyu crept forward, widening the gap between door and frame.
My stomach lurched when I saw a hand grab her outstretched arm and pull her into the apartment.
Chapter 75
“You can come in, Mr. Morgan,” a man’s voice called from inside the apartment. I couldn’t see anything beyond the black door.
I looked at Hua and gestured for him to return to the stairs.
“And your friend too. There will be no escape for Mr. Huang,” the voice went on. “Miss Zhang Daiyu is my guest now. You have until the count of five to come in and join her. One...”
I glanced around, wondering how they could see us. There were no obvious signs of cameras.
“Two...”
I looked at Hua, who shrugged.
We didn’t have much choice.
“Three.”
I walked into the apartment.
Like the rest of the building, black was the dominant color. The huge space had a polished obsidian floor, black couches, abstract monochrome photo prints, and sculptures that matched the bleak color scheme. Beyond the expansive windows, the lights of the city added the only touches of color.
Fang Wenyan was standing by the windows, two heavy-set men in dark suits flanking him. The one to Fang’s left was holding Zhang Daiyu and had a gun to her head.
“Did you really think you could break in here?” Fang reproved me. “I have security you can only dream of. You’re persistent though. I can understand why you made enemies in Moscow.”
“Who hired you to kill me?” I asked.
“Hired?” he responded derisively. “I don’t work for anyone but China.”
“You made a trade. My life and my friends and business for an alliance. There was an agreement and a price. That makes you a hired gun in my eyes.”
I could see I was getting to him, which was good. I might be able to force a mistake.
He smiled, but the expression looked strained and he was clearly masking deep anger.
“You think what you want, Mr. Morgan. Using your employees’ murders to imprison David Zhou has created many new opportunities for me and my allies. We are consolidating our power now, so what I have done to you and your business is in my own interests. I’m a patriot, helping China take its rightful place in the new world.”
“You’re a greedy extremist. I’ve met people like you before. Your ambition gets people killed — my friends and colleagues among them.” I allowed him a glimpse of my own anger. “You will answer for their deaths.”
“No, I won’t,” he sneered. “All three of you will die here tonight. The girl first.” He indicated Zhang Daiyu, who looked back at him defiantly. “You broke into my home and killed this woman and her colleague to cover up your involvement with the criminal Liu Bao. He will be sacrificed to protect our objective, and your dreams of justice will die with you. The circumstances of your death will destroy Private’s reputation and the company you’ve built will be ruined, fulfilling my arrangement with the Russians.”
I stared at him, wondering how I was going to prove him wrong.
There were twenty feet between me and the large man holding Zhang Daiyu at gunpoint. I had no chance of reaching him before he shot her. The second bodyguard produced a pistol, which he levelled at me. Hua and I were easy targets, and I think Fang Wenyan realized I’d understood how badly the odds were stacked against us because he beamed broadly.