“Sunny Lee, Susan Pak, Korean Honey. . there’s no detailed personal information at all.”
“They move all over Vietnam to different bases, barely scratch out a living by dancing or stripping or being magicians’ helpers. Not to mention the prostitution. . anyway, some of that sort might be around in Da Nang, you never know. Go to a few places and check them out. The rec center, China Beach, Army Stage Productions, and the Troop Information and Education Center at headquarters, well, that should keep you busy for now.”
As he was leaving the office Yong Kyu hesitated for a moment, then said, “Can you give me a car? I don’t have a driver.”
“Huh? Still don’t know how to drive?”
Turning to Miss Hoa, the captain said, “Call the Dragon Palace and have the team chief come in, and tell Toi to come see me, too.”
First to arrive was Toi, a Vietnamese informant the captain employed. Yong Kyu had never met him before but had heard him mentioned by the sergeant. He was middle-aged, said to have been discharged from the ARVN Quartermaster Corps. He walked into the office in a white shirt and black pants. His eyes were hidden behind mercury-mirrored sunglasses and his gold teeth sparkled through his permanent grin.
“Hullo.”
“Let me introduce you. This is Corporal Ahn, one of our staff.”
“Hello, I know you well.”
“Know me well?” said Yong Kyu, shaking his extended hand. Instead of explaining, Toi looked at the captain and smiled.
The captain said to Yong Kyu, “From now on he’ll be your guide in the market. He’ll be a big help to you in this case.”
The captain looked straight into Yong Kyu’s eyes as he calmly added, “Toi knows all about the beer business; the team chief is starting with the Hong Kong Group.”
Yong Kyu spun quickly for another look at Toi. Now that he thought of it, the face was not altogether unfamiliar. Suddenly an image flitted through his mind of a pair of mirrored sunglasses sitting beside the Chinese woman they called “Chui” at a corner table in the Bamboo Club.
“There’s a lot of work to do and he needs your help.”
“What is it?”
“C-rations.”
“They were pouring out for a solid week but then the flow suddenly stopped three days ago.”
Toi sat casually on the captain’s desk as they went on talking. Such informality would seem insolent if the two weren’t good friends, Yong Kyu thought.
“It’ll be pouring out again.”
“My guess is they stockpiled it in a house somewhere and are releasing it into the market a little at a time.”
“You heard, didn’t you?” the captain said to Yong Kyu. “Now that they’ve had a taste of it, they’ll try to lift another truckload before long. We’ve got to nail them before the Americans do.”
Yong Kyu and Toi left the office. Toi had his old Land Rover parked outside.
“Where to?”
“You know the recreation center?”
“Sure. And I know Sergeant Yun very well, too.”
Yong Kyu said nothing. He didn’t believe it. Toi must have sensed Yong Kyu’s suspicion, because he also remained silent and just clenched the wheel. They went across the bridge, passed by the navy PX and, crossing through the helicopter base, sped on toward the seashore. The asphalt cut a perfectly straight line through the sand, rows of palm trees on either side.
The American recreation center stood in the middle of a clump of big trees. In the distance they could see a collection of shabby tents and huts made of plywood and sheet metal. Several sailboats were neatly lined up on the beach along with surfboards and dinghies. The rec center seemed quiet. They passed by an open-air theater and continued driving down the sandy beach.
They pulled up in front of a large tent, and an army band member lying inside poked his head out. The band members’ hair was long and they were wearing bathing suits and Hawaiian shirts. It looked as though they had just polished off lunch as most of them were taking naps. Yong Kyu remembered how repulsed he was to see these cicadas from the band corps on the battlefield. Watching them rocking their heads and playing instruments, one of the grunts in the platoon had muttered he wouldn’t mind mowing them all down with his machine gun.
“Where’s the senior non-com?”
At Yong Kyu’s question, the band member rubbed his cheek with the cold soda can he was holding, like a businessman on vacation. His oiled and well-roasted back was glistening.
“The sarge has gone to the PX, but he’ll be back for lunch.”
“I’ll be with Gunnery Sergeant Yun over there, so when you see him, tell him to hurry over.”
As Yong Kyu turned around to head off with Toi toward a nearby hut, the guy asked from behind, “What contractor you with?”
Yong Kyu turned back around.
“We need to know what company you’re with so we’ll know where to go to play.”
The man had made a mistake. At once Yong Kyu grasped what he had meant and went with it.
“We’re with the Vinelli Company. Can you come this Saturday from around seven to nine o’clock?”
“That’s a conflict. At seven on Saturday we’re already booked at Monkey Mountain. Why not move it up to Friday?”
“I’ve got to see the gunnery sergeant, anyway.”
Yong Kyu felt like he already had them trapped. He looked back at Toi. “Why don’t you wait in the car?”
“It’s kind of hot.”
“There’s a breeze.”
“Okay.” Toi grinned.
Yong Kyu went on by himself to the hut. An office desk coated with dust and some chairs were strewn about in disorder amid piles of assorted equipment, including slot machines and other games. Since relocating from Chu Lai they still had not set up the game room. On the far side of the hut the gunnery sergeant was playing paduk with a private. There was a cool breeze from the ocean.
“My, my, what brought a high and mighty man like you all the way out here? Haven’t laid eyes on you for ages.”
Sergeant Yun set down his discs and got to his feet.
“Hey, how ‘bout bringing something cold to drink? Care for a beer? Or maybe cognac?”
Yong Kyu walked over and stood by the window. “I can’t drink, I’m on duty. . and I’ve got something to talk about.”
“To hell with duty, let’s have a drink.”
“Who’s going over to the Dong Dao junction these days?”
“Why. ?”
They both feigned a blank stare.
“I am,” the private said.
Yong Kyu lit his cigarette.
“How many cases have you run for?”
“What’s this all about, huh?” Sergeant Yun said, pounding the table. “If you start stabbing without rhyme or reason, the weaklings will all spill their guts. What is it, why are you doing this? Ask me, I’ll tell you everything I know.”
“We hear C-rations are leaking out from here.”
With a look of dismayed astonishment, the sergeant blurted out a “Phew!” and raised his eyes to the ceiling. “You drive me up the wall. Look, Corporal Ahn, any bastard laying hands on C-rations is a damned fool. The risk is big and the profit small. Besides, we can’t do that kind of thing.”
“Have any idea where the leak is?”
“Well. .”
The sergeant and private exchanged glances. Yong Kyu calmly said, “Bring in the ration inventory list and the requisitions, and let’s see the balance on hand here.”
“Why are you doing this? What do you get out of shaking us down?”
Yong Kyu waited.
“I think it’s over at Monkey Mountain,” the private haltingly mumbled.