The Scottish Banker of Surabaya - By Ian Hamilton Page 0,48
fruity,” Ava said.
“They have a great burgundy.”
“That will do fine.”
The waiter approached the table, his head slightly lowered. “Pak John, what can I get for you?”
“San Miguel, and a glass of the Boyer Martenot Meursault for Ibu Ava.”
“They obviously know you here,” Ava said when the waiter left.
“It’s one of the better places in town to hang out, and to meet girls. Before I was married I was a regular. The restaurant on the second floor, Sarkies, is also one of the best in the city. You’ll have to try it. It’s sort of a combination of Chinese and very good seafood.”
“He called you Pak, and you referred to me as Ibu.”
“It’s very common here, a form of respect. I could have referred to you as Bu, so expect to hear that as well. If you’re talking to a female friend or someone like the desk clerk, you’d use the more casual Mbak, and if it’s a man it would be Mas.”
“Thank you, that’s good to know. You’ve been living here for a while, I gather.”
“Seven years.”
“How did that happen?”
He shrugged and then smiled. “I sort of fell into it. When I graduated from the University of Toronto, I joined the Commonwealth Bank entry program. That’s where I met Johnny and Henry. I’d been with the bank for just about five years when I came to Asia for the first time. My older brother was running a party boat out of Phuket, and my intention was to help him a bit and have a hell of a holiday.” The smile turned into a big grin. “I never went back to the bank. In fact, I didn’t even go back to Canada for three years.”
“Johnny said you were in the crab business. How did you get from a party boat in Phuket to the crab business in Surabaya?”
Their drinks arrived; Masterson’s beer in a glistening bottle, a slice of lime wedged in its throat, and Ava’s wine in a glass filled almost to the rim. She took a sip. The waiter hovered, looking down at her. “It’s wonderful,” she said.
“The twists and turns of my business career in Asia are actually boring. I’m more interested in what you’re doing here,” Masterson said when they were alone again.
“Business.”
“We don’t get that many Westerners coming through here, and especially not many Canadians. Despite the city’s size, we are a bit of a backwater that way. Most of the Canucks I see are either on their way to Bali or coming back from Bali. You’re not going to Bali, are you?”
“I have no plans to.”
“It is gorgeous, and worth seeing if you can put up with the Australians,” he said, smiling again.
“Like I said, I have no plans to go to Bali.”
“Johnny wrote that you’re an accountant, like us.”
He was going to keep asking questions, Ava knew, and she decided she might as well rehearse the story she intended to spin to the bank. “Yes, I am. I’m here representing a firm out of Hong Kong that has a client who has an interest in expanding his investment portfolio.”
“In Surabaya?”
“No, in the Bali area, actually. The client specializes in tourist resorts — three- and four-star mainly, geared towards Hong Kong and Chinese customers. He has several sites in Thailand, one in the Philippines, and now he wants to look at Indonesia.”
“I thought you said you weren’t going to Bali.”
“I’m not. I’m here strictly to assess the investment environment and to help find him a local bank if he decides he wants to come here.”
“Do you have a bank in mind?”
Ava paused, the question left hanging. “Several,” she finally said.
“I bank at the East Java.”
“That’s not on my list. One that is,” she said, deciding it was time to stick her neck out just a little, “is Bank Linno.”
“Linno? They don’t have much of a presence here.”
“Our Hong Kong office said the president is a Brit. They have a weakness for British bankers.”
“Andy Cameron wouldn’t like being called a Brit.”
“You know him?”
“Of course.”
“Of course?” Ava asked, starting to realize that leaving her room hadn’t been such a bad idea.
“Like I said, this is a bit of a backwater, and the expatriate community isn’t that large. We tend to run into each other and end up socializing. I mean, who do you think goes to a Robbie Burns dinner in Surabaya? Who do you think celebrates Christmas? Not the ninety-nine point nine percent Muslim population.” He lowered his voice and leaned closer to her. “And before