The Scottish Banker of Surabaya - By Ian Hamilton Page 0,57
base of the statue. She slipped the sticks between her palms, the smoke from the incense rising towards her face. Head bowed, rocking ever so slightly, she began to pray. She prayed for her mother and her father. She prayed for her sister and her nieces. She prayed for Mimi and Derek and their unborn child. She prayed for Maria. She prayed for all of her half-siblings. And then she prayed for Uncle. As she did, tears began to roll down her cheeks. If there is a god, any god — Taoist, Christian, Muslim, Hindu — please look after Uncle, she prayed.
She wasn’t sure how long she had stood in front of the altar, but if it weren’t for the gentle tap on her shoulder from Fay, the joss sticks might have burned their way into her flesh. They walked in silence back to the car, each lost in her own thoughts.
Fay was the first to speak on the way back to the hotel. “We don’t overdress for dinner here, but you’ll need to change.”
Ava smiled, relieved that Fay had not asked about her tears. “I have some linen slacks and a dress shirt.”
“Perfect.”
“What time?”
“We’ll pick you up at the hotel around six.”
“I’ll be waiting.”
Ava felt Fay looking sideways at her. “Is anything wrong?”
“No,” Fay said. “There’s just something I need to say.”
“And what’s that?”
“Andy Cameron . . . he’s a bit of a pig.”
“So John told me last night,” Ava said, wondering why it was so important to tell her.
“He’s going to hit on you for sure. He can’t help himself.”
“I can handle it.”
Fay gave her a double take. “I had to tell you anyway. I’ve heard things that I don’t like. He can get out of hand, it seems.”
“He won’t get close enough to try.”
“I’m not trying to put a damper on the evening. I’m sure we’ll have a good time, and he can be fun. It’s just that I don’t want to see you put in an awkward position.”
“Enough said, Fay. I do understand.”
“Just be careful.”
( 19 )
It was just past five when Fay pulled up to the entrance of the Majapahit. “Bu Ava,” the doorman said as she reached the entrance.
She checked her cellphone as she walked up the stairs to her room. It hadn’t rung all afternoon and she couldn’t remember the last time that had happened. Out of habit she hit the Missed Calls button and saw two from Sonny. Was her ring mode on? It was. When had he called? She realized it was when she’d been praying at the temple.
Ava waited until she was in her room before returning his calls. His wei was brusque. “It’s Ava. Sorry I couldn’t answer the phone before. I was in a temple.”
“I talked to Lourdes.”
“Good.”
“The doctor’s name is Parker.”
“Gweilo?”
“All I know is his name is Graham Parker.”
“Kowloon?”
“Yeah, near the Ocean Mall.”
“Thanks.”
“You’ll call him?”
“Sonny, this is not something I can do over the phone. I’ll be back in Hong Kong in a few days, I think, and I’ll try to set up a meeting.”
“Lourdes is scared.”
“I know.”
“So am I.”
“Me too. But I can tell you now, if I phone the doctor he won’t tell me anything. I need to get in front of him, so you’re going to have to be patient until I get there. And for goodness sake, tell Lourdes to stay calm. We don’t know anything for sure, do we.”
“No,” Sonny said.
“No. So let’s get our facts straight before we jump to conclusions.”
“I’ll talk to her.”
“Thanks.”
Ava hung up and sat on the side of bed. Now she had to get calm. This job, which hadn’t meant that much to her when she started it, now seemed almost meaningless. She’d have dinner with Cameron and find out what she could about the bank. That was as far as she was willing to commit. And if the dinner yielded nothing of interest, she was getting on a plane for Hong Kong.
There was a smell in the room. Incense. Her hair and T-shirt were imbued with it. She stripped and went into the bathroom, the marble floor cold to her feet. She turned the shower on full blast and jacked up the water temperature to as close to scalding as she could bear. She washed her body quickly and then poured the entire bottle of hotel shampoo into her hair. She scrubbed, her fingers kneading her scalp, washing out the incense and trying to rid her mind of negative thoughts.