another two minutes he got to the major intersection of Sepulveda and Ventura Boulevard. He could see the lights of Fortune Fine Foods & Liquor a block further down Sepulveda at the next intersection. He did not see Chang’s Mustang anywhere in front of him. He buzzed Chu.
“I’m at the light at Ventura and don’t see him. He might already be there.”
“I’m one light back. What do we do?”
“I’m going to park and go in. You stay out and look for his car. Buzz me when you see either him or the car.”
“You’re going right to Li?”
“We’ll see.”
As soon as the light turned green Bosch pinned the accelerator and jumped into the intersection, nearly broadsiding a red-light runner. He cruised up the next block and took a right into the market’s parking lot. He didn’t see Chang’s car or any open parking spaces other than the one clearly marked for handicapped motorists. Bosch pulled through the lot into the alley and parked behind a trash bin with a no parking sticker on it. He jumped out and trotted back through the parking lot to the market’s front door.
Just as Bosch was going through the automatic door marked ENTER, he saw Chang coming out the door marked exit. Bosch raised his hand and brushed it through his hair, blocking his face with his arm. He kept going and pulled his phone out of his pocket.
He walked between the two checkout counters. Two women, different from the ones the day before, stood at the cash registers waiting for customers.
“Where’s Mr. Li?” Bosch asked without stopping.
“In the back,” said one woman.
“His office,” said the other.
Bosch called Chu as he was walking quickly down the main aisle to the back of the store.
“He just walked out the front door. Stay with him. I’ll check on Li.”
“Got it.”
Bosch disconnected and pocketed the phone. He followed the same route to Li’s office as he had the day before. When he got there, the office door was closed. He felt adrenaline burst inside him as he reached for the knob.
Bosch pushed the door open without knocking and found Li and another Asian man sitting at the two desks. They were in a conversation that abruptly stopped when the door came open. Li jumped up and Bosch saw immediately that he was physically unharmed.
“Detective!” Li exclaimed. “I was just about to call you! He was here! That man you showed me was here!”
“I know. I was following him. Are you all right?”
“Just scared, that’s all.”
“What happened?”
Li hesitated for a moment to gather his words.
“Sit down and calm down,” Bosch said. “Then you can tell me. Who are you?”
Bosch pointed at the man seated at the other desk.
“This is Eugene, my assistant manager.”
The man stood up and offered his hand to Bosch.
“Eugene Lam, Detective.”
Bosch shook his hand.
“You were here when Chang came in?” he asked.
“Chang?” Li responded.
“That’s his name. The man in the photograph I showed you.”
“Yes, Eugene and I were both here. He just walked into the office.”
“What did he want?”
“He said I had to pay the triad now. He said my father was gone and I had to pay now. He said he would come back in one week and I had to pay.”
“Did he say anything about your father’s murder?”
“He just said that he was gone and now I had to pay.”
“Did he say what would happen if you didn’t pay?”
“He didn’t have to.”
Bosch nodded. Li was right. The threat was implicit, especially after what had happened to Li’s father. Bosch was excited. Chang’s coming to Robert Li widened the possibilities. He was attempting to extort Li and that could lead to an arrest that could ultimately lead to a murder charge.
Harry turned to Lam.
“And you witnessed this-everything that was said?”
Lam was clearly hesitant but then nodded. Bosch thought that maybe he was reluctant to be involved.
“You did or you didn’t, Eugene? You just told me you were here.”
Lam nodded again before responding.
“Yes, I saw the man, but…I don’t speak Chinese. I understand a little bit but not that much.”
Bosch turned to Li.
“He spoke to you in Chinese?”
Li nodded.
“Yes.”
“But you understood him and it was clear he was telling you that you had to start making weekly payments now that your father is gone.”
“Yes, that was clear. But…”
“But what?”
“Are you going to arrest this man? Will I have to appear in court?”
He was clearly scared of the possibility.
“Look, it’s too early to tell whether this ever even leaves this room. We don’t want the guy for