to the bathroom and put him in the shower. Then go to Wu’s room and get some clothes for him; they’re about the same size. And then take him downstairs to the kitchen and get him a glass of water or something. Wu is on the ground near there, so Simon, if you’re squeamish about dead bodies, close your eyes when you go past. We’ll come down when we’re finished here.”
As Carlo and Simon turned to go, Andy burst past them into the room. “They came out, all three of them. We’ve gone through the wing and that’s all there are.”
“Are they handcuffed?”
“We’re doing it now.”
“Tape their ankles and mouths as well.”
“Okay, boss.”
“And, Andy, one more thing. There’s an elderly couple in the middle bedroom on this floor. They’re servants. Get them to come out. Don’t be rough with them, but I still want them handcuffed and left with the others downstairs. Then you come back here.”
“How are you feeling?” Sonny asked when he saw her wince.
“Not bad, considering.”
“What are we going to do with him?”
She said to Lok, “I’ve got Simon, and now I want Simon’s money returned.”
“Fuck off.”
Ava checked her watch. “Ten minutes already and no police. How long does it normally take them to get here?”
Lok glared at her.
She heard crying in the hallway. Sonny stuck his head outside the door. “Andy has the servants,” he said.
“So that leaves you,” Ava said to Lok, and then turned to Sonny. “I have a pair of handcuffs in my jacket. Take them out and attach this asshole’s ankle to the chair leg. Then go downstairs to the kitchen and see what you can find in the way of utensils. A large, sharp serrated knife would be good, a meat cleaver even better. And see if you can find a hammer.” She smiled at Lok. “Andy is handy with a cleaver, and I’ve heard stories about how proficient Sonny is with a hammer.”
Lok didn’t resist as Sonny chained him.
“When you come back, bring Andy with you,” she said.
( 28 )
Lok watched the big man leave and then spat in Ava’s direction.
“I want the money,” Ava said.
“I don’t have it.”
“Bull.”
“I spent it.”
“Not all of it, you didn’t.”
“I don’t have it.”
“I don’t know why you guys always insist on doing things the hard way. I mean, I’m not stealing it from you or anything. It’s our money, and all I’m asking you to do is return it. If you think about it that way, it might be easier, you know. You need to get into the right frame of mind.”
“Fuck off.”
“That’s fifteen minutes now, and still no police,” Ava said, showing him her watch.
The house was so quiet now, she could hear the shower running in the bathroom next door.
“There’s no computer in here. Do you have one somewhere else?”
He shook his head.
“How do you do banking, then?”
He ignored her, and Ava began to contemplate just how she was going to get her hands on the money. If there wasn’t a computer, an online transfer was out of the question, and so were electronic instructions from Lok to the bank. She shifted in her chair again, the pain centred in her upper thigh now radiating downwards. Even resting the back of her knee against the chair was uncomfortable. How the hell am I going to get back to Hong Kong? she thought, and then caught herself. She had to get the money first, and then get out of the house. She’d worry about Hong Kong later.
Sonny entered the room with Andy at his heels. He carried two utensils: a meat cleaver and a stainless steel mallet. He laid them out on the table. “How do you want to start?” he asked Ava.
Ava pulled herself up from the chair, balancing on her good leg. “Hold my arm. I want to hop over to that desk,” she told him.
The pain was excruciating, and if the distance had been more than three hops she would have succumbed to being carried again. She sat down, her leg extended, and began opening desk drawers. She found the banking information in the bottom one. There was a stack of thick files, one for each of Lok’s businesses. She pulled out the Ma Shing Realty Corporation file and extracted the bank statements. They were from the Macau branch of the same bank Michael and Simon used. As of two weeks ago there had been more than HK$100 million in it. She opened other company files, looking for another $50