James Chase - A Lotus for Miss Quon

“Did you get it?” he asked.

She set down the basket, lifted out some of the vegetables and hauled out a parcel securely wrapped in brown paper and tied with string.

“What is happening?” she asked. “I am worried. You are planning something. May I not know?”

He took the parcel.

“No,” he said. “This is a matter for men.”

He went into his office, shut and bolted the door and then opened the parcel. The.38 automatic with its long silencer pleased him. He checked the magazine, then going to his safe, he locked the gun away.

Two more days, he thought, before we get the diamonds. It seemed an eternity to have to wait. He went to the window again and peered through the shutters. The Citroen was still there.

While he stood watching the car and wondering what this police attention could mean, Inspector Ngoc-Linh was standing before Colonel On-dinh-Khuc’s desk, making a report about the dead policeman found in a ditch on the Thudaumot road.

The time was half past three. The policeman’s body had only just been found. He had been missing since he had left the police post at ten-thirty the previous evening. He had been detailed to watch Blackie Lee’s car. The Inspector couldn’t make up his mind whether bandits had killed the policeman or if Jaffe had killed him.

The Colonel wasn’t interested in the dead policeman.

During the morning, he had had a disturbing conversation with Lam-Than. Lam-Than had warned him his sands were now rapidly running out.

One of Lam-Than’s spies at the Presidency had told Lam-Than that the group opposing the Colonel had finally convinced the President to take action against him. By the end of the week he would no longer be Head of Security Police. He would have been dismissed instantly only the man who was to succeed him was in Paris, and until he returned in three days, no action against the Colonel could be taken.

Three days! the Colonel was thinking as he half-listened to the Inspector’s report. If this rumour were true he had only three more days in which to lay his hands on the diamonds and get out of the country.

“Where is this taxi-dancer?” he said. “How much longer do I have to wait?”

“She will return to her home at six,” the Inspector said. “At ten minutes past six, sir, she will be in this room.”

The Colonel stared at him, his little eyes glittering.

“I will hold you to that statement,” he said. “If she is not here by ten minutes past six, you will regret having been born.”

There was a pause, then the Inspector said, “The man, Blackie Lee, took his brother to the airport this morning. The brother flew to Phom-Penh. He has a return ticket and arrives back here tomorrow morning. These two men know something about Jaffe. I respectfully suggest they should now be arrested and questioned.

The Colonel shook his head.

“Not yet,” he said. “Give me the girl. She will tell me what I want to know. Just give me the girl.”

Nhan woke from a sound and dreamless sleep. She lay without moving, looking up at the wooden ceiling as she listened to the faint sounds of passing people and an occasional car in the road outside the villa.

The little room was very hot. She felt drowsy and relaxed. She turned her head to look at Steve sleeping beside her. Then moving gently so as not to wake him, she half sat up to look at his wrist-watch lying on the table beside her. The time was four o’clock. She lay back with a contented sigh.

The bus to Saigon left at fifteen minutes past five. It would get her to the Central Market at five-to-six. She would be home by six in time to prepare supper for her brothers.

For the moment her fears had drained out of her. Jaffe’s skilful love-making had satisfied her body and relaxed her mind.

She stretched her long naked legs with another sigh of content and she put her hands over her small breasts, pressing her elbows into her tiny waist.

Steve stirred. He opened his eyes, blinked, then seeing her watching him, he smiled.

“Hello, Mrs. Jaffe,” he said and dropped his hand onto her. “What’s the time?”

She looked adoringly at him. He couldn’t have said anything nicer to her than that simple “Hello, Mrs. Jaffe.”

“It’s only four.”

He slid his arm under her shoulders and pulled her to him.

“How glad I’ll be to get out of here,” he said, absently stroking her flank. “Thirty-one more hours. It’s damned funny really how in a few hours one’s whole life can change. In thirty-one hours you and I will be in a helicopter. Have you ever been in a helicopter?”

“No.”

“Nor have I. This will be the first of many new experiences we are going to share together.” He saw the worried expression come into her eyes and he shook his head, smiling at her. “The first thing we’ll do when we get to Hong Kong is to find a lawyer to get your family fixed. You’re worrying about them, aren’t you?”

“A little. They will be very sad when I leave them.”

“They’ll get over it.” He lay quiet for some moments, then, “You won’t change your mind and stay here with me? Your grandfather can go and tell your family you’re leaving with me to get married. I’ll give him the money for a taxi. Come on, Nhan, change your mind. Let’s get to know each other. We shall have thirty-one hours in this little room to talk. We should know each other pretty well after thirty-one hours’ talking shouldn’t we?”

“Yes.”

She was tempted to stay. It was strange, she thought, when I am with him, I’m not frightened. With him, holding me, I can really believe that I shall go to Hong Kong with him and I shall stay at the best hotel and have a car of my own and a necklace of pearls as he promised. Not that I want anything really except him.

She wrestled with temptation to stay. Her three brothers didn’t like her grandfather. She never knew quite why. It wouldn’t do for him to go to them and tell them she was leaving Saigon and wouldn’t see them for a long time. They relied on her. They would miss her so much. It was her duty to explain why she was leaving them herself.

“I must go, Steve,” she said, looking anxiously at him. “I want to stay, but as I am leaving them and going to live with you, it wouldn’t be right not to tell them myself.”

“I guess that’s right.” Jaffe bent and kissed her. “You’re a funny kid, Nhan. I admire you for being able to feel that way. I couldn’t: it’s not in me.”

“You are very kind.”

“No, I’m not,” Jaffe said, frowning. “I’m in love with you. I wasn’t kind even to you before I learned to love you. Now it’s easy to be kind to you, but not to anyone else.” He got off the bed and slipped on his shorts, then crossing to his canvas hold-all, lying on the floor, he opened it and took out the typewriter ribbon container and came back to her. “Lie still,” he said and opening the container, he gently spilled the diamonds into the little hollow between her breasts.

She lifted her head and looked at the diamonds sparkling like fireflies on her brown skin. They felt cold, and she suppressed a shiver as Jaffe very carefully moved them with his fingers, making a little pattern with them.

“They’re terrific, aren’t they?” he said. “Look at them! I’ll be sorry to sell them. I’ll pick the best of them and I’ll have it mounted on a ring for you.”

The feel of the diamonds against her skin gave her the same feeling of horror she once had when, lying in the long grass, a snake had slid over her naked legs. Then, she had sprung to her feet, screaming. Now, seeing the pleasure the diamonds lying between her breasts gave him, she fought down the horror and controlled the impulse to sweep them off her body and scream.