Lisa See - The Interior

"Do you think I have a choice?" Her tone was sharp.

"You of all people have choice," he reminded her.

She chose to ignore this, saying, "The daughter of Ling Suchee has died. She is skeptical of the local police bureau's official version of the case. Her suspicions are probably just her grief speaking, but I can go to her as a friend."

"Hulan, the past is behind you. Forget about it."

She sighed. "You have read my personal file. You know what happened out there. If Ling Suchee asks for my help, then I must go."

"And if I forbid you?" he asked gently.

"Then I will use my vacation time," she said.

"Hulan-"

She held up a hand to stop him from continuing. "I will come back as soon as I can." She stood, crossed the room, then hesitated at the door. "Don't worry, uncle," she said, ironing the tension out of her voice. "Everything will be fine. It may even do me good to get out of the city for a while." She paused, thinking he might add something, but they both knew her words had many meanings and some of them might even be right. "And please, do visit Mama. Your companionship helps her."

A few minutes later she stepped out into the ministry's courtyard. Heat radiated up from the asphalt. Investigator Lo started the car, and as he pulled out of the compound she felt sweat trickle between her breasts down to her stomach, where her and David's child grew. She brushed her palm across her brow and thought of what Uncle Zai had said. "The past is behind you." But he was so wrong. The past was never far from her. It was with her every day in the crippled form of her mother. It was in the joyous voices and rhythmic drums of the yang ge troupe. It was in the blurry photographs that she saw in the newspapers. It was in the scratchy writing on a cheap paper envelope. She carried within her the future, but what kind of a future would any of them have if she didn't drive the past away forever?

DAVID STARK'S HAND REACHED FOR THE RINGING PHONE. At five in the morning, the call could mean one of two things. Either a case had broken and an agent wanted David to come down and look at the scene, or Hulan was calling.

"Hello," he said, his eyes still closed.

"David." Hulan's voice coming to him at eight in the evening from thousands of miles away across the international dateline jolted him awake.

"Is everything all right? Are you okay?"

"Of course."

Her next words were lost in a wave of static. Hulan insisted on using a cell phone to call him, despite the poor sound quality. She said she didn't trust the phone in her office for their personal calls. More recently she'd begun to suspect the phone in her home. The cell phone was in no way perfect. Just about anyone could listen in if they wanted. Hulan took solace in this. There might even be an element of protection in more than one party-even an innocent person-listening in on their private calls.

The transmission cleared and David asked, "Where are you?" It eased his mind to visualize her. Usually she called from her garden and she might describe for him what was in bloom or the feel of the sun on her skin. He could almost see her there-the wisps of black hair that framed her face, her black eyes that often revealed the real meaning of her words, her delicate frame that belied profound inner strength.

"I'm on the train."

David sat up, squinting as he turned on the light. "Where are you going? Is it for a case?"

"Not exactly. An old friend has asked for my help. I'm going to see what I can do."

David thought this over. He had to be careful how he questioned her. "I thought you were trying to wrap things up. I thought your next trip would be here."

"I'll come…"

"One day? Eventually?"

She chose to ignore this. "You know I miss you. Can't you come to me?"

David was just barely awake. He couldn't face that conversation again right now.

"So, where are you?"

"I'm on my way to Shanxi Province in the interior." She paused, then said, "I'm going to a village near Taiyuan."

He could hear the hesitancy in her voice even over all these miles, even with the static. "What village exactly?" He tried to keep his tone light.

"Da Shui. It's where the Red Soil Farm was during the Cultural Revolution."

"Oh God, Hulan. Why?"

"It's okay. Don't worry. You don't know everything about that place." (That's probably the understatement of the year, David thought.) "I had a friend out there. She… Well, it doesn't matter right now. Her daughter died, an apparent suicide. Suchee thinks it's something else."

"Sounds like she should go to the local authorities."

"She went to the Public Security Bureau. That's the local level of the ministry. But you know how things are here."

Corrupt, sure he knew it.

"Look, it's probably nothing," Hulan continued, "but the least I can do is ask a couple of questions and put Suchee's mind at rest. She's a mother." That word came over the line with tremendous weight. It was another thing that Hulan didn't like to discuss. "She lost her only child."

"When will you be back?"

"I was lucky enough to get a seat on a semi-express train to Datong. That means we'll only be making about ten stops over the next six or so hours. Tomorrow I'll take another train to Taiyuan. Then a few days in Da Shui, then the trip back. I'll be back in Beijing next week." When David didn't respond, she added, "This is nothing to worry about."

"How will I reach you?"

"I don't know what our days are going to be like, so I'll call you."

He didn't like it, but he said, "Fine."

Across the line came the sound of a train whistle. Hulan said, "Listen, we're about to make a stop. With all the people getting on and off, we won't be able to hear each other. So let me ask you something. Knight International. Ever hear of it?"

"That came out of nowhere."

"It's where Miaoshan worked. It's an American company. Have you heard of it?"

"Who hasn't?" David replied. "It's huge. It's based back East somewhere, but the company has a lot of Hollywood connections."

"So what is Knight?"

"They-a father and son-make toys. Do you know Sam amp; His Friends? Do you have that over there? It's a TV show for kids. Sam amp; His Friends is a cartoon. I've never seen the actual show, of course, but the advertising! I think Knight makes dolls. No! What's the word? Action figures! They've got an action figure for every one of those damn 'friends' and ads to go with them. Knight makes those over there? Jesus!"

"It's that big?"

"Remember the rage over Cabbage Patch dolls? Did you have those in China?"

"No. I don't think so."

"Tickle Me Elmo?"

"No."

"Beanie Babies?"

"No. Barbie, I know Barbie."

"Sam isn't like Barbie. These Sam toys are a fad. Kids are crazy for them."

"How do you know so much about it?"

"That's what I'm trying to say. It's on the local news every time a new shipment hits the stores. Parents line up around the block to buy these things. The supply can't meet the demand. It's in the business pages practically every day. Knight stock has gone through the roof. Here's a company that was percolating along for about seventy years, then this show comes on and kids go nuts. It's a phenomenon."

"And Knight is manufacturing the toys in Shanxi," Hulan mused thoughtfully.

"I guess it shouldn't be that strange, Hulan. Half of everything is made in China."

"Sure, in the Special Economic Zone in Shenzhen," Hulan said as the train whistle blew again. "In Guangdong Province. Around Shanghai. But Shanxi? There's nothing out there, David."

These last words were almost lost in the noise behind Hulan. "We're at the station," she said. "I'll call you later. I love you." And then she was gone.

After putting the receiver back in the cradle, David couldn't go back to sleep. By the time he pulled on shoes and shorts, there was enough light for him to head out for a run around Lake Hollywood. Tall and lean, he had dark hair, graying a bit at the temples. His blue eyes tended to pick up the hues of whatever environment he was in. This morning, with the fog still hiding nature's sky and water tones, his eyes were flecked with highlights from the greenery around him.