Fonda Lee - Jade War

At first Anden thought the ringing he heard was coming from the television; then he realized the call must be from Janloon because who else would phone at this time? It would be early evening back home. When he shut off the television and picked up the phone, he said, “Hello?” in Kekonese; still, he was surprised to hear Hilo’s voice, muted by the long-distance connection. “We need to talk to you, Andy,” said the Pillar. “Shae and Juen are here in the room too. I’m putting you on speaker.”

Since he’d moved to Espenia, Anden could count on one hand the number of times he’d spoken to Hilo on the phone. “He doesn’t like talking on the phone,” Shae had said to Anden once, apologetically. Anden suspected that more accurately, Hilo did not like to talk to him on the phone, to be reminded of his disgraced younger cousin being so far away. And Anden had certainly never been on a conference call with the Pillar, the Weather Man, and the Horn of No Peak all in attendance. Worried now, Anden said, “Is there something wrong?”

Shae’s voice came from a distance on the other end. “Nothing’s wrong, Anden.”

“We need your help, cousin,” Hilo said, “to get something done in Espenia.”

Anden turned on a lamp and sat down on his bed. “What do you need help with?”

The Pillar said, “Killing a man.”

Zapunyo’s diabetic condition had after many years finally caught up with him and he was in need of a kidney transplant. The medical care in the Uwiwa Islands being one of the worst in the world, and money not being an issue for the wealthy smuggler, Zapunyo arranged to travel to Espenia in six months’ time and pay a premium to have the surgery performed at a private hospital in Port Massy. This rare instance in which he would be leaving his fortified compound in Tialuhiya was discovered by a well-placed No Peak spy in the Uwiwas and was the opportunity that Hilo and Shae had been searching for since last summer.

Anden went to see Dauk Losunyin to ask for what he wanted. “Dauk-jen,” he said, “this smuggler, Zapunyo, he rarely ever leaves his fortress in the Uwiwa Islands. He has an entire operation employing barukan, rockfish, and cheap labor to scavenge jade from the mines, take it out of Kekon, and ship it to black market buyers in Ygutan and Oortoko, and to dangerous organizations like the Crews.”

Dauk nodded in understanding but said, “Boss Kromner is awaiting trial and may spend decades in prison. The other Bosses are in hiding. Why do I need to think of this Zapunyo?”

“Even if Kromner goes to jail, there’ll be others who take his place. As long as jade remains illegal and coveted, there’ll be criminals in this country and all over the world who’ll try to get their hands on it, and Zapunyo will sell it to them. Maybe the newspapers are right and Kromner’s fall means that the heyday of the Crews in Port Massy is at an end, but maybe not, or perhaps other groups will rise up and pose an even greater threat to us. The solution is to cut off the black market at the source, and that means stopping the smuggling of jade out of Kekon.”

They were sitting together in Dauk’s living room, the Pillar in an armchair, Anden on the sofa across from him. Sana had recently finished up with a client who’d come for a healing session, and now she was walking around behind her husband, their baby granddaughter asleep in her arms.

Dauk looked at Anden with a trace of disappointment. “Anden, you and your family are well known to us by now; why not just say exactly what you want and why?”

Anden dropped his gaze to the cup of tea in his hand, then put it down on the coffee table. He spoke carefully. “The first time I met you, I told you that I was only a student, that despite my upbringing, I couldn’t speak for my cousins in Janloon. Now, I can tell you in all honesty that in coming to you today, I’m speaking on behalf of the No Peak clan.” Anden held Dauk’s gaze this time. “This man, Zapunyo, tried to kill the Pillar and is responsible for the death of the Horn. If my sister-in-law and her children had been in the car at the time, they would be dead as well. He’s an enemy of my family who, because of his distance and resources, has gone unpunished for his actions. While he’s here in Espenia, we have to kill him.”

Dauk blew a long breath from his nose. “You say this man is well guarded, that even the Green Bone warriors in the No Peak clan can’t get to him. So how do you propose to do so?”

“It won’t be easy,” Anden admitted. “My cousins have an idea, a way to get past his barukan guards, but we need your permission and your help, Dauk-jen. We need Rohn Toro.”

Dauk Losun turned to his wife. “Let me speak to our friend alone for a while.”

Anden was surprised; never in all the time he’d known the Dauks had the Pillar asked his wife to leave. Even more surprisingly, Dauk Sana pressed her lips together with a look of understanding. She put the baby in the stroller. “I’ll go for a walk and pick up a few things at the store,” she said. She opened the door and left the house, leaving Anden and her husband alone.

Dauk Losun refilled their teacups. He leaned back in the armchair and said, “Since the first time the Hians brought you to my house, I’ve only come to think more highly of you. I could see right away that you’re the sort of young man who would be respected in the old country, someone who means every word that he says. In truth, I wish my own son were more like you—but he is who he is. I have the greatest respect for you and your family. So when you said you were coming here, I was prepared to give you whatever you asked for, because I value the friendship of the No Peak clan nearly as much as my own jade.” Dauk’s normally open, amiable face turned somber. “However, after having heard what you’re asking for, I can’t agree to help you.

“It’s one thing to wear jade for one’s own protection and to defend one’s friends and neighbors. That is what Green Bones have always done; no law made by man can change that. We hold fast to our traditions, which others don’t understand, and we’re not harming anyone in doing so. And it’s also true that sometimes we must punish people who hurt our community and criminals who are a threat to us. We only want what everyone in this country wants: to have a good life and a better future for our children.” Dauk paused and rubbed a hand over the back of his neck. “This Zapunyo is a stranger to me. He may be a bad man, but he’s done nothing to harm our community directly. We may feel the ripples of the struggle over jade smuggled from Kekon to the Uwiwa Islands, but it’s an ocean away. It’s not our struggle. You’re asking me to murder a man I don’t know here on Espenian soil, to expose my family and my good friend Rohn Toro to unnecessary danger and punishment under Espenian law.”

Anden was not surprised by Dauk’s response and had warned his cousins that might be the case. He said, “Everything will be planned and arranged by No Peak under assumed names. I will be the contact person, and nothing will be traceable to you. My Pillar gives his guarantee of that. The only thing we require is Rohn Toro. Afterward, the clan can get Rohn out of the country—he can hide in Kekon, or anywhere he likes—a paid vacation, until it’s safe to return.”

“Did you come to Espenia to escape being a Green Bone? Listen to yourself, Anden. You sound like a Fist.” The older man smiled but shook his head. “I’m sorry. In this, I can’t help you.” When Anden sat silent and disappointed, Dauk said, “If this is so important to you, then perhaps you have to be the one to carry it out. Of course, I know you were trained to wear jade.”