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He pulled down the collar of his shirt to reveal the insignia of the three dragons emblazoned near his heart, denoting membership of this secret society.
“We are going to build a new China,” he went on, “powerful enough to reshape the world. We have forged an alliance with a faction in Moscow.”
My heart skipped a beat when he said that word. I already suspected what was coming.
“Our new friends in Russia demanded the destruction of Private as a demonstration of our power and loyalty,” he revealed.
So this had been revenge for the interventions I’d made in Moscow, and likely also in Afghanistan. I had been warned I’d angered some powerful people in the Kremlin, but this went beyond anger. This was pure vindictiveness, and innocent and blameless colleagues of mine had suffered as a result
“You failed,” Zhang Daiyu countered.
Liu Bao looked at her insolently.
“There is no failure,” he said. “I am just a piece in this game. There are many others. They will succeed where I have not.”
“Or perhaps you will try again?” I suggested. “I can see what you’re thinking.”
His sly glance at me told me I was right. “It is a long road between here and the airport,” he said menacingly.
“You lost. You will always lose because you’re nothing. All your money and power can’t change that. You’re a criminal, and I break people like you for a living,” I responded. “Who’s the Russian contact?”
He shook his head. “You think I would tell you even if I knew?”
“That wasn’t our deal,” I said, brandishing the gun. “Your life for everything you know.”
“Fang Wenyan,” he said, referring to the young Guoanbu agent. “He’s the connection. He will know who ordered Private destroyed.”
“You should have killed me,” I said.
“I would have, long ago,” he replied. “But he wanted you alive to watch the destruction of your empire and the deaths of those you love. It was a stipulation of the deal. And now, knowing what kind of man you are, I see he was right. You don’t fear death or pain. You are only moved by the suffering of others.”
Fury flooded my body and I struggled to contain it. “Everyone who was part of this will pay,” I seethed.
“How?” Liu Bao sneered. “You have no idea of the power you face.”
“The power of evil, cruelty, greed? That’s not real power. Working to bring about justice and truth—that is where real power lies.”
“And how will you achieve such things?” he sneered.
“Technology helps,” Zhang Daiyu replied, pulling her phone from her pocket. She held it to her ear. “You get that?”
I sensed movement behind us and looked over my shoulder to see Huang Hua enter the container together with Chen Ya-ting, Zhang Daiyu’s Beijing Police contact. We’d just given him Liu Bao’s confession to murder.
“We got everything,” Hua said.
Chen started speaking in Mandarin and I recognized the tone of a police officer making an arrest. Zang confirmed my educated guess.
“Liu is being arrested for murder, kidnap, and treason,” shesaid as further officers arrived. “I hope you don’t mind. I called Hua while we were separated and he suggested we record everything. I asked him to contact Detective Chen and use my phone to track our location.”
I smiled. “You did good, Zhang Daiyu. Very good.”
She beamed. “Now I’m no longer using my phone to record, we can call Su Yun and let her know her husband is alive and safe.”
CHAPTER 73
SHANG LI MADE the call himself, just outside the container where he’d been held captive. Zhang Daiyu, Hua and I gave him some privacy, while Detective Chen and his men dealt with Lu Bao and the others. I watched Li speak to his wife for the first time since his disappearance and saw him break down, crying with relief and joy.
After he’d told Su Yun he was coming home, he came over and hugged us all in turn. He wasn’t usually a demonstrative man, but he’d been through a life-changing experience. He rained praise and thanks on us as he held us. It felt good to have my old friend back.
