Ava was sitting in the lobby of the Pan Pacific Hotel in black slacks and a powder-blue Brooks Brothers shirt with her jade cufflinks. Her hair was still damp from the shower she had taken after checking in. She glanced at her Tank Francaise watch. It was just past eight o’clock.
She saw Edward Ling before he saw her. A bulky man with a shock of white hair, wearing a tailored navy-blue pinstriped suit and a blue Hermes tie loosened at the neck, he was walking down a staircase from the mezzanine, scanning the lobby.
Ava stood so he could see her. He acknowledged her with a nod and walked towards her.
“Are you Ava Lee?” he asked.
“Yes, I am,” she said, offering her hand.
“You aren’t what I expected. Not at all what I expected.” He slurred ever so slightly, and she knew there had been alcohol with dinner.
“I don’t know what you mean.”
“You’re so young.”
“I’m not as young as I look.”
“Do you have a business card?” he asked.
She opened her purse and handed one to him. She also pulled out her Moleskine notebook and the envelope that contained Jim Cousins’ contract. Sitting down, she placed the papers next to her on the couch. Ling sat down across from her. She could tell he was agitated, and wondered how much he knew.
“Are you a daughter of Marcus Lee?” he asked.
“Yes,” Ava said, startled. “I am.”
Ava was the second daughter of Marcus Lee and his second wife, Jennie. Jennie had become Marcus’s wife in the old style, which is to say he had never left or divorced the first. Ava and Marian had become his second family, acknowledged and cared for but with no hope of inheriting anything more than their names and whatever their mother could put aside for them from Marcus’s generous allowance. Their father had four children by his first wife, who lived in Hong Kong, and another two with wife number three, who lived in Australia. It was — at least to Westerners — a strange approach to family life. But in Chinese eyes it was traditional and therefore acceptable. It was also not a lifestyle for a man without wealth.
“I met you when you were two years old.”
“I beg your pardon?”
“I met you in Hong Kong when your father was still living with your mother. You have an older sister, right?”
“Marian.”
“When I heard your name earlier today, I had a vague recollection. And then I called a friend in Hong Kong and he made the connection for me. I wasn’t sure until I saw how young you were.”
“How do you know my father?”
“We were schoolmates in Hong Kong, and then later we knew each other in Australia.”
“What a coincidence.”
Ling stared at her and she began to feel uncomfortable. “You look a lot like him,” he said. “Although looking like your mother wouldn’t be so bad. She was a real beauty.”
“She still is,” Ava said.
“Do you stay in touch with your father?”
It was a rude question, designed to humiliate her. “Yes, and I’ll be sure to tell him we met and that you inquired about our relationship.”
Ling flinched. He realized he had gone too far. Marcus Lee wasn’t a close friend anymore, but he was a man who had too much wealth, power, and influence for Ling to dare offend him. “Well, anyway, it’s such a small world, isn’t it?”
“I’m here about Philip Chew,” Ava said.
“I thought as much when you mentioned Manila.”
“You incorporated a company called Kelowna Valley Developments for him. A man named Jim Cousins was designated president but the shares were held by Chew.”
“Are you always so direct?” he asked with amusement.
“It saves time.”
He shrugged. “As I remember, the shares in that business were held in trust by our law firm.”
“You incorporated the company for Philip Chew. It’s logical to assume that the shares are being held in trust for him.”
“I haven’t actually admitted incorporating the company for Philip. That is your assertion.”
He’s a bit tipsy but he’s not slow, she thought. “Do you deny it?”
“Ms. Lee, where is all this leading?”
“Mr. Ling, I had several choices when I found out what had been going on. Coming to you was the one I thought would cause the least amount of damage to everyone involved.”
Ling pinched an eyebrow between his thumb and index finger. “The thing is, I have no idea what you’re talking about. I may have incorporated Kelowna Valley Developments, and I may have done it for Philip, but that’s where my involvement ends. I had nothing to do with the company after its inception and I don’t have the slightest idea why you’re talking about damage.”
“Do you care about Philip Chew?” she asked.
“What kind of question is that?”
“Is he a valued client? Is he a friend?”
“Both, and what of it?”
She picked up the notebook and the envelope and placed them on her lap. Ling stared at the envelope. “I would like to have a very frank exchange of information with you, but I need to know that it will remain between the two of us unless we both agree otherwise.”
“Do you trust me?”
“If you really are a friend of Philip Chew, then I think I do.”
“I am.”
She patted the envelope. “Over the past six months, Philip Chew orchestrated the removal of more than fifty million dollars from company accounts. He did it through Kelowna Valley Developments and he used Jim Cousins as the front man. I’ve already met with Cousins and he’s admitted to his role in the affair. This is a copy of the contract that existed between Chew and Cousins. It outlines quite precisely what was to transpire.”
Edward Ling didn’t flinch. His eyes bored into hers, searching for any shred of a lie, any hint of exaggeration. Ava didn’t turn away. “That’s ridiculous,” he said loudly.
“It’s the truth.”
His head swivelled in the direction of the stairway he had just descended. “Why would he do that? It’s his own company, for God’s sake.”
“It’s his brother’s company,” she countered.
“I’ve known Philip for close to twenty years.”
“So?”
“You’re cynical for someone so young.”
“I chase bad debts for a living. You can’t be cynical enough.”
“Why would he do something like this?”
“That’s what I’m trying to find out.”
“And you want me to help you?”
She picked up the envelope. “I’m prepared to give you a copy of the contract. It will satisfy you that what I’m saying is true. What I want in return is confirmation that Philip did indeed incorporate the business and ask you to hold the shares in trust.”
“And then what?”
“I want to speak to him. I want you to call him and persuade him that it’s in everyone’s best interest if he meets with me.”
“You won’t go directly to Tommy Ordonez with this information?”
“Do you know Tommy?”
“Not really,” he said, with a shrug. “I don’t do any of their corporate work. They use a Manila law firm for most of their legal work and another law firm here that’s affiliated with it. Philip was a personal client.”
“If I go to Tommy, all hell will descend on Philip. He’ll hardly be able to breathe, let alone explain himself — assuming there is an explanation for fifty million dollars wandering off from corporate coffers.”
“Why should you care?”
It was a fair question, and she knew her answer couldn’t be glib. “I have several reasons, all of them more or less self-serving. First of all, I was hired to find out what happened to the money. I think I’ve taken that between seventy and eighty percent of the way, and I’m professional enough to want to finish the job. Second, I get paid a fee for every dollar I recover. I can’t recover anything unless I know what’s left and where it is. Third, I have taken a certain dislike to Tommy Ordonez. I think he’s the kind of operator who uses people. If I went to him with what I have, he would cut me out without a thought. I don’t want to give him that opportunity. And finally, I really am intrigued by the way Philip handled this deal and the story he spun to Jim Cousins. He’s been very creative, and I want to know the truth.”
Ling looked at the envelope, and she knew he was anxious to view its contents. “You see, it is interesting,” she said.
He shook his head. “Yes, Philip did incorporate the company and asked me to hold the shares.”
“I want it in writing.”
“No problem.”
“Good. I’ll give you a copy of this contract when I get your letter confirming the shares.”
“How about arranging a meeting with Philip?”
“That’s not a condition,” she said. “I just want you to do the best you can. I am serious when I say that I’m his best chance to avoid his brother’s anger.”
“Jesus, you remind me of your father,” Ling said. “Every deal he ever negotiated left something on the table for the other party.”
“There’s no point in being unreasonable,” she said.
“Maybe you should say that to Tommy Ordonez.”
“I will, when I know exactly what happened.”
“You don’t think Philip just made off with fifty million dollars?”
“You know him better than I do. What do you think?”
Ling shook his head again. “Not a chance.”