minutes.
‘That’s very sad, Genghis. Sad for everyone. But what does the Dutch woman expect you to do, exactly? Things are kicking off in Thailand and Burma. It’s not a safe place to go right now.’
‘If I go soon, I will be okay. I will always be able to get out overland and by boat.’
‘I read the latest on the kids—they say they are almost certain to have crossed into Laos. It’s a mess out there.’
‘I can at least investigate what actually happened. The parents are being told nothing. I am going to takea day here to get all I need and then I fly to Chiang Mai tomorrow and follow their footsteps until I get to the jungle and then we’ll see.’
‘What do you know about tracking kids through jungles?’ Ng stuffed a dumpling into his mouth.
‘Thanks for the vote of confidence, Ng.’ Mann grinned at his old friend. ‘Don’t hold back.’
Ng gulped down some water.
‘I am just concerned, that’s all.’
‘I know, and you’re right; it’s new territory for me—all of it—but I am hoping to buy myself some help along the way.’ Mann looked across at Ng. He knew by the look on Ng’s face that, although he would always support Mann, he didn’t think Mann should go. ‘In reality, I have no choice. The fact that he is my brother makes this a situation I cannot ignore. I am glad she came to me. It makes me feel somehow good. I can’t explain it—I feel as if I have some purpose to my life again. I might be able to uncover more about my father and I might fill up some of the emptiness I feel inside.’ He smiled, embarrassed. Although he was close to Ng, he wasn’t one for sharing confidences or pouring out his heart. ‘Anyway, I can go out there and talk to people, suss out what happened. I might not be an expert at trekking through jungles but I am sure I can find someone who is.’
‘This is totally out of your depth, Genghis, but okay. You will need help and you will have it. I will get Shrimp working on it.’
‘Thanks, Ng. I knew I could count on you. I need you to do something else for me…I need you toinvestigate my father. I need to know what he was doing in Amsterdam. I need some closure on all of this, Ng. This has made me realise that I don’t want to spend the rest of my life searching for answers. I want to move on.’
‘You may never know the truth, Mann. Sometimes we have to accept and leave it there.’ Ng shook his head. ‘Life isn’t that black or white. People are not just parents, they are flesh and blood. Men are built to sow their seed.’
‘Maybe, or maybe it was love. The last summer I spent with my father was great. It was the happiest I had ever seen him. He seemed different, quick to laugh. He seemed like he wanted to get close to me. The night when I came back to the house and found him being tortured, when I saw him executed, I accepted that he was a brave man who had died because he wouldn’t pay money to triads. But, do you know what, Ng? I don’t even know who he was. Everything I believed in is gone.’
20
Magda had gone to bed ages before and Alfie was still waiting for Katrien to sign on to her messenger account. He was getting stir crazy staring at the screen. The camera wasn’t a tracker. He only got to see her when she was sitting at the monitor; he was hoping that would be enough. He had sound, he had visual; now all he needed was for her to log on.
At midnight katcream69 was online and typing. She was sitting in her bra and pants. The webcam box was too small for him to see who she was looking at. He couldn’t log in at the same time as her. It would cut her off if he did that. She seemed to be waiting and then she leant forward and looked into the webcam.
‘Have you missed me?’ Her voice was childlike, soft. There was no audible reply. Someone was typing. ‘I know, it won’t be long now, my love, and we will be together, just you and me and everything we have ever dreamed of…nothing will separate us then. No, there isn’t
‘That’s very sad, Genghis. Sad for everyone. But what does the Dutch woman expect you to do, exactly? Things are kicking off in Thailand and Burma. It’s not a safe place to go right now.’
‘If I go soon, I will be okay. I will always be able to get out overland and by boat.’
‘I read the latest on the kids—they say they are almost certain to have crossed into Laos. It’s a mess out there.’
‘I can at least investigate what actually happened. The parents are being told nothing. I am going to takea day here to get all I need and then I fly to Chiang Mai tomorrow and follow their footsteps until I get to the jungle and then we’ll see.’
‘What do you know about tracking kids through jungles?’ Ng stuffed a dumpling into his mouth.
‘Thanks for the vote of confidence, Ng.’ Mann grinned at his old friend. ‘Don’t hold back.’
Ng gulped down some water.
‘I am just concerned, that’s all.’
‘I know, and you’re right; it’s new territory for me—all of it—but I am hoping to buy myself some help along the way.’ Mann looked across at Ng. He knew by the look on Ng’s face that, although he would always support Mann, he didn’t think Mann should go. ‘In reality, I have no choice. The fact that he is my brother makes this a situation I cannot ignore. I am glad she came to me. It makes me feel somehow good. I can’t explain it—I feel as if I have some purpose to my life again. I might be able to uncover more about my father and I might fill up some of the emptiness I feel inside.’ He smiled, embarrassed. Although he was close to Ng, he wasn’t one for sharing confidences or pouring out his heart. ‘Anyway, I can go out there and talk to people, suss out what happened. I might not be an expert at trekking through jungles but I am sure I can find someone who is.’
‘This is totally out of your depth, Genghis, but okay. You will need help and you will have it. I will get Shrimp working on it.’
‘Thanks, Ng. I knew I could count on you. I need you to do something else for me…I need you toinvestigate my father. I need to know what he was doing in Amsterdam. I need some closure on all of this, Ng. This has made me realise that I don’t want to spend the rest of my life searching for answers. I want to move on.’
‘You may never know the truth, Mann. Sometimes we have to accept and leave it there.’ Ng shook his head. ‘Life isn’t that black or white. People are not just parents, they are flesh and blood. Men are built to sow their seed.’
‘Maybe, or maybe it was love. The last summer I spent with my father was great. It was the happiest I had ever seen him. He seemed different, quick to laugh. He seemed like he wanted to get close to me. The night when I came back to the house and found him being tortured, when I saw him executed, I accepted that he was a brave man who had died because he wouldn’t pay money to triads. But, do you know what, Ng? I don’t even know who he was. Everything I believed in is gone.’
20
Magda had gone to bed ages before and Alfie was still waiting for Katrien to sign on to her messenger account. He was getting stir crazy staring at the screen. The camera wasn’t a tracker. He only got to see her when she was sitting at the monitor; he was hoping that would be enough. He had sound, he had visual; now all he needed was for her to log on.
At midnight katcream69 was online and typing. She was sitting in her bra and pants. The webcam box was too small for him to see who she was looking at. He couldn’t log in at the same time as her. It would cut her off if he did that. She seemed to be waiting and then she leant forward and looked into the webcam.
‘Have you missed me?’ Her voice was childlike, soft. There was no audible reply. Someone was typing. ‘I know, it won’t be long now, my love, and we will be together, just you and me and everything we have ever dreamed of…nothing will separate us then. No, there isn’t
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