Read Online The Blue Dragon by Ronald Tierney - Free Book Online

you have.”
    I waited.
    He waited.
    “So which of you killed him?” I asked.
    “No, Mr. Strand. Neither of us. Your leap in logic is Olympian. It is not in my soul to destroy beauty.”
    “Blackmail.”
    “Me? We live in San Francisco, Mr. Strand, not Little Rock. No one cares about my sex life here.”
    “The police might suggest that you made unwanted advances and he reacted. There was a fight and—”
    “Never.”
    “Steven.”
    “No.”
    “He knew about the photographs?”
    “Yes.”
    “Maybe he and Ted argued.”
    “Steven was in Florida when Ted died.”
    “Why was he in Florida?”
    “Looking for work.” Norman looked at me and knew a question would come. He decided to answer it. “Despite my protestations, Steven didn’t like my sudden appreciation of Asian beauty.”
    “I’m sorry. How does it stand?”
    “Feebly here, it seems. With me, I mean. I’m not sure what’s going through Steven’s head. We aren’t talking to each other about anything more serious than laundry detergent.”
    Norman Chinn looked drawn. If he was so concerned about the relationship, though, why was he out on the prowl last night? I didn’t ask. As I started toward the door, he got up and came toward me.
    “Could I have the photograph?” When I turned, he smiled. “Unless you like to look at naked Asian men.”
    “I can do that every time I shower. For now, that seems to be more than enough. I’ll get this back to you when things are settled.”
    “You truly think someone in this building could have done it?”
    “Yes.”
    “And are we high up on your list of suspects?”
    “A little early for a rating.”
    As I exited, I ran into Steven on the stairway.
    “Visiting Norman again?” he asked, eyebrow raised in an arched stereotype, voice carrying the dramatic innuendo.
    “Just trying to figure out who did what to whom,” I said.
    “That’s what I’ve been trying to do.”
    “I understand you were out of town at the time of Ted’s death.”
    “I can supply you with a list of witnesses. Fortunately, I hate being alone. Apparently so does Norman.”
    “Very fortunate for you—I mean, to have witnesses.”
    “Blessed are the socially desperate,” he said.
    “Norman wasn’t out of town, though, was he?”
    “Norman just couldn’t have, really. I’d like to hang him from the ceiling with tit clamps for his little obsessions. An old queer’s dying search for perfect beauty, but that’s what it’s all about, isn’t it?”
    I went for a walk, eventually, to the charming streets near Jackson Square and then back to Mr. Zheng’s Chinatown store. He seemed happy to see me.
    “I’m sorry to keep barging in on you and bringing up painful subjects.”
    He put his hand on my shoulder. “No, no, you are a light in the darkness. I am glad to talk to you.”
    “I have a few questions,” I said.
    “Let’s go grab a beer and talk.”
    He said something in Chinese to the young girl in the store. She smiled and waved.
    “It is a double tragedy,” Mr. Zheng said. “It is a tragedy for his mother and me. It is out of order. A break in the cycle. Children are not supposed to die before their parents. And then you think of it with the child in mind. Parents are supposed to be around to teach them about the world. It is the way. Yet it isn’t.”
    I had nothing to say.
    “But every human experiences tragedy, isn’t that right, Peter?”
    I nodded.
    “We must get through it,” he said, his hand on my shoulder. We walked to the same restaurant as before. We didn’t bother with the separate little room, instead taking seats at the empty bar. The bartender and Mr. Zheng talked in Chinese. We were brought Budweisers.
    “Ted owed you quite a bit of money,” I said after we’d downed two good sips of beer each.
    He shook his head.
    “A son does not owe money to his father. It’s all family. All the same thing. He was…irresponsible. It was difficult at times financially. His mother was so concerned