Golden Lies - Barbara Freethy [32]
He looked up, noting the apartments on the second, third, and fourth floors. There were clothes drying off fire escapes, open windows with tattered curtains blowing in and out in the breeze, and a halfhearted attempt at a window garden in the dark alley. Everything he saw spoke of people struggling to survive in a densely populated city. He imagined that the apartments above were cramped, the plumbing and electrical antiquated, too many people living in too small a space. Was it any surprise that David Hathaway had been robbed in a place like this? He should have had more sense than to come here alone at night.
Bringing his gaze back down to the ground, Riley checked to see if anything else had been missed by the police, but found nothing. A few feet away was a doorway set back from the street, an overhang offering shelter, perhaps a hiding spot as well. He walked over to the door and saw women and sewing machines through the metal grille that protected the shop from burglary. He rang the bell. A moment later, a short young Chinese woman approached the door. She looked through the upper glass portion of the door, then tentatively opened it, leaving the metal grille between them.
"Hello," he said, offering her a friendly smile. "I wonder if I could talk to you for a minute."
She said something to him in Cantonese and started to shut the door.
"Wait, I wanted to ask you about a man who was attacked here last night."
"No English," she said in a heavy accent. Another woman came up behind her and grabbed her by the arm, forcing her away from the door.
"Police?" the other woman asked him.
"No. I'm a friend of the man who was assaulted in the alley last night. Were you here when it happened?"
She shook her head, then shut the door firmly in his face. He had no idea if they were protecting someone else, or just themselves.
Checking his watch, he realized he had only a few minutes to meet Paige. He walked down the alley toward the main street, passing a temple on the corner. Gold dragons were wrapped around two columns in front of the doorway that boasted a sign with Chinese writing. Below, in English, those seeking blessings were invited to enter. He wondered if David Hathaway had stopped at this temple, seeking a blessing on the dragon. Apparently, dragons were quite a symbol in Chinatown. He saw them virtually everywhere, promising protection, long life, and good fortune. But he hadn't experienced any good fortune since his grandmother discovered the dragon, and David Hathaway certainly hadn't, either.
Leaving the alley, Riley traversed two short blocks, leading him away from the commercial area to a neighborhood of apartment buildings that shared common walls. He wondered again if he shouldn't have gone ahead and talked to Jasmine on his own. While he wanted to believe Paige knew nothing about the dragon's disappearance, another part of him, the part that reminded him that women could lie and cheat with smiles on their faces, told him to be wary and not to take anything at face value. Paige Hathaway had grown up in a different world with different rules.
David Hathaway had already broken one rule by taking the dragon from the store. Who knew what else he'd had in mind? Riley needed to do more research on the art world, find out what scams were running. He was concerned that someone might try to copy the dragon, return the counterfeit version to his grandmother, insisting it was a fake, and sell the real thing on the black market. He would not allow that to happen to his grandmother.
A taxi pulled up alongside the curb, and Paige stepped out, still dressed in the navy blue leggings she'd worn the night before. She'd brushed her hair, put on some pink lipstick, but her eyes were tired, her face drawn. She was scared. He could see it in every tiny, tense line.
"You look like hell," he told her. "Why don't you go home and let me handle this? I can call you and tell you what I find out."
"You'll tell me what you want me to know," she said tersely. "Which one is