Previously on Blotting
Paper
“Excuse me, I need to check something.” Getting out of my seat,
shuffling my way through, and opening the overhead compartment for
my backpack.
I heaved a sigh of relief; the code book and thumb drive were in
my backpack. It wasn’t a dream, but a brief memory of a prior
conversation. The code book Phillip gave me before I left for the
airport, and the thumb drive for a duplicate set of server codes,
templates, and encryptions, were in there.
=============================
“Thank you,” shuffling back to my seat by the window. My head
was heavy, and I was present in both reality, and the depths of
memory.
I was too tired to recall the conversation and exchange Phillip
and I had at my place before I left for the airport, but it was all
flowing back now, swirling in a whirlpool of other memories, and
emotions. Memories that belonged to a different time, sketches of
people past, and distinct recollections of recent events. The
darkness at the other end of the glass threw back a blurry
reflection of myself, and opened a window into my soul.
I didn’t see it wrong. It was Her, decked in white long robes
that shone, looking at me with a gentle smile, while I calmly stood
at a distance. The mourning, nightmares, and tears were long past;
I had moved on a time time ago.
“I know your face... Why did you leave?”
“L…Mom can’t be with you foreve-”
The distinct chime from the Seatbelt Sign sounded, and I was
brought back. Cabin Attendants were scurrying past the aisles, the
pressure in my ears was building up, and I could vaguely see the
silhouette of ships that were now the size of my thumb against
their navigation lights. We were descending into Singapore, and
hitting turbulence at the same time. The entire cabin sank into an
speechless eerie calm amid the turbulent bumps, and there were loud
reverberating clangs of a loosely fastened cabin attendant’s
trolley against its storage walls, heightening the unease.
“Join the volunteer police? Your notion of justice is nothing
more than a child’s ideology. Grow up. You’re wasting your time, L.
Go back to school; your friend’s are all ahead of you.” My father’s
voice resounded inside.
“L, I’m sorry your father didn’t want to come to your graduation
today. May I have the honor of putting on your rank epaulettes for
you? Congratulations, you will make a fine police officer.”
Magazines suddenly jolted off someone else’s tray table onto the
aisles from an unexpected plunge in altitude, bringing me back once
again.
The aircraft’s flaps were now fully extended. My hands were
firmly gripped on the armrests, while my European neighbor was
wiping the beads of cold sweat off his face with his handkerchief.
The loud clanging from the loose trolley, the sight of imminent
twilight against the rising backdrop of ships, and the memories
from long ago, sent spine chilling pulses throughout my body. I
couldn’t contain it and broke out into a joyless laughter.
“Cabin crew, to your landing stations,” came the overhead
announcement.
This was the defining moment of everything, an irreversible
turning point in time. The chessboard was set, the game was afoot.
As the aircraft made a final turn into the approach, the thriving
colossal metropolis swung into view, rose from the horizon like a
glowing amber from a fireplace in the darkest night, and the cabin
shuddered in its magnificence. Sergeant Lee was right when he
pinned my epaulettes on; I would have made a fine police officer.
On the gameboard, I had already picked a side, but it wasn’t on
his. My neighbor’s fat triple chin that replaced his neck shook in
resonance with the rattling cabin, and we were pushed back into our
seats as the aircraft flared like an eagle encroaching a prey,
while we waited in anticipation for the impending bump on solid
ground. This was the genesis of a journey, an origin story of an
adversary which Sergeant Lee and the likes of him have never
encountered. Behold, I am coming.
“I’ve already listed us on Silk Road. Any requests from Silk
Road is directed to our domain specifically listing Singapore and
Asia as the delivery region. Buyers and other dealers will come to
us because we are the only ones operating in Asia and they will see
it as a system that works. They will hunt for you, L, all of them.
Stay safe.”
“The three of us will go by the moniker, EL.”
“Wait Phillip, have you decided on a name for this whole
Operation?”
“I have. Its called-”
“Lilith.”
The wheels finally hit the tarmac, roaring with joy as though
meeting an old friend who was sorely missed, blaring its engines in
full reverse thrust, and extending its speed brakes in forward
position. I was home.
We had arrived thirty minutes earlier due to strong tail winds,
and twilight was just around the corner. Clearing customs was a
breeze. Nobody expected 900 hits of liquid LSD in an expensive make
up bottle. At most, they were on a look out for blotting paper,
pills, powders, and crystals.
“Welcome home, Mr. L,” said the female immigration officer.
When I wasn’t stopped at the baggage point, I realized the key
to every successful smuggling, wasn’t to bring in a complete
product; those were exactly the stuff the officers and dogs were
trained to look out for. Instead, it was to smuggle the components
in piece by piece, and assemble it later. Just because a customs
officer recognized what a pizza looked like doesn’t mean he
understood its composition. Could police dogs really smell cocaine,
or were they just identifying the traces of the gasoline component
used as an organic solvent in the extraction of cocaine
hydrochloride? What if I gave the cocaine farmers a different
organic solvent? What if I disassociated the cocaine hydrochloride
salt in water to a form a base, and carry it around like any fluid?
All it took was a little knowledge of chemistry to put it back
together again. If every drug dealer and trafficker understood the
chemical literature, governments would have to replace customs
officers with scientists to stop them, and that was my ideal world.
I wanted the police to show me they were smarter, because at that
moment, I was a game ahead of them.
“Where to sir?” Asked the cab driver.
“Central, Bukit Timah- No, you know what, go to Nicoll
Drive.”
“But that’s just behind the airport.”
“I know.”
I didn’t want to go home, and I wasn’t expecting much fanfare at
my place. Instead, I sought solace at my usual refuge, away from
the hustle and bustle of life, overlooking the runway. I was in
silent appreciation of the inspiring man-made mammoths descending
above the seas across the horizon, and flying overhead trumpeting
their arrival with a deafening roar.
“Hey Jon, I’m back.”
“L? Its.. been a while. I’m surprised you called.”
Jon was more than glad to hear my voice. He was a fellow police
colleague at Orchard Police Precinct when I was in service more
than a year ago. If there was anyone I wanted to talk to, it would
be him. His was an idealist, pure to the core, always believing in
the virtue of people. Fierce as a tiger to criminals, but soft and
sincere with friends. Maybe that was why everyone liked him.
“Friend, you’ll be surprised at the reshuffling headquarters
made. Serena isn’t the Team Leader anymore, and most of our
original colleagues are now transferred. You won’t recognize the
new Team.”
We updated each other on the past one year of our lives for the
subsequent ten minutes. He was doing well; partnered with the right
people, and never got reshuffled by headquarters. Similarly, I told
him about all my adventures in NYC and stuff in university.
“Jon, I’m just curious, remember Old Tai from Lucky Mall who
controlled the entire chain of electronic shops? I can’t seem to
find him on Google anymore. It’s like he’s off the grid.”
“You mean ‘Olde Tai from yonder East?’ That Old Raccoon moved
out a few months ago. Probably losing business; too many bad
reviews about cheating tourists on travel forums. He’s now
Cantonment Precinct’s problem, and we’re all glad to be rid of him.
Word is that he moved to Pearl Plaza, near Chinatown. Why are you
looking for him?”
Hearing Jon talk about Old Tai reminded me of the times we had
to listen to that Old Raccoon weasel his way out of a complaint a
tourist made about him cheating them, and it was anything but
entertaining. He was a glib talker, frequently diluting his
sentences with gibberish about him picking up Middle English,
speaking to us in old medieval speech on purpose, and steering the
interrogation away from the case until we snapped and got him to
focus. The case never stuck on him of course; he was smart. Old Tai
knew the legal definition of cheating, and always threaded on the
thin line between criminal and contract law.
“Come on Jon, you’re interrogating me as well? I was just
curious.” Brushing it off with a laugh.
That sent Jon into a wild laughter. I didn’t blame him; he was
probably on duty through the night, and needed to relieve some
stress.
“I’ll see you at the Station soon, Jon. We’ll partner up again,
hopefully.”
“Definitely! And L, one more thing.”
“yea?”
“I’m glad you’re back, Sergeant.”
*
Jet lag wasn’t a big issue to me. I was used to studying through
the night into the morning, only to take caffeine pills to fight
off sleep during lectures and exams the next day. That day, a three
hour nap at home was all it took and I was recharged. I needed to
be; the Old Raccoon was as sly as a fox, and elusive as BigFoot.
The very fact he could still be in business after so long was
adequate testament to his wily.
I circled Pearl Plaza at least three times in my car on the
pretense of searching for parking because I needed to confirm
something, and I found my answer. Tai was indeed in Pearl Plaza, no
doubt. I caught a glimpse of his lookout sitting by the entrance
smoking, and another two at the back facing the other side. The
faces may change, but his modus operandi never did. His lookouts
covered all entrances and were there to warn him if there was going
to be a police raid, or if any of his enemies were coming for
him.
He thought he was smart, but I had done my homework on him a
long time ago when he was operating at Lucky Mall out of pure
dedication to police work. He would register a store under his
name, and a few other stores under his puppet’s names in the same
mall, while he remained in full authority and control over those
stores. How he got so many people to work for him willingly
remained a mystery, but it was blatantly obvious he was in control
given the number of similar complaints we received and identical
tactics used. An employee he claimed to have fired for misconduct
resurfaced at another store in the same mall after a few days, how
coincidental was that?
Knowing Old Tai’s methods, it was simple identifying which store
he was at. He liked being protected by a bodyguard who was big,
muscular, and dumb, who followed him everywhere like an innocent
puppy. I called him, Muscles. Find Muscles, and I’ll find Tai. It
only took me 10 minutes to walk around the whole mall to spot
Muscles, and that meant Tai was in there even though he was no
where to be seen.
The moment I sat myself down by the glass display tables,
Muscles switched his attention to me in a most unprofessional
transition, abandoning his first customer, and leaving him
speechless. He spoke in broken english, made lots of unnecessary
hand gestures, was literally stuttering, and had a smile that was
as pretentious as a failed politician. Clearly, being a salesperson
wasn’t his main job, and he was fed those lines by someone.
“Did I tell you about the new promotion, that would get you the
best- bang for your buck, for the latest Apple smartphone?”
“Did I tell you I slept with your mother last night, and you’re
going to have a brother who’s going to look exactly like me?” In a
most obnoxious tone I could conjure.
His smile was fading, his breathing heavy with agitation, and
his gaze fixated on me despite initially entertaining a customer
with his lies. That was Muscles alright; all brawn and no brains,
easily manipulated, controlled by emotions, and only recognized
violence as an answer. It’s no wonder Tai picked him as a
bodyguard, and now he was doubling as a failed salesperson.
“Is this enough for your mother’s abortion?” Throwing a ten
dollar note after another on the table, looking straight at him
until he couldn’t contain it, and grabbed me by my collar with one
hand.
Agitating Muscles to the verge of hitting me in front of a
customer was the only way to flush Old Tai out of the staff room.
He couldn’t afford a lawsuit for Employee Misconduct and Tort that
was witnessed by a credible independent individual. I didn’t like
hurting Muscle’s feelings anymore than I enjoyed arresting people,
but it was a necessary evil if I wanted to talk to Tai. Knowing
Tai, he would never show his face if I had gone straight up to
Muscles with a polite inquiry about his boss. Tai was the
puppeteer, always hiding inside the staff room so he could claim he
wasn’t aware and couldn’t be responsible for a ‘mistake’ his staff
made.
“Your new understudy, Tai? Apparently he’s not very smart, and I
know you’re in there.” Calling out into a room behind the display
tables.
I wasn’t the slightest bit afraid even though Muscles was
tightening his grip, twisting the fabric of my collar with a
threatening expression, and tensing his meaty arms at the same
time.
“Let him go.” Came a voice from inside the room.
A fat old man with prominent dark eye circles and a balding side
parting, around the age of 60, emerged from the staff room; it was
Tai. If he possessed an ounce of innocence, he would’ve qualified
for a panda nickname at my police station, but he was far from
that. Hence, he was known as “The Old Raccoon.”
“Sergeant? Couldn’t recognize
you without your uniform. I didn’t know you transferred to the
Cantonment Precinct. How can I help you?”
“I want all your
pre-registered SIM Cards, and the IDs that registered those cards
fifteen hundred dollars can buy.”
“I don’t know what you’re
talking about,” turning to talk to the now bewildered customer who
had observed the entire exchange since I stepped into the
store.
Tai knew exactly what I was
talking about, but was just pretending to ignore it. Part of his
modus operandi included making a copy of a gullible person’s ID,
claiming it was a Singapore law requiring a verified ID to buy any
form of electronics. Then he would sell it to another dealer or
register prepaid SIM cards under those IDs and sell it to third
parties. It was completely illegal of course. Why he was never
nabbed for that? He was cunning enough to dispatch an associate to
pass the illegally obtained ID copies, and fake electronics to
another store the moment his lookouts saw us coming from the
entrances. It was a cat and mouse game in his territory.
“You sure you want to play
this game in front of your customer, Tai? Fine by me.”
I turned to face his
customer.
“Tourist?”
“Yea,” speaking in a soft, and
uneasy tone, clearly confused about my intentions.
“First, the fat man is going
to tell you about his special offer. Then he’s going to swipe your
credit card twice, telling you it’s all part of a mandatory global
warranty which is pure nonsense. Frankly, you’ll be much better off
buying from a legitimate store than this old crook. You still want
to buy from this guy?”
As soon as I dropped my piece,
the tourist took his backpack, turned around, and left in a
jiffy.
“Wait, don’t leave- What the
hell exactly do you want from me?” Turning to me and speaking in
hurried, irritated tones.
“I told you, Tai, I’m just
here to do business. Sell me the Cards, IDs, and I’ll
leave.”
For a brief moment, he kept
his silence, and put the cell phone Muscles had failed to sell the
tourist back in the glass display table.
“Even if I have what you claim
I have, what makes you think I want to do business with you? You
are the cop who gave me a ton of trouble back at Lucky Mall.
Besides, that was all in the past; I’m now running an honest
business with my boys at a new place.”
Hearing Tai talk like he had
turned his back on cheating, and the hosts of other unknown illegal
activities seriously brought me to a short burst of laughter. I
couldn’t look straight at him without laughing, needing to distract
myself with something else, looking sideways, and covering my
uncontained smile with my palm. How he was able to say this with a
straight face completely eluded me. The man deserved an
Oscar.
“I wouldn’t exactly call what
you’re doing an honest business,” scoffing at his statement. I
gathered myself, and got my act together.
The jokes, and that little
back and forth meaningless Salsa that made no headway whatsoever
were over. There was no way the Old Raccoon would admit to having
such things in his store, much less to me. Now, was the time to use
a harder approach.
“Let me tell you something
interesting I did today. I made a call to Lucky Mall’s security
office claiming to be a previous store tenant looking for Senior
Security Officer Yao from Burton’s Security about a police case.
The office told me they belonged to a new security company, and
that S.S.O. Yao and his entire team were contracted by a new place
after working at Lucky Mall for six years. Where did they go? You
guessed it: Pearl Plaza.
“How convenient it must be for
you, Tai, to have control and have access to the entire building’s
security on top of your usual lookouts sitting by the entrances.
Now, I don’t even care about what you’re doing in this building,
but I’m guessing you will need to know when and where the cameras
are down, keys to different rooms and stores, when to bring in your
fake products, or even do your ‘dealings’ with dodgy people,
probably even facilitating them for a fee during ‘scheduled
maintenance.’ I’m guessing you’re intending to move again when
S.S.O Yao and his team gets contracted by another place. You see,
I’m a pure genius, and if you’d like, I could dig up a little more
on the security team and maybe, find out exactly what you’re up
to.
“No, Tai. You didn’t come to
Pearl Plaza to start life anew; that was bullshit. You came because
it was most advantageous.”
A silence swept through the
entire store the moment I was finished, drawing menacing stares
from Tai and Muscles as though I was spot on. I had to be; a shady
electronics seller had no need of control over the security office,
and double insuring his operations with lookouts.
Tai walked to a wall, his dark
raccoon eyes still boring holes into me with his arms crossed,
flipped a switch, and the automated metal shutters started coming
down with a loud unsettling clang, threatening to cut us off from
the rest of the world. The shutters were ill-maintained. The
clanging panels against each other reverberated with an ominous
harsh metallic creak as it slowly descended, adding an element of
terror to an atmosphere already laden with murderous
intent.