“Oh yes. Of course. I’ll let you go and have Caspar send it right away. Stay safe, Benjamin.”
“Night, Gio. Give B my love.”
When Ben finally pulled into the parking lot near the private docks where Cheng loaded his ships, Jonathan was waiting for him.
“Where is Tenzin?” Jonathan asked.
“No idea.” He got out of the car and grabbed the messenger bag that was still hanging on. It was the only thing that had stayed with him the whole trip, and its comforting weight bumped against his hip. “She’s not here?”
“No.”
Thinking of the human woman she had to be carrying, Ben said, “Well, that’s… not good.”
“I would agree with you. Come.”
The tall Englishman led him through security, past the maze of containers, and into the open, where a pier that looked more like a giant road seemed to lead straight into the sea. Beside them, the hull of a freighter rose in the night, lights lit and cranes roaring as they loaded the massive ship. An almost empty container holding ten small crates stood in the open. Cheng and another figure stood nearby, a black car parked a little distance away.
Cheng nodded as they approached. “Mr. Vecchio. How are you tonight?”
“I’m well.” Ben glanced up, but Tenzin was taking her time appearing.
“I believe you know Kesan,” Cheng said.
Ben held out his hand, but the vampire ignored it. “We met in Ürümqi. Nice to see you again.”
Kesan only lifted his chin, his black eyes gave away nothing. If he was concerned to be there, it did not show.
“So,” Ben started, shuffling a little. “Should we get started?”
Cheng asked, “Did you not want to wait for Tenzin?”
He let his eyes go to Kesan. “We ran into a little trouble in the city. I’m sure she’ll be along shortly. In the meantime”—he nodded toward Jonathan—“we can get started on the inventory. I have it with me.”
Jonathan said, “Excellent. Let’s begin, Mr. Vecchio.”
“Please, call me Ben.”
“Gladly.” The two men, mortal and immortal, headed toward the open container. Jonathan spoke under his breath. “Do you speak Latin, by chance?”
“I do.” He switched to the ancient tongue that had become a second language since Giovanni had adopted him. “I’ll assume we’re avoiding Kesan’s ears. What’s going on?”
“Do you know where Tenzin is?”
“There was a woman following us in the city. We cornered her and Tenzin took off. That was over two hours ago.”
“Not good.”
“My thoughts exactly.”
They ducked into the container and Ben knelt down to pick up the pry bar set by the crates. He took the printed inventory and set it out next to his phone. He and Jonathan started to unpack the wooden boxes and check the inventory to make sure both matched up.
“Are there gold bars in each crate?”
“Yes,” Ben said. “We had to carry the crates. There should be about twenty or so in the bottom of each. Then porcelain packed on top. Then jewelry.”
“Right.” He dug through straw, still speaking in Latin. “Cheng has suspicions about Kesan. That is why he’s here.”
“Tenzin and I had the same suspicions.”
“They must have spoken about it the other night. It’s possible he was the one who sent those three after you in Kashgar. These are beautiful. Very old.” Jonathan was holding one of the palm-size bars in his hand. “What do you estimate?”
“About two kilos each. And I think it’s more probable than possible. He was the only vampire in the region who had the connections and the knowledge of where we were going.”
Jonathan shook his head. “What would be his purpose? The vampires who attacked you might not have known their opponent was so formidable, but Kesan did. He knew Tenzin would kill them.”
“But maybe not before they killed me. Which would piss her off. And who would she blame if something like that happened?”
Jonathan shrugged and continued to stack small gold bricks. “The vampires who killed you?”
“With the right rumors, she might be tempted to blame a former lover. Especially if he’s known to be territorial.”
The Englishman gave Ben a grim smile. “If he thought that, Kesan does not understand the nature of Cheng and Tenzin’s relationship.”
“Does anyone?”
“Good point. My God, this jewelry is exceptional. These are museum quality.”
“Silly vampire,” Ben said, taking a Byzantine sapphire and gold necklace from Jonathan and marking it off on his inventory. “The best pieces are never in museums. If Tenzin wanted to sell this, it would never even see an auction.”
“Cheng doesn’t appreciate antiquities unless he can sell them, unfortunately.”
“Poor you.” Ben grinned. “We like the pretty stuff.”
Jonathan sighed and handed over a leather sack of gold coins. Ben poured them into his hand and counted them. It was tedious work, but he didn’t mind. The treasure had been out of their control for over twenty-four hours. More than enough time for a thief to take advantage. He wouldn’t rest easy until the crates were sealed, the container was locked, and the ship was at sea.
He glanced over his shoulder. Still no Tenzin, but Cheng and Kesan stood watching them. Ben’s eyes met Cheng’s before he looked away. The vampire looked bored, but Ben was guessing it was a carefully built facade for Kesan’s benefit.