White Ginger Read Free Page A

congealed on plates.
    As she reached over and grabbed a couple of menus off the back of the counter, a young Chinese woman shuffled out of the door leading to the kitchen. A drab girl with a flat face and wary eyes, she appeared to be in her late teens.
    Bai smiled, hoping to set the girl at ease. “Hi, my name’s Bai Jiang. What’s your name?”
    The girl didn’t respond at first. When she did reply, her voice was sullen. “Ling. What do you want?”
    Bai squared her shoulders. The girl’s attitude bordered on disrespect. “Have you ever heard the saying, ‘Don’t open a shop unless you like to smile’?”
    Ling held a pencil poised over an order pad. She glared at Bai, her bottom lip thrust out in defiance. “You ever hear the saying, ‘Bite me—I could care less’?”
    Bai’s jaw tightened, and her fists clenched. She started to rise off her stool, but something about the girl gave her pause. Bai could see fear in her eyes. The girl tried to hide the fright behind a brittle veneer of indifference, but Bai could feel it in the stale air of the café, like a wool blanket on a hot night.
    Reining in her anger, Bai settled back onto her stool and replied mildly. “Two cups of coffee to start. Is Mrs. Yan here? I was hoping to speak with her.”
    Ling looked surprised. The girl turned abruptly to face the Wah Ching and gestured curtly before scuttling back into the kitchen. Chair legs scraped against linoleum to catch Bai’s attention as the gang members stood. They sauntered in her direction as she and Lee swiveled around on their stools to face the young thugs.
    A heavyset kid in front addressed Bai. “My name’s Jimmy Yan. What do you want with my mother?”
    Jimmy stood about six feet tall with a round belly that appeared to be soft with fat. Long, greasy hair framed an oval face dotted with pimples. He loomed over her with a subtle threat in his pose. Bai suspected that’s exactly what it was—a pose.
    She turned up the wattage on her smile, determined to charm him. “I’d like to speak with her. It’s a private matter.”
    Bai liked to delude herself into thinking she could unravel any mystery with a kind word and a gracious smile. Jimmy looked around to make eye contact with his boys. He smirked at them knowingly.
    When he turned back to Bai, his voice was flippant. “My mother’s gone back to China. You got somethin’ to say, you need to say it to me.”
    Bai glanced at Lee, who pursed his lips in a sign things weren’t going well. She didn’t need him to tell her that. She’d managed to “ferret” it out on her own. But she wouldn’t be deterred.
    â€œWhen did your mother leave for China?”
    â€œThat’s none of your business. You’re kind of a nosy fuckin’ bitch.”
    Jimmy grinned as he appended the insult. The Wah Ching chuckled at the disrespect. Their girls tittered from the other side of the room.
    She refused to let her smile falter. “You’re not the first person to mention that.”
    â€œNor the last, no doubt,” interjected Lee as he turned on his stool to speak to her.
    His expression was amused. He seemed to be enjoying himself.
    â€œWhothefuck are you?” Jimmy demanded.
    Lee spun around on his stool to face Jimmy. His tone was pleasant when he spoke. “My name’s Lee. Lee Li. As you might have guessed, my parents weren’t terribly imaginative. My therapist says that’s why I’m so prone to acting out. I have a deep need to prove I’m nothing like my parents, though, in retrospect, it seems that we’re all destined to inherit some of their traits as a matter of genetic predisposition. From what I’ve heard, you, for instance, are much like your mother.”
    Jimmy looked confused. His words sounded uncertain. “Whaddaya mean I’m like my mother?”
    Lee leaned toward