“You miss your work in the East?”
“I do. Among other duties in Hong Kong, I served as chaplain in the colony’s Anglican orphanage. When scarlet fever broke out amongst the children, it spread to the staff.” Lloyd patted his chest. “It left me with a dicky heart, so the society shipped me home. That was two years ago, and here I am. Raising funds and giving speeches are the most strenuous tasks I’m allowed.”
I’ll wager you’re good at it,Tennant thought.
“How can I help you, Inspector?”
“I have a few questions about a Chinese girl you shelter in your household.”
“May I ask why?”
“This morning, someone dumped the body of an Asian girl near Billingsgate Market.”
“I see. Another poor girl found on Inspector MacNair’s patch.”
Tennant nodded. “There are similarities to an earlier case under investigation, although the girl was Irish, not Asian. About the young woman who lives with you . . .”
“Jin-Bou.”
“The inspector told me some of her story. In her time with you, has she spoken about her ordeal? I’m hoping there is more you can tell me.”
“Oh, I can tell you many things, Inspector.”
Lloyd swung his chair around and looked up at the map. The wall clock ticked loudly in the quiet room. He swiveled back.
“Jin is but a tiny dot on an atlas of degradation that we abet or simply ignore. Every year, thousands of Chinese are shipped around the world as coolie laborers. Men, for the most part, but countless women are sold as domestics and prostitutes.”
“Sold, Mister Lloyd?”
“I believe the word is apt.”
“Ten years at Scotland Yard . . . I thought I’d seen everything.”
“Ten years after my ordination, I’m no longer surprised by the diabolical in human nature. Thank the Lord, I see much that is angelic as well.”
“Was she alone on the voyage?”
“No. There was another girl. She was already aboard when Jin came on the ship. They kept her in a separate cabin, and she spoke a Chinese language Jin didn’t understand.”
“Did she know the vessel’s name?”
“Jin didn’t mention a name, but she described a three-masted ship.”
“Sounds like one of the clippers that ply the China trade,” Tennant said. “Has Jin spoken about what happened after she arrived in London?”
“Yes. After a long voyage, two beautiful ladies—one a European, the other Chinese—met them at the dock. The Chinese woman spoke to her in Cantonese and told Jin that she was in the great city of London. She would be taken to a beautiful house, given much to eat, and would serve a powerful prince. They forced Jin to service ‘many princes,’ she said.”
Tennant winced. “The recruitment process never changes. Here, they entice shop assistants and servants, promising riches and comforts.”
“Jin thought her destination was thegam saan—the gold mountain. It’s a name for California that I often heard in Hong Kong. Thousands of Chinese men have gone to America to work on the railroads. Jin had been promised marriage to an honorable man when she arrived.”
“I can guess what happened next.”
“She confided the details to my sister. The following day, anolder woman carrying a black bag examined her ‘between her legs.’ After that, she was bathed, dressed, and given something that made her drowsy. Then she was taken, half dreaming, to another place and fell asleep in a big bed. She awoke, crushed under a great weight with a searing pain ‘down there,’ she told my sister.”
“Inspector MacNair said Jin couldn’t pinpoint the location of the place. Has she remembered anything else?”
“She heard church bells from her room.” Lloyd shrugged. “But where in London wouldn’t one?” He narrowed his eyes. “I remember she called the European woman thekong que—the peacock lady for the feathers she wore in her hat. Again, not very helpful. One sees them on ladies’ heads all over London.”
