“Oh, did you?” She snapped off her outer gloves. “Like how it can take two years to solve a murder?”

CHAPTER SIX

I

Wednesday Afternoon

Lily’s anger at being told again that she was not required was palpable, and she watched with grim dislike as Li and Margaret pulled out of the university compound in Li’s Jeep. She strutted off towards the administration block plotting her revenge.

Following their exchange in the autopsy room, Li had been cold and distant. Margaret wondered if this was a response to her jibe about taking two years to solve a murder, or whether it was a repeat performance of his mood swing of yesterday. Despite the fact that he had asked her along, she had the strong feeling that he resented her presence. They drove east in uncomfortable silence through the late morning traffic along West Xuanwumen Avenue, a huge loop of six-lane freeway that marked the outer boundary of the inner city. Bamboo scaffolding scaled concrete towers. High among the structures, tiny figures in blue, with yellow hard hats, moved easily around the skeleton blocks. Giant cranes swung back and forth overhead, like prehistoric monsters stalking a concrete landscape. Margaret’s growing resentment at Li’s silence finally found voice. “Look, if you don’t want me around, just say so. Stop the car now and I’ll get a taxi back to the university.”

“What are you talking about?” He seemed perplexed, but made no move to pull over.

“I’m talking about you resenting every minute you have to spend in my company. This may be news to you, but it wasn’t my idea to get involved in any of this. I didn’t offer my help. You asked for it.”

“No.” He shook his head. “My chief asked for it.”

“And don’t you just hate the fact that your chief thought you could use the help of some foreigner.”

“I don’t need your help.” He flashed an angry glance at her across the Jeep.

“No? And how long would it have taken you to identify Chao Heng without me?”

“We would have identified Chao Heng in time.” His voice was steady and controlled.

“Yeah, six weeks from now. And you’d probably still be looking at a suicide. Are you going to let me out or not?”

Li kept driving. “You know, what I don’t understand is why you ever came here in the first place.” He knew that somewhere in this area she was vulnerable.

“That’s none of your business!”