Annabelle took the pressure off by talking about her work, and for the rest of the evening Abdul mostly listened. That night Annabelle came to his room in her pyjamas, and they spent the night in each other’s arms, but they did not make love.
They never moved into an apartment together. Tony refused to lend them the deposit, but that was only the beginning of a family campaign to prevent her marrying Abdul. Her grandmother stopped speaking to her. Her brother threatened to have Abdul beaten up by some people he was ‘connected’ with – though he dropped the threat when he found out who Abdul worked for. Annabelle swore she would never give in to them, but the conflict poisoned their love. Instead of a romance they were living through a war. When she could stand it no longer she ended the relationship.
And Abdul told the Agency he was ready for undercover work overseas.
CHAPTER 11
Tao Ting came out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around her body and another around her head. Chang Kai, sitting in bed, looked up from reading the newspapers on his tablet. He watched her open the doors of all three closets and stand gazing at her clothes. After a few moments, she dropped both towels onto the carpet.
He drank in the sight of his naked wife and thought how lucky he was. There was a reason why millions of television viewers were in love with her. She was absolutely perfect. Her body was slim and shapely, her skin was the creamy colour of ivory, and her hair was luxuriant and dark.
And she was fun.
Without turning around she said: ‘I know what you’re looking at.’
He chuckled. ‘I’m reading the People’s Daily online,’ he said, pretending to protest.
‘Liar.’
‘How do you know I’m lying?’
‘I can read your mind.’
‘That’s a miraculous power.’
‘I always know what men are thinking.’
‘But how?’
‘They’re always thinking the same thing.’
She put on her panties and bra, then stood a little longer contemplating the racks of clothes. Kai felt guilty staying in bed watching her. There was so much he had to do, for himself and for his country. But it was hard to tear his gaze away.
He said: ‘It doesn’t matter what you wear, does it? As soon as you get to the studio they’re going to put you in some fantastic costume.’ Sometimes he suffered the dark suspicion that she dressed up for the handsome young male actors she worked with. She had so much more in common with them than with him.
Ting said: ‘It always matters what I wear. I’m a celebrity. People expect me to be special. Drivers, doormen, cleaners and gardeners all tell their families and friends: “You’ll never guess who I saw today – Tao Ting! Yes, her from Love in the Palace!” I don’t want them to say that I’m not so beautiful in real life.’
‘Of course, I get it.’
‘Anyway, I’m not going straight to the studio. They’re filming a big sword fight today. I’m not needed until two o’clock.’
‘What are you going to do with your free morning?’
‘I’m taking my mother shopping.’
‘Nice.’
Ting was close to her mother, Cao Anni, who was also an actor. They talked on the phone every day. Ting’s father had died in a car crash when she was thirteen. The same crash left her mother with a limp that had blighted her career. But Anni had found a new line of work doing voice-overs.
Kai liked Anni. ‘Don’t make her walk too far,’ he said to Ting. ‘She hides it, but her leg still hurts.’
Ting smiled. ‘I know.’
Of course she knew. He was telling her to be thoughtful about her own mother. He always tried not to act like a parent with Ting, but sometimes it happened anyway. ‘Sorry,’ he said.
‘I’m glad you care about her. She likes you, too. She thinks you’ll look after me when she’s gone.’
‘I will.’
Ting made a decision and pulled on a pair of faded blue Levi’s jeans.
Without looking away from her, Kai turned his mind to the day ahead. He had a rendezvous with an important spy.
He was booked on a lunchtime flight to Yanji, a mid-size city close to the border with North Korea. Although he was now the boss of the foreign intelligence department, he still personally ran a few of the most valuable spies, mostly those he had recruited when he was lower in the hierarchy. One such was a North Korean general called Ham Ha-sun. For some years now Ham had been the Guoanbu’s best source of inside information about what was going on in North Korea.