Mastered by His Touch-Complete Box Set Read online

  Maru Huang hired me on the spot when I agreed to a lower-than-market wage.

  I spent my days digging and planting. I had been a landscaper on a couple of other jobs, so I knew what I was doing.

  While I worked, Maru Huang's kids played. Narith, Dara, and Kiri treated their father's resort as their private play kingdom. Which it was.

  Narith and Dara were loud, always running and screaming. But little Kiri was shy. She often disappeared from sight, only to be found later in nooks and other hiding places.

  When I was alone, little Kiri would often jump out from where she was hiding and shout "Ha ha!" She couldn't help but make me smile with her big eyes and precious laugh. I saw a brightness behind her eyes that was lacking in the others, including her father.

  Then she would follow me around as I did my work, eventually running off to play with her siblings.

  It was while I was digging and planting one day that I felt a tug of something. An emotion.

  I hadn't felt sad in years. I had resolved that I was going to conquer the world, taking what I want. At eighteen, I had taken much of it already.

  But that day, watching Maru Huang's kids play, I felt a profound sadness. I still couldn't quite define it, but it was there in my heart.

  Mrs. Huang was a lovely woman, which only increased the sadness. She was everything my mother wasn't. She fed me bowls of a delicious soup she made called kuy teav.

  Her husband would often find me in the kitchen talking to her. Then he would yell at me to get back to work.

  Every once in a while, Mrs. Huang would even sneak me upstairs into a guest room so I could take a nap away from Mr. Huang's eagle eyes.

  "You've done enough today!" she would say. "Go rest. My husband works you too hard. The place looks beautiful."

  Unlike everybody I knew, she had no agenda. She wasn't trying to get anything from me. She really thought I had been working too hard and wanted to be kind to me.

  I wasn't used to this. Ever since my mother stole the money I gave her to pay the rent, I hadn't trusted anybody. Not even Sebastian and Valentina.

  But I trusted Mrs. Huang. In a way I never trusted anybody. She was a truly good woman, generous and kind. She made me feel whole in a way that the million dollars in my bank account couldn't.

  One night, I hid from the world and sat on the dock to watch the sunset. I had put in a full day's work and my muscles ached.

  Mrs. Huang had fed me, telling me to go home. I was about to leave when she grabbed me and hugged me. Then she stuffed some money in my hand and said, "This is from me. Go get yourself a treat. Don't tell my husband."

  I went out, heading toward my bike that I would ride back to the hotel room in town where I was staying. I had developed a habit of finding a couple of island girls to join me for the night when I got there, shedding my fake landscaper persona. Tonight would likely be the same.

  But I hesitated. I didn't want to leave. I wanted Mrs. Huang to tuck me into bed in one of the rooms. I wanted to run and play with the kids. I had never played. All of my life had been spent doing some kind of job, whether it be taking care of my parents, winning at poker, or running con jobs.

  The sun was setting so I decided to take a walk down to the dock and just watch it. I found a spot near Maru Huang's yacht.

  The air was fresh with promise, even though my heart was heavy a deep sadness that made me feel depleted and empty.

  As I sat there with my legs dangling and my feet skimming the water, I couldn't help but reflect on how Mrs. Huang felt like a mother to me. I thought back to my own mother in the shelter the last day I saw her. I had called them a year later and they told me she had died six months before. I wanted to feel sad. I thought I should feel sad, but I just hung up the phone and went back to working on the job we were on at that time.

  I looked around at Maru Huang's resort. Sure, the newer ones were more spectacular... but this one was indeed nice. If I were a traveler, I would stay here.

  This place was more of a traditional hotel on a beach. But nowadays, it seemed all the tourists wanted the private grass-roof bungalows built over the water like in the glossy travel magazines. This was the trend Maru Huang wanted to add to improve his declining business.

  The sun dipped lower over the ocean.

  I had been all over the world. I had seen sunsets in the Azores, from mountain peaks in Switzerland, and deserts in Brazil.

  But this sunset here on this dock was the most beautiful I had ever seen. Maybe because it seemed to carry a message to me. It hit me while I sat there. As the big red globe of light edged itself behind the horizon, I realized that Maru Huang was much richer than I was.

  And not because he knew the location of a silly gold mine. But because of the love of his wife and kids. Money just can't buy that.

  I noticed the way he and Mrs. Huang looked at each other. They fought and disagreed at times, but there was a genuine love between them that always smoothed over their problems.

  How do you get that?

  My mind calculated some odds and probabilities, but came up with nothing. Some people get married to the love of their life. Others marry someone they end up hating and get divorced. How did Maru Huang find a woman who loves him so much?

  All I knew was that somehow, I wanted that. I wanted love in my life. I had lived too long without it. I made a decision right then and there. Once we finish this job, I'm going to go find love.

  Then another pang hit me. These people are the ideal to which I now aspire.

  How can I possibly con them?

  My brain's calculating mechanism broke down. Suddenly, I was feeling guilty. I hadn't felt guilty in years. It was quite a new emotion for me.

  But a part of me was happy that I could. It meant I was human after all. I knew Sebastian couldn't and never would. Same for Valentina. They are psychopaths and I know it. The very fact I'm even having these thoughts shows that I'm different from them.

  I couldn't even begin to express these thoughts to Sebastian. He might kill me if he knew I even had them.

  All I knew is that I was suddenly very uneasy about the entire job. I even considered sabotaging it somehow. I would need an escape plan if I did so. My subconscious was already at work on what to do.

  Just as the sun was about to dip below the water, I heard a rustle behind me. I grabbed my knife and leaped to all fours, ready to pounce. I had already been in a handful of scuffles and could defend myself pretty well.

  Out of the twilight shadows emerged little Kiri, laughing with a big smile on her face. I breathed a sigh of relief.

  "Kiri!" I said. "You nearly scared the devil out of me! What are you doing?"

  "Ha ha!" she said.

  "Go on back to the house," I said. "It's late. Your Mom is probably looking for you."

  She ran to the house built onto the side of the resort where the Huangs lived. She went up the big steps, disappearing inside.

  I felt something wet fall on my arm. I looked up at the sky. No sign of rain. Then I reached my hand up to my face and touched my cheek. It was dripping.

  Fuck, I'm crying. What the fuck is wrong with me? Stop that shit right now!

  I walked back to the road, got my bike, and pedaled back into town.

  Chapter 5

  When Mrs. Huang would sneak me upstairs to "nap", I never really napped. I was too much of a thinker to nap during the day.

  So I used this time to spy and gather information. I could sneak around the resort unnoticed, listening in on conversations.

  The job was in full swing by now. Sebastian had checked in, playing the part of a wealthy businessman. Naturally, I pretended I didn't know him. He had befriended Maru Huang the way he befriends everybody... by charming them with stories that relate to common interests.

  All of this was fake, of course. Sebastian had researched Maru Huang and become an expert on his interests for the very purpose of worming his way into Maru Huang's life.

  Soon, he had Maru Huang talking.
Many evenings they shared drinks on one of the patios built over the beach.

  I'm not sure how, but somehow Sebastian got Maru Huang to tell him about the mine.

  Part of me even doubted the existence of the damned mine. It sounded too much like something out of a novel.

  But sure enough, a drunk Maru Huang described it to Sebastian. Walls of gold. Difficult to get to. Almost impossible to carry the gold back. But he did it. And used the money to build this resort.

  Sebastian almost came unglued. I knew him well. He wanted to reach out and strangle Maru Huang. But his professionalism held him together, waiting for the big con.

  Meanwhile, I was being torn apart by my emotions. I just wanted to run. I wanted to get the hell out of there. Many days I even considered just buying a plane ticket and jetting.

  But something kept me there.

  I had to help the Huangs somehow. I had to save them from Sebastian.

  Opportunity came in the form of one of my Mrs. Huang-arranged "naps." I sneaked out of the room and hid outside the window of the Huangs' personal kitchen. Sometimes Mr. and Mrs. Huang would have lunch together and I often listened in, rapt with attention for any secret information.

  This particular day, we were almost done with the job. Sebastian had told me that Huang had agreed to sell him the location of the gold mine because there is no way he can get back to it. The money Sebastian is offering would be more than enough to renovate the resort.

  But the catch was that Huang wanted to do the deal at sea. That bothered me. Why does he want to do the transaction at sea?

  While I was plotting to betray Sebastian myself, I couldn't help but feel offended that maybe Maru Huang was trying to do a reverse con. If Huang killed Sebastian at sea and sank his boat, he would have both Sebastian's money and keep the gold mine to himself.

  Then, from my hiding spot, I heard Maru Huang come running into the kitchen.

  "Are you alone?" he said to his wife in French.

  I wasn't very proficient in French, but I understood enough to get by.

  "Yes," said Mrs. Huang.

  "Take off your locket," he said.

  "Why?"

  "Just do it."

  "Okay."

  "Now replace it with this one."

  "It looks the same."

  "It looks the same, but it isn't the same. Now I'm going to hide the real one here."

  I heard a noise that I couldn't identify. I tried to crane my neck closer to the window.

  "Maru, what's going on?" said Mrs. Huang. "You're up to something. I don't like this."

  "Mealea!" he said. "Do as I say!"

  "Where did you get this fake? Why do you want me to wear it?"

  "I'll explain later. You and I are going out for a picnic at sea with my friend and his wife and I don't want you to be wearing the real one."

  "Maru, I don't want to go out there with them. They are not good people. You shouldn't go either."

  "Mealea, they can help me get the money to renovate the resort! Trust me, this is going to work."

  "Well, fine. But I don't like it."

  I heard Maru Huang's steps as he left the kitchen.

  I rolled away from the window and laughed. Maru Huang is conning Sebastian! The con artist is getting conned.

  Sounds to me like the location of the gold mine is in the locket that Mrs. Huang wears around her neck. But he has a fake locket with a fake location that he's going to give to Sebastian in exchange for money. Which isn't really money.

  I stifled a laugh. It was all too funny.

  But as for the locket, my curiosity got the better of me.

  I waited until Mrs. Huang left the kitchen. Then I casually walked in, making sure nobody was around.

  It didn't take long to find it.

  The locket was inside a can of flour. He had put it in a sealed plastic bag. I took it out, opened the bag, and examined the locket.

  Inside was a picture of a French Polynesian woman. Sepia-toned. 1920s I would guess.

  But engraved into the inside of the locket, almost invisible to the naked eye, was a series of numbers. What are these numbers? Coordinates? Latitude and longitude maybe?

  Ha, I'm holding in my hands the San Tomé gold mine! If only Sebastian knew!

  The thief in me is overjoyed and says Take it, run, and get on a plane!

  But the thief in me is slowly being replaced. The new part of me birthed on the dock while watching the sunset could care less about the damned gold mine.

  I replaced the locket and went back to work.

  Chapter 6

  Today was the day.

  The Huangs were going out for a picnic lunch at sea with Sebastian and Valentina.

  But I was the only one who knew that not only was Sebastian conning Maru Huang, but Maru Huang was about to con Sebastian.

  I laughed again as I pushed a wheelbarrow full of new plants. I couldn't stop chuckling to myself. The whole thing was so fucked up, it was funny to me.

  At first, I was offended that somebody was trying to con my mentor Sebastian. But now I find it hilarious. Mainly because Sebastian has turned into a goddamned lunatic.

  He came to my hotel room the previous night, shitfaced on rum. He shocked me. He had become the very model of how not to be a professional con artist. Everything he taught me had gone out the window on this job.

  He was too personally involved. This gold mine meant too much to him. His need to have it was going to be his undoing.

  "This fucking moron is the biggest idiot I ever met," said Sebastian. "This is too easy. He's just going to hand me the location of the mine. Oh God, I love this! I just wish I could be there to see the expression on the poor fuck's face when he sees that the suitcase full of money is nothing but a suitcase full of newspaper clippings. Ha! Oh my God, I'm dying here!"

  For the first time, I felt an urge to punch Sebastian. But I reminded myself that I knew Maru Huang's secret plan.

  Then I laughed to myself.

  I pictured Sebastian in the Himalayas, a pack of donkeys behind him as he scaled a mountain peak to find... nothing.

  Fucking hilarious.

  Sebastian eventually returned to his own room. I thought about going out to get one of my girls for a romp, but I just couldn't.

  I had slept restlessly.

  The next day as I planted a new batch of flowers into one of the big raised gardens outside the balcony of each seaside suite, I became worried. My brain went into overdrive.

  What happens when Sebastian finds out that he's been conned by Maru Huang? He will find out eventually.

  He'll come back and kill Maru Huang.

  Shit.

  I hadn't thought of that.

  Fuck, this is getting complicated.

  What do I do?

  I could kill Sebastian.

  No, I'm not a killer. I don't know if I could do it unless I was being attacked.

  I could get Sebastian to attack me somehow.

  Yes, I could get Sebastian to try to kill me. Then I would have no choice but to kill him.

  I had never killed anyone before. The thought repulses me. It's not what I do. I cheat. I lie. I con.

  But I do not kill.

  These were my thoughts as I saw Mr. and Mrs. Huang loading their yacht with food for the picnic. The kids ran around the resort, yelling and screaming as usual.

  Sebastian and Valentina were off getting their catamaran, on which they would rendezvous with the Huangs at sea.

  I paused my planting for a minute. The hot sun seemed particularly strong today.

  Mrs. Huang came out of the house with a cooler. She walked over to me. The fake locket around her neck looked exactly like the real one.

  "Jacob," she said, "have you seen Kiri?"

  Jacob was the name I was using on this job. Little did anyone know it is my real name.

  "No," I said. "But she's probably hiding around here somewhere."

  "That girl drives me insane," said Mrs. Huang. "Always hiding inside o
r underneath something. Jacob, could you please find her? Tell her to go to Teva. Teva is going to babysit the kids while we're out on this stupid picnic at sea which makes no sense."

  "No problem," I said. "But first, let me get that for you."

  I stood up, grabbing the cooler out of her hand.