American Fugitive, a novel
Chapter 1 Ho Renyi
It was a rainy February afternoon. Ho Renyi got off from work early to see his dentist. He got into his blue SUV in the parking lot outside of his office. Pretty soon, he was on a highway. The rain turned into a heavy downpour. Renyi had to really focus on the road because he could feel the car was pushed by the wind on a slippery highway. Fortunately, he reached the exit to downtown Oakland safely. Fifteen minutes later, he arrived at a building named The Pacific Center. When his SUV entered the parking lot, the wind and rain just stopped.
Out of the SUV, Renyi smelled the fresh air after the rain. He smiled like a boy. Ho Renyi was a handsome man of medium height, close to forty years old. With chiseled cheekbones and hair that curled naturally, he had skin that was a little darker than most Chinese. He wore his standard office attire with light blue sports jacket, beige khakis, and a pair of white tennis shoes, which was his compromise between lace-up leather shoes and rain boots on a rainy day. He had played neither tennis nor other sports for a few months because the ground had been wet in most days. If it were ten years ago, he would have gone skiing or pistol shooting in an indoor range, or doing some other wintertime hobbies. But he had been busy lately.
* * * * *
The Pacific Center was located in the Chinatown section of Oakland. It was a three-story building that stood in the middle of a parking lot. The first floor was occupied by many restaurants. The second and third floors were occupied by apparel shops, travel agencies, law offices and clinics. The Wang Dental Clinic was in the middle of the second floor. Dr. Wang was going to give Renyi a deep cleaning. Renyi entered the building through the center entrance. He walked up the stairs, and entered the long hallway on the second floor.
Entering the clinic, Renyi saw Beibei sat behind a counter. With light makeup and beautiful long hair flowing over her shoulders, Beibei radiated the beauty and vivacity of a woman in her mid-twenties. With no one else in the reception area, Renyi sat down on a chair by the door. Beibei pointed to a sign-up sheet on the counter and requested, “Please register here.”
Renyi replied, "We are old acquaintances. Is that necessary?"
She smiled and said, "Every patient has to register. That is the rule, and there is no exception."
"You know my name already. Can’t you just fill it for me?" Renyi smiled.
"I can’t," Beibei said.
"You are so mean today!" Renyi said, as he walked over and put his name on the registry.
Dr. Wang entered the reception area from the back. Tall, with short permed curly hair, she asked Renyi "Is it still raining outside?"
"Just stopped."
"You are very lucky, as always," said Dr. Wang. Her Mandarin had an obvious Shanghai accent.
Renyi smiled smugly. "The rain stopped the moment I got here," he said.
"Rain every day makes one sad, doesn’t it?" Dr. Wang was not in an upbeat mood.
"It’s good! A new layer of fresh snow over the mountains around Lake Tahoe. It would be perfect for skiing this weekend,” argued Renyi.
"No wonder you are in such a good mood! Sounds like you have lots of free time."
“I was just making a conversation. I wish I had some free time.” Renyi said.
“I hear you are writing a book in your spare time. Is it a biography of Lin Biao?” asked Dr. Wang.
Ho Renyi stood up: “Yes.”
Beibei asked: “Who is Lin Biao?”
Renyi walked to the middle of the room: “He used to be vice chairman of the Chinese Communist Party. The number two guy in China, behind Mao.”
Dr. Wang smiled: “He was also from Hubei province, a fellow-townsman of Dr. Ho.”
Ho Renyi had a Ph.D. in physics before switching into software industry many years ago.
L
in Biao on the cover of TIME September 9, 1966
* * * * *
Beibei asked: “What happened to Lin Biao?”
Dr. Wang said: “In 1971, Lin Biao's official airplane crashed in Mongolia. Everyone on board, including Lin Biao, his wife and son, died in a big fire.”
Beibei frowned. “What a tragedy!”
Beibei asked: “Was it because of a mechanical failure or bad weather?”
Renyi: “It has been a mystery. We still don’t know the cause after all these years.”
Beibei smiled, “Looks like it’s up to you to unlock the mystery for us!”
Dr. Wang said: “Government officials said that Lin Biao was a traitor to China. And he died in self-destruction.”
Renyi said, “Those are lies. Lin Biao did not ‘commit treason to China’ nor did he ‘commit suicide.’”
“It's up to you to overturn the case for Lin Biao then!” Dr. Wang said.
“Yes. When that happens, I will also be rich and famous.” Renyi smiled.
“Looking forward to that day!” Dr. Wang and Beibei laughed.
Switching topics, Beibei asked Renyi, “Did you ski this year?”
“I only skied once. I was too busy this year.”
Dr. Wang turned to Beibei and said, “he used to go skiing every week.” Then she talked to Beibei in a low voice and in Shanghai dialect, “a playboy.” Beibei nodded.
* * * * *
Ho Renyi understood some basic words in Shanghai dialect, because his wife talked with her parents using the dialect. He heard the sentence and was not happy. Dr. Wang turned to Ho Renyi and said in Mandarin, “haven't you gone hunting, surfing or flying airplanes recently?”
“I haven't done any of that for many years now.”
Beibei said, “you can fly airplanes? That’s very dangerous, isn’t it?”
“I have a very good pilot safety record. Why don't you come with me one day, and I will take you up into the sky?” Renyi asked with a smile.
“That’s very nice of you. But I need to think about that ...”
Dr. Wang said flatly, "Jin Yongshi will come shortly."
Jin Yongshi was Ho Renyi’s wife’s name. She and Dr. Wang had been good friends for many years. Renyi was surprised at the news. Before he had time to say anything, Dr. Wang said: "Please wait a little bit." She turned and disappeared into the clinic’s hallway.
Renyi walked toward his chair. But he did not sit down. "Yongshi has an appointment today? But she never mentioned that to me!"
Beibei said, "She should have had a cleanup a long time ago. But she could not find time. I called her this morning. She said she had some free time in the afternoon. She will come soon." Jin Yongshi was a professor in the Biological Sciences at the University of California. She was a busy woman. He knew that quite well, of course.
Beibei smiled. “What's wrong? Did you have a fight at home yesterday?” she asked.
“You are joking! We don’t fight.”
Beibei was filing away patients’ records. She put down the files on her desk and looked up at Renyi: “Oh, that’s right! Both of you are doctors.” Beibei lowered her voice and added, "Not even a disagreement?"
Renyi waved a hand, dismissing the question. He sat down and saw a copy of World Journal, a newspaper in Chinese, on the coffee table by the corner. He picked it up and started reading.
"Are you a biker?" Beibei’s voice came from somewhere next to a wall of file cabinets.
"I used to ride motorcycles," Renyi said, head still buried in the newspaper.
“What kind of motorcycles?”
“Harley and Honda.”
"You were a Harley rider?"
Ho Renyi put down the newspaper, took out his wallet, pulled out a photo, and handed it to Beibei.
Beibei laughed when she saw the photo which had Renyi wearing a black helmet, black leather jacket, black jeans and black leather boots.
"Where is your black sunglasses?" asked Beibei.
"That was in my hand."
Beibei nodded. "Are you a member of those clubs?"
"Who wants to be a member? We used to have our own groups."
"People who ride Harleys are quite weird. When they cruise on the road, they don’t look like they are riding motorcycles."
Renyi solemnly straightened his blue jacket. Beibei looked on and didn't know what to expect. Renyi raised one leg and turned his body, as if he were mounting a Harley-Davidson motorcycle. After “sitting down,” he raised his hands as if he were holding the high handlebars on a Harley.
Beibei got excited: "Yes, yes! That’s it!"
Encouraged by her enthusiasm, Renyi turned his body a little bit, as if he were turning his motorcycle to the left. Jin Yongshi opened the door. Renyi froze. Yongshi was startled.
"What are you doing?" asked Renyi’s wife.
Jin Yongshi was tall and had light skin and a round face. One could almost tell she spent most of her time in classrooms and laboratories. Renyi, still in his “riding” posture, asked "Take a guess!"
"Are you fighting with someone?"
Beibei chuckled while covering her mouth with one hand.
"No." Renyi returned back to his normal riding position. "Guess again."
"Reading a newspaper in a bathroom?"
Beibei burst out laughing.
Renyi said "I am riding a Harley-Davidson. Haven’t you seen them on the streets?"
"What is a Harley-Davidson?" Yongshi asked innocently.
"The most popular motorcycle made in America. You didn't know?"
Beibei said, “Harleys is not something important. Who would remember all those motorcycle brands?”
"Yes. It’s just a motorcycle." Yongshi said as she walked toward the counter. "Should I register here?"
"Yes," Beibei said.
As soon as Yongshi put down her name, Beibei stood up. She picked up Yongshi’s file and waved at her to follow. Both Beibei and Yongshi walked into the hallway. Renyi opened his mouth in protest. But no words came out. Yongshi unexpectedly stopped and turned around.
"I'm sorry. I have to get back to the campus pretty soon," she said.
"That’s all right. You go ahead. I’m off for the rest of the day anyway," Renyi said with a smile. Although he sounded all right, he felt bad about the way he was treated. He was proud that his wife was an outstanding woman, but . . .
Everyone respects Yongshi, and yet no one seems to respect me. Renyi felt like a loser.
Re-entering the reception area, Beibei told Renyi, "You certainly know how to take good care of your wife. You are a true gentleman."
Renyi replied in a flat, matter-of-fact voice, "Why don’t you simply hang a big sign here? It should say ‘Shanghai natives, first-class citizens. Others, second-class citizens.’”
Before Beibei could explain, he raised his right hand, signaling her to wait. Renyi continued, "You could have made it all clear to the customers, and saved them lots of trouble."
Beibei did not say a word.
A few minutes later, Renyi sighed. "Well, I am just an engineer. Walking into any Chinese supermarket, you would see a dozen people like me."
"Alice is almost done with her patient. You will be the next one," said Beibei.
"How long has Alice been a resident here?"
Beibei laughed. "She is definitely a good dentist. Don't worry."
The name Yongshi means “sing hymn” in Chinese. Yongshi was born in a Christian family. Renyi and Yongshi had a daughter named Caihua nine years ago. Although the whole family had gone to church every Sunday for many years, Renyi was not baptized. The name Renyi means “kind just” in Chinese, which are the top two virtues in Confucius’s moral code. The name highlighted Renyi’s family background, which is different from his wife’s.
Ten minutes later, Beibei led Renyi into the hallway. There was an office and a breakroom on the right. There were also several treatment rooms. Renyi entered one treatment room. Alice was a slim, young, white lady with dark hair and brown eyes.
“Ni Hao,” said Renyi in Mandarin, with a heavy foreigner’s accent.
“Ni Hao,” Alice replied in perfect Mandarin.
“Wow! You surprised me!” Renyi said in English. He sat down on the patient’s chair. Alice told him that local anesthesia was needed for deep cleaning. “Wow.” He was surprised and a trace of hesitation appeared on his face. Alice didn’t pay any attention to his reaction. She applied an anesthetic gel to the left side of his oral cavity and walked away. Five minutes later, she came back with a syringe and needle in her hand. After ordering him to open his mouth, she gave him an anesthetic injection.
"Wait for fifteen minutes," she said.
He nodded and lay down on the chair. She disposed of the syringe and needle and gave him a small wave before leaving the room.
Renyi was alone in the treatment room. Usually, Dr. Wang would clean his teeth. Renyi had a vague memory that Alice had worked on his teeth before, and he didn’t have a bad impression of her. If no one were willing to give Alice a chance, how would she learn? With that thought, serenity returned to Renyi.
* - * - * - * - *
Renyi lay on the dental chair, when he heard Beibei’s loud voice from the reception area, "Oh, my God! Oh, my God!" Beibei walked swiftly to the treatment room next door. Renyi immediately got up from the chair and walked into the adjacent room. Beibei was surrounded by Dr. Wang and Jin Yongshi. "My God!" Dr. Wang said in a surprised voice. Beibei turned and told Renyi, "Some young men are robbing the ramen restaurant on the first floor."
He was taken aback by the news.
Renyi asked, "Whu gun do the black silver have?"
Beibei could not understand the question.
Dr. Wang told Beibei, "He is under local anesthesia." She understood the question because “silver” and “person” are pronounced similarly in Mandarin. Dr. Wang said to Renyi, "Let's ask Maria." The four walked toward the reception area.
* * * * *
Maria, a Hispanic woman, was one of Dr. Wang’s patients. She witnessed the robbery as she entered the building. She stood by the counter and was on her cellphone with the police: "Two men. Both held pistols in their hands."
That answered Renyi’s question, and he told Yongshi, "I will gown out and tuck a look." Yongshi knew what Renyi meant, and immediately said, "No!"
Renyi said, "I have a gown in my tar. I will coach them," while walking toward the door. Yongshi knew Renyi wanted to catch the robbers. She rushed forward to catch Renyi. But he broke free of her grip, opened the clinic’s door and ran toward the stairs.
My marksmanship is excellent. Don’t you remember? Renyi had no time to explain to his wife. He ran down the stairs.
* * * * *
In the parking lot, Renyi ran toward his blue SUV. After opening the passenger door, he removed a green canvas bag from the glove box. His beloved Beretta pistol and a magazine lay inside the bag. Renyi quickly loaded the magazine into the pistol, closed the car door, and ran toward the front of the building. The building has a long front corridor with a row of restaurants on the side. The ramen shop was in the middle. A black Chevrolet sedan was on waiting outside the ramen shop with a rolled down the driver side window. A large man was in driver’s seat, constantly surveying the parking lot. A young Chinese couple was walking towards the ramen shop from the opposite side. The young man had his left arm around the woman, and they were laughing and talking.
Renyi waved his left hand, and shouted, “Turn back! Tear is a robbery now!” The young couple stopped and gazed in confusion.
* * * * *
The Chevrolet’s rear door opened. A wide-shouldered man, with a black scarf covering his face below the eyes, walked out quietly. With a pistol in his hand, the man searched for Renyi, who hid behind one of the corridor columns. The young woman screamed at the sight of the pistol, and pulled her male companion around and ran away. Renyi suddenly ran toward a red car behind him. The black scarf raised his pistol, and fired two shots at Renyi. People at multiple corners of the plaza started screaming and ran toward safety. Renyi hid behind the red car and felt lucky. He was not hit.
Could there be another person in the back seat? Renyi asked himself, and wished the answer were negative. He quickly took a look, and saw the man was approaching. Should I warn him, or retaliate?
Renyi raised his pistol and fired two shots at the Chevrolet, which punctured the windshield and smashed one headlight. The black scarf was startled and fired several shots at the red car, while retreating toward the ramen shop. The windows on the red car were blown away. Renyi raised his head slightly and saw the scarfed man open the ramen shop door, yelling at his partners. What will happen when the two robbers inside the restaurant come out? What if three men come after me? Renyi bent down and hurried toward a gray car. The driver in the Chevrolet fired two shots at Renyi with his left hand. The bullets barely missed Renyi.
Three men came out of the ramen restaurant and quickly got inside the Chevrolet, which raced toward the parking lot exit.
Renyi stood up, raised his Beretta, and watched the Chevrolet turning on to the road. He didn’t shoot. But he remembered the car’s license plate.
Yongshi, Beibei, and others came out of the building. People walked slowly, as if they were unsure whether the robbers had really gone. Yongshi alone ran toward Renyi, who took the magazine out of his Baretta and put them into his pants pocket. As he and Yongshi embraced, tears of joy streamed down Yongshi’s cheeks.
Two police cars came with four policemen. Two policemen talked to the restaurant customers. The owner of the ramen restaurant, a middle aged woman, talked with one policeman.
Beibei came and hugged Renyi and Yongshi both. “You are not hurt, right?” said Beibei.
“I wazz not.” said Renyi.
“Thank God!” said Yongshi. He nodded.
Yongshi touched his right cheek. “Can you feel it?”
He shook his head.
A policeman walked towards Renyi and wanted to talk to the hero of the day. Renyi looked around for Dr. Wang. The translator was no where to be found.
Book website: American Fugitive, a novel
