Ever Lasting Wealth

Ever Lasting Wealth

“Yeah, sure,” Larry sneered, waving the gun, “you may be pretty smart, but I’m the one with the gun.” For added emphasis, he pressed the barrel hard into Lin’s rib cage.

“This is so,” Lin Hui agreed with a slight smile, “I only wished to impart a small pearl of wisdom during these unpleasant negotiations. However, I agree, you do seem to have the upper hand.”

“Damn right, I do!” Larry was enjoying the sense of power, he was usually intimidated by the very foreignness of Mr. Lin in their past dealings. “That is MY pearl of wisdom, you’re not so damn smart now, are you?” Prodding Mr. Lin with the gun barrel, he repeated the question once, twice, three times. Each time, digging the barrel a little harder into his victim’s ribs. “Are you? Are you? Are you? You gook piece of crap!”

“Ahhhh, but one must remember, Mr. Williams,” Lin said, “the sickness of the oyster is the pearl. That which irritates, may result in reward.”

Larry wasn’t sure that he understood, in fact, he understood almost nothing Mr. Lin ever said. Though he had worked for Lin Hui’s corporation almost five years, they had little face to face contact. Larry, because he always felt a little inadequate around the unflappable Asian businessman. Mr. Lin, because he disdained interaction with the enormously large, American thug.

“Now,” Larry continued, motioning to the large walk-in wall safe, “you’re going to go over to that safe, and you’re going to open it and give me money and jewels. Enough to take me far away from here.”

“But why would I do that, Mr. Williams?” Lin asked. “That would leave me with very little bargaining advantage.”

“Bargaining advantage? What do you mean, bargaining advantage?” Larry laughed a crude bark. “You have no advantage, bargaining or otherwise! I’m the one with gun!”

“This is true,” Lin conceded, “you do have the weapon. However, I hold what it is you desire.” A small smile tugging the corners of his mouth, Lin continued. “I also hold the secret to your escape. You see, Mr. Williams, my advantages may be small, but worth consideration.”

Larry took a moment, his face twisting with the effort of thought, then quickly smashed Lin across the mouth with the gun barrel. “How about THAT for consideration?” he shouted, as Lin fell against the ornate desk in the otherwise austere room. “If you don’t open that safe, I will put several bullets into you, it might not kill you at first, but it will hurt like hell!”

Lin slowly wiped the blood trickling from the split in his lip. Straightening up, he looked into Larry’s eyes before bowing his head slightly. “Very well, Mr. Williams, as you request; but remember, the only way out of this room, indeed out of this building, is by my leave.”

“Don’t you worry about that.” Larry sneered again. “I’ll get out of here. After all, I have a prime hostage. If any of your Ninja bastard, gooks try and stop me, I will shoot you full of holes.”

“Then Mr. Williams.” Lin smiled. “They will most certainly kill you as well.”

Larry smiled, though his mind was whirling with several doubts, he was determined to not let Lin rattle him. “Maybe so.” Larry smiled, he hoped confidently. “But you won’t be alive to see it.”

The doubts in Larry’s mind were well founded; in his time with Lin, he had never seen anyone go against him and live. Larry had little choice though, he had violated the first rule; never steal from the organization. At first it was just a little skimming, he was in charge of the pickups from the Caucasian businesses that Lin controlled. Then it had snowballed, slowly at first, but Larry got greedy as he believed no one noticed. A foolish assumption on his part. That was why he had been brought here tonight, but Lin had made a stupid blunder when he directed his men to leave Larry alone with him.

It had been a simple thing to grapple the gun away from the seemingly frail man. Now Larry had the gun, he had the power. All he had to do was get outside.

No mean trick that would be, he realized. Lin’s personal body guards were surely just beyond the only door. After which he would still have to make it fourteen floors to the street below and then get out of Chinatown and San Francisco itself. Larry did have a plan though, if he held the frail business man hostage, he doubted that Lin’s men would risk their leader being harmed. Oh sure, they would follow if they were able and at the slightest mistake on his part, he was going to be a dead man. Larry believed he could make it, he believed it with all his heart.

That was what made Larry the man he was, a hired killer and strong arm since he was barely into his teens, never afraid of anything nor anyone. He had come a long way since his "smash and grab" days. His enormous size had served him well all these years, giving him the feeling of near invincibility.

“Enough of this song and dance,” Larry said, “get your ass over there and let’s get this done!”

“As you wish, Mr. Williams.” Lin smiled. Carefully making his way to the large safe that made up part of one wall, Lin reached for the dial. Suddenly, Larry had a bad feeling about the possibility of some kind of trick.

“Hold it!” he ordered. “Go very slowly, and if there are any surprises remember one thing, I will kill you without thinking about it for even a second.”

“I’m sure you would, Mr. Williams.” Lin smiled. “I assure you, there is nothing beyond this door but that which you wish for.” Turning the dial to its final number Lin stepped back carefully, looking to Larry with a smile.

“Open it!” Larry snapped. “Remember what I said about tricks!”

Lin nodded and reached for the door, pulling it open slowly. As the door opened the glimmer and shine that emanated from within was almost blinding. Involuntarily Larry felt himself stepping towards the open doorway.

“My God!” he breathed. “I had no idea! No idea you had this much. My God, it’s beautiful!”

For forty years Lin Hui had studied the various martial arts, Tai Chi being one specialty at which he was the most adept. It was a simple matter of physics that helped him lever the large thug into the chamber. Before Larry quite understood what had happened, he found himself inside the large safe the door soundlessly closing behind him.

A speaker installed in the ceiling of the chamber crackled and then the quiet smooth voice of Lin Hui. “Please enjoy your wealth, Mr. Williams.” A small chuckle followed. “You will have a few hours to take your pleasure, before the air is exhausted. I have a dinner engagement, but I will return. Perhaps tomorrow, perhaps the day after.”

The speaker crackled off before Lin could hear the curses, neither did he hear the gunshot a few hours later.