CHAPTER 24-5
435 Words
Even drunk, Benjamin found the old man repulsive. Age and squalor masked the true color of his hair, and his stench was so strong Benjamin was surprised there were only two flies circling his head instead of a whole swarm.
“It’s like this.” The old man leaned in toward Benjamin, assaulting his nostrils. “There’s a young man I’ve gots my eye on. One of them river hoppers.” Benjamin nodded. The only reason he himself wasn’t instantly mistaken for a refugee was that the Party had given him international food aid packets and forced him to eat double allotments every day.
“You look like a man who knows how to watch out for hisself.” He scratched his beard, and Benjamin winced, wondering what kind of critters might have found a home in that mess of mange. “He’ll be worth about eight hundred yuan to the police. How about we splits it halfway?”
Benjamin frowned. “Halfway?” He raised himself up to his full height and glared down at the bearded vagrant.
The old man shrugged. “I could always hire another brute.”
“You paying up front?”
Old Joo lifted up his hands. “Can’t give you what I ain’t gots. But you catch him and bring him to me, and I tell you what. We’ll go and see the police together and split the money right then and there. Fair-like. Old Joo’s good for his word, I promises that.”
Benjamin looked down the alley at the refugee hovering over the trash pile. He didn’t look like much of a threat. Benjamin turned back to the old, toothless hobo. “Deal.”
Old Joo cackled and rubbed his grubby hands together. “So you goes and gets him out of the alley. You bring him here to me at this bench, and we take him together to the police. Then we split the money.”
Benjamin scrunched his forehead up. “Might run.”
A dribble of drool ran down from the side of Old Joo’s mouth and trickled into his beard. “He won’t be nothing for a big strong man like you. You coulds probably wrestle him to the ground in your sleep.” He cackled once more.
Benjamin didn’t deny it. “Shame if he ran away.” He scratched his jaw. “Better take him out aways. Knock the fight out.”
Old Joo squinted. “And how’s do I know you ain’t gonna take him and lug him off to the police yourself and keep that reward money?”
Benjamin shrugged. “Meet me at the police. I won’t sneak by.”
Old Joo reached out a gnarled finger and scratched his beard. “You sure you ain’t gonna try to run off with him?”
Benjamin nodded. “Just making it easier.”
Old Joo squeezed one eye shut. “Positive?”
“Yup.”
- Writer
