Free Blue Lantern by Gil Hogg Page B

men.”
    One photo showed a sallow young man of about twenty, bony cheeks, thin lips sprouting a beaver of black hair; the other the full-faced man in his mid thirties, more forehead, more jowl, more arrogance.
    â€œI can candidly say the older man,” Brodie lied.
    Brodie replaced the shots of the girls in the drawer, unable to feign more interest, and then noticed on the top of the pile, a girl in a coat with a white fur collar, crossing a street. He looked more closely at the grainy colour. “This is Vanessa?”
    â€œVanessa? Oh yes, I’ve got all the Lotus crowd there. It doesn’t mean I’ve been to bed with all of them.”
    Brodie invented a story about taking Vanessa to Repulse Bay for dinner in order to borrow Andy Marsden’s car. He met Helen Lau by arrangement at the Star Ferry on the Hong Kong side at nine in the evening. While he had been worrying that she might have lost interest in him, he found that she accepted his offer of a trip to the Peak with alacrity.
    â€œMy, this is a very smart machine,” she said as she slid her small body into the low seat of the MG. “You must have important friends.”
    He smelled her perfume, and leaned over toward her, nearly touching her cheek with his lips.
    â€œNot here,” she said firmly, moving away. “Too many people.”
    They were parked in a space beyond the main ferry gates where waiting cars often pulled in, but there was hardly anybody about. He started the car and nosed through the Central District traffic, and up Magazine Gap road, slightly offended.
    â€œNobody is going to notice you around here.”
    â€œI’m pretty well known, you know, and I just don’t want to risk it.”
    â€œYou make me feel as though I’m out with a married woman.”
    â€œWell, I’m not married, Mike, and I’ve already told you what concerns me.”
    There was a finality in her tone which ended the debate. He engrossed himself in booting the MG up the steep grade, and round the tight bends, changing gear up and down between second and third repeatedly to keep up the speed.
    After a while she said in a bossy tone, “Hey, come on big boy, don’t sulk. Just remember that when you’re in a public place with me, you can’t behave as if I’m your girlfriend.”
    â€œAnd how would I behave with a girlfriend?”
    â€œYou know very well.”
    â€œHow about when we’re not in a public place?”
    She thought about her reply. “It depends on how we feel about each other. I like you, but I hardly know you.”
    The tyres squealed on the tarmac, but Helen seemed to enjoy it. “You like speed?”
    â€œThe bends make it seem fast. We’re not going very fast.”
    When they were near the Peak, mist engulfed the car. The Peak could host a cloud for several days on end. Brodie couldn’t see the trees on the roadside.
    â€œIt’s a pity because I’ve been looking forward to the view. It’s over a year since I was up here.”
    Brodie slowed. He had visibility of only a few yards ahead. “It’ll mean we won’t be in a public place.”
    He looked at her and she laughed, warm, feline and encouraging.
    The dimples showed. “We can talk. There’s such a lot to talk about.”
    The road was lonely, with houses set back behind thick white walls. The mist mixed with the glare of sodium lamps blanketed the windows like orange blinds. Brodie parked, and they sat looking at each other in near-darkness. He put his hands on her shoulders, and drew her toward him and she yielded warmly. He felt her lips tremble on his, and her hands caress his shoulders. He touched her breasts through her thin cheong sam. The dress unbuttoned down the front, and he undid the buttons. She was now almost naked, resting loosely in her open frock, and he was fully clothed, slacks, long sleeved shirt, and necktie. As they kissed, she loosened his