Free Bill for the Use of a Body by Dennis Wheatley Page A

spend our first day making a tour of the island.’
    Had Julian not known himself to be in the Orient, for much of the next few hours he might have supposed that he was in the South of France; for the roads strongly resembled the Corniche, winding round cliff after cliff to open new prospects of lovely bays down below. Heading south-east they drove down to Stanley where, long ago, the British population of the island had suffered from semi-starvation and great hardship as prisoners of the Japanese. After running out along the Tai Tam peninsula they turned north to Red Hill, came south again to Aguilar Peak, then down to the bathing resort of Sheko. From there they had to turn inland and run through the mountainous country to the town of Sau Ki Wan on the north-east point of the island. By midday they had completed over half the circuit and reached Victoria.
    When they came opposite Starr Ferry, Julian said,‘It’s time to think about lunch before we go any further. You can park the car here and we’ll go over to the other side. I’m told Gaddi’s restaurant at the Peninsula is one of the best in the island, so I though we’d go there.’
    â€˜Oh, I find my own lunch,’ she protested. ‘But I’ll drop you here and pick you up again at any time you wish.’
    â€˜You don’t find your own lunch when you are with me,’ he laughed. ‘It’s part of your job as a guide to accompany me to restaurants and advise me on the best things to eat.’
    The big ferry boats ran every few minutes to cope with the huge crowds constantly passing from shore to shore, and half an hour later they were at the Peninsula Hotel. But it was Julian who advised on the things they had to eat and he saw to it that the meal was an extremely good one.
    By half past three they were back on Hong Kong and heading through Victoria to the western end of the island. After circling the Peak and Mount Davis, they drove south-east to Aberdeen, the oldest settlement on Hong Kong, with its great floating town of junks and sampans in which for many generations tens of thousands of Chinese have been born and died. Circling Brick Hill, they passed the Golf Club on the shore of Deep Water Bay and were back at the Repulse at five o’clock.
    As Julian got out of the car he looked across the massed beds and pots of flowers below the hotel terrace to the line of bathing tents down on the beach and remarked, ‘What a pity that the water is not warm enough for us to bathe.’
    She smiled at him. ‘I should not find it too cold, and quite a number of people have started bathing at Sheko. But if you like swimming in warm water there is a fine indoor pool at the New Ritz Hotel.’
    â€˜Let’s go there tomorrow, then.’
    â€˜If you like. We could do the city first, then have a swim before lunch.’
    Having refused to come in for a drink, Merri waved him good-bye and drove off. He had not pressed her to stay, and during the day he had been careful not to rush his fences; for he was only too well aware that Merri Sang must regard him as of another generation. But she seemed to have a passion for knowledge of the world outside Hong Kong, so he had been able to entertain her with accounts of the many places he had visited during his wanderings. And he was quite content with the progress he had made, for she had proved a charming companion and, at his suggestion, now called him Julian instead of Mr. Day.
    Next morning in Victoria they parked the car and, having pointed out the great banks and office blocks in Des Voeux Road, she took him to see the famous ladder streets. They were steep narrow canyons, hung with brightly coloured banners, lined with shops and swarming with Chinese, that lack of space has led to extending the city up the slope of its dominating mountain. Then they visited the fascinating Thieves Market. By midday they were at the New Ritz, laughing together in the swimming