Mrs. Pollifax on the China Station

in the upholstery.
    Mr. Chang was there again with Mr. Pi, and now she was able to see how
immaculately he was dressed, and how silky the fabric of his charcoal-gray Mao
tunic. This time he sat at the table beside Mr. Pi but his eyes were no less
penetrating. There was a tape recorder present for today’s interview, and she
was asked to repeat her story again from beginning to end. It was surprising
how difficult she found this,- yesterday she’d been keyed up, still in shock, her
efforts focused with such intense concentration that she’d given a superhuman
performance, even with Mr. Chang’s distracting gaze upon her. Today her hand
ached with dreary persistence, she’d not slept well, the plaster cast on her
arm felt hot and uncomfortable, and her fingers were swollen. Today she
realized, too, how very much Mr. Chang frightened her: she felt that he missed
nothing, not even the blink of an eye.
    When Mr. Pi had completed his endless questioning Mr. Chang said
courteously, in flawless English, ”And what were the last words you heard
spoken between Mr. Fox and Mr. Forbes before you—er—lost consciousness?”
    This was clever—an attempt to catch her out—and she regarded him
thoughtfully. ”It’s hard for me to remember, of course, but—” Reaching for the
most outrageous words that might close this line of inquiry she said, ”I
believe Mr. Forbes was shouting ‘bloody bastard’ at Peter Fox.”
    ”The quarrel was about Mrs. Iris Damson?”
    ”Yes,” said Mrs. Pollifax calmly. ”Also about Peter being young, callow,
exploitive, immoral, and taking advantage of a woman traveling alone.”
    Mr. Chang took this in stride. He said, ”You fainted then, but not when
you discovered Mr. Forbes dead and Mr. Fox missing?”
    She said with equal politeness, ”I suppose I fainted at that particular
moment from the shock of falling off a horse and breaking my wrist.”
    ”Ah yes, and thus missed everything that happened next,” he murmured,
and she thought that he looked amused again. ”I think you may go now, Mrs.
Pollifax, we shall continue our investigations.” He bowed courteously. ”Thank
you.”
     
    Returned to the hotel Mrs. Pollifax found Iris looking drawn and tired.
”Those damn raisins,” Iris cried indignantly. ”The ones Jenny bought at the
bazaar in Turfan and so generously shared? I found some and soaked them for a
few hours in my bathroom sink and you wouldn’t believe the hay and dung
that floated off them. No wonder everybody’s sick!”
    ”Mercifully they didn’t make you sick,” said Mrs. Pollifax. ”Have you
had any sleep at all?”
    Iris gestured this aside impatiently. ”Nothing makes me sick, I have an
iron stomach, and no I haven’t slept, but never mind that. How did it go at
security headquarters?”
    Mrs. Pollifax said dryly, ”Well, I’m still at liberty, as you can see.”
    Iris grinned. ”Mr. Li told me that Peter and Joe had a fight over me.”
Their glances met and there was laughter in Iris’ eyes. ”That makes me quite a femme
fatale, doesn’t it?”
    ”Exactly what Mr. Pi said,” she told her. ”Now give me a report on
everyone if you will. After all, I’m group leader and trying to get us out of
here.”
    Iris nodded. ”George is still pretty sick and he glares at me furiously
and won’t speak but he let me change his bed sheets and wash his face with a
wet towel.”
    ”Generous of him,” said Mrs. Pollifax tartly.
    Iris considered a moment and grinned. ”Malcolm is making sketches
between trips to the bathroom, but so far he’s kept down two tablespoons of tea
so it looks promising. He also tried to kiss me.”
    ”Shocking,” said Mrs. Pollifax, with a smile.
    ”But it’s Jenny who’s the problem,” Iris said, sobering. ”She’s tuned
out, I can’t get through to her. It’s been a ghastly shock for her, of course,
but she’s begun to act as if her own life’s ended. I wish you’d go and talk to
her. As group leader,” she added with a faint smile.
    Mrs. Pollifax nodded. ”I’ll go right now. Which room?”
    ”At the end of the hall, last door. No point in knocking, she doesn’t
want to see anyone, she’ll just say ‘go away.’ ”
    ”Yes,” said Mrs. Pollifax and walked down the hall, opened the door and
went in.
    Jenny, sitting up in bed, looked at her stony-eyed. ”I want to be left
alone,” she said angrily. ”You didn’t even knock, you have no right to be here,
I want to be left alone. ” Her voice