Page 20 of Vera Wong's Guide to Snooping (on a Dead Man)

“I’m not gossiping, I’m investigating.”

Well, she’s got Vera there.

“Are you going to confront Qiang Wen now?” Winifred says, her eyes bright with excitement.

“Of course not. This requires a gentle touch. If he doesn’t know about Xander’s death, I’m not about to break his heart without at least cooking him a good meal.”

“Oh yes, very considerate of you.”

Vera smiles. Already her mind is racing ahead. Because though she’s just chastised Winifred about gossiping, she is in fact very curious about Qiang Wen’s secret grandson. And she has a feeling that getting the truth out of him is going to require some finesse, some subtlety. Luckily for this case, Vera is nothing if not subtle.

Eight

QIANG WEN

Qiang Wen has just finished washing the last of his dirty cookware when the front door swings open with a tinkle. “We are closed,” he calls out from the back without looking up. He shakes his head. Did he forget to flip the sign fromOpentoClosed? He swears, his memory is getting worse by the day.

“Lei hou, Qiang Wen,” a familiar voice says.

Qiang Wen pops his head out of the kitchen and pauses in surprise when he sees Vera Wong standing in his little dumpling shop. “Ah, Vera,” he says in Cantonese. “Long time no see. How are you doing?”

“Good, good.” Vera smiles at him. “And you?”

“Same old.” He wipes his hands on a towel and heads out into the shop area, where, for a painful moment, the two of them stare at each other awkwardly. He’s always been friendly with Vera, but they could never be accused of being friends. He was much closer to her late husband, Jinlong, and she much closer to his late wife,Yi Mei. “So, what can I do for you? If you’re here to pick up some dinner, I do have some leftover dumplings. I usually have them for dinner myself. Let’s see…”

“Oh, no. Actually, I came by to invite you over for dinner.”

Qiang Wen stops moving. He peers at her. A dinner invitation from Vera? How curious. “What’s the occasion?”

Vera licks her lips. She looks like she’s struggling to find the right words to say what she’s about to say, which is very strange, because for as long as he’s known her, Qiang Wen has never seen Vera at a loss for words. She usually has the opposite problem, in fact. “Well,” she says finally, “I thought maybe you’d want some company, given the tragedy.”

“Tragedy?” Dread seeps through Qiang Wen’s stomach. “What’s happened? Is everything okay?”

Vera gives him a funny look. “Well, everything is okay with me, yes, but you’re the one who has suffered a great loss.”

“I—what?”

And now Vera looks vexed. “Your grandson, Xander? Thomas? What was his name?”

For a moment, the only thing going through Qiang Wen’s mind isGrandson?Then it all sinks in with horrible coldness. “Xander. What about him? Has something happened?”

Vera’s eyebrows have disappeared into her fluffy gray hair. “Are you telling me the police didn’t even inform you about his death?”

It feels as though there is a slab of stone weighing several tons squashing Qiang Wen’s shoulders. With some effort, he manages to stagger to a chair. He collapses onto it. “His death?”

“Oh. Oh no. You didn’t know. Oh, Qiang Wen, I am so sorry. I wouldn’t have—I would’ve—I’m sorry.”

Qiang Wen squeezes his eyes shut, covering his face with one hand. He’s vaguely aware of his hands shaking, and he only hopes Vera would assume they’re shaking out of intense grief. Because the main thing blaring in his mind isn’tMy god, Xander is dead.It’sWhat have I done?

He sits there for goodness knows how long, guilt searing an excruciating path round and round in his mind. After a while, he becomes aware of Vera patting him gently on the arm.

“Qiang Wen, you must be strong. The police haven’t been able to identify Xander, so they haven’t notified his family. You’ll have to tell his parents.”

“I…” Qiang Wen looks at Vera helplessly. “I can’t.”

Vera looks like she’s trying very hard to hold herself back from saying something. Her mouth turns into a thin line and moves like she’s literally biting back her words. Then she says, “Well, surely you can’t leave his parents wondering what’s happened to him. His mother is your daughter, right? You wouldn’t want her to suf—”

“She’s not my daughter!” Qiang Wen snaps.

---