Bless the Bride by Rhys Bowen

older women who came here before the Exclusion Act. I feel sorry for them, personally. They’re virtually prisoners in their own homes. At least I can walk down the street to visit my neighbors, but they can’t even walk that far. You should see them hobbling. It’s something pitiful. If they ever go out it’s only in a closed carriage, door to door, even if they’re only visiting a couple of houses down.”
    I returned to my original question. “So if a young Chinese girl had come down the street, you would have noticed?”
    She tilted her head on one side with a puzzled look. “What’s this all about? Why these questions about a Chinese girl? You’re not from the authorities, are you? On the trail of a prostitute?”
    “So there really are Chinese prostitutes here?”
    “Of course there are. Not that they’re ever allowed out either, but one hears rumors of what goes on.”
    “I assure you I’m not from the authorities.” I took a sip of my tea while I tried to come up with a good reason for my question without giving away why I had been hired.
    We ate in silence until suddenly she looked up. “Wait a minute. If you were with Frederick Lee, then it’s true—old Mr. Lee Sing Tai did bring in another bride from China. Don’t tell me she’s gone?”
    “How did you hear about this?”
    “Their cook is friendly with Ah Fong. There’s not much that Chinese servants don’t know about. He’s brought in a bride from China before, you know.”
    “And what happened to her?”
    “From what I hear she couldn’t produce a son so he got rid of her. Sent her back to China as likely as not. So this one’s run away, has she?”
    “I really can’t talk about it,” I said. “Mr. Lee would be furious if he found out that anyone else knows his business.”
    Aileen Chiu laughed. “Listen, my dear, when you live in a narrow society like this, it’s hard to keep secrets, and servants love to talk. So he’s hired you to find her, has he?”
    I nodded. It seemed pointless to deny it at this stage and I had now made a useful ally.
    “Surely she can’t have gone far.” Aileen Chiu was frowning in a puzzled way. “The police would have picked her up if she’d strayed beyond Chinatown. They seem to think that all Chinese women are prostitutes.”
    “So she could be in jail, do you think?”
    “It’s possible. And if not, where else could she go? She won’t have had money of her own. What did she hope to achieve by it? If he wants her found, he’ll find her. He’s a big noise around here with fingers in every sort of pie. And he’s got the police in his pocket too.”
    “Really? He spoke of the police as his enemies.”
    “Don’t you believe it. He’s well in with the Sixth Precinct. He pays them good bribe money to keep out of his business interests—and out of On Leong interests too.”
    “So presumably he could have found out from the local police if his bride had been picked up and arrested?”
    “Although maybe he wouldn’t want to admit something like that to white men. It’s all a question of losing face. They’re very big on losing face, these Chinamen. He wouldn’t have hired an outsider like you—and a woman at that—unless he wanted to try and keep the affair secret from the local community. So where does Lee Sing Tai think she might have gone?”
    “She was educated by missionaries, so he thinks that maybe they have taken her in and are hiding her. I gather that there must be quite a few missionaries operating around here?”
    “There certainly are. All the denominations out there competing to save poor Chinese souls. It’s pitiful really. They lure the young men in with the offer of English language lessons and then they start preaching at them.” She chuckled. “Of course the Chinese aren’t stupid. They take the language classes and slip out before the sermon starts.”
    “You presumably know the various missions around here. Can you suggest where I should start?”
    “You