Chapter 10
The waiter brought the snack she had asked for. The ceremony of serving herself the tea filled her with anticipatory pleasure, and Alisha proved again that her spirit was prone to all rituals. She was so absorbed by the procedure her mother had inculcated her long ago that she did not notice the presence of the figure approaching her in the large room of the restaurant. When the man came to her side he coughed softly to reveal his presence to the busy woman. Alisha gave a startled jump that caused the man to apologize.
"Excuse me, I did not mean to upset you."
The sight of the newcomer and his words did not have the effect of calming the young woman but quite the contrary. Despite having seen him only once from her hotel window Alisha immediately recognized the Chinese who ha
