Wan Hai — Telex

He thought of the shipper in Kaohsiung, the one who had loaded that container. A ghost now. And the consignee in Jakarta, claiming $480,000 for air . A perfect crime. And the only person left holding the bag was a captain with a Wan Hai telex in his hand.

The static hissed on the bridge of the MV Stellar Fortune , a sound Captain Tzeo had long stopped noticing. What he noticed was the slip of yellow paper the radioman handed him. The telex. From Wan Hai. wan hai telex

Two thousand cartons of empty ? The seal was intact. That meant the theft—if it was theft—happened before the boxes ever touched his ship. But Wan Hai didn't deal in if . They dealt in telex . A Wan Hai telex was not a request. It was a weather front. He thought of the shipper in Kaohsiung, the

He folded the paper, tucked it into his shirt pocket, and turned to Mr. Kim. “Set course for Surabaya. And bring me some tea.” A perfect crime

It was short. Wan Hai telexes always were. Their reputation preceded them: cold, precise, and absolute. FM: WAN HAI LINES, TAIPEI RE: B/L NO. WHKK-8872 / 40FT HC ‘DREAMS’ CARGO DISCREPANCY. SEAL INTACT. INTERNAL CONTENT: 2,000 CTNS EMPTY. CONSIGNEE CLAIMS USD 480,000. VESSEL HELD LIABLE. DO NOT PROCEED. AWAIT SURVEYOR. - WAN HAI TELEX Tzeo read it three times. The air in the bridge grew thick.