Red Light

Brothers

Jin Zixuan pulled out into traffic. Both men just sat for a moment, listening to the hum of the city. Loathe to break the silence with the news each carried.

Zixuan glanced at his brother. "Did you read or watch the news yesterday?"

"I'm not sure. I don't remember much of yesterday. I remember going to work. Bits and pieces of the day. Getting my picture taken for my ID card. Ordering lunch but I don't remember eating it. Heading home but not leaving work." Meng Yao's eyebrows were crunched together in concentration.

"Hey, it'll come back. Dr. Lan said to just give it time." Zixuan soothed. He wasn't surprised Meng Yao's memory was sketchy. The bruise on his left temple was large and mottled blue-black.

"Not sure I want to remember everything, Ge-ge." he said as he stared without seeing anything.

"We'll wait and see what you remember and deal with it then. Okay." A nod from Meng Yao.

"Want me to start or do you want to start?" he asked.

"I'll start." Zixuan took a deep breath.

"Madame Yu was arrested for human trafficking yesterday. By her own son, Jiang Cheng. That man is made of iron." He paused lost in thought for a moment.

Meng Yao just stared. The words 'human trafficking' were wandering around in his head causing flashes of memory. He could hear his own voice.

"Is that how you 'sample' the humans you traffick, Jin Guangshan?"

Had he said that? He knew he had been punched. Once in the temple at least. A punch was probably what split his lip. He knew he had been afraid. It was the rest of the details that eluded him.

"She sold Yanli's youngest brother. He was missing for months. " Zixuan continued. "He was stabbed the day before yesterday when they finally found him. He's recovering well and he's going to be just fine if Yanli has any say in it."

Meng Yao just looked at his brother. Dumbfounded.

It took him a moment to find his voice.

"I think her contact into that world may have been our father." His voice was thoughtful. Musing as he worked out connections.

"What?" It sounded as if the word was ripped out of Jin Zixuan's chest.

"I think Jin Guangshan was having an affair with Madame Yu. At least that was the rumor." He paused. "It makes sense in a way. They'd be perfect for each other. Both of them are vile." Meng Yao's voice was hard.

"Five months ago, I was put in charge of the family's finances. There's two sets of books. One is the public face. Legal. Taxed. The other isn't. It took me a while to understand what I was seeing. It wasn't insider trading.** It wasn't hidden income sequestered in off shore accounts and Swiss banks. Jin Guangshan has been providing protection to human traffickers. He's making millions selling those who are most vulnerable." His voice was still firm even if he could feel the acid building in his stomach.

"Once I figured out what was going on, I started documenting everything." He looked at his brother. "Including your innocence, Ge-ge."

Jin Zixuan was stunned. He knew his father was into questionable business. That was why he had moved out. Why he had refused to go into the family business. Why he had started Jin Computers. But he had thought it was just shady. Riding the gray areas to make more money. Pushing the boundaries between legal and illegal. He had no idea his father was squarely camped on the illegal side.

"I turned in all the documentation two days ago. Copies of the family's hidden finances and illegal activities went to Xinhua News Agency**, the China News Service** and the State Taxation Administration.** I did it anonymously. It's just a matter of time before they realize where the information came from." Yao's voice was tired.