Chapter 1

WITHOUT PRICE

With the strong whizz of the jets, the Jumbo flew over the bay, almost touching the surface of the water and landed at Kai Tak Airport like a gigantic seagull.

Diana peeked through the small window and swallowed hard when she saw the single lane surrounded by water and, further away, the majestic island of Hong Kong on one side, and Kowloon with its mountain range in the background on the other. The gray haired man beside her smiled at the expression on her face.

"Didn't you know that the Hong Kong airport runway is in the middle of the bay?" - he asked.

"Well... I thought you were like the others..."

- But it is not. The airport was built on an embankment made in the bay, as is the case in Kowloon, and because of the size of the bay, only one runway could be built, so it is only possible to take off or land one plane at a time. The first time is always hair-raising, isn't it? Looks like the plane is going to crash into the sea... but I've never heard of any accidents since the airport was built.

Diana calmed down but couldn't help thinking that Pearl Wong should have warned her. After all, Pearl had been born and raised in Hong Kong and was also a flight attendant for Ta'i Airlines... but maybe that was why she was already so used to it that it didn't even cross her mind to talk to her friend about the airport.

Pearl and Diana had been living together in the same apartment in London until two days ago. Pearl possessed the allure of Oriental beauty and had shown herself to be very friendly during Diana's breakup with Clive. She was the one who helped her make that trip so that she could stay as far away from her ex-boyfriend as possible. It would have been intolerable - to continue living in the same building as him, just one floor below. Diana didn't even want to stay in the same city as Clive, she didn't want to see him ever again, or run the risk of running into him casually on the streets. That's why she decided to travel as far away as possible, although she knew that the memories would follow her wherever she went. In fact, since leaving London, not a minute had gone by without thinking of him. He couldn't get excited about the novelty of the trip or the refinements aboard the plane. The film they showed on the flight was about a talented young set designer, which reminded her even more of Clive and only served to poke at the fresh wound.

The grizzled man riding beside Diana was studying her face furtively as he had done all along. He was almost seventy years old and therefore thought he could show interest in a pretty young woman without it being interpreted as an attempt at conquest.

Ever since the plane took off from London airport, he'd noticed that the girl was tense and worried and showing signs of a thinly veiled sadness that only his experienced eyes could make out. She had dodged any attempts to make conversation and had been reading and listening to music the entire time. When it was time for the movie, he had closed his eyes, as if the love scenes brought back painful memories.

Afterwards, when the plane made stops in Bahrain and Bangkok and the passengers stayed at the airport for some time, being able to shop in the little shops or have snacks at the bar, she remained isolated, without looking for company or encouraging anyone to approach.

To him, this reserved attitude in such a young person seemed unnatural. In her eyes, it wasn't shyness, but apathy, a profound disinterest in everything around her. It was only in front of the magnificent and resplendent panorama of Hong Kong that she manifested herself for the first time, showing a certain enthusiasm. He looked out the window of the plane and his eyes sparkled in anticipation of contact with that exotic city.

He then took the opportunity to strike up a conversation.

— Is this your first time in Hong Kong?

She nodded.

"And how long do you intend to stay?"

- Two years. — Then he added: — It's the minimum for someone doing an internship abroad.

A layman wouldn't have understood what she said, though he commented, "Oh, so you're a doctor!"

— Yeah... I'm a recent graduate.

"It could only be so, being so young!"

For the first time, she really looked at him. During the entire flight, she had barely paid attention to the kind old man who was traveling beside her, and now that the plane had stopped on the runway, the passengers were unfastening their seat belts, relieved that the twenty-hour journey was over, she felt remorse for having it ignored. Only then did she notice that his gaze was gentle and fatherly.

"It means you're going to work as a resident doctor." he blinked. — I understand the profession well, young lady, after all I practiced it for several years. Can I ask which hospital you're staying at?

“At Kinsale.

Diana caught a look of surprise and satisfaction on his face, but there was no time to prolong the conversation. The trip was over. Passengers were gathering their carry-on bags and preparing to disembark. Gently he took Diana's coat from the overhead rack and handed it to her.

"Of course there must be someone waiting for you, isn't there?"

“Yes, thank you. I was advised that they would send a car to pick me up.

"Then I'll bid you farewell and wish you luck." No doubt I will have the pleasure of meeting you again. Sooner or later everyone ends up meeting in this city.

He bowed his head politely and walked away. She came to regret when she found herself alone. Really, diving into the confusion of that Kai Tak airport was a frightening experience for someone who didn't know the East. The noise of voices was deafening and the babel of languages she heard was overwhelming, but in the end, Diana managed to go through all the formalities of passport, visa, customs and went out into the street. What he saw then was startling.

Right there, near the exit, there was a cluster of young Chinese, each holding a sign; some advertised hotels, others bore the names of the passengers they were waiting for. Some names were shouted through the loudspeaker, mixing with the sound of conversations, bells and laughter.

— Mr. and mrs. Kellee attention! Mr. and mrs. Kellee! They are being awaited in the first class arrivals hall... Colonel Parker, attention! Colonel Parker, attention... your car is waiting for you in the parking lot. Please go to counter 5 to get your keys!

And suddenly Diana heard her name being called. He got scared. She was confused for a moment, not knowing where to go, while she looked in her purse for money to pay the porter. I still didn't even know the value of those coins.

"Dr. Freeman, attention!" Dr. Freeman, please report to booth 6... booth 6 please!

The porter had already disappeared and there she was with three suitcases not knowing how to carry them all at the same time. And on top of that, how would he know where that window 6 was? But of course, it had to be in the entrance hall. I needed to get another charger! Or else he would have to leave his luggage there... but that would be risky, they could steal in all that confusion. My God, what to do? Since all the porters were busy and she couldn't find any, she had no choice. He took the lightest bag, because it was also the most valuable, and went back inside.

In that suitcase was his stethoscope. She still remembered how proud she had been the day she'd bought it. Clive too, in his own way, had been proud. He'd gone with her to the medical supply store and watched with a slightly cynical smile as she selected the device. Diana was a little disturbed by Clive's cynicism. Why didn't he take her seriously, just like the clerk who served her, solicitously? After she already had the package in her hands, Clive murmured in her ear:

“I'm sorry, my love, but I can't believe you've graduated. I can't see her as an efficient and serious doctor. You're too pretty to be smart!

"Do you want me to show you my diploma?" Or rather, want to see my grades during the course? Know that I always got high marks!

“I think you deserve high marks, love, but for other things. . not intelligence.

But how absurd to remember that conversation just at that moment when he was struggling with all these difficulties in a strange airport! She had decided to go to Hong Kong to forget about Clive, to rebuild her life, change her surroundings, change her friends, get away from everything connected with him, but the memory of that man persisted in her mind. Even in this totally alien Oriental setting, she couldn't forget that handsome face with the soft beard that stirred so many emotions in her. Not the passionate, tender caresses, the lingering, sensual kisses that made her body burn with desire. How long would it take to forget all that?

He realized that his eyes were filling with tears and tried to control himself. She was feeling tired and homesick, as well as being very touchy about her failed romance. The hurt was too great and it was difficult to react and stay strong. After all, before being a doctor, she was a young and sensitive woman.

At that moment they called her again through the loudspeaker.

— Dr. Freeman, please report to window 6.

And there he was, leaning against the counter, a tall, blond young man in jeans and a patterned shirt. He looked upset and impatient and it wasn't hard to deduce that he wasn't enjoying being kept waiting for her so long. It must have been the taxi driver they sent to pick her up. But after all, that was his job, it was very insolent to be showing a bad mood like that! So Diana approached the counter and said coldly and haughtily:

— They called me over the loudspeaker. I'm dr. Freeman.

The blond young man started and immediately looked at her, astonished. He analyzed her from head to toe, in a brief instant, and exclaimed:

"Oh my God, it can't be!"

Diana then paid more attention to him and thought he didn't look like a taxi driver. Maybe it was some hospital employee, someone from the administrative sector who had been assigned to meet her at the airport, and maybe that was why she was so unwilling. The antagonism between administrative officials and doctors was something old and well known.

- And why not? she snapped back just as coldly.

The boy ran a hand through his hair and smiled awkwardly.

"Well... well, I didn't expect someone looking like that!"

The last doctor who came here was fat as an elephant and had a cracked bamboo voice. More like a sergeant giving orders...

"But I'm sure she was a competent doctor!"

The phrase itself didn't say much, but the message in the tone of voice was clear to him: "Just because I'm a doctor doesn't mean I'm not feminine, and because I'm feminine doesn't mean I'm not a good doctor." He clearly perceived the defensive position and understood right away that she must have come across several times with cynical and skeptical attitudes from people who still today do not believe in the competence of women as professionals, especially in certain fields such as medicine. I wanted to demonstrate this and correct the misunderstanding.

— Look... how about we start all over again and on the right foot, huh? I'm Chris Muldoon, your colleague in surgery. Like you, this is also the first job for me. He held out his hand, smiling, and immediately the ice melted. She squeezed his hand contentedly and smiled too. It was good to make a friend.

"You should always smile, doctor!" It looks much better this way than with that cold expression. Can we go then? Where are your bags?

“Outside, on the sidewalk. I had to leave them there...

- My God! You better start praying they're still there... if they aren't already gone!

He hurried her out and tried to calm her down by telling her not to worry if her bags had been stolen as it would be easy to replace lost clothes.

— There's no better place in the world than Hong Kong to buy things, especially clothes! Here you can find what you want, for the price you want and without delay.

'As long as you have the money, right, Chris?' And that I won't have until a month from now when I receive my first payment. And don't look at me with that face, I'll tell you if I was a fool to have left my bags on the sidewalk! What you wanted me to do How was I going to carry all that alone?

“Okay, I know. - He laughed. 'But remember that you're in Hong Kong, the den of vice, as they say in the rest of the world... And not without reason, although it's not like the old days of the big opium dealers. I? It's true that there are still narcotics floating around, cocaine... that sort of thing, but don't look so scared, Doc! The Hong Kong police are one of the best in the world, so you can always count on my protection!

They were outside again in front of the small crowd of Chinese people with signs and all that noise. Diana looked around, and to her relief saw that the suitcases were in the same place, intact, only there were two Chinese children sitting on them.

— Oh! Chris exclaimed. 'Charlie and Kathy did a great job. That's their business. He took some money from his pocket and placed it in the small outstretched hands. The two bowed their heads in thanks and hurried off looking for other luggage to take care of. “These kids work all day like this. Here, people have struggled since they were little to find a way to earn a living.

Diana continued to hold the smaller suitcase while Chris carried the other two.

— Do you mean that these kids, that size, spend all day here at the airport taking care of luggage for people?!

"It's better than begging, don't you think?" Parking is this way. He pushed his way through the crowd as he continued to speak. “You'll soon get used to this town. The Chinese here have an incredible ability to work. Those kids' parents work from six in the morning until midnight, six days a week. On Sunday, as it is a holiday, they only work until noon. She was horrified and he laughed when he saw her face. - Soon you get used to it. You will meet the Yengtoh, they own one of the best clothing stores in Kowloon. Mrs. Yengtoh and her daughters sew... and I bet you'll have to have at least one dress made for the Kinsale hospital ball. Here, every elegant woman has dresses made at Yengtoh Salon on Mody Street, and the men have suits made by Mr. Yengtoh and the children. Everyone who works there is family. Once Charlie and Kathy are older and finish school they will learn the trade and work with their mother and father. Everyone in the family has both Christian and Western names. It's customary in Hong Kong. The favorites are Charles, James Stuart, Elizabeth, Margaret and Anne because they belong to people of the English royal family. We're here!... It's this car over here. How about, aren't you impressed, Diana? I don't need to call you doctor, do I?

- Of course not...

As for the car, I didn't even know what to say. She had never imagined that someone would pick her up at the airport in that spectacular Jaguar. I was expecting an ordinary car. from the hospital, or maybe a taxi but nothing as grand as Chris's car.

He placed the luggage in the spacious trunk and smiled again.

"Only it's not mine, needless to say, is it?" Before it was! My car is an old jalopy... this wonderful machine here belongs to the superintendent.

"Wow!" And he insisted on sending his private car?!

Chris opened the door for her to get in, then walked around and got behind the wheel.

“Not like that. Jonathan Kinsale isn't the kind of man who makes nice and concessions to women who are hospital employees, unless he's an inspector... then he's obsequious, but he knows how it is, in which case he needs it. It's just that someone had to come get you and there was no hospital car or staff available, just me, of course. And I was mad as hell when they ordered me to come. I hate staying at airports waiting for planes that are always late, in fact yours was several hours late, but also when I saw you...

“Yeah, I could tell you were upset, but maybe the pleasure of driving that wonderful car makes up for the annoyance. But how come he let you use it?

“Oh, there was no other way. The hospital only has two cars for staff to use and both were occupied and were used to take discharged patients home. This kind of informal attitude is very common, you'll see... the Kinsale people are more like a family. He swerved around a speeding taxi and barred his path. The traffic there was crazy. “So there was only the superintendent's car and mine, but mine broke down earlier today and his was out there in the parking lot, lying around. He didn't really like the idea of lending it to me but it was the supervisor who suggested it and he had no choice. She is very attentive to people and likes to make everyone feel good, but Jonathan is very different! If it were up to him, you'd come on foot carrying all your bags on your back.

— What a horror, so he is a monster!

- Not so much. But he doesn't care about women. Hang on, don't get me wrong... I don't mean to say that... well, you know. He was already very different from what I heard, it seems that he liked a woman a lot but I don't know what happened that made him change like that... it seems that he was betrayed and after that he became aggressive with all the women.

By then the airport was far away and they were walking through the streets of Kowloon. Chris was still talking as if he wanted to fill her in on everything during the ride.

“I don't know if you know the history of Kinsale Hospital, but it was founded by Dr. Joseph Kinsale in 1874 and family members have been linked to him ever since. and. that's why we have a Kinsale as a superintendent, although he is a surgeon. . watch out for Jonathan, Diana.

- Why? So is man really a boogeyman?

— That's what the staff generally think of him, although they all recognize and respect his competence as a surgeon and his dedication to his work. Jonathan lives for that hospital! The only drawback is that he thinks everyone should do the same and that's where things get complicated. Don't let him ask too much of you.

However, Chris didn't know that was exactly what she wanted: full occupancy. Absorbing yourself in work to the point of forgetting everything else. She wanted to occupy her mind and worry as much as possible to fill the void left in her heart after her breakup with Clive. Not that he'd traded her for someone else, cheated, or anything like that. Simply the case had gone cold on his part, of course. The burning had subsided. He called less and less, he appeared less and less. When he went to his apartment, he no longer stopped by hers, as before, even when he knew Pearl was away and they could be alone together. When Diana couldn't resist calling him, his voice was half-hearted and he kept making excuses and evasions for not making appointments. Anyway, Diana realized that there were all the alarming symptoms of an affair ending, although he continued to tell her he loved her.

“Passion fades, like a fire slowly dying, but that's not what matters. Then it may be that the flame is rekindled - he told her one day.

"Or go out forever," she snapped. "Only I'm not going to wait around to see what happens."

He shrugged his shoulders as if he couldn't do anything in the face of the situation.

- It's your choice. We are both absolutely free, so I don't think anyone should stop the other from leaving if that's the choice. I won't demand that you stay.

She felt that somehow he had made her say exactly what she wanted to hear. But after all, maybe it was better that way, ending the case before living together became unbearable and while he could still have good memories. Moreover, in this way he saved his self-respect.

And Pearl had helped her a lot in that difficult time.

"My brother is a lawyer and handles the legal side of Kinsale Hospital in Hong Kong," she told him. “I know there's a shortage of doctors there because they all go to the other two hospitals which are bigger and pay better salaries. But I think for you to gain experience it would be great. Do you want me to write to Lee and tell him about you? If there is a vacancy available, he will be able to inform us. How about it, huh?

And why not? She would have nothing to lose. If there was no vacancy, patience. Decided to leave it to chance. She told Pearl to write to her brother and meanwhile she herself wrote to various hospitals outside London with her CV but all she got were polite replies saying they would call her when there was a vacancy.

Diana was already getting desperate. I couldn't bear to live there any longer. Clive's apartment was above hers and she kept listening to his footsteps when he arrived, trying to decipher whether he was alone or with someone else, wanting to identify the female voices she sometimes heard walking down the hall with him. It was unbearable agony. I wanted to get out of there as soon as possible.

When I was already at the height of despair, a miracle happened. He was sorting through the job advertisements in the newspaper when he came across one saying that the Kinsale Hospital, in Hong Kong, needed a resident doctor, at the beginning of his career, to earn minimum wage. The interviews for the position would be in London and the person approved would have the trip paid. She was euphoric and commented to Pearl before rushing to the phone to arrange an interview.

Soon his enthusiasm withered when he learned that he would have to wait four days, as the list of candidates was huge. There really were thousands of unemployed graduates in London. On the day scheduled for the first interview, she was certain that someone else had already passed her and got the job, which is why she was surprised when they scheduled a second interview and then a third and final one. She could hardly believe it when she received the letter saying that she had been accepted for the position. A week later it was on its way.

Pearl was happy for her friend, although she regretted the separation.

“Gee, I'm going to miss you… but we can see each other whenever I have a flight to Kai Tak; besides, you can count on my family there if you need anything. They know everybody.

Chris's voice snapped her out of her reverie.

“That's the Sung Wong Toi monument, over there on the right. It is named after the Emperor of the Sung Dynasty who took refuge in Kowloon. Kowloon's name in Cantonese is Tsim Sha Tsui. He turned right at a light and continued talking. — This is the Hotel da Península, on the left, around the corner, better known as Casa Real, because all Europeans descended from royal families have stayed there. It is one of the most famous hotels in the world and their restaurant, Gaddi, is among the top seven in the world. This hotel's ballroom is the most important meeting point between East and West and is really something worth seeing. We are now on Nathan Street. Can you believe that sixty years ago there wasn't a single modern building here? It was a small suburban street full of trees, now look!

Diana was looking. The street was colored with posters and decorated as if it were decorated for Christmas. There were boutiques, jewelry stores, nightclubs and discos. Large, modern stores showcasing the latest creations from Paris, London and New York; showcases full of ivory, jade, exotic flowers, precious metals, others showing food and aromatic herbs; strip clubs next to temples, Protestant churches next to nightclubs, cinemas with pornographic movie posters among serious antique dealers' shops, and people walking without taking notice of each other, women alone walking in the street unmolested; crowded teahouses with Chinese families; incredible bubbling, while everything conveyed a sense of calm and serenity.

“How fantastic! Diana exclaimed.

— The history of Hong Kong is fantastic. One day I'll tell you... now we're almost there. Chris dodged two Chinese men, one carrying several lanterns and the other with a tray on the head of which exhaled an appetizing smell. — This is Haiphong Street and on the right is Kowloon Park. From the hospital you can see this here. At least that advantage we have in Kinsale, we are not squeezed between buildings. The place is privileged, the area is huge and it has a very beautiful view. Maybe you'll get lucky and get a room overlooking the park.

Finally Chris stopped the car. They were in a courtyard in front of a Victorian building with stone steps leading up to the entrance.

"Well, here we are!" Chris announced happily. - Now you'll have to face the monster... Good luck!