A Corpse in the Koryo

9

"That was the first time you met Kang?" The Irishman was studying the birds on the cloth as if he'd never noticed them before.

"No, I met him in Pak's office, remember?"

"Yeah, yeah. I meant, that was the first time you spoke to him at anylength."

"Is it a problem for you, paying attention? We can end this right here, if that's what you want."

"I'm surprised you're so polite. I thought you'd be, how to put it, nastier."

"Is that an Irish compliment?"

"No. The one thing I remember from the briefings is that Koreans don't like foreigners. Don't get excited. It wasn't meant as a criticism, just a statement of fact. Like saying cow shit smells."

"What makes you think I like you?"

"Good, you don't, then. I hate it when the briefers are wrong."

"It's not that we don't like foreigners. It's not foreigners, it's ourselves we don't like. In our minds, we are small, quivering, bowing, submissive, beaten, cowering dogs. If we like foreigners, it can only be because we are afraid, or currying favor, or kissing their feet."

The Irishman grunted. "So why did I hear Koreans are tough?"

"Different parts of the anatomy, Richie. Different altogether. I once heard a foreigner, a very dumb Russian, complain that I was a tough son of a whore. It wasn't grudging praise. He was mad because I wouldn't take his suggestion. Normally, a suggestion from a Russian is like falling down a well, but this time it was a good one. I knew it. He knew I knew it, but I knew if I took his advice, he would have an edge, or he would think he had an edge. Same thing."

"What was the suggestion?"

"We were driving on an icy road. He told me to slow down."

"What happened?"

"It was his car. Russian cars don't steer well in the cold."

"What happens when Pak gives you advice?"

"He never did."

"Guidance, then."

"Ah. Very good, Richie. That's different. Advice is a question of will. I can take advice or leave it. The burden is on me. Guidance is all about relationships, circles overlapping."

"Did Kang ever give you guidance?"

"No. He wasn't the type."

"What were you doing in Berlin?"

"What?"

"You said you were on a procurement trip in Berlin. You picked up that piano roll. But that's not why you were sent. Since when do police do procurement?"