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My father looks from face to face His tears don’t stop Now others around us weep too Fa perether after too many lost years

“Where is May?” Baba asks

His question hurts May was always his favorite

“May and I eles—”

“Haolaiwu,” he says, nodd

ing That’s what he planned for us Then comprehension comes over his features “But why are you here?”

“It’s a long story and we don’t havefor us in Hong Kong We’re trying to get to her Can you help us?”

“Maybe,” he says “Come with me”

We follow hiawkers trail behind us I should be more worried about that When the police co But then this is my ancestral home Would they rat out one of their own?

We enter ers crowd in as well The longer we’re here, the more show up to listen to and stare at their cousins I’ve always hated the poverty of the countryside, but I don’t see that now The house is small, but it has actual s The furniture is nice Jars, cans, and bags of food fill the cupboards I haven’t been here since I was three, but littlefro I fell on that step and skinned my knee I liked to sit on the footstool next to the carved chair where randmother rested her feet

Someone pours tea Joy mixes a bottle of fore! What an incredible sight after all these months of privations My father squats on his haunches and starts talking He hai businessman

“They say about a hundred people cross the border illegally every day,” he begins “But if you talk to a guard or a policeman, he’ll tell you they catch many more than that every day too Evento leave” He pauses to let that sink in “How much money do you have?”

For the first time, I suspect my father’s motives Can he be trusted?

“If you have money,” he continues, “you could take the train and bribe the guards”

“I tried that,” Joy says “It didn’t work”