Excerpt from A Map of Betrayal by Ha Jin, plus links to reviews, author biography & more

He called at the end of February to tell me that Chu was living in a suburb of Beijing, in a residential compound for retired cadres. I phoned Chu that very evening, saying I was Gary Shang's daughter from the United States and would love to see him. After a long pause, Chu said in a voice that suggested a clear head, "All right, I have plenty of time nowadays. Come any day you want to."

We settled on the following Wednesday afternoon, since I'd teach only in the morning that day. Before visiting him, I reviewed some questions essential for reconstructing my father's story. I took a taxi to Chu's place, intimidated by the packed buses and subway. Two decades ago, when I was in my early thirties and teaching in Beijing, I'd ridden a bike or taken public transportation whenever I went out, but it was hard for me to do the same now, because the buses and trains were far too crowded and because I was no longer young.

Bingwen Chu was a small withered man with a bush of white hair and a face scattered with liver spots, but his eyes were still bright and alert. Given his age, eighty-seven, he was in good shape. He appeared at ease and glad to see me.

We were seated in his living room, its walls decorated with framed certificates of merit, all bearing the scarlet chop marks of the offices that had issued the commendations. After his youngest daughter, a forty-something, had served dragon well tea, he said to her, "Can you excuse Lilian and me for a moment?"

The stocky woman nodded and left without a word. Although he addressed me by my first name and I called him Uncle Bingwen, I felt a palpable barrier between us. He'd been my father's sole handler for three decades, but not an unfailing friend. I reminded myself to be composed and that I was here mainly to ask him some questions. Chu allowed me to take notes but not to record our conversation. That was fine with me.

"Sure," he said, "Gary and I were comrades-in-arms, also buddies. I was his recommender when he was inducted into the Party."

"When was that?" I asked.

"The summer of . . . nineteen fifty-two—no, fifty-three. He was voted in unanimously."

"Uncle Bingwen, in your opinion, was my dad a good Communist, a sincere believer?"

"Well, it's hard to say. But I know this: he loved China and did a great service to our country."

"So he was a patriot?"

"Beyond any doubt."

"Did it ever occur to you that he might have loved the United States as well?"

"Yes. We read about that . . . in some newspaper articles on his trial. I could sympathize with him. No fish can remain . . . unaffected by the water it swims in. In a way, we have all been shaped . . . by forces bigger than ourselves."

"That's true. How often did you meet him?"

"On average, we met every two years. But sometimes we lost touch . . . due to China's political chaos. Sometimes we met once a year."

"Did he ever come back to China on the sly?"

"No, never. Our higher-ups wouldn't let him . . . for fear of blowing his identity. Gary was always eager to return for a visit. He often said he was lonely and homesick. The people in the intelligence service all know . . . what those feelings are like. For his suffering, bravery, and fortitude, Gary had our utmost respect."

"Then why didn't China make any effort to rescue him when he was incarcerated in the States?"

"He was a special agent—the type we call 'nails.'?"

"Can you elaborate?"

Chu lifted his teacup and took a swallow, his mouth sunken. He seemed to have only a few teeth left. He said, "A nail must remain in its position . . . and rot with the wood it's stuck in, so a spy of the nail type is more or less a goner. Gary must've known that. There was no help for it; it's in the nature of our profession."

Excerpted from A Map of Betrayal by Ha Jin. Copyright © 2014 by Ha Jin. Excerpted by permission of Pantheon, a division of Random House LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.