Blue Dragon Part 64

'Don't attempt to heal yourself, Emma,' Ms Kwan said. 'You cannot while you are affected like this. Let the wound heal by itself.'

'How long have I been out?' I said.

'About half an hour,' John said. He pa.s.sed me the bottle of water that Ah Yat had left for me and I took a huge drink.

I pulled myself around to sit next to Leo. Every time I moved, my left leg hurt like h.e.l.l; the thigh was beginning to swell. I ignored it as I put Leo's head in my lap and buried my hands in his thick black mane.

'You did this?' John said.

'It was an accident.'

John put his hand on Leo's head. 'Definitely more than a coincidence; I told him that.'

Leo stirred. 'Mr Chen?'

'I'm here, Leo,' John said.

Leo's voice was warm with relief. 'My Lord. Is Simone okay?'

'Simone's fine. She's still with her brother.'

Leo pulled himself onto his front legs, then tried to stand upright on his hind legs. He fell heavily. 'What happened to me?'

'Leo,' I said gently, taking his enormous black head in my hands. 'Leo, slowly turn and look in the mirrors behind you.'

Leo pulled himself onto his front legs again and clumsily turned to see himself. He studied his reflection. 'How the h.e.l.l did this happen?' He flicked his tail. 'Whoa.'

'I threw black chi at the demon and it reflected onto you,' I said, my hand still on his shoulder. 'I am so sorry, Leo.' I dropped my head and my voice thickened. I felt ill that I had done this. 'I'm sorry.'

Leo pulled himself to his feet, tried to take a few hesitant steps, and fell over again. 'This four leg business is the pits. It'll take me ages to work out how to walk.' He stopped and his mouth opened, revealing his enormous gleaming fangs. 'But my speech is okay now.' He inched back to me and dropped his huge s.h.a.ggy head into my lap.

I gasped as his head hit my leg.

Leo saw the bandage. 'You're injured. What happened to you?'

'The demon stabbed me,' I said. 'Geez. One Two Two is such a coward. It wanted to sedate me before it took me.'

'Tranquilliser dart on the wild animal,' Leo said wryly. He shook his head and his mane swung around him. 'Two wild animals.'

'I'm okay,' I said, s.h.i.+fting under his head so that the leg didn't hurt as much. 'What about you? How do you feel?'

He gazed up at me. 'I'm fine, Emma. We're all alive, and that's what's important. I'd better get this walking business sorted soon, 'cause as soon as Simone's home she's gonna want a ride.'

I put my hands on either side of his head, burying my fingers into his plush black mane. 'You really okay?'

'Yeah.'

'We can turn him back,' John said. 'There has to be a way.'

Leo turned his head in my lap to see John. 'I'm sure there is. We'll find it. Not important. I can go and visit One Two Two like this anyway.' He stretched out one paw and turned it over, admiring it. 'Lookit them claws. I think I could have some serious fun with them on a certain Demon Prince. I just need to practise this walking stuff and then I'm up to go.' He sighed. 'Suddenly I'm starving. Can you get Ah Yat to bring me a big rare steak? No,' he said, and paused, 'make that a raw raw steak.' He turned back to me. 'Get me a steak, and then you two work out what you want to do. Now that we've survived this, we need to plan the next move. Come on in and tell me, or I'll get these four legs working and visit you.' steak.' He turned back to me. 'Get me a steak, and then you two work out what you want to do. Now that we've survived this, we need to plan the next move. Come on in and tell me, or I'll get these four legs working and visit you.'

'Leo,' I said, my hands still on his head, 'you are the most remarkable man it has ever been my privilege to meet.'

'Just get me a steak,' Leo growled, the lion vocal chords making his voice a throaty rasp. He shook his head free. 'Go.'

I felt a stab of pain in my leg as I pulled myself upright. Ms Kwan helped me.

'Oh, one other thing,' Leo said. He s.h.i.+fted so that he was lying on his belly like a cat.

'What, my friend?' John said.

'A bowl of coffee.'

On the way back to the dining room we pa.s.sed Gold. He sat in the living room holding his new child and gazing at it with wonder. Both John and I stopped and went to him. Ms Kwan left us and went into the dining room.

The living room was a disaster area. All of the windows were broken and shattered gla.s.s covered the floor. Some of the priceless Tang and Ming china had been smashed, and a couple of rosewood side tables had been totally destroyed. John's collection of antique English books was scattered on the floor. Ah Yat was busily sweeping up the gla.s.s on the carpet.

Gold's child appeared as a small stone, pink-flecked grey granite, about the size of a child's fist.

'Are you okay, my Lady?' Gold said. 'You're wounded.'

'I'm fine,' I said, limping to sit with difficulty on the couch. The leg was beginning to stiffen as well as swell. 'The demon stabbed me in the leg to sedate me.'

'Wake my parent, my Lady,' Gold said. 'It will want to see.'

I tapped on my ring. It had slept through the whole attack.

'Next time wake me up! I could have been of use to you!' the stone demanded loudly. 'd.a.m.n! You're injured!'

'I'm okay,' I said.

Gold's baby squeaked, a tiny sound, then went silent.

'By the Grandmother,' the stone in my ring whispered.

'Gold...I am...By the Grandmother.' Its voice became even softer. 'It is so beautiful.'

'I have the sudden urge to take female human form,' Gold said with a small smile.

'You can if you want,' I said.

The gentle smile lit up his face. 'No need. It's all the same to us.' He rolled the stone in his hands and it squeaked again, a quiet sound of contentment. 'Besides, I don't think Amy would be too impressed if I did.'

'How much care does it need?' I said. 'Does it need feeding, or cleaning, or anything like that?'

'Nope,' Gold said with a shrug. 'Nothing like that. Basically all it needs is lessons from its parent on being a good stone.'

'You'll be a great parent, Gold,' the stone in my ring said.

'Thanks, Dad.' Gold held the stone out to me. 'Take it. Let my parent see it.'

I held the stone gently in both hands. Its surface was rough and unpolished, quite unlike Gold's smooth quartz. It was warm and seemed to be pulsing gently in my hands.

'It's beautiful,' the stone in my ring said with awe. 'I wonder what mineral it will take.'

'It could be jade, like you, Dad,' Gold said. 'Or gold, like me. Either way, it's precious.'

'Precious,' the stone in my ring said. Its voice became more brisk. 'Emma, you need to send them somewhere safe.'

I held the stone out for John to take.

Gold and the stone in my ring both yelled 'No!' at the same time, and Gold shot to his feet.

John didn't move. 'I should not touch something so young and fragile.'

I took the stone back and Gold sagged with relief. 'Return it to me, please, my Lady. You nearly gave me a heart attack.'

I pa.s.sed it back to him and he held it with reverence.

'Jade has nested on the top of Tai Mo Shan,' John said. 'The tallest mountain in Kowloon. She has found a hollow in the hillside there, far from any hiking trails. It is quite remote for Hong Kong. You and your child will join her, and all of you will return when the situation is resolved, one way or the other. Go.'

Gold didn't move. 'I won't leave you.'

'That is an order, Gold. Go. Emma will send for you when this is resolved.'

'My Lord,' Gold said, and hesitated. His voice softened. 'Please let me stay here for a while. I want to make sure you are all safe. My child is here with me, we are protected.' He smiled and shrugged. 'Besides, I need to rest, and there are nice soft beds here.'

'Do you want to go back to your flat at the Folly?' I said.

'I'd rather just hang around here and make sure everything's all right,' Gold said. He fell to his knees before us and saluted without looking up, still holding the baby. He left his hands in front of his face, beseeching. 'Let me stay.'

John and I reached agreement without saying a word to each other.

'Go and rest in the student room, Gold,' I said. 'Come out when you're feeling better. You're probably exhausted.'

Gold grinned up at me. 'You have no idea.' He saluted John and then me again, pulled himself clumsily to his feet, and shoved his child into his chest. He turned and went down the hall towards the student rooms.

'Why couldn't you touch the baby?' I said.

John didn't say anything, he just rose to go into the dining room.

'Xuan Tian Shang Di, you stop and tell me why you couldn't touch that baby,' I said fiercely. I rose with difficulty to follow him.

'He's too yin, Emma,' the stone in my ring said.

I understood with a shock. 'That's why there are no plants and no pets. No goldfish, no hamsters, nothing. Simone asked for a hamster and you wouldn't let her have one.' John had stopped halfway to the dining room, but didn't turn back to me. 'You're so yin you kill them. You probably don't even need to touch them. You just kill them.'

'Simone had a hamster for her fourth birthday,' John said, opening the door to the dining room and gesturing for me to enter. 'The Tiger ate it. She refused to speak to him for a week. Not a good idea for us to keep small furry creatures in the house; the Tiger can't control himself. Adult creatures are safe, it is just babies that I must be careful with right now. Of course not my own, only other people's. When I have the Serpent back, it will not be a problem.'

I shook my head as I went into the dining room. 'I really am consorting with monsters. My parents were right.'

'Of course they were,' John said.

CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE.

The victory meeting was a cheerless and gloomy affair. The Dragon, the Phoenix, the Tiger and Kwan Yin were already seated at the table when we went in.

'You're limping,' the Phoenix said. 'What happened?'

'A metal hybrid stabbed her, tried to sedate her to take her,' John said as he pulled a chair out for me.

The Phoenix rose and gracefully helped me into my chair. When I was seated she didn't release my hand; she held it and concentrated, looking at the injury.

'Sit with me after the meeting and I'll heal it for you,' she said. 'But you shouldn't do anything too strenuous for the next few days.'

She released my hand and sat in the chair next to me. I nodded my appreciation and she smiled.

'What's the plan?' the Dragon said.

'The Lady and I will spend a week linked,' John said. 'While we are performing the feed, Emma will find the location of One Two Two's headquarters. We require a.s.sistance; preferably an Immortal who is powerful enough to see through walls.'

'I'll come along, Ah Wu,' the Tiger said. 'My Number One is handling things right now. I have a score to settle with this little piece of s.h.i.+t.'

'Mind your mouth,' John said.

'Sorry, all,' the Tiger said without a hint of remorse. 'I've heard the Dark Lady say worse anyway. It has four law offices, correct?'

The Dragon snorted with disdain. 'Of course the thing is a lawyer.'

'It's the leader of all the underworld activity in Hong Kong,' I said. 'It needs the expertise with the law. Of course it is.'

'Not all lawyers are underhand. I have met some as honourable as any,' the Phoenix said. 'How is the Golden Boy? I heard that he had been sundered.'

'If you mean he had a baby, yes, he did,' I said. 'He's resting right now. Later he'll go into hiding with Jade and her clutch.'

'Jade has a clutch?' the Phoenix said, then glanced quickly at the Dragon. 'I did not know this.'

The Dragon ignored her completely and she turned back to me. 'What will you do when you find the demon's location?'

'Myself and the Tiger will find it and hunt it down,' John said. 'We will destroy it, and everything it has created.'

'I am looking forward to doing battle alongside my Lord the Xuan Wu in True Form,' the Tiger said, his voice a low menacing growl. 'It's been a h.e.l.l of a long time.'