Legend of the Jade Dragon

  “I guess that’s it,” I said, sighing. “There’s nobody left.”

  “Look,” Harl said. “Every single death listed in Terrance’s family took place after he found the dragon.” She gave me a wan smile. “Anything else?”

  I stared at my notes. Gruesome. And now I was keeper of a five-hundred-year-old cursed jade statue. “I guess I just need to find out how to lift the hex.” I glanced out the window. “I’d better take off. It’s getting late, and I need to clean up my house. If you can dig up anything else, I’d appreciate it.”

  Harl snorted. “I make a good busybody, don’t I? I’ll find what I can.” We headed outside, where I called for the kids. They came running over, squabbling about who was the stronger, Superman or Batman.

  “Superman is!” Randa argued.

  Kip stuck out his tongue. “Nuh-uh, what about kryptonite?”

  I herded them into the car. “This,” I said to Harl, “is what you have to look forward to. Okay, gang, let’s get moving.” We took off for home, and when we got there, I found a note from Joe, saying he’d dropped by to say hello and check on us, and to please call him when I had the time. I stuck the note in my pocket, then headed inside. Time to sweep. Lately it seemed like all I did was clean up the trail of broken glass somebody else left behind.

  MONDAY BROUGHT A respite, at least for the first hour of the day. I had been restless all night, tossing and turning until I was a bundle of knots. When the morning rays of pale sun crept through my window and drifted across my face, I tumbled out of bed, still tired but too nerve-racked to go back to sleep.

  With a yawn, I opened the window, and birdsong filtered in on the cool spring breeze. Though it would be several months before it was warm enough to enjoy the weather, the buds on my maple tree were beginning to open, and little hints of green dotted the bushes all over town. Horvald’s tulips shimmered from across the street, satin pink under the morning light.

  What to wear? I decided on a pair of khakis, a hunter green tank top, and my espadrilles. I wound the ribbons up around my calves and tied them in pretty bows. A quick glance in the mirror told me I was beginning to look like Vampira’s twin sister, so I added a touch of color with some coral lipstick that I liked to think made me a little mermaidish, then spritzed myself with my ever-present Opium.

  Time to haul my butt down the stairs and into the kitchen. As I was grinding coffee beans and nuking a pocket sandwich, the phone rang. It was my banker, letting me know that they’d received a direct deposit to my store account from Applewood Insurance Company. He gave me the amount of the check, and I yipped for joy. Applewood hadn’t been stingy! All my losses were covered, and I’d be able to restock. I just hoped they’d cover my losses at home, too.

  “I love you, Mr. Conner!” I thanked him for the news and went back to brewing espresso. Maybe today wouldn’t be a bust after all; I could begin restocking the store and be back in the running by next week. I put in a call to Safety-Tech and ordered a security system for the house, and they signed me up for a Saturday installation. Then I put in a call to Don Patterson, the locksmith, to get all the locks on our doors changed. He said he’d be out within an hour or so. Regardless of what else happened, I was determined that our home would be safe.

  As I bit into my sandwich, the kids spilled into the kitchen. Kip fed and watered the cats while Miranda dug out the Cheerios. “You want cereal?” she asked, grabbing three bowls from the cupboard.

  “Nah, thanks though.” I held up my sandwich. They ate while I drained my chocolate-laced caffeine. Ah, that was the stuff! Damn good wake-up medicine. The world was growing more focused with every sip. “Safety-Tech’s coming by on Saturday to install our security system,” I told them. “And the bank got the check for the store.” I glanced at the clock. “Off to school! You don’t want to be late.”

  “Yes, ma’am.” They saluted me, their eyes twinkling. “Anything you say, ma’am.” I shooed them out the door and waved them across the street. I was on my second mocha, about to head out to work, when the phone rang.

  Murray’s voice came on the line. She sounded worried. “Em, we’ve got a credible report placing Jimbo outside the Thai Market on Heather Street. That’s damn close to your house.”

  “Oh hell. What should I do?”

  “Keep your eyes open. We’ll have a cruiser over there in a few minutes. Are the kids there?”

  “No, they should be at school by now.”

  Time for a few chores while I waited for the locksmith. The garbage trucks had come down our street early in the morning, so I headed out to the curb to bring back the trash can when I heard the roar of a motorcycle behind me. An alarm went off in the pit of my stomach. I glanced around just in time to see Jimbo leap off the back of his Harley, and he was aimed right in my direction. The big man was quick and, even though I dodged out of the way, I wasn’t as fast as he was. He grabbed hold of my wrist, leaning down to growl in my face.

  “Listen, you bitch, get the cops off my back.”

  “Let me go!” I tried to twist out of his grasp, but he held fast.

  “I didn’t KO that broad, and I didn’t steal nothing from her house. Why are you trying to pin this rap on me? I got a little drunk and smashed your window. No big deal, I’ll pay the fuckin’ fines. But I’m not going to jail for something I didn’t do!”

  No big deal? Anger replaced fear. “You oaf! You broke into my house and stole all my valuables. You destroyed my shop. What do you expect I’m going to do? Roll over and let you tear up everything I’ve worked for?”

  Jimbo pulled back a little, and I sensed a flutter of puzzlement, as if he really didn’t know what I was talking about. I took advantage of the brief interlude to give him a swift, sharp kick to the shin. Cussing like a drunken sailor, he let go of my arm, and I made tracks toward my house, where I could lock myself in and call the cops. He lurched forward, grabbing the air behind me.

  “Oof!” I heard him fall as I raced up the porch stairs and into the house, slamming the door behind me. As my hands fumbled with the locks, the high-pitched keen of a siren told me that the police were out front. I ran into the living room to peer out the window. Jimbo’s bike was still in front of my house, and there were two cop cars hedging it in, their lights flashing. Murray headed up the porch steps, smoothly taking them two at a time.

  I unlocked the door and waved toward the back of the house. “He probably took off toward the alley.”

  Murray jerked her thumb toward the living room. “Get in there, and stay away from the window,” she said, then raced back down the steps.

  I obeyed, huddling in the corner behind the desk. Let it end peacefully, I prayed. Let it end easy, without anybody getting hurt. Shouts reverberated from out back, and then silence. I was steeling my nerve to go peek out the back window when Murray returned, pounding on the front door. I let her in.

  “Everything’s okay.” She mopped her forehead with a bandanna. “We got him. He surrendered without a fight. Did he hurt you?” she asked, looking me over.

  Adrenaline still pumping, I clutched my arms across my chest and perched on the edge of the recliner. Through the window, I could see Greg and Sandy hauling Jimbo to the cruiser. I rubbed my arm where he’d held it. The skin was a little tender, but there was no real damage. “No, not really. He says he didn’t hurt Norma or steal anything.”

  “Yeah, he claims you’re railroading him,” Murray said.

  I sighed. “Do you believe him? He admitted to me that he threw the brick through my window.”

  Murray sat on the sofa and leaned forward, her hands clasped as she rested her elbows on her knees. She shrugged. “The thing is, criminals always claim they’re innocent. The worse the crime, the more impassioned their plea, even when you catch them in the act. It’s all part of the mind-set. Anyway, whether or not he hurt Norma, for now we can hold him on destruction of property because of your window, and assault, for accosting you out front.”


  There wasn’t much I could say except “Thank you.”

  She shook her head. “What kind of a friend would I be if I let you down on something this big? By the way, Horvald Ledbetter called the police when he looked out his window and saw Jimbo pulling up on his bike. He recognized it from the other night when your window was smashed.”

  Good old Horvald! I’d have to give him a nice tea basket as a thank-you. “You sure got here fast.”

  “We were already in the vicinity because of the tip we got earlier. When Horvald’s call came, we didn’t have far to go—just a block or two. He’s a good neighbor… a keeper.” She glanced at her watch. “I better get moving, or Coughlan will be out here looking for me. He’s all over my ass today.” She gave me a weary smile. “I’ll call you a little later. Meanwhile, I still think you better get that security system. We dunno for sure who ransacked your house yet. None of the prints turned up anything.” She gave me a quick hug and took off.

  I ventured back into the kitchen and made myself yet another mocha. When Jimbo had been holding on to my wrist, I’d been frightened, but when I really thought about it, I never truly believed he was going to hurt me. It was more like he wanted to scare me, and when I’d kicked him in the shins and ran, I had little doubt that he could have caught me if he really meant business. So why didn’t he? Was he afraid someone—like Horvald—might see him? Something just didn’t add up. Of course, I really didn’t know what kind of person he was, not underneath it all.

  A knock on the door announced the appearance of the locksmith. As I went to let him in, I thought that whatever Jimbo’s beef against me, he’d have to take a number, because the dragon was holding the front of the line in the “let’s make Emerald’s life hell” marathon.

  AFTER A DAY of ordering new stock and trying to forget all the crap that had happened during the morning, I came home to find that Miranda had made another stab at fixing dinner. This time, she’d limited herself to heating frozen lasagna and making a salad, and it actually smelled good. As we settled in at the table, she handed me a folder. “Here’s the information about skipping grades that you wanted to see.”

  I bit into a steaming forkful of noodles and sauce. “Thanks, hon. I’ll look at it tonight. Just put it on my desk, if you would.” The cats milled around our feet, hoping for handouts, but finally slinked away, disgruntled. We were all too tired for conversation; the kids were especially quiet after I’d told them about Jimbo. Kip loaded the dishwasher while Randa fed the cats. Then she took off for her room.

  Clear skies and good viewing, I thought. “Bundle up when you go out tonight!”

  Kip grinned at me. “Someday she’s gonna end up on the moon, you know?” He turned on the computer and loaded up SimCity while I settled on the sofa and flipped on the television. With Cathy Sutton on vacation, Jack Sullivan was out one party partner and probably wouldn’t be cracking stupid jokes. Thank heaven for small favors. I sipped my tea and turned up the sound, wondering if they’d mention Jimbo’s arrest.

  “According to the medical examiner, the body is that of a male, Caucasian, between twenty and fifty years old. No sign of the victim’s head or hands have been found, and there were no identifying marks. The police are asking anybody who knows of a man missing in the Vancouver area to contact them.”

  Lovely. Maybe a gang slaying or something.

  “In other news, James ‘Jimbo’ Warren was arrested this morning when he accosted Chiqetaw resident Emerald O’Brien in front of her house.”

  Woohoo! Just what I needed, my name in the news again. I’d thought of taking out a late-night ad for the shop, but thanks to the local news station, I was getting plenty of free publicity.

  The camera focused in on Jack’s face. “Residents of Chiqetaw better start locking their doors. Over the weekend, police logged several burglaries. The suspect is believed to be a professional, and all of the stolen goods were small, expensive items. Eunice Addison, mother of prominent businessman Walter Mitchell, was one of the burglary victims.” A picture of Eunice flashed across the screen.

  I muted the sound and glanced over at the étagère. Well, if Jimbo was the thief, he’d better run once Eunice got wind of him. Walter’s mother was hell on wheels, and I sure wouldn’t want to be the culprit with her after me. Just then, Samantha galloped over, bounced, and landed on my stomach. I stroked her fur, letting the gentle purr from her throat relax me enough to send me into a light doze.

  After a while, Kip woke me up. “Can I surf the net?”

  Yawning, I gave Samantha a final pat and sat up. She bounded off my lap. “Okay, but check my E-mail while you’re on-line.” The beep-squawk-hiss of the modem signaled that he was in.

  “Mom, Harlow sent you something. It’s got the red exclamation mark next to it, so it must be important.”

  I took over the keyboard. Harlow wanted me to call her. I gave the computer back to Kip and picked up the phone.

  “I think I’ve found some more info on your dragon,” she said.

  “Let’s hear it,” I said, too tired to do anything but listen.

  “That vision you had about the dude caught in a snowstorm?”

  “Uh-huh?”

  “Think I found a reference to it. Looks like Daniel’s grandfather wasn’t the first person to dig this thing up. The dragon has surfaced several times throughout the past five hundred years; but each time, it ends up back in China.”

  A homing dragon, how delightful. “What about the people who found it?”

  “In 1733, a Norwegian explorer unearthed a jade dragon with gilt etching northeast of Beijing; he was probably trying to follow the coastline toward Russia and then cross-country to his homeland. He and his traveling companions were on the way home when winter came early, and a freak snowstorm hit them. They got separated, and the explorer carrying the dragon was lost in the woods. Nobody knows what happened to him, but the others returned home, convinced the dragon had brought them bad luck.”

  “That matches my vision,” I said. “Anything else?”

  “No, except that this particular group of explorers were probably bandits. What are you going to do?”

  “I don’t know. Harl, a creature like the Chinese demon that Huang Fu summoned could wipe out astral meanies like Mr. B & U with a puff of bad breath. I have no idea of how to undo this kind of curse. I don’t even know what kind of demon it is. The Chinese have more hells than you can count, and most have some sort of ugly sucker attached to them.”

  I wanted to believe it was all superstition. I wanted to believe that a little piece of carved jade couldn’t possibly hurt me. Most people didn’t believe that demons, ghosts, and curses existed. But I wasn’t like most people; I’d spent my life working with spirits and learning how to use the psychic gifts I was born with. This curse was real.

  “You there?” Harlow sounded worried.

  I shook myself out of my reverie. “Yeah. Just thinking.”

  “It’s true, isn’t it? The dragon curse?”

  I didn’t have to say a word. Harl already knew the answer; I could tell by her silence. After a moment, I said, “Maybe I’ve known since I first brought it home. The statue moves, it turns in circles, its eyes glow red. We’re talking a jade Linda Blair here, only it’s not possessed. Just cursed. The question now is, what do I do? By the way, where did you find that information?”

  “I traced Terrance’s route through China, to where he found the statue. After that, it was a matter of digging through dusty old references relating to explorers who visited that area of the world from the latter Ming dynasty on. I haven’t had much else to do the past few days, you know. And it’s interesting.”

  “Resourceful,” I murmured.

  “So what’s next?”

  “Undo the curse. Try to dodge the bad luck the dragon’s tossing my way. I need to hurry; I don’t dare let it cause more havoc.” I rubbed my eyes and yawned, then filled her in on the details of Jimbo’s capture.
We chatted a little longer before I hung up.

  A wayward curse from an ancient dragon. Chinese demons. An artist-thief who impregnated the Emperor’s niece and ended up on the chopping block because of his mistakes. I almost felt sorry for Huang Fu. Yes, stealing was wrong; but surely he shouldn’t have paid with his life? And getting a girl pregnant wasn’t a crime to die for. At least not now, not here.

  His life struck me as more tragic than nefarious. No wonder the demon had taken pity on him and granted his dying wish.

  “Mom, I’m going to bed.” Kip broke into my thoughts as he came out of the kitchen. By the looks of the crumbs on his face, he’d been in the cookie jar.

  “Okay, sleep tight.” I gave him a distracted kiss. “I’ll be up to check on you later.” Samantha and the kittens followed him up the stairs.

  I rummaged through the fridge until I found the cold lasagna. Cold pizza, cold spaghetti, I liked them all. Perched on the counter, fork in one hand, phone in the other, I pressed #1 on speed dial for Mur’s home number. No answer. I tried her work phone. Nada. Where on earth was she? Curses, thugs, and thieves crowded my mind as I tried to sort out what was going on.

  “You shouldn’t eat that, Mom. It’s late, and you’ll get heartburn again.”

  Startled, I jerked around. Randa stood at the kitchen door. “Thanks, kiddo. I’ll remember that piece of advice.” I gave her a wry grin. She grabbed a fork, and we sat side by side on the counter, swinging our feet and munching cold pasta together.

  After a few minutes, she asked, “Mom, is anything wrong? Things have been kind of weird the past week.”

  I sighed. I was going to have to tell them sometime. “You’re right; a lot of strange things have gone wrong since that man died in front of my store.”

  “Maybe we’re jinxed,” Randa suggested.

  I gave her a long look. Maybe it was time to fill her in. “You’re not far off, kiddo. That dragon I brought home? The one Daniel gave me before he died? Apparently it has a curse on it.” I told her about Huang Fu and the emperor, and the cursed dragon, but left out the gruesome parts.