‘I want to go back to uni, and he can’t come to the dorms with me,’ Simone said. ‘Frankie, you should go and live with them in Heaven.’
‘I want to stay with you,’ he said.
‘How about I take the apartment one floor down from Martin and Leo’s?’ she said. ‘We still have ownership of the Peak building, I sneaked the deeds out of the safe deposit box and kept them. I’ll just fly over to Japan for classes. They already have Buffy, I’m sure they won’t mind having you during the day as well.’
‘I’ll move down here and look after him,’ I said. ‘I promised both of you I would never leave you, and I meant it.’ I turned to John. ‘I’m sorry, John, but —’
‘I’ll move here too,’ he said. ‘I can travel and take True Form; it won’t be a major issue.’
‘That sounds wonderful,’ I said. ‘We can live as a family on the Earthly again. But that’s a hell of a commute for both of you.’
‘Worth it to be with our children,’ John said. ‘Simone? We could take a place in Tokyo to be closer to your studies.’
‘No, Leo and Ge Ge are here with Buffy — Frankie should be with the family,’ she said. ‘It will be easy to come over from Japan, it’ll take me less than half an hour.’
‘It’s settled then,’ John said.
‘The Jade Emperor will go ballistic when he hears,’ I said.
‘He doesn’t have a choice,’ John said. ‘If he tries to stop me, I’ll just tell him to —’
‘Go to Hell,’ we said in unison, and stopped.
He grinned at me, I grinned back, and then we were in each other’s arms and kissing with all the fervour of the months we’d spent apart.
‘Ew!’ Frankie and Simone said loudly.
‘So gross!’ Frankie said.
‘Totally,’ Simone said.
We pulled back from one another, then quickly hugged again.
‘Heavens come first,’ he said into my ear, and gave me a squeeze. ‘We need to free our people in Hell, and meet with the new Demon King to work out a treaty.’ He turned to Simone. ‘Can you take Frankie with you when you release the people you have hidden?’
‘Of course, Dad,’ Simone said. ‘He’ll be fine with me. Hurry up and free those people from the Pits.’
‘Let’s go, John,’ I said. ‘There are a great many people in Hell who will be extremely glad to see us.’
‘The Jade Emperor is a slave driver,’ John said. ‘It’ll be weeks before either of us can stop and enjoy the fact that our family is finally safe and we won.’
‘And then we have a really huge wedding to organise!’ Simone said, delighted.
John and I moaned in unison and headed to Hell.
32
We went straight to the Mountain after releasing the Celestials from Hell.
Wudang hadn’t been damaged, and the Masters were busy shuttling the students home from the Western Palace construction site, and helping them to move tables out of the mess and onto the main square for an impromptu street party.
‘It’s fine, they love you,’ John said, rubbing my back as we walked to Persimmon Tree Pavilion.
The door opened and there was my mother.
‘Emma!’ she shouted, and threw her arms around me. She held me so tight I couldn’t breathe. ‘Thank god!’ She pulled back, released me, and took John’s hand. ‘John. You did it. You both did it.’ She looked at us, her eyes brimming with tears. ‘Where’s Simone? Oh, that’s right —’
What she said next was lost in the babble of voices as my sisters joined us.
‘Where’s everybody else?’ I said. ‘The family’s okay, right?’
‘Greg’s rounding —’ my mother began, and Greg appeared on the other side of the room with my father and Andrew.
My father ran to my mother and clutched her, burying his face in the side of her neck, and Andrew hugged Jennifer.
‘Be right back,’ Greg said, and disappeared.
‘Me too,’ John said, and disappeared as well.
My father squeezed my mother again, and smiled at me as he held her. ‘Well done, Emma, you did it.’
‘Simone did it,’ I said.
‘Not surprising, she’s always been special,’ Jennifer said, holding Andrew tight.
‘Where’s Mattie?’ Andrew said.
Greg reappeared with Alan, and John appeared with Mark and David. Amanda squealed and ran to them.
‘Mum?’ Andrew said. ‘Please tell me Matthew’s okay.’
Matthew came out of the bedroom, half-asleep. He saw everybody and yelled with delight. ‘Andrew!’ He ran to him and they shared a huge hug.
‘Matthew, little Mattie,’ Andrew said.
‘Are we really okay?’ Matthew said. ‘Emma, where’s Frankie? Is he all right?’
‘Frankie’s fine, he’s with Simone,’ I said.
Jen pushed through the crush and hugged me. Alan patted my shoulder. Greg stood at the back, towering over everybody with a huge grin.
‘Tell us it’s all over, Em,’ Amanda said. ‘We heard the Jade Emperor, but we want to hear it from you.’
‘Both Demon Kings are dead,’ I said.
‘The Jade Emperor is restored. We’re free,’ John said.
‘Really?’ Amanda said. ‘No more occupation?’
‘No more. The new Demon King has returned to Hell with all the demons. They’re gone. We’re safe and free.’
Jennifer whooped and hugged Greg.
‘I’m sorry about Colin,’ I said to Jennifer.
‘He wasn’t the only one lost,’ she said. ‘He died protecting the family.’ She glanced up at Greg. ‘Are we all really safe now?’
‘Truly,’ he said. ‘It’s over.’
‘So what happens to us now?’ my mother said.
John leaned against the wall. ‘You don’t have to squeeze into this tiny house any more. All of the Heavens and Earthly are yours. You can choose where you want to live, and the Celestial will support you.’
My mother and father sat on the couch, holding hands. Greg leaned on the back of the other couch, where Jennifer sat with Andrew and Matthew. Amanda and Alan sat next to her, and their boys, Mark and David, stood behind them next to Greg.
‘You have plenty of time to decide. And until you make up your minds, you can stay in the Imperial Residence and the Crown Prince’s Residence in the Northern Heavens,’ I said. ‘There’s room for everybody.’
‘Once everything’s back to normal, tell us what sort of house you’d like and where, and we’ll arrange it for you,’ John said. ‘Mountain or Northern Heavens, townhouse or farm — whatever you like, I can provide it.’
‘Farm?’ my mother said. She glanced at my father.
‘We were thinking of an acreage near Brisbane,’ my father said.
‘What about Toi’s place?’ I asked John. ‘Isn’t that still empty after we confiscated it?’
John nodded. ‘That’s the stud where Freddo was bred. It’s been empty with a skeleton staff of demon servants for a while now. It’s a few hundred li —’
‘A horse stud?’ my mother said. ‘Here in Heaven?’
‘It’s lovely,’ I said. ‘It has a mansion, stables, yards and beautiful green paddocks. You don’t have to breed horses; you could do anything with it.’
My parents grinned at each other, then back at us.
‘Is there enough room for all the grandkids?’ my mother said. ‘Can everyone come visit us?’
‘Of course,’ John said.
‘Space for the whole family,’ I said. ‘You could move in right now.’
My mother squeezed my father’s hand with delight.
‘We’d love that,’ my father said. ‘Acreage in Heaven. Ponies for the boys.’
‘It sounds wonderful,’ my mother said.
‘Can Jen and I stay with you until the West is rebuilt?’ Greg asked my parents.
‘Of course you can,’ my mother said. ‘You’re returning to the West?’
‘Dad’s Number One quit
,’ Greg said. ‘Michael left. I’m moving up to Number Three to help Dad’s new Number One.’
‘Rohan’s been promoted to Number One?’ I said.
‘Rohan and I refused the position of Number One,’ he said. ‘Katie’s better than both of us. Dad’s finally promoted the best person for the job, and about time.’
‘Congratulate Katie for us,’ I said. ‘Amanda? Alan? What do you want to do?’
‘I want to ask you something, John,’ Amanda said.
‘Anything you want,’ he said.
‘A young man was helping us while we were locked up here. He worked hard to protect us all. His name is Justin.’
‘The demon master,’ I said.
‘His job is managing all the demons on the Mountain,’ Amanda said. ‘He looks after them, and makes sure they do their jobs and they’re cared for.’
‘That’s right,’ John said.
‘He doesn’t want to do it, but he told me what’s involved, and I think I’d enjoy it.’
‘Are you sure?’ John asked her.
‘Yes. He’s explained the job to me and I want to do it. I was working side by side with the demons during the occupation, and I like them.’ She smiled wryly. ‘As far as I understand, the job harms whoever does it, but I might be different.’
‘Our unusual nature may mean she can do it without harm,’ I said.
‘That’s what I was thinking,’ Amanda said.
‘Alan,’ John said, ‘have you two talked about this? We don’t need an insurance assessor on the Celestial Plane.’
‘Yes, we have. I’m not sure I want to return to that after being away from it for so long. I’d like to take some time and decide what I want to do.’ He smiled at Amanda. ‘If she wants to pursue this, I’ll support her all the way.’
‘We’ll arrange it,’ John said. ‘Stay here in Persimmon Tree if you want.’
They may not want to; Colin died here, I said to John.
‘Or anywhere else on the Mountain you please,’ John said, nodding to acknowledge me. ‘We have a couple of residences free here.’
Amanda squeezed Alan’s hand. ‘Thank you. Somewhere else would be better.’
‘I’ll arrange it,’ John said.
‘Can we see the farm?’ my mother said, excited. ‘You said there was a core staff of demons. How big is it in acres?’
‘I’ll take them to see it,’ Greg said. ‘Just show me where it is.’
‘Can I see it too?’ Matthew said.
‘I’d like to see it as well,’ Amanda said.
John bowed to them. ‘I live to serve my Lady’s family.’
My mother went to John and took his hand. ‘Your family as well now.’
He smiled down at her. ‘Thank you.’
* * *
We stayed at the farm for a while, then all returned to the Mountain to join the party, which was well underway in the main square. John and I shared in the celebrations; then, as dusk fell, we walked around the Mountain, ensuring that the Celestial weapons were safe in the armoury and the residents were secure.
Amy met us at the entrance to the Imperial Residence. ‘Have you found Gold and BJ?’ she said.
‘BJ was working with the demons; she may have been controlled by them,’ I said. ‘We’ll ask the Jade Emperor for his help in tracking them down. He’s the element of stone; he should know where they are.’
‘I’m so worried about them,’ she said. ‘None of them are answering. All three of them are missing now.’
‘We will find them,’ John said. He put his hand on her shoulder. ‘Go home and be with your children. We will speak to the Jade Emperor first thing tomorrow.’
She nodded, obviously still concerned, and turned away.
We entered the Mountain’s Imperial Residence. The furniture was still there, but the Xuan Wu statue in the courtyard was gone, and they’d removed all our paintings.
Smally and Yi Hao were in the kitchen. Smally was washing the floor, Yi Hao was wiping the cabinets, and they were arguing loudly.
‘What’s the matter?’ I said.
‘Ma’am!’ they shouted, and ran to me.
Smally flopped to kneel on the floor in front of me and burst into tears. ‘You’re alive!’
Yi Hao clutched me. ‘You’re all right.’ She pulled back. ‘This house is a wreck.’
‘Not my fault!’ Smally said.
John went to the stove and filled the kettle.
Smally jumped to her feet and pushed him away from it. ‘That is entirely unfitting, Highness!’
‘Tell us what you want and we will make it for you,’ Yi Hao said.
‘Tea, tikuanyin, and bring it to the living room, please,’ I said.
‘Ma’am.’
They proceeded to argue over who would make the tea, so John and I left them to it and went into the living room together. We held each other on the couch, enjoying the closeness.
Both Yi Hao and Smally came in with the tea and cups.
‘I have important work for both of you,’ I said as they put the tea things on the table.
They straightened, attentive.
‘Smally, you’ll manage our Celestial Residences. Go to our Imperial apartments in the Northern Heavens and in the Celestial Palace and list what restoration work needs to be done. You’ll be in charge of it,’ I said. ‘Yi Hao, head down to the Peak where Er Hao is, and help Princess Simone to set up our new Earthly Residence. You’ll be my assistant on the Earthly.’
‘Ma’am,’ they said in unison, and disappeared.
‘Artfully done,’ John said, pouring the tea.
‘What’s next?’ I said.
‘We don’t need to check the Northern Heavens; Ming and Yue are handling that, and there’s another party happening. Drafting the treaty, let me see.’ He concentrated. ‘The new Demon King will meet us at 10 a.m. on the Earthly tomorrow. The Jade Emperor will provide us with the terms; we’ll just have to negotiate the agreement.’
‘Where will we stay tonight?’ I said. ‘I’d prefer to go down to Frankie now — I need to explain his new situation to him. He needs to understand that he’s no longer Jade Emperor.’
‘Of course. That’s very important. No, wait. Simone and Frankie are way ahead of us. They’re out shopping for furniture, and they’ll meet us for dinner at Leo and Martin’s apartment on the Peak.’ He concentrated. ‘We can sleep in one of the spare rooms there tonight. Zara says that Celestials are moving back home, the phoenixes are returning to the volcano . . .’ He threw himself backwards and put his hands behind his head. ‘Dinner with the family in about an hour, and nothing else until our appointment with the Demon King tomorrow. We can check the apartment below Martin and Leo’s and see what else we need in there before we move in.’
‘Let’s go to our room and pack some stuff to take,’ I said. ‘It’s hard enough having three households. Having another one on the Earthly will be a pain.’
‘We must remove the demon essence from Simone,’ he said.
There were explosions outside and both of us jumped to our feet.
John relaxed. ‘Fireworks. There’s a big celebration happening.’
‘We should go and join them,’ I said.
‘Actually . . .’ He turned to gaze into my eyes. ‘How about a small celebration right here?’
‘There’s something I need to do first.’
‘It must be important.’
‘Absolutely vital. I need the longest hottest shower ever.’
‘That’s the best idea you’ve ever had. It’s been weeks.’ He studied me intensely. ‘May I join you?’
I put my hand on his cheek. ‘You don’t need time in the sea or the Grotto?’
He took my hand and turned to go up the stairs. ‘I need time with you more.’
* * *
‘It will be strange being in the Peak with you again,’ I said as we walked naked from the bathroom into our bedroom, warm and surrounded by the clean scent of soap. ‘We never lived there together
.’
We stopped and studied our Mountain bedroom: the fireplace, the comfortable chairs, and our ebony bed with its silver and black silken hangings.
‘Just one thing missing,’ I said softly.
‘I was thinking the same thing,’ he said, and we were on the bed together, skin to skin.
‘It’s been a long time,’ he said into my ear. ‘Months. Months without you.’ He ran his hand down my side. ‘I missed you so much.’
I kissed his throat. ‘When you were in the cage, I couldn’t sense you. I love this . . .’ I pulled myself closer. ‘Being wrapped up in you, surrounded by you.’
He nuzzled into me. ‘I feel the same way.’ He made soft sounds of pleasure as he explored me. ‘Take Celestial Form.’
‘I don’t really . . .’ I began, and stopped pretending I didn’t have one.
I took my larger battle form, and he joined me in Celestial Form; his smallest one, to match my size. The bed creaked under our weight.
His beard tickled me as he spoke into the side of my throat. ‘The Tiger has a special bed. Bigger.’ He slid on top of me, his mahogany-brown skin glowing against my white. ‘Focus on your ching. Your essence.’
I concentrated on the essence, deep and low, and it sprang to life. He closed his eyes, touched his forehead to mine, and I felt his ching as well. We were in contact down the lengths of our bodies and the red ching flared between us.
‘Keep it under control, try not to let it —’
But it was too late. It escaped me and merged with his and I screamed and bucked under him. He was swept away with me and we were lost in a wild flood of energy that surged between us.
I came around with him lying next to me, studying my face.
‘My fault,’ he said, stroking my cheek. ‘I overestimated your energy ability, particularly after several months of incarceration.’
‘We didn’t even . . .’ I shook my head. ‘We hadn’t even started!’ I lifted my head and dropped it. ‘Wow. I ache all over. That nearly killed me.’
‘I know. Your heart stopped for a couple of minutes. I was about to do CPR.’
‘I’ll be sore as anything tomorrow. I think every muscle went into spasm.’
‘I’ll give you a hot bath with bubbles and a full-body massage with shen energy if you are.’
I turned to smile into his face. ‘You just made nearly dying worthwhile.’