Red Phoenix

  I rose and returned to the table. ‘Are they housetrained, Phoenix? They’re very advanced for chicks of only a couple of months old.’

  ‘They should ask, but we still occasionally have accidents. I’ll take them out soon anyway.’ Her smile became wry. ‘Don’t know how to use human toilets yet.’

  I laughed softly. ‘They’re adorable.’

  Simone shot to her feet and came to us. ‘Can the chicks have a sleepover with me?’

  We all shook our heads. ‘They’re not big enough yet, Simone,’ I said gently. ‘They’re still only tiny babies.’

  ‘When they’re bigger and they won’t burn things, they can come and sleep over if you like,’ Zhu Que said. ‘Middle is a girl, like you. I’m sure the two of you would have a lot of fun.’

  Simone looked at the chicks then turned back to us. ‘That would be nice,’ she said cheerfully. She returned to the chicks and flopped down with them.

  ‘How is she at school?’ Zhu Que said. ‘No problems?’

  ‘The school staff don’t know anything, and it’s working out really well,’ John said, then gestured towards me. ‘Emma arranges everything—she’s even volunteered to do some work at the school—’

  ‘Anything to escape those blasted budgeting sheets,’ I muttered under my breath.

  ‘—and Simone and Michael have settled in and made friends. Michael goes to a shopping mall near the school with a group of friends now and then, and Simone has even brought little friends home.’

  ‘She knows exactly what to do,’ I said. ‘She keeps them out of the training room, and talks out loud all the time. She’s better at it than I am; I keep asking her to call John for me.’

  ‘None of us thought you’d pull it off,’ Zhu Que said with wonder.

  We watched the children play in silence. One of the chicks reverted to True Form and its Lego fell. Simone picked the Lego up and held it out for him. He changed back into human form, took the Lego with a smile, and finished building a little car. Simone clapped her hands with delight when he showed it to her. She was being a big sister to them.

  ‘Have you heard of any movements?’ John said softly without looking away from the children. ‘It is very quiet. Disturbingly quiet.’

  ‘They are planning something,’ Zhu Que said, also without shifting her gaze. ‘I have sent in agents, but they do not return.’ She shrugged. ‘I would dearly like to know what they are doing.’

  ‘The King has promised to stay away from us,’ John said mildly. ‘One Two Two was too cowardly to face me in London.’

  ‘But they’re building special demons just for us,’ I said. ‘They may be planning something big with their new toys.’

  Both John and the Phoenix glanced at me, then nodded and turned back to the children.

  ‘The only thing we can do is stay aware, stay ready, and have Emma and Simone up to speed as quickly as possible,’ John said.

  ‘I’d like to know where they’re making those things,’ I said. ‘Is it possible that they were made in Europe?’

  ‘Quite possible,’ John said.

  Zhu Que shook her head. ‘If they were, then that raises a very large number of unpleasant implications.’ She moved to rise. ‘I need to take these chicks outside before they embarrass themselves.’ She studied them carefully. ‘No, I think I’ll take them home. They’re tired. Look at Middle.’

  She was right. Middle had reverted to True Form and the edges of her feathers smouldered.

  Zhu Que turned and saluted us. ‘By your leave.’

  ‘Bring them back soon to play,’ I said. ‘Simone loves them.’

  ‘Let me know if you hear anything,’ John said.

  Zhu Que nodded and went to the chicks to gather them up. They all disappeared in a flurry of red. Simone and Leo packed up the Lego.

  ‘She forgot her table,’ I said.

  ‘The minute we stand it will be gone,’ John said without moving.

  I poured some more tea. Leo took Simone out to put her toys away. We sat for a while, pondering.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

  I had a pleasant lunch with Rhonda. We discussed Michael’s school work; we were both delighted at his progress. He enjoyed school, and I told her about some of the friends he’d made. We arranged for her to come for dinner at the weekend.

  I walked back along Des Voeux Road, through Central, towards John’s office, where I needed to collect some documents. It was a nondescript building in Wellington Street. The pollution was particularly bad, the car exhaust fumes were trapped by the highrises. There wasn’t a scrap of greenery anywhere along the street, just the cracked concrete pavement. But at least the weather was clear and mild, not humid at all. Hong Kong would have about two weeks of delightful weather now, in late October, and then the humidity would hit again, changing from hot and damp to cold and damp.

  I took the lift to the first floor and walked to the end of the corridor where the office was located. The staff didn’t know who John was; they thought he was a wealthy businessman from China, and that I was his European nanny who occasionally did some errands for him.

  After I’d collected the documents, I called the lift. There were a few people in it already and they glared impatiently at me. Should have taken the stairs since you’re only on the first floor, they were thinking at me, and not wasted our time stopping here.

  One of them was a high-level demon. She ignored me completely. My heart sank.

  As soon as I was out of the lift in the lobby I pulled out my mobile phone. It wasn’t working.

  I strolled casually to the guard station near the front door and asked the guard in Cantonese for a phone. He pushed one over to me. I picked up the receiver. Not working.

  I stood at the guard station and pondered. I was in serious trouble. This was a really big demon, far too big for me to handle alone. To anyone who saw her, she was a perfectly normal young Chinese woman waiting for someone. She even checked her watch occasionally. She wore a lavender suit and her hair was short and trim. She ignored me completely.

  Holy shit, what was I going to do?

  I pulled out my mobile phone again, pretended to dial a number, and pretended to listen. I held it up to my face with my left hand. It was completely dead.

  ‘I would really appreciate some help right now,’ I hissed into the phone quietly. ‘For God’s sake, wake the hell up!’

  Nothing. The stone was more and more useless every day.

  I tapped it with my other finger. ‘Wake up!’ Still nothing.

  I spun around and banged the blasted thing on the wall, hard.

  Still nothing. Oh my God, it wasn’t asleep. She’d somehow managed to turn it off too.

  I briefly pondered going back up to the office and asking one of the girls to call John, then dismissed the idea. The minute they were involved in this, the demon would take them out.

  Fine. To hell with it. I stormed right up to her. ‘What do you want?’ I said loudly enough for anybody in the lobby to hear.

  She smiled sweetly. ‘Do I know you?’

  ‘Where do you want to do this?’ I demanded.

  Her cute smile didn’t shift. ‘I’m sorry, I have no idea what you’re talking about. Do you mind going away now?’

  ‘Fine.’ I spun on my heel. ‘See you at my car. I just hope you’re more honourable than that bastard Wong, and don’t try to stab me in the back.’

  The security guards watched me incredulously but I didn’t care. They probably didn’t understand most of the exchange anyway; only that I had stormed up and abused this girl who hadn’t even spoken to me. Typical weird Foreign Devil behaviour.

  I stomped out the front door of the office building, turned left, and walked up the steep hill of Wellington Street. I concentrated hard on John. I hadn’t tried calling him before; I was sure that I wasn’t capable of the skill. But right now I needed it more than anything else. Nothing.

  I tried Simone. Still nothing. Leo? Gold? Jade? Nothing. The Goddess that Hears the
Cries of the World? I’m really crying here, Lady. Nothing.

  Damn, I was in very serious trouble.

  I cursed my own stupidity as I reached the escalator and went back down towards The Centre. I hadn’t even had the brains to bring my weapon. I was unarmed and facing a demon that appeared to be close on level fifty; much higher than anything I had ever faced before.

  Well, this was it. This was where all the training and the work and the suffering and the torture came together. I only hoped that I could fight her valiantly, and lose with dignity if I had to. Then I felt a shot of panic: if she was working for Wong, she could be coming to pick me up. I had no way of killing myself if I lost. Then I immediately went very calm. Yes, there was. If I was losing, I’d hit her with energy, blow her up, and then blow myself up with the backlash. Easy.

  And then, suddenly, I felt really good. I was relaxed and serene. I shouldn’t have felt that way, but I did. Either way, they wouldn’t get their hands on me, and it would be over soon.

  I walked calmly and confidently through the water garden and past the large flat screen displaying the stock market prices. I went to the car park lift and pressed the button. The lift doors slid open and I went in. No demons there. She’d be waiting for me next to the car. Bring it on, bitch.

  And there she was, right next to my car, as expected. She gestured for me to follow her and I did. We went to a cul-de-sac at the end of the car park. There weren’t any cars parked there. Lunch was finished. Nobody would be coming in or out. And there were plenty of spaces on the next floor up, closer to the shroff office. We had all the time and privacy in the world.

  It was worth a try. ‘You wouldn’t like to come and work for me, would you?’ I said. ‘The other demon help say that I’m a good boss.’

  She seemed amused. Then she grinned. ‘If I bring you back in close to one piece, I’ll be promoted to Mother.’

  ‘Whoa, high stakes,’ I said cheerfully. And I did feel cheerful. I knew exactly what lay ahead of me for the next half-hour, and possibly for the rest of my short life. ‘I won’t let you though. If it looks like you’re winning, I’ll blow both of us up.’

  She shrugged. ‘Try me.’

  I put my hands out in a gesture of welcome. ‘No, sweetie, you first.’

  She came at me lightning fast. I’d never taken on anything as good as her before, short of John himself. She came at my head and my body so fast she was a blur. Head strike, head strike, body strike, spin kick. I managed to block them all, one after the other. I lost some ground but not enough to worry me. I used the block on the kick, grabbed her foot, unbalanced her and tipped her over. She landed neatly on her feet, spun again, and kicked me right in the middle of the abdomen.

  My abdomen was loaded with chi and I absorbed the impact. I was knocked backwards but landed on my feet, unharmed. I didn’t hesitate; I went straight back at her and struck at her in return. Head, head, head, body; she damn well blocked them all. I couldn’t get through her.

  We were evenly matched. She was at least as good as me.

  Well then, there was an easy way to defeat her: I just had to be better than me.

  We paused and studied each other. Neither of us was panting yet. This was just a warm-up. She raised her arms and snapped out her wrists. I did too. I waited.

  She came at me with a spinning series of kicks, one after the other, head, head, abdomen. I blocked them all. I hit her hard with the blocks, trying to break through her human shell and get to the demon stuff underneath. Her shell was thick. If I could break it, she would be finished. I just needed to hit her hard enough.

  I retaliated with my fists. I struck at her head and abdomen with everything I had. I tried to be as fast as I possibly could. She was just as fast. She blocked it all. She grabbed my hand and pulled me in. I went in as she pulled me and hit her in the face with my other hand. Her face wasn’t there. I rolled past her and tried to take out her head with my feet as I went through. No such luck.

  I sprang back to my feet and stood panting.

  Before I even had time to catch my breath she was at me again. She spun fast. I blocked her foot with my left, but I wasn’t fast enough with the block and it hit me awkwardly.

  She hit my left forearm hard. I felt the impact. I felt the bone break inside. It was a remarkable sensation. And then the pain exploded and I wanted to tear my own arm off.

  I didn’t have time. Her feet were in my face, with multiple strikes. I tried to block with my right but I couldn’t block them all. She hit my forehead, my cheekbone, my cheek again, and then my jaw. Fortunately she didn’t break anything except the skin. Stars spun in front of me. I tried to shake them away, but it made my head spin and hurt. The blood ran down my face, making it hot and slick. It ran into my eyes.

  I hugged my left arm in close, somersaulted backwards, and concentrated.

  I did not have time for this pain. Come on, Emma, all you have to do is be better than yourself. For John. For Simone. For everybody who loves you.

  I brushed the blood out of my eyes. God, I hated the smell of blood.

  No, wait…it smelled good. I loved that smell. Sweet, delicious blood.

  And then my veins rushed with ice. I was calm and powerful and I could do it. The pain disappeared. I saw her as she really was. I saw her coming towards me. She came in slow motion. I had all the time in the world. I wanted blood. I could taste the blood. I wanted to eat her alive, black stuff and all.

  Her fist came towards me in a slow arabesque and I smiled. Her face went slack with horror. I ducked casually under her hand. I tapped her on the face, then again, and again, and again. So fast she didn’t even seem to move. Just enough to hurt her without destroying her. Great fun. Her eyes were wide with shock.

  Then I spun and hit her in the middle with a devastating butterfly kick that knocked her five metres backward into the wall.

  The force of the explosion of demon stuff slammed me off my feet, and suddenly everything was normal speed again. My left arm hurt so much I had trouble holding back the scream. My eyes were full of blood. I couldn’t think straight. The ground hit me hard.

  Black. Red. Dark.

  Gold’s boyish face was right in mine, but I couldn’t really see him.

  ‘I can’t carry you directly, my Lady,’ he seemed to be saying. ‘It would aggravate the injuries.’

  ‘I am in a lot of pain, Gold,’ I gasped. ‘Can you do anything for the pain? Anything? Anything at all?’

  ‘Wait,’ he said softly.

  I was about to protest that I didn’t want to wait when Jade appeared and put her hand on my forehead.

  Lying in the back of the Mercedes. Looking at the ceiling. Jade holding my hand. Every bump on the road exploding into agony. A hand on my forehead again.

  Strong hands lifting. Voices, but I didn’t understand. Smooth movement. Lights going past above me.

  A sharp pain through the suffering. Falling. Falling. Floating down, into a warm cloud of comfort. No more pain. Ease. Sigh. Darkness. John?

  God, I was tired. Why couldn’t I turn over? I hurt all over. Too bright. Open your eyes, come on, there you are…you can see. Dark hair. John. Sigh. Let go.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

  Movement. Sounds. Soft voices. I snapped open my eyes. It was all blurry. I looked around, trying to focus, but everything kept going upwards. I grabbed the universe and told it to stay put. It did.

  A dark shape to my left. I tried to focus on it. Warm dark eyes. John. Another dark shape behind him; I focused. Leo had just come in, bringing Simone. All three of them watched me, concerned.

  ‘Hello,’ I croaked. ‘What happened to me?’ ‘Would you like a drink?’ John said quietly. ‘Do you think you could hold it down?’

  I nodded. He grabbed the jug from the bedside table and poured me a glass of water. He paused. ‘I can’t do it,’ he said, his voice full of pain. ‘You need someone to lift your head.’

  Leo moved around him and gently reached behind my neck, raising m
y head. It exploded with pain and I winced. He hesitated. He brought the glass to my lips and I took a few sips of the water. It was incredibly sweet. I nodded my thanks. My head exploded again. Leo carefully lowered me back to the pillow.

  I looked around. A simple hospital room. Dark blue curtains over the window. Beige walls. Two chairs next to me. John, with Simone in his lap. Simone’s little face wide-eyed with concern.

  ‘How’s your head?’ John said quietly. ‘Do you have much of a headache?’

  I felt inside my head. My brain was numb and swollen. ‘I feel fuzzy but I think I’ll live.’ I tried to remember what had happened. Nothing. My left arm was in a cast; I must have broken it. I was on a drip. Whoa, but my face felt weird. ‘What happened?’

  ‘You collected the files from Wellington Street. You went back to your car. You were obviously attacked by something big. You took it out, but it must have broken your left arm and managed some serious strikes to your head before you did.’ John leaned forward over Simone. ‘Do you remember anything at all?’

  ‘Level fifty, female,’ I said with wonder. ‘I saw her in the lobby of the office building. I don’t remember anything after that.’

  Leo inhaled sharply. ‘No way.’

  ‘Leave it for now,’ John said firmly. ‘Rest. Now that you’ve come around we’ll be able to take you home, and you can recuperate properly. The police want to talk to you. What do you want to tell them?’

  ‘I have no idea,’ I said helplessly. ‘I don’t know. I don’t remember anything.’

  ‘Well, then,’ he said, ‘tell them the truth.’

  ‘Are they starting to look at you?’ I said.

  ‘Yes, they are. When the time comes you may run into some difficulty. I hope it doesn’t happen.’

  I didn’t say anything. I leaned back on the pillows and closed my eyes.

  ‘Take Simone home,’ John told Leo. ‘I will follow with Emma as soon as she is strong enough.’

  ‘Emma will need help, my Lord, and you won’t be able to touch her. It’ll have to be me who stays,’ Leo said.