Jade Tiger (18 page)

It was Ian who finally convinced her. Ian, Rachel's ex-lover and colleague. Ian who could barely talk through his pain.

"The boat is gone," Rachel said. "I don't know who took it. But I can have another one here from Hong Kong in a few hours." She looked at Ian. "I've already sent for the doctor. Just don't say anything about how this happened. I need time to think this through."

"Thank you," Shan said. "We won't say a word." The jade animals were in a pouch at her waist, and most of the people she cared about were alive and at her side. She couldn't care less what happened to Ashton's estate now that he was dead. "We appreciate your help."

Rachel nodded, her lips pursed, and left the room.

Xia was the worst off, but possibly the most determined to live. Bitterness proved to be a powerful salve when possessed in such quantities.

Lydia...Lydia was more pissed than hurt. Xia had told her what the symbol on her back meant. Shan had already suggested some tattoos that might hide the scar. But Lydia heard none of it. She did as she was told--held bandages and fetched water. Her wounds, Shan feared, would be the slowest to heal of all.

But it was with Ian that Shan spent those last hours before the boat came. She propped him up on the bed where they'd made love earlier that day, and she touched him. Stroked his arm. Ran gentle fingers through his hair.

Ashton had broken his jaw, but not his spirit. Nothing Ashton had done had come close to dulling the brilliant spark in Ian's eyes. Shan sat on the edge of the bed and held his hand in her unbroken one.

"I love you, too, you know," she said.

Ian tried to smile, winced, and stopped. "Then you're not as smart as you look," he mumbled.

Shan laughed.

Los Angeles, California
The Way of the River

Shan sat next to Ian on a low wooden bench. Inside the studio, Lydia practiced her new form. Upstairs, Xia finished packing.

Shan lifted Ian's hand up and studied it. "You have long fingers."

"You're very observant," Ian said. Over the last three months his jaw had mostly healed, though a patchwork of silver scars on one side betrayed the latest round of surgery. As if following her thoughts, he ran one of his long fingers over the three parallel scars on her cheek.

"It's like a landing strip," Ian said. "I have no choice but to follow."

He bent over and kissed her. Shan sank into the sensation. It was so like the no-mind state of readiness that she entered when fighting. Except instead of nothing, her mind was filled with thoughts of Ian.
Only
Ian.

Reluctantly, she pulled back.

"Tell me again how safe you're going to be," she demanded.

"I'll have Xia with me. Does that answer your question? Buckley won't know what hit him." Ian stared into her eyes. "But also, a little not safe. But that's the point, now, isn't it?"

Shan nodded, smiling. "My crane is leaving the nest."

"Your crane will come back part tiger, part dragon, part snake, and part leopard. Your crane will come back more worthy of you."

Heat suffused her face. "You're already more than worthy."

"Then I need to be more worthy of myself. Like I used to be." He bent for another kiss, changed direction, and kissed her chin.

"Harlot," she said.

"Mmm," he countered.

Lydia refused to see Ian and Xia off, still angry that she hadn't been allowed to go with them. Shan drove them to the airport by herself, hugged Xia, and kissed Ian within an inch of his life. When she got back to The Way of the River, Lydia was sitting on the front porch, waiting.

"We got another sign-up while you were gone," Lydia said.

Shan nodded. "That's nine this week. We're going to need more space soon."

Lydia's blonde hair was pulled back into a tight ponytail. She turned her head and pretended to stare at the stars. Stars that were never visible in the gloomy gray sky of Los Angeles.

Shan sat in a chair next to Lydia and looked up at the same nothingness.

"They can feel the Circle," Shan said quietly. "That's why they're coming. And they'll keep coming, I think. Men and women, adults and children. They'll come, and we'll welcome them all."

"Etienne will be here next week," Lydia said.

Shan looked at her friend, seeing the struggle for hope so evident on her face. "You'll like him, I think."

Lydia nodded, but said nothing. For now, that was enough.

They both had a lot of work ahead of them. But now it was Shan who drove her own destiny, not the tiger, and not the memory of her mother. It was a good feeling.

Shan gazed up into the L.A. night, and swore she could see the heavens.

THE END

So many folks helped me with
Jade Tiger
. Here are just a few of them:

Christine Ashworth, who read every single chapter minutes after I finished it and convinced me to keep going. Without her, I'd still be working on the prologue. Sally Felt, who got me over every major barrier with her unique brand of creativity and panache. Evelyn Vaughn, for her continuing support, advice, and expertise.

A lot of people read the first draft and gave me fantastic advice. Among them were Sarah Prineas, Tim Pratt, Heather Shaw, Michael Jasper, Shelley Stuart, and Greg van Eekhout. I want to thank Sarah for coining the phrase "Shan fu," which has become an integral part of my vocabulary.

Thanks to Laureen Shea for a great copy edit, to C. A. Hoffman for an endless stream of good advice and friendship, and to Vera Nazarian for far too many things to mention.

Thanks to Deb Coates, Samantha Ling, and Tobias Buckell for help with eBook conversion. Special thanks to artist Timothy Lantz for use of "By the Tail" for this eBook edition.

And finally, I want to thank my martial arts buddies, Lisa Mia Moore and Wally Skelton, as well as the amazing Master Armen Heroian. They offered me a safe, fun place in which to begin my journey in the martial arts. Nothing will ever be as it was before I walked into the studio that summer day in 2001.

Jenn Reese
www.jennreese.com

Jenn Reese is a writer, martial artist, and geek. She lives in Los Angeles where she writes science fiction and fantasy adventure stories for readers of all ages. She's currently at work on
Above World,
a middle grade series for Candlewick Press.

Jade Tiger
is her first novel, and combines her love of martial arts, kick-ass women, archaeology, ancient societies, and goofy romance. For a full list of her published stories and novels, visit
www.jennreese.com
.

Timothy Lantz
www.stygiandarkness.com

Timothy Lantz is a full-time illustrator and graphic artist with degrees in art education and communications.

Lantz's work, often described as "beautiful melancholy," has been inspired by a lifetime of reading. From the best of fantasy fiction and sci-fi to 1930s crime fiction and comic books, Lantz's bold and edgy artistry is all about "story." His themes of mystery, romanticism, tragedy and aspiration convey this, as though his life's quest is to create illustrations for relevant yet aching stories that have not yet been written.

Underpinning Lantz's powerful aesthetic is long experience. His exacting technical abilities, which go far beyond the traditional skill set, combine with core strengths in color and composition to create art that reflects--and refracts--the essence of beauty.

During his career, Lantz's work has included such far-flung projects as weather maps, television commercials, book covers and tarot cards. He is the author and artist of
The Archeon Tarot
, available from U.S. Games Systems Inc., and has worked for a variety of publishers including: DC Comics, ACE/Penguin Books, Bantam, Juno Books, EDGE Books, AEG, Wildside Press and more.