Mount Emily Revisited

by Low Ying Ping

  “That’s why he must never know this child exists,” Min Ling said through gritted teeth.

  “But Maggie said the Midnight Warriors were all exterminated years ago,” Patsy pointed out.

  “We thought so too, but his father had had the foresight to send him into the future on a rare occasion when the crystal had fallen into the hands of the Midnight Warriors for a brief time. That gave me the idea of what to do with Raine. It would be too dangerous to let him have any influence over such a child.”

  “So you decided to send her away!” Patsy said. “To the future!”

  Min Ling nodded. “At some appropriate time after she’s born, I’ll travel to the future and leave her with the adult Charlotte before coming back. Charlotte agreed to help me,” she added, putting her arm around her daughter. “This Charlotte.”

  Charlotte nodded. “I promised to raise her like she were my own daughter.”

  “And you did,” Patsy said earnestly, then corrected herself, “I mean, so you will. This time-travelling thing is so confusing!”

  Min Ling took her hand. “You’ll get used to it. You’re a Keeper of Time, just like us.”

  Patsy shook her head. “I still can’t get over how stupid I was to let myself get caught. By the way, what made you believe that I’m not a spy sent by Ye Kang?”

  Min Ling grinned, patting her belly. “This little girl told me.”

  “What?” Patsy asked, feeling totally confused for the umpteenth time that evening.

  “When you said Charlotte in 2016 has a daughter named Raine, I knew you were telling the truth. You see, I’d decided that if my child was a girl, I would name her Raine. I’ve not told anyone this, so Ye Kang couldn’t have known that name.”

  Patsy nodded, her mind awhirl with all that she had just heard. Restless, she rose and walked over to the window. She pulled aside the curtain, observing that the windows had grilles across them. The room overlooked a drain, across which was a large swathe of undeveloped land. No chance of signalling a passer-by. There was a bathroom adjoining the room, but the window in there was too small to escape from.

  She moved back to the mattress and sat down. “I’ve been in here for an hour and nothing has happened. I guess that means Elena hasn’t behaved as foolishly as me.”

  Min Ling nodded slowly, not seeming to realise that she was appearing to agree that Patsy had been foolish. “When you didn’t return to the park, hopefully she went back to Maggie and Wu Ji to tell them what had happened. Then they’ll probably go ahead with the original plan of exchanging hostages, except he would need to ask for all three of us now instead of just two.”

  “If we’re back to the original plan, then I’ve accomplished nothing except to cause more trouble for Wu Ji,” Patsy said in a dejected tone.

  “Not true,” Min Ling said. “Your being kidnapped has confirmed your group’s suspicion that Ye Kang is here. Wasn’t that what you had set out to do?”

  Patsy gave her a weak smile. Yes, she had indeed achieved something—though she had done it by bungling the job. That seemed to be the only way she ever achieved anything these days.

  Patsy spent an uncomfortable night in the stuffy room, sharing the thin mattress with Min Ling and Charlotte. The bareness of the room made Patsy suspect Ye Kang did not spend much time at home. When she asked Min Ling, she admitted they hardly ever came here when they had been dating. He had told her he’d inherited the house from a relative but did not like staying in it.

  During the night, Patsy’s stomach growled often, though fortunately she had at least eaten a pack of biscuits, if not a full dinner. Though she was exhausted from the day’s adventures, she found it hard to fall asleep. The mattress the three of them were sharing did not have a sheet and smelled musty, and there was hardly space for all of them. Several times, she touched the dusty floorboards by accident and quickly pulled her arm in, fearful that unknown insects were crawling about in the dark. Hugging herself tightly, she finally managed to fall into a fitful sleep.

  When morning came, Ye Kang’s son, who was called Kelvin, opened the door to throw them a loaf of plain bread wrapped in plastic, which he told them was to be both their breakfast and lunch. He was about to shut the door when he hesitated, then said in a soft voice devoid of emotion, “After lunch, my father will ask you one last time where the crystal is.” He paused, his eyes briefly meeting Patsy’s. “If you don’t tell him, he’s going to start killing you, one by one.”

  chapter twenty

  he morning passed with Patsy in a nervous state of alternating emotions.

  At times, the minutes on her watch seemed to crawl by as she yearned for Wu Ji to arrive so that they could be rescued. He was due to “disappear” at 2pm, which meant he should turn up before then. The timing was crucial. Too early and Ye Kang might snatch the crystal off him before he could disappear with it. Too late and he might vanish before he and Ye Kang had negotiated the release of the hostages. Would Patsy have the chance to tell him about Raine before he left? But what could he do even if he knew?

  At other times, when Patsy dwelled on the thought that Ye Kang would come to interrogate them after lunch, the morning seemed to be passing too quickly. What if he turned up before Wu Ji? Would he really kill one of them to show he meant business?

  Despite knowing that Ye Kang would eventually come, Patsy’s heart still gave a violent jolt when around 1.30pm, the door opened. His hulking figure loomed in the doorway, with Kelvin skulking behind.

  His face had on the veneer of an amiable man again— the same friendly visage Patsy remembered from the car accident the year before.

  “So,” he said, as he entered the room, smiling. “Have you wised up and decided to tell me?”

  Min Ling pursed her lips, pushing back some loose hair from her face before replying slowly, “Tell you what?”

  Ye Kang’s smile stiffened a little, but he said courteously enough, “The Crystal of Time, my dear wife, you know that. Where is it?”

  Min Ling fingered her chin, putting on a thoughtful look. “Where the crystal is?”

  She’s stringing out the time, Patsy thought with admiration. She’s trying to stretch out the conversation until Wu Ji arrives.

  But Ye Kang was starting to lose patience. “Tell me where it is!”

  Min Ling sighed. “I’ve told you many times before—I have no idea. Someone stole it from our house. You shouldn’t be wasting your time on us. You should be outside, hunting for the burglar—”

  Ye Kang’s face contorted. In an instant he had changed from the kind-looking man who had stopped in the middle of the road to check on the woman in a car accident to the deranged man who had slapped Min Ling in Patsy’s time-travelling scene. “Enough!” He whipped out a gun from his pants pocket and aimed it at Min Ling. “I’ve had enough of your nonsense! I’ve given you enough chances, but were you grateful? No, you insist on playing me like a fool.”

  The gun was quivering, and Patsy realised the man’s entire body was shaking, his face red with barely contained rage. He’s gone mad, he’s out of control, Patsy thought as she and Charlotte clung to each other on the mattress. She had previously doubted that Ye Kang would actually kill them. After all, it wasn’t a small thing to take a person’s life, and he still needed them to tell him where the crystal was. But seeing him so unstable now, she realised that even if he had not truly intended to kill them, he might just do it on impulse.

  Min Ling’s voice trembled. “Wait…” Perhaps she had realised the same thing that Patsy had, for she continued, “All right… I’ll tell you.”

  Ye Kang’s face registered surprise. The arm holding the gun lowered a little. “You will?”

  “Yes, yes,” Min Ling said. “Just put the gun away first.”

  “No!” he snarled, raising the gun again. Patsy and Charlotte shrank back as he took a step forward. “You’re fooling with me again! Tell me—”

  Ye Kang stopped, cocking his head, a look of puzzlement on his face.

>   What is it? Patsy thought. Behind him Kelvin was slowly lifting his head, his eyes gleaming. She glanced at her friends, and saw that Min Ling and Charlotte were exchanging relieved looks.

  Then, she felt it too. That irresistible, undeniable pull at her heart.

  The Crystal of Time. It was somewhere nearby. And it was getting closer.

  A few seconds passed in absolute silence as the five of them—Keepers of Time and Midnight Warriors alike— focused on the source of power that was drawing nearer.

  So taken were they by the sudden appearance of the time power that when the musical chimes of the doorbell rang out in the quiet, it was as if they were suddenly released from an immobilising spell.

  Ye Kang emerged from his trance-like state with a start. “What the…” he growled. Thrusting his gun at Kelvin, he snapped, “Watch them!” Then he hurried down the stairs.

  Patsy heard the front door of the house open and Ye Kang’s footsteps striding down the driveway towards the garden gate. She strained her ears to hear more, but whatever was happening was too far away. Her whole body was tingling with anticipation. She felt Charlotte’s fingers squeeze hers, and she returned the squeeze.

  Kelvin seemed restless, shifting his weight from foot to foot. The gun was still aimed at the prisoners, but he appeared distracted.

  Should we try to overpower him? Patsy thought. It’s three versus one. We can put an end to this now.

  But if they did take him on, would Kelvin fire the gun? And if they got past him, would they be able to get out of the house before Ye Kang returned? Patsy glanced at Charlotte and Min Ling to see if their expressions showed what they might be thinking. Min Ling was sitting very still, with her hand over her belly. Then suddenly Patsy knew. That mystery third person, the most important person she had to rescue. It wasn’t Ye Kang. It wasn’t Wu Ji. It was Raine!

  The moment she realised this, her impulsive desire to overpower Kelvin vanished. It was too risky. Not when the adult Charlotte had entrusted her with the task of keeping her sister safe. Before she could think about it anymore, she heard footsteps approaching the house and soon Ye Kang stood before them again.

  The Midnight Warrior held them in an even gaze for a moment, then said, “That boy Yvonne named Wu Que is at the gate. He says he will exchange himself and the Crystal of Time for your freedom.”

  “It might be a trap,” Kelvin objected.

  “So what if it is?” Ye Kang replied, a half-smile playing on his lips. “I can sense the crystal on him. Once he enters the house, the crystal will be in my hands and power will be mine. What else can he do?” The smile burst out in full now, and Patsy felt a stab of fear as she imagined Wu Ji alone in the house with this demon. But what could she do? They had agreed to send Wu Ji alone into the lion’s den. She had to believe he would be able to escape as planned. What time was it now? Was it almost 2pm? She didn’t dare to look at her watch, for fear of arousing the Midnight Warriors’ suspicions.

  “Come on then,” Ye Kang said. “The boy insists the exchange be made in the driveway. He’s shrewd, that one. No tricks, you hear? I’ll have my gun on you the whole time. If you try to run off together with Wu Que, I won’t hesitate to shoot.”

  Patsy, Charlotte and Min Ling nervously nodded their agreement, then allowed themselves to be herded down the stairs. The moment they reached the front door, Patsy saw the sombre-looking boy standing outside the garden gate and her heart gave a leap. Good, trustworthy Wu Ji!

  The three of them slowly walked down the driveway. From within the house, Ye Kang opened the garden gate by remote control. Wu Ji made his slow way up the drive, the time power radiating from his backpack. For an insane moment, Patsy thought that all four of them could just escape. Then she recalled what Ye Kang had said about having his gun on them, and she banished the thought.

  Wu Ji’s gaze flickered from Charlotte to Min Ling, then came to rest on Patsy. For a second, their eyes locked. Wu Ji gave her a smile as if to say that everything would be okay. But it was not okay! Raine would not be able to take them back. Would Patsy ever return to 2016? Would she ever see Wu Ji again?

  The moment she and Wu Ji walked up to each other, she blurted out in a whisper, “The plan won’t work. Baby Raine is already here!” There was no time to explain further, but she could see from Wu Ji’s expression that he had grasped the implications.

  Seeing the troubled look on Wu Ji’s face, she immediately regretted her impulsive act. Why did she have to burden him with this knowledge at this time when he should be focusing on making sure he would make it out of there unharmed? What could he do about it? To her shame, she discovered she was crying.

  Wu Ji appeared indecisive, then his eyes took on a determined look. He clasped Patsy’s hands. “Trust me, everything will be all right. Listen—”

  But before he could say anymore, Kelvin appeared beside them. “My father is getting impatient,” he warned. “You’d better leave now.”

  “Just a moment. Can’t you see she’s upset?” Wu Ji pleaded with Kelvin. Then he turned back to Patsy and said gently, “You remember my favourite poem? Think of the last word of each of the last two lines.”

  “Enough, lovebirds,” Kelvin snapped, forcefully pulling them apart. He gave the girls a final look, then shoved Wu Ji towards the house.

  “Let’s go,” Min Ling urged, and Patsy had no choice but to hurry down the driveway as she wiped the tears from her eyes. Once outside, the gate swung shut. She looked back, but the front door of the house was already closed.

  Patsy guessed that Elena and Maggie would be waiting for them at the nearby park, and she was right. As she led Charlotte and Min Ling over, she could see the two girls peeking out from behind the same bush she and Elena had hid behind the day before.

  “Wu Ji did it! You’re safe!” Elena said, embracing Patsy in a teary reunion. “What on earth made you enter the house yesterday? I nearly died of worry when you didn’t come out!”

  Patsy blushed. “The back door was open. I thought I could do the rescuing myself.”

  “Look! It’s 2pm!” Maggie announced happily. “It’s all over, finally!”

  “Actually, we have a problem,” Patsy said, looking at Min Ling, who nodded her permission. Patsy quickly explained what she had learnt about Raine.

  Elena looked incredulous. “Raine is Charlotte’s sister?”

  Maggie looked glum again. “So it’s not over,” she sighed. “What should we do now?”

  “We need to figure out what Wu Ji did with the crystal,” Min Ling said. “If he still took it with him to 2017 despite what Patsy told him, then you two girls won’t be able to get back. The future Raine and Charlotte can’t come to 1988 because the time stream won’t allow two versions of the same person to exist at the same time.” She paused, then added, a sad note in her voice, “I tried it once, years ago.”

  “Wu Ji’s last words to you,” Charlotte prompted. “What did they mean?”

  Patsy looked down, feeling uncomfortable and unsure what to say. She herself didn’t know what to make of it, though she could not help feeling a warmth in her cheeks when she recalled the words.

  “What last words?” Elena demanded. “I saw him hold your hands and say something. What did he say?”

  Charlotte responded for Patsy. “He asked Patsy to recall some words from his favourite poem.”

  “What poem?” Elena asked, eying Patsy with an intense expression.

  “His favourite poem. That would be ‘A Pair of Eyes’, written by my uncle,” Patsy said softly. Her heart was pounding and she felt immensely guilty. Wu Ji had just found out Patsy and Elena would be trapped in 1988 if he took the crystal home with him, and his last words were for her to recall a love poem. Was Wu Ji declaring his love for her? No wonder Elena was upset.

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” Elena asked.

  Patsy shrugged. “I don’t know,” she admitted. “It’s a poem by my uncle, but I’ve never read it before.”

  “Then why
did Wu Ji think you’ll be able to figure out what he meant?” Maggie asked.

  “Because I kind of let him think I knew the poem,” Patsy confessed, her cheeks burning. “I guess I didn’t want to seem stupid.”

  “I think Wu Ji was trying to talk in code because Kelvin was beside us,” Min Ling said. “Perhaps he was trying to tell us something about the crystal. We just need to go look up the poem, then we’ll know for certain.”

  “We can’t,” Patsy said, turning a shade redder. “It hasn’t been written yet.”

  Min Ling looked at her with arms crossed and a perplexed expression. “But how are we going to figure it out if you don’t know the poem and it hasn’t been written yet?”

  “I’m sorry,” Patsy whispered, looking down at her feet. Why, why did I have to tell that lie to Wu Ji? she groaned inwardly.

  Min Ling sighed, then said, “Ye Kang is a dangerous man. We need to find out what Wu Ji did with the crystal—whether he took it with him or if he left it behind in the hands of the Midnight Warriors.

  “How do we do that, since we can’t break the poem’s code?” Maggie asked.

  “Shh!” Elena said urgently, gesturing towards Ye Kang’s house.

  Patsy looked round the bush to see the garden gate opening and a car moving out. Even from their distance they could see Ye Kang driving and his son seated next to him. There were no passengers in the back seat. It sped off down the street and disappeared round a bend.

  “Where are they rushing off to?” Elena wondered.

  Min Ling shrugged, her attention focused on the house. “Look, they were in such a hurry they didn’t even shut the gate.”

  “We should check out the house,” Patsy said.

  “They won’t have left the crystal in there,” Maggie said.

  “I know. But Wu Ji wasn’t in the car just now. We should find out if he did make it out of 1988 or if he’s still locked up in the house.”

  “Mum, I don’t want to go back in there,” Charlotte whispered, clutching her mother’s hand.

  Min Ling looked hesitant, and Patsy urged, “We need to do it now. The longer we wait, the more likely they’ll come back before we’re done. We don’t all need to go. I can do it myself while you keep watch.”