by Taylor Lee
The Frenchman grinned and said, “I know your temptation is to run, Tony, like the coward you are. Not many places to run, my friend, but just in case…”
He pulled a gun from his boot and shot Tony in the foot. Tony fell to the ground screaming, writhing in pain.
The Frenchman nodded over his shoulder to Nianzu and Louie as the rest of his men left the room. Nianzu and Louie rolled in two large drums of gasoline. They lit the fuses attached to the cans and shoved the drums further in the room. Then, along with the Frenchman, the three of them backed through the doorway out of the room.
Too late, the men against the wall understood what was happening. Screaming and shoving, they charged the door in horror, trampling over Tony in a panic. But in a matter of seconds, there was a huge flash as the barrels exploded and flames tore across the room. Nianzu and Louie slid in the bolt locking the door from the outside. They followed the Frenchman out of the brothel, ignoring the screams of terror coming from the room behind them.
~~~
The scene outside was pandemonium. People were screaming in fright, backing away from the burning building. Nianzu went to help their men who were loading the young girls in the horse drawn carts they had stationed by the stable. Half dressed men, customers in the brothel, were standing back, huddled against the fence, trying to hide. People who lived close and patrons of nearby taverns filled the street. Dozens of people ran up to the scene, shouting questions, adding to the cacophonous din.
The Frenchman stood off to the side on a ridge above the street smoking a cigarette, quietly observing the chaos below. Nianzu came over to report.
“We got all the girls and the customers out. Everyone is out now except for Tony’s men.”
“Madame Torrento?”
“We let her go. She is standing over there by the johns.”
“The fire department?”
“They’re on their way. The steam engines are coming up on Market Street now. They’ll be here within ten minutes. The only building that will burn down tonight is the brothel.”
The Frenchman nodded.
“How many men did you leave inside?”
“Quitin said there were twelve guards in addition to the men we had in the back room with Tony. Louie identified each of them by name to make sure they were mob. Our men tied them to the wall in the main parlor and sprinkled them with a little gasoline. We have three drums positioned around them. Those screams you hear are from them. No doubt, they have a hell of a good idea of what’s about to happen.”
The Frenchman flicked his wrist. “Light it.”
Nianzu signaled the men standing next to the building. Six of them picked up bottles of gasoline with wicks at the top, lit the fuses, and together threw the bottles in the building. Thirty seconds later, there was a huge explosion followed in rapid succession by two more. The crowd jumped back as flames shot out of windows and the crumbling walls of the brothel. The horrendous screams of the men locked inside filled the air.
The Frenchman and Nianzu stood quietly for a moment, then turned to watch their men loading more girls into the carts.
Nianzu’s voice was racked with pain.
“Jesus, we’ve got at least thirty girls at this point. The oldest is fifteen, maybe sixteen. By the time we get them all in the carts, I know we’ll have forty to fifty girls.”
He shook his head, glaring at the burning building.
“Goddamn, I hope those animals are dying slowly. Most of the girls are ten or eleven years old.”
The Frenchman just shook his head and took a drag off his cigarette.
Nianzu said, “We’re taking any of them who want to come, even if they’re not Chinese. Is that okay?”
The Frenchman nodded. He stood quietly off to the side as Nianzu went to give directions to the men who were preparing to drive the carts and their precious cargo to safety, making way for the fire department’s horse drawn steam engines arriving on the scene. The Frenchman had arranged for fifty Sing Leon members to help control the crowd and ensure that the fire did not spread beyond the brothel.
The Frenchman stayed above the fray. His eyes moved from scene to scene, aware of everything that was happening. Nothing was beyond his notice. Though he heard the screams of the burning men, he didn’t let on. Rather, he felt calm, satisfied that his work for the night was done.
He took out his cigarette case with the embossed wolf’s head. The wolf’s topaz eyes twinkled in the light from the burning brothel. As he took a drag off his cigarette, anyone close enough to the Frenchman to see his face might think the wolf had come to life.
Nianzu walked up, leading their horses.
“The fire department has the fire under control. We need to get going, Bai. There is a party waiting for you.”
Bai nodded and mounted Noire. He and Nianzu rode off, leaving the burning brothel, the screaming men, and the turmoil behind.
~~
Chapter 3
Earlier that day, Wyatt McManus sat with his son in the Last Chance Tavern on San Francisco’s teeming wharf. Through the grease streaked windows, they watched the crews unloading cargo from the myriad of ships anchored in the busy port. They were waiting for the porter to bring Alex’s trunks from the ship that had arrived from China that morning. Wyatt looked at his son’s furious face, took a drag off his cigarette, and poured them both another shot of whiskey. Even through the closed door, the smell of rotten cargo, animal dung, and filthy men too long sequestered below shipboard permeated their space.
“You need to understand, Alex. Elena refused to let us contact you. She was adamant that you stay in China. She knew if you found out what happened to her, you would insist on coming home.”
“My only sister, my twin sister, for God’s sake, is attacked and almost raped and killed? And I find out about it six months later? What the hell were you thinking, Father? You know what Elena means to me. She needed me. Goddamnit, I didn’t even know she’d been hurt. If I had been here, I never would have let it happen. And he wouldn’t have had to save her.” Alex’s face contorted with anger and pain.
His voice cracked with anger.
“That’s why she is marrying him, isn’t it, Father? She’s grateful to the son of a bitch and she shows it by marrying him? Goddamn, is she crazy? Are you, Father? Do you have any idea what you are letting her do?”
“Okay, Alex, settle down. Let’s get a few things straight. Yes, Bai did save Elena’s life. She would have been brutally raped and killed by the four men who attacked her if Bai hadn’t killed them all. Not only that, but he saved her life a second time when the Rongue Ri tried to kill both her and Nianzu. They would have succeeded if Bai hadn’t arrived in time and killed their leader. You need to understand, Alex. We’ve come out of one of the fiercest uproars among the Tongs in years. Bai almost singlehandedly stopped the violence from becoming an all out war.”
Alex slammed his fist on the table knocking his glass to the floor where it shattered in pieces. He stood up, shaking with rage, and leaned over the table. His face was inches from his father’s. He spit out the words in his father’s face.
“I need to understand? No, Father, you need to understand! I will not let this happen. Do you hear me? I will not permit Elena to marry that man. He will destroy her like he destroys everything else.”
Wyatt sat back in his chair, his eyes hardening.
“Sit down, Alex. NOW.”
Alex stood for a moment, leaning over the table. Then, squeezing back angry tears, he sunk down in his chair, avoiding his father’s eyes.
Wyatt motioned to the Chinese man behind the bar to bring another glass and a bottle of whiskey. He reached over and filled Alex’s glass, then refilled his own. Wyatt sat quietly for several minutes, giving his son time to regain his composure. His eyes were soft, gentle. He loved this young man with all his heart. He understood the pain and confusion he was feeling. He also knew that Alex was wrong. He waited until Alex looked up and nodded that he was ready to listen.
<
br /> “Alex, you know Elena. The two of you have been inseparable even before you were born.” A shadow of distant pain tugged at Wyatt’s heart, remembering his young wife who died giving birth to the twins twenty years ago. Alex looked the most like Vivian. He had her blond hair and was the only one of Wyatt’s five children who didn’t have Wyatt’s trademark blue eyes. Like Vivian, Alex’s eyes were brown, almost black. Wyatt thought with a start that Vivian was only eighteen when she died, two years younger than the twins were now. He pushed back the old sadness and smiled at the son he loved.
“Hell, Alex, even though she kept you on a tight leash, everyone knows how close you and Elena are. I don’t think the two of you were apart more than a couple of days your whole lives. Until you went to China and Elena went to your grandfather’s compound to study with Dr. Oleong.
“Son, if anyone knows Elena, you do. No one ‘permits’ Elena to do anything. Hell, I haven’t tried since she was five years old when I gave in to the fact that all she had to do was flash those sapphire eyes at me and toss that red hair and I was a goner. But it’s more than that, Alex. Elena loves Bai. Three days from now, they will marry. Bai will be Elena’s husband and your brother-in-law.”
Alex’s face flushed as he visibly struggled to control his fury.
“Father, do you know who he is? Truly is? He is famous in China. Infamous! Notorious! Everyone is talking about him. He is a goddamn warlord. They call him the modern day Genghis Khan. Seizing territory, grabbing leadership, killing anyone who gets in his way. That’s how they see him in China, Father. He is despised, hated!”
Wyatt’s lips twisted in a half smile. Thinking back, he remembered how many people ascribed to him all the things Alex was saying about Bai. He asked in a mild voice, “Is it hatred they feel for him, Son? Or a combination of fear and respect, with a little envy thrown in?”
“I can’t believe you are saying that, Father. I can’t believe that you want Elena to be a part of that life. She has everything. She is beautiful. She is talented. She’s wealthy. She could have any man in the country and you are willing to let Bai have her? Subject her to his lifestyle?” He gripped the edge of the table with both hands and said in a harsh whisper, “Father, please tell me you will not let Elena marry that arrogant bastard. Please, Father?”
Wyatt looked his son in the eye. “Number one, Alex, Bai is not a bastard. He is my wife’s brother, your grandfather’s son. And, yeah, Alex, now that Bai has taken over for Wan, he is the leader of the Sing Leon, the largest and most violent Tong this side of China. I’m not surprised he is a legend in China. Hell, he’s one here in this country and he isn’t even thirty years old.”
Alex shook his head. His voice was bitter. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think you admire him, Father.”
“Alex, Bai saved Elena’s life twice. Not only that, when he was eighteen years old he saved Deshi’s life. Like me, he is a kung fu grandmaster. He lives that creed in every element of his life. You and Elena are both kung fu masters. You know first hand the discipline and talent it takes to be a grandmaster. Bai was a grandmaster at the age of seventeen, a record as far as I know.”
Pinning his son with a hard glare, Wyatt took a drag off his cigarette.
“Most important, Alex, Elena has chosen Bai to be her husband. She deeply loves him and he loves her. And yeah, Alex, I admire Bai. When he and Elena marry on Friday, I will be honored to call him my son-in-law.”
Alex stared at his father in disbelief. He sat frozen for a moment, then stood and stalked out of the tavern, unable to stop the frustrated tears that rolled down his cheeks.
Wyatt shook his head in resignation. Downing the last of his whiskey, he walked over to the bar and threw down several large bills.
The wizened up tavern owner, who had known Wyatt for years, smiled and bowed, acknowledging his generosity. Wyatt, the famed moneyman and former governor of Wyoming, was well-known in the Chinese community. Years ago, the Triads had ordered him killed for breaking the prohibition against non-Chinese practicing kung fu. Wyatt killed the assassin they sent and over the years killed his way to the top of their violent art and became a hero to the Chinese. His reputation was further enhanced when he married Lei Chang, the daughter of Wan Chang, the legendary leader of the Sing Leon. If that wasn’t enough, now his only daughter was about to marry the Frenchman, the closest thing to a folk hero among the immigrant Chinese, young and old alike.
“I have a question, governor. How come you’re the same good-looking son of a bitch you were twenty years ago? You gotta be pushing fifty.”
“Hell, Charlie, I been fifty for two years now.”
“And all you got is a little grey in that handsome head of yours? Christ, I think the women like that even better than the solid black. At least it seems so. I‘ve never seen a man attract as much attention from the ladies as you do. Hell, you walk down the street and every head turns.”
Wyatt grinned and his eyes twinkled.
“That’s what I mean, there’s that famous twinkle. Course you and I know that sparkle hides a hell of a lot of mischief. More than your share of danger, right, governor?” He added with a grin, “But whether they’ll admit it or not, the ladies love a dangerous man.”
“You oughta know, Charlie. You have almost as many kills under your belt as I do. Hell, what are you on? Your fifth or your sixth wife?”
Charlie’s wrinkled up face cracked in a wide smile. He said with mock dismay, “Never did figure out to bed ‘em, not wed ‘em.”
Wyatt laughed and threw another bill on the bar. Charlie picked it up with a grateful nod and stuffed it in the drawer. He looked at Wyatt with a knowing smile.
“That your oldest son, governor?”
“Yeah, Charlie. That’s Alex, Elena’s twin brother. He just got back from six months in China.”
“Just in time for the big wedding?”
“Yep, Charlie. Just in time for the wedding.”
“It don’t seem like your boy is real happy about the wedding, governor.”
Wyatt sighed, then grinned at the old man.
“You know how brothers are, Charlie. Possessive as hell. They think no one is good enough for their sisters.”
Charlie nodded in sympathy.
“Ain’t that the truth, Wyatt. Ain’t that the truth.”
Wyatt nodded in return and clapped his arm around the old man’s shoulder. He gave him a friendly hug then walked out to the wharf to help Alex and his men load Alex’s trunks in the waiting cart.
~~~
Wyatt and Alex rode up to the villa that Bai was renovating for Elena. It was on the outskirts of San Francisco, bordering the vineyards Wan and Bai bought five years earlier. Bai bought the magnificent villa as a wedding present for Elena. For months, scores of workmen frantically worked to ready the Spanish hacienda and surrounding grounds according to Bai’s exacting specifications. The twenty thousand acre compound stretched from the edge of the city to the rolling hills surrounding the vineyards. It included desert flatlands, grassy mesas, rocky canyons, and vegetation of every variety, from towering pines to desert scrub.
Alex was overwhelmed by the beauty of the villa. It was extraordinary. He was accustomed to wealth and opulence, but this was beyond even his father’s Wyoming ranch and Wan Chang’s palatial home. Everything about this complex spoke to superb craftsmanship and sophisticated understanding of the marriage between beauty, comfort, and understated elegance. Plagued with resentment, Alex knew it was Bai’s vision and taste that made it what it was. Knowing that Bai created it for Elena, he tried to choke down his jealousy, stifle the rage that threatened to consume him.
~~~
Alex saw his grandfather, Wan Chang, standing in the courtyard waiting for him. Nearing seventy, the only sign of Wan’s age was his head of steal gray hair. A lifetime of daily kung fu practice had kept his body as lean and strong as a twenty year old. Alex took a deep breath when the legendary Tong leader’s normally stern face softened and his eyes mis
ted when he caught sight of him. Alex had been a serious child, vulnerable to his outrageous sister’s every whim. He had always looked up to Wan with adoring eyes – hoping for his approval.
Alex remembered the first time he had dared to look to the imposing Tong leader for approval. When his father and Lei married, their son, Deshi, crawled up on Wan’s lap and said in his two year old lisp, “I lover you granfatter.”
Alex had stepped back, not able to hide his tears. But his ever irrepressible sister, Elena, stared at the stern Chinese man and, lifting her little defiant chin, asked, “Are you Deshi’s grandfather?” When he nodded, she demanded, “What about me? And what about Alex? Are you our grandfather, too?”
Wan had looked at the two little white children and said, “Yes, I am. Why do you have to ask?” He reached out and pulled Elena to him. His voice was rough with emotion.
“You are my first granddaughter, Elena.” Alex had been cowering shyly behind Elena, but Wan reached out and hugged him. With a solemn look that Alex never forgot, he added, “And, you, Alex, are my first grandson.”
Wan never looked at the two of them any less adoringly than he did at Deshi and then at the twins, when Gabriel and Jacob were born. He played with the little dark haired mixed Chinese children who were more obviously related to him, but he never treated them with more love than he showered on the red haired hoyden and her serious blond haired brother. He and Elena returned his love unquestioningly. Only when he was much older and knew the complexity of his grandfather’s violent life in a hostile unwelcoming country, did Alex understand the leap that Wan Chang had taken loving all of them, most especially Elena and himself.
~~~
Alex saw Wan coming toward him and seeing the love and joy on the old man’s face as he strode toward him, his arms outstretched, Alex’s mood lightened. Squashing his anger, he gave himself over to the strength and love he felt in his grandfather’s embrace.