“I haven’t met any of them in this lifetime, but I’ve come across plenty of their agents.”
“How do they know about the book?”
“They are all of them protectors like you.”
Ana pulled away from Lee. “They’re nothing like me.”
“Take it easy.” Lee grabbed her arm and looked into her eyes. “Of course they are not like you. I just meant that at one time they were protectors, and as such, are also linked to the book. At some point they coveted its power for their own purposes.”
“What purposes?”
Lee let go of Ana’s arm. “I don’t know. You’ll have to figure that out. My task is to gather the others to defend the book.” Lee scanned the road again. “We need to get to the car. I’ll explain more when we’re in a safe place.”
***
“This looks like something an old man would drive.” Ana glared at the bulky, beige Mercury.
“Exactly.” Lee held the door open for her. “Get in.”
Ana slid in and took the bag from Lee once she was seated. He shut the door and walked around to the driver’s side. At least it was comfortable, she thought.
Lee started the big sedan and turned on the lights. He backed the car down the drive and out onto the gravel road. Ana noticed they were going in the opposite direction of the highway.
“Where are we headed?”
“There’s a little town about thirty miles from here. We can get a room for the night and get some rest before we head for the airport.”
“Airport? Won’t I need some ID to get on a plane?”
Lee cocked an eyebrow at her. “Didn’t I say I planned this for several months? Don’t worry. I’ve made all the arrangements. Just sit back and try to relax.”
“Where are we flying to?”
“Germany.”
“Germany? Why Germany?”
“Call it a gut instinct.” Lee gave the car a little more gas. “Now quit asking so many questions, and try to get some rest.”
Ana let her body slide back into the seat. Her shoulders relaxed and she gazed out at the stars, remembering another night with this man beside her in a much different time and place.
Wang Xu
Xi Shi met the water with the same determination that drove her to steal the book from the Emperor. She was like a spear cutting through the air, swirling deeper and deeper into darkness, facing the unknown willingly. How far she went below the water before righting herself she did not know. She only knew once she broke the surface, she would be reborn. A lifetime of doing the bidding of cruel men would come to an end. No more courts and courtesans, no more coy smiles and feigned attractions, only steadfastness of purpose and destruction to all those who stood in her way. Only one man would she allow to guide and counsel her from this day forward. She rushed upward to meet him.
Her head escaped the silky tendrils of the cool waters. Treading water, she shook her head, whipping her long black hair out of her face. Her vision still blurry, she blinked several times and wiped at her eyes, before scanning the river for signs of the boat.
Her flight from the soldiers had driven her off course, exactly how far she was not certain. The high cliffs and thick trees along the river shielded much of the water from the light of the moon. The shadows and the water were as one. Far above her, the soldiers, like confused monkeys, pointed and flailed their arms. She hoped their confusion would give her more time to escape.
The tiny cuts and scrapes on her arms and legs started to sting. She was tiring. Should she continue treading water or swim for the shore? The only problem was, she wasn’t entirely certain about which direction she went off course. Was the boat now downstream or upstream? Had Wang Xu heard the commotion and her plunge into the water? Was he heading for her now, or was he still waiting for her at the shore where they had arranged to meet.
A gentle pressure radiated from her waist and sent ripples of warmth out toward her feet. The tension that had been there previously melted away. The book gave her strength, renewed her. To the east, Protector. Without hesitation Xi Shi swam, feeling the book pressed tightly against her waist in the little leather pouch. The book’s will became hers. Her eyes became portals unto its presence, scanning the shore looking for what it knew to be there. What was it that inhabited this artifact? Was the book guided by the heavens, was it forged by gods?
Xi Shi saw the white caps of the parting water before she actually saw the boat. Then as it passed out from beneath a low bank of clouds, the two paneled sails caught the moonlight. The boat moved through the water with astonishing speed. She threw her arm over her head and called out. The sails shifted almost imperceptibly from force exerted on a series of ropes running from the battens back toward the stern of the vessel. Before her extensive training with Master Jang, Xi Shi would never have known anything about boats, much less their individual parts.
The men on deck pulled on the ropes. A figure with a lantern and a pole was at the bow. She knew him to be Wang Xu. He had found her. He set the lantern on the edge of the boat and raised the long pole over his head before dropping one end into the water. She swam toward it, bringing herself alongside the hull.
The pole struck the palm of her outstretched hand and she quickly grasped it. The momentum of the boat pulled her faster than she had gauged, and her back slammed against the unforgiving timbers of the hull. Keeping a firm grip on the pole, she brought her other arm out of the water and grappled for another handhold. When she was confident in her grip, she kicked her legs against the boat and twisted her body around so that she was looking up at Wang Xu.
He nodded to her and leaned back. She kept her feet pressed against the hull and pulled herself hand over hand up toward the deck. When at last she crested the railing, he grabbed her arm, dropped the pole, and then put his other hand in the small of her back. She collapsed in his arms, propelling him backwards to the deck.
“Welcome aboard, my Princess.” His dark eyes betrayed his relief.
Xi Shi pressed herself up off of his muscled chest and sat on her knees. “My course was altered.”
“Yet still I found you.” He sat up, looking into her eyes. “And the book?”
She patted her waist, feeling the faintest response. “Why did you not tell me there was no easy way out of the temple?” He looked into her eyes. She thought he must have been weighing his words carefully.
“You are the protector. I knew the book would guide you.” He stood and offered her his hand. “Forgive me?”
She waited a moment before taking his hand. “Do you have some dry clothes for me?”
He started to smile, then probably noticing her seriousness, nodded and gestured toward an opening in the deck. “Your quarters are below deck. I have a fresh robe and slippers for you.”
She pulled the leather pouch from beneath her wet, clinging clothes, and handed it to Wang Xu. He put up his hands and stepped back.
“I do not believe it is wise for one of the uninitiated to touch the book?”
“Why not?”
“How did it feel when you touched the book for the first time?” He studied her face.
She thought for a moment. “It felt as though lightning was coursing through my veins.”
He raised his eyebrows and nodded. “Imagine what it might feel like to one who cannot be attuned to its mighty power. Even at a distance I can sense its relentless energy.”
Xi Shi realized for the first time, she now only felt a warm and gentle sensation when she handled the book. Had she become attuned to it in such a short time?
He seemed to be studying her face again. “I can see that you are confused. The reason that you can handle the book at all is because you were attuned to it when it was brought from the heavens ages ago.”
“How can that be? I know that I have been others, but is it possible I was there at the beginning?” She clutched the book to her chest, feeling its gentle warmth flow through her.
> “I know only what Master Jang told me of the book and the protectors. My only link to the great book is through the protectors. I am only a gatherer, your humble servant.” He bowed.
So many questions. So many things she did not understand. She started to ask him something else, but he shook his head.
“I will tell you more of what I know later. For now I have preparations to make.” He glanced past her to the shore and back again. “We must make haste to the mouth of the river and out to the sea before the Emperor’s men cut us off.” He guided her toward the stairs leading below deck. “Refresh yourself. I will come for you when we are ready for the sea voyage.”
She nodded and made her way down the stairs. Oil lamps hung from the ceiling, throwing shadows out like writhing snakes with each rock of the boat. Even with her slight stature, she had to duck to avoid the lamps.
This part of the boat seemed to be more for supplies than accommodations. She wondered how comfortable they would be on the long journey at sea. Wang Xu hadn’t told her exactly where they were headed, only that it was halfway around the world. She knew only that they were to return the book to a place of power.
She saw a small door toward the back of the room. It took her a moment to push it open as it caught at the edges, scraping and screeching in complaint. Once inside, she closed the door behind her and lay down on a reed mat in the middle of the floor. Wang Xu had left her a silken, ivory robe hanging beside the door and an intricately stitched pair of matching slippers beneath it. She set the book beside her and stared up at the ceiling. The floor moved from side to side ever so slightly. She was so tired. Rest, protector. Rest and renew for the journey ahead. She obeyed the book and let herself slip into sleep.
***
Xi Shi awoke seconds before she rolled into the wall, giving her just enough time to throw her hands in front of her face before impact. Wood creaked and groaned and a weak, flickering light danced throughout the tiny room. She braced herself against the wall and managed to get into a crouching position. The leather pouch had travelled with her across the room. Had the motion brought her out of her sleep or was it the book? She picked up the pouch and tucked it back beneath her robes. The book made no effort to enlighten her.
She staggered a bit before getting her footing on the angled floor. Noises were coming to her from above. She pulled open the door and let it fall against the wall. The outer room was mostly dark; the only light was that of the moon filtering down from the opening in the deck. Several figures ran across her field of vision. Wang Xu’s voice could be heard above the din. He was telling the sailors to steer for the opposite shore.
Something rolled against her foot as she started to walk toward the stairs. She knelt down and picked it up, and examined it in the dim light. It was a dagger encased in a jade scabbard. The boat pitched hard again, throwing her backward into the wall. She tucked the dagger down into the leather pouch, regained her footing and headed up to the deck.
Just as she got her head above the opening, a line of fiery light whistled past her.
“Keep low!” Wang Xu motioned to her with one hand as he kept the other on a railing.
She heard more whistling noises and soon discovered their source. Flaming arrows were ripping into the sails. The aft sail was almost completely engulfed in flames. The crewmen were doing their best to pull hard on the ropes controlling the only usable sail.
Keeping her head low, Xi Shi looked beyond the sails to the opposite side of the river. There on the cliffs she could see a line of lights. Archers were firing on them from above. More arrows whistled through the night air and found their targets on the beleaguered boat. Fire was erupting from everywhere. She knew they didn’t have much time.
She pressed her palm against the leather pouch and called out to the book, 'if it is in your power to do so, help us.' The reply was instantaneous. The power is within you protector. With those words a great surge of energy bounded through her body. She was possessed by a raging animal instinct, yet her thoughts were clear, laid before her.
The boat pitched again, throwing one of the sailors overboard. Wang Xu took the man’s place on the ropes and was pulled halfway across the deck for his efforts. Xi Shi leapt onto the deck and ran to his side.
“I told you to stay down.” He strained against the ropes as she clung to a railing.
“Your efforts here are hopeless. We must make our retreat.” She looked past him to the cliffs where the archers were perched. “Have any of the Emperor’s soldiers attacked from the other shore?”
“No.”
“Leave the boat to burn. We must swim ashore.” She turned and threw her leg over the railing.
“Wait!” He kept his grip on the ropes. “We need to make it to the sea. It is our only chance.”
She smiled. “Is the river the only route to the sea?”
He let go of the ropes. The sail snapped back and the boat rocked in the opposite direction. Wang Xu called to the remaining crew. “Abandon ship!”
Xi Shi didn’t wait. She knew he would follow her to the ends of the Earth. She dove into the water and headed for shore, the boat ablaze behind her.
Calm Before the Storm
Ana opened her eyes, not sure of where she was or what had awakened her. A faint line of early morning light filtered through blue, threadbare curtains on the opposite wall. Lee was asleep in an uncomfortable looking, stuffed chair next to the front door. He was still wearing the clothes he had on the night before, as was she, and one of the handguns rested in his lap.
She sat up and pulled the covers off of herself, and hung her feet over the side of the bed. At least he had taken her shoes off. Ana rubbed at her neck in a futile attempt to stifle the dull ache gradually getting sharper the longer she sat upright.
“How do you feel?” Lee’s words startled her and caused her to jerk her neck to the side, which didn’t do anything for the pain.
“My neck is pretty sore, but considering we rolled a rather large van at high-speed, I feel remarkably well.”
Lee set the gun on an end table next to the chair and came to her on the bed. He sat next to her and began massaging her neck and shoulders in gentle circles. The tension between her shoulders subsided and the ache in her neck began to decrease.
“The protectors are made of stronger stuff than most.”
Ana raised an eyebrow. “How do you mean?”
“It is said that the protectors are fortified with the essence of the book.” Lee continued rubbing her neck and shoulders, tracing spiral patterns over the surface of her body.
“So we are part of it and it is part of us?” Ana let her head droop forward, giving in to the sensual touch of her companion.
“Something like that.” He pressed harder in between her shoulder blades. “I don’t know exactly how it works, but I’ve seen the evidence.”
“Evidence?”
“The first time I saw you die, it took nearly seven men to kill you.”
Ana tensed. She turned around and looked at Lee. His arms fell to his sides. He had a distant and melancholy look in his eyes. When he noticed she was looking at him, he turned away. Had there been tears?
Ana placed a hand on his. “What do you mean the first time you saw me die?”
Lee looked back toward Ana, but didn’t meet her eyes. “I’ve failed you so many times, Ana. It is my task to gather you and the other protectors unto the book, but it is also my task to protect you.”
Ana squeezed his hand. The connection between them was palpable, a connection that had existed through the ages. Even though she had only met this man a few days ago, she knew their souls were bound together. His touch brought centuries of memories flooding back to the surface. Above all others, he loved her, worshipped her, longed to be near her.
She pushed him back on the bed, pressed her moist lips against his, and eased his pain.
***
When Ana came out of the shower, Lee was already d
ressed. He handed her a towel, and set some clean clothes on the counter for her. She caught his gentle smile reflected in the foggy mirror and returned it.
“I’ll leave you to get dressed. We have a few hours before we need to check in at the airport.”
She started to ask him which airport, but he left her alone, closing the door behind him. Ana slipped on a pair of near perfect fitting jeans and a delicate, ivory blouse that looked as though it was custom tailored. The reflection in the mirror was that of another woman. A confident woman. A beautiful woman. For fifteen years, all she had worn were ill-fitting patient uniforms and plain white sneakers. Now she regarded her figure as it should have always been.
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