The way she said vampire made his muscles clench. He took a deep breath and bowed his head.
“I am an Eternal Heart,” he said. “I don’t understand how it is, but when my sire fed on me, my heart did not stop beating, and I remained physically a normal man except for my taste for blood and the fact that my body didn’t age.” He looked up at her and saw her staring at him, wide-eyed. “I, too, was fed upon against my will, Lily. I was in a cave, deep in meditation when a vampire came in. I didn’t know what he was, but he frightened me. He put me in a thrall, rendered me helpless, and then fed until I was undead, like him.”
He studied Lily’s face for her reaction and swore he saw a touch of softening in her eyes. “Perhaps because of some good karma I earned, I did not become a bloodthirsty creature. I could never feed simply for pleasure or survival, but only to ease another’s suffering. I’ve met another like myself, and he told me there were even more of us on this earth. But I have avoided them and any other vampires, wishing only to find redemption…” He bowed his head again. “…which was the cause of my search for a teacher.”
Lily didn’t answer, and he peered up.
She turned her back and paced several steps. “Why did you lie?” The question did not sound angry. Lily’s voice was thick with grief.
He watched her back and ached to take her in his arms, knowing that was probably the last thing in the world she would allow. “At first, I didn’t think it mattered. The gambling den was full of kith and kin. It seemed that neither of us was an ordinary mortal. And then, when I came near you for the first time, I suspected from your scent, so sweet and potent, that you were an immortal woman. When I saw your dreams, the way your flesh healed when cut, I knew for certain.”
She paused, as if she wanted to turn around and embrace him, then he felt her tense again. “Fair enough. But then after I told you what happened to me, about Xu Yu, what then?”
Lily expected Tenzin to fall at her feet, to beg and plead, and explain himself. To her surprise, he only bowed his head.
“I have no excuse, Lily. I can only say that I became terrified of losing you once I told you the truth. After learning of what you’d suffered, I was certain you’d turn me away.” He paused, and she heard him breathe a deep sigh. “I’ve been on this Earth nearly a thousand years, searching and yearning and suffering, I’d finally found the one person with whom I felt some peace. I was wrong to conceal the truth from you. I’m sorry.”
She sighed. As usual, his humble willingness to express remorse made her yin respond. She forced herself to think of Fei Liu, to let her grief squeeze out everything else. “So, is that what you did for Fei Liu? Eased her suffering by feeding on her?” She heard mild accusation in her tone but couldn’t help herself. Even though she could not deny the smile on Fei Liu’s lips or the way the dying woman had giggled rather than moaned in her death throes, Tenzin had lied.
“Yes, Lily.” His eyes brightened. “Usually a soul takes many hours to transition, but Fei Liu took only moments. She was already happy because she’d been your pupil and had earned her Tigress tattoo.”
Lily gasped. “She spoke to you?”
He nodded and bowed his head as if his admission would earn her anger. “She did. She said she’d experienced Heaven because of you and was ready to pass on.”
The strength drained from Lily’s body, and she sank to her knees. In a flash, Tenzin’s hands were on her arms, and he knelt in front of her. Fresh tears slipped from her eyes.
Tenzin’s arms closed around her. She felt their gentle strength and allowed herself to sag against him. She couldn’t deny herself the comfort of having someone there, at her side, willing to help her and protect her this way.
“Fei Liu died because of me,” she whispered. She couldn’t speak at full voice from the thickness of tears. “It’s my fault.” Without thinking, she pulled back, grasped Tenzin’s arms and squeezed hard. “Wei Yen is going to try and kill more of my Tigresses, Tenzin. I know it. Please, you must take them away from here. You and Fen Chow. Protect my women. She’ll kill them all. I know her.” Panic flooded, icy hot, through her body.
Tenzin looked at her, and then his normally gentle features hardened. His eyes narrowed. “I can’t leave you alone here. I won’t.”
Panic made cold prickles along her skin. A sudden wave of anger gripped her. “How dare you refuse! How dare you not help me, after the way you lied!”
His eyes pained, for a moment, then he squared his shoulders. “I won’t leave you here to face a vampire alone.”
Lily jerked back, out of Tenzin’s hands. “I slew her father. No one was there to help me. Where were you? Not there, not in that bed with me when he raped me over and over! I am strong. Humans are not so strong. You know that.” She took a deep breath. The even expression in his eyes, the stubborn set to his jaw was as maddening as it was oddly comforting. A man who stood by his truth no matter what was a man to be trusted. Even when he’d lied…
“I have money. Plenty of money,” she went on. “Take them on a train to Foshan, to my teacher. Master Wong will take them in. I’ll give you money, enough to keep them all fed, clothed, and sheltered so that Master Wong will not need to treat them as charity.” She gave him a hard look. “Tenzin, promise me you’ll do this. Promise me you’ll take them to Master Wong.”
He looked up at her. His dark gaze locked with hers, and Lily found herself trapped in the torrent of emotion she saw burning in his irises.
Just then a knock sounded on the door. It couldn’t be a servant. The servants had all fled in fear. “Who is it?”
“Ye Cao.”
“Come in.”
The door opened, and Ye Cao, the woman who’d helped Jade after her beating, appeared, bearing a tray with a steaming pot. “Jade told me to make this for you. An infusion to calm you.” She shuffled in and set it on the table.
“Thank you.” The young woman poured the steaming tea into two small cups and then set the pot down.
Lily could hear by the girl’s breathing that she was horribly shaken and had been crying. She crossed over to her and placed a soft hand on her shoulder. Ye Cao looked up at her briefly. Her eyes showed gratitude at Lily’s kind gesture.
“Listen, you must collect your belongings and prepare for a journey. Tenzin is going to take all of you to safety.”
The girl’s mouth flew open, and she looked, wide-eyed, at Tenzin. “But mistress!” He’s a…he’s a ‑‑”
Lily waved a hand. “I will not debate, nor will I entertain any doubts or fears about one of my students. Go and tell the others what I said and collect everyone here in my study.”
Ye Cao’s lips worked as if she were about to voice an objection, but she bowed and retreated.
Lily turned immediately to Tenzin. “I’m sorry for Ye Cao. She’s a foolish girl. Her response to you was below a Tigress.”
He bowed his head. “I understand.”
She sighed. Well, Ye Cao did not know that she and Tenzin had reached Heaven together. Ye Cao did not know of the heights of bliss Tenzin had brought Lily’s body or the level of devotion he’d showed after only two days, supporting and encouraging her spiritual progress. Lily hitched a breath as the realization hit her. With the exception of physical practices to contain his yang force, Tenzin had already fulfilled the role of Jade Dragon.
She glanced at Tenzin again, at the patient way he stood close to her. She did not expect the warm tingle of affection that flooded her in that moment. Heaving a deep breath, she looked away. Now was not the time for such fancies.
She resumed her pacing, walking fiercely as if she could outrun her grief. The very thing she’d worked so hard to prevent had happened. A vampire had violated the sanctity of her school and murdered her most beloved student. Her cubs relied on the Tigress school to protect them from the outside world, and now they were in the gravest danger ever. She didn’t dare to imagine how much worse it could have been had Tenzin not rushed in and killed the creature.
<
br /> Wait. Tenzin had not killed the creature. Not really. He’d simply touched him, and the vampire had run in fear, a fear great enough to drive him into the sunlight.
She turned to Tenzin. His eyes had returned to their normal velvety brown hue. The incisors she’d seen him bare at the murdering vampire had retracted, and he appeared as normal a man as she’d ever seen.
“Tenzin, why did that vampire run from you? Why did it go out into the sunlight to get away from you?”
He shook his head. “I don’t know. My sire ran from me the same way, moments after he made me immortal. He tried to seduce me, but I didn’t want to be with him. I did not want to follow his ways. I knew even then.”
Lily stared at him. She didn’t realize he took her silence for anger until he bowed his head.
“I’m sorry, Lily,” he said quietly.
Again, his humility softened her. He must have sensed it for he lifted his gaze.
Before she knew what was happening, he closed a hand gently on her shoulder.
Her eyelids fluttered as the warmth of his touch invaded her, a pleasant wave that made her skin tingle. Unbidden, guilt stabbed her. “You knew I was an immortal. I kept my identity secret from you as well.”
“Yes, but it didn’t matter to me.”
She opened her eyes and looked at him. “You don’t care that I lied by omission?”
His dark eyes regarded her with a blend of sympathy and placid observance. “No. I don’t care what you are. Or what I am. Not anymore.”
His words made a shiver travel down her spine. She didn’t dare turn and look into those deep, simmering eyes. “What are we, Tenzin?” she whispered, both scared and thrilled at what she’d hear.
Several moments passed with only the sound of the birds in the courtyard trees.
“We are…friends.”
Lily stared at him as the word spiraled through her consciousness. Friends…
“Mistress Lily!” Jade’s voice cut in before she could respond.
Lily turned to see the women crowding through the doorway.
Jade ran up to her. “We won’t leave you!” The Tigress clutched at Lily’s arm. The physical contact conveyed to Lily how panicked her student was. Behind Jade, the other women’s cries filled the room. Seeming to abandon all propriety, they crowded around her.
Grief stabbed Lily’s heart. She glanced at Tenzin, then at Fen Chow, who stood in the doorway, an expectant look on his face.
“Please, quiet!” Lily begged, a finger to her lips. When they’d quieted down, she touched Jade’s cheek. “I love all of you, and it kills me to do this, but I couldn’t live with myself if anything happened to you. You must stay with Tenzin and Fen Chow. Obey them.”
“When will we see you again?” Ye Cao cried.
Lily sighed. They just didn’t understand. But how could they possibly? “I don’t know. Please, go. You must be on the train to Foshan well before sunset.”
Fresh collective sobbing broke out among the Tigresses. Lily let them cry for a few minutes, and then shushed them again. She looked at Tenzin with a please help me expression. He nodded and assisted her in herding the women back out into the courtyard. Lily followed, caught up in the crowd as they made their way into the main hall, to the front door. At the door she stopped and turned.
“Please, hush. Remember all you’ve been taught. You’re Tigresses. That’s all that really matters. Now go, hurry, I beg you.” She gestured to Fen Chow to open the large front door and embraced each woman as she passed through. All the women’s eyes were red, and their cheeks stained with tears.
Tenzin came to stand before her. She looked up into his eyes. Friends. The word he’d used to describe their relationship echoed in her mind. She ached to believe he was her friend. In this situation, she was forced to trust him, no matter what he truly was. “Take good care of them,” she said softly.
“I will.” His look hardened slightly. “What will you do, Lily?”
She sighed. “I have a slaying knife. I will have to fight her.”
Tenzin grasped her arm. He didn’t need words, for the firm clutch of his fingers in her skin conveyed his distress. “I am angered that you won’t let me stay with you. You’re using my guilt against me. You realize that?”
She locked stares with him. Words froze on her lips.
His eyes simmered and glowed, not with bloodlust but with his obvious emotions. “Is this my punishment for having lied to you?”
Unbidden, images of him rose in her mind, memories of Tenzin touching her, kissing and caressing her. Never before had she experienced such heated depths in another being. No one had ever treated her with such care and appreciation. Now that was over. They’d been to Heaven together, and she might never see him again. The thought left her as desolate as had Fei Liu’s death.
We’re friends, Lily.
She resisted the overwhelming need to throw her arms around him. “No, Tenzin. I don’t wish to punish you. It’s…it’s…”
“It’s what?”
She blinked back tears. “You’re the only person in the world I can trust with my precious Tigresses.”
His eyes softened. Emotions shifted like a kaleidoscope through the rich amber color of his irises “I will keep them safe, Lily. I promise.” He leaned down and pressed a soft kiss on her lips.
His tenderness almost undid her. Against her will, Lily closed her eyes and let her mouth linger against his.
Slowly, he lifted away from her. One last silent look, and then he went through the gate.
Chapter Fifteen
The Tigress crouches low beneath the dragon, then leaps to seize the Jade Essence.
‑‑ Madame Lin from The White Tigress Manual
Tenzin watched Lily disappear behind the heavy door. He suppressed an impulse to run back, to pound on the door and demand that she let him in, but the sounds of female sniffles behind him made him turn.
He’d made a promise.
Looking out at the group of tearstained faces, he gestured. “We must go now. The nearest train station is at least a fifteen minute’s walk from here.” He passed to the front of the group and started walking.
A small hand on his arm stopped him. He turned and found himself looking down into Jade’s large eyes.
She pulled her hand away as if she’d committed a crime and bowed her head. “Tenzin, please, don’t make us leave. Lily is everything to us. She saved us. I can’t abandon her.”
Her strength and loyalty was admirable, but… “I promised Lily I’d take you to safety. I’m sorry.”
He took a step, but Jade blocked his way. “Please. Let us hide in Plum House. We’ll keep it locked up and dark. No one need know we’re there. You promised her to keep us safe. I heard you. That isn’t breaking your promise. If she needs us, we’ll be close by.”
Tenzin clenched his jaw. “I don’t know.”
“Please.”
He looked down at his feet, at his dusty black canvas shoes against the dirt. Truthfully, he was determined to bring the women to Foshan because he didn’t want to risk angering Lily. But…well…Jade was right.
* * * * *
Back in her bedchamber, Lily closed the door and sighed. She filled a bowl of water and washed her face. Then she pinned up her hair, bound her breasts and changed into a blouse and trousers. One could not fight effectively in a nightgown.
Once dressed, she retrieved her slaying knife from its hiding place under her bed and went back to sit with Fei Liu’s body and to wait for Wei Yen.
Hot tears crowded Lily’s eyes as she knelt by Fei Liu. Someone ‑‑ probably Tenzin ‑‑ had cleaned the blood off her Tigress’s face and neck and had removed her torn clothing, replacing it with a white sheet.
Quietly, she sat, head bowed. “I’m sorry,” she whispered to Fei Liu. “I failed you horribly.”
Reaching out, Lily put her hand over one of Fei Liu’s. The woman’s skin was already much cooler. Lily closed her eyes as her tears slipped down her che
eks. Unbidden, images of the hellish scene replayed in her mind. Over and over again, Lily saw the vampire look up, eyes glowing, lips and chin dripping with her Tigress’s blood.
She squeezed her eyes shut against the onslaught of images. Truthfully, the only thing that brought her any comfort at all was the faint smile still on Fei Liu’s lips and the knowledge that Tenzin had brought Fei Liu pleasure and sweetness as she passed into death.
Lily caressed the dead woman’s delicate hand. Fei Liu had been born into a wealthy family, one that had disowned her because her husband complained that Fei Liu did not please him. Fei Liu had heard about Lily’s school through the servant’s gossip mill. Apparently, Wife Number Three of Fei Liu’s household had been in one of Lily’s classes and spoken about it to a friend when she thought no one was listening.
Either way, Fei Liu had shown up on Lily’s doorstep, alone and penniless. Within weeks, she’d shown promise on the path and devoted herself, body and soul. Fei Liu had been the first and only student so far to earn her Tigress’s tattoo because she’d proven able to meditate her way into ecstasy without a partner’s stimulation.
Lily bowed her head and whispered prayers. She realized the soft chanting she uttered was more for her own comfort than Fei Liu’s, not only because Fei Liu’s spirit had passed on according to Tenzin, but because the stillness of his presence lingered. The gentle energy generated by his devotions resounded softly in the air. Fei Liu had been well tended to in her last moments and afterward.
A cascade of warm tingling qi swirled in Lily’s chest. The energy traveled up the back of her neck and continued its whirling to the very top of her head. Peace flooded her. She took a deep breath and replaced Fei Liu’s hand onto the bed. She looked into Fei Liu’s still face. In that moment, any lingering hurt from Tenzin’s lie vanished ‑‑
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