Promise of the Opal (Gemstones Book 1)

by Lyra Shanti

  "Where's who?" his friend replied, his voice quivering in fear.

  Gan curled his lip as Ji Wei looked away from his master's eyes. "Look at me, and tell me the truth," Gan commanded.

  Slowly, Ji Wei turned his face, and they locked eyes. Gan gasped as he realized Ji Wei had exactly the same fiery, orange eye color as the mysterious woman he'd been chasing for weeks. Why hadn't he noticed before?

  "Dear gods, you are her! But… how is it possible?" said Gan, breathing out of rhythm.

  Ji Wei broke from Gan and covered his face with his hands. "You don't want to know," he said, sliding down the tree.

  Gan wanted to be angry; he thought he should be. But instead, he felt a mix of pity and confusion. This was his most trustworthy friend, but also the beautiful thief he desired. He didn't understand how or why, but they were one and the same.

  "Tell me the truth, Ji Wei. Are you under a curse?"

  His friend looked up from his hands and nodded, tears falling from his eyes. "I was born this way."

  Gan sat in front of his sad friend and crossed his legs. "Are you a woman or a man? What are you?"

  Ji Wei sighed. "I'm neither… and both. It depends on my mood and how strong the magic of the moon feels."

  Gan cocked his head. "The magic of the moon? Does it command you? Are you a demon?"

  "No!" Ji Wei almost yelled.

  "I'm sorry," said Gan. "I'm just trying to understand"

  Ji Wei sighed and wiped the tears from his eyes. "I'm what they call a huli jing. I'm a fox spirit. I don't know how I became this way, but I've always been able to change back and forth. I think it was my wayward father who carried this curse, though he must have hidden it well from my mother. He left us when I was very young, and my mother never suspected he was a fox spirit… until I was born, that is. I tried my best to hide this from you… all these years. But it hasn't been easy. I'm so sorry, my lord, to deceive you. Please forgive me!"

  Gan didn't know what to say. Dumbfounded, he sat in silence for a few minutes, trying his best to comprehend his friend's unbelievable story.

  “So… you're a fox spirit? I never believed such stories, but I'm starting to realize there is more to this world than we know.”

  Ji Wei nodded and sighed. “You speak the truth, my lord.”

  “Please, call me Gan. After the intimate night we shared when you were in your female form, I think formality is no longer required.”

  “I'm so sorry, my... Gan. Please, call me Wei in return… And I swear I didn't mean to seduce you.”

  Gan crossed his arms and gave Ji Wei a skeptical frown. “You didn't mean to seduce me? Really? You obviously had a plan to steal my ring. I think seducing me was very much what you meant to do. The question is, why did you want my ring so badly that you had to go to such extremes?”’

  Ji Wei looked up at the stars and gave another sigh. “What if I liked it?”

  “Liked what? My ring?”

  “Well, I do think it's pretty, but no… I meant seducing you. What if I love you more than a friend or servant would? Would you hate me if I told you that I've wished I could be your wife since we were children?”

  Gan didn't know what to say. Had Ji Wei always loved him? How could he have missed the signs? “I'm so sorry, Wei, but even if you had taken female form, my wife was chosen for me by my father. Any other pairing was not allowed.”

  Ji Wei nodded sadly. “I know. But… did you love her? Did she complete your soul?”

  Gan sighed. “My wife was beautiful and smart, and I loved her dearly… but no, she did not complete me. Close, perhaps, but... To be honest, I'm not sure I can be completed. I am full of anger and sadness, my friend. It seems impossible for anyone to truly balance my rage.”

  Gan couldn't help but think about his white-haired priest, the one he lovingly called his yin. They certainly gave each other sexual and spiritual fulfillment, but did they complete each other? Gan still wasn't sure.

  As if reading his mind, Ji Wei said, “Does your priest friend complete you?”

  Gan rubbed his forehead in frustration. “Wei, I do not believe one person can balance another’s soul entirely. It is impossible. One must do that for oneself.”

  Ji Wei looked down at his feet, pouting. “You complete my soul, my lord.”

  Gan took a deep breath, then swiftly sat in front of Ji Wei and grabbed him by the shoulders. “Why did you steal my ring, Wei? Answer me truthfully, and I might believe you really love me. But lie to me, and I will never speak to you again.”

  Ji Wei looked alarmed with big, bright eyes. “I… I cannot tell you... or he will know, and he will destroy everything I love.”

  Gan sneered. “Did ‘he’ make you steal it? Who is forcing you to do their bidding, my dear friend?”

  Ji Wei looked down. “I cannot say his name. He'll hear me and know that I'm betraying his command.”

  Gan was beyond frustrated. “Can you at least tell me why he wanted my ring?”

  “He wants…” Ji Wei stopped short as he wrung his hands together.

  “He wants what?”

  Looking as though it was physically painful to describe, the fox spirit turned to face Gan, his orange eyes determined and fierce. “He wants to destroy you… and he’s obsessed with the white-haired priest. He's crazy. I think he believes it's his destiny to kill those who carry the souls of dragons.”

  Gan’s face distorted in disbelief. “His destiny?”

  Ji Wei nodded with a worried expression. “Yes. He thinks the priest is the white dragon, and you are the black. He wants to kill you. He's insane.”

  Gan was at a loss. There were times he wondered if Sa was crazy for calling him a black dragon, but he secretly enjoyed the idea of carrying a magical spirit. But that was just a fantasy, wasn't it? It couldn't be real… could it? Gan swallowed hard, then said, “That's ridiculous. But, hypothetically, if I were secretly a dragon spirit, how would he destroy us? Does he have some kind of magical power?”

  “Yes, in a way. His voice is extremely powerful. It forces you do his bidding without thinking twice. I cannot defy him. I've tried.”

  "Maybe you can't, but I can," replied Gan, stoic and strong. "Wei, take me to this mad sorcerer. I will face him, and I will win."

  Chapter 30: The Street

  W aking up sore and stiff, Jon instantly regretted falling asleep on his parents’ couch. Rubbing his neck, he got up and headed for the bathroom upstairs. Once there, he drew a bath and got undressed, waiting for the water to be ready.

  The meeting with his agent hadn't lasted long, and he wished he hadn't gone. It was just some crap about a new action movie that Jon had no interest in. He wanted something deeper, something important. To make matters worse, his agent asked about Andrew, pressing Jon to work with him again, claiming they had so much chemistry together. Yeah, too much chemistry, thought Jon.

  Sliding into the hot water, he thought about his life with Andrew in Seattle. It really had been good for a while, almost heaven. But Jon wanted a life where he didn't have to explain anything to his parents. Plus, he eventually wanted kids. He knew there were ways to adopt or use a surrogate, but then he'd really have no choice but to explain things to his family. Despite how he felt, Andrew kept pressing him to come out. The whole situation became too difficult.

  In contrast, he could imagine his life with Sam would be perfect. They might have their arguments, but they'd eventually have kids and the kind of happiness he could be proud of. His parents would become grandparents, and Jon’s career could blossom into something more. Maybe he'd even make it in America as a serious actor; no more stupid action movies.

  Drifting into sleep yet again, he flashed to a red-haired fox spirit. She was dancing in the moonlight, naked and beautiful.

  Breaking his dream, the vibration of his phone went off against the hard tile of the bathroom floor. He woke, dreading it was his agent.

  It wasn't. Sam was calling, and he instantly felt like a moron. “I'm so sorry!”
he said, picking up his phone while getting out of the tub. “I fell asleep and forgot the time. But I'll be right there.”

  Sam didn't sound mad, but she said she had found out something important at her therapy session. Jon was both intrigued and a little scared. “Sounds good. I'm getting dressed now, and I'll pick you up.”

  After they said goodbye, he hung up and quickly dried with a towel. Within five minutes, he was on his way out the door.

  Jon had planned to take Sam for a fun street food experience, though he couldn't do it until nighttime. He didn't want to get recognized by fans, possibly ruining their date.

  No, nothing can ruin us, he thought as he started his car. Sam is the one.

  ~~

  How am I going to tell him what Dr. Lee told me? thought Sam as she waited for Jon to arrive. Sitting on a bench in the pretty garden surrounding her therapist’s building, she replayed their conversation in her mind.

  She couldn't believe her therapist actually had a book, supposedly written by Ling Sa himself. Her white-haired priest actually existed, possibly during the late Spring and Autumn period, and he even wrote down his poetry and philosophical views. Sam was still in shock.

  On top of that, Dr. Lee said there was a strange rumor about Ling Sa. Some had claimed the Tao priest was also possessed by a dragon spirit, and that he had a magical ring that could call the dragon forth to do his bidding. There was a passage written by a philosopher named Xian Shen who claimed he saw Ling Sa transform and ravage an entire village with fire.

  The whole thing was preposterous and rather dramatic, but the fact that there was an actual person named Ling Sa who existed and that Sam had been dreaming about it; she felt so relieved! She wasn't crazy, and she wasn't wrong. It may have been distorted by rumor and myth, but it actually happened.

  Sam couldn't wait to tell Jon he was right. It really was a past life. Not that Dr. Lee had any information on a clan leader named Li Gan, but she was sure he existed too.

  Waiting for Jon felt like forever. When he finally showed up in his black sports car, she jumped inside, immediately giving him a passionate kiss.

  “Wow, you must have had a great session,” he said with a grin while turning out of the driveway.

  “I did! I can't even believe what Dr. Lee knows about. Turns out, he's not only a licensed regression therapist, but a historian and art collector.”

  “Cool,” said Jon, keeping his eyes on the mayhem of Beijing’s traffic. “So… did he put you under hypnosis or something?”

  “No, he just showed me books and talked about dream techniques I can do on my own, like meditation and lucid dreaming stuff. He said I have an advanced soul, and that I could probably pick up these things really fast.”

  Jon smirked. “Sure he wasn't hitting on you?”

  “What? No!” Sam said, playfully hitting his shoulder. “I mean, he's cool looking for a middle-aged Zen master, but he's not my type.”

  “Oh, really? So, what's your type?”

  “Geez, I wonder,” said Sam, reaching down to gently squeeze between Jon's thighs.

  “Whoa!” he said with a small gasp. “Driving in this city is hard enough, my love. Let's not crash before you have the best food of your life.”

  Wickedly smiling, Sam withdrew her hand and kissed his cheek. “Best food of my life, huh? That sounds awesome. Can it top that duck we had on our first date?”

  “Oh, yes. Just you wait. You'll love it.”

  After an arduous parking experience, they walked down the busiest, most diverse food market Sam could have ever imagined. There were various fruits, meats, and anything you could want fried or steamed.

  They tasted a variety of Beijing’s delicacies: baozi buns, bite-sized squid and shrimp, and the most delicious fruit dessert Sam had ever eaten called Tanghulu. Made of Hawthorne berries, they were tart but coated in sweet syrup, and Sam wanted to eat them forever.

  What she didn't want, however, was fried scorpions on a stick. Jon seemed to be in an extra playful mood and joked that he was going to buy a stick and bite a scorpion in front of her.

  “If you get that stuff anywhere near me, you can kiss sex goodbye,” she teased.

  Jon pretended to cry and said, “Would you really punish me so cruelly?”

  Sam laughed and wrapped her arms around his neck. “No bugs. Ever!”

  “Not even one little fried beetle?”

  “No!” Sam squealed, pulling away in disgust.

  Jon grabbed for her hand and tickled her, and Sam had the urge to kiss him on the lips. She thought better of it, though, since they were surrounded by people.

  However, despite the large crowds, no one seemed to notice or care about their flirtations or his fame. They were all too busy staring at the bizarre display of so-called food.

  “Let's go home,” she said with a smile.

  “Already? Don't you want to look around at the little shops and whatnot?”

  “Not really. I just… I have something really important to tell you,” she said before leaning up to his ear. “Also... I want you inside me so bad right now.”

  Jon grinned like a cat who ate a scorpion on a stick. “What are we waiting for?”

  Sam smiled and squeezed his hand. But as they turned to leave, she saw something scarier then scorpions.

  “Samantha?!” yelled a man a few feet away. Wearing a purple designer shirt and jacket, he stood out from the crowd.

  Frozen, she hoped the man was a mere hallucination. Sadly, he was real and approaching fast. “James?” said Sam in disbelief. “What the hell are you doing here?”

  “I could ask you the same thing!” he shouted. “Why did you run away from me?” Turning to look at Jon, he added, “And who the hell is this asshole?”

  Sam rolled her eyes. “Geez, James, are your drunk? This is my...”

  “Her boyfriend,” added Jon.

  James' face contorted. He looked like he had eaten one of the fried bugs. “No, I don't think so, buddy. I'm her boyfriend. I don't know what you are, but you’re definitely not her boyfriend.”

  Jon cringed. “Sam,” he said, turning to her, “is this man anyone of consequence to you?”

  “Are you fucking kidding me?” said James, who definitely seemed drunk. Sam had seen him this way before, and it never ended well. He usually broke things or hit the wall. She prayed he'd just pass out or leave them alone.

  “Say the word, my beloved, and I'll get rid of this lowlife,” said Jon with a subdued anger hidden in his voice.

  “Back off, dragon-breath,” shouted James. “Sam's my girl!”

  Sam clenched her fists, trying not to punch the bastard. “Look, I don't know how you found me, but I am NOT your girl. I never was!” Grabbing Jon's hand, she added, “Come on, let's go.”

  “Gladly,” replied Jon. Walking a few steps away from her drunk ex-boyfriend, they heard, “Samantha! How can you do this to me? You'll regret this. I gave you everything! You fucking whore!”

  Jon stopped in his tracks. “Excuse me for a moment, my love.” Walking back toward James with a stoic, deadpan expression, he punched James square in the face, throwing him backwards to the ground.

  Jon sneered, then walked back to Sam's side. “Let's go home, shall we?”

  Sam didn't know whether to be grateful or terrified, but she had the urge to ride Jon harder than ever before. “I love you,” she said as they walked. Jon nodded but didn't reply. In fact, he didn't say a word the whole drive to his parents’ place.

  “Did you really have something with that jerk?” Jon finally asked when they entered his bedroom.

  Sam gave a tired sigh. “Yeah… I wish I hadn't, but I was with him for about three, four years.”

  Jon looked stunned. Then, he seemed angry. Folding his arms with stern eyes, he stared at Sam, making her feel stupid, like a scolded child. “Why, Sam? Why someone like him, and for that long?”

  She threw up her hands and sat on the bed. “I don't know, Jon. I guess I was young and dumb, and
I didn't think anyone else would love me.”

  “What? Why not?”

  “Because I never fit in. I wasn't sexy or pretty, and I wasn't anything most guys wanted. I was just so bleh.”

  Jon shook his head. “You are not bleh, whatever that means. I don't know why you had such low self-esteem, but I guarantee you that men thought you were pretty and sexy.”

  “Only James did… well, not at first. He got drunk at a party before he wanted me to sleep with me.”

  “Oh god, Sam. Really? You were really that easy?”