“He is,” I reply, remembering Lia is a man in this environment.
“There are skills there I’ve not seen for a long time. What is his ancestry again?”
Trying to stay calm at the line of questioning, I respond with truth, “Lin Zhànshì is his father.”
“I remember him well. He was one of my father’s private guards until his death.”
Gaozu sighs deeply. His father was a great man, from what I’ve heard, but I never got to meet him. When I came here, Gaozu was already leader, his father having died young of ill health. It was a great tragedy.
“He’s taught his son well,” I add and look down at the timer on my watch. It buzzes, and I couldn’t be more grateful. I want to get Lia away from Gaozu’s scrutiny.
“Excuse me a minute.” I step forward and shout, “Swap.”
Lia turns and looks at me and then at Gaozu next to me. I doubt she knows who he is. She bows before moving on to the next exercise.
When I turn back to Gaozu, he has a look of thoughtful reflection on his face,
“Yes, like father like son.” He watches her walk away, never taking his eyes from her. “There’s something special about him. I get the feeling he could be the difference between defeat and victory, maybe it’s false optimism, but we need some hope now.”
I try desperately to control my emotions. I don’t like my leader’s proclamation. In fact, it scares me to my very core.
“Er… did you need to see me about something?” I question, trying to change the subject.
“Yes, I’m afraid we got a message from Wang this morning.” Gaozu’s face changes to one of concern.
“Message?”
“Yes, the missing recruit you reported. His body has been returned to us.”
“Shit,” I exclaim and stamp my foot on the ground.
When I’d counted all the men back in after the attack on the Jīn Long, I’d realized Kuo was missing and hoped he was just hiding somewhere, but it seems he was taken.
“Did he know anything that Wang could use?”
I shake my head. “Nothing of any importance.”
Gaozu looks to where Lia is now competing over the assault course.
“Did he know Zhàn was the one to deliver the death blow to Wang’s general.”
“No, I don’t think so. I don’t remember seeing him after the fight, and it was only me and Zhàn in the courtyard. I didn’t let it be known it was Zhàn until I got back here and reported it to you.”
Gaozu nods, bringing his hand up to his beard. “I hope for the young boy’s sake you are right, because if not, he’s already dead.”
Gaozu turns around to face me directly. I know he’s reading my every reaction. I school my features as best I can, even though inside my head I’m cursing this turn of events. I need to make sure Lia will be protected, but how can I do that without revealing her true identity? I don’t think I can. The world just got a whole lot more complicated.
Jaxon has been subdued since we finished training for the day. I can sense a deep worry weighing heavily on his shoulders. Since our first time together, we’ve found a small abandoned house in the city where we’re able to meet and be together away from the stresses of the compound and the war with the Jīn Long. There’s no electricity available in the house due to its abandoned state, but thankfully, there is running water.
We’re lying on the bed, and I’m looking down at him. The sparkle in his eyes has dimmed.
“What’s wrong?” I ask, placing my hand on his naked chest.
I’ll never get enough of his body, and the intricate tattoos of Chinese symbols adorning it. I know all of them mean something—they represent his ascension in the Yi Shu.
“Nothing,” his reply is short, and he moves my hand away from his chest.
“Don’t treat me like a mindless soldier, Jaxon. I’m not stupid. I know the man who was with you in training gave you news that worried you. I saw the color drain from your face. Who was he?”
“Lia, please.” Jaxon reaches out and takes my hand and places it back on his chest. “Can we forget the Yi Shu for tonight?”
“No, you don’t get to shut me out. I can’t protect myself, if you do.”
Jaxon sits up from where he’s been lying on the bed.
“Do you have any idea who he was?” Jaxon questions.
I only saw a small portion of the man’s face, and I draw a blank when I search my memory for some recollection. But something in my heart tells me I do know who he is. A thought strikes me, and I blurt it out.
“Gaozu.”
Jaxon nods in confirmation.
“Yes, he has many disguises, and his appearance today was one of them. You need to forget it, though. You can never address him as our leader when he’s wearing his disguise.”
“I understand,” I reassure Jaxon as I shift on the bed so he’s lying on his stomach.
I straddle his back and start to massage the tense muscles in his broad shoulders. He doesn’t protest.
“What did he say?”
Jaxon takes a deep breath as I continue to knead the tension away from him.
“When we returned from the attack on the Jīn Long, Kuo was missing. Gaozu came to inform me his mutilated body had been returned to us.”
I gasp and stop moving my hands for a moment. Kuo hadn’t been a friend to me since I came here. He was a bit of a bully, but I wouldn’t have wished him ill. I don’t want any of the Yi Shu to die, especially in a a grizzly way.
“Would they have tortured him like you did Shen?”
“He’s a new recruit. They’d be aware he’d have known nothing about the intricate working of the Yi Shu. They wouldn’t have bothered torturing him…” Jaxon pauses.
“What’s wrong?” I question, sliding from Jaxon’s back and sitting beside him. He turns on his side to face me and props his head up with his hand. The worry lines on his face have deepened, not lessened. “Jaxon?”
“It’s been intimated that I was the one who killed the general. I’m the blond demon—it gives weight to the rumors of my power. However, Gaozu is worried. He sees you as a prized fighter and possibly the difference between defeat and victory. With your skills, I have to agree with him.”
“I don’t understand,” I interrupt. Jaxon takes my hand and curls his large palm around my small fingers.
“Kuo should have been present during the fight, but I don’t remember seeing him. It’s a sign he could have been hiding, and it might be the reason he was captured because he didn’t leave with the rest of our men. It’s not uncommon for the loudest mouths to be overcome with fear when the battle starts. What I don’t know is where he was hiding. If it was up on the hill, he might have seen certain events.”
I swallow deeply, catching Jaxon’s meaning,
“He might have seen me kill the general,” I state blankly, a fear rising within me.
Jaxon nods his agreement.
“And a desperate man will use anything as a bargaining tool. If he told Wang you were the person to kill the general, you’ll now have a target on your back as large if not larger than the one I already have on mine as the blond demon.”