Red Phoenix

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

After we’d changed into the swimwear the Tiger provided for us, John led me out of the room and into the long outdoor hallway. He took me down carved wooden stairs to the ground floor, and along the breezeway through the gardens. The demon gardeners looked up and smiled as we went past.

‘How much time did you spend here before?’ I said. ‘Were you here often?’

‘I honestly miss it.’ He stopped and looked around. ‘When I wasn’t on the Mountain, or in the Northern Heavens, I spent quite a lot of time here. The Tiger and I shared some good times.’

‘He misses you.’

‘Yes, he does.’ He took my hand. ‘Come on, let’s go for a swim.’

We continued through the gardens. ‘I have not seen a single one of these notorious women that you both carry on about,’ I said. ‘I’m beginning to think it was just pure bravado on his part, and a careful scheme by you to keep me out of his paws.’

‘You have found me out. I just didn’t want him to have a chance with you.’ He smiled sideways at me. ‘Not even I am permitted into the women’s quarters. He’s probably hunted them away from the pool as well. He’s very protective of his females.’ He nodded. ‘Here we are.’

It was more like a country club than a swimming pool. Palm trees and red rocks surrounded the freeform lagoon; a couple of demon servants waited attentively next to the deck chairs that flanked the pool bar.

‘Geez, this is the life.’ I looked around. ‘This is like a five-star resort.’

‘He’s a tiger. He likes his swimming.’

‘With his women, as well. Shades of the Playboy mansion.’

John laughed softly. ‘You are very perceptive sometimes.’

‘You can’t swim though, John, it’s chlorinated.’

‘It’s not. It’s kept pure by some sort of Celestial thing. I can go in.’

‘Some sort of Celestial thing? Is that a scientific term?’

He stopped, his face completely blank. Then he spun, grabbed me and tossed me over his shoulder. He ran to the pool and threw me in, towel and all, then jumped in after me.

I lay back on the deck chair with the crossword on my knees. I sipped the rich, ice-cold fruit drink, then returned the glass to the table and the demon waiter refilled it for me. John was at the bottom of the pool; he’d been there for some time. The occasional bubble rising from his dark shape was the only sign he was alive.

‘Damn if he hasn’t gone and fallen asleep at the bottom of the pool again.’ The Tiger strolled over to me and sat down next to the deck chair. ‘He does that every single goddamn time.’

‘Is that what he’s doing? I was wondering. How come he can stay so long under the water? He’s in human form, doesn’t he need to breathe?’

‘He’s in his element. Even drained and in human form, it’s his element. Even when I’m drained I can still do things with metal.’

‘That’s right, your element is metal. What can you do?’

‘Just about anything.’ He looked around. The spoon lifted out of my drink and floated to him. He sat up, held it in front of his face and closed his eyes.

The spoon changed to gold.

‘Take it,’ he said.

I plucked the spoon out of the air. ‘Really gold?’

‘Yep. Not worth anything here on the Plane, but on Earth it’s quite handy. I have to be careful not to do it too much, don’t want to upset the world economy. Let it go, I have it.’

The spoon lifted from my fingers and I released it. It floated in front of his whiskers again. ‘Note, my Lady Emma, nothing up my sleeve.’ The spoon changed to copper. He concentrated, and the spoon folded up into a ball slightly smaller than a golf ball. He changed the copper ball to gold, then to silver, then it changed shape again until it was a little silver tiger.

‘Stop.’ I took the tiger out of the air. ‘This is really sweet.’

‘You like it? It’s platinum.’ He concentrated, and the little tiger floated off my hand. A tiny loop grew out of its back. Another spoon floated off the table next to me, went shiny, and turned into a matching chain. The chain threaded itself through the loop, and the platinum tiger drifted back down to settle on my hand.

‘It’s delightful,’ I said. ‘I’ll give it to Simone. She’ll love it.’

He was speechless for a moment, his tawny eyes glowing. ‘I’ll make one for you as well if you like. It would flatter your pale skin.’

‘No need. One for Simone is enough. I don’t need anything.’ I glanced at the bubbles rising from John’s dark form. ‘I have everything I could possibly want in the whole world.’ I had an inspiration. ‘Is Louise here?’

‘Nope. You just missed her. About twenty of them went shopping in Paris this morning. Not to worry, you’ll see her there. Look around Rue du Faubourg St Honoré. They always go crazy in there, costs me a fortune.’

‘You should buy shares in the fashion houses, if the others are anything like her. She won’t buy anything for months, then go berserk and spend a fortune on clothes and shoes.’

‘I already did. Bought a couple of hotels for them to stay in, as well. Wherever they are, they stay with me.’

‘You said they never want to leave. You lied to our faces.’

He looked blank for a moment, then understood; his mouth opened to reveal his gleaming fangs. ‘No, my Lady, I said they never want to leave.’

‘Why would Rhonda leave if she didn’t want to?’

‘Because she is quite remarkable.’ He glanced at the pool. ‘He’d better get his shell into gear, I have a big dinner planned for you two. And I want you both looking halfway neat.’

‘Oh no, Tiger, please, you know that neither of us does neat.’

‘Not a single hole in any of the clothes that you wear. And try to keep your hair tidy for at least the first five minutes.’

‘Yeah, why is his hair always coming out? It’s like it has a life of its own. And he hates wearing shoes, he’ll always go barefoot if he has the choice.’

‘Ask him. It’s a long story.’ He pulled himself up and stretched, his tail shivering. He yawned widely, making his whiskers stand out from his face. ‘Time for the Turtle to move his shell.’

He loped to the pool, jumped in and disappeared under the water.

The water swirled, exploding into a huge whirlpool with the Tiger at its centre. The water expanded and rose like a water spout with the Tiger on top, a look of horror on his tiger face.

The column of water carried the Tiger to the edge and unceremoniously tipped him off. He landed gracefully on his feet at the edge of the pool.

‘You bastard!’ he yelled. ‘This is the thanks I get for looking after your Lady while you sleep your ass off in my pool! You are a lazy piece of shit and should get your fucking shell moving!’

‘I think you are in big trouble, Tiger.’ I rose from the deck chair, still holding my drink. I leapt, somersaulted, and landed lightly on the roof of the pool bar about twenty metres away. I knew what was coming.

‘Would you like me to freshen your drink for you while you’re up there, ma’am?’ the demon servant said from the bar below.

‘No, thank you,’ I called down. ‘I think we’ll be leaving soon.’

The entire contents of the swimming pool lifted like a huge watery brick. It rose in a single glistening transparent lump and hovered over the Tiger. John stood on the bottom of the empty pool and grinned.

‘Holy fucking shit!’ the Tiger roared, but it was too late.

John dropped the entire pool of water on the Tiger. The Tiger crouched like a cowed house cat as the water poured over him. The noise was incredible; it seemed to go on forever. Finally the deluge stopped, and there was complete silence except for the thin noise of the water trickling back into the pool.

Suddenly the water on the paving rushed together and cascaded back into the pool where it formed watery steps. John casually walked up the stairs and stepped out. He saw me on the roof. ‘Told you that move needed work. That was much more like it. Did you spill your drink?’

That was it. I fell off the roof laughing.

We walked back in the glowing late afternoon sun. ‘I like that swimsuit. You should keep it,’ John said.

‘I won’t keep it because you like it. I dress for me, not for you.’

‘I can tell. Most of the time you dress like a street sleeper.’

‘Oh, that’s very good coming from you,’ I shot back. ‘You didn’t even know I threw those awful old pants away.’

‘I found them in the trash and took them back. I like them. They’re comfortable.’

‘I found where you’d hidden them and threw them away again. Face it. You will never see those awful old pants again.’

He stopped with his hand on the doorknob. ‘I may put a hole in one of the new pairs that Leo bought me, just to annoy you.’

Two smiling demon servants waited for us inside with a portable rack of clothing. We immediately sent them out.

‘Most of this is designer gear,’ I said as we flipped through the rack. I handed him a plain black cotton shirt, and he swapped it for a black cheongsam embroidered with silver good-luck bats. ‘He hates us.’

‘He loves us.’ He took the plain black slacks from me and pulled his swim shorts off. ‘Thanks.’ He reached around the rack, grabbed me and pulled me in for a lingering kiss. ‘Let’s do it Japanese-style.’

‘I hope you mean have a bath Japanese-style.’ I released myself and pulled my swimsuit off. We went into the bathroom together. ‘Can you fill the bath quickly?’

‘Right now I can only work with water once it’s there. When I’m not drained I can make it rain in a focused area, but it’s too hard right now.’ He threw our swimsuits into the linen basket and they disappeared. ‘We’ll have to fill the bath normally.’

‘Damn. That bath’s enormous. It’ll take a while to fill up. Having it Japanese-style is a good idea.’

‘Not washing here.’ He started the water into the bath. ‘This bathroom isn’t set up for it. Have a shower first.’

He pulled me into the shower. ‘I should have shown you this in the pool, but I fell asleep. Hold your head under the water and breathe it.’

I tried it. He was right. I could breathe the water. It was a most remarkable feeling.

Then he washed me and that was an even better feeling. He took his time, soaping me all over. He pressed himself against me as he did it, then pushed me forward out of the water to wash my hair.

I rinsed my hair, then turned, put my hands behind his neck and pulled his face down to mine. We stayed under the water together for a while. I breathed the water as I kissed him; the water was sweet in our mouths and flowed deliciously between us.

I pulled away. ‘Let me wash you. Turn around.’

His long hair took a great deal of shampoo. When wet it went down to the tops of his thighs. I lingered, enjoying the sensation of his silken hair running through my fingers. I pushed him to sit in the shower and massaged his scalp. He leaned back into me and closed his eyes.

I bent to speak into his ear. ‘Remind me to give you a massage later. All over.’

‘You are absolutely on,’ he said, his voice a low rumble.

I squeezed the water out of his hair and pulled him up. ‘The desert’s making your hair very dry. It needs a treatment.’

‘It’s because I’m so drained. After Paris it will be okay again.’

I brushed the grey at his temples. ‘I like this though. It makes you look distinguished.’

He smiled over his shoulder at me, then his head shot up and his face went blank. He quickly jumped out of the shower.

The bath had overflowed.

He turned the water off, then moved the excess from the bath to the shower in a floating shiny blob. He dried the floor at the same time, then reached into the shower and gently guided me into the bath.

We stepped in together. We watched each other as we sank into the steaming, crystal-clear water. It was Japanese-style, breathtakingly hot.

His face remained expressionless as he dropped his head into the water and his long hair floated around him. He reached to me and took my hand, then tugged it gently.

I dipped my head under the water as well. I took a deep breath, trusting him completely. I could still breathe the water. He pulled me into him so we touched all over, breathing the water together.

Our mouths met and we floated together. The water was sweet and pure and hot.

We stayed under for a very long time.

He sat with his arms draped over the side of the bath and I lay on top of him with my arms folded across his chest. The water was beginning to cool but neither of us was eager to move.

‘Your eyes haven’t gone black since,’ I said with a touch of disappointment.

His chest moved under me as he laughed softly. ‘You are so different.’

‘Different?’

He didn’t say anything, he just smiled down at me. I heard what he’d said and pulled myself up so that my eyes were level with his.

‘What did Michelle do the first time? I hope she wasn’t too frightened.’

He still smiled, but I could see he was hesitant about what to say.

‘It’s okay, I understand,’ I said. ‘I’m just interested. It must have been terrifying for her.’

‘It was.’ He unfocused, remembering. ‘She didn’t take it nearly as well as you have. In fact she nearly left me on the spot.’ His eyes wrinkled up. ‘I can’t believe we’re talking about this.’

‘I like to think that there’s nothing we can’t talk about.’ I dropped my chin onto my arms where they lay on his chest. ‘What did she do?’

‘She said if I ever did it again, she’d kill me. So I let her.’

I went completely still. His smile didn’t shift.

‘I gave her a little revolver, and showed her how to use it. She put it beside the bed. If my eyes went black, she’d shoot me. Right between the eyes. One minute I’m seeing the rich brown eyes of my love, the next minute it’s the ugly face of the Judge.’

‘Judge?’

He shook his head, still smiling. ‘Your eyes are a very bright shade of blue, you know that? The first time I saw blue eyes I thought the European was blind.’

‘They’re more grey than blue.’ I pulled him back to the point. ‘She’d shoot you?’

‘I took the human form with me so there wouldn’t be a mess. I’d be gone for at least a day, sometimes more. I think she enjoyed it.’

I dropped my forehead onto his chest; I’d had a sudden horrible thought. ‘If they come at us with guns we’re defenceless, aren’t we?’

‘No. I just fill everything with water, change the cartridge to water. Makes them useless. Never had a chance with her though; when I’d lost control I wasn’t thinking.’

‘Can you still fill them with water? Even now?’

He nodded, and his body moved underneath me. ‘One or two, not a problem. There are other ways to disable them as well. Simone will learn a few tricks that will stand her in good stead against them. Don’t worry.’

I relaxed. ‘When you come back I want to have a go too.’

‘You are welcome to try. If you can take me I will give you anything you desire, which is within my power to give.’

‘Not fair. You know I don’t want anything in the world right now.’ I pulled myself upright with delight. ‘Except an answer! I have you.’

He glanced down to where I sat on him. ‘You certainly have me.’ He smiled back up at me. ‘What?’

I fingered his hair. ‘Why the hell does it keep coming out all the time? And what’s the thing with the bare feet?’

He laughed gently and I shook on top of him. ‘I thought you did some research on me.’

I slapped him lightly on the chest. ‘Tell me.’

He wrapped his arms around my back. ‘Is the water too cold?’

‘No. Tell me!’

His eyes sparkled for a while. I was ready to slap him again when he smiled. ‘It’s a very simple story.’

I leaned forward on his chest so that my face was right next to his and gazed into his eyes. ‘Tell me.’

Bad move. He stopped to kiss me first and I couldn’t concentrate for a while. The water warmed up. Steam rose.

He pulled back, still smiling. ‘When an Immortal is Raised, they are Raised as they stand. I was Raised directly after an enormous battle. My hair,’ he stopped and moved it to one side out of the way, ‘was in the standard style of the time, long and tied on top. But it was a mess after the battle; it usually is. My shoes were gone. So that was that. Stuck like it.’

‘That is totally ridiculous.’

‘That’s what happened. You’ve seen Iron Crutch—he was even worse off. I don’t have to keep the form; you know I can take any form I want. But despite myself, I keep reverting.’ His eyes sparkled even more. ‘It’s a damn nuisance.’

‘But you’re a Turtle. How can you be a human Raised Immortal as well?’

‘That is not for one such as you to know,’ he said sadly, but he still smiled. ‘Later you will know. Now is not the time.’

I didn’t push it. ‘Give me plenty of warning before you Raise me. I’ll put some make-up on and make sure my hair is tidy.’

‘Doesn’t work like that. Sorry.’

‘I don’t think you are. I think you want us to be the scruffiest Immortals on the Celestial Plane.’

He brushed his hands over my back. ‘You have found me out.’

‘Took your sweet time,’ the Tiger said. Dinner was set out on a long low table with a large number of cushions scattered around it. ‘I know what you two were doing.’

‘You know I hate Western food.’ John eyed the dishes with contempt. ‘You are doing everything you possibly can to annoy me because you know it will be a long time before I can get you back with the thorough and detailed cruelty that you deserve.’

‘Can’t you two grow up?’ I said. ‘It’s not Western food, John, it’s definitely Chinese.’

‘Western Chinese,’ the Tiger said. ‘Lots of chilli. Spicy.’

‘I hate it,’ John moaned.

‘How about a beggar’s chicken for the Lady, and some vegetarian buckwheat noodles and a selection of Northern-style steamed buns for the Lord?’ The Tiger’s voice was amused but his face didn’t show it.

‘Now you’re talking. Monica can’t do Northern food.’ John grinned. ‘I was there, you know.’

‘Where?’ I said.

‘When the beggar was caught with the chicken. I was riding past the palace with my guards.’

‘You are a lying bastard,’ the Tiger growled.

‘I saw him do it. It was already wrapped. He covered it with mud and buried it next to the little fire he’d built. I told my guards, silently, to leave him, as he’d already ruined his dinner. I changed my form and went back later to check on him.’ John smiled, remembering. ‘He was a great guy.’

‘That’s not vegetarian, John. I can’t eat the chicken.’

‘Beside the point on the Celestial Plane. You can let your hair down here.’

‘Don’t you dare,’ the Tiger said. ‘I am very careful not to get any fur in the food, and you will be too. Mao tai?’

‘Now you are really talking,’ John said with grim pleasure.

‘Yuck,’ I said. ‘Mao tai tastes like donkey urine that something died in.’

‘It’s an acquired taste,’ John said. ‘After a couple of hundred years I think you’ll probably like it as much as we do.’

‘I sincerely hope I’ll have the chance.’

‘You will. Here’s the chicken,’ the Tiger said. A servant brought a large covered platter. ‘My Lady, would you like to do the honours?’

‘Sure, where’s the hammer?’

‘I usually make one on the spot.’ The Tiger looked around. The lid of the serving platter twisted and went shiny. Part of it separated and formed a tiny golden hammer. The hammer floated in front of me, and I picked it out of the air and nodded to the Tiger.

The servant removed the remains of the platter’s lid to reveal a large lump of baked dough. ‘I have to be careful not to hit it so hard that I completely destroy it,’ I said, almost to myself.

‘Look inside the dough, see where its weakness is,’ John said. ‘It will have points in its structure where a single firm tap, not too hard, will crack it open.’

‘How do I look inside it?’

He took my hand and showed me. He opened his consciousness and studied the dough. He released my hand. ‘Now you try.’

I did the same thing he had. I opened my inner sight and peered inside the dough. I could see its structure, the way it was put together. The dough had been made slightly unevenly and there were parts where it was strong and other parts where it was weak. There were points where the strong and weak parts met, making clearly visible fracture lines. I studied one of the lines and followed it, searching for the place where a single light tap would crack the dough open. I found it.

I drew my consciousness back, remembering the location of the weak spot. I put the hammer down; I wouldn’t need it.

I reached with my index finger and lightly tapped the dough on the weak point. It fell open like a flower, revealing the steaming chicken wrapped in lotus leaf. A wonderful warm aroma of wine and chicken and lotus leaf spread around us.

‘You should not have been able to do that,’ the Tiger said with awe.

‘She did shen work this afternoon as well,’ John said.

The Tiger pondered for a while, then spoke. ‘There is something seriously weird going on here, Xuan Wu. Lady Emma is an ordinary human. Why is she able to do this? It’s worrying.’

‘Please let’s just enjoy the meal and not freak me out,’ I said with a calmness I didn’t feel.

‘Good idea, Emma,’ John said briskly. He lifted his chopsticks and eyed the buns impatiently as they were brought in. ‘I haven’t had this in a while and I don’t think I’ll leave you any.’

‘How will you eat, Bai Hu?’

‘Very messily,’ the Tiger said. ‘Looks like I get all the chilli peppers.’

Familiar music began to play. It was soft enough for us to talk and seemed to come from all directions. The Tiger pointed with his head. ‘They’re over there.’ An alcove on one side of the room was covered with a gauzy curtain. ‘I had them come over and play specially for you, since I know you like them. They sound different when they’re unplugged, but we need to be able to talk.’ He nodded towards the Szechuan food. ‘Fits the generally spicy theme. Peppers for the food, Peppers for the music.’

‘How do you know what music I like?’ I demanded. I glared at John and he shook his head, innocent.

‘I had Leo go through your CDs.’ The Tiger’s golden eyes sparkled with amusement. ‘He said you have one of the most distressing collections of trash that he’s ever seen.’

‘That can’t be right,’ John said through a mouthful of noodles. ‘Leo said that my CDs were the most distressing collection of trash he’d ever seen.’

‘No, Turtle,’ the Tiger said patiently. ‘That was your vinyl he was talking about.’

‘You are quite correct,’ John said. ‘Shame I threw away my eight-tracks. Leo is quite incapable of appreciating the subtle harmonics and delicate nuances of truly fine Western heavy metal.’

‘But do you have to play it so damn loud?’ I said.

‘Nuances.’ He grinned. ‘Wait till we have Simone off to school and I can turn the bass up to where it belongs.’

‘You are very scary sometimes, you know that?’ He just grinned over the noodles. But I knew what he was thinking: good.

It was very late when we returned to our room. We quickly changed out of the fancy clothes and into something much more comfortable; him in his black cotton jacket and pants, me in a flowing long top and matching trousers.

The desert sky was full of a million brilliant stars. We sat on the balcony together and warm candlelight flickered in the room behind us.

‘How long have we known each other, Emma?’ he said quietly, his arm draped around my shoulder and his other hand holding mine.

‘I don’t know, let me think. I started part-time with you end of the year before last. I changed to full-time beginning of last year. Just over a year and a half. Is that all? It feels like forever.’

‘It does, doesn’t it? It seems like there’s never been a time when I didn’t know you.’ He pulled me into his lap. I leaned back and put my head on his shoulder. He wrapped his strong arms around me. ‘It’s as if we’ve known each other forever.’

‘I know how you feel. I feel the same way. Maybe we’re soulmates or something.’

‘Could be.’ His voice vibrated through his chest. ‘That was one of the toughest battles I have ever faced.’

‘What was?’

‘Simone and Leo wanted you to come full-time almost immediately. Simone particularly made my life complete hell. She wanted you there all the time. I should have listened to her.’ He ran his mouth over the side of my neck, then pulled away slightly to speak softly into my ear. ‘We could have had more time.’

‘I don’t want to go back. I want to stay here forever with you.’

‘That is the fate of the ruler,’ he said, his voice soft and sad. ‘Our own happiness always comes second. We have so many people who rely on us. We must care for them first.’

‘You’re right. There are people relying on us. We are so lucky to have had this short time together. I am so privileged. Not only have I met you, but I’ve gained your trust, and your love, and your promise.’ He kissed the back of my neck and I shivered. ‘There isn’t a thing in the world that I want for myself right now.’

He unbuttoned my shirt, gently pulled it over my head and threw it aside. He put his arms back around me and his grip tightened. He kissed the side of my throat, then over my shoulder.

I turned on his lap so that I was side-on to him. I gazed into his dark eyes; they glowed in the starlight. I ran my fingertips over his high cheekbone and over the edge of his jaw. He watched me without moving. I reached behind his neck and pulled his long braid towards me. I undid the tie holding it and combed it free with my fingers. I nibbled lightly along the edge of his jaw then ran my mouth down the silken skin on the side of his throat. I pulled away slightly to speak into his ear.

‘I changed my mind. There is something I want for myself, right now.’

He studied my face intensely. ‘I have no idea what you are talking about. Please come inside with me and explain in complete and accurate detail exactly what you would like for yourself, and I’ll see what I can do.’

He moved his face closer to mine and our lips met. We pushed into each other. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him in. He rose and carried me inside, which was a very good thing. My legs weren’t working at all.