Year of the Golden Dragon (24 page)

But still, they kept moving.

Finally, Ryan said, “Here. There’s an exit.”

Alex and Hong Mei followed him through a door leading into a dark, tunnel-like walkway.

After taking only a few steps, Alex sensed that the air was different. It was thicker, somehow, and close. Not fresh at all. Ryan and Hong Mei had already disappeared from view.

“Ryan,” Alex called into the claustrophobic passageway. “This can’t be the way out.” He stopped to turn around. This place was making his skin crawl. “C’mon, you guys. This doesn’t feel right.”

He heard Ryan say from further ahead, “Keep going, Alex. It’s okay! Come and see.”

See what?

“I can’t see anything!” he called out. “Where are you?” Alex shivered. He was chilly, even colder than before. He hugged himself as he made his way toward his brother’s voice. This had better be good.

“Keep coming,” he heard Hong Mei say.

Alex took another few steps and finally saw two dots of pale green light shining ahead. In their glow he could make out Ryan and Hong Mei. His brother was holding up two of the pieces of jade and Hong Mei held the third. The jade’s colour changed from the pale green flush to a milky white. It illuminated the inkiness surrounding them. As he walked toward them, the light became as brilliant as a new star. He could see all around the room they now stood in.

Alex joined Ryan and Hong Mei who were gazing with open mouths at their surroundings. Nothing could be more different than the dusty archeological site they’d just left.

The room was small, slightly bigger than his bedroom, but far, far more beautiful. It resembled some of the Asian temples he’d seen in his aunt’s coffee-table books. The walls were painted in rich hues of red, green, blue, yellow and gold.

When Alex looked up, he saw a dome-shaped ceiling with a sun, moon and stars made out of pearls and gems. The ground was tiled and shaped into a model of forests, mountains, pastures and rivers – like a mosaic. And across the room was a set of jewel-encrusted thrones where two finely carved statues sat.

The life-size carvings were different than those of the army outside the chamber. These still wore their original colours, preserved perhaps by the lack of fresh air in the room. Instead of armour, the male figure wore a long, regal robe made of small rectangular-shaped tiles. Alex immediately thought of the chain-mail that knights wore in the Middle Ages, except this was made of jade and not metal. The statue of the beautiful woman also wore clothes of richness and royalty, but hers did not include jade, only gold and precious stones.

“They must be the Emperor and Empress,” Ryan said.

Alex moved closer to the figures. “Look. There are two smaller statues behind them.”

Holding the jade up high, Ryan went towards them. The other sculptures were young boys, nearly as tall as they were. Alex peered into the stone faces and thought how uncannily familiar they were.

He moved closer to Ryan and leaned against him. “Don’t you think those boys look a little too much like us?” he asked his brother.

Hong Mei came up behind them. “Alex is right. They do look very much like the two of you.”

Alex nudged his brother. “Ryan?”

Ryan didn’t respond as he stared wide-eyed at the Emperor and Empress.

A masculine voice, soft and low, interrupted them. “Ryan and Alex. We have longed to see you again.”

Alex nearly stepped on Hong Mei as he and Ryan stepped back.

“Please. Don’t be afraid,” the voice said. “Listen.”

He and Ryan stood together, trembling. They heard:

Long before the universe was born,

Chaos rose from a celestial storm.

Alone for eons in an endless night,

The god awoke and created light.

Seeing the beauty of what he’d done,

Chaos then made the Moon and Sun.

His next major task was to give birth

To all the planets, including Earth.

After sprinkling stars across the sky,

He looked to his wife; her frown caught his eye.

What’s this? he asked, You don’t like what you

see?

Is something not right? Please – tell me.

The voice was so familiar. It continued on for a few more lines, then said, “You have grown into such fine youngmen. I am sorry that your mother and I cannot be with you.But I am glad that Master Chen’s box has brought you hereso that I can tell you how very much we loved you.”

Alex felt Ryan’s sobs before he heard them.

“Ryan, you have had a difficult time. Perhaps now that you have forgiven your brother you can find forgiveness for yourself. There was nothing you could have done to save us.”

Ryan’s shoulders shook. “I miss you so much,” he cried.

“We know, but you must try to be strong, Ryan. You have your brother who needs you. And I know that your uncle and aunt care for you as if you were their own.”

“I know,” Ryan sniffled. “I will try harder.”

“Good. And Ryan? You must promise me something.”

“Anything, Papa.”

“You must fulfill your duty and return Black Dragon’s jade. Do not let our death be for nothing, son.”

The voice was getting softer.

“Be brave and true so that you and your descendants will live long and peaceful lives.”

“Wait!” Ryan cried.

Alex saw his brother’s face was shiny and wet. “Please don’t leave us again,” Ryan said, choking on his tears.

“Ryan, you must forgive us as well. We didn’t wish to leave you. Goodbye. We will always love you.”

Alex crouched down beside Ryan who had slumped to the ground. He put his arm around his big brother’s shaking shoulders.

“I’m sorry that I always blamed you,” Ryan sobbed. “Deep down, I knew better.” His voice caught. “I just needed someone to blame.”

Alex nodded and held onto him.

After a little while, Ryan’s breathing steadied and he reached into his pocket.

“Looking for this?” Hong Mei asked gently, walking towards them with the peppermint box.

Alex saw Ryan try to smile. “Thanks,” he said, taking it from her.

He opened it up and Alex saw there were only three mints left. When Ryan offered Hong Mei and him one, they said no, but he insisted, so they each took one. Ryan set the empty container at his feet while he retied his shoelace.

Alex popped the white peppermint into his mouth. “Are you okay?” he asked Ryan.

“Yeah. Are you?”

“Yeah.”

After a minute, Alex turned to Hong Mei and asked, “So now what?”

“I think we should stay in here until it’s safe to go out,” she sighed. “I wonder how Madam Ching got from Beijing to Xian so fast.”

“We’ve been gone all night,” Alex said. “Even if she only discovered we were missing early this morning she could have got on a plane and flown here. Do you remember what Ching Long said? About one of her ex-husbands being a bigwig at some airline company? It would have been easy for her to get here.”

“I guess,” Ryan said. “So then, I agree with Hong Mei. Let’s just stay in here until one of us can go out and take a look around. This room seems to be safe enough for now.”

Alex smiled. “Does that mean you want to return our jade to Black Dragon tonight?”

Ryan smiled back. “Absolutely.”

Chapter 21

Out of the Pot and Into the Fire

Hong Mei looked at her watch.
The lit-up digits said: 11:25:36

Eleven hours, twenty-five minutes and thirty-six seconds until midnight. It was past lunchtime and she hadn’t eaten this morning or the night before. If she was starving after meeting Black Dragon, she was ravenous now. She groaned. How much longer would they have to wait in here? Would she and the boys never agree on when it was safe to leave the royal chamber?

And not only was she hungry, Hong Mei was
so
bored.

She, Ryan and Alex had talked a bit, telling one another about their lives and what they liked to do in their free time. Hong Mei had suggested that they divide the jade up and put each piece in a different part of the room so they could have some light. Separated, it did not shine as brightly, but it still gave a warm glow. At least they could see one another while they chatted. Hong Mei told them about helping Mama on her rounds visiting patients and how they’d moved so much.

Compared to hers, Hong Mei thought Ryan and Alex’s lives very simple and wonderfully easy. The only thing they
had
to do was get good grades in school. Neither of them worked. Ryan said he hung out with a few friends. Sometimes they went snowboarding but Ryan said that most of the time they would just meet in a restaurant or coffee shop.

Alex spent most of his free time riding and taking care of his horse. He made it sound like it was a lot of work, but Hong Mei thought he sounded too excited about it for it to be a chore. She’d never even seen a real horse, except for those poor things hauling carts in some of the villages she’d lived in. They were probably more mule-like than horses anyway.

And all the travelling these two did with their aunt and uncle! She hadn’t been out of China, and Ryan and Alex had already been to five continents! It seemed like they really
did
lead royal lives.

After they had talked about their families for awhile, she and the boys had fallen silent. She thought that they were all probably thinking the same thing: how much they wanted to get this thing over with so they could all go home.

Hong Mei’s stomach rumbled again. She pressed on it with her hands, trying to make it stop.

“You’re hungry, too, huh?” Alex asked.

“Yes.”

“Me, too. Do you think we should take a chance and go out there?”

“Do you think Madam Ching thinks we’ve left and has gone out to look for us?” Ryan asked.

“Or do you think she’s left a guard or two behind?” Hong Mei asked. “I remember hearing more than one man’s voice.”

“I don’t know,” Alex said. “But I’m starving.”

“Why don’t I go out and have a look around? You two can stay here, just in case,” Ryan offered.

Hong Mei knew she was supposed to be the leader, but she didn’t want to run into Madam Ching or one of her people. She remembered Lao Ming telling her that she was lucky to have escaped from the woman’s thugs at the airport. Sighing, Hong Mei knew this was no way for a Chen to think. She was the chosen one. She had dragon’s blood. Her father believed in her.

“I’ll go,” she said, surprising herself. “I can sneak out and if it is safe I will get us something to eat. I think Ryan is right. This is probably the safest place for us to wait until we go out to find the river.”

“Do you want me to go with you?” Hong Mei heard Ryan ask.

His words made her feel warm inside. “No,” she stammered. “I can go alone.” She looked at him and said a quick, “Thank you.”

Hong Mei stood up and moved toward the tunnel-like entrance. As she approached it, she saw a beam of light dancing inside the corridor. She stopped and turned quickly around to the boys, raising her finger to her lips, motioning them to be quiet. They looked questioningly at her. She silently pointed to the tunnel where the light, bouncing off the wall, grew larger and more intense.

She held her breath and silently pleaded,
“Please, please go away. Don’t look here. We’re not here.”

Her heart sank as shuffling footsteps followed the yellow flashlight beam that now swept the room. It went from Ryan to Alex and then to Hong Mei.

Hong Mei smelled sandalwood.

“Well, well, well,” Madam Ching said. “What have we here?”

Ryan, Alex and Hong Mei each made a dash and grabbed their jade. Then they moved together and formed a group.

Madam Ching shook her head and snorted delicately. “Isn’t that sweet? You’ve become a real team.” She called back through the tunnel, “Ching Long? I’m in here, darling. Tell the others I need a hand.”

Realizing that she’d left Master Chen’s box at the feet of the Emperor and Empress, Hong Mei looked quickly to see if it was still there.