The Frenchman's Revenge (44 page)

A burst of firecrackers and
a colorful rainbow
of
fireworks streak
ed
across the sky
,
announc
ing
the beginning of the Lion Dance.
Shrieks of excitement and giddy tears among
t
he older Chinese greeted the
flamboyant
dance
rs
in their six foot high costumes
,
so elaborate and heavy
that
they
required one dancer to control the head the other the tail.
The
dancers
’
acrobatic
thrusts and pivots echoed
the clash of
cymbals
, the
pounding
of the
drums
,
and the beat of the gongs.
In sync with t
he loud music, the fierce lion
s swayed and leapt, giant graceful catlike apparitions.
The enchanted audience clapped and
shouted
their approval as b
ursting firecrackers and flashes of fireworks
ratcheted up the excitement
.

As
the
colorful lions ambled off
,
a huge clash of cymbals and a rolling flair of drums
heralded
the next act. O
ne by one
,
the traditional Kun
g
fu animals took the stage.
To shrieks of delight and applause
,
the
Sing Leon
fighter representing the snake hissed and slid across the stage, followed by the mysterious dragon, the graceful crane
,
and the
powerful tiger. The four dancers, their faces streaked with garish paint,
commanded
the stage as they wove
in and out
emulating
the
unique movements
of the animal
s
they represented.

The
ir
movements were accomplished, the dances spectacular. After several moments of fantastic artistry, t
hey separated
,
leaving a space in the center.
W
ith a
crash of cymbals and a fierce roll of the drums
,
the leopard
entered and
took center stage.
In a dizzying display of athletic prowess
,
he twisted, turned
,
and leapt through the air
,
bringing the audience to its feet roaring with excitement.

Bai and
Elena
exchanged surprised glances
while
Wyatt, Wan
,
and Lei swelled with pride when they saw that the youngest and most athletic of the dancers was none other than
Nicolas
Deshi
.
He was bare
to his waist
,
emulating the way both Wyatt and Bai
fought. His shoulder length black hair swung wildly and his blue eyes blazed. His physical beauty was as stunning as his dance.

Wyatt
couldn’t hide his surprise or his
obvious pride.

“I dunno,
Bai
,
that
record
of yours might be in danger.
Deshi
won’t be seventeen for several months. He
still has
time
to
become the youngest grandmaster ever.
”

Bai grinned and didn’t reveal that he had been working with
Deshi
on a daily basis
,
teaching him the leaps and
aerial
skills that Bai had
trademarked
.
Neither
Bai nor Wyatt
mentioned that in addition to his
acrobatic
artistry
,
the young Bai had earned his reputation
and grandmaster status using his
k
ung fu skills to kick t
hree men
t
o death at the fear
less
age of seventeen.

“If anyone can do it, Wyatt, it is likely to be
Deshi
.
He is as talented a fighter as I’ve seen.”

Looking at Wan
, Bai
added, “Looks like we
have a new Sing
Leon recruit
, wouldn’t you say
,
Father?
”

Wyatt grinned at them both
,
then put his arm around Alex’s shoulder.

“Sorry, Bai. I
n this case
,
the Caballeros
take
precedence
.
Alex and I have already
claimed
Deshi.
”

~~~

Alex waited until the
des
s
ert was being served
,
then
spiked
his courage
with a healthy draft of cognac
and
prepared to offer J
eng Ming a glass of champagne.
In the past two days
,
he
attempted several times
to talk to
the beautiful young woman
, but
s
he ignored him,
as though he wasn’t worthy of her consideration.
He
watched
her throughout the evening
,
entranced by h
er exotic beauty.
She was wearing an ivory Oriental silk gown embroidered with colorful flowers, dragons
,
and other fantastical serpents. Her shining black hair hung in a silky curtain down to the middle of her back
. It
swayed gracefully when she moved.
Determined to reach out to her
,
Alex took
a deep breath and another quick swallow of courage
and
walked toward her.

J
e
ng Ming
looked up in surprise
when
Alex
approached
and
with a reluctant nod
accepted the glass of champagne
he offered
,
then looked away.
Alex
inched closer
and
breathed in her
exhilarating
smell
,
a
n
exotic mix of jasmine and
musk
.
She was slender,
small;
her head
came to below his shoulder.
He longed to touch her,
to
hold
her dainty body
close,
and let
her know he would protect her
, wipe away her horrible past.

Alex
tried several avenues of conversation
,
but was rebuffed each time by
a
disdainful, disinterested nod and her continued silence.
He stood beside her
,
flushed with embarrassment and frustration
,
and had decided to move back to the table with
Wyatt
and Lei when
Jeng Ming
spoke.

“A
re you fucking her?”

He started and looked at her in shock.

“Who? What? …What are you talking about?”

“Her. Elena.”

“My God!
She is my sister. Of course
,
I am not fucking her. Jesus, how could you
say
that
?
I would never fuck my sister
!
”

Jeng Ming lips curled in an ugly smile.

“Hmm. You’re a man
,
aren’t you?”

Alex
was stunned, dismay
ed
.
My God, how could she say such a terrible thing, think
something so awful
? H
e took a deep breath and
forced hi
mself to
appear
calm.

“I see.
Y
ou
believe
that all men fuck anyone and everyone?”

She tossed her head and
raised
a disdainful eyebrow.

“Yes, that is my
belief
– and my experience.”

Alex
lost his battle to
remain
calm.
He was s
haking with
emotion,
a mix of anger and frustration
.

“You are wrong, so very wrong. I love Elena more than anything in the world
.
I would never do anything to hurt her or dishonor her.”

Jeng Ming didn’t try to hide her sneer.
She pointed to Bai.

“
Why are you angry with him
?”

Alex flushed and looked down shaking his head, not willing to respond.

Jeng Ming continued.

“
Because he is fucking her?
”

“Jesus God, w
ill you please stop this conversation
about fucking?
You don’t know what you are talking about. T
hat is not what this is about
.”

Jeng Ming quirked an eyebrow
with a dismissive smile
.

“
Hmm
,
seems like it
is
to me
.”

Alex’s voice was tight with anger, his cheeks
hot with heat
.

“
You don’t know
him;
you don’t know the kind of man he is
.”

“Hmm,
I think I
know him better than you do
.”

Alex
was now the dismissive one.
He didn’t try to hide his distain.

“H
ow could you
? You
just met him
.”

Jeng Ming looked at him and shook her head.

“Y
ou are such an ignorant child
.”

Alex’s
fury erupted. He wanted to yell at her, shake her.
He clenched his fists at his sides
,
struggling
to control his anger.

“How dare you. What are you talking about?”

“
I don’t know him?
Pffft.
He is the man who saved my life
. He is
the man who saved the life of every
one of these girls here
.
”

She turned and faced him head on
,
her eyes
flashing
with anger
.

“
He is the man who
lit a match
and burned up
the
evil men
who hurt us
.”

Alex
stepped
back in the face of her wrath.

H
er eyes
blazed and her voice
shook
with suppressed rage.

“D
o you hear me
? He had the courage to burn them up.
Light them on fire!
That is who he is.
You aren’t worthy to wipe his boots.
You want to
be
the adored little boy running after
your
beautiful sister?
Too bad.
Your sister is with a man now.
Go p
out and
feel sorry for yourself
, boy.
”

She whirled away
,
then turned back and spit on the floor in front of him.

Alex stood rooted to the floor,
his face slack with disbelief. His anger drain
ed
from his body
,
as though she
’d
pulled the plug from
h
is heart
,
every emotion
,
good and bad
,
flooded out
, leaving
him incredulous
,
numb, empty
.