“Your vampire enemies have teamed up with the were-tigers,” a soldier says quietly.
“Then find the were-tiger village,” Han orders. “Assemble the troops. I will give you three days to prepare. We will attack on the fourth night and destroy their village!”
Wu Shen inhales sharply. “The were-tiger women and children live there.”
“Good!” Han yells. “That will teach them to mess with me!”
My skin crawls with fear. I do not want other shifters killed. And what if the warrior women are living in the were-tiger village? What if Norjee is there? I look up at the sky. Find the were-tiger village! Warn them they are in danger!
The birds swirl in a giant circle overhead, chirping and squawking.
Then they stop. No movement. No sound.
I blink. How can they stop in midflight? I look frantically about. Han is frozen, his fists lifted in the air. Wu Shen has stopped talking, his mouth open in the middle of a word. All the soldiers are motionless, frozen in time.
I cringe inside. I know only one entity who can control time. I want to run, but my feet will not budge. Something is stopping me. My hands move. They clench into fists. Unlike the others, I am aware, so I know what is coming.
I see him in the distance, strolling casually toward us. He is dressed in his usual fashion, all in black with a long black coat. His eyes gleam in an inhuman way, the green glowing in the dark.
As much as I loathe Master Han, I know he is weak. He takes delight in causing fear and pain, for it makes him feel less weak. To him, being a villain is like a game, and his victims are little toys. He plays at being evil.
Darafer embodies evil.
The demon approaches me, his mouth curling up on one side with a twisted smile. “What are you doing, dragon boy?”
I lower my head.
“Did you think I wouldn’t notice?” He steps closer. “You think I can’t hear you talking to your friends?”
I lift my head as fear swells inside me.
Darafer points to the sky. “You can blame yourself for this.” With a wave of his hand, every bird overhead plummets from the sky. One thud after another, the birds hit the ground till the earth is covered with death.
A wheezing sound of pain wrenches from my throat. How many birds have died because I spoke to them?
Darafer seizes my shirt and glares down at me. “Maybe you can fool Han, but remember this, dragon boy. You will never fool me.” He releases me with a push.
My feet are still stuck, so I fall back on my rear. I am surrounded by dead birds.
How will I contact the owl again? How can I let the warrior women and Norjee know where I am?
Darafer waves his hand, and everyone jumps back to life as if time had never stopped.
Wu Shen resumes his talking but pauses after a few words and looks around. His eyes widen at the sight of Darafer.
“What’s with all the dead birds all of a sudden?” a soldier asks, nudging one with his boot.
Han stiffens, turning toward Darafer. “Do you realize two of our camps were attacked last night?”
The demon shrugs. “You’re in charge of training the soldiers. I just make them.”
“Then make me some more!” Han yells. “My army used to be a thousand strong, and now it’s down to three hundred!”
The demon zooms toward Han and grasps him by the throat. Han’s guards move toward him, but with a flick of his wrist, Darafer sends them all flying back a hundred feet.
“You left me in hell for seven months,” Darafer growls. “You thought you could take over the world without me, didn’t you? You pathetic worm. While I was gone, you lost over half of your army.” He pushes Han back.
Han stumbles, then makes a quick bow. “As your humble servant, I beg your assistance in making more supersoldiers.”
“That’s more like it.” Darafer crosses his arms and gives Han a disdainful look. “Remember who’s the boss around here, and we’ll get along fine.”
“Yes, my lord.” Han bows again.
“I have grown more demon herb,” Darafer says. “And I am producing the potion. It should be ready by tomorrow night. Round up more volunteers, and I’ll mutate them.”
“Thank you, my lord.” Han bows. “I will do as you say.”
“See that you do. And take the dragon boy below ground before he talks to more birds.” Darafer turns away from Han and smiles at me. “You will submit to me, too, Xiao Fang. It’s only a matter of time.”
My heart sinks with despair. If I cannot reach my friends, how will they rescue me? If I cannot warn the were-tigers of an impending attack, will they and my friends die?
“I’m watching you,” Darafer says, then vanishes.
Fire burns in my belly, and hot tears sting my eyes. For even if I manage to get away from Master Han, how can I hope to escape a demon?
Even as fear threatens to overwhelm me, I cling to a truth that must ever remain constant.
I am dragon. I can never surrender. Nor will I submit.
Chapter Thirteen
When Jia awoke, the cave was dark, except for an oil lamp lit in the kitchen. She sat up, alarmed that she had slept so late. Russell was sitting at the table, quietly cleaning his guns.
She scrambled out of bed. “You should have woken me up.”
“You looked tired. And you had a rough time last night.” He concentrated on his work, barely glancing her way. “An hour delay isn’t the end of the world.”
“But we don’t have any time to waste.” She reported what Rajiv had told her about Angus and his employees attacking a camp every night until they lured Han out of hiding. “We need to find Han before they do.”