Journey to Wubang 01 - Earth to Hell (13 page)

He grasped the wheels of his chair to wheel himself inside, but I moved to the rear of the chair and took the handles. I wheeled him past his two demon guards into his villa.

I sat on the rosewood couch and he sat in his wheelchair facing me, fidgeting in his lap. I waited for him to start, but he didn’t say anything. Eventually I said, ‘I know you’ve been asking to die for eight years, Leo.’

He sighed and tilted his head without looking up. ‘That’s all I want, Emma. An end to it. That’s all I’ve ever wanted.’

‘There’s no way we can convince you to come back with us?’

He just shrugged.

‘Simone and Michael need you.’

He smiled slightly. ‘They’re already grown-up, look at them. What do they need me for?’ He gestured towards his legs. ‘I’m useless.’

‘Immortals can fly; you could probably learn to levitate, or even make use of your legs. Iron Crutch doesn’t have to take the form of a cripple all the time, and probably neither would you, unless you chose to.’

Leo bowed his head. ‘A
cripple.
’

I raised my hands. ‘Disabled. Disabled. Geez.’

He rubbed his hand over his face again. ‘No, you’re right, Emma, I’m a cripple. And here you are, wanting to sentence me to an eternity of being like this and pining after him?’ He heaved a deep sigh. ‘No, thanks. Go and wait for him, and when he comes back for you, be happy together. Simone and Michael are grown-up now. None of you need me. Please. Let me go.’

I hesitated, then dealt my trump card. ‘I know what you want more than death, because I want it too.’

He looked away.

‘I want to be his Serpent, Leo. I want to join with him when he comes back, be one with him. I want him to absorb me.’ I reached out and touched his hand. ‘And I know you want him to absorb you too. It’s what you asked him to do when you thought you were going to die.’

He still didn’t look at me.

‘What if you had the chance to be drained by him?’

His head shot up so he could see me.

‘Be one with him forever?’ I went on. ‘I know that’s what I want. I’m sure you want it too. Would you wait for him to come back, to have that chance?’

‘That would be wrong, Emma. He loves you.’

‘He loves you too, Leo, and I’m sure he’d be merciful enough to do this for you.’ I smiled and shrugged. ‘My husband and my best friend in one gorgeous package. How could I lose?’

He chuckled. ‘That sounds so wrong.’

‘Shen only seem to follow human rules when it suits them.’ I held his hand tighter. ‘So what do you say? Come home with us and spend the time with us, your family, until he returns. Simone’s only fourteen and has a lot of growing to do. Michael could really use your advice; he isn’t on speaking terms with his father. They really do need you, and I could use your common sense sometimes. And when he returns, both of us can ask him to do this for you. You know he won’t say no to me. So how about it?’

‘That would be a dream come true, Emma, you know that,’ Leo said softly.

‘I know, my friend, I know,’ I said, and squeezed his hand. ‘I want it too.’

‘He would do it for me?’

‘He already did, but Kwan Yin grabbed you. Remember? He started to drain you. He’d do it again if we asked him, I’m sure.’

‘But I have to drink this stupid Elixir of Immortality. Then he won’t be able to drain me.’

‘He will. I know he will—he was concerned about draining Meredith. Take it, Leo, and come back with us for a little while longer.’

Leo gestured towards the sideboard in his dining room. ‘It’s over there. It’s been there the whole time; I could have used it any time I wanted. Wanna get it for me?’

I couldn’t contain the huge smile. ‘Sure.’

I rose and went to the sideboard, where an elegant silver and glass jug held the Elixir of Immortality. The liquid was the colour of red wine but its sour, unpleasant smell was discernible from quite some distance. I grabbed a glass as well and took both to him, placing them on the coffee table next to him.

‘Smells awful,’ I said.

‘Yeah,’ Leo said. He grinned. ‘Must mean it’s very good for you.’

‘Don’t do it yet—I’ll get the kids,’ I said.

‘Does Michael still object to being called a kid?’ Leo said.

‘Oh, very loudly,’ I said, and went to the door of the villa.
Call them for me
, I said to the stone.

Done
, the stone replied.

Simone and Michael hurried back to the house, Meredith and the official following.

‘He’s really going to do it?’ Simone said, flushed and excited.

‘Yes,’ I said.

‘This will be your first time to see this then,’ Meredith said. ‘Come and watch.’

Simone raced to Leo and hugged him around his shoulders. ‘Drink it, Leo. I want to see what happens.’

I took the jug and poured him a glass of the crimson, foul-smelling liquid. ‘Drink it quickly if it tastes as bad as it smells.’

‘Yeah,’ Leo said, and raised the glass in a toast to all of us, then drank.

‘Wait…’ Meredith said, but it was too late.

Leo dropped the glass, his mouth opened in a silent scream, his eyes wide. He shredded quickly, like a demon, his edges disappearing into black feathery streamers. It happened too fast for me to react; he exploded and was gone.

‘
Y
ou killed him!’ Michael shouted, rounding on Meredith and the official. ‘You murdered him!’ He sagged against the couch and rubbed his hand over his face. ‘What happened?’

‘This is not possible,’ the official said weakly. ‘This cannot have happened. He was an ordinary human.’ He drifted to the side of the room and fell to sit on a chair against the wall. ‘I am contacting the Master.’

Meredith went to Michael and looked into his eyes. ‘That wasn’t Leo, Michael, believe me. Only demons react like that to the Elixir. Only demons say it smells and tastes bad; to everyone else it tastes very good. That was some sort of demon copy or replacement or something, and the Elixir destroyed it.’

‘So where’s Leo?’ Michael said, glaring at her.

Meredith turned to the official. He snapped back from whoever he had been communicating with, obviously stricken. ‘The Master is on his way. We have no idea how this happened. Mr Alexander must have been replaced some time recently. That copy was undetectable though, which is very disturbing.’

‘
So where is Leo
?’ Michael stormed to his feet.

A middle-aged man in traditional maroon robes appeared. ‘We don’t know,’ he said.

The official bowed and saluted him. ‘Yanluo Wang.’

‘Come with me to my office and we’ll work out what to do,’ Yanluo Wang, King of the Underworld, said. ‘The demons may know something—we will contact the demonic side of Hell. It appears that Leo has been taken.’

He took us back to the main building, where we’d arrived on the roof, and we went inside the ground-floor entrance. The interior was like a modern office. He led us past sleek designer cubicles containing staff in traditional robes working on computers, and to his office at the other end. It overlooked the lake and contained a meeting table, an executive desk and a computer. A whiteboard to one side was covered with indecipherable symbols and scribbled Chinese characters.

He saw me looking at it and grinned. ‘Recent strategic planning session.’

‘This really is Hell,’ I said wryly.

‘Oh, absolutely,’ Yanluo Wang said. ‘Some residents are punished by being forced to sit in on the sessions. If they are to be punished more severely, they are made to take the minutes of the meetings.’ He sat at the large conference table and gestured for us to sit. ‘Let me call in the contacts and see what I can discover. Please, give me a moment.’ His eyes unfocused.

There was a tap on the door and a man opened it slightly. ‘Wong Mo wants to help,’ he said.

‘I don’t want the Demon King having any part of this,’ Simone said. ‘He caused all this trouble in the first place by putting a price on my father’s head.’

‘If any demonic influence is involved, then he will be able to help, Princess,’ Yanluo Wang said. ‘He has equal jurisdiction down here in Hell.’

‘It’s a good idea,’ Meredith said. ‘The demons may have some ideas. They can’t get up to anything here on the Celestial side. Let them come, Simone.’

‘Emma?’ Simone said.

‘The King has to vow not to try anything,’ I said. ‘Don’t ask me what I mean, just tell him that and make him agree.’

I know exactly what you mean and I vow I will not try anything
, the King said into my ear.
I vow I will not try to make you change or convert you. But I’d love it if you were to show me, darling Emma. I dream about your Mother form at night.

‘He can come,’ I said, and the Demon King appeared at the other side of the room, with a long-haired Chinese man who looked like John at his side.

Simone moved so quickly she was a blur. She held out one hand, summoned Dark Heavens, and as she ran towards the two men she ripped the sword from its scabbard and threw it aside. She stopped with the point of the blade against the long-haired man’s throat.

It was John’s son, Martin. He stood with the sword at his throat and smiled slightly, his eyes full of amusement as he looked down at Simone. The King didn’t move; he just stood beside Martin with a similar small smile.

Michael drew the White Tiger and stood behind Simone, the sword to one side. ‘If you’re going to do it, let me help,’ he growled.

I stood behind Simone but didn’t attempt to call my weapon; she was doing quite nicely by herself.

Simone quivered with rage but her voice was soft and icy and the tip of the sword didn’t move from Martin’s throat. ‘You disgusting piece of scum-sucking pond slime. You lied to Leo, you kidnapped me, you killed a demon child that was used to nearly kill our father, and in the end you did kill our father because
you took me to One Two Two and Daddy had to trade his head for my safety.’

‘This really is not necessary, Princess,’ the King said. ‘He is here as my emissary and right now you cannot harm him.’

‘It’s true, Simone,’ Meredith said. ‘Don’t try anything, it’s a waste of time. As an emissary he has protection.’

Simone barked with frustration and swung Dark Heavens to take Martin’s head off. The sword passed through without hurting him.

‘Didn’t know you had it in you, Simone, well done,’ Martin said, still smiling slightly. ‘There is hope for you after all.’

Michael put the White Tiger away but his gaze didn’t shift from Martin. ‘You will pay for what you did, Ming Gui,’ he said, his voice a rasping growl. ‘You’d better not leave Hell because if you do—’

‘We…will…find…you,’ Simone finished with him.

She held out her hand and Dark Heavens’ scabbard flew into it. She sheathed the sword, raised her hand and dismissed it. ‘I swear that you will taste my blade, betrayer of my father,’ she said softly.

‘If it means anything at all, I was honestly misled and thought that we’d be going somewhere safe to spend some more time together,’ Martin said. ‘I didn’t know that the demon child wasn’t you—I really did think I’d managed to get you out. That’s why I fought alongside you, Simone.’ He nodded to me. ‘Emma. And my feelings for Leo were genuine.’

‘Then what are you doing here with
him
?’ I said, gesturing towards the Demon King.

‘I have my reasons,’ Martin said, the smile fading. ‘I have dug my grave and now I must lie in it.’

‘He’s all mine, and a most desirable trophy,’ the Demon King said. ‘The Mothers adore him.’

Martin winced.

‘You give him to the
Mothers
?’ Simone said.

The King spread his hands and shrugged. ‘When I’m not using him. Have to keep him busy, you know. Come, little Simone, sit. Let’s see what we can do about finding your pet lion.’

The Demon King and Martin moved to the conference table, saluting Yanluo Wang as they sat. Yanluo Wang saluted back. Simone hesitated, then she and Michael sat at the table as well, and I joined them.

‘Okay,’ the Demon King said, leaning on the table. ‘I hear that Leo was replaced. This probably happened while those kids were guarding him and got lured away. Did you destroy them when I sent them to you, Emma?’

I remembered the three demons who had come to the offices a few days before. ‘Two ran, but I tamed one.’

‘Bring it, I’ll have a look inside,’ the King said. ‘It may have some information for us.’

‘Don’t destroy it,’ I said.

‘It will look bad if I don’t destroy a demon that’s been tamed, you know that.’ He smiled slightly. ‘But for you, anything.’

Nigel tapped on the door and poked his head around. ‘The demon, ma’am.’

‘Bring him in, Nigel.’

Nigel opened the door and Four Seven Three, still appearing as a teenager, entered. The demon saw the King and froze. It changed into True Form: a green humanoid of about three metres tall, with scales, tusks and bulging eyes. Red tufts of hair sprouted from its head. It stood frozen in front of the King for a moment, then scurried around the opposite side of the table and crouched behind me.

‘Come here, little one,’ the King said kindly.

The demon made a small keening sound of terror and slowly rose. It moved like a puppet towards the
King, still making the keening sound. ‘Protect me, Lady,’ the demon said, its voice pitched high with terror.

‘It’s all right, I won’t let him hurt you,’ I said.

The King swivelled in his chair and raised one hand towards the demon. ‘Take human form and come sit in my lap.’

The demon didn’t stop its quiet wail of fear, but it changed back into a teenager and lurched to the King. It flopped into his lap and he wrapped his arms around its waist and spoke into its ear.

‘Emma told me not to destroy you, child. We need some information. Where is Leo?’

The King tightened his grip and the demon threw its head back and screamed.

‘Where’s Leo?’ the King said, his eyes bright with pleasure as he held the writhing demon. ‘Where did they take him?’

‘I don’t know,’ the demon wailed. ‘Stop. Stop. Make it stop. Lady, please, make it stop.’

‘Emma, you only asked him not to destroy it. He can still hurt it if he likes,’ Simone said urgently.