Naamah's Kiss - Jacqueline Carey [211]
I shook my head. "And you call me strange."
Our motley band was ushered into a private room upstairs, where we were served tea and an array of steamed dumplings with a spicy dipping sauce, as well as tiny fish fried up hot and crispy. Once we were alone and the door firmly closed, the seven men swore loyalty to Bao on the Thieves' Oath, replete with gory details that would result from breaking it. He listened to them with eyes half-lidded.
"They speak the truth?" he asked me in D'Angeline.
I shrugged. "How should I know? I've no gift to determine whether or not a man speaks the truth."
"I will tell them you do," he informed me.
He did, and one man paled and left, trembling. It occurred to me that Bao had a considerable gift for theater. The men who remained hung on his words, perishing with curiosity, and none more than Ten Tigers Dai.
"So." Sitting cross-legged, Bao laid his staff across his lap and steepled his fingers. "You have heard the gossip. You have heard the stories. I am here to tell you the truth. Black Sleeve is a traitor. Lord Jiang is a traitor. The Son of Heaven has been tricked. He has not lost the Mandate of Heaven. His Noble Daughter has been tricked. It is not a. demon that possesses her." He paused to let them murmur and speculate, his eyes glinting. "She houses a dragon's spirit within her flesh. And we . mean to free them both by conveying her to White Jade Mountain, where the dragon is meant to reside. Men, I offer you an opportunity. Will you be petty thugs and villains all the days of your lives, or will you be heroes and claim a place in an epic tale? May I count upon your aid?"
They roared in agreement.
"Hopeless romantics," I murmured.
"Uh-huh." Bao nudged me. "A lot like you, eh?"
I smiled. "Mayhap."
It took some days to formulate a plan. There were three men willing to participate to the fullest, to risk the wrath of Heaven in escorting the princess to the mountain. Slope-jawed Tortoise, steady and none too bright; and his boon companion Kang, a clever wiry fellow with a narrow, pock-marked face.
And Ten Tigers Dai.
There were three others reluctant to commit to the journey, but willing to give their aid—and that was enough.
Piece by piece, we put together a plan. Our unlikely allies assisted us, gathering the necessary implements of our disguises and making arrangements.
"Are you certain we can trust them?" Snow Tiger mused when I told her of our evolving plan. "These thieves and ruffians?"
"I trust Bao," I said, surprised to find the words true. "And we have little choice."
I trust you.
I smiled at the dragon in the mirror, touching the smooth surface in which its opalescent gaze was reflected. "I will try to be worthy of it."
Snow Tiger was tense, her posture rigid. "The disguise that Master Lo Feng proposes may be a blasphemous one. Those who follow the Path of Dharma will be sorely offended, and perhaps the gods, too."
"Not by you," I assured her. "It is only the men who will take on the guise of travelling monks."
"Still—"
NO. The dragon's coils lashed, curling and uncurling. Its horned and whiskered head surfaced to regard us, its luminous gaze intent and grave. There is no blasphemy here. There is only need. The balance must be restored.
"I understand," we said in unison.
"And I will need my sword," Snow Tiger added. "Especially since we will be travelling with ruffians. We must retrieve it before I leave the Celestial City."
I sighed. "Aye, my lady."
"Moirin." She caught my wrist in that unnaturally strong grip, her eyes searching mine. "Forgive me. I question the method, but not the purpose. I will leave a letter for my father detailing my purpose. It is my belief that once we are committed, once I am gone, my father will shake off his doubts and rise to the occasion. He will commit his armies. The Son of Heaven will rise to Lord Jiang's challenge and seek to thwart him."
"I hope you're right," I said. "Because if he delays, Lord Jiang will have enough