Crane (Page 21)

“Thanks,” Hok replied.

“Come with me,” Yuen said. She slipped through the tattered curtain, back into the main dining area, and Hok followed. They were halfway across the dining room when someone began to pound vigorously on the front door.

“IN THE NAME OF THE EMPEROR, OPEN UP!”

Hok’s eyes widened and Yuen scowled. “Soldiers!” Yuen whispered. “Upstairs, quickly! There is no time to hide anywhere else. I’ll get rid of them.”

Hok raced back through the curtain into the kitchen—and froze. The rope ladder was being pulled up into the ceiling. She was about to call out softly when she spotted something out of the corner of her eye. It was a small open window.

Hok glanced at the rope ladder rising higher and higher, and she thought of Malao again. If she was going to try to do something to help him, this might be her only chance.

Hok ran to the window and hopped onto the sill. She saw an empty alley outside with an easy jump to the ground. She looked back over her shoulder as a wooden panel in the ceiling began to swing closed. Beyond the tattered curtain, Hok heard the front door open.

Hok took a deep breath and sailed out the window.

Less than a quarter of an hour after leaving the Jade Phoenix, Hok found herself taking refuge in the overhanging roof rafters of the prison itself, waiting for the sun to go down. She was surprised how easily she’d found it. Like NgGung had said, it was just a few streets due east of the Jade Phoenix.

Fortunately for her, few people passed down the narrow street along this side of the prison, and the few who did did not look up into the eaves. As the sun began to set several hours later, however, everything changed.

Fireworks exploded in the direction of the river, and everyone started looking up. Hok heard people begin to cheer, and the small number of residents who weren’t already at the riverfront raced out of their homes and shops to catch the display. Hok even caught a glimpse of two men who looked like prison guards racing along at an angle that left Hok certain they had come from the prison’s front doors along the main street.

Hok decided to make her move. She soared down from her perch and landed in a silent roll, protecting her injured arm, then hopped to her feet. She ran along the side of the prison to the front of the building and poked her head around the corner. The main street was empty. She waited for a few moments, but didn’t see any guards at the entrance.

Hok decided that the most obvious route might also be the best one. She headed for the prison’s main doors. They were unlocked. She glided inside and drifted silently through the lantern-lit entry, keeping her body pressed tightly against one wall. Hok felt completely alone. She wondered if Ying was even there.

Hok turned the room’s first corner and choked back a startled cough. In front of her was a single large cell with iron bars for a front wall and stone everywhere else. Inside it was Ying. She barely recognized her sixteen-year-old former brother.

Ying lay in the back corner, curled into a ball. His carved face had been beaten to a bloody pulp, and his eyes were almost swollen shut. He breathed through his mouth like a sick animal, wheezing loudly every time he inhaled or exhaled. His forked tongue hung out of his mouth like a dog’s, lying over his pointed teeth. Ying looked like he had lost at least one-third of his body weight, perhaps more. Hok had never seen someone in such condition. He had been beaten to the very verge of death.

Based on the sound of Ying’s breathing, Hok could tell that one of his lungs had been punctured, probably by a broken rib. Every breath Ying took would be utter agony. If left untreated, he would surely die a long, slow death. Someone wanted to make him suffer.

While Ying was a horrible person, Hok didn’t want to see anyone have to suffer like that.

Ying seemed to sense her presence and looked up. Even through his swollen face he managed to see her. Or perhaps he sensed her chi. Either way, his scabbed lips twisted into a grotesque scowl. He forced himself to wheeze two words: “Go … away.”

Hok shook her head. She approached the cell’s iron bars. “I need your help.”

Ying wheezed loudly several times in rapid succession. Hok realized that he was laughing. “Look at … me. What could I do … for you? What could you possibly do … for me?”

Hok stared at Ying’s broken body. He didn’t look like he would survive long without some sort of treatment. It gave her an idea.

“Malao has been kidnapped by Tonglong,” Hok said. “I’m hoping you might have some idea where they took him. In return, I will prepare healing tonics for you and sneak them in here.”

Ying slowly shook his head. “No …,” he wheezed. “I want out. … Get me out … and I will help you…. You have … my word.”