Year of the Dragon (Changeling Sisters Book 3) (20 page)

“Anyway, their ability to survive life-threatening conditions is very important to many of the Futures Department’s experiments,” he muttered, shoving his hands in his pockets.

“Later, man,” Minho called, giving him a fist bump and then drifting over to a street vendor stall.

“Here, you might need these.” I handed over the black-rimmed glasses that I’d hidden in Minho’s varsity jacket.

Ankor smiled ruefully, and his hand rested on mine a moment longer. The sparks were back, but this time they glowed with warmth rather than menacing anger. “I see now how you win people over, Citlalli.”

I gave a mock gasp. “Calling me by name now? Careful. Some people might get the idea that we’re friends.”

“Friends. I guess so. It’s not like you and Raina are going back to the US any time soon.” Ankor hesitated, watching Minho thread his way back from the street vendor with a hot
ddeokbokki
to share. “Seriously, Citlalli. You’re funny and charming, and you don’t seem to realize how it affects people. Whatever happens—don’t lead my best friend on, okay?”

My heartbeat drummed uncomfortably in my ribcage. Ankor was right. At the end of the day, Minho was a pretty cool business student with a bright future ahead of him, and I was the mentally-deteriorating werewolf who had awarded herself a high school diploma.

“Hey,” I called as Ankor turned away, “that’s cool you’re looking out for your friend, and I do hear you. Your determination to see others’ true intentions should help you pass the Second Trial with flying colors. Either that, or just bore the guardian to death with your lectures on microscopic organisms.”

Ankor rolled his eyes, but a faint smile crossed his lips. “And your fortitude should help you make the best decision for your pack. Either that, or make them pity you by demonstrating your delightful ignorance.”

The Autumn Dragon slithered away into the crowd before I could form an adequate response.

Minho smiled at me and clapped a hand on my shoulder. “I am glad you and Ankor can get along.”

“You didn’t doubt me, did you?” I teased, linking my arm through his. Minho smiled thoughtfully as I leaned against him.

“No. You did well. Please, understand. Ankor is slow to trust. But once you earn it…” Minho paused and regarded me gravely. “You will have it for life.”

Chapter 23: Hidden Agendas

~Citlalli~

The rare kadupul flower blossomed shyly in the lantern’s soil bed. Its hundreds of silky white petals snaked out to wrap around the mangrove poles. An emerald flame heated the damp earth of the soil box from underneath.

“Beautiful,” Mangdung breathed in my ear. The chubby leopard kit bunched up on my shoulder, his smoky gray fur tickling my skin. “I take back every bad thing I have ever said about you, Lantern Maker.”

“Shut it, cat. I need to concentrate,” I said between gritted teeth. I tucked in the final few reeds and cross-checked the design on Old Man Zhi’s master blueprint list. “It wasn’t supposed to bloom yet.” Out of the corner of my eye, I watched Raina rise from her rocking chair and take a few steps closer. Despite herself, I could tell my sister was intrigued by the beautiful lanterns made out of wood and glass.

“The Sri Lankan kadupul flower only blossoms at midnight.” Mangdung curled around my neck unhelpfully. “Oh, Painted Girl is going to be happy! She said this special flower will help her mother remember the way back to their homeland.”

The Fragrance Lantern abruptly collapsed in a pile of mud and worms, filling the lantern shop with the stench of manure.

“Damnit!” I slammed the desk, causing Mangdung to leap for the rafters. “What did I do wrong?”

A hand lashed out to catch the Fragrance Lantern before it fell. Mangdung and I watched in amazement as Raina studied the lantern and then untied and cross-stitched the reeds. As she wove, the stench of compost receded and two more dove-white buds poked their heads out from the soil. We stepped back and stared in amazement as the sweet scent of the rare Sri Lankan flower flooded the shop.

“Wow, that’ll smell like home.” I gave Raina a proud smile. “Are you looking for a job by chance?”

Raina shook her head jerkily. “This is just for practice, Citlalli. The Fourth Trial of Wisdom will take place in Eve. I have to be ready.”

I shrugged. “Okay, but I want you to feel safe in this lantern shop. This is where the Lady of Eve came to free all of the trapped souls Queen Maya imprisoned.” My hands trembled as I placed the Fragrance Lantern on the shelf. “This is where I last saw Mari move Beyond.”

When I brought up our lost eldest sister, I saw Raina’s eyes stray toward the infinite night sky flickering outside the window. “Was she happy?” she whispered.

“She was dancing in the wind.”

Raina flashed a nervous smile. “Mari remembered who she was then, at the end. The last time I saw her… Oh, Citlalli, it was terrible. I called up my water powers to make a distraction so I could find Donovan’s soul. I hurt Mari while doing so, but she still fought her way over to me. She wanted to know what was wrong. And I left her there, amongst the vampyres and their brides. That was how I said goodbye.”

I similarly remembered hurting Mari with news of her vampyre ‘husband’s’ death, that despicable Duck Young. But that version of Mari hadn’t been her. And as achingly wonderful as those few precious moments with my eldest sister in Eve had been, deep down, I’d always known the truth: Marisol Mejía-Alvarez had already died a long time ago.

“Raina,” I said, grabbing her hand, “it doesn’t have to be.”

My sister squeezed my hand tightly. “Mari would be proud of us, you know,” she whispered. “Mami, Miguel, Daniella, you and I… We didn’t fall apart, like the vampyres wanted. We came back together: a family again.”

I smiled. “No one messes with the Alvarezes.”

The kettle whistled, and I signaled Mangdung to fetch us some tea. “So, one Trial down, three more to go! You’ve got this, Raina. I still can’t believe you saw the Great Wall of China without me. Where’s the next test?”

“Mt. Baekdu. On the border of China and North Korea,” she added casually, and I choked on my mint tea.

“The tea is still hot,” Mangdung observed, and I glared at him until he slunk away.

“Is that safe?” I demanded of Raina. “Even if you go by way of China, that’s still perilously close to weretiger territory. We haven’t heard a growl from them since Jaehoon’s death.”

“A weretiger will be teaching us,” Raina said quietly. “The Second Spirit Guardian, Baek Bo Ra. North Korea may be their territory after the divide, but the tigers still bow their heads in allegiance to the Dragon King and the Lady of Eve. Bo Ra is head of her clan and will ensure the safety of the children of Mun Mu.”

“As long as it’s not a trap,” I warned. “Be vigilant, Raina. The enemy will not stand idly by while the Celestial Dragons earn their fourth claws. They are going after anyone who could threaten their operation behind the Emerald Veil. Santiago already infiltrated our restaurant and tried to kill Taeyang. The dragons didn’t participate in the last Were War. If they step in now, then they could turn the tide in our favor.”

“I know,” Raina said. “But Citlalli, Mun Mu was Dragon King while Maya reigned. Why hasn’t my father interfered before now?”

I stood up to pace. “The vampyres never united the Dark Spirits together for a common purpose, either. Their mist threatens to destroy the barrier between the mortal world and Eve. I’d say Mun Mu would have a problem with that. If only Una could tell us what they’re doing! She managed to build a dream bridge to me, Raina. Even with all of the shit they’re putting her through, Una is still fighting.”

Raina said nothing. I whirled around to find her spirit form thrashing around on the ground. Her face blurred as something attempted to
pull
her soul out of her.

I heard gasps behind and turned to see Old Mother Leopard Cat and her kits’ bright amber eyes glowing in the darkness.

“Light every single sunshine lantern! Hurry!” I cried. The kits leapt to. Soon the lantern shop blazed with radiant, cleansing energy that chased the evil spirits away. Raina slumped, and I hurried to cradle her head.

Her hand seized mine. It had partially morphed into its silvery-blue scaled form. “Citlalli,” she whispered, “he tried to take me there.”

“Who? A Dark Spirit? Santiago?”

“Donovan.” The last time I had heard her utter the name of the dreaded white-winged vampyre, her soul had been stolen. She had crooned it with such tenderness, utterly accepting of her place as his next wife. Now she spat it out quickly, as if saying his name aloud would make him appear. Although my sister tried hard to mask it, I knew she was terrified.

The purple glow in her dark brown eyes receded. Raina took in several huge, gulping breaths to steady her spirit form. “He’s…
happy,
Citlalli. Whatever they’re trying to find…they’ve made a breakthrough.”

My eyes hardened. “Go home, Raina. Focus on your Trials.”

“What are you going to do?”

“It’s time to find out what they’re after. The vampyres think they’ve been so smart, infiltrating us with spies. Now it is time to use that against them.” I straightened and nodded to the leopard cat spirits. “Bring it out.”

Reverently, they unveiled the small spherical lantern made of glass. It caught every mote of light and drew them into its internal rainbow tempest. We’d spent months blowing the glass for it. I grudgingly admitted that it would have taken years for me to finish it on my own.

Raina gasped, pointing toward Old Man Zhi’s collection of blueprints. “Is that—?”

“One of the most powerful of all lantern designs,” I said proudly. “A Truth Lantern that can tell facts from lies. It is also a trap that will catch an old friend of mine: a certain silver-tongued nine-tailed fox.”

Chapter 24: Werewolf Politics

~Citlalli~

My call to Hyeon Bin about Una’s dream message had been a hard but necessary one.

None can pass unless They wish it.

Una’s whisper unfurled across my mind like a wisp of smoke. Her uncle and I had both agreed: the only way Ko Siwoo and his family could have escaped from Jeju Island was if the vampyre princes had wanted them to.

I passed under the barbed wire barricade surrounding the warehouse. The Seoul werewolves had a new den after Duck Young, the youngest vampyre prince, had found our last base and razed it to the ground. Before Maya had turned him, Duck Young had been Yu Li’s husband. Yu Li had been forced to kill him in order to save her son’s life and mine. I don’t think she ever wanted to return to our last headquarters, either.

Mun Mu had insisted we take up in the old abandoned Yong Enterprises’ warehouse, which was still heavily fortified from years before. It had stored artillery during the Korean War. Giant conveyor belts wound their way up to the upper reaches, and there were still large, decrepit shipping crates with toxic labels gathering dust on the basement level.

It was a full house today. Rafael’s supporters stayed on the eastern side of the warehouse. Namkyu and Moon were teaching Ae Cha’s children basic taekwondo stances while Iseul prepared them a snack. On the western half, Bae was reading to Yu Li’s son, Young Soo. Kaelan and Yu Li stood with the Jeju-do werewolves around a map, pointing to various parts of the mist. I didn’t see Rafael, but I did spot Siwoo resting his hands on the railing of the second floor, struggling to control his shivers.

I carefully eased the Truth Lantern into my jacket pocket and strode briskly up the ramp to meet him. I nodded along the way to my bowing werewolves.

“Any luck remembering how you broke through the mist?” I asked Siwoo.

The lantern flared warm beneath my hand as he answered, “S-s-sadly not yet, Alpha Alvarez,” and I didn’t need to take it out to know it was as red as his lies.

Right on cue, Miguel slipped into the warehouse. He motioned to keep quiet to Young Soo and then snuck up behind Yu Li. When he grabbed her around the waist and kissed her ear, Yu Li easily twisted out of it.

“Miguel. Really.” Her voice floated up to us. “We are in the middle of discussing a scouting mission.”

“You were so focused on faraway surveillance that you didn’t notice a trespasser right under your nose,” my brother bragged.

Yu Li raised an eyebrow. “Every wolf noticed, and every wolf didn’t detect a threat.”

“You underestimate me. I know exactly how to take you down,” Miguel teased and reached for her again. This time, she let his arms wrap around her. She leaned her head against his, and the tiniest of smiles softened her rigid features. Young Soo made a gagging noise. When I turned to Siwoo, I could see he felt the same. His eyes had narrowed into slits, and his fingers clenched the railing hard enough to shatter it.

I casually leaned back, studying the giant steel pipes crisscrossing the ceiling above. “It must be tough. You’re finally a human, but you don’t have the form you wanted.”

Startled, Siwoo broke his death glare with Miguel to find me a hairsbreadth from his face.

“And Una will never look at you the way you want because you’re not my brother,” I hissed, my voice fire. “Isn’t that right…Fred?”

Siwoo backed away, shaking his head. “A-A-Alpha Alvarez, w-what do you mean? I don’t understand—”

“I have a Truth Lantern that says otherwise.” Its glass tinkered as I slapped it down on the handrail, the red orb awhirl with warning.

Fred did what a fox typically does. He fled. And at last, beneath all of the layers of nauseating cologne, I finally caught a whiff of the real beast that lay within.

I caught him in the watchtower. Siwoo backed away from my towering form and put up a pleading hand. He looked utterly ridiculous in his plum pinstriped suit. A sinister shade of red darkened his brown eyes.

“Please, Citlalli. It is not what you think.”

“What I
think
,” I growled, stepping menacingly closer, “is that some poor boy is lying dead back on Jeju-do, his marvelous dreams of the city and inventions never leaving the island because of you. What I
think
is that Una has fallen prisoner to Dark Spirit monsters because of you!”