I frowned, trying to remember what happened next.
The tinkle of keys interrupted me just before the door swung open.
“Xiao Lu?” Three silhouettes entered the pavilion, framed by the lanterns gleaming outside.
Whisperroared.
Launching himself off the bed, the panther flew toward the unwanted visitors, ready to disembowel.
“Don’t!” I kicked off the blankets, getting tangled in my rush. “Whisper!”
A chorus of screams rang out.
“Whisper.Stop it!”
He paced like a prison guard, snapping at the three guests as they cowered together, clinging to whatever they held in their hands.
“Is it...is it safe?”
I recognised the voice.
Auntie Mei?
What...what was she doing here so late?
Finally freeing myself from the confounded blankets, I swung my legs over the bed. “Come here, you oversized pest.”
Whisper’s eyes caught the moonlight pouring through the circular window—his expression hinting he’d much rather indulge in murder.
“If you’re here with me and not Lucien, I know he would’ve given you orders to obey me, so...” I patted my thigh, brushing down my wrinkled white skirt. “Come here.”
The huge cat grumbled and stalked reluctantly back to me. Planting his rump directly in front of the bed, his claws dug into the wooden floorboards as if imagining he sank them into the women’s necks.
“Can we come in?” Auntie Mei asked warily.
“Yes. Sorry. He’s just not used to unannounced visitors, that’s all.” I rested my hand on the back of his stiff neck. “He won’t hurt you. I’m sorry he scared—”
“No, no, it’s me who should apologise.” Auntie Mei stepped deeper into the room. Bustling toward the lamps scattered about, she turned them on as she went. “I didn’t mean to intrude. I would never usually just let myself in like that...but I was worried.” Her gaze landed on the singed corners and sooty furniture. She tensed but continued walking...almost as if she’d seen such things before.
I tapped my temple, trying to jog the rest of my memory. This happened sometimes. My system tried to protect me by removing the very thing that caused me to blackout in the first place.
Auntie Mei skirted around a charred cushion; her expression resigned instead of shocked. Giving me a polite smile, she said, “I’ve been waiting for you both for a while. But when night fell and you didn’t appear, I grew concerned.”
“Where’s Lucien?” I asked, my heart starting to race.
“I thought he was with you.” Auntie Mei came to a stop, close but not too close—Whisper hissing as she strayed over his imaginary line.
“He’s not here.” Worry flared bright as I glanced around the empty bedroom. “Are you sure you haven’t seen him?”
She shook her head, her silvering hair secured with a wooden pin. “No, but I’ve been busy tending to the family temple and preparing Xiao Lu’s father’s office...just in case he intends to visit. Perhaps I just didn’t see him.”
Urgency shot me to my feet. “I need to find him. I need to know if he’s okay.”
“I saw him.” One of the pretty girls who’d taken a liking to him when we’d first arrived piped up. She came to join AuntieMei, holding a tray of covered dishes. “I spied him running through the eastern gardens this afternoon.”
“So he still likes to run.” Auntie Mei nodded proudly. “He was always running about when he was a child.”
He’s okay then.
