7. Li Xiang

“No!” Xiang cried as he threw his hands up in the air. His fingers curled as he lowered them again as if trying to bring the heavens down on his head. “You can’t do that!”

“Of course I can,” Kai replied, his matter-of-fact tone holding only a hint of smugness.

“You did that on purpose. You waited until the end to place your stone there.”

“As if I read your mind, knowing that you’ve been sweating for the last ten minutes, hoping I didn’t notice that very obvious move?” As the man spoke, his grin grew wider and wider. Kai had been toying with him. This game had been ridiculously close the entire time. Xiang had taken the lead early and held on to it, but he’d seen the weakness in his plan midway through the game. It had been too late to change course. All he could do was pray that Kai didn’t notice it as well.

But of course he had.

Xiang flopped backward onto the cushions and dropped his arm across his eyes. Despite his mutters and grumbles, he was still smiling through it all. This had become their routine for the past several days. Kai would appear with his usual stern expression, complaining about how Xiang was moving things about and knocking things over. But it was all an act. At the first mention of playing a game of weiqi, Kai’s grumpy demeanor would melt away, and he most closely resembled a child invited to a trip to the market. The smile he’d hidden when they first met now emerged all the time. It was even sneaking out during their weiqi matches.

The past two evenings, Kai had barely left the treasure hoard. After helping Xiang cook a simple meal, they lounged around on the cushions while Xiang played with the phone Kai had gotten him. The man’s chest was still the best place for his head. Not because he felt the need to be close. It was that the position provided Kai the best view of his screen.

From there, Kai would prod Xiang into several games of weiqi. He still didn’t love the game, but Kai was a much more enjoyable adversary than Chen. His martial brother didn’t allow talking during the game as it disrupted his train of thought and took away from the peace of the game. Meanwhile, Kai could chatter on about absolutely nothing at all and still play a hard-fought round.

What was best, though, was that Kai didn’t care if he won. He could lose four games in a row and seem just as happy as if he’d won them all instead. There was something in those black and white stones that held a secret joy for him that could not be touched by anything or anyone.

And if Xiang announced he didn’t want to play anymore, Kai didn’t utter a single complaint. He would carefully pack up the stones and board as if he were wrapping up his newborn child.

The previous day, Xiang had stumbled off to bed bleary-eyed and exhausted, while Kai still lay on the mound of cushions, reading a book. He didn’t know when the man had finally left. He woke to an empty hoard and stumbled into the marble-and-gold bathroom for a shower.

“Hey,” Xiang started. He shifted his arm so he could watch Kai on the sly as he returned the stones to their proper containers. “Where do you go?”

Kai’s hand paused in the air, a white stone pinched between two fingers. “What do you mean?”

“You know what I mean. Where do you go when you’re not in here?”

“To another part of the dragon’s cave.” Kai resumed returning the stones to the holders, but he wouldn’t look up from the top of the board, as if he were afraid to meet Xiang’s eyes.

“Where?”

“What does it matter? I’m in the cave like you.”

Xiang removed his arm from his eyes and sat up so he could face Kai. This didn’t sound good at all. Nope. Not one little bit. “Is it a room like this?” Xiang narrowed his gaze on Kai. “Do you have a working television?”

Kai sighed and rolled his eyes. “I do not possess a TV in my room.” After he placed the lids on the containers, he finally stared at Xiang. “It’s similar to this, but smaller and more simply furnished.”

“Before I arrived, did you stay in here?” Xiang pointed at the floor, indicating the treasure room.

“Yes.”

“Why did you leave?”

“It was thought that you would be more comfortable having a space to yourself rather than having a stranger nearby.”

A derisive scoff jumped from Xiang’s throat as he crossed his arms over his chest. “Was that your stupid thought or the dragon’s?”

Kai froze, his lips parted, but no sound came out. Xiang’s smile grew even wider. It wasn’t often that he could render the man utterly speechless, and he was quite enjoying the experience.

“I…I…” Kai stammered after a couple of seconds. “I didn’t think you’d want a stranger and spy of the dragon in here with you when you first arrived.”

Xiang snorted. “I think we’re well past that. Just stay from now on.”

The man made a noise in the back of his throat as he resumed clearing the board. “The only reason you want me in here is so you can continue to convince me to help you escape from the cave.”

With a chuckle, Xiang settled against the cushions with his hands behind his head. “Yeah, yeah. And what you keep forgetting is that when I escape, you’re escaping with me. I’m not leaving without you.”

“Xiang—”

“Besides,” Xiang plowed on, not letting his companion argue with him further. “If you’re staying in the treasure room, think of all the weiqi games you can now beg me to play with you.”

“I’m not begging you for anything,” Kai grumbled under his breath, but there was a brief twitch of the corner of his mouth as if the man were trying to hide a smile.

“Uh-huh. We can alternate who gets the bed, but you’ve got to help with the cooking duties. I’m running out of things I know how to cook.”

Kai finished putting the stones into the clay containers and placed both on top of the board, but his hands lingered on the lids. “Are you sure? It wouldn’t bother you to have me in here with you for longer periods of time?”

“Nah. My clan is usually around at all times. Even when I’m up during the day, I can hear and feel them sleeping nearby. Not having someone close is unsettling. You being here won’t bother me.” He turned his head and winked at Kai.

“I don’t understand. Why are you up during the day? Isn’t it dangerous for you?”

Xiang huffed a laugh. “Nah. I’m a daywalker. That’s my vampiric gift.”

Kai blinked several times like his brain had locked up on the idea. “You can be in the sun safely? That’s amazing.”

“It is pretty handy. Of course, that means it’s always been my job to run the errands that need completing during the day. Otherwise, I’m watching over the clan to make sure they are safe from intruders.” His grin wilted a little. Being the only daywalker also meant being lonely during those daylight hours. Different members of his clan would pop up during the day and keep him company at times, but there was never anyone at his side when he ran to the market.

Xiang shook his head, shoving aside those dark feelings. It was an honor to protect his clan when they were at their most vulnerable. These were just silly thoughts.

He turned his attention back to Kai and continued with their prior discussion. “The cavern is huge. If you annoy me, I can walk to another part.”

“Nonsense. I’m not the annoying one.” Kai rose to his feet and picked up the book that he’d set on a nearby table. He returned to the cushions and lay near Xiang. There was no missing that the man held his book in his left hand while placing his right behind his head. That arrangement made it easier for Xiang to resume his normal position with his head on Kai’s chest.

Who was he to not take a hint?

Xiang shifted and scooted until his head was resting in its normal spot. It was only when he released a sigh of comfort that he realized he didn’t have his new phone. The damn thing was somewhere that required him to get up and search for it. But he was comfortable, and maybe he was feeling sleepy as he listened to Kai’s steady breathing and the soft scrap of paper as he turned the page.

Instead of getting up, he closed his eyes and let his mind wander. Kai had a good point. He should work harder to convince Kai to help him escape. He must know the dragon’s routine. Maybe they could slip out while the giant water lizard was sleeping or maybe during his hunt for something to eat. After all this time, Kai must have some clue as to their location.

He opened his mouth to poke at Kai about the dragon and the cave, but the words never left his tongue. Kai gasped and sat up, throwing Xiang aside. He twisted to see Kai had dropped his book and was holding his head with both hands. His handsome face had gone a stark white while his features were scrunched up.

“What’s wrong? What happened?” Xiang demanded. He held out one hand to touch him, but it was left hovering in the air above Kai’s head, unsure of what he could even do.

“I-I need to leave,” Kai ground out between clenched teeth.

“What?”

Kai ignored him and climbed unsteadily to his feet. He wobbled a couple of steps and Xiang caught him before he could tumble over to the stone floor. “Where are you going? What happened?”

“The fae. Queen. She…she’s summoning the dragon.” Each word he spat out sounded as if it were excruciatingly painful to say.

“What does that have to do with you? Is the dragon calling you to his side?”

“No, I—” Kai broke off and moaned deeply, his body doubling over. Xiang wrapped an arm around his waist and tried to usher Kai to the cushions. His heart pounded like a thing gone mad in his chest while cold sweat covered his skin. He didn’t know whether to take a sword to the hide of the dragon or the fae queen.

Kai gripped Xiang’s arms, stopping him from moving them. His head popped up and his eyes were red rimmed as tears of blood slipped down his cheeks. “I need to leave, but first, I need…you must…”

His fingers tightened on Kai, digging into his body to keep him locked to his side, but the man showed no signs of noticing it. “What? Anything? What can I do?”

“Say this is where you belong.”

“What?” Xiang’s voice cracked, and he nearly released Kai in his shock.

“Say it.”

“Kai…I can’t. I don’t belong in the hoard. I need to go back to my clan. That’s where I belong.”

The man’s body shook. Bloody tears streaked his face when he closed his eyes. It appeared as if Xiang’s words pained him more than whatever was happening to him, which was the last thing he wanted.

“Look, Kai, neither of us belongs here. You don’t belong to the dragon. You don’t belong in his hoard. We’re going to get out of here. I’ll make sure you escape with me, and the dragon will never come near you again. You’ll be part of my clan.”

The left corner of Kai’s mouth edged higher and trembled in a brief smile. “Thank you.” One cold, clammy hand cupped Xiang’s cheek for a heartbeat. “I must go, but I’ll do what I can to keep you safe. Just stay here. Wait for me.”

Before Xiang could say a word, Kai disappeared from his arms. A rush of wind flew through the enormous cavern, rattling furniture and causing all the hanging fabrics to dance wildly. At the far corner, a long metallic bang echoed through the room.

Forcing his feet to move at last, he charged through the hoard and stopped suddenly. The door was standing wide open, and Kai was gone.

With a shuddering breath, Xiang walked to the doorway and rested his hand on the stone and steel frame. Temptation whispered to him to rush forward, to find a way out of the cave, but it was all too easy to shove aside. He would find a way out and rejoin his clan, but he was only going to do it if Kai was at his side. He’d given his word, and he was standing by it.

But what the fuck was happening? Why had Kai been summoned if the dragon had to answer to the fae queen?

Didn’t matter, really.

If anything happened to Kai, he’d skin that damn dragon and turn his scaly hide into armor.