13. Zhang Junjie

Chapter 13

Zhang Junjie

X iao Dan was distracted. It wasn’t hard to see when Junjie had to pull back on a thrust because it looked like his shixiong would not block it in time. Of course, they were all more than a little distracted. Xiao Dan had invited Junjie to the rear garden to spar because he’d caught him brooding about Jiang Chong.

Two nights had passed since Jiang Chong had sneaked onto their property. The witches and Kai had done what they could to layer more protection. Winter had examined the place, and Leo had even gone over the grounds. There was no sign of their vampire creator. But he would return.

“Maybe we should take a break,” Junjie suggested.

“I think that was supposed to be my line,” Xiao Dan said with a sheepish grin that slipped away almost as quickly as it formed.

“We’re distracted. No one can concentrate.”

Xiao Dan slid his sword into its sheath. “True, and it is my job to keep everyone focused. Shifu would have?—”

“Shifu would be struggling too if he were in your shoes,” Junjie cut him off. “I witnessed him lost in thought during those times the emperor was being troublesome. Most of the students didn’t notice because there were so many other teachers who could step up and help.” Junjie poked Xiao Dan in the shoulder and gave him a weak smile. “You don’t have to figure things out alone.”

“ Mn .” Xiao Dan nodded but didn’t return Junjie’s smile.

Junjie swallowed his sigh as he also placed his sword in its sheath. With the last of summer dwindling away, the nights had grown cooler. The fireflies were long gone, and even the chirping night insects had become quieter. The wind rustled leaves, but a new scent was creeping into the air. Autumn was waiting to sweep through the land and Junjie couldn’t wait.

Longer nights. The smell of dried leaves and apples. Cool, crisp nights and soft, heavy sweaters. Trees changing colors, painting the world with bright golden yellows, fiery reds, and brilliant oranges.

He couldn’t wait to see Erik playing in the leaves, a little knit hat covering his head. After more than two thousand autumns, this one promised to be something new.

“Erik has started saying Meimei,” Junjie recalled suddenly.

“Really?”

“Yes, except it doesn’t quite come out as Meimei. It’s more like Meimeimeimei as he toddles after her.”

Xiao Dan huffed a soft laugh, some of the tension at last sloughing off his shoulders as they wandered through the garden. “He seems to have settled into our home nicely. More than once I’ve caught him leading Chen by the hand into the library for story time.”

“He likes to help Ming Yu in the kitchen by tasting everything,” Junjie added.

Xiao Dan nodded. “He also fell asleep the other afternoon on Huli’s tails.”

Junjie’s eyes widened. “The fox didn’t mind?”

From what he’d seen, Huli had kept his distance from Erik since he’d entered the house, as if he expected Erik to chase after him and pull his tails. Or worse, steal Xiao Dan’s attention away from him.

“He’s coming around. Apparently, Erik is an excellent audience when Huli wants someone to appreciate his beauty or skills. Recently, I’ve caught him shifting back and forth from human to fox, as if he’s trying to coax Erik into doing the same thing. So far, Erik just laughs and claps at his antics.”

“I don’t know who is keeping who out of trouble there,” Junjie murmured. Leo was also spending more time with Erik, which was a good thing. The little boy needed as much exposure to shifters as possible. He needed to feel comfortable in his own skin, understand that he wasn’t alone in the world. That would not be the easiest task growing up surrounded by vampires.

“I’ve been thinking recently…about what is in Erik’s best interest,” Xiao Dan started slowly.

Everything within Junjie froze solid. He couldn’t move, couldn’t even draw a breath. This was the moment. Since Erik had first joined the clan, Junjie had expected Xiao Dan to declare that a clan of vampires had no business raising a shifter child. But Shixiong had put up zero resistance to the idea of keeping Erik. He’d even argued that their clan had a long history of raising children, educating them, and training them in the martial arts of their sect. Erik would be no different because he was a cat shifter and they were vampires.

“Shixiong…” Junjie pleaded, not knowing what words to say. Was it selfish of him to beg for Erik to remain with them if it wasn’t what was best for the child?

“I was thinking that maybe we should send him to China with someone ahead of the rest of the clan.”

Junjie’s relief was so great, he was lightheaded. He swayed on his feet for a second and nearly had to sit before he fell over.

“Junjie?” Xiao Dan demanded, grabbing his elbow when he noticed Junjie wasn’t doing so well.

“I thought you were going to say that we needed to give him up.”

“No! Of course not. He’s been with us for nearly three weeks now, and it’s obvious this is where he belongs. The entire clan loves him too much to give him up.” He released Junjie’s elbow. “I was thinking that maybe you and he should travel to China ahead of the rest of the clan. Take him out of danger and start getting him accustomed to what will be his permanent home. We’ll have the matter of Jiang Chong and the fae settled soon. Then we’ll be headed home. It just makes the most sense that Erik travel ahead of us. I believe Winter said he’d have the paperwork necessary for the boy completed in less than a week.”

The last of Xiao Dan’s words became a messy blur in his ears. His brain was stuck on an earlier part of his speech—that he and Erik leave for China ahead of the clan. Xiao Dan wanted to send him away.

“Why me?” Junjie asked in a low, rough voice.

“I thought it made the most sense. Out of all the members of the clan, Erik is closest to you. He would adjust to the new home and setting most easily with you.”

Junjie didn’t know what to say. His tongue lay like a dead fish in his mouth. The thought of returning home with Erik, showing him the enormous manor and grounds that awaited him, was very appealing. But there were snags to that dream, beginning with him not wanting to leave his clan behind. A fight was coming—a big one—with the fae and Jiang Chong. He needed to be there, to stand with all of them. Part of him wanted to believe that Xiao Dan was trying to get him out of the way, but he knew better. His martial arts skills were as strong as the rest of the clan. He was an excellent fighter. This wasn’t about doubting him.

The other concern was Leo.

Things had shifted between them. Junjie had no regrets about what happened, but he didn’t quite know what came next. He was damn sure it wasn’t stealing Leo and running off to China with him and Erik. But leaving now meant never knowing if there could have been something more between them. Was Leo supposed to be the mate he’d been hoping to find, like Chen, Xiang, and Yichen had found theirs?

He wanted to get to know Leo better. Dreamed of spending time together when they both weren’t afraid of being murdered.

But was it selfish to want to remain behind to find out what kind of future he could have with Leo? Erik needed him.

“Junjie?”

“I don’t know what to say,” he murmured. He stared at the sword sheath in his hand and frowned. “I wish to do what is best for Erik, but I don’t want to leave my clan as they face such dangerous foes. Even with the Variks at your side, you’ll still need me. Have you considered sending Ming Yu to Luoyang with Erik?”

“I have. My concern is that Erik has latched on to you as his central parent.” A smirk twisted Xiao Dan’s lips. “He may call you gege, but his eyes say baba.” He allowed that word to hang in the air, pressing on Junjie’s heart, before he continued. “Erik is comfortable with you, but I worry he will be further traumatized if he doesn’t have you with him while he’s traveling and learning a new place.”

“You are being quite evil, Shixiong,” Junjie grumbled.

“Unless you have another reason for wanting to remain in the United States. Possibly a small, furry reason that loves fish and belly rubs.”

“Is that what this is? An attempt to weasel information about Leo and me?” Junjie lifted his chin and shrugged a shoulder. “Sure. I’ll tell you about Leo, if you’re equally willing to answer questions about you and Huli.”

A horrible choking noise escaped Xiao Dan as if he’d sucked in a great gasp of air and it had gotten lodged in his throat. Junjie had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing.

“What?” Xiao Dan croaked. “Me and Huli? What questions could you possibly have? There’s nothing going on between us.”

Junjie rolled his eyes. “Don’t try that with me. I’m not Chen or Xiang. Huli might be the most self-centered, immoral creature I’ve ever met, but he worships the ground you walk on and would do anything you asked. That includes behaving according to your moral code and putting his life in danger for a bunch of people he doesn’t care about at all. Everything he does is to make you happy, which he is actually quite good at.”

Xiao Dan frowned at Junjie and let out a huff. “Well, this completely backfired on me.”

With a chuckle, Junjie settled on a stone bench set under a maple tree. It faced the rear of the house, giving them a good view of the lights glowing through the windows. Even from his distance, he could hear Erik’s giggles as he played with Yichen and Rei. Both of them had started off very uncomfortable with the little boy. Yichen had never spent much time with the younger children in the sect, and Rei had never been around human children. Erik offered a wealth of new experiences.

Thankfully, Erik was very outgoing and seemed to sense that Yichen and Rei needed help, so he would be the one to seek them out with toys and show them how to play with him. After a couple of playdates like this, they caught on, learning to relax and following the child’s lead.

“Chen and Xiang can complain about the fox spirit all they want, but if you make each other happy, what do I care that he’s not human? We aren’t technically human any longer,” Junjie continued.

Xiao Dan sat next to him, a tiny smile playing across his lips. “Huli is…special.”

Junjie kept his snarky comments to himself. This had to be one of Xiao Dan’s first times actually talking about the fox spirit. For as long as he could remember, his shixiong had spent his time either defending the huli jing or denying that there was anything between them other than friendship. One had to watch Huli for only five seconds to know that he was hopelessly infatuated with Xiao Dan. But if you watched them a bit longer, Xiao Dan would inevitably soften toward the fox, and it was clear there was more going on in his heart than mild affection.

“I was there when he was simply a fox learning some human words. I was there when he shifted into a human for the first time.” Xiao Dan shook his head, his smile fading away. “What if he is attached to me simply because he’s not spent time getting to know others in the world? What if he’s meant to give his heart to another fox spirit?”

“In all the legends about huli jing and jiuweihu, there’s little of them giving their hearts to anyone. They’re known for being sneaky and selfish. They take. In this instance, Huli wants very much to take you, but he’s also willing to give all of himself over to you. That’s got to count for something. Maybe you should think about trying to meet him halfway.”

“And will you be following your own advice with Leo? Your relationship with the cat shifter has progressed even further than mine with Huli.”

Junjie tried to ignore the sudden burning in his cheeks. There was no such thing as being quiet enough in a house full of vampires with superhuman hearing. With Chen, Yichen, and Xiang gaining mates, it was in all their best interests to learn to be selectively deaf. Sadly, when Leo had driven him over the edge with his mouth, he couldn’t even claim that he’d tried to be quiet. Nope. The cat had broken him, and all of his clan had heard it. As well as some of the Variks.

“That was…it was just a stress reliever. We’re friends. That’s all. He’s only interested in having some fun, while my focus is on protecting Erik and getting rid of Jiang Chong.”

“ Mn ,” Xiao Dan grunted in agreement, but that noise didn’t sound as if he particularly believed Junjie.

“It’s the truth. Leo isn’t the type to get involved with a single person. Cat shifters prefer their independence and don’t want to be tied to one person. Besides, he’s probably sticking close to make sure that we’re a good match for Erik. Once he’s sure the child is in good hands, he’ll move on.”

“Erik has been in good hands for almost a month now,” Xiao Dan countered. He turned his head to pin Junjie with a hard stare. “He might spend more time with Erik, but you’re the one who has his full attention.” He sighed and rocked to the side, bumping his shoulder into Junjie’s. “I understand not wanting to get your hopes up too high. Leo is a fascinating person. You should get to know him better. I think I might have been premature in suggesting that Erik leave for China early. Jiang Chong has no actual interest in the boy, and the clan is stronger with you here to help fight him and the fae.”

Junjie nearly threw his hands up in the air. Had Xiao Dan been sounding him out with this idea, or had he been fishing for information about him and Leo?

“You’re a damn evil vampire when you want to be,” Junjie grumbled. “It’s not just about you being a good influence on Huli. He’s also been a bad influence on you.”

“Possibly,” Xiao Dan replied with a wide, wicked grin. He stood, turned to face Junjie, and bowed. “Thank you for the sparring match and conversation. They have helped to clear my head.”

“You’re welcome.” Junjie also rose, intending to go inside to put his sword away. “Do you know if Winter is coming over to check the grounds this evening?”

“I believe that is his plan. They’ve done the best they could to protect us, but we can’t keep asking Winter to check over the grounds every night.”

A knot formed in Junjie’s stomach. The last of his slightly irritated amusement disappeared. “I’ve noticed that Leo hasn’t been leaving for long periods since Jiang Chong’s attack. He’ll leave for a bit during the daylight hours, but quickly return by sunset.”

“We’ve done what we can to warn us about intruders.”

The silence that followed held a new heavy weight. Xiao Dan didn’t need to say it. Each of them had been blessed with a unique gift when they’d become vampires. All useful in their own way. Xiao Dan could create glamours to confuse and frighten attackers. Chen could control ice and use it as a weapon. Yichen could read, speak, and understand any language. Xiang could walk in daylight. Ming Yu could aid their healing, speeding up the closure of the very worst wounds. Mei Lian could actually walk on water. She wasn’t too enamored of her gift because there had been almost no call for it.

They’d all initially believed that Junjie had the very best of all their gifts. He could follow the thread of life for a person, giving him a glimpse into the future. Sadly, all he seemed to see was death, so he’d stopped looking.

There was more to the future. He sometimes saw battles and could glimpse sneak attacks prior to them happening. It was just that he’d soon discovered that he had no way of stopping the death of a clan mate, no matter how hard he tried.

He knew Xiao Dan and all the rest of his clan wanted him to use his gift to steal a peek into the future, gain a hint of when Jiang Chong might strike again. Anything to give them an edge or at least allow them to sleep while the sun inched above the horizon.

“I’ll…think…about using my gift. I can’t promise anything.”

Xiao Dan’s hand landed on his shoulder and squeezed. “We all understand, and we don’t wish to pressure you.”

Junjie nodded, unable to speak past the tightness in his throat. He would do anything for his clan, but to peer ahead and see someone’s death, knowing there was nothing he could do to stop it…

No, he wasn’t ready. He had to, but not yet.