“That brother,” said Little Brother, nodding at Ah Yee, “just told us where to find the nun only. And he lied! She wasn’t there!”
“I didn’t,” said Ah Yee, wincing. “I won’t dare to lie. It was a mistake!”
“Give us the nun and the treasures, and we’ll let you go,” said Little Brother to Tet Sang. “The brother explained the nun misled you. In the new republic, the people’s faith in the gods will not be exploited in this way. To ensure this, corrupt monks and nuns must be punished.”
“We will cooperate,” said Tet Sang. “But we haven’tseen the nun since last night.” He was watching Ah Hin’s face and saw the flicker in his eyes. Luckily, the bandits wouldn’t have seen it, since Ah Hin was facing away from them. “She took the treasures with her.”
“Really?” said Little Brother sceptically.
“Yes,” said Guet Imm.
She dropped on Little Brother’s head, flicking the gun out of his hand. Both went down together in a confusion of robes and limbs, from which Ah Hin was ejected. He crashed into the undergrowth, crying out.
Tet Sang grabbed him, but, “I’m okay?” said Ah Hin, feeling himself for any injury. “I’m okay! Help sister!”
Ah Yee had vanished, but Tet Sang had no time to worry about that now. He wrenched the gun out of the nearest bandit’s hand, kicking him in the stomach and using the gun to clock the next man over the head.
“Take that fellow’s gun,” Tet Sang said to Ah Hin. That was three bandits dealt with, including Little Brother, and one gun… “Where’s your friend’s weapon?”
While Ah Hin scrabbled around in the undergrowth, Tet Sang turned to check how Guet Imm was doing. She had managed to pin Little Brother to the ground.
“Bitch,” gasped Little Brother. “The deity will punish you for betraying your Order!”
“Brother, you have misunderstood,” said Guet Imm, with an extreme mildness that spoke of profound annoyance. “Iamthe Order—and all others like me.” She looked up, meeting Tet Sang’s eyes. “What do you think the deity bequeathed her relics to us for, if not for us to benefit?”
She was holding Little Brother’s arms down, but she must have relaxed her grip briefly. He lunged out of her grasp and scooped up the gun Ah Hin had failed to find. He wriggled around, cocking the gun.
“Guet Imm!” shouted Tet Sang—too late, he thought, but time had taken on a curiously elastic quality. By rights, the gun should have gone off even as he yelled.
But Little Brother froze. As Tet Sang blinked, the gun went flying.
Guet Imm laid her hands on Little Brother’s head, as gently as though she were giving him a blessing. There was a loudcrack.
It was a sound Tet Sang had heard before—the unforgettable, finalcrackof a neck breaking. Ah Hin staggered back, his face grey with horror.
The bandits knew the sound too. There were two remaining on their feet. One turned and fled through the trees, but the other raised his gun, pointing it at the back of Guet Imm’s head.
“Sister,” gasped Ah Hin. He was cowering on the ground, so shaken his voice came out in a whisper. He tried again: “Sister!”
Tet Sang didn’t waste his breath on trying to warn Guet Imm. He lunged, meaning to shove her out of the way of the bullet, but she disappeared even as he dived.
It was not that she moved quickly. She winked out of existence. Tet Sang rolled as he fell, managing to avoid Little Brother’s corpse. Guet Imm reappeared behind the bandit who had tried to shoot her.
The bandit looked understandably startled. Tet Sang didn’t see what Guet Imm did, but the bandit screamed, dropping his gun. The nun’s hand flashed out, jabbing the bandit in the neck. His eyes rolled up and he slumped to the ground.
“Still got who else?” said Guet Imm. She wasn’t even out of breath.
Tet Sang got to his feet. Little Brother was unmistakably dead. The two bandits Tet Sang had downed should be alive—he hadn’t aimed to kill either—but if they were conscious, they had too much sense to betray it.
“There was one more fellow,” Tet Sang began, when they heard the sound of running feet. Ah Hin tossed him one of the guns he’d got off the bandits, but it was Fung Cheung and Rimau who burst out of the trees.
“Ah Sang, how?” said Fung Cheung. He looked at the bandits strewn on the ground and lowered his parang.
“We’re done for now,” said Tet Sang. “Ah Yee came to find you?” Fung Cheung nodded. “The others?”
“Told them to go off first,” said Fung Cheung. “We can catch up with them at— Shit.”
He’d noticed Little Brother’s corpse.
