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He had to find her. He would do anything—even if it meant submitting to Lee—to ensure her safety.
Lee lifted one dark brow, his hooded eyes calm and sharp as he waited, ever unflappable. Ever sure in his command of the situation.
Releasing his affinity and allowing the light to close, Jianyu stepped forward, visible now. “I did not come to kill you.”
“That, I think, is only the first of your many mistakes.” Lee’s mouth flattened.
“I do not fear your threats any longer,” Jianyu said, perhaps foolishly. But he had lost his adopted home and mentor. He had lost the Delphi’s Tear. And now he had lost Cela as well. What more did he have to lose?
“Perhaps you should,” Lee said, his eyes flashing as brightly as the diamond stickpin in his lapel.
Jianyu inclined his head as though to agree. But he did not voice the sentiment. He would not give Lee so much this early in the negotiation. “I have not come to fight.”
“I have nothing else to offer,” Lee told him. “You cannot imagine you would be welcomed back with open arms.”
No, Jianyu had not expected a warm welcome. In truth, he had no wish to be counted as one of Tom Lee’s men again. But he needed them. And so he would do what must be done.
“I know of your problems with the Hip Sings,” he said softly.
“You know nothing,” Lee told him.
“Then the whispers I hear in the air are incorrect? Your men have not been picked off by Mock Duck’s highbinders, while Tammany’s police do nothing? Your fan-tan parlors have not been raided by the very police that promised to protect them, all because they believe that Sai Wing Mock can offer them more?” He paused, letting this information resonate. “People throughout the city are talking. They fear a new tong now, a new leader in the Bowery, one who threatens the rule of Mott Street.”
Lee’s cheeks were turning an angry red. “People are fools. Sai Wing Mock has no standing with Tammany. He can offer no protection to the Chinese people in this city, and his men are nothing but common criminals.”
Jianyu nodded. “And yet his name is whispered from mouth to willing ear.”
“Idle chatter.”
“Perhaps, but people will believe it nonetheless. And bloodshed is not so idle,” Jianyu said. “People grow wary of the war that is brewing.”
“You tell me nothing I do not already know,” Lee said. His eyes narrowed. “Why are you here?”
“I have a proposition for you. One that could be beneficial to both of us.”
Lee laughed. “What good is your proposition when your word means nothing? You broke a blood oath already,” he said. “And for what? A dead man cannot protect you.”
“Then listen not to my words, but my actions.” He took a rumpled package of papers from where he had tucked them inside his tunic and tossed them onto the table that stood between them.
Tom Lee’s expression never shifted, but Jianyu could see the interest in his eyes.
“What is that?” Lee asked, making no move to pick up the packet of papers.
“Information,” Jianyu said simply. “Perhaps the most powerful currency in the Bowery. You wish to know how the Hip Sings seem to anticipate your every move? You wish to know which bosses have their sights on Mott Street?”
“Everyone has their sights on Mott Street,” Lee said, waving a hand dismissively. “I know this already.”
“But do you know which enemies might strike, or when?” Jianyu nodded toward the package. “Once I was your eyes and ears in Chinatown, but for Dolph Saunders I did much more. I helped him build his territory and his power with the secrets I collected, and I could do the same for you.”
“I have men enough for that,” Lee said, sneering. “Did you believe you were so irreplaceable?”
“Can your men make Tammany bend to your will?”
Lee didn’t bother to hide his interest. “Explain.”
“You have long had an understanding with Tammany, and yet how many fan-tan parlors have their police raided this month?” Jianyu asked. But he did not wait for Lee to answer. “Why do you think their officers no longer honor your alliance? Because they seek more power. They see Mock Duck as the future of Chinatown. Tammany does as well. You must show them they are wrong.”
There was doubt etched into Lee’s features, but he was interested.
