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Zhang Shi Lei dropped his transparent hand to his side and took a step back, sending a surge of panic through Chen.
“Wait! Shifu, please. Have you no wisdom for me?” Chen pleaded, his voice cracking.
Zhang Shi Lei paused and smiled, but his gaze drifted from Chen’s face to settle on a point just behind Chen. “I have no wisdom for you that you don’t already know.” The ghost looked at him, his expression as soft and warm as a hug. “Continue to follow your heart, xiao Bo. I think you’ve found what you’ve been searching for.”
The ghost turned to Zalramon and tilted his head toward the city. “Shall we go? Meng Po claims to have learned a new magic trick and wants to show off.”
“Fuck it! Fine! Whatever,” Zalramon groused. He waved a hand at Chen, Sky, and Moon. “Get out of here. No more shortcuts.” As he stomped away, Chen swore he could hear the demon complaining, “I don’t know why I think I run this fucking place. I need a damn vacation. The old days were better. Popping topside to get laid occasionally. A good old-fashioned bacchanal, that’s what I need.”
“Yep, yep, yep,” Sky said briskly in a low voice. “Up. Up. Let’s go. We’re not arguing with the demon or Mr. Chinese ghost.”
A pair of powerful hands grabbed Chen’s biceps, and he turned his head to see Moon helping him to his feet. He moved one hand from Chen’s arm and brushed aside tears that streaked down his cheeks unnoticed. “Let’s go home. I’m sure your brothers will want to hear about your meeting.”
“Yes, let’s go home.”
Chapter 23
Moon Mullins
Moon’s heart skipped and his hand tightened on Chen’s as he stepped through the black portal. He blinked several times as the light shifted from pitch black to something dim and shadowy.
“Where are we?” Chen inquired.
A relieved laugh erupted from Moon’s throat as he recognized Sky’s foyer with its coatrack. Next to it, on the floor, sat the old-fashioned black leather doctor’s bag he used for his spell supplies. “We’re at Sky’s house. We’re safe.” He tugged Chen’s hand, pulling the vampire forward so he could wrap him in a choking embrace. “You’re safe and you’re still with me,” he whispered into his lover’s throat.
“I’m safe because of you,” Chen said as those amazing arms gripped him in a hug that threatened to break bones, but he didn’t care. The relief was so profound, his entire body was shaking. He didn’t have a death wish, but he would have followed Chen into the next life. There was no way in all the realms that he was letting this man go.
“It’s about fucking time!”
Moon half jerked out of Chen’s arms, twisting to find Sky’s boyfriend, Nolan, standing in the doorway to the living room, a giant teddy bear in his arms. The man was dressed in his usual black T-shirt, jeans, and a scowl as his black hair fell in front of one eye. “Do you have any idea how worried I’ve been? I thought you’d be back over two hours ago.”
“Sorry! Sorry!” Sky called out as he stepped out of the portal and past Moon and Chen. “It took us longer than I expected to get across the underworld. Then, we ran into Zalramon. The king has officially declared the underworld a ‘no shortcut’ zone.”
“Which was what you expected,” Nolan countered, his scowl morphing into a smirk. “I’m glad you’re—”
A loud screech cut the rest of his comment off. Greg emerged from the portal after Sky, took one look at the teddy bear, and lost his shit. The minion launched itself through the air and glommed on to the plush toy that was three times bigger than it was.
Sky sighed. “There. You’ve been paid in full for all the trouble. Get some rest.”
Greg made a few squeaking and chittering noises that sounded happy while Nolan set the bear on the ground with the minion. In the blink of an eye, a new portal opened under Greg, and both the minion and the toy disappeared.
Now that Nolan’s arms weren’t occupied by a four-foot bear, Sky fell into them with a weary groan. “So good to see you.”
“Definitely,” Nolan murmured, brushing a kiss to the top of Sky’s blond head. “I closed all the window shades in the house and blocked out the sunlight that was seeping through, as you asked.”
“Oh! Yes! Introductions.” Sky came to life again, straightening so that he wasn’t leaning all of his weight on Nolan. He didn’t completely step free of his boyfriend’s embrace, however. “Nolan Banks, this is Chen…well, crap. I’d tell you his entire name, but I’m afraid that if I pronounce it wrong, Moon will rip my tongue out.”
Chen released Moon and stepped forward. He gave Nolan a bow of his head. “I am Chen Bo Cheng, member of the Zhang clan and the Sword of the Heavenly Garden Sect. Thank you for preparing the house for my arrival.”
