The Adventures of the Jade Dragon

Episode 10

The Jade Dragon’s Defeat

Chapter 2 Deceived

“Jiang Sun Lin?” Larson asked. “Typical Chink name. You sure she’s the one?”

Craig nodded. Everything about her checks out, boss. She’s the right height and the right age. And with those green eyes she fits the description perfectly.”

“I hope you’re right. It cost me a ton to get that info. The next trick is to pick her up.”

“Pick her up?” Craig wondered. “I thought the plan was to kill her.”

“After what she’s done to me killing her would be too easy a punishment. I want to capture her and make an example out of her everyone will remember.”

“Boss,” said Craig hesitatingly. “That might not be such a good idea.”

“Why the fuck not?” Larson growled.

“Two reasons, boss. First of all, she’s got friends in this city who might not like the idea of the Jade Dragon being tortured to death. If they find out what happened to her you’ll have every jacked up superheroine in the city coming after you with vengeance on her mind. Second, capturing a superheroine isn’t all that easy. You had no success trying to kill her, how are you going to go about capturing her?”

“You’ve got a point there,” Larson said thoughtfully. “Maybe keeping it secret that I’ve got her might be a good idea. However, from what you tell me, we’ve found out where she lives. It shouldn’t be all that tough to stage an ambush. Maybe when she goes shopping or something.”

“Well, it might not be all that easy. She only leaves her house occasionally, and when she does it is in broad daylight when there are dozens of people around. A daylight kidnapping is not going to go unnoticed.”

“But she’s got to go out at night,” Larson objected. “How the hell else does she end up screwing me in the ass every evening?”

Craig shrugged. “That’s what we don’t know. I had Li watch her house for a week straight. He never saw her leave the house and he had men on every side of the building. She’s gets out somehow, but exactly how no one knows.”

“Alright then, what if we just bust in the back door?”

“I checked that out too,” Craig answered. “Turns out she lives with some Chink who is high up in the Chink community; he seems to be almost some sort of god. Probably not a good guy to mess with. Also the house is supposed to be a fortress. And remember. If we do break in we’re fighting on her home ground.”

“So you’re saying there’s no fucking way we can capture this bitch.”

“I think we should just kill her,” Craig answered. “But there just might be a way we can catch her. Something Li told me about her.”

“Why didn’t you just say so in the first place instead of wasting my fucking time?” Larson snarled.

“You pay me to point out any problems that might occur, boss. At least that’s what you told me.”

“Yeah,” Larson said slowly. “I guess that is what I told you. So what’s your plan?”

“Well,” Craig began “Li told me that…”

More Jade, mummy?” Huan Yue asked, smiling slightly.

“Well, I think Liu owes me one after the last con he pulled on me. This time I’m going to make sure that it’s not something that was knocked off in a sweatshop.”

Huan Yue’s smile widened a little as she spotted Liu’s stall. “Master Zhou certainly thought it was funny when you brought it home, especially when he heard what you paid for it.”

“I suppose it was funny after all that bargaining, but probably not quite as funny as Liu thought it was.”

They were at the stall. The diminutive merchant looked up as they came to a halt in front of him. Huan Yue was sure she saw an expression of fear flicker across his normally bland features. “Ah pretty ladies,” he exclaimed. “You have come to buy more jade?”

Huan Yue looked at her mother. There was not the slightest hint of anger in her face. Instead she gave the diminutive merchant a smile. “I would like to buy some jade. Do you have any that wasn’t carved on an assembly line?”

Liu’s face did not change expression. “Ah, yes I have some very fine jade. So fine that I do not trust it to the marketplace.”

“Really?” Sun Lin replied dryly. “But I expect it is very costly.”

“For you, beautiful lady I will offer a very special price. It was very bad manners for me to deceive you with the dragon.”

“It was at that. Show me what you have.”

“I do not keep the best pieces here. This market is not a safe place to display such wares.”

“Where then?” Sun Lin asked.

“At my humble home. It is not far from here.”

“And it is worth my while to make the detour?

“I assure you that it is beautiful lady,” the tiny man replied.

Sun Lin studied Liu for a few seconds. He seemed eager, almost too eager, but then he had always been animated when trying to make a sale. “Alright,” she said, “show me.”

As Liu had promised, his house was not far. It was a small apartment above a dry goods store. A worn flight of stairs led to the upper floors. Liu led the way to the third floor where a door covered with peeling green pain barred the way. Liu produced a set of keys and opened it. Entering he turned on a light and motioned the two heroines in.

The room was barely twelve feet square. Off to one side another door led to a second room, probably a bedroom. Against the far wall was a set of cupboards, a sink with a dripping tap, and a small gas hot plate.

Liu waved his hand toward a rickety table where there were two wooden chairs and strode to the cupboards. Filling a kettle, he set it on to boil and took a packet of green tea out of the cupboard. Then, while the water boiled, he picked up a small wooden box and set it on the table. Sliding back the top he began to place a number of exquisite jade carvings on the table.

Sun Lin picked up the first one. “This seems very fine,” she admitted. It was not a good bargaining tactic, but Liu seemed to be attempting to please her. She picked up the second piece while Liu poured tea into three small porcelain cups. Sun Lin noted to her relief that they seemed relatively clean and the tea was of good quality.

“Gunpowder tea,” Liu explained. “I always buy the best.” Raising his cup he emptied it and then refilled it from the chipped china teapot.

“It is good,” Sun Lin replied, setting down her empty cup. Huan Yue nodded her agreement and held out her cup for more.

Sun Lin pushed a jade figurine of a Chinese lion toward Liu. “How much for this one?”

“Ah, that is the pride of my collection. It is worth at least a thousand, but for you only five hundred.”

“Provided you are telling the truth that seems fair,” Sun Lin replied. “Why so generous an offer?”

Liu said something, but Sun Lin had difficulty understanding his answer. She opened her mouth to repeat the question, but nothing came out. With some effort she managed to gasp out a question. “W… What is hap… happening?” Slowly despite her every effort she began to slide off her chair as the world around her blurred.

“I am sorry,” Liu said, his voice shaking, “but they have my daughter.”

Sun Lin did not even see the men who entered the room through the other door. With a sigh she slid to the floor beside her daughter.

Larson stood over the unconscious bodies of the heroines. “Sisters,” he thought. That was one bit of information he had not learned about the Jade Dragon. He knew that she had a companion; he had just not realized that they were related. He knew nothing of the younger heroine, not even her name. He wandered what heroic name she called herself, probably something quite ridiculous like the Jade Avenger or something.

He did have to admit that she was stunningly beautiful. Stripped down to her panties, there was almost no area of her body that he could not see. Her breasts were perfect, holding their shape even without the support of her clothing. She was a little smaller than the Jade Dragon, but not by much and her slender waist accentuated their fullness.

His gaze shifted to the nude form of the dreaded heroine herself. It seemed impossible that so beautiful a creature could have caused him so much trouble. Like the other heroine he had not removed the gauzy strip of cloth that covered her loins, but everything else was fully revealed. He wanted the pleasure of removing the last of her clothing when she was fully alert. Right now she was sleeping off the last vestiges of the drug that Liu had been forced to give her.

The dosage of the sleeping drug the two women had been given was quite high. They would both probably have one hell of a headache when they woke up, but that was nothing compare to what he had planned for them. He intended to make as much of their waking moments as painful and humiliating as he possibly could.

He felt his loins stirring at the thought. Nothing got him harder than hurting a woman; and he intended to hurt these women as much as he could without killing them.

He walked over to his desk and picked up one of the small jade figurines Craig had picked up. He didn’t know much about the green stone, but it was nice work he guessed. It was too bad the jade merchant wouldn’t be acquiring any more, but he could not be allowed to live after what he knew.

He had the jade seller’s daughter stashed downstairs. She was a bit young for him, but he knew of several men who would pay good money for a ten-year-old. He had no compunctions about selling her. It was either that or kill her, and he had never killed a child before – at least not yet.

One of the heroines let out a low moan. He got to his feet, almost salivating in anticipation. Soon they would be doing more than just moaning. He could hardly wait to hear their screams.

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