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‘Michael. Michael MacLaren.’
‘Bring him up.’
Just as I put the phone down the front door slammed. I went out to the hallway. John and Simone had just come in and were kicking off their shoes in the entry.
‘Leo’s bringing his student up for us to see,’ I said.
‘If they’re here before I’m out of the shower, look at him for me,’ John said.
‘You don’t need a shower every single time, Daddy,’ Simone said patiently.
‘Yes I do,’ he said, and headed past me towards his room.
‘He really hates the summer,’ Simone said. ‘He hates being all sweaty like that.’
‘He’s probably not used to it,’ I said. ‘Shen don’t get sweaty in summer.’
‘He does. He’s a Shen.’
‘He’s in human form. He’s human all the way through.’
‘He hates it.’
‘Too bad for him, he’s the one who has to wear black all the time,’ I said unsympathetically. ‘He’s a big wussy boy.’
She grinned. ‘Yeah. He’s so weak!’
I can hear both of you, John said into our ears. Simone and I giggled together.
The door opened and Leo came in, guiding Michael.
Michael was tall for a fifteen year old, about five eight, and obviously still had some growing to do. He moved with muscular grace as he kicked off his shoes, but the first thing I noticed was his hair; he had dyed it blond.
‘Michael, this is Miss Donahoe,’ Leo said pointedly.
Michael bobbed his head. ‘Ma’am.’
I nodded back. ‘Mr MacLaren. Leo’s told me good things about you. How about we go into the dining room together and talk?’
‘I’ll take Simone,’ Leo said. ‘Where’s Mr Chen?’
‘In the shower,’ Simone said. ‘Again.’
Leo grinned. He held his hand out to Simone. ‘Come on, Simone, let’s play on the Playstation while we wait for Emma and your dad.’
‘It’s your day off, Leo,’ Simone said, concerned. ‘You don’t have to work.’
‘This isn’t work, sweetheart,’ he said. He nodded to Michael. ‘You’ll be fine.’
‘Come with me, Michael.’ I opened the dining room door and took him in.
He sat at the table, carefully serious and respectful. He was obviously very nervous. His half-Chinese heritage gave him golden skin under his blond hair. His eyes were a light shade of brown, and his Eurasian features were stunningly good-looking.
I sat across from him. ‘Leo tells me that you might be suitable for an opening we have here. We’re looking for a trainee bodyguard, full-time, live-in. Could you do that?’
‘Yes, ma’am.’
I leaned back. ‘Tell me about yourself.’
He paused and looked down at his hands where he had them clasped on the table. ‘I finished third form, and I don’t want to go back to school. I want to do something with martial arts.’
‘Well, you’ve come to the right place. Why do you dye your hair blond?’
He grimaced. ‘I don’t. Sometimes I think I should dye it black or brown instead. It’s natural.’
‘You’re a natural blond?’
He nodded.
‘Well, that’s not unheard of, I suppose. I’ve seen other blond half-Chinese kids around. Have you been looking for work? Have you had any previous jobs?’
‘I wanted to work at Mr Pak’s martial arts studio when I was able to leave school, but times are tough and he can’t pay me. My mom won’t let me work for nothing, otherwise I would. I go in there and help anyway, but Mom says I have to find a real job that pays.’
I didn’t say I agreed with her. ‘Have you asked your mother about moving in here?’
He shrugged. ‘Not yet.’
‘I suppose we can cross that bridge when we come to it. How good are you at the Arts?’
Michael shrugged again. ‘Leo says I’m good.’
‘How about we see.’ I rose and gestured. ‘Come with me, I’ll try you out.’
‘You’ll try me out?’
I smiled grimly.
When Michael reached the training room he stopped and stared at the weapons on the wall.
I moved to the centre of the room and gestured for him to face me. ‘I’ll try you. Ready?’
He moved about a metre away from me and stood uncomfortably. ‘I’m not sure about this, ma’am.’
I straightened. ‘Are you worried I’ll hurt you?’
He grinned, he was confident. ‘No, ma’am.’
‘You’re worried you’ll hurt me?’
He nodded and his blond hair flopped over his forehead.
‘Good.’ I moved into a standard short defensive stance, left guard. ‘All I want you to do is pin me. See if you can have me immobile on the floor. You’re taller than me and stronger than me; if you have a reasonable amount of skill it shouldn’t be a problem. If you can do it you have the job.’
He hesitated, unsure.
‘Don’t worry about hurting me. If I’m injured I’ll take full responsibility.’
He shook his head. ‘I won’t hurt a woman, Miss Donahoe.’
‘If you’re a good student of Leo’s then you can probably best me.’ I waved a come-on. ‘Try me.’
He was lightning fast. Leo had taught him well. He dropped to perform a spinning kick, trying to take my feet out from under me.
I just stepped over it.
I rose and he hesitated, then lunged and tried to grab my arms. I twisted my arms up and away and stepped back out of his grip. I dropped and spun and took his feet out from under him. He fell on his behind with a thump.
He flipped back onto his feet; strong abs. Good. He was obviously feeling inadequate, because for the next move he just threw a fist at my face.
Extremely bad idea. I grabbed his wrist, twisted it, and threw him over my shoulder onto his back, knocking the wind out of him. He lay on the mats and panted for about half a minute.
‘All you have to do is pin me, Michael.’
He grimaced and flipped onto his feet again. He performed a roundhouse kick at my head. I ducked underneath it. ‘I don’t think Leo taught you that. Roundhouse kicks are useless against somebody who has a decent amount of skill.’
He ignored me and performed a series of roundhouse kicks, forcing me back as I ducked underneath them. Eventually I tired of it, grabbed the foot as it sped towards my head and tipped him over onto his back again. ‘Enough, Michael. I can see where you’re at. You’re very good.’
He lay on his back on the floor and stared up at me. ‘Who taught you, Miss Donahoe? You’re incredible. I’ve never seen anybody as fast as you.’
‘Leo’s better than me at the physical stuff,’ I said. ‘If you learn diligently from him, then you’ll probably eventually be able to best me.’
‘Leo taught you?’ he said with new respect. ‘Hold on, physical stuff? What other stuff is there?’
I ignored the second question. ‘Leo and I learned from the same Master. Up you get, Michael, and we’ll see how you do with weapons.’
He rose, brushed himself off, and saluted me. I nodded back, Master to student. He didn’t miss that.
‘Who’s your Master? He must be really famous.’
‘You’ll find out if we decide to take you, Michael. For now, prove yourself.’ I stepped back and gestured with one hand towards the weapons on the wall and the racks on the floor. ‘Anything here you can use?’
He pointed. ‘Sword. Staff. Chucks. Spear.’ He moved closer to one of the more esoteric weapons. ‘What the hell is that?’
‘Don’t worry about that for now. Choose a sword.’
He lifted a few swords from the rack, then selected one. It was one of the Celestial weapons, a white and gold Japanese-style katana. An elegant weapon, well-balanced and sharp, and wrought with demon-killing essence.
‘Good choice.’ I picked my own sword from the rack, pulled it from its scabbard, and readied myself. ‘Tell me when you’re ready.’
He took the sword from its scabbard and stopped dead. ‘No way, Miss Donahoe, I chose the wrong one.’ He tested the edge with his thumb. ‘Wow, this is really sharp. It’s real, not a training weapon. It shouldn’t be on the rack at all, it belongs in a display case.’ He moved forward to return the sword to the rack. ‘I’ll get something else.’
I raised my hand. ‘No need, Michael. They’re all real. They’re all sharp. We don’t mess around here.’ I raised my own sword. ‘If you’re not up to sparring with real weapons, then just say the word.’
He hesitated, then returned the sword to its scabbard. ‘I’m sorry. I don’t think I’m up to sparring with real weapons. I don’t think I’m good enough.’ He shook his head as he returned the sword to the rack. ‘Thanks for talking to me, though. I appreciate it. Maybe another time.’
‘Good.’ I put my own sword back. ‘You know your limitations. Instead of a spar, how about you just perform a set for me? Anything you like, any weapon you like. I just want to see how you move.’
‘Can I use this?’ he said, raising the white katana.
I nodded. ‘Sure. Nobody’s using that one right now.’
I leaned against the short wall and watched as he performed a very elegant level four Shaolin long sword set. He finished and saluted with the sword in his hand.
‘Did Leo teach you that?’
‘Yes, ma’am.’
I smiled; this time he’d called me ‘ma’am’ with real respect. ‘How long did it take you to learn the full set?’
‘About six weeks, ma’am.’
‘That’s exceptional.’ I pulled myself away from the wall. ‘Come and have a chat to Mr Chen, the Master. I think you’re perfect. Leo’s chosen well.’
He grinned broadly, then became shy as he returned the sword to its scabbard. ‘Thanks, ma’am. Mr Chen?’
‘That’s right. Come with me.’
‘I don’t know of any famous practitioners named Chen. Chen or Chan?’
‘Definitely Chen,’ I said with amusement. ‘And you probably have heard of him. Come with me.’
I led him to the dining room and sat him at the table, then went into the study to find John. He sat in front of the budgeting spreadsheet, his noble face intent on the work. He looked up and smiled when he saw me.
I leaned on the back of his chair and checked the sheets over his shoulder. ‘You forgot something. Remind me to go through these with you later. You men have no idea how to budget for female needs.’
‘Too close, Emma.’
I moved slightly away.
He grinned over his shoulder. ‘And?’
‘Oh. Yeah. The kid’s in the dining room. He’s only first or second grade black belt in anything, but he has a lot of talent and Leo’s started him well on the right path.’ I heard myself. ‘I sound like an expert, and I’ve only been learning myself for about a year.’
‘A year with me is worth a lifetime with any other Master. You are an expert, Emma.’
I shook my head. ‘I’m just a beginner. Anyway. Michael. He has a lot of talent. He can’t best me at hand-to-hand —’
‘I doubt if anyone who has learned from any other Master could best you at hand-to-hand,’ John said.
