Ghoulies Abroad - Julie Steimle (great novels to read txt) 📗

equivalent to Olympus.”

Chen groaned, plucking an earplug out of his hear. “You can’t expect there to be an equivalent to everything in Western mythology to Chinese mythology.”

“We’re not expecting an equivalent,” Daniel said with some bite. Rick could tell Daniel was starting to dislike Chen, which would be a problem because Daniel was one of the smarter ones in the Seven, yet the most impulsive. “But we are expecting consistency. Elves travel—especially the naughty ones.”

“What?” Chen looked not just confused, but angry. Apparently, he didn’t like Daniel either.

Rick rose, raising his hands. “Calm down. I think we are all dealing with a little culture shock here.”

“Culture shock?” Chen bit out. He gestured to Daniel and himself. “This isn’t about culture shock. This is about them forcing Chinese deities into Western boxes.”

Daniel groaned, hand to forehead.

“Not really.” Andy plucked one earplug out of an ear, gazing dryly at Chen. “This is about us, who have dealt with elves, trying to make sense of Chinese interpretation of them.”

“Interpretation?” Chen bristled.

Tom jumped up, a little pale. “How about we all take a break!”

Rick shot a quick look to him. So did Daniel. Daniel nodded, watching Tom and sitting down. “Ok. A break is a good idea.”

“What?” Eddie protested.

But Daniel hissed into his ear then to James, shooting Chen a glance. They all silently shared hard looks and nodded. James was rubbing his right palm, breathing deeply as if bracing from a severe pain.

“I’m going to keep reading,” Andy said, and plugged up one ear again.

That was probably smart. Those words alone calmed Chen some.

Tom grabbed Rick’s collar and dragged him aside toward Chen. “His imps…”

Rick nodded, figuring Chen’s imps were suggesting something nasty to do while he was angry. They both slipped over to him as Chen privately fumed.

“They’re so arrogant,” Chen muttered. “How dare they—”

“Some of them have lived a lifetime already,” Tom said—which surprised Rick. He had expected Tom to just placate Chen. “That guy Semour—the whole lot of them really—are older than they look.”

Chen peered at him like it made no difference how old they were. Rick could see in his eyes that in Chen’s head his friends of the Seven were just so… white. Not Asian. They knew he was thinking: ‘How dare they make comments about something they know nothing about.’ Problem was, Rick wasn’t so sure the Seven were mistaken about the whole elf thing. If primitive folk knew Selena Davenport, or for that matter Chen, for what they could do, they would have worshipped them as gods. The same with Rick’s friend Eve McAllister. She would live to three hundred years if no one killed her first. And she, like Tom, could command hordes of invisible imps to do her bidding (as long as it was mischievous), walk through walls, and go invisible herself. And some elf like that who had ambition and vanity might set themselves up as a god to those who were weaker. After all, Chinese deities were not just shapeshifters, but in their stories they also could become mortal and die. Of course they also reincarnated in the Buddhist tradition. Rick knew this because he had, in fact, skimmed the book Journey to the West in the car on the way to the airport and had done some research previously.

“They think they know everything,” Chen muttered. “They’ve never even been to China.”

Which was true. Rick could see Chen’s eyes on him, as he knew Rick had been to China several times with his father on business trips as a child. Chen was looking for sympathy and affirmation. Rick sighed.

“But they have been to another world,” Tom replied, hissing.

“I don’t care,” Chen bit back. “That other world was not China. China is not the same as everywhere else.”

“True,” Rick muttered with a sigh.

Tom snorted, leaning back from Chen. “How can you even say that? The last time you were in China you were a little kid.”

Chen glared at him.

But Tom only smirked back. “You’re just upset because you are scared, and you don’t know them.”

Rick lifted his eyebrows. Chen was scared of the Seven? But as he thought about that, he realized that most supernaturally connected people were frightened of the Seven at the beginning. Tom and Matt, when they had first met Daniel, were unnerved by him.

“They’re dangerous,” Chen whispered. “I can feel it in my gut. You shouldn’t trust them. I get the deepest feeling they have killed people in their past.”

Staring, Rick realized that Chen had not touched any one of the Seven. Not even a handshake. If he had, he would have known for certain that they had killed in the past. He would not be guessing. But Chen would also know the circumstance and why. Rick said, “Look. They are my friends. I know who and what they are. Stop guessing their pasts and shake their hands. If you really want to know their character, you should just find out.”

Tom nodded. He then hopped away.

Chen stared at Rick. In his eyes was intense apprehension. Chen peeked to Andy who was engrossed in his book and shook his head. “I don’t want their past in my head.”

“Then you are choosing to remain ignorant,” Rick said and walked away also.

There were a few things about Chen that Rick had never liked, but he had honestly hoped Chen would grow out of. One was his constant hesitancy. Chen always waited for the world to act on him rather than to take action for himself. Rick had always equated it with cowardice, though he had tried to be generous and think of it as a lack of confidence and a great deal of insecurity. But why was Chen still insecure after all this time? He was grown man for pity’s sake. A powerful Spirit Warrior. Why was he shrinking from his gifts still?

Finding a seat near the front, Rick decided maybe he ought to sleep and think on it. Reclining down the seat, he grabbed the travel pillow, blanket and earplugs from the side pocket where they were stashed. As he pulled on the eye-mask he overheard whispering behind him.

“…allowed to say. If Rick won’t come out about it, we can’t. Sorry Tom.”

“But you know.”

“Yes. We’ve been protecting him, mostly from himself.”

Tom heaved a grudging sigh in response.

“Everybody has got some secret they are ashamed of,” one of the Seven said. “Give him time.”

Rick put in his earplugs, pretending he had not heard them.

Departures and Arrivals

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chapter Five

 

 

They refueled in San Francisco, their flight on time. Soon they were over the Pacific Ocean, flying north near the coast of Alaska. They watched the other Monkey King movie, napped in between, chatted in hushed voices when they were awake, and ate ‘breakfast’—though technically it was already midday when they reached the air over Eastern Asia. When they landed in Seoul and refueled, most of them were awake. Andy was one who wasn’t. The other was Chen. And Rick, he had so many troubling dreams that he could hardly sleep.

“Who is Daisy?” Tom plopped next to him while Rick was eating his breakfast omelet.

Cringing, Rick wished that had not come up.

“Your friends seem to know about her, and yet you keep mum,” Tom said. “But I know what temptations have been haunting you. Who is this Daisy?”

Rick set down his fork. He met Tom’s eyes levelly. “A she-wolf.”

Tom blinked, surprised.

Flushing hot to his ears, Rick whispered, “Look. I made a huge mistake one summer and—”

“She’s not just a huge mistake,” Tom cut him off. “Your imps are wildly demanding you leave us all and hunt her down for—”

“I know what my imps are saying, ok?” Rick bit back. “But I am here.”

Tom nodded appreciatively. “Yeah. But when imps act like that, that’s an addiction.”

Rick closed his eyes, nodding.

Tom stared in silence at him for a while. Then he said, “How bad is it?”

“Better today than it was yesterday,” Rick muttered.

“And the imps are so wild for it…” Tom muttered to himself, “To obey them would ruin your life, wouldn’t it?”

Rick nodded, opening his eyes. He met Tom’s orange gaze. “Yeah.”

Tom angled his head and peered at him. “But I know you have considered it.”

Cringing, Rick hunched low, whispering. “Come on… Give me a break. What chance do I have for any real lasting happiness with a woman? I might be able to convince Daisy to leave her pack. I know she isn’t the ideal woman for me, but—”

“You could have any woman, you know.” Tom glared at him. “Selena still has the hots for you.”

“What?” Rick recoiled.

Tom smirked at him. “The proper response. Good.”

“She’s your girlfriend,” Rick protested appalled.

Tom shook his head. “Not anymore.”

Rick’s eyes widened, surprised, if not a little horrified. “What?”

Sighing, Tom nodded deeper, weighing heavier in his seat. “She broke up with me.”

Rick could not believe it. “Why?”

Slumping in the seat, actually heavy in it with his real weight, Tom muttered, “The novelty wore off, I guess.”

Staring, Rick could still not believe it. He had honestly thought those two had a great relationship. Tom idolized Selena. And Selena honestly seemed happy being with Tom.

Tom said, “It has been long coming, really. Every time we went out on dates, she’s been secretly checking out other guys. I don’t know if she forgot that I could hear her imps, or if she didn’t care and was waiting for me to get frustrated and break up with her. But honestly… I am heartbroken. She never got over you, and I have been kidding myself for years in thinking that her attraction for wealthy superstars—”

“Hey—” Rick protested.

“—would switch to loving me for me rather than as a useful way to tick off her grandparents and assert her independence.”

Rick gazed at Tom with pain.

“But who am I kidding?” Tom groaned. “Selena was never into me. She was just mad at you for rejecting her. And she liked the protection I could give her from Ewan Steed.”

Averting his eyes to the ground, Rick cringed. That second part, he believed was true. Selena, despite her physical beauty, used people and was often selfish. She had used him to protect her from Ewan as well.

“I’m sorry,” Rick muttered. “I honestly thought…”

“I know.” Tom chuckled. He then smiled at him. “You were never tempted by Selena—though I have no idea how.”

Rick raised his eyebrows. Selena was self-absorbed, not an interesting conversationalist, high maintenance, and freaky dangerous when angered. She could manipulate water, for pity’s sake—including the water in the air. Her temperament was rather elfish, if it came to it. Her ability to charm men with her voice never had any effect on him mostly because he could hear the magical pitch that infiltrated the brains of others to manipulate them. And that pitch was sharp, stabbing his eardrum constantly like an icepick in his ear. Besides, she really wasn’t the kind of beautiful that attracted him. Her beauty was the glossy, gotta-have-the-brand-name, femme fatale kind. In short, he endured a lot of pain being with her just as a societal escort.

“Not my type,” Rick said, and went back to eating.

Tom chuckled, shaking his head. He then looked around the cabin at the others. “Ok, different subject. When we arrive in Shanghai, I am just going to go invisible and get my passport stamped. Can I