White Tiger

Lord.’ Leo readied himself. ‘Try again.’
    I raised my sword and threw myself at him. Leo flattened me before I was even close.
    ‘Pathetic,’ John said, and went out.
    Leo grinned at the door. ‘He is so damn impressed with you.’
    I pulled myself to my feet. ‘How about we give him something to be impressed about?’
    Jade nodded when she was finished preparing me for the ceremony. I rose and checked myself in the changing room’s mirror. I did look like a princess. It didn’t feel like me at all.
    ‘He’s waiting outside, my Lady,’ Jade said. ‘I’ll be along shortly, just let me fix my make-up.’
    John was leaning against the wall outside the changing room. He pulled himself upright when he saw me and his eyes shone. He wore a black silk robe, trimmed with gold on the toggles and loops, the ends of the full-length sleeves and the edge of the mandarin collar.
    ‘I’ve never seen you in this one before; it’s always been plain black,’ I said. ‘I like the gold edgings.’
    ‘You like it? Mr Li made it to match your dress.’
    ‘It’s wonderful, but your hair’s already coming out. Turn around and let me braid it for you; it might stay put longer.’
    He obligingly turned. I raised my hands to take out the tie and stopped. ‘Can I do this?’
    ‘Yes, but only my hair. Nowhere else.’ He grinned over his shoulder. ‘Especially while you look like that.’
    ‘I’ll take that as a compliment.’
    I pulled his hair from its tie, carefully smoothed it and braided it for him. I raised it to my face; it really did smell of the sea. I lingered, enjoying the silken feeling.
    ‘You’d better stop now, Emma. That feels…’ He hesitated. ‘A little too good.’
    I tied the end of the braid and moved my hands away. ‘Done.’
    He turned and smiled down at me. ‘Now you turn around, let me see.’
    I did a quick twirl and he watched with admiration. He moved closer to see the detail of the work Jade had put into my hair and froze.
    ‘ Jade !’
    Jade came out of the changing room in a plain black cheongsam. She saw his face and stopped dead.
    John roared with fury and pointed. ‘What is Lady Emma wearing in her hair?’
    ‘Just some lovely old pieces that I lent her…’ Jade’s eyes widened. She collapsed onto the floor and fell over her knees. ‘My Lord, forgive me, I will remove them immediately…’ She gasped a huge sob. ‘This affront was not intended. I cannot believe I have insulted you like this. Please permit me to hang myself when the ceremony is completed.’ She moaned softly, shaking her head through the tears. ‘Apologies, apologies.’
    ‘John—’
    He raised his hand to stop me. ‘Please, Emma.’
    His voice changed as he spoke to Jade; it was as cold as ice. I had never seen him so angry. ‘I do not give you permission. You will remove these items and give themto me, together with any others you hold in your possession, directly after the ceremony. They must be cared for properly. You have obviously had these items in your possession for a long time…’ He took a deep breath. ‘… while in my service, without thinking of the ramifications. I will consider appropriate punishment for you later. Sometimes I wonder where your brain is, Jade.’
    He turned to me and spoke more warmly, ignoring Jade quivering at his feet. ‘You couldn’t have known, Emma. You’ll probably be as upset as I am when you find out what they are. Go inside with Jade and have her put something else in your hair. Hurry, most of the dignitaries are already here.’
    Jade rose, brushed down her cheongsam and led me back into the changing room without looking at me. As soon as we were inside she closed the door, raced to the table and grabbed some tissues to wipe her face. Her make-up was ruined; she concentrated and it all disappeared.
    She sat me in front of the mirror and quickly plucked the ornaments from my hair. I lifted one from the table; it was stiff and transparent, with bands through it of darker and lighter shades of brown. The end was gilded with twenty-four carat gold and had small bells hanging off to make a musical sound as I moved my head.
    I realised what it was. I shot to my feet in horror and flung the comb onto the desk. ‘Oh dear Lord, that’s tortoiseshell !’ A wave of nausea hit me and I bent to take deep breaths. ‘Jade, that could have been him ! Left on a beach to die, chopped into pieces and used to make this ! He wouldn’t have been able to defend