White Tiger

then saw that Leo’s face was rigid with restraint.
    ‘What?’
    ‘Leo. A pleasure,’ an elderly male voice said behind me.
    I turned to see a tiny ancient Chinese man in a threadbare suit three sizes too big for him. ‘Great Sage,’ Leo said, saluting. ‘Lord Sun,’ I said, also saluting.
    ‘Emma.’ The Monkey King pulled his staff from his ear and expanded it from the size of a toothpick to a full-sized bo. He spun it in front of himself and leaned on it.
    ‘The staff here are human, my Lord,’ Leo said.
    The Monkey King shrugged. He didn’t care.
    ‘My Lord.’ I twisted in my chair to face him and he grinned down at me, still leaning on his staff. ‘Lord Xuan has a copy of Journey to the West in Wu Cheng’en’s hand, the original. I thought it would be more appropriate if he gave it to you. It’s your story, after all.’
    He threw his head back and roared with laughter, attracting the irritated attention of some of the nearby Shen. When he’d stopped laughing he shook his head. ‘I gave it to him.’
    I watched him, bewildered.
    ‘I love it that you offer it as if it were your own,’ he said, leaning further down to watch me intently. ‘You are very presumptuous.’
    I struggled to explain. ‘I just thought, that it’s your story, and that you would probably—’
    ‘She only wishes to assist you, my Lord,’ Leo said, breaking in to defend me. ‘Emma has the best interests of everybody in mind.’
    The Monkey King turned his attention to Leo. ‘You, me. Any time. Think you could take me?’
    ‘Your skills far outweigh mine, my Lord,’ Leo said, carefully polite. ‘I would not presume to challenge you.’
    The Monkey King grinned. ‘One day, Leo. One day we’ll know.’
    ‘My Lord,’ Leo said.
    The Monkey King disappeared.
    ‘Geez, he’s going to blow it and be in so much trouble,’ Leo said.
    ‘For him, that’s behaving himself,’ I said. ‘I know.’
    The celebration was a huge multi-course vegetarian dinner that seemed to go on forever. By the end of it Simone was falling asleep.
    I quietly vowed that for her sixth birthday, Simone would have a proper children’s party with plenty of kids her own age and absolutely no Shen.

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
    S imone’s face was serious as she sat in the living room with Leo and me after visiting the schools. Their brochures were spread on the coffee table. ‘I don’t know, Emma,’ she said. ‘Which one did you like better?’ I said. Simone tilted her head. ‘I like them both.’ ‘The Australian one has the big playground,’ Leo said. Simone didn’t say anything.
    ‘You’ll be safe in the American one, sweetheart,’ I said. ‘You saw the big walls.’
    Simone glanced quickly up at me. ‘Where are you from, Emma?’
    ‘Australia.’
    ‘You went to an Australian school?’ I hesitated, then, ‘Yes. But Leo went to an American school.’
    ‘I think you should go to the Australian one, sweetheart,’ Leo said.
    Simone picked up the brochures and looked at them, then up at me again. ‘I want to go to the Australian one. I liked the teachers there better.’
    Leo tried to hold back a triumphant grin.
    ‘You sure?’ I said.
    ‘Yep.’ Simone dropped the brochures. ‘I like the Australian one. I want to go there.’
    I shrugged. ‘Okay, your choice. I’ll ring the headmistress and arrange it.’
    Simone smiled at Leo and he smiled back. He would be unbearable for ages now that he’d won.
    Mr Chen drove us to the school with me providing directions. When we arrived he walked across to the opposite side of the road from the school and stopped. I waited patiently while he studied the school silently. Then he nodded and we both went in.
    The headmistress was waiting for us in her office. She sat us down and closed the door, then sat herself and pulled out Simone’s file.
    ‘Emma hasn’t told me much about your line of work, Mr Chen,’ she said, opening the folder. ‘Exactly what business are you involved in?’
    ‘Mostly government work,’ Mr Chen said. ‘Administration, management. Occasionally fieldwork, but not since Simone was born.’
    She raised her head and stared at him. ‘Emma said that you had a private import-export firm in China. Not government work at all.’ Her eyes widened. ‘Oh.’
    Mr Chen opened his mouth to say something and I kicked him under the table. He glanced at me and I shook my head.
    ‘Which government?’ she said, smiling. ‘China or Hong Kong?’
    ‘Neither,’ Mr Chen