

Last Kiss in Venice: Eternal Love – Part One

Love Trilogy Book 1

Copyright © 2012 Martin Chu Shui

Cover art © by Stephanie Mooney. All rights reserved.

Smashwords Edition

## Prologue

Sixth century, Er Mei Mountain, southwest of China

Among the bamboo forest, a young scholar in his early twenties walked hurriedly on the mountain path, out of the deep misty valley. He was about six feet tall and dressed in a worn but clean long, blue, cotton robe; a sword hanging on his belt. On his back he carried a bamboo-framed backpack, books, a reverse-curved bow and a Guqin (a seven-stringed zither) had been tied.

Although it was early spring and the mountain wind still held a chill, his handsome face was red and sweaty after a few hours walking on the ragged mountain paths. He used his sleeve to wipe the sweat off his face and stopped at a creek.

Taking the bamboo backpack off, he kneeled down and greedily drank the crystal clear mountain spring water. After adjusting some of the books in the backpack, he was about to put it on his back but stopped abruptly. Accompanied by an air-tearing sound, a large eagle dived towards the shallow grass not far from where he stood. Turning; quickly, he saw a white snake, about three feet long, hissing towards the death coming from the sky.

He had never seen a white snake in his life and didn't know why he felt it was so pretty and vulnerable. He had the urge to help it, to save it from eagle's talons, but by the time he gripped his bow and arrows, the eagle had roared high with the limp body of the white snake in its sharp claws.

Without a moment's delay, he aimed at the fast rising bird of prey and shot three arrows in rapid succession. The first two arrows missed, but the third struck right into the bird's large body. Following a painful cry, the eagle released the white snake and glided towards the other side of the misty valley.

The young scholar ran to where the white snake landed, picked up its limp body and brought it to the creek. After carefully washing its wounds, he looked around and plucked a few herb leaves beside him in the bamboo forest. He chewed the herb leaves in his mouth, put the herb paste onto the snake's wounds and then tore a few pieces of old clothes from his backpack, bandaging the white snake gently. When he was done, he carefully laid the white snake on the soft green grass beside the creek, and sat down. As he looked at the snake his eyes filled with sympathy and admiration for the creature.

"I have never seen a white snake in my whole life, and I have to say you are so beautiful. Maybe you were a beautiful princess in your previous life, or you will be an elegant lady in a white dress in your next life. If we meet again in our next life, if we're both in human form, I would definitely try to marry you at all costs: this is a promise."

He looked around, apart from a couple of giant pandas lazily chewing bamboo leaves nearby, there was not a single soul to be seen, so he continued. "I know you don't understand my words, and don't know why I am talking to you." He gently stroked the snake's body with his hand. "You must be in a lot of pain. I have applied medical herbs to your wounds and you will be healed in a few days."

To his surprise, the white snake raised its head, as if it understood his words.

"I see. Perhaps you know exactly what I mean." He stood up, fetched his guqin, and sat beside the snake again. "Let me play for you. Perhaps the music will soothe your pain."

He laid the seven-stringed zither on his lap. As his fingers pressed, plucked and stroked the ancient instrument, crisp and tranquil sounds filled the air around them. The music was like white clouds floating in blue sky; like crystal clear water flowing in mountain creeks; like a spring breeze waving green willow tree leaves.

Time had stopped.

Everything, the misty valley, the giant pandas, the green bamboo forest, the wounded white snake, and the scholar himself, all melted into eternity: only the music filled the space and time...

Suddenly the sound disappeared.

The scholar raised his head, looking up at the high sky for a long time, and then said. "I have spent a decade studying, thinking and cultivating myself, and I am on my way to the capital to attend the imperial examination." He looked down at the white snake. "If I am successful, I can to use my knowledge to help the poor, to cure the sick, to eliminate corruption, and to make the world a much better place for everyone."

His eyes were bright and sparkling; his voice was loud and clear; his heart was pumping strong and hard.

The scholar paused and then looked at the sky. "It's getting late and I'd better get going"

He picked up the white snake and hid it in a patch of thick grass so that the eagles in the sky wouldn't be able to see it.

"I really enjoyed your accompany and I thank you for listening to me. Take care and I hope we meet again in our next life."

The white snake slowly raised its head, and as if understanding his words, nodded.

The young scholar stood up, smiling once more at the white snake, and continued his long journey out of the misty, deep mountain valley.

## 1. Youth hostel

Charlie stood beside the stainless steel counter watching Amy chatting with a customer who sat on the bench waiting for his pizza, which was being cooked in the oven behind Charlie. Even with air conditioning running, he felt hot, both from the heat from the pizza oven and the outdoors. It was early December in Perth, Western Australia and the temperature had hovered around a scorching forty degrees for the last two weeks—a record for Western Australia.

He had been working in this pizza restaurant since graduating from university last year. If he added together the time spent working here while he was at university, Charlie almost had five years of pizza-making experience under his belt.

Business was slow.

On a Sunday like today, anyone walking in the sizzling heat outside of their homes to buy pizza in the equally heated restaurant would have something mentally wrong with them. At least Charlie thought so.

As soon as he saw his replacement, Helen, pull up in her pink mini and park in front of the restaurant, Charlie said goodnight to Amy, whistling on his way out.

The steering wheel of his car was too hot to hold, so he had to use the edge of his palms to touch it only when it was absolutely necessary. The air conditioning in his twenty-year-old car was struggling to make any difference, so in the end; Charlie just rolled his window down and let the hot air blow on his face.

Walking into the old two-bedroom, sleep-out house, without air-conditioning, it was immediately apparent the inside was almost as hot as outside. Charlie said hello to his sister's husband, who slumbered on the coach watching a cricket match between Australia and India; a few empty beer bottles lay on the floor around him.

Charlie didn't get a response.

"Charlie, I'll be going in a few minutes. It's my night shift today. Are you alright?" his sister said, studying him carefully.

Charlie's sister was a nurse and worked in a hospital.

"I'm perfectly fine, sis, just a bit of heat stroke, nothing serious. Don't worry about me; go and look after the sick and old people." Charlie paused. "Gina, by the way, I am flying to Venice tonight." He'd been putting off telling his sister because he knew she'd be upset.

"What? Venice? How could you afford to have a holiday in Europe? You haven't even had a job yet."

"Gina, I have a job in the pizza restaurant."

"Have you discussed this with Joe?"

"Joe is only interesting in his beer and watching sports on TV," Charlie lowered his voice. "Gina, I am twenty-two years old and have never been on a holiday in my life. I have saved enough money to have a cheap backpack trip in Europe. Gina, please let me go out and see the world."

Charlie's sister hesitated, glancing at her watch. "You should have told me earlier, so we could have time to talk about this more..."

"You had better go now; otherwise you would be late for work," Charlie interrupted.

"But I haven't had time to help you pack or get some extra money for you..."

"Gina, you have paid everything for me until now, and I can't let you pay for my holiday as well. Please don't worry. I am a big boy now and I can look after myself. I'll bring you some souvenirs, I promise."

Charlie hugged his sister and she left in a hurry to get to work.

Charlie knew he should have told his sister about his trip earlier. But he didn't even feel a twinge of guilt for not telling her his real reason for going to Venice.

Charlie's plane arrived in Venice at mid-day.

After passing through customs, he took a waterbus to his backpack accommodation. As the motorboat took him through the large canal, Venice's splendour took his breath away: water taxis, motorboats and gondolas were busily moving up and down the spider web-like canals. The buildings standing in the seawater looked so mysterious that Charlie felt like he'd just gone to another world.

Winter would normally be low tourist season in Venice, but because of the G8 meeting, he saw many young protesters like him jammed into the cheap accommodations, He realized he was lucky to get a bed.

Soon after dropping his luggage on his allocated bed, Charlie gripped a local map and launched into his adventure of discovering Venice.

Charlie loved the narrow stone-paved footpaths and the countless arch bridges that spanned the canals. Despite the map in hand, he lost his way inside the narrow, maze-like streets and canals not long after departing from his hostel.

Struggling to figure out where he was and failing, he finally gave up, and just followed the groups of hundreds of other tourists enjoying what this ancient city could offer.

The weather should have been cold in Venice just before Christmas but the temperature was in the upper twenties, making it the hottest December in Europe's history. It was this exact reason why Charlie was there – to protest against the global warming, corporate greed and globalization during the G8 meeting.

Colourful masks, Venice's trademark, were displayed inside the shop windows along footpaths. From a large window on the narrow street, Charlie bought a large piece of pizza, although it cost him a few Euros and set him back significantly on his tiny travelling budget. Just one bite was enough to prove this real Italian pizza was way better than anything he had produced back home in that little restaurant.

Many young tourists had come here for the same reason as him, so by simple following others, Charlie reached San Marco Square where the protest would be tomorrow.

After dinner the next day, Charlie sat on the foyer area of the hostel, reading a book.

"Do you mind if I sit on this chair?"

Charlie looked up; and noticed an Asian-looking guy in his early thirties, with short hair and an athletic body. The first thing that popped into Charlie's mind was that he was in the military. He was about six feet tall, similar to Charlie himself.

Charlie nodded and went back to his book.

"From the protest today?" The stranger pointed at the bruises on Charlie's face.

"Yeah, souvenirs from Italian police officers' batons." Charlie said.

The stranger looked around the lobby. "You are not alone." He waited and then put his hand out. "Hi I'm James. Not James Bond, though. James Li."

"Hi, Charlie here." Charlie put his book down and shook James' hand.

"Charlie, I have to say I do admire you guys, fighting for what you believe," James said.

"Thanks. What is your business here?"

"I just came here to have a quick look after a business trip in France."

"Where are you from? Japan or Hong Kong?"

"I am from China, and you?"

"I'm from down under, the pink bottom." Charlie laughed at his own joke.

"Pink bottom?"

"You don't know?" Charlie stopped chuckling. "Australia is at the bottom of world map, and always in pink colour."

"Oh, I see, so you are an Aussie."

"You bet, mate."

"Can I buy you a drink, Charlie?"

"I don't drink."

"Really? Come on, just this once."

Charlie's brother-in-law, Joe, had been drunk most every day as long as Charlie could remember. Charlie was disgusted by alcohol for that exact reason; he didn't know why he would agree and follow the stranger to a pub tonight—but he did.

They talked and talked; as the conversation continued, the number of empty beer bottles was built up around them. Charlie asked in a not very clear voice, "James, what do you believe?"

"I believe that all evil monsters should be destroyed in this world."

"Are you going to fight for what you believe?"

"Absolutely!"

Charlie opened his eyes and saw the wooden planks of the bunk bed over his head. He couldn't remember when or how he got to his bed; last night he and this stranger, James from China as he recalled, drank and talked until very late.

A sudden bad feeling burst into his mind.

He quickly fumbled inside his money belt and was relieved that his passport, money and travelling cash-card were all in order. He had heard stories that fellow travellers stole from each other, but James seemed like a good guy.

Charlie sat up with a splitting headache. Last night had been the first time Charlie had ever gotten drunk and he felt ashamed of himself.

Sitting on his bed for little longer, Charlie decided that it was a one-time incident and would not happen again, at least for one reason – he didn't have the money to buy alcohol. Last night, James paid for all the drinks. Let's face it: how many people would offer him free drinks every day?

Glancing at his watch, Charlie realised it was well after lunchtime and another protest had been arranged that afternoon so he had to be hurry. Quickly taking a shower and changing his clothes, he rushed out of the hostel.

It was overcast.

Walking quickly along the narrow streets among the ancient buildings and crossing the bridges over the canals, Charlie hurried towards San Marco Square.

The ancient city looked amazing; wherever he looked would be a perfect postcard photo. Charlie let himself get lost in the scenic narrow streets, arch bridges and squares with water fountains every so often, just enjoying the brief moments before having to face police batons.

Charlie reached an arch bridge, one of hundreds all over Venice's canals. It was not that much different from all the others—except what made Charlie stop beside it was the two girls standing on top of the bridge.

A girl with long blonde hair wearing a pure white dress caught his eye. When their gazes met, Charlie felt like he'd been struck by lightning. He could feel his heart skip a beat. He was spellbound by the girl's blue eyes.

Her flowing white dress created the un-mistakable image of an angel just descending from heaven to earth. But what struck Charlie more was her eyes, which looked like perfect, twin, still blue lakes. Charlie wanted to get lost in them for eternity.

Charlie had seen beautiful girls but never experienced such a shock in his twenty-two years of life. He couldn't stop wondering how such a perfect creature would actually exist on earth. She was like a piece of exquisite art that purified his eyes and his soul. Charlie knew in his heart that he had fallen in love with her the moment his eyes met hers.

Their eye contact was brief, and she looked away almost immediately, but Charlie thought he saw her smiling at him before her gaze moved away. Of course that smile was probably wishful thinking; there was no chance a girl as beautiful as her would pay any attention to a guy like him.

But Charlie just could not tear his gaze away from the white figure.

"Sir, would you like to ride gondola?"

Charlie turned and saw a gondola stopped beside him.

"I agree she is very beautiful." The gondola operator spoke with a strong Italian accent. "Maybe you could invite her to ride my gondola."

Charlie realised how silly he must look, staring at a strange girl with his jaw dropped to the ground. "In your dream, Mate," Charlie said, finally finding his own voice.

"You can have the blond girl and I can have the black-haired one."

Charlie then had a closer look at the girl standing beside the blond girl. She wore a bluish-green top and dark green skirt and had a southern European girl's beautiful features. Unlike her friend's warm and angel-like face, she exerted an icy presence. Her black eyes seemed almost able to see through you. Charlie said in a low voice, "Mate, neither of us has any chance."

"My name is Rico," he said, manoeuvring his gondola to the canal bank and extending his hand to Charlie.

"Hi Rico, I'm Charlie."

Charlie couldn't help but turn around to look at the blond girl. The two girls were walking down the bridge towards the gondola parked on other side of the canal; it seemed that they were interested in having a gondola ride.

"Charlie, hurry up and invite them before they get on the other gondola," Rico urged.

"Rico, I am not going to invite either them or myself to ride your gondola. I have to go to San Marco Square."

"Charlie, I can take you to San Marco Square. It is faster through canals than walking."

Charlie was about to say no thanks, but was interrupted by the sound of an argument. Turning around, Charlie saw two young Italian men standing in front of the two girls, seemingly arguing with them.

"Rico, could you please wait here? I'm going to invite the two girls to ride your gondola."

## 2. Gondola

Caitlin stopped on top of the bridge and said to Alice, "This should be the bridge."

Alice looked at front and then back, even under the bridge. "I don't see anyone around."

"Please be patient: I am able to predict only a rough time but I am sure the location is right."

"All right, Cait. During the last ten..."

Caitlin stopped Alice from saying more, and instead began using their special "sister-talk," which enabled them to talk to each other telepathically. 'Ali, don't say it in public. You never know who is listening.'

'Okay,' Alice said, switching to their sister-talk. 'During the last ten years, you had predicted a few times. How do you know this time is right?'

'I know that I made a few mistakes in the past, but this time I have a feeling—a very strong feeling this is it.'

'Cait, I know you don't want to listen to this, but the last few times I think you should have been more patient and given the poor guys more of a chance. You never know if one of them may be the one. You just walked away after only glancing at them once.'

'I know exactly what I am looking for so what's the point in hanging around after I already know they were not him?'

Alice nodded her chin toward a nearby man. 'Could this guy be him, the one walking on the left?'

Cait immediately shook her head. 'No.'

'Do you know what he looks like?'

'No, I don't.' Cait let out a small huff of impatience.

'So how do you know who is him?'

'I will know when I see him.'

As time passed, Alice became more and more agitated. 'I don't think we will see him today.'

Just then, Caitlin bumped on her sister's elbow. 'Look at the guy standing at other side of the canal. It's him.'

Alice turned: he was about six feet tall and had an athletic build. He wore a white tee-shirt and blue jeans. Under his dark brown hair, a pair of bright eyes was glued on Caitlin's face, as if he was under some sort of spell.

'Cait, are you sure he is the one?'

'Yes, I am very sure.'

'But he's not even Chinese.'

'Who said that he would have to be a Chinese? At least he is half-Chinese, which is more Chinese than us,' Caitlin said, stroking her long blond hair.

'We chose to look like this but...'

'He had no say as to what he would look like.'

'I don't like the way he is staring at you; it's disgusting.'

'Ali, he falls in love with me at first sight.' Caitlin stole another glance at the handsome young man and then spoke softly and dreamily.

'Well, what are you going to do now? Go and talk to him?'

'No, I'll never do that.'

'Cait, you are not in China and you look completely European, so behave like a European girl.'

'Ali, you know very well that even with blond hair and blue eyes, inside I am still a Chinese girl—a very traditional one as well.'

'He is talking to the gondola guy now and it seems that he is going to have a gondola ride. Maybe he is not the one after all.'

'Hurry up; we need to get a gondola, too, so we can keep an eye on him before we lose him.'

'I have to say this is the first time you've ever been so keen about a man, so he must be somewhat special.'

Caitlin and Alice walked down the bridge, towards a gondola parked nearby. Before they reached it, two young Italian men blocked their way.

"Hi babe, want to ride with me?" one of them said.

"I don't think so," Alice snapped.

"Why not? You two beautiful girls are a perfect match for us two handsome guys. I promise you'll have a good time," the other one said.

"Leave us alone! We are not interested," Alice said sharply.

"Well, in that case, you'll have to find another gondola because we had this one first."

Alice was so angry that she wanted to punch him in his face but Caitlin said, "Let's go find another one." Then she heard someone say, "Hi ladies, you are welcome to use this gondola."

Caitlin turned.

It was the young man she'd been looking at from the bridge. His voice was so sweet that she could feel herself melting. She couldn't help but smile at him. "That's very kind of you."

Charlie accompanied the two girls to the boat. When Caitlin and Alice were on board, he said, "Enjoy the ride."

Caitlin didn't realize he hadn't planned to ride with them. She quickly asked Alice through their sister-talk to invite Charlie onboard with them.

Alice hesitated for a moment and said. "Hi, thanks for the help. Would you like to ride with us?"

"Charlie, if you don't, I'll have the two girls for myself," Rico said.

"I would love to," Charlie stepped onto the gondola.

"Hi, I am Alice and this is my friend, Cait."

"Nice to meet you, Alice and Cait. I am..."

"I know you are Charlie," Alice interrupted.

"How do you know my name?"

Alice rolled her eyes. "Didn't he just call you 'Charlie' a second ago?"

While Alice and Charlie exchanged a few more words, Caitlin said nothing but watched him carefully. Although to an onlooker she appeared to simply be studying the young man sharing their gondola, she was actually having an animated conversation with Alice telepathically. 'Ali, he is the one; particularly his eyes, dreamy and weary, exactly as I remembered.'

Alice looked at Caitlin and then said to Charlie, "Charlie, I can smell alcohol all over you, and you have bruises on your face, arms and hands. Did you get drunk last night and get into a fight?"

Charlie looked at Caitlin briefly and then turned to Alice. "No, I didn't get into fight with anybody. The bruises were from Italian police officers' batons during the protest yesterday. I did have a couple of beers with a friend last night."

"What is this protest?" Alice asked.

"It is the protest against G8 meeting in San Marco Square," Rico said.

Alice ignored Rico, "I am asking you, Charlie."

"Oh," Charlie moved his gaze from Caitlin to Alice. "We protest against globalization and global warming."

"Yeah, I heard that before, but who would listen to you and what's the point?" Alice said.

"Alice, if I am able to persuade two or three people to recognize global warming as a real and dangerous problem, and if they are able to influence others, gradually more and more people would follow. The leaders of G8 would have to listen to us. It's called one's power."

Alice heard Caitlin in her head. 'He is talking the exact same way as the one; Charlie has a big heart and is willing to fight for what he believes.'

Alice said, "Charlie, I believe that G8 meeting is still on but why aren't you protesting today?"

"I was on the way to San Marco Square, when I met you two."

Their gondola rowed out of the narrow canal into the main channel. A motorboat passed creating a wake, and their gondola rocked a bit. Caitlin suddenly lost her balance and Charlie quickly held her hand.

"Thanks, Charlie," Caitlin said, speaking for the first time. "If you hadn't grabbed me, I would have fallen into water."

"No problem, Cait."

Alice stared at Caitlin and said via their sister-talk. 'Well done, Cait, smart move.' And then she heard the reply.

'Ali, he held my hand, the exactly same feeling as his touch.

The rest of the gondola ride was cheerful and relaxing. Rico was acting the tour guide by telling them all about the old buildings they passed, and the bridges they went under.

Each time the gondola changed direction or Rico pointed at a building, Charlie used the opportunity to steal a glance at Caitlin. It was not only her beauty that enchanted him; Charlie felt like they had an unknown connection, a deep bond linking him and her mythically. Maybe it was just his imagination but Charlie noticed that Caitlin was looking at him as well.

Unfortunate the ride finished too soon, and they arrived at San Marco Square.

The protest had already started as was evident by the shouting, screaming, police cars and ambulance's sirens. Charlie looked at Caitlin and then Alice. "I have to go to the protest. What are you going to do next?"

Before Caitlin opened her mouth, Alice said. "We have an appointment and have to leave now."

Caitlin smiled. "Thank you so much for the ride. It is my best experience in Venice." She shook Charlie's hand and walked away following Alice's lead.

"Will I see you again?" Charlie said behind them.

Caitlin turned. "You'd never know; it's a small world. Goodbye, Charlie."

Caitlin watched Charlie walking toward his hostel after the protest. He had more bruises on his faces and arms; his clothes were wet from police's water cannon and his tee-shirt was torn, but he looked happy. He was humming and almost danced all the way from San Marco Square to his hostel; it made her smile in her heart. She knew he seemed so happy because of her, because he'd fallen in love with her.

Caitlin turned to Alice who was walking beside her. "Are you sure he won't see us following him?"

"Cait, what's wrong with you? It's you who cast this spell to cover our tracks. Even if he sees us, he would only see two strangers and pay no attention to us at all."

"I know that, but I'm just so nervous. I'm worried that I'll blow opportunity if he knows who we are. Anyway, Ali, why did you want to leave him so abruptly? You know I could arrange to meet him again tomorrow."

"Please don't get mad at me," Alice said, "I know when you get like this that your emotions rule your head and you can't think properly. You can't let him to get to you like that. People don't treasure things if they get them too easy. He will need to work harder, to prove he deserves you."

Caitlin was quiet for a few moments. "Ali, you are right that I was too rash, Thanks. You are such a good friend."

"You are welcome. Did you notice that something was not quite right with the two young Italian guys earlier?"

"I noticed the minute they came near us. They are vampires."

"Really? But I thought vampires can't come into the daylight."

"It's the sunlight that hurts them. But remember how cloudy it was? They can go out when it's totally overcast."

"Do you think they were after you?"

"I think so. It's my fault for choosing this face and attracting too much unwanted attention."

"Cait, the only fault is within yourself and you can't control that. It doesn't matter what you look like, you would always have the charm and beauty no one else has. What about changing your appearance to a different person so they won't recognise you on the street?"

"No, I can't do that," she said, shaking her head. "Otherwise it'd really blow Charlie away and I'd lose him forever."

"Cait, calm down. You don't know for sure that he is the one."

"I am very sure about that."

Alice watched Charlie walk into the hostel. "What now?"

"We keep watching him and see what happens."

## 3. Bridge

'What is he doing? Why doesn't he go to the protest today?' Alice said silently through their sister-talk the next day.

Caitlin and Alice were following Charlie through narrow streets and bridges and finally he stopped at the bridge where they had taken the gondola the day before.

'I suppose he decided to take a day off,' Caitlin said. Looking at Charlie's painful and depressed expression, she said to Alice, 'I think that he hopes to see me again, the poor thing.'

'So much for his big heart and fighting for what he believes. After only two days, he's already given up what he came to Venice for,' Alice said.

'Ali, he is in love with me. Look at him; he's just sitting there in pain and misery.'

'Yeah, I can see that but I have to say he's not a very ambitious guy. Typical scholar, weak and easily depressed,' Alice said.

'Ali, he is very sensitive and the reason he is depressed is because he loves me. I don't need a strong man to protect me and really don't care if he is ambitious either. All I want is a man who loves me.' Caitlin said.

'I don't know why I am so negative towards him.' Alice thought for a moment. 'I suppose it maybe because you have been talking about him for such a long time, I have sort of built very high expectations, but we all know that reality is quite different from the ideal world. Anyway, I am so glad that you like him and that's the most important thing.'

Caitlin looked at Alice. 'I can't just stand here and watch him suffering and waiting hopelessly.'

'Cait, please be patient, just think about how long you have waited to meet him. If he is able to wait for a couple more days, I'll agree for you to meet him again.'

Charlie sat on the stone steps, exactly the same spot where he saw Caitlin for the first time. He had been sitting there and waiting for the last three days hopelessly and didn't really know what he expected to achieve by doing so.

Since the gondola ride, Charlie couldn't put Caitlin's image out of his mind. He had neither appetite for food nor interest in anything else. The only thing that gave him comfort was sitting on the bridge where Caitlin had once stood.

Over and over in his mind, Charlie went through every moment of his short time with Caitlin. What had he done wrong? Maybe he should have insisted on giving her his email so there was at least a chance, no matter how little, that she might contact him.

Charlie was sure that Caitlin was smiling at him when she left; maybe she was just being polite. It was pretty unlikely for a girl like Caitlin to be interested in a guy like him at first sight.

Was this the true love he had read about in novels, watched in movies, and heard in songs? Were the feelings of a sinking stomach and wrenching heart the sign of falling in love? Charlie didn't know; all he knew was that he could still hear her sweet voice, see her beautiful eyes, and feel the touch of her skin, all in his mind.

It was lucky that the previous two days were sunny, but not so today. Although he held an umbrella above his head, his clothes were completely wet, but he hardly noticed it.

"Hi Charlie, you are still here." Rico rowed his gondola close to the canal edge.

Charlie didn't answer and still stared at the empty bridge.

"Charlie, you are completely wet. Come on, I give you a free ride back to your hostel."

Charlie finally turned his gaze away from the bridge. He forced a bitter smile. "Thanks, Rico. I'll be okay."

Rico shook his head and slowly rowed away.

'Ali, you shouldn't make it rain like this.'

'Today started with an overcast sky and I just merely helped a bit to get the rain drops down.'

'This is ridiculous. I can't let Charlie sit out in the rain: he's completely wet.' Caitlin began to walk over, but Alice stopped her.

'Cait, did you notice that the two vampires are lurking around?'

'Where?'

'Over the corner of the piazza.'

'Sorry I didn't notice them.' Caitlin said. 'All of my attention has been on Charlie.'

'I think that they want to follow Charlie hoping to get you.'

Caitlin thought for a few minutes. 'You are right; we have to wait and see what happens. I just feel so sorry for poor Charlie being wet and cold and sitting in the rain.'

'It's his choice.'

The sky was getting dark.

Charlie finally stood up. He looked around; there was nobody was to be seen in the cold wind and drizzling rain. Charlie put his head down and walked towards his hostel. After crossing the bridge and entering the piazza, he heard a voice behind him.

"Stop! I want talk to you."

Charlie turned around and saw the two young Italian men from the other day. "Hi guys, I am not a rich tourist. Here is my wallet."

"Who do you think we are, a couple of street thugs here to rob you?" the taller one said.

"So what can I do for you?" Charlie glanced around at the still-empty streets.

"Three days ago we met a blond on that bridge. You shared gondola ride with her. Tell me where she is now," the shorter one said with menace.

Charlie couldn't believe his ears; these two guys were after Caitlin.

"Stay away from her!"

"You have no idea who you are talking to..." the taller one said.

"I don't care who you are. Just leave her alone," Charlie interrupted him. "Otherwise..."

"What can you do? Eh?" the taller one stopped, suddenly turning around.

Charlie looked to see what the tall man was looking at and saw two figures walking quickly towards them. In moments, he was able to see the white figure more clearly—Caitlin. In a blink of an eye, Caitlin and Alice were standing in front of him.

Charlie turned, glancing at the two Italian guys once more and shouted. "Cait and Ali, run! These two guys are after you." He turned and faced the two Italian guys, his fists raised.

"Bring it on."

The taller one lifted his hand, slapped Charlie in the face.

Even though Charlie was in a fighting posture, the attack was too fast for him to react; he felt like he'd been hit by a large wooden club. Before losing consciousness, Charlie managed to speak a few more words.

"Run, Cait and Ali..." and then he fell into darkness.

## 4. Meetings

Shanghai China

The people sitting around the meeting room's large oval shape table were dressed quite unusually. Among the black-suited officials, there were a few long haired male and female Taoist priests, Buddhist monks and nuns with shaved heads.

Looking out from the floor-to-ceiling window, Shanghai's night view spread out spectacularly, but none in the room was interested in the views. All their attention was on the large flat-screen TV where a bold man in his late fifties addressed the group speaking French-accented English; a young Chinese interpreter translated his words into Chinese simultaneously.

"Last night in Venice, I had report that two people were killed, but according to our information, these two dead people were not human – they were vampires." The French man paused, and then said. "This is the first time vampires have been found in Europe in ten years."

"Mr. Bevis, I understand that you have been hunting these vampires for a very long time and it's good news that you have this new lead. So what could our China branch do to assist the Euro branch on this matter?" the black-suited official at head of the table said.

"I appreciate your kind offer to help, Chairman Tan. The main reason I'm holding this video conference is that the two vampires seemed to have been killed by someone with oriental magic power, so we suspect it may relate to the old case ten years ago."

"Do you mean that the two vampires could have been killed by the fugitives from China who escaped to Europe ten years ago?" Chairman Tan asked.

"Yes. That's what we all agreed at this end."

The meeting room erupted in discussion, as everyone in attendance began talking at once about this revelation. Chairman Tan put his hands up to signal everyone to be silent.

"Mr. Bevis, what can we do to help?"

"I would like to borrow one of your field agents to assist us here in Europe."

"No problem. By chance we have one in Europe at the moment. I'll inform him about this new arrangement and ask him to report to you directly, but I would also like to be kept in the loop."

Naples Italy

In a windowless hall illuminated by many large candles, a large group of men and women dressed in old fashion but luxurious robes and dresses, gathered in front of an elder man who sat on a large throne.

"Mr. Mancini, last night two of ours were killed in Venice," a man with a beard said.

"Venice?" the tall elder stood up. "Who authorised them to go to Venice?"

"Mr. Mancini, nobody authorised them without your permission," the bearded man replied. He waited and said carefully, "According to my source inside the council, they were killed by someone with oriental power."

"What should we do, father?" a young and beautiful girl in the crowd asked.

"We stay put as we have been doing the last ten years. No one should go out without my personal permission. Is that clear?"

"Yes, Mr. Mancini!" the crowd responded.

"But Mr. Mancini, we can't just stay put forever," the bearded man said.

The elder shot the bearded man a sharp look that made him quake. "Are you daring to question my decision?"

"Not at all, Mr. Mancini," the bearded man said, kneeling immediately.

The elder scanned the crowd slowly, and then said, "I have the duty to ensure our family's survival. The Euro council had been hunting us for the last ten years since they invented their special guns. Now someone with oriental power is also after us so we have to be patient. One of our advantages is that we have plenty time. We can wait until we find ways to fight against their super weapons and then we can avenge our dead fellows."

## 5. Hotel Room

Alice led the way through the stone-paved narrow streets along the canal bank. Behind her, Caitlin held Charlie in her arms. It would be amazing to an onlooker that Caitlin, who with such a slender frame, was able to carry Charlie's over six-feet-tall body so effortlessly. If Charlie were aware that Caitlin was transporting him as if he were no heavier than a feather pillow, he would look at Caitlin in completely different eyes. Luckily, however, Charlie was unconscious for the whole process.

They reached a corner of the street where the canal formed a large square pond. Alice took out a hefty, ancient-looking iron key, and opened the thick and equally old, double wooden doors that led to a building that had stood in the seawater for many centuries. Dim electrical light illuminated wooden stairs. Caitlin walked up the stairs, being careful to not bump Charlie's head and limbs on the handrails. After a couple of flights of stairs, they finally opened the door and went inside an apartment.

Caitlin laid Charlie flat on the single bed along the canal sidewall and immediately examined his face again.

"Is he alright?" Alice asked.

Caitlin stood up. "He hasn't changed since I checked him last time. He'll be alright but I need to apply some herb medicine on his face to relief his pain and the bruises."

While helping to get the required items out of their suitcase, Alice said, "Sorry, Cait, I wasn't fast enough to protect him."

"Ali, it's not your fault. I stood beside you and should have anticipated that." Caitlin took a bundle of long silver and golden acupuncture needles, and inserted them one by one into various points on Charlie's face, neck, shoulders and arms.

"Nobody would imagine he could be so stupid as to take on those two vampires," Alice passed some herb medicinal paste to Caitlin who applied it to Charlie's face where was stricken by the vampire.

"Ali, he wasn't stupid to take the action: he was trying to protect us. I'm pretty sure he didn't realize he was dealing with vampires." Caitlin carefully bandaged Charlie's face to keep the herb medicinal paste in place.

"Cait, you know that men think they are always able to protect women. But I bet if Charlie knew what he was dealing with, he would not have done what he did."

Caitlin completed her task, and straightened up her body. "I don't know what Charlie would have done if he knew they were vampires, but he was still courageous even if he only thought he was fighting against two street thugs."

"I suppose you are right," Alice said thoughtfully. "I agree that he is somewhat special, thankfully."

Caitlin carried a chair and put it beside Charlie's bed.

"I know we didn't have choice," Alice said, "but killing the two vampires tonight; it will make our life much more difficult in Europe."

Caitlin sat down, stroking Charlie's hair gently, and then said, "We will leave Europe and live in Australia, with Charlie."

"Australia? Cait, you haven't even talked to him properly yet, how do you know that you would like him?"

Caitlin leaned back on her chair, "I have never felt like this in my whole life; I know I have fallen in love with him: it's my fate."

"But, Cait, do you think he'd still love you if he found out what we really are?"

"I don't know. Please don't say that and spoil my mood. It's getting late; please go to bed and have a good rest. Tomorrow we'll take train to Paris."

"Let me stay with Charlie and you have some sleep."

"It'd be better for me to watch over him, just in case his condition changes during the night."

Charlie opened his eyes. For a moment he had no idea where he was, and then he slowly remembered what happened to him before he was knocked out. Using his hand to touch his cheek, he realized it was bandaged. Although there was no pain, the thick layer inside the bandage made him feel weird.

"Cait, Charlie has just woken up."

It was Alice's voice. Charlie turned his head, and saw Alice's dark green skirt moving into his sight.

"What happened to me?" Charlie tried to sit up but Alice stopped him. "You had better stay on the pillow for now. Cait will need to check you first."

"Charlie." Caitlin's angel-like face appeared in front of him. Her eyes were red-rimmed with, exhaustion. She sat on the bed beside Charlie and laid her hand on Charlie's forehead. Then she held his wrist and put her index and middle fingers on his pulse, closing her eyes.

Charlie couldn't move his eyes from Caitlin's face. With her eyes closed, her long eyelashes formed half moon shaped shadows and she looked so peaceful like a pond of still autumn water. He didn't know why that ancient Chinese expression burst into his mind at the moment, but it was the perfect way to describe her. Caitlin had a perfect face, like Miss World. Despite of her European appearance, Charlie couldn't help but see an oriental female's charm in her. May be it's because of her quietness or her way of her talking, walking and sitting.

A couple more minutes passed, and Caitlin opened her eyes. She nodded to Alice and then smiled to Charlie, "It seems that you are fine. You can get up now but let me take the bandage off you first."

Standing up, Charlie had a quick look around.

He was in a rather large room with a double and a single bed. A flowerpot with beautiful red and pink flowers sat on the little balcony outside the window. Through the window, he could see the canal and he realised he was actually in a room right beside a canal.

Charlie looked back and forth between Caitlin and Alice. "Cait, could you please explain all of this to me. What happened to me last night?" he asked, sounding agitated.

"Please calm down and drink this first; it may taste a bit unusual but it is good for your recovery." Caitlin passed a glass of greenish liquid to him.

"What is it?" Charlie asked and stared at the glass.

"Herb medicine to help you settle down," Caitlin said gently.

Charlie sipped a tiny bit of the liquid; it tasted bitter but very refreshing so he gulped the entire glass in one go.

"Last night, Ali and I happened to be walking past you in the piazza, and saw the two thugs trying to rob you..."

Charlie interrupted her. "No, Cait. They were the two Italian guys who argued with you about the gondola ride, and they were after you."

Caitlin exchanged a look with Alice and then said. "If that's the case, the situation could be much more complicated than we first thought."

"What happened after I was knocked out?" Charlie asked.

"A police patrol happened to be passing by so the two thugs ran away." Caitlin looked into Charlie's eyes for a few seconds. Just as Charlie felt as if he had gotten lost for an eternity in her deep blue eyes, she said. "Charlie, you were very brave for what you did last night."

"Not really. I didn't have time to think, I just wanted to protect you and Alice..."

"It was very courageous of you to stand up against the thugs for us," Alice said. "Cait and I know some self-defence called Tai Chi Kung Fu, and we are able to look after ourselves, so next time please don't put yourself in danger to save us."

"You girls really know Tai Chi Kung Fu?" Charlie shouted excitedly.

"Yes, we do," Caitlin said calmly. "It's part of the training of Chinese traditional herb medicine."

"Wow, I didn't know Chinese doctors are also good fighters."

Alice rolled her eyes. "Charlie, we learn Tai Chi Kung Fu not for fighting with others but to help heal people. The fighting part is just a by-product."

"I see. Cait, how have you become a Chinese traditional medical doctor?" Charlie asked.

Caitlin hesitated a moment and then said. "A long time ago when I was wounded badly, a traditional Chinese medical doctor saved my life by using herbal medicine. From then on I made decision to become a Chinese herb medicine doctor myself."

Alice glanced at her watch and then said. "Cait, I suggest that we hurry if we want to catch the train."

"Are you going to leave?" Charlie looked panic.

"Charlie," Caitlin said slowly. "We have pre-booked train tickets to Paris. Now I know that the street thugs are after me, there is even less reason to stay here. You would be welcome to travel with us to Paris if you like, but of course you may have already had your travel scheduled."

"Thanks for inviting me to travel with you. I don't have any plans so it'd be perfect."

"But on one condition," Alice said.

Both Charlie and Caitlin looked at Alice.

"The condition is that you have to give up drinking. If you drink again, it will be the end of our travelling together. Agreed?"

"I only got drunk once in my life," Charlie looked at Caitlin and then at Alice and then said firmly, "I agree!"

They went to Charlie's hostel to retrieve his luggage and then took a water taxi to the railway station. Caitlin and Alice together only had one wheeled travelling suitcase. As they were boarding the train, Charlie offered Alice to carry the suitcase for her. Alice laughed and then passed her luggage to him.

Alice had carried the luggage as if it weighed nothing, but Charlie struggled to lift it up. Still laughing, Alice took over, lifting it up with only one hand like she was holding a handbag, as she climbed up to the train.

Although Charlie was not the strongest man in the world, with his athletic build, he was no weakling by any means. He swore that Alice's suitcase was easily over a hundred kilograms.

Looking at Alice's slim body, he couldn't really image how she was able to carry such heavy luggage so easily. The only conclusion he could come up with was that Alice had learned Tai Chi and it had something to do with her Kung Fu ability.

## 6. Train Travel

The train was almost empty. Caitlin, Alice and Charlie were the only passengers in their second-class carriage. After getting themselves comfortable, Alice asked what Charlie did for a living.

Charlie looked a bit awkward. "I work in a pizza restaurant."

"So you are a chef?" Caitlin asked.

"No, I'm not a chef, just a helper in a fast food restaurant. I put stuff on top of the pre-made pizza bases, stick them into oven and then give them to the customers after they're cooked. There's not much skills involved."

"Oh, you seem like a scholar. Have you been to university?" Alice asked.

"I graduated from university a year ago but couldn't find a suitable job, so continued to work in the same job I'd been doing during my years studying in uni."

"Oh, I see," Caitlin said. "Charlie, you must have rich parents."

Charlie looked at Caitlin and then Alice. "Both my parents passed away when I was very young and they weren't rich. My sister brought me up like my own mother. She is a nurse working in hospital, so I wouldn't use 'rich' to describe myself."

Caitlin moved forward, putting her elbows on the table between herself and Charlie, "How could you afford to have a holiday in Europe then?"

"Well, that's the all savings I have accumulated during the last five years working in pizza restaurant," Charlie said, a bit embarrassed.

Alice's gaze never left Charlie's face. "Charlie, the way you hired the gondola didn't show that you were on a limited travelling budget."

Charlie blushed. He looked at Caitlin and then Alice, mumbled, "I would normally never consider or be able to afford the luxury of a gondola ride, but after I saw Cait and you arguing with the two street thugs, I didn't think about the cost at all, I just wanted to be with you. To tell you the truth, the gondola ride cost me half week of my accommodation allowance, so I may have to sleep on streets for a few days in the end."

"That's very generous of you," Caitlin's eyes sparkling. "Charlie, how could you afford to attend private school and graduate from a reputable university since you are so poor?"

"How do you know all of that about me?" Charlie looked puzzled.

"It's not that difficult if you observe carefully." Caitlin sat back against her seat. "Your day pack looks like a private school bag, worn and still with the school emblem on it. The ribbon on your backpack shows the name of your university and by my knowledge it is one of the top universities in your country."

"Wow, you are incredible, like a detective," Charlie said.

"Cait is a traditional Chinese herb medicine practitioner and is very good at observing people," Alice emphasised observing people.

"I am really impressed. Anyway, back to your question. I was lucky enough to obtain scholarships to a private high school and then the university." Charlie said. "Cait, where are you practising the Chinese traditional medicine?"

"I have a licence in the UK for alternative medical treatment for those patients who do not respond to Western medicine."

Just then a food trolley passed.

Charlie asked if they would like to have something to eat or drink but both Caitlin and Alice shook their heads. After the trolley was gone, Caitlin laughed. "Charlie, if you try to be generous again by buying us lunch, you will definitely have to sleep on streets for the rest of your holiday."

Charlie blushed again. Alice laughed and his face reddened even more.

Caitlin nodded to Alice.

Alice stood up, opened their suitcase, and took out a few boxes, which contained sandwiches and fruit salads.

The food tasted delicious and there was even green tea afterward.

"Cait, obviously you are not on a budget holiday, at least not at the same budget level as mine, so why do you bother to make your own lunch, rather than just buying them?" Charlie asked while sipping the green tea.

"Do you know what they put into the food and how many animals are killed to make them?" Alice said angrily.

Charlie watched Alice and then said carefully, "Are you vegetarian?"

"Yes, I am. We both are," Alice said.

"I am not vegetarian but I also don't like how people treat animals," Charlie said.

Caitlin held her teacup gracefully, looking at outside through the train window for a moment and then turned at Charlie. "Do you believe reincarnation?"

Charlie thought it for a moment, before slowly saying, "I am not religious ..."

Alice interrupted. "But reincarnation has nothing to do with religion."

Caitlin gently put down her teacup, "Charlie, do you sometimes feel, when you see a place for the first time, that you've been there before but you know well it had never happened. Have you ever met someone but had the feeling as if you knew them from somewhere but you knew clearly it was impossible?"

"There must be some scientific explanations behind that, I am sure," Charlie said.

"So you believe science," Alice said. "Charlie, because you had scholarships through school and university, you must be quite a smart student."

"Not really smart, I just work harder than others."

"So you must have quite good marks. Why haven't you been able to find a job?" Alice asked.

"Well, I have a double degree, environmental science and an art degree; unfortunately neither help me much to obtain employment."

"That's why you went to Venice to protest?" Caitlin asked.

"Yes, because I studied environmental science, I know how badly humans damaged the planet; how urgent the global warming problems are; and that's why I used up all of my savings to come to Venice to protest, to make my contribution to combat global warming..."

Listening to Charlie's words, Caitlin remembered back to an ancient time, beside the creek in the misty valley; the young scholar had said that if he could pass the imperial examination, he would be able to use his knowledge to help the poor, to cure the sick, to eliminate the corruption, and to make the world a better place.

Caitlin's eyes moistened and she patted Charlie's arm gently. "Charlie, you have made your voice heard by others, and people will gradually realize the truth and act accordingly." She paused a moment. "You mentioned that you also have an art degree. What's your major?"

Once more, Charlie looked awkward and embarrassed. "Ancient Chinese history and classic Chinese literature. Not very useful to gain an employment."

Caitlin pushed a long strand of blond hair away from her eyes. "What made you choose the subject then?"

Charlie's eyes reddened as he spoke. "It's because my mother. She was originally from China but she passed away when I was very young, so I want to learn more about Chinese culture. It made me feel closer to her somehow."

"Do you know where your mother was originally from in China?" Caitlin asked with a hint of urgency.

"I did some research by looking through her stuff when I was studying Chinese history in university. She was originally from the southwest of China, near Er Mei Mountain, I think."

Caitlin quickly exchanged a look with Alice and then said, "Are you able to speak any Chinese?"

"Not really. I may have learned some from my mother but it was such a long time ago. Without practise, I have forgotten it all."

"You said that your sister has brought you up. Why didn't you practise your Chinese with her?" Alice asked.

"She is my half sister, from my father's first marriage. She didn't like my mother much, but she has been very kind to me. Being twenty years older than me, she looks after me like my own mother would have."

"You know what, Charlie?" Caitlin said, smiling, "I was born and raised in Hong Kong and only moved to the UK ten years ago; it means half of my life I lived with Chinese culture. I used to love reading, and still do, there are these lovely Chinese legends, folk tales, poems, and historical stories; that I really enjoy. Sometimes I think that I am more a Chinese than British girl."

"Really?" Charlie almost shouted. "Tell me which poem is your favourite one, from Tong or Song periods?"

As they got into the discussions, Charlie couldn't believe Caitlin had such in depth knowledge about the poems, stories, legends, and philosophies of ancient China. If she hadn't had blonde hair and blue eyes, Charlie would believe that she was a scholar in Chinese history right from China.

"During the years of study, I found a very interesting cultural difference between the Chinese and West," Charlie paused. "I know there are many differences but this one stands out very distinctively."

"What is it?" Alice asked impatiently. She had been listening to their conversations intensely.

"Well, we all knew that the two of the most beautiful ancient Chinese woman, Xishi and Wang Zhaojun were sent to their enemies to stop the wars. But in West, people started wars fighting to get women."

"An interesting observation," Caitlin said. "What would you do, start wars fighting to get women or stop wars by giving women away?"

"I'd definitely start a war to get the woman I love," Charlie said firmly.

Caitlin stared at him but said in her mind, 'It would be me who starts a war to save you, my dear; you don't have the ability to even fight off two vampires, let alone a war."

## 7. Paris

After arriving in Paris, they rented an apartment in the old town not far from Seine River, as Alice suggested. It had a bedroom, a living room, a tiny kitchen, a washing machine and a bathroom. While Caitlin and Alice shared the queen-sized bed in the bedroom, Charlie slept on the sofa bed in the living area; not luxury but it suited their purpose.

When they'd settled down, they went out and took a stroll along Seine River. It was an intoxicating experience for Charlie as it was his very first time admiring the spectacular Parisian night view. Colourfully lit tourist boats drifted up and down the river. On the other side of the wide river, a long row of mighty ancient palace buildings solemnly overlooked the crowded tourists. Charlie couldn't hide his amazement and admiration of the ancient city's beauty and charm. "What a beautiful city it is!"

"It was exactly my reaction when I visited Paris for the first time." Caitlin patted Charlie's arm, smiling.

"Charlie, watch where you are going as there is often dog shit on the street," Alice said.

"Really? Dog shit?" Charlie asked.

"Yes, you heard Ali right. Parisians love their dogs too much," laughed Caitlin.

Watching the crowds rubbing shoulders along the different stores selling all kinds of souvenirs, Charlie said, "These people must be all tourists?"

"You are right. Here is the centre of ancient Paris and most locals live in the newer section," Caitlin said.

"Cait, you must have been to Paris quite often," said Charlie.

"A few times." Caitlin glanced at Alice and then said. "Charlie, I'm hungry. Let's go home and cook dinner together."

In Charlie's adult life, he rarely encountered any girls who offered to cook something. In fact, not many were able to cook, so this was a new experience for him. "Cook dinner? Are you a good cook?"

"Cait is able to do much more than just cooking, Charlie," Alice said proudly.

Charlie followed Caitlin and Alice to a supermarket not far from their apartment. It seemed that Caitlin and Alice had been doing this routine quite regularly, as they knew exactly what ingredients to buy and where to find them; if possible, they only selected organic products.

When they were back at their apartment, Caitlin put on an apron and started to work in the tiny kitchen. It was almost like watching a TV show: Caitlin, the glorious girl Charlie had known for only a few days, prepared food very professionally. The way she chopped the ingredients looked just like the celebrity chef Charlie's sister loved to watch on TV religiously.

Charlie stood outside of the kitchen door, and couldn't help but admire what he saw: Caitlin handled the seemingly complicated tasks, such as mixing different kinds of sauces, adding a variety of ingredients and spices into frying pans, and then stir-frying them for different durations and temperatures—all with ease. In a blink of the eye, a few dishes were ready to eat.

The dinner was fantastic.

Despite all dishes being vegetarian, Caitlin used various spices to create the most wonderful flavour. The spicy flavours were exotic and unique; not overwhelming but refreshing, like music to Charlie's mouth. It brought forth his long lost memories of when his mother was still alive. She'd also cooked such wonderful meals, the Sichuan style dishes, which Charlie had forgotten about for so long.

While they ate, Charlie thought about Caitlin. The more he thought about her, the more mysterious she was to him. Considering she was only twenty, Charlie couldn't imagine how it was possible to be a trained Chinese herb medicine doctor, with extensive and in depth knowledge about ancient Chinese history and literature, and at the same time, also a skilful Sichuan style chef. There was just too much mystery about her.

Charlie offered to wash the dishes and clean up after dinner and he was quite good at that with five years experience in the pizza restaurant.

It was well after midnight and Caitlin was still wide-awake. Listening to Alice's slow and even breathing, Caitlin's thoughts went back to China over a thousand years ago.

In the misty valley of the Er Mei Mountain, after the young and handsome scholar had rescued Caitlin from the eagle's talons and started talking to her as if she was a human girl, she wondered how it was possible that she understood his words. Perhaps she just had natural ability to understand human words, or maybe instead of understanding the words, she received the messages by observing the scholar's emotion and body language. No matter how she was able to do it, the result was the same: Caitlin, then the three-foot-long white snake, knew exactly what the scholar was talking about.

The encounter with the young and handsome scholar was brief, but the aftershock lingered a very long time. Days and weeks and months after the scholar departed, Caitlin could still hear his charming voice and his beautiful music, and feel the wonderful touch of his hand.

The wounds on her body gradually healed, and the bandages slipped off her body, lying among the deep grass. She stayed with the bandage, the only physical evidence of her only and true love. She remained with the bandages for every single moment, apart from absolutely necessary outings to seek food. Gradually the bandages rotted away and turned into a pile of dirt, disappearing into ground.

Time passed without trace. Although she completely forgot the pain inflected by the eagle's sharp claws, her longing for the young and handsome scholar increased day by day. One day, Caitlin made the most important decision in her life: go to the human world and seek magic that could transform her into a human girl, a pretty princess in a pure white dress.

Caitlin was well aware that it was a very dangerous journey, as most of humans wouldn't hesitate to kill her at first sight, but nothing could stop her pursuit of her true love.

She carefully travelled only under the cover of the darkness in the night, coiling in people's gardens under their windows, lying on roofs, hiding among tall grass beside footpaths, Caitlin tried to be as close to humans as possible so she could hear what they were talking about.

Months and years passed. She found nothing remotely related to the magic she was seeking, but she kept looking, listening and waiting patiently.

On a rainy afternoon, whilst hiding among the bamboo groves beside a teahouse, Caitlin's luck finally came to pass—she heard people talking about magic.

"Have you heard about the 'White Cloud Immortal Sister'?" one old man said while holding a teacup.

"No, I haven't," the younger man answered. "Could you please tell me something about this immortal sister; it sounds like she knows about magic."

"Yes, we would all like to hear about it." The other guests in the teahouse also moved their bamboo chairs closer to the old man.

"Magic? She is far beyond magic." The old man drank some of his tea, and then said slowly, "Do you know how old she is?"

"One hundred years!" a young man shouted.

"Oh no, way off the mark," the old man laughed.

"Eight hundred years old," the other guest said.

"Oh no," the old man stuck his one finger out.

"Are you telling us that she is over one thousand years old?"

"Yes." The old man leaned back to his bamboo chair. "Let me tell you a fact: she was Lao Zi's student."

"Lao Zi, the one who wrote 'Tao Te Ching'?"

"Yes, Lao Zi, the Oldest Master of all Taoists." The old man closed his eyes for a moment and then said, "To cut a long story short; the Immortal Sister would come to the human world to select suitable candidates to become her students from time to time. Unfortunately it was very hard to meet her criteria so only very few were lucky enough to become her students during the last thousand years..."

"Do you know where she normally lives?" a young man interrupted the old man.

"Nobody knows; someone said she lives in a mysterious island in the East Sea, and others say she sometimes even lives on top of Er Mei Mountain..."

"You must be joking; I go to the top of Er Mei Mountain a few times every month and never see any Immortal Sister," one young man said.

"Young man," the old man laughed. "Do you think she would stay in a place an ordinary human be easily access? I heard that she lives in a temple hiding in the white clouds on top of a ten-thousand foot cliff that even birds are unable to fly up, and that's why she is called the 'White Cloud Immortal Sister'..."

While the guests inside the teahouse were continuing their conversation, Caitlin had already quietly slithered away; she had the information she needed.

A few more years passed until Caitlin finally located the tallest mountaintop and the steepest cliff among the countless mountain peaks in the Er Mei Mountain Range. She knew it well that the higher one travelled, the colder it became and the harder it was to get food, so Caitlin started her quest at beginning of summer so she would have maximum warm days when reaching the cliff top.

As fast as her three-foot-long body could manage, Caitlin climbed up day and night, stopping only for food once a while. It was difficult but she could still find water, green grass and food, but when she finally reached the mighty cliff, it was late autumn already.

By then she understood what the old man was talking about in the bamboo teahouse: looking up the axe-chop cliff, its top disappeared into a floating white cloud and the few eagles only circled at half way up the cliff; even the eagles were unable to reach the top.

Caitlin didn't immediately launch into action. Instead, she hunted for a few days and ate as much as her body could manage, because there wouldn't be any food while climbing the cliff.

It was not a snake's nature to embark on such adventures and travel on the harsh terrain. Instead of warm and humid marshland she was used to, she encountered cold hard rocks and occasionally plants growing inside the thin soil in the rock gaps, but Caitlin pushed on, as she wanted to become a human girl and seek her true love.

Caitlin could endure the hunger and cold, but the real danger was the circling eagles. Caitlin was only able to move cautiously and slowly when she was absolutely sure there were no eagles around, and this slowed down her journey significantly.

After enduring a long and cold night, Caitlin was really looking forward to the warm sunlight, but what she was faced instead were flying snowflakes. Caitlin felt the cold penetrate into her body deeply; she hadn't had any food for weeks, and wouldn't last long in this cold weather before her blood froze.

Caitlin desperately looked at the cliff top inside the white cloud, and knew the truth: she would never be able to make it in her current state. Suddenly, through the large flying snowflakes, she heard wings flapping and she knew the death was close by. Caitlin slithered into the snow as deeply as she could and then waited.

Time passed and there were no more sounds; but she felt her body getting colder and colder. If she didn't do anything, she would freeze inside the snow for the whole winter and become an eagle's meal when the snow melted the next spring. She had to do something and knew she couldn't give up, not when she had come this far.

The scholar's beautiful music played in Caitlin's head again; it made her blood flow. She slowly stuck her head out of the snow and discovered that she was not far from an eagle's nest.

Caitlin waited patiently, observing eagle's routine. After a while, she made her move. Soon after the eagles flew out, Caitlin climbed into the nest, and gladly found a pile of eggs.

Caitlin couldn't see anything except white fog around her. The eggs in her stomach were long gone and she had no idea how far she was from the cliff top. The air felt freezing, and clearly she wouldn't last very long in this cold weather but she wouldn't give up, so she forced herself to move one inch and then another inch—until she lost consciousness.

When she woke up again, Caitlin felt warm; she then saw a middle-aged woman sitting next to her. Of course the woman was the famous Immortal Sister. After telling the Immortal Sister about her true love, Caitlin became her first and the only nonhuman student.

Next to her, Alice made a sound, bringing Caitlin out of her reminiscences. Caitlin turned around, and seeing Alice was still fast sleep, got up from the bed quietly. She walked into the living area. The moonlight beaming in through the window illuminated Charlie's face clearly.

Over the last thousand years, in her dreams, the young scholar's handsome face accompanied Caitlin through the long and lonely nights; now finally she was looking at him, in person.

8. Morning walk

Caitlin's emotions were uncontrollable, like water bursting from a dam. She had waited for this moment for so long. She wanted to embrace him, to kiss him as she had imagined countless times, to touch his skin, to feel him stroke her body again.

Blood flowed in her veins faster and faster, her heart pumped stronger and stronger. Caitlin sat on Charlie's bed, and gazed at his lips, lowering herself onto him slowly, inch by inch, She wanted to enjoy and feel every details of the...

'Cait, stop right there!'

Caitlin lifted her gaze. Alice stood by the bedroom doorway, speaking to her via their sister-talk. Without thinking, words burst in Caitlin's head; of course in Alice's as well with their sister-talk link.

'Ali, why should I stop? After so many centuries of waiting, why should I stop? This is love, Ali, do you understand love?'

Alice didn't move and talked in a calm voice in Caitlin's head.

'Cait, love is not only owned by human beings; When the male birds sing, dance and show their beautiful feathers to their female partners, I would call that love even though they are unable to write poems to each other. When a mother wolf chews her leg off to get free from hunter's trap and struggles to get home to feed her pups for the last time, she cannot tell her babies she loves them, but that is love. When I had no interest in coming to this ugly and greedy human world but still followed my master because I wanted my master to be happy, although I hadn't had proper education. My sole life goal was to protect my master with my own life and knew I would feel happy as long as my master is happy, I would also call that love. My dear Master, I do understand love.'

Tears flew down Caitlin's cheeks. She quickly walked back to the bedroom, and closed door behind them. She hugged Alice tightly. 'I am so sorry, Ali; I didn't mean it; please forgive me.'

Alice patted Caitlin's back gently. 'You have done nothing wrong, my dear Master.'

'Please, Ali, don't call me your Master anymore.'

'Alright, Cait.'

'Ali, please forgive my rudeness then.'

'Cait, there is nothing to be forgiven. I want you to be happy and that's why I stopped you then.'

'Is it wrong for me to kiss him?'

'There is nothing wrong with kissing him, but now is not the time. I have studied human love psychology during the last ten years and found the first kiss is the most crucial, so it should not be dealt with lightly.'

'Please, tell me more.'

'Chinese men, as a matter of fact all men, have conquest instinct; they like the feeling of achieving something from their own hard work. This applies to the first kiss, especially. Men like to think that it was their efforts of pursuit that leads to them to finally get the women they love, not other way around. You need to let Charlie think it was his idea to get that first kiss.'

'Wow, I never realized you have such deep knowledge of human love psychology. What should I do, then? Just wait for Charlie to make the move?'

'Leave it all to me. I guarantee the result by tomorrow!'

'Really?'

'Trust me, Cait. Now go and have some sleep because you're going to need it.'

The next morning Charlie woke up extra early. He sneaked out and came back with fresh croissants, coffee, and other French patisseries. Charlie organised the breakfast on plates as quietly as possible but just as he laid the plates on the dining table, Caitlin said softly behind him.

"You have been busy."

Charlie turned around, gesturing at the table. "My lady, although I'm unable to cook the spicy Sichuan dishes, I have managed to cook these famous French patisseries with my own hands early this morning."

"Wow, very impressive," Caitlin chuckled.

Alice walked out. "What's impressive? Oh, I see, a man with many hidden talents."

"Absolutely." Charlie poured orange juice for everyone, and also passed the coffee paper cups to Caitlin and Alice, but they both preferred drinking green tea. Anyway, it seemed that they both quite liked those French specialties.

After breakfast, Alice suggested that they visit the most famous cathedral in Paris, the Notre Dame. Both Caitlin and Charlie agreed, so they set off.

Walking through the morning fruit markets was quite an experience in Paris; all the bread was freshly baked early that morning, and considering how many people bought them every day, it would be a mighty task to make and supply all that was needed.

Charlie was relatively fit thanks to his daily workouts and playing sports back home. After an hour or so walking along the Seine Riverbank, however, he began struggling to keep up with Caitlin and Alice's brisk pace. He managed to make a whole sentence in between panting.

"Alice, I thought we were going to Notre Dame."

"Yes, we are, but we're just having a bit of a walk first to enjoy the scenery that the Seine River can offer."

After another half hour they turned back towards their destination. By the time they arrived the mighty church, Charlie almost collapsed.

Alice patted his back. "You need to get fit; otherwise you just won't keep up with us."

Caitlin held Charlie's wrist and measured his pulse. "You have to start regular exercise and get fit gradually. Anyway, it's good you had a warm-up today."

That's only a warm up? Charlie though. He couldn't imagine what the real exercise would be like.

They spent the rest of the morning and more of the afternoon inside the cathedral. Caitlin was very interested in the details of almost every inch of the building. As they walked out, Caitlin looked back at the mighty building, and said, "Charlie, you know each time I visit Notre Dame, my heart is always with Esmeralda, the beautiful and kind Gypsy girl. Even thought she did no harm to anyone and always tried to help people, she was hanged in the end."

"Do you mean the gypsy girl in 'The Hunchback of the Notre-Dame'?" asked Charlie.

"Yes, but I prefer the French original title: 'Notre-Dame de Paris.' Esmeralda was the protagonist in the story, after all." Caitlin said. "Do you know why people wanted to hang Esmeralda?"

"Well, according to the story, everyone had their own reasons to betray her, hate her and want her dead," Charlie said uncomfortably.

"At one stage, the Parisians loved her for her beauty, kindness and were angered by the unfair trial, but in the end people called her a witch and demanded her death. Why? It was only because she was an outcast who didn't belong to the Parisians' world. The saddest part of all was that she was so in love with the handsome Captain Phoebus, but the result was that he, together with everyone else, condemned her to her death," Caitlin said with great sadness in her voice.

"That's human nature, isn't it, Charlie?" Alice said.

"Ali, it happened many centuries ago, and the world today is quite different," Charlie said.

"Really? Do you really believe it?" Alice asked sarcastically.

Charlie didn't know what to say, so he looked at his watch. "Ah, it's almost three o'clock, well after our lunch time; let's go and get something to eat."

"No, we are going to visit Eiffel Tower," said Alice.

## 9. Eiffel Tower

With an empty stomach and sore legs, Charlie did manage to finish the journey. Looking at his miserable expression, Caitlin stopped at a patisserie and bought him something to eat and drink.

When Charlie asked why they didn't eat or drink anything, Alice said it was their way; hunger and thirst could stimulate a body's survival instincts and therefore improve one's health. Of course the balance had to be controlled adequately to avoid damaging the body in the process.

"People are generally overeating," Alice said.

Charlie agreed with her in principle but it was pretty hard to endure the hunger.

Even though winter was supposed to be the low tourist season for Paris, the amount of people waiting to go up the Eiffel Tower was overwhelming. Charlie looked at Alice's impatient expression and knew what would follow.

"Cait, I don't think I am able to climb the tower; I have had enough exercise for the day," said Charlie.

Caitlin was amused. "Charlie, I know you have much more potential even beyond your own imagination, but I agree to queue up for the lift."

"Thank you so much, Cait. You know I almost want to kneel in front of you," Charlie said.

Caitlin laughed. "Maybe you should kneel for me."

Fortunately, it was impossible for Charlie to do anything in the crowded and long queues. When they were finally up to the viewing deck, it was dusk—the perfect time to enjoy the spectacular night view of Paris.

Charlie stood close to Catlin, and Alice was on the other side of the viewing platform.

In the dim light, Caitlin's face looked mysterious and beyond charming. Charlie felt his heart thumping so hard that he was sure everyone around would hear it, and his throat was dry. After collecting all of his courage, Charlie managed to let out a sentence.

"Cait, have you heard that Paris is the city where people fall in love with each other."

"Really?" Caitlin smiled like flower blossom in the spring breeze. She tucked a long blonde strand behind her ear, away from her eyes and whispered softly, "Charlie, have you heard the Chinese poem: when the passionate flower petals fall into a creek, you're never sure if the flowing water would have the same affection in return?"

Their faces were so close that Charlie could feel Caitlin's breath. Charlie didn't know how but a Chinese poem popped into his mind: it was a well-known expression about how true love would stop only when their own lives ceased to exist.

"The spring silkworm's threads only exhaust after its death, and the candle's tears never cease until its body is burned out," Charlie managed to say in Chinese.

Their lips met, and all of Paris, all people and noises, and even the Eiffel Tower itself disappeared. The only thing Charlie was aware of was Caitlin's soft, warm lips.

The entire universe only had two of them left.

Time had stopped.

Charlie hummed while doing the shopping in the supermarket; he had offered to carry out this part of the task, as he was unable to cook. Even a few hours later, he could still feel Caitlin's embrace and her lips on his.

He touched the little gold lock hanging round his neck; Caitlin gave it to him after their passionate first kiss. She said she wanted him to wear it all the time and never take it off no matter what happened to him. It was a Chinese lock that symbolised their love being locked together. Caitlin said that if he took it off intentionally, it would mean the end of their love.

He smiled broadly at the checkout remembering her words.

As he was walking back to the apartment, he heard someone calling him from behind.

"Charlie, is that you?"

Charlie turned; it was James, the Chinese guy he'd met in Venice. "Hi James, I thought you had gone back to China."

"Situation changed, and now I have more business to do here. Let's go and have a few beers."

"Sorry, James, I have given up drinking now."

They moved to the side, letting other pedestrians pass.

"How come? You look very happy. Anything happened to you?"

Charlie shifted his body towards the edge of footpath, standing under the bright streetlight. "James, today I just kissed the most beautiful girl in the world. We fell in love with each other on top of Eiffel Tower! Here is the lock she gave to me that symbolises our love being locked together," Charlie showed James the golden lock on his neck.

"Wow, congratulations!" James shook Charlie's hand. His expression suddenly changed but he then tried to laugh again unsuccessfully.

"What's the matter, James? Are you unwell?"

"Yeah, I must have eaten something funny at lunchtime, so I have to go to deal with it, but I'll catch you tomorrow. Will I be able to see you again in front of the market same time tomorrow?"

"Sure, I'll do my shopping here tomorrow, so I'll see you then. Take care of yourself."

"Hey, Charlie," James turned. "If possible, please don't mention me to your new girlfriend. I don't want to spoil your evening considering how drunk we got together last time."

"No worries, Mate."

After dinner, Alice went out for a walk whilst Charlie and Caitlin sat on the sofa in each other's arms and talked and talked and talked. They laughed at each other's comments as if they were the funniest jokes in the world.

"Charlie, I have never been so happy in my entire life."

"Me too." Charlie kissed her again.

Before long, Alice came back. She exchanged a look with Caitlin and then said, "Charlie, from tonight on, it's my turn to sleep on the sofa bed."

"But where do I sleep?" Charlie looked puzzled.

"In the bedroom with Cait, of course." Alice laughed and Caitlin blushed.

"Oh, no, I can't do that," Charlie said firmly.

"Why not?" Alice sounded concerned.

Charlie looked at Alice and then gazed at Caitlin's eyes.

"Cait, I'd be lying if I said that I didn't want to sleep in the bedroom tonight, but I don't want to do things this way. I want to marry you. Please come with me to Australia so we can marry formally. You deserve at least a proper wedding."

Alice looked at Caitlin and then turned to Charlie. "Charlie, it's very noble of you to say that, but because you are both so deeply in love with each other, there is not much point waiting until we go to Australia. I'd suggest that you get married here in Paris tomorrow, what do you say?"

"I am more than happy to do as you wish, Cait."

Caitlin thought for a few minutes. "I'd suggest that we marry at Notre Dame the day after tomorrow, if it's alright with you, Charlie."

"Yes, it's totally perfect for me, but how can we get married in Notre Dame, as I thought only French citizens are allowed?"

"Well, my grandma was French so I inherit this privilege," Caitlin then hugged Alice and said brightly, "Alice, I'm so happy."

"I'm very happy for you," Alice said.

But somehow Charlie felt there was something on Alice's mind, but he didn't dwell on it, for he was way beyond happy.

## 10. Field Agent

The next day they visited the Louvre.

Charlie was so glad that they didn't go for another warm-up along the riverbank. His legs were very sore, like every single muscle was screaming at him, but he didn't show that on his face—not purely because he was trying to be brave, but because he was so happy walking beside Caitlin.

Although Charlie had an art degree, he was surprised to find how knowledgeable Caitlin was with the European arts and history. She talked about the different styles of painting in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and discussed the sculptures from the Ancient Greece and Rome periods.

While watching Caitlin in pure admiration, Charlie could not really imagine how she could achieve all that she had at such a young age. This changed his attitude towards blondes completely; some of them did have brains—as the matter of fact, much more than most people.

When they finally went back to their apartment, Charlie suggested that they should go out to celebrate their wedding tomorrow but Caitlin said she would rather stay home and get ready for the church the next day. She said that she didn't mind cooking so Charlie went out to the supermarket shopping again.

Charlie walked to the entrance of the supermarket, and heard someone call him. It was James Li. Charlie had completely forgot about him. James looked quite gloomy.

"What's up, James?" asked Charlie.

"Can we talk somewhere else? This is very important."

"Man, you sound serious. Okay, where do you want to go?" said Charlie.

"Follow me."

Charlie hesitated, "Will it be long? I have to do grocery shopping and get back for dinner. I'm going to be married tomorrow."

"What? You're going to be married tomorrow?"

"What's wrong with you, man? You should say congratulations," Charlie joked.

"Oh, sorry I'm thinking about something else. Congratulations, Charlie. It won't take long. I just want to have a quick chat with you in the pub around the corner."

After they sat down, James ordered a beer for each of them, despite Charlie's protest. But after James said it was to celebrate his wedding, Charlie accepted the toast. A few bottles of beer later, Charlie looked at his watch.

"James, tell me what you're going to say as I have to go back soon."

"Charlie," James put his glass down. "Do you know what my occupation is?"

"I thought you said you are a business man."

"I am not." James looked around and then spoke in quieter voice. "I am a field agent working for the Chinese branch of the council."

Charlie stared at him for a moment and then laughed. "You drank too much, mate. What is this council?"

"Its full name is the inter-continent supernatural council, ICSC for short, but we just call it the council."

"Supernatural council? Do you mean vampires, werewolves and that kind of stuff are real?"

"Yes, Charlie, they are as real as we are sitting and drinking beer in this pub."

"So how does this council work?" asked Charlie.

"There are branches in each country. We exchange information with each other and also help each other to hunt down supernatural fugitives."

"Like Interpol?"

"You can say that again; however we are not dealing with ordinary criminals, but supernatural monsters."

"That's cool, James." Charlie drank a bit more of his beer. "Is this what you want to talk to me about?"

"No, this is just an introduction."

"James, you'd better to hurry up and get to the point as I have to go, actually right now." Charlie looked at his watch again.

"Okay, Charlie, let's cut to the chase. Yesterday, I saw an evil energy appear on your eyebrows. As an agent, I have learned how to identify the evil energy on people's faces."

"What are you saying?" Charlie looked a bit worried.

"Based on my knowledge, you are being haunted by a supernatural monster right now."

"That's bullshit, man. I have not seen any monsters in my life. You drank too much. I have to go, nice talking to you, mate."

"Wait, Charlie. I know this is hard to believe. I have confirmed that your new girlfriend is a thousand-year-old snake monster who has enough power to gain human form..."

"James, I thought you were my friend, but to say this about my wife-to-be is an insult to me."

James shook his head, and laughed.

"Charlie, it's a joke for your stag night. Tonight is your stag night, right?"

"Yes, I suppose it is my stag night, but I don't like your joke. Please don't ever make such a sick joke about my Caitlin again."

"I must have drunk too much; please forgive me. But I do want you to take this talisman." James passed Charlie a piece of yellow paper that had some Chinese characters written on it. "It's a Chinese custom to burn it in your bedroom before your wedding, to expel evil spirits from your life and ensure a long and happy marriage."

Charlie stared at the thin piece of paper. "Are you telling me this could expel evil spirits, and this is how you hunt and fight monsters?" He laughed at his own comment.

James scanned the crowd in the pub again; making sure nobody was looking in their direction, and then opened his coat to reveal two items on his belt. He pointed at the gun-like object. "This is an MG. That stands for Magic Gun; it is designed specially to kill vampires and werewolves. And this one." He took an object off his belt that looked like a small beer can to Charlie, bright yellow in colour. James held it carefully. "This is a Magic Dynamite, or MD as we call it, or 'Mo Dan' in Chinese. See this red button? If you push the red button, you have only a few seconds to throw it away, but make sure you throw it as far as you can because it's capable of destroying all living creatures, monsters or human, within a hundred-foot range."

James then pushed the red button.

Charlie's face turned white, "Are you crazy?"

James laughed. "Don't panic. It won't explode as long as you keep pushing the red button, and now push the green button to defuse it."

"You hang it on your belt all the time? What happens if you accidently bump the red button?"

"There is safety lock. You have to hold and squeeze it to activate it. Otherwise, it won't activate even if you smash it with rock."

Charlie took a deep breath. "That's a relief. Thanks for the beer. Wait; can you make it tomorrow to Notre Dame? I need a best man. Since I don't know anyone in Paris, you have to be my best man. James, we are friends, aren't we? So what do you say?"

James thought for a moment. "I'll be there and am more than happy to be your best man. Charlie, we are friends by fate."

## 11. Talisman

By the time Charlie got back to the apartment with the groceries it was quite late. He had just put down the shopping bags when Alice said, "Charlie, you promised to give up drinking only a couple of days ago. How could you break your promise so soon?"

Caitlin looked at Charlie and Alice, and sighed. She was aware of Alice's negative attitude towards Charlie from beginning and it seemed to be getting worse. It was not the time, however, to argue with Alice. She had hoped Alice would get over this after getting to know Charlie better. Despite her concern, this was not what occupied Caitlin's mind most at the moment.

In Caitlin's mind, the ideal wedding for her would be the traditional Chinese wedding with bamboo sedans and red embroidered silky gowns. She had dreamed about it for a very long time. She had promised herself that if she found her true love one day, she would marry him that way. But now since she had blonde hair and blue eyes, a traditional Chinese wedding in Paris was not very realistic. For one thing, how could she explain to Charlie that although she looked European, she was actually Chinese inside; she could not.

Caitlin believed that there should be no secret between couples who truly loved each other. Unfortunately at this stage, revealing her secret would just blow away their relationship. Maybe down the road she would tell him, but even at that moment she had no idea how.

The reason Caitlin suggested that they married in Paris was to avoid unwanted questions if they chose to do it back at Charlie's home in Australia. Due to the fact they were going to be married in a church, they should also follow the customs in west.

"Ali, I guess Charlie must have drunk to celebrate his last night of freedom before tomorrow's wedding. It's his stag night and he deserves a few drinks."

Charlie laughed. "Yes I drank with a friend. I met him in Venice, a guy from China. I did tell him that I have given up drinking, but he said a drink to celebrate our wedding was needed, so that's why I drank a bit."

Alice said, "It seems that you drank much more than just a bit"

"Well, maybe we got a bit carried away." Charlie sat down on sofa. "James is a funny guy. I mean that the Chinese guy I just drank with. His name is James."

"Charlie, tell us something about this James. Since he is your friend, we would also like to know him," Caitlin said softly.

"I have already said he's a funny guy, haven't I?" Charlie said. "I think he was totally drunk tonight. You know, I didn't drink that much, really. He told me that he is a field agent, the funniest joke I've ever heard."

Caitlin exchanged a look with Alice. This was something she hadn't expected. She'd had some feelings that threats were near, but hadn't been sure what they were, and this just proved that her instincts were correct. She asked curiously, "Charlie, it sounds quite interesting. Did he say what kind of agent he is?"

"He said something to do with a council. Yeah I remember it now, the inter-continent supernatural council like Interpol except dealing with monsters. He said he works for the China branch."

Caitlin watched Charlie carefully. "Charlie, do you believe what he said?"

"Not really," Charlie chuckled. "He even showed me his magic gun that is specially designed to kill vampires and werewolves. Imagine that, vampires and werewolves, give me a break."

"So you don't believe vampires exist, do you?" Alice asked.

"No way; Vampires are just in people's imaginations and only exist in stories," Charlie said. He suddenly remembered something else. "You know what he also said to me? He said that monsters are haunting me and he can tell that from the evil energy on my eyebrow. What a lot of bullshit."

The shock was absolute inside Caitlin's mind.

She had to give this guy credit for his ability to tell one's energy property. She had been very careful not to leave any energy marks on Charlie but when they passionately kissed each other on top of Eiffel Tower, it was the last thing on her mind. This James would have to be dealt with immediately, but she had to manage Charlie first. Fortunately the years of meditation helped her keep calm no matter what happened to her.

"That's really interesting. Your friend definitely has quite a unique imagination to make a story like that up," Caitlin said calmly.

Charlie fumbled inside his pocket and took out a piece of yellow paper. He showed it to Caitlin. "He also gave this to me and said it can expel evil spirits and it's the Chinese custom to burn it in our bedroom before the wedding."

Caitlin picked it up from Charlie's hand, studying it for a moment. She had immediately recognised it as a typical Chinese talisman, but it would only be as powerful as the person who created it. Caitlin had no idea who was the person behind it was, therefore she had no way to predict how much power it carried.

Caitlin watched Charlie's eyes carefully; he appeared drunk and said he didn't believe James' words but he wasn't stupid. Any person in the situation would try the talisman for peace of mind if they believed it or for curiosity if they didn't.

If she didn't let him to do it, it would only add more doubts in his mind. But if she did, the risk would be unknown for she could be seriously hurt if the talisman's power was strong enough. As Caitlin wondered what to do, she heard Alice's voice in her head.

'Don't let him do it; it's too risky. He is so drunk that he won't remember about it tomorrow when he wakes up.'

'Ali, I think that I have to do this. I love him so much and I don't want him to have any doubts about me. Could you please help me? With both of our powers, we should be able to fight against the talisman. I know it is very risky but after searching for him for such a long time, I don't want to lose him.'

'Cait, I don't know what to say. Look at him: drunk, weak and useless. I don't see anything in him deserving of your love. You are risking your life for him and you are not even sure he is your true love. I hope you have realized that.'

'Ali, he has his issues but he is a good man inside. I am completely sure that he is the one. Please, Ali, I beg you to help me out.'

'Please don't say 'beg.' You know I'll be with you all the way no matter what. Let's do it.'

Caitlin passed the talisman to Charlie. "I suppose your friend wants to make your stag party more fun considering he is the only friend you have in Paris."

Charlie tried to open his eyes, "Yes, you are right. James wanted to make it more fun for my stag night. Yes, it is my stag night and I should drink a bit more."

"My dear, you've drunk enough already." Caitlin patted Charlie's shoulder. "Why don't you burn it to finish your friend's joke, so you can tell him about it when you see him next time?"

"Good idea." Charlie suddenly remembered something else. "Cait, I invited James to Notre Dame tomorrow as my best man. Is that okay with you?"

"Absolutely okay with me as he is your friend," Caitlin said gently.

"I am tired and I want to go to sleep," Charlie said blurredly. "But I want to burn the paper first."

Alice brought a plate and matches to the coffee table. "Here you go and have fun but be careful not to burn your own hands."

Charlie set the paper on fire.

## 12. Seine River

Caitlin held Alice's hand behind her back so Charlie couldn't see; together they concentrated and collected all of their power to fight against the talisman.

After the initial red flame, the talisman suddenly burst into a bright white ball of lightning, as if thousands of cameras had flashed at the same time, and then it died out.

"Wow, like fireworks. It seems that your friend made quite the effort to ensure your stag night was fun," Alice said cheerfully.

It was a big relief and lucky the talisman had very limited power; they had escaped a potential disaster. Caitlin went to kitchen and came back with a glass. "Charlie, drink some of this herb green tea. It'll help with your hangover when you wake up. Remember we are going to get married in Notre Dame tomorrow."

"Yes I remember. How could I forget it? Thanks. It tastes good." Soon after drinking the greenish liquid, Charlie slumped on sofa and was fast asleep.

Caitlin checked Charlie once more and then turned to Alice. "Let's go and chat with Charlie's friend, James."

Alice looked at Charlie. "Do you think it's okay to leave him alone here?"

Caitlin stared down at him and then said slowly, "As long as he has my gold lock on his neck, he should be fine."

They both turned the light off and got themselves ready to go out.

Moonlight brightly illuminated the Seine River

James walked along the riverbank alone. As a liaison officer for the Chinese Branch, he had been living and travelling in Europe for the last ten years. In fact, since his wife was killed, he'd only gone back to China once. He had been searching and tracking for the last ten years and today, purely by chance, he had finally found a trace of what he was looking for.

James didn't put much hope on the talisman killing the targets, but rather wanted it to deliver a message. He knew he would have visitors tonight so he was prepared. In theory, he would be able to ask for help from the Europe Branch but he knew in practical terms it was beyond his hope. During the last ten years, James had no luck getting their cooperation on a few cases. To put it nicely, they had their hands full dealing with the vampires. Besides, he wanted to finish this by himself, even if it meant finishing himself as part of the deal. He had been waiting for this moment for far too long.

Over the years, in order to endure the endless lonely nights and hopeless days, James had often gotten so drunk he couldn't even recognise himself. But not tonight. He had been pretending to drink with Charlie earlier. He had to focus and this could be his only chance.

James took a deep breath and walked towards the shadow under the huge bridge.

Caitlin and Alice put hoods over their heads and walked silently on the other side of the riverbank. To an observer it would seem that they didn't speak to each other for a while, but they had been communicating with their sister-talk since leaving the apartment.

'Cait, sorry for saying this bluntly but: I don't think Charlie is your true love.'

'He has to be, I am sure.'

'He maybe was him, but it doesn't mean he is your true love.'

'Ali, you have to give him a chance to prove himself.'

'I have a very bad feeling that he will bring disaster to you and everyone else.'

'I know he has problems but who hasn't. He promised he'd give up drinking and he had been doing quite well since.'

'Except today.'

'Well, today is different. Let's face it, it is his stag night.'

'Cait, that's the problem; he can always find reasons to start drinking again. Next time it will be for someone's birthday or any other excuse he could manage to make up.'

'I have confidence in him, and he is willing and able to get over it. Hang on; see the guy walking on other side of the river? Do you think he is the one?'

Alice concentrated for a second on the shadowy figure who was under the bridge. 'I think you are right; he seems to fit the profile.'

'Let's go over and have a chat with him. Please promise that you won't do anything unless asking me first. I don't want what happened to the two vampires to happen again.'

'The two vampires were going to kill Charlie, and were also attacking us. What I did was purely self-defence.'

'I know that, but you could have just disabled rather than killed them.'

'Be fair: it was my first time ever dealing with vampires.'

'Sorry, Ali. I do appreciate what you have done for me. Anyway, you know how to deal with vampires now. So from now on, please don't kill anyone if it's not absolutely necessary. Ali, please do promise me.'

'I knew you'd say that. Why don't we take this James out? Otherwise, I am certainly sure he will create more trouble than we can handle down the line.'

'Ali, you know that I believe in trying to save people's lives and never kill anyone, and I am not going to change that tonight.'

'Even knowing there's a risk that he could kill you in future?'

'Ali, I'll worry about it when it happens but for now let's deal with him first.'

Caitlin and Alice quickly walked over the bridge towards the other side of the riverbank. Although it was after midnight, there were still some tourists wandering around. Caitlin hoped that they would not venture beneath the bridge.

James sensed two people walking the same direction as him on other side of the riverbank. His gut feeling told him they were what he had expected. He did not want to have the confrontation in public, although there were very few people wandering around in the cold night.

Shielding in the shadow under the bridge, James quickly checked his weapons—the magic gun and magic dynamite—and felt better; they were in order. He then looked out. Sure enough, the two people now walked rapidly towards him across the bridge, which meant they had spotted him as well.

James actually felt calm; after ten years of waiting and tracking, it was time to finish it. His wife's face appeared in front of his mind's eye and he whispered, "Ping, it must be you who guided me from above to find these two evil monsters. Everything will be finished in a short time. Please wait for me and I'll join you soon."

He held his magic gun firmly, and then used his other hand to touch his magic dynamite. James knew he was not powerful enough to capture these two monsters, but his magic dynamite would ensure their destruction, and also pave his way to meet his Ping.

It was quiet; James could almost hear his own heart beating. By his judgement, they should be right over his head and finding their way down. He moved back a few steps into the shadow so he could not be seen easily... and then James felt strong grips, like steel, locked on his wrists.

James turned. In the dim light, three black-clothed figures surrounded him. His gun and dynamite were taken away, thrown down to the ground.

"Who are you? Why are you attacking me?" James tried to sound calm; he knew immediately that these people were not ordinary criminals—they were vampires. He couldn't believe his bad luck. How could it be possible for vampires to get him just at the crucial moment of his mission?

"Are you sure he is the guy?" one of the vampire said in a strong Italian-accented English.

"I am sure. I followed him this afternoon," another answered.

James was confused by their conversation. "Following me, why?"

"Don't pretend that you don't know who we are. We also know you are working for Alain Bevis, the boss of the Euro Branch of the council. However, this is not the reason why we are here today," the third vampire, seemingly the leader of the trio, continued. "Mr Mancini has given strict orders forbidding us to fight with the council and that's why you haven't seen much of us in the last ten years."

As the vampire spoke, James calmed down a bit. "So why are you here then?"

"A few days ago, we lost two fellows in Venice and I hope you could tell us who did it. According to our source, they were not killed by the council," the vampire said.

James knew the events; although he didn't tell the boss what he knew, he was pretty sure that the two vampires were killed by the two monsters he had been searching for the last ten years.

"I don't know what you are talking about. This is the first time I've heard about two vampires being killed by somebody else. Maybe by vampires from another family?" James suggested.

"No. They were killed by some kind of oriental power and you must know something about it. You are from China, I believe."

"Yes, I am from China but I don't know everyone who has oriental power in the world. By the way, what are you going to do if you find the killers?"

"Blood for blood." The vampire looked at other two and then said, "Take him to Mr Mancini."

James struggled but the vampires who held him were too strong to fight against. "You know I work for Mr. Bevis, the boss of Euro Branch. You can't just take me like this; you'll get yourself in trouble."

"Nobody will ever know where you are as you will be dead soon enough."

## 13. Chat

Caitlin tugged Alice's sleeve and said in her head, 'Ali, there is someone else around.'

Alice looked around and then nodded slowly. 'You are right. It seems two, no, three people are following our guy.'

'And they are vampires.' Caitlin thought for a while. 'Ali, let's just watch and see what happens.'

So they used a spell to shield them behind the bridge pillars. As the conversation between James and vampires went on, Caitlin and Alice were also busily discussing inside their heads.

'Cait, that's why we hadn't seen any vampires in the last ten years. But why did the vampire elder, Mr. Mancini, forbid his fellows to fight against the Council?'

'It has to do with the magic gun and magic dynamite the council invented. These weapons are apparently quite effective killing vampires, so Mr. Mancini didn't want to have unnecessary casualties before he could find a way to fight back.'

'Do we need to worry about these weapons?'

'I don't know much about them. Anyway, let's see what is going to happen next?'

'Cait, why didn't he tell the vampires about us? He could get the vampires on our back by doing that.'

Caitlin thought carefully. 'I suppose that maybe he wanted to capture or kill us himself so he can claim all the credit.'

'Good luck to him; he'll be lucky to be survive the night.'

Then as the vampires were going to take James away, Caitlin said. 'Ali, could you please get rid the three vampires, but don't kill them?'

'Why? They are evil monsters.'

'People also call us evil monsters.'

'I just know you are going to say that every time we have to fight against anyone," she grumbled. "Alright, I won't kill them.'

James knew it would be the end of him tonight. Tears flooded his cheeks. He was not afraid for his own life, as he had already died the day he was told his Ping had been killed by the monsters. He felt sad that he was unable to avenge her death.

As the vampires dragged him towards other side of the bridge, he suddenly heard an air-tearing sound and then saw a figure appear in front of them. The struggle was fast: almost finished before it started. The three vampires dropped to ground with heavy thuds.

Finally getting his arms free, James ran to grip his magic gun and magic dynamite but the figure was much faster. In a blink of an eye, his weapons were in the shadowy figure's hands. "I'll look after them for you, for the time being." A female's voice spoke in a perfect British accent.

James stared at the shadowy figure. "Who are you? Why did you save me and take my weapons?"

"I assume that you are James, the field agent from the China Branch, am I correct?" A white figure walked out from behind the bridge pillar. "Don't pretend that you don't know who we are: we all know why we are here tonight, don't we?"

James felt his stomach sink to ground for the second time that night. Yes, he knew them indeed. He felt completely helpless, facing these two monsters with no weapons. Please, Ping, help me, he pleaded silently. James finally said, "Yes, I am James, the field agent from the China Branch." He turned his head upwards, crying, "I am so sorry, Ping, I am unable to avenge you but I'll see you soon." James then turned to Caitlin. "I have nothing to say to you but I'd appreciate it if you could make it quick, please."

Caitlin watched him curiously. "Who is Ping? Why do you want to avenge her?"

James wiped his tears off with his sleeve. "Don't tell me you don't know Ping. She was the field agent you killed ten years ago when you first arrived in Europe."

"Oh, so her name was Ping. Was she your girlfriend?" Alice asked.

"No, she was not my girlfriend. She was my wife. I have been searching and tracking you two all over the Europe, but..." he sighed. "I had bad luck tonight. So be it." He closed his eyes and waited for the coming death.

Caitlin exchanged a look with Alice and said, "James, who told you we killed your wife?"

"It's not your business. There is no need to have this conversation now."

"James, if you keep being rude to my sister, I'll kill you," Alice said angrily.

"James, I know you will not believe my words, but the truth was that your wife was killed by the soldiers from Euro Branch. The boss, Alain Bevis, conducted the action. Go and ask him," Caitlin said patiently.

"I don't believe a word you say."

"Cait, we don't have time to waste with him. Kill him or just leave him to the vampires."

Caitlin walked closer to James. She patted his shoulder a couple of times and then walked a few steps back.

Soon James' face contorted with obviously pain. "What have you done to me..."

Caitlin waved her hand and James stopped groaning. "James, I don't care if you believe me or not but it is the truth. I can kill you easily, or we wouldn't have saved you from the vampires tonight if I wanted you dead. However, Charlie invited you to our wedding tomorrow and you'll be the best man, so I don't want you to die, at least not until after our wedding."

Caitlin waited but James didn't respond, so she continued, "James, here is the deal. After the wedding, we'll disappear and you are free to try to track us down as you wish, so you still have your chance. I have put a curse on you. If you were thinking about telling your boss or anyone else about the wedding or us, the curse will kill you before you open your mouth. And don't be foolish enough to think that you could write it down or communicate through other means to tell others, because you'll be killed instantly the moment you do it."

James didn't make any sound.

"James, I beg you to help me for tomorrow's wedding. I am sorry for the curse and I wouldn't have done it if there'd been any other way," Caitlin said.

James thought for a while and then said, "If Charlie knew who you really are, do you think he would still love you?"

"That's not your business." Caitlin paused and then said softly, "I love Charlie so much. I'm begging you to do it for me. If your wife could talk to you, she would want you to help me out because she would understand how hard it is to find one's true love."

"Will you remove the curse after your wedding?" James asked.

"Yes I will. Do we have a deal?" Caitlin asked.

"We do," James said, finally. "Can I have my gun back?"

"Not until after my wedding, so see you tomorrow at Notre Dame." Caitlin, together with Alice, started walking away but turned back, "James, the reason Alain Bevis had your wife killed was because he could not tell the difference between two Chinese women, and that's why we changed our faces to look European, to avoid anyone else being killed by mistake."

"But I know your faces now and I'll tell others after I'm free," James said.

Alice rolled her eyes. "James, I don't know if you are trying to be brave or just being very stupid saying that. By the way, your wife was way better than you."

Caitlin and Alice left.

## 14. Notre Dame

Charlie smelled something wonderful. Opening his eyes, he smiled after seeing the fresh French croissants and paper coffee cup.

"How do you feel?" Caitlin asked.

Charlie sat up from the couch and his eyes opened wide; she wore a pure white wedding dress, her blonde hair, sea blue eyes and sculptural-like cheeks emitting a glorious, soft and warming radiance all around her. He finally managed talk. "You are ...so beautiful..."

"That's your wife to be, mister," Alice said. She wore a graceful long blue-green dress. Her teenager look had completely gone; instead, a sophisticated young lady stood in front of Charlie. "Come on. Finish your breakfast so I can get you ready as well."

Charlie walked to Notre Dame alone.

His suit was perfectly made and he felt great. The few glances from other girls on the way boosted his ego even higher. When he arrived at Notre Dame, he was so glad James was waiting for him.

"Hi James, thank you so much for coming today," Charlie said.

"No worries, mate," James said, trying to say it with an Australian accent—without much success. "Charlie, please apologise to your wife-to-be about my silly joke last night."

"But it was such fun. And that talisman of yours, it was quite a nice piece of work. I really appreciate your effort to make my stag night so great."

"Are you sure that your wife-to-be wasn't offended?"

"Oh no, not at all," Charlie laughed.

"I am so glad." James took a small box out of his pocket, "Because of the limited time, I didn't have the chance to ask your opinion and just chose this ring for you; hopefully it's okay."

"Oh, the ring! I completely forget about the ring. Thank you so much; you are my real friend."

They kept chatting for a while about Charlie's romance and holiday with Caitlin until Charlie looked at his watch. "We had better get inside; it's almost time."

Caitlin looked at the priest, with her back to the entrance. Through the veil, she grinned naughtily.

She knew well it was impossible to ask a priest to marry them in such a short notice in any church, let alone in the most famous church in Paris, Notre Dame. This morning, as soon as Charlie left, Caitlin and Alice quickly went to Notre Dame and entered to the church from a side door while Charlie chatted with James in front of the main entrance.

As expected, the priest told Caitlin that almost no weddings were held in Notre Dame except very rare occasions. Even before the priest finished his sentence, tears poured down on Caitlin's cheeks. She sobbed uncontrollably and was unable to speak when the priest asked why she was so sad.

Alice explained to the priest that Caitlin was terminally ill and she wanted to marry her true love before she died; this was her last chance to marry him before he went away on an overseas assignment that was organised long ago. She was only diagnosed yesterday and she didn't want to tell him, as the assignment was crucial to his career.

Caitlin's sadness and Alice's words moved the priest deeply. With moistened eyes, the priest offered to marry them in a side hall off the church. Caitlin was so joyful; she tearfully thanked him for his kind help.

It was an unexciting event from outsiders' eyes, but the most important moment in Caitlin's life: she had waited for this moment for her whole life. Although she would have preferred a traditional Chinese wedding with her in a bride's long red silk gown, with a veil in beautiful embroidered silk, and decorated bamboo sedan, Caitlin was very happy to have this French priest marrying her and Charlie.

Glancing sideways, she gazed at Charlie's handsome face intensely; he was him, the love she had been looking for. Her heart was filled with sweet joy; it was definitely worth such a long time of hard work, endless searching and inhuman patience. All of the pain, the desperation and the frustration dissolved into happiness.

When Charlie lifted her veil to kiss her, she felt the heat from his lips warming her deeply into her heart; this was the true love she was looking for. Caitlin felt dizzy and completely lost into a universe in which only she and Charlie existed.

When they were back outside Notre Dame, Charlie thanked James again for being his best man. Before James managed to open his mouth, Caitlin interrupted and said that James was on his way to airport because he had urgent business in Beijing.

Alice passed James a parcel, a gift to thank him for attending the wedding. James nodded, as he knew his weapons were inside the parcel.

Before James left, Caitlin patted his shoulder a couple of times and said that although it would be a long flight to Beijing, he would feel more relaxed once the plane took off from Paris.

James breathed out deeply in relief, and took a taxi straight to the airport.

As soon they entered their apartment, Charlie's jaw dropped to ground: the whole interior had been decorated and transformed into a traditional Chinese newly wedded setting: red silk bedding and sheets with embroidery of pairs of Mandarin ducks, willow trees and Chinese poems. There were red silk curtains, chair covers, happiness posters and Chinese characters all over the walls. Charlie had seen such pictures in books while he studied ancient Chinese history in university.

"But when and how did you girls manage to do all of this? Didn't we go to Notre Dame almost at the same time this morning?"

"It didn't take much time just to hang things around," Caitlin smiled.

"This is fantastic!" Charlie said. "What now?"

"Ali, you can explain to him while I'm getting changed." Caitlin went inside the bedroom and closed the door behind her.

"Charlie, could you please help me in the kitchen?"

The kitchen was very small; with two of them standing inside it, there was no room to move around. Charlie was jammed inside the confined space and looked at Alice expectantly, "Ali, what can I do for you?"

Alice stood at the doorway, glanced back, and then said in low voice, "Charlie, to tell you the truth, I never liked you."

"I could tell. Fortunately, it's Caitlin who I married..." Charlie stopped when he saw her eyes flare with strong emotion. "Sorry..."

"Listen to me, Charlie. You don't deserve my sister and you know it."

"Yes I know..."

Alice looked back again, and then picked up a bowl from the cupboard. She opened her hand and let the bowl sit on her flat palm. "Look at the bowl in my hand."

"Yes, I can see it."

"If you ever betray my sister, your skull will be like this bowl."

Charlie had to put his hand over his mouth to suppress his shock; Alice closed her hand and squeezed, seemingly gently, but the bowl in her hand was crushed into pieces. It took a few more moments before Charlie could find his voice again. "I love your sister so much, more than my own life. How could I ever consider betraying her?"

"Good, that's what I want to hear. So, if that's the case, you have nothing to worry about." Alice then said in even lower voice, "Never mention this to Cait."

"I promise," Charlie tried to smile but failed terribly.

"Charlie, cheer up. Now it's time for you to get changed as we are going to have a traditional Chinese wedding, as well."

"A Chinese wedding? I like it."

Alice opened her suitcase and pulled out a long, red embroidery silk robe. "Charlie, try it on to see if it fits."

Charlie now understood why Alice's suitcase was so heavy. He felt so lucky that Alice was Caitlin's best friend; she was so powerful. The robe fit him perfectly.

Alice stood in front of Charlie, studying him from head to toe thoroughly a few times, and then picked up a traditional Chinese hat from the suitcase, putting it on him. "You look okay; I have to admit, quite handsome actually. Be nice to my sister."

"I will," Charlie said seriously.

"Wait here," Alice opened the bedroom door and went inside.

Charlie stood there, not knowing what to think. He was not resentful towards Alice for doing that to him in the kitchen; he understood how much Alice loved her sister and wanted the best for Caitlin. It didn't really worry him because he loved Caitlin so much and there was no way he would ever betray her, so Alice would be his friend as well. He did wonder about how powerful Alice was though.

Thinking back, Charlie felt so silly trying to protect Caitlin and Alice in front of the two street thugs in Venice. It was unfortunate that he was knocked out; otherwise it would have been quite exciting to watch Alice kicking their ass. But according to Caitlin, the thugs ran off soon as they saw the patrol police approaching.

As Charlie was wondering about those random thoughts, the bedroom door opened. Alice led Caitlin, who wore a long red embroidery silk dress, her head covered with a large red silk veil.

Alice let Caitlin and Charlie stand side-by-side, and then she stepped back and spoke in Mandarin clearly.

"First, pay your respects to the heaven and earth."

Caitlin and Charlie bowed to the sky and earth.

"Second, pay respect to your parents."

Caitlin and Charlie bowed to the couch where their parents would be sitting if they were there.

"Now pay respect to each other."

Caitlin and Charlie bowed at each other.

"It's time for the new couple to enter their wedding chamber."

Although this ceremony wasn't totally unknown to Charlie, as he had studied it in university, the difference was that he was in it, his own wedding. Holding Caitlin's soft and smooth hand, Charlie led her into the bedroom.

Caitlin sat on the bed, waiting for Charlie to remove her veil but nothing happened. Hadn't Alice told Charlie what to do during a Chinese wedding? But this was beyond the wedding, beyond Alice's instructions; Caitlin blushed. Waiting a little longer, Caitlin took the veil off herself.

Charlie stood there; staring at her, looking embarrassed and lost.

"Come here, Charlie, sit next to me," Caitlin patted the bed, speaking softly.

"Okay," Charlie sat next to her, awkwardly.

"What's the matter, Charlie?"

Charlie blushed. He mumbled, "Nothing..."

"Are you still in love with me, or do you regret having married me?"

Charlie jumped up "No, I'd never regret it. I love you so much..."

"So what's the matter, then?"

Charlie blushed more; his whole face reddened. After collecting enough courage, he finally said. "Cait, I am still a virgin, and don't know what to do..."

Caitlin laughed loudly and happily.

"That's all? You know what, Charlie? That makes two of us. I am a virgin too, perfect for a Chinese wedding as the bride is always expected to be a virgin, but today we have a bonus, a double virgin and double happiness."

Charlie laughed as well. Caitlin made him relax.

He didn't expect she would be a virgin, as well. From his limited girlfriend experience, the few girls he did manage to date told him so much about their sexual experiences with their ex-boyfriends and made him so awkward and embarrassed that he rarely followed up with any of them. Of course, he'd never found any real connections with them.

Caitlin's long, soft hair hung down her back like silk; her blue eyes were like a gateway to a mysterious world; her full lips had such a magical attractive force that all Charlie wanted to do was hold her tight and press his lips against hers and never separate.

Charlie felt the blood in his veins start to heat up and his heart start to pump faster. Then he heard Caitlin speak softly, almost whispering, "Charlie, could you please help me to take my dress off first?"

## 15. Home Visiting

The next morning, when Charlie entered the living room, he noticed something was different. It took him a few seconds to work out what it was: Alice, together with all the Chinese decorations on the walls, over the coach and chairs and tables, were all gone. He turned to Caitlin who followed him out of their wedding chamber, still in her pyjamas.

"Where is Ali?"

"Oh, Ali is already on her way to Western Australia."

"Really, have you both agreed to live with me in Perth?" Charlie asked.

"Why so surprised?" Caitlin put her arm around Charlie's neck, kissing him softly on his lips, and then spoke so quiet that she was almost whispering. "Charlie, don't you know that after a Chinese wedding, the bride lives with the groom's family?"

Charlie kissed her back, "Cait, I appreciate that you're willing to live in Australia but you are not Chinese, so you don't have to follow the Chinese custom at all. I love you so much and want you to be happy; I am more than happy to live in the UK with you."

Caitlin dragged Charlie to sit down on sofa, and settled herself on his lap.

"Charlie, inside I am even more Chinese than most Chinese, and I am happy, really happy to live in Australia. It is an unspoiled, or as close to an unspoiled natural country one could find nowadays. Ali and I discussed this and we both would like to visit your family and live there. I am sorry that we didn't discuss it with you beforehand; please say you are happy with the decision."

Charlie kissed Caitlin again, and that was obviously the answer to her question.

Caitlin stood up, looking around. "All right, let's get the ball rolling then. We'd better hurry as our plane is taking off in less than four hours."

This, somehow, didn't surprise Charlie as much as it should have. He'd already learned to accept Caitlin's way of decision-making. If she decided to do something, she'd just get it done in the most efficient way.

They quickly packed everything into Caitlin's suitcase and Charlie's backpack; fortunately Alice had taken most of the wedding decorations away, so it was not too difficult to finish packing and get ready to go in a short time.

When they were through customs at the airport, Charlie suddenly thought about something, "Cait, you and Alice need to apply for an immigration visa to live in Australia."

"Don't you worry about that, mate; our passports are good for staying in Australia for ninety days, and after that, do you know how many Brits overstay in Australia at any given time? Over fifty thousand so just relax and enjoy our honeymoon flight."

"Great. Cait, you would have a very warm Christmas in Australia."

"Of course, I completely forgot about Christmas, and it is summer in Australia. Well, I like the idea of a hot Christmas."

The flight was tiring and an endurance test but it was fun and joyful for Caitlin and Charlie; apart from their endless whispering, they also successfully stole a few kisses when nobody looked in their direction. When the plane landed at Perth International Airport, they were reluctant to leave their private space and enter the real world.

Although Charlie had been born and grew up in Western Australia, he had to admit that the weather still struck him as hot; however, it didn't damper Caitlin's enthusiasm to see everything in this strange land and meet Charlie's family.

Alice met them at the exit of the airport; Charlie had not told his sister about his marriage because he wanted to give her a surprise. They took a taxi and went to a serviced apartment not far from Charlie's sister's place.

"Charlie, is this alright to meet your family?" Caitlin asked, indicating her dress.

Charlie stared at his wife, stunned by her beauty: her long dress was pure white, as light as butterfly's wings, and made her angel-like features even more charming and irresistible. "You look like a fairy, an angel, and you are more beautiful than any human being I have ever seen or imagined. I still can't believe you are my wife; it must be the virtues from my previous life."

"Maybe," Caitlin said, smiling.

"What about me?" Alice asked.

Alice's light bluish-green skirt looked stunning; the icy expression on her face was gone, replaced by a warm smile Charlie hadn't seen since he first met her.

"Ali, you look so pretty and I love your skirt; it's stunning."

"Charlie, we are family now. Please forgive me for my rudeness towards you before." Alice hugged Charlie and kissed him on his cheeks, making him blush. "Be nice to my sister."

"You know I will, Ali."

"Well, Charlie, see you later," Alice walked towards the door.

"Ali, are you not coming with us?" Charlie asked.

"Charlie, this is your family meeting Cait for the first time so it'd be better for you two to go; beside, I have a few other things to take care of."

Charlie had told his sister that he was bringing someone to meet her and her husband so they would have time to clean the house beforehand. When Charlie, accompanied by Caitlin, walked into the living area, he felt amused to see his sister and her husband's expressions. Clearly they couldn't believe Charlie had come home with this stunning girl. It was a reaction Charlie knew he was going to have to get used to. "Cait, this is my sister, Gina, and her husband, Joe." Charlie then turned to his sister, "Gina and Joe, this is my wife, Cait."

"Your wife..." Gina said, shocked, When she finally regained her composure, she said, "Charlie, my little brother, you married such a lovely girl." She hugged Charlie and wept. "I am so happy for you."

"Charlie, congratulations!" Joe shook Charlie's hand.

"Hi Gina and Joe, very nice to finally meet you both; Charlie told me so much about you, and how kind and generous you were to bring him up." Caitlin shook Gina and Joe's hands.

"Cait, you have such perfect skin," Gina still held Caitlin's hand.

"Thanks, Gina." Caitlin seemed embarrassed.

"I can't believe my brother was able marry someone like you." Gina didn't notice Caitlin's uncomfortable expression. "You look better than a movie star or a model. You are not only pretty but also so natural."

"Gina, why don't we all sit down?" Charlie said, coming to Caitlin's rescue.

After everyone was sitting down, Gina said, "Cait, you should enter a beauty contest; I am sure you are more than qualified to become Miss World."

Charlie put his arm around Caitlin's shoulder, kissing her on her cheek, "Gina, Cait is my wife and she is not going to enter any beauty contest."

"Would you two like something to drink?" asked Joe.

"A beer for me please, Joe," Charlie said.

"I thought you don't drink alcohol, little brother," Gina asked.

"Only occasionally, and today is a special occasion to celebrate," said Charlie. "Cait, would you like to try Australian wine?"

"Yes, I would like to have a glass of wine to celebrate meeting your family," Caitlin said.

After a few rounds of toasts and more conversation about Charlie's holidays, how he met Caitlin and where they got married, Gina asked, "What are your plans?"

Charlie held Caitlin's hand, stroking her fingers gently, "Caitlin doesn't like the city lifestyle; she's more into natural living, so we will look for somewhere in the countryside."

"In that case, Margaret River would be the place to start with," Gina suggested.

"I like the rolling countryside," Caitlin said in the passenger seat while Charlie was driving on the country highways in the southwest corner of Western Australia.

"Me too, the blue sky, white clouds and so much space," Alice said from the back seat.

The car went over a bridge that spanned a small creek flowing through the tree-lined farmland. Caitlin pointed at the small driveway they'd just passed. "Charlie, can we go back and have a look at the sign?"

It was a real estate sign—the farm was for sale and it was open home viewing that day.

"Charlie, let's drive in and have a look."

The long driveway along the tree-lined creek was the boundary between two farms. Between large red gumtree forest on one side, and a low hill on the other, a large farmhouse was visible. A new four-wheel drive SUV was parked in front of the building.

Soon after Charlie stopped the car, a middle-aged man walked out of the house, "A warm day, isn't it? Come in, would you like to have a cold drink?" The real estate agent said in a friendly greeting.

"Thanks, we are alright." Caitlin looked around inside the farm home. It had seen much better days in its life; large-scale renovations would be required.

"Are you looking for a hobby farm?" asked the real estate agent.

"Oh no, not a hobby farm," Caitlin looked out from the large kitchen window. "What kind of farm was it and why is it for sale?"

"It was a sheep farm. There's a dam on other side of the hill, plenty of water for irrigations," the agent waved his hand over the back door. "The old couple passed away and their kids live in city, so here you go, it's on market."

"How long has it been on market?" Charlie asked.

"Well," the agent seemed uncomfortable to answer the question. "On and off the market for a few years now."

Caitlin exchanged a look with Alice and said, "Do you mind we have a look around the farm?"

"Of course not, I can show you the dam..."

"If you don't mind, we would like to walk around by ourselves," Caitlin said.

"Cait, are you seriously considering to buy this farm?" Charlie asked after they were over the hill.

"Yes, I like it," Caitlin turned to Alice. "Ali, what do you think about the Feng Shui?"

Alice looked around and nodded. "Not too bad, creek, forest, hill, dam, it could be much worse."

Charlie looked awkwardly, "Cait, I don't have much savings; you know the little I had is all gone after my holiday."

"Charlie, don't worry about the money. I have some savings from working in the UK," Caitlin said, while scanning the surroundings near the dam.

"But do you have that much to buy this property?" The price was way beyond Charlie's imagination of affordability.

"No, I don't." Caitlin turned around, smiling, "Charlie, haven't you noticed that the price is negotiable?"

"Yes, but even if you are able to reduce the asking price, it's still a large sum."

Alice was busily counting her fingers meanwhile and finally finished. "Cait, I agree with your assessments. Charlie, the economy is not good and this farm has been on market for so long and nobody has been interested in it, so we'd be able to get it at a fraction of its original asking price."

Looking at the expression on Charlie's face, Caitlin said. "Charlie, don't feel bad about getting a bargain price. We're not ripping them off but helping them out of their difficult situation. If we don't buy it, they wouldn't be able to get a buyer for another decade or more, and we'll offer them a fair market price, so it's a win-win situation."

"I only knew you are a good doctor, but I had no idea you are also an excellent negotiator," Charlie laughed.

"Communication skills are a must-have ability for a doctor. Besides, I'm always fair with everyone." Caitlin turned, walking back to the farmhouse followed by Alice and Charlie.

## 16. New Assignment

James landed at Beijing airport. He felt relieved that Caitlin had removed her curse from him as promised and he had also got his weapons back. Soon after he was through customs, James immediately took a taxi straight to a high building in central Beijing. In a secured office, Chairman Tan, who specially flew to Beijing, waited for him.

"Chairman Tan, I have a lead to capture the two monsters that escaped from China to Europe ten years ago. Please assign me to Australia and I promise I will hand you the two fugitives."

"James," Chairman Tan drank a bit of his green tea and then said slowly, "I know how much the pain of losing your wife on the case affected you and I have given you ten years to track them down in Europe, but you have produced nothing concrete..."

"But I now do have a lead in Australia," James interrupted.

"Please let me finish my sentence," Chairman Tan said slowly. "Since the first incident ten years ago, we haven't had any reports to indicate that the fugitives have committed any crimes in Europe..."

"But I am confident that they killed the two vampires," James said, interrupting his supervisor for the second time.

"James, you've been in the West for too long and have forgotten about Chinese manners. Please show some respect to your boss."

"I'm terribly sorry, Chairman Tan."

"James, it's no crime to kill vampires; in fact, they should be encouraged to carry out such deeds, helping the council to fight against vampires."

"I am sure that they didn't kill vampires in order to help us. They are evil monsters. They killed my wife and I want them to be captured and destroyed."

"James, as I said, I have given you ten years, much more than I should have, so we have to put end to this wild goose chase. The case has been officially closed and I have also decided to assign you a new mission."

James stared at his boss in disbelief. "Please Chairman Tan, I am so close to getting them. You can't get me off the case now. Please give me a couple of more years and I promise..."

Chairman Tan interrupted James firmly, "James, no more words. I have made the decision."

James nodded. He stood up, took off his weapons and put them on the desk. "Chairman Tan, I have decided to resign from the council."

"James, do you know what you are doing?"

"Yes, I do." James stood up and left.

James sat down on the chair in his hotel room and dialled a Europe phone number. Soon Alain Bevis, the Euro Branch Boss, answered. "What can I do for you, James?"

"Mr. Bevis, I just resigned from China Branch and wonder if you are interested in my service."

"Oh, what can you offer me?"

"Mr. Bevis, I know who killed the two vampires in Venice."

"So do we."

"Mr. Bevis, I also knew the two fugitives from China now are in Australia."

"I know why you are so keen about them because they killed your wife, but I am not interested in them."

"Mr. Bevis, I can get them and then use them to get to the vampires in Europe."

"How?"

"They killed two vampires. The vampire family will not forget about that. If we can get them to fight against the vampire family, we both would get what we want. What do you say?"

"Okay, do you know where they are in Australia?"

"I don't at the moment as these two fugitives are very powerful and extremely good at covering their tracks."

"What are you going to do then?"

"I'll search every inch of the continent to find them if I have to."

"Well, James, good luck on your search, as Australia is a very large country. Contact me when you have something to offer." He hung up.

James said to himself, "Mr. Bevis, I will."

## 17. Countryside

"Charlie, could you please pass me the hammer," Alice said from the roof of the house.

Charlie picked up the hammer, and started to climb up the ladder.

"Just throw it to me," Alice said while walking on the beams.

After purchasing the large farmhouse, they had started renovations almost immediately. Caitlin told Charlie that they were going to carry out the entire renovation themselves. Initially, Charlie thought it meant that they would organise all the contractors, rather than getting a project manager, but he was completely wrong. Caitlin meant that they were going to actually do every single task with their own hands, including the roof renovation.

It was quite an experience, for Charlie was helping Alice to lift long and heavy wooden beams; Alice did most of the heavy lifting and he merely helped with the balancing.

"What should I do next?" Charlie asked Caitlin, who stood next to him. He had no idea how to renovate the rooftop but fortunately Caitlin did, so he and Alice just followed Caitlin's instructions.

"Charlie, you can start cooking lunch now? I am sure that we are all quite hungry," Caitlin said.

"No problem. Lunch will be ready soon."

"Charlie, I am impressed how quick you learned cooking Sichuan dishes," Caitlin commented while eating their lunch in the un-renovated part of the house.

"Well done, Charlie, this stir-fry shredded potato tastes almost as good as Cait's," Alice said.

"Thanks," Charlie said.

During the afternoon tea break, while Caitlin and Alice rested with a cup of green tea, Charlie walked in with a violin in hand.

"Charlie, I didn't know you played an instrument." Caitlin said in a surprised but happy tone.

"All you have to do is ask; I am a man with many talents." Charlie bowed to Caitlin and Alice. "Ladies, which piece would you like to hear?"

"Something soothing, peaceful," Caitlin said in dreamy voice, her mind going back to the misty valley where the scholar had played the Guqin for her.

"Alright." Charlie gracefully put the violin on his shoulder, gently pressed the bow to the strings, and the sound of music filled the room gradually.

Caitlin closed her eyes, letting the music embrace her like a willow tree waving in the spring breeze, tears flowing down her cheeks.

When Caitlin opened her eyes again, Alice was nowhere to be seen, only Charlie stood in front her, playing the violin. He suddenly noticed her tears, stopped and asked, "Are you alright, Cait?"

"It's so beautiful...Charlie, thank you for playing it for me," Caitlin stood up, held Charlie's face, and kissed him with great passion. "Charlie, please promise me you will play for me always."

"The spring silkworm's threads only exhaust after its death, and the candle's tears never cease until its body burns out; Cait, my love and my music are always for you as long as I am still breathing."

"By the way, tomorrow I'm going to Perth to buy more paint, do you need anything else from the hardware store or other shops?"

"We've already bought most the materials we need, and..." Caitlin glanced at Alice, "Ali, we may need wooden stakes and wires to fix the farm's fences."

"Although I don't know how to renovate the roof top, I am confident that I'm more than capable to fix up the fences," Charlie said.

"I am sure you are, but you have so much painting to do; besides, I want to redesign the fences, so I have to do it," Caitlin said.

"What do you mean re-design the fences? I thought we just hummer the wooden stakes into ground and then attach the barber wire onto them," Charlie asked.

"You are right. However, I would like to make the fences look more interesting, put some artistic designs to them," Caitlin said, taking a sip of green tea.

"Artistic designs on farm fences, very interesting. I'm looking forward to seeing what they look like." Charlie put more rice into his bowl.

"You won't be disappointed, I promise. Here is the shopping list." Alice passed him a long list of various lengths and thicknesses of wooden stakes.

It was impressive how speedy the renovation progressed. The roof had been fixed, internal walls had been knocked down, rooms had been created and re-arranged, extensions added, but there was still more work to be done to get the house finished.

During dinner, Charlie was surprised when Caitlin told him that they were going to Perth tomorrow, because it was the first time Caitlin and Alice had stopped working since the renovation started; it was always Charlie who drove to Perth and did all the purchasing.

"Tomorrow is tomb-sweeping day in Chinese lunar calendar. This is the first year of our marriage and I would like to pay my respects to your mother," Caitlin said.

"Cait, if you didn't have blue eyes and blond hair, I would believe you were Chinese," Charlie said.

"Maybe in my previous life I was a Chinese and I still want to be a Chinese in this life even I have a non-Chinese appearance," Caitlin said. "One can't choose what one looks like, but we can decide what we want to be."

"True," Charlie said. "There are people who want to change their gender just because they believe they should have been born the opposite sex."

"Don't worry about that, Charlie; I am very happy to be your wife," laughed Caitlin.

"That's a big relief," Charlie laughed. "Thanks for thinking about my mother; I am sure she would be so excited to see such a wonderful daughter-in-law if she were still alive."

Winter passed. By the time the wild flowers decorated the fields like magic carpets, their renovations were complete. It was a fine day, with a high cloudless blue sky and bright sunshine.

On the way out of the front door, Charlie said, "Cait, are you sure the living room is big enough for your Tai Chi class?"

"I'm holding most of the classes outside on the lawn. I'll use the living room as my healing clinic and meditation purposes."

"Oh, Charlie, have you arranged to advertise Cait's business in the local newspaper?" Alice followed them out of the house.

"You bet," Charlie spoke proudly. "Not only the local newspaper, I've also put it on major tourist websites nationally and internationally. Soon you will have more customers than you can handle."

They walked along the new fences Caitlin and Alice had installed.

While admiring how well the fences were put up, Charlie saw some strange arrangements of wooden sticks at even intervals along the farm boundary. Clusters of wooden sticks were hammered into ground in strange patterns; willow tree leaf, plum flower, star, and most of them seemingly just randomly arranged.

"Are they the artistic fence designs you were talking about?" Charlie asked.

"Do you like them?" Caitlin said.

"They look very interesting, but I have to say that I have no idea what kind of art they are," Charlie said.

"It is modern art, very abstract, so you can imagine whatever you like in your mind," Alice laughed.

Walking farther, Caitlin pointed at the area near the dam. "This area will be the organic vegetable garden, and here the herb medicine plants nursery."

"Are you going to growing herbs here?" Charlie asked.

"Yes, in some cases, fresh herbs are much better than the dry ones. Besides, it's not always possible to get the herbs I require so it's much handier to grow my own," Caitlin said while showing Charlie how she was going to divide the areas into different regions for different kinds of herbs.

"But where can you get all of these herbs?" Charlie asked.

"We have the seeds with us," Alice said.

During dinner, Caitlin went to fridge and came back with a bottle of champagne. Charlie was most surprised, as they hadn't had anything alcoholic since Caitlin met his sister for the first time.

"Wow, champagne. What's the occasion?" Charlie asked.

Caitlin poured some in each one's glass, and then raised hers. "Charlie, congratulations for being a father-to-be!"

"Really?!!" said both Charlie and Alice.

Caitlin nodded. Her smile was like a lotus flower in the warm sunlight.

"How long? Why didn't you tell me earlier?" said Charlie.

"Two months. I just wanted to make sure before telling you," Caitlin said.

"I am going to be a father," shouted Charlie happily. He hugged Caitlin and kissed her. "I am so happy, Cait. It's wonderful. I can't believe I am going to be a father..."

"Cait, please sit down and let me put the Christmas tree up." Charlie dragged the pine tree into the living room, settling it down near the fireplace.

"I'll give you a hand decorating the tree," Alice said.

Caitlin sat on couch watching Charlie and Alice putting all sorts of decorations on the pine tree branches as she sorted through the mail. "I can't believe our second Christmas is already around the corner." She put her both hands on her abdomen.

Charlie turned, "Cait, you should take it easy with your work; remember you are five months pregnant."

"I can't tell my patients to go away," Caitlin said.

"They can go to other doctors," Charlie said.

"The reason they came to me is because the other doctors can't help them. I can't believe so many people have food allergy problems and can't eat wheats, peanuts, etcetera," Caitlin stood up. "Anyway, I am glad my herbal medicine is able to help them," she said, handing Charlie some unopened mail.

Charlie casually looked through some bills before letting out a sound of surprise. , "Cait, you have no idea how popular you are now. You have been nominated as the Australian of the year."

Caitlin seemed unimpressed by the news and went to kitchen to get a glass of water. "I am just doing my job, I'm not interested in becoming famous. Charlie, can you please help me to somehow withdraw my name from the nomination?"

After Alice put a large star on top of the Christmas tree, Charlie clicked the switch and colourful Christmas lights blinked and twinkled cheerfully.

"If anyone deserves the honour, you do. You have helped so many people." Charlie paused when he saw Caitlin's expression. "Alright, I'll see what I can do."

## 18. Patients

Charlie walked to the kitchen area and saw Caitlin was having a bowl of muesli mixed with milk, yoghurt and bananas for breakfast.

"Good morning, Cait." Charlie also helped himself to a large bowl of muesli.

"Morning, Charlie," Caitlin said brightly.

"How is little one doing?"

Caitlin used her hand to stroke her belly gently. For being eight months pregnant, she was very small; in fact, an outsider would only think she had a bit extra weight around her waist if they unaware of her pregnancy. "Your son has been very active recently, kicking me quite lot."

"How do you know it's a boy?"

"I have a feeling and my feelings are usually quite accurate."

"In that case, we should give him a name, rather calling him the little one or your son."

"I have thought about the name for a very long time but I'm still uncertain which one is the best."

"Are you talking about the name for our little prince?" Alice walked in from outside.

"Yes, Ali. Where have you been?" Charlie asked.

"Oh, I had some morning exercises along the fences, very nice, fresh air and beautiful scenery; Charlie, you should try it sometimes."

"Thanks, I will," Charlie said.

Caitlin sat down with a cup of tea "Yesterday I had a patient, a rather strange case."

"What do you mean 'a rather strange case'?" Charlie asked whilst washing the plates.

"Well, he was a European tourist and had quite bad headaches that other doctors couldn't diagnose, and his headaches didn't respond to painkillers, even the strong ones." Caitlin put her legs up, sitting more comfortable on the easy chair.

"What can you do if the other doctors were unable to identify the cause?" Charlie asked, drying and putting clean dishes away.

"Give me some credit for being an alternative medicine practitioner: patients usually come to me when the other medical treatments fail. Anyway, I tried using acupuncture on his various nerve points, and it seemed helped him a bit."

"Have you cured his headaches?" Charlie asked.

"No, just temporally relieved his pain," Caitlin said. "However, I did notice he had other unusual symptoms."

"Unusual symptoms?" asked Alice, who had been listening to their conversation while having her breakfast.

"As a routine, I check the condition of all patients' general health before applying acupuncture. I checked his pulse and looked at his tongue and his eyes..." Caitlin didn't finish her words.

"What did you find?" asked Charlie impatiently.

"I am not quite sure..." Caitlin said but Alice interrupted her.

"Charlie, I found the irrigation to the herb nursery broken when I walked past it this morning. Could you please fix it; it's very important to water these herb plants regularly," said Alice.

"No problem and I'll go and fix it right now."

Charlie found that a few joints along the water pipes had burst. It was not a big deal; he went to the shed and found the spare joints. In less than half hour, he had everything back to working condition. When he got back to the house, Charlie was surprised to see several cars parked in front of their home.

According to his recollection, Caitlin wasn't holding a Tai Chi class today and when she did, she would normally only get a handful of patients, but there were over two dozen cars around.

Charlie quickly entered the house; sure enough, dozens of patients waited in the living area while Caitlin applied acupuncture treatment to a patient in the adjacent room. While most of the patients were European tourists, Charlie saw a couple of locals were also in the queue.

After offering them water and trying to make them more comfortable in the waiting queue, Charlie talked to Steve, a local grocery owner. "Steve, I haven't seen you for a while. What's wrong with you?"

"Charlie, I have very bad headaches. I hope I don't have it. I am so scared. On the TV, they said bad headaches are the main symptom of the virus."

"What virus? What are you talking about?" Charlie asked.

"Charlie, don't tell me you know nothing about this virus," Steve said.

"We don't have TV here and I rarely used the Internet because it's so slow..." Steve interrupted him.

"Charlie, last night the World Health Organization announced that an ancient virus, released from the melting in the deep soil in Russia due to the hottest summer ever last year, is currently causing a global epidemic."

"My God." Charlie couldn't believe this was happening. He immediately knew what Steve was talking about. Having graduated with an environmental science degree, Charlie had been watching the environmental problems around the globe and knew about the big defrost in Russia. However, he hadn't been online in the last couple of days.

"Excuse me," Charlie went to his study, quickly connected to Internet, and navigated to the WHO website.

The situation was much worse than Charlie had expected when Steve told him about the virus: the authority was expecting to find cure in three to five years, and the death toll was estimated between fifty to four hundred million globally. The virus's initial symptoms including flu-like fever, bad headaches, and rashes on victim's bodies; in a week or so, the patients' health would worsen rapidly, and inevitably lead to death. It was the most painful death of any known virus-caused epidemic. To date, WHO estimated the virus had taken two million lives and more than ten million people were infected; the number infected was increasing exponentially each day.

Charlie sat there, not knowing what to think; people had been warned about global warming for many decades but the major economic powers didn't listen because they wanted to make more money and burn more fossil fuels. Now human being would pay the price.

Charlie walked to Caitlin's surgery room; she even didn't have time to look at Charlie, as she busily applied acupuncture to the patient. Charlie walked forward and wiped Caitlin's face with a cold wet towel.

"Thanks, Charlie," Caitlin immediately went back to the patient again.

Charlie put extra electrical fans in the surgery and the waiting room, offered the patients drinking water, and fed Caitlin a few spoonfuls of yoghurt in between patients.

More patients arrived as the news spread. Towards dusk, TV crews arrived. In the desperate situation, when the traditional medicine treatments failed, people turned to alternative medicine hoping to find a miracle. Charlie blocked their way so the TV cameras were only able to hover around outside the building.

Looking at Caitlin's exhausted face and the ever-increasing queue, Charlie made up his mind: Caitlin had to stop and rest as she had been working non-stop for the last twelve hours.

"Excuse me, everyone; unfortunately I am afraid that we are finished for today. Please make your way out."

It took a while for the reluctant patients and persistent TV crews to leave; finally everyone left and their house was once more a quiet countryside retreat.

Caitlin, Alice and Charlie sat in the living area, but none of them had an appetite to eat anything. Charlie had told them about the information he found on the WHO's website about the virus.

"Two million people have already died?" Caitlin asked.

Charlie nodded.

"And the final death toll could be hundreds of millions even if they somehow manage to find a cure eventually?" Alice asked.

Charlie nodded.

"Charlie, we had better get some rest, as tomorrow will be another busy day," Caitlin said.

"Is Charlie sleeping?" Alice asked as Caitlin re-entered the living room.

"Yes, he is and he won't wake up until tomorrow morning." Caitlin sat on the coach. "Ali, have you found the herb medicine books I had asked for?"

"Yes, here they are," Alice passed a pile of ancient well-read books over; they were tied together with thin leather cords.

Caitlin turned a few pages in one, then put it down and picked up another. Time passed, and Alice sat there patiently watching Caitlin read through the pile of books. Finally, Caitlin put the book in her hand down to the coffee table.

"I found it. Over a thousand years ago a virus caused millions of deaths in Russia, northern China, and eastern Europe."

"Cait, the frozen soil has been there much longer than that. How could the virus be released by the melting now?"

"The dead bodies were buried a thousand years ago and the virus was activated again by last year's hot summer. In fact, I now actually remember the event. I had cured so many patients then."

"Do you still remember the cure for the disease?"

"Yes, I recorded it here: an herb recipe had worked on the patients at the time, so I'll see if I can make it tonight and try it on the patients tomorrow."

Alice opened her mouth, stopped and then finally said. "Cait, I'm not sure how to say this, but I don't think you should do it. It's too risky."

Caitlin lifted her gaze up. "Ali, millions people's lives are at stake."

Alice swallowed hard, "I know that, but do you realise if you use the herb recipe to treat people and it works, our enemies will know immediately who we are and where we are. By doing that, you are putting your own life at risk. Think about it, you would have to say goodbye to your normal and quiet country life because you would have to run to the end of the world, worrying every moment for the rest of your life."

Alice moved to sit next to Caitlin and put her arm around Caitlin's shoulder. "You are risking your life, your love and your unborn baby. Do you realise that?"

"What should I do then?"

"Do nothing," Alice said. "Nobody knows you have the recipe and nobody expects you to be able to cure the virus. We don't owe the humans anything, considering how horribly they treat animals. This is their payback for abusing the environment and animals."

Caitlin thought for a while "Ali, I agree with all you said, but I can't sit here and watch millions of people die."

"What about your unborn baby? Do you think our enemy would let him live just because you have saved millions of people's lives?"

"I don't know." Caitlin laid one hand gently on her stomach. "We have to deal with it when it happens, but for now, we have to try to save people's lives."

Charlie woke up to a strong herbal medicine aroma. He went to kitchen and saw a few large pots simmering on the oven top.

"What are you cooking? Are you making some herbal medicine?" asked Charlie.

"I happened to find an ancient herbal medicine recipe that worked on a virus a thousand years ago, so I thought I would give it a shot. You never know, it may work again."

"Yes, absolutely. You are wonderful, Cait," Charlie kissed her. "I wonder if you are the real angel descended on earth to help people."

"I thought you don't believe the supernatural nonsense stuff," Alice said.

"It's just an expression; it doesn't mean I believe in angels."

A knock at the door interrupted their conversation, and Charlie went to open it. It was Steve's wife, who was crying so much that both eyes were swollen. "Cait, please help my Steve. Last night he got so sick so fast. I'm afraid he's going to die. Please, I beg you to try anything, any herbal medicine on him. You are his last chance..." she said dissolving into tears.

"Kathy, where is Steve?" Caitlin asked.

"He is at home. Cait, please help my poor Steve..."

Caitlin held Kathy's hand. "Listen to me carefully, Kathy. I found an ancient herbal medicine recipe, but I'm not certain if it works or not. By law I am not allowed to use it on a patient until it is approved. Are you willing to try it on Steve?"

Kathy's eyes suddenly brightened. She wiped her red and swollen eyes, "Cait, you are such an angel. Please, try the herbal medicine on Steve. If not, he's going to die soon anyway. I'll sign anything to get him to try this herbal medicine."

Just then, a bright light made everyone look up; a TV camera was filming them through the open front door. Caitlin quickly moved away from the opening, and asked Charlie to close the door immediately.

"Charlie, can you please ask the TV crew to leave our property; tell them they are not welcome here." Caitlin then turned to Kathy, "Go and get Steve here as soon as possible."

Charlie looked at their front yard through the gaps in the curtains. After the news of the herbal medicine spread, desperate patients from all over the country came in, hoping the herbs could save them from certain death.

It had been three hours since Steve took the herbal medicine. Caitlin observed him carefully, while Kathy and Alice watched anxiously. Steve was breathing evenly, and without warning, he opened his eyes, and spoke weakly, "Cait, you have saved my life."
