Kiss of the Blue Dragon Read Free Page B

Either way, it was divine intervention.
    Drummond looked over his shoulder and, at the sight of the kid and his mother, he loosened his grip. I saw my chance and took it, somehow managing to wrangle out from under his three-hundred-plus pounds.
    As soon as I was on my feet I gave him a furious uppercut to the jaw. The jolt of it ricocheted through my body. He groaned, wide-eyed, but he remained upright on his knees. Damn, I hadn’t meant to fight this guy—especially one built like a tank. He looked at me with astonishment.
    “That’s right, asshole, you’re messing with the wrong girl.” To make sure he didn’t come after me again, I gave him a roundhouse kick to the side of the head and he toppled over like a bowling pin. He raised his head, too stupid to give up.
    I took one last whack at him—a full frontal kickto the groin. As my kung fu master had taught me, I employed fei mai qiao . My leg flew like a feather, but the chi behind it walloped his crotch like a hammer. My ankle burned from the impact.
    Finally, Drummond groaned in defeat and rolled into a fetal position. Only slightly winded, I knelt beside him and grabbed him by his lapels, pulling his face close to mine.
    “You’re gonna die, asshole.” I pulled out my counterfeit Gibson Warrant—what I should have done from the very start—and waved it in front of his face. “See this? This is a court order from Judge Gibson himself with your name on it, Drummond. If you try to talk to Janet one more time, I have permission to shoot you on sight, no questions asked.”
    His eyes narrowed on the folded paper, then he went pale. Thank God he had enough brains to keep up with the news and understood what I was talking about.
    “This is your last warning. If you violate your restraining order one more time, you’re a dead man, Drummond.”
    He set his jaw tight and for a minute I was afraid he was too mean and stubborn to know what was good for him. I smelled his fear, though.
    “Understand?” I let go of him and stood, dusting myself off. “You have to leave town. Tonight. Any CRS who catches you harassing Janet can kill you. Legally. You understand?”
    He closed his eyes and licked sweat from his upper lip. Then he nodded in surrender. “Yeah.”
    “Good.” This would be the last time I saw this poor excuse for a human being. Maybe Judge Gibson had done this town some good after all.

Chapter 3
    Blast from the Past
    I grabbed my daily newspaper, which had been tossed into the boxwood outside my front door. Then I hurried upstairs and found Detective Marco flipping through my index of music. I had a big collection of classical files, as well as contemporary artists. He seemed fascinated by my choices. His thoughtful concentration surprised me.
    I glanced around. Lola was gone. She’d probably slipped out the back door, which was just as well. I didn’t need her complicating matters. I took a moment to study the cop. He’d taken off his coat—a retro double-breasted linen sport coat dating back to the turn of the century. He even had on suspenders. They pinched his starched-white shirt and clung toa waistband that tightly fit his narrow waist. His olive skin above the collar attested to what I could assume, given his name, was an Italian heritage.
    “So you like Morbun Four,” he said without turning.
    “It’s a good group. What of it?”
    He glanced over his shoulder. “Ms. Baker, this isn’t an interrogation. Relax.”
    I forced myself to take a breath. I didn’t let any man close enough to find out what kind of music I liked, much less what perfume I wore. Which was none. I’d rather be down at headquarters asking for a lawyer.
    “I thought you went to the store for sugar?” There was a smug gleam in his eyes.
    “The sugar shelf was empty. I got a newspaper instead.” I tossed it onto the coffee table, headlines faceup. “It looks like Chicago’s finest still haven’t found the twelve Chinese orphans who were stolen from the