Jade Tiger

Read Jade Tiger for Free Online

Book: Read Jade Tiger for Free Online
Authors: Jenn Reese
Tags: adventure, Romance, martial arts, Kung fu
of it and slipped the strap over his head.
    "Go. Fight," he said. "I'll take care of this."
    Shan frowned, but only for a second. Then she had to turn and throw the first man over her shoulder and into a table full of books and empty plastic cups. People flew pretty far when you used their own momentum against them, but Shan was still surprised at the loud crack of the table breaking and the ensuing chaos.
    The other bar patrons scrambled to gather their things and headed for the back door. Actually, there weren't as many screams as she had expected. Perhaps the late hour or general inebriation of the crowd was to blame. Or maybe bar fights had become passé from overuse. The bartender, a burly fellow in a tight black T-shirt, remained stoic behind the bar, watching. He must have tripped the silent police alarm. That gave them less than ten minutes to get the hell out of Dodge.
    Shan tried to keep herself between the bad guys and the booth. She told herself she was protecting the crane, but she really didn't want to see Ian take another blow to the head, or worse. If he knew where the dragon was, she needed him alive and thinking clearly.
    Yeah, that was the reason. It had nothing to do with Ian's boyish smile, lanky frame, or sense of humor.
    Shan dodged and kicked, blocked and rolled. Behind her, she heard Buckley trading punches with one of the goons. Luckily, One-eye stayed by the door. He must have been severely injured in their previous tussle. The woman came at Shan. Probably in her late thirties, she wore an army-green tank top and a pair of tight, black jeans. Her blonde hair was pulled out of her face in a long ponytail.
    The woman drove her heeled boot into Shan's chest with astounding speed. Shan stumbled backward, gasping for breath. She grabbed the offending boot and twisted it sharply. Ponytail had no choice but to spin horizontally through the air in order to keep her knee from breaking.
    "We have to get out of here!" Shan yelled.
    "Tell me about it," Ian growled. Shan caught a glimpse of him throwing a handful of something white--salt?--in his opponent's eyes. Smart lad.
    "Okay," said Buckley. He ducked under a goon's fist and thrust upward into the man's groin. "But you'd better take us the hell with you, then."
    Shan leaped backward, narrowly avoiding another one of Ponytail's lightning kicks. She countered by spinning around and whipping out her foot, heel first, at the last minute. Ponytail ducked just in time and shoved upward, upsetting Shan's balance. Shan used her leg's sudden change in direction to flip over backward to get out of Ponytail's range.
    "If you've got a brilliant plan, Buckley, let's see it," said Shan. "The police will be here before we can finish this."
    The next sound Shan heard was a gun being cocked. Such a small sound, and, at the same time, so deafening. The room fell silent instantly.
    "Okay, back off," said Buckley, his voice low and steady.
    Shan turned and saw some sort of gun held solidly in Buckley's hands. He seemed calm as he pointed it first at one goon, then the next. Wisely, the goons backed up.
    "Don't suppose you have a permit to carry a concealed weapon?" Ian asked quietly.
    "Not exactly," said Buckley.
    "Brilliant."
    "Come on, boys," Shan said. "We'll have time to point fingers later." She backed toward the rear of the bar and motioned for Ian to follow. She needn't have bothered. Ian was already moving, clutching the messenger bag to his side. Buckley came last, the look in his eyes cold as he stared at their opponents.
    "You will die," said One-eye in Mandarin.
    "But not before you do," Shan answered. And then they were off, running for Buckley's car. Shan's rental was still parked in front. Buckley tucked the gun back in his waistband.
    "We'll have to ditch the gun," Shan said.
    "This gun just saved our lives." Buckley pulled keys out of his pocket and pressed the key fob. A huge Explorer beeped and blinked a few feet away.
    Shan let Buckley slip past her before

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