Dragon Gate by Gary Jonas

as we stepped outside. Thirteen men of varying ages clad in old-fashioned tunics stood in a line on the sidewalk blocking the path to the Rolls. They looked like extras from a Lord of the Rings movie. They had weapons but at the moment, they were all strapped to their backs or hanging in scabbards at their waists. I swept my eyes over them, determining whom I should kill first. I figured I could take half of them out before they knew they’d been attacked.
    “Stay behind me,” I said.
    “It’s all right,” Graham said. “They aren’t here to kill me.”
    “Why do you say that?”
    Graham ignored the question. He strode toward the eldest man, but I grabbed him and pulled him back.
    “Ms. Chan, please. I told you they aren’t here to kill me. Unhand me.”
    “Stay behind me or I’ll just kill them all right now.”
    “There are thirteen of them.”
    “Your point?”
    The eldest stepped forward. “Are you hiding behind the skirt of a fair maiden, Graham?”
    “Not by choice, Thomas.”
    He nodded and turned his eyes to mine. “Fair maiden, I would like a word with your charge.”
    “Fair maiden? Not sure if I like that. You can speak from there. One move toward any of your weapons, and I’ll kill every last one of you.”
    Thomas laughed. “You say that with such assurance.”
    I held his gaze. “Try me.”
    “Another time,” he said. He stood still and motioned to his men. They all took a step back and crossed their arms across their chests, hands away from their weapons.
    “Why are you here, Thomas?” Graham asked. He remained slightly behind me so, like a dog; at least he could be trained.
    “I’m here to tell you your parents are dead.”
    Graham sighed. “It didn’t have to come to this.”
    “You know full well it did. As soon as your family passed through the gate, you were all dead. I promised your father I’d give you the opportunity for a quick and painless death. We’ll come for you soon. In the meantime, prove your honor and tell me where she is.”
    Graham stepped forward so perhaps I was too quick to give him credit. He bowed his head and in a low voice, he said, “Clara didn’t make it.”
    “You brought her through.”
    “Yes, and the journey was too much for her. I’m very sorry, Thomas. She’s dead.”
    Thomas stared at the ground. He had the look Jonathan sometimes gets when he’s trying to determine whether someone’s lying to him. Finally he raised his head. “I warned you this could happen.”
    “You did.”
    “You didn’t listen.”
    “It wasn’t my choice.”
    “Yes, your uncle Lucas can be quite persuasive. Your father wanted me to tell you he loved you.”
    “And I him.”
    “One question before we go. Where is her body?”
    Graham shrugged. “It’s gone. The legends were true. Clara couldn’t pass through the gate. Her screams will live in my heart until the day I die. I hope you never hear such a thing.”
    “So she never set foot on the soil here?”
    Graham shook his head. “Some of her ashes littered the ground beneath the gate. Other than that, no.”
    Thomas nodded. “Grieve for your parents. We shall return.”
    Thomas turned and led his men across the parking lot into the darkness.
    “Who was Clara?” I asked.
    “None of your concern,” Graham said.
    Bitterman stepped out of the driver’s seat and opened the door for us. As Graham climbed into the car, Bitterman said, “I’m sorry, sir. They seemed to come out of nowhere.”
    “It’s all right, Bitterman. As they say, no harm, no foul.”
    I slid into the car. Bitterman closed the door and left me alone with Graham.
    “I don’t think he believed you,” I said.
    “I don’t care.”
    “You’re not going to tell us what’s going on.”
    I said it as a statement of fact, not as a question.
    He spread his hands. “It’s none of your business.”
    I nodded. I didn’t need to know what happened in order to protect him, so I let it go. After all, Jonathan was the detective. I