Peter ran into the ER entrance, nearly colliding with his father and Jack Wong as he did so. "Pop! What are you doing here? How did you find out about the accident?"
Before Caine could reply, Wong jumped in and sneered acidly, "That was no accident. Some crazy bitch deliberately ran down my grandfather!"
"What? But how? I heard that Kacie -- "
"Your wife was with my grandfather. He shoved her out of the way. My seventy-five year old grandfather was knocked over like a bowling pin!" Wong tugged at Caine's arm. "Come on, Priest. My grandfather is dying and we're standing around wasting time!"
"Pop! What about Kacie? She may need you. You-you can't go with him!"
Caine raised his hand, palm forward, to stem the flow of Peter's words. "She is all right, my son. This family needs me more at this time. I will talk with you later." Caine nodded encouragingly at Peter before allowing himself to be led away by the distraught Wong.
Peter looked about wildly for anyone who could direct him to his wife.
Dr. Albin emerged from an examination room. Upon spying Peter, he abruptly changed his course to meet the white-faced husband.
"Dr. Albin, is Kacie in there? Is she all right? Is the baby all right? What --"
Albin gripped Peter's shoulder with a steadying hand. "We just sent her up to x-ray, Peter. You'll have to wait to see her."
"X-ray? What's wrong with her? Is that safe for the baby? How is Kacie? What happened?"
"For the 'what happened' you'll have to talk to that police officer over there. As far as the rest of your questions go, I can take care of that. First of all, calm down. Kacie is going to be fine, and Baby is just fine, too."
Peter visibly relaxed and the color started returning to his face. "Why is she being x-rayed?"
"She took quite a tumble on that street, and she's pretty bruised and scraped up. Her left wrist shows a lot of pain and swelling, and we just want to make sure it's not broken. They'll be careful to avoid any undue exposure to the x-rays for either Baby or Kacie." He grinned ruefully. "Don't think I didn't have to talk hard and fast to convince her we really needed to do those tests."
"She-she could talk to you then?"
Albin nodded. "The paramedics said she never lost consciousness, and there is no indication of head injury. She's complaining of some back pain, but we think it's because she wrenched her back trying to protect Baby."
Peter's smile was tremulous. "She-she'd do anything to make sure nothing happens to him." He swallowed hard and searched the doctor's face. "You're absolutely sure she and the baby are all right?"
Albin nodded and smiled reassuringly. "She's pretty banged up, abrasions and contusions, but nothing serious. She'll be awfully stiff, and I want her to have complete bed rest for a few days. We'll keep her here under observation for a day or two, more for her peace of mind than anything else." He started walking Peter down the hallway, a companionable arm draped over Peter's shoulders. "Why don't you get a cup of coffee or something, and wait in that room over there? I'll be sure someone comes and gets you as soon as we have Kacie settled in a room, all right?"
"No, it's not all right, but I guess it'll have to do." Peter extended his hand and Albin shook it. "Thank you for taking such good care of my wife, Doctor. She means the world to me, and you know how we both feel about the baby."
"Only about six weeks to go, Peter. I think I'm almost as anxious to see this baby born as you are."
Peter laughed and shook his head. "No way." His expression sobered. "Someone will come for me the very minute I can see her, right?"
"Right."
Albin strode away, and Peter immediately headed for the police officer talking to one of the nurses. "Excuse me, officer?" Peter pulled out his badge. "Detective Peter Caine, 101st Precinct. My-my wife was one of the accident victims brought in a little while ago."
The officer extended his hand and Peter automatically shook it. "Jim Husbands, Detective Caine. I'm sorry your wife was injured, but from the way eyewitnesses described the incident, she's a pretty lucky lady."
"What happened? Is the driver in custody?" Peter's eyes narrowed. "And if they are, where?"
"I wasn't there at the time, but from what witnesses said, the driver ran a red light and deliberately accelerated to run down your wife and a Mr. Lee Wong. Wong pushed your wife out of harm's way and was hit before he could save himself. He was still alive when the paramedics brought him in, but the doctors say there's just too much damage. Guy has a bum heart they said, too, so he'd never survive surgery."
"The driver of the car," Peter asked impatiently. "What about the driver of the car?"
"Tried to flee the scene with a busted windshield. Apparently lost control and ended up part of the front wall of the House of Hunan." There was a grim note of satisfaction in the officer's voice. "She was DOA on the scene, so we sent her directly to the morgue."
"She? Did you say 'she'?" Peter felt his scalp tingle. "What did she look like?"
Husbands pulled his notes from his chest pocket and consulted them. "White-blonde hair, black eyes, about five-ten. No ID. The car she was driving was rented, so we're checking that out."
Peter's face was pale and his voice shook. "Tammy Wright. Minneapolis, Minnesota. Her prints should be on file with the state police up there."
Officer Husbands looked surprised. "You sound like you know her."
"I do. I-I-I mean I did." Peter shook his head slowly back and forth, then glanced up to see the officer's puzzled expression. "It's a long story, Jim."
Wong leaned over and placed his mouth next to the elderly man's ear. "I've brought him, Grandfather. The priest is here."
Lee Wong's eyelids flickered, and he gasped, "Master...Caine. You...are...here?"
Caine walked slowly to the bedside and placed his hand on Wong's, avoiding the IV needle. "You call me 'Master'."
"Yes. You don't...remember me...do you?" Wong's face was ashen, and every breath was labored and painful.
"I do not."
"I was...at your...temple. You...knew me...as...Chin Lee."
Caine peered closely at the man, a dawning light of recognition spreading over his face. "You left the temple soon after I arrived. You were unhappy there."
"Yes. I thought...I could find...happiness...in wealth...and power."
"You did not find that happiness?"
A tear ran down from the corner of Wong's eye. "No. I...left the Way. Now I...am old...and dying...and I am afraid."
"What is it you fear?"
"Of what comes...next. And I must...confess...before I die."
"Don't talk like that, Grandfather. We'll get better doctors...send you to a better hospital..." Jack Wong spoke desperately,stopping suddenly at Caine's stern stare.
"Your grandfather knows his time is short. To believe otherwise would be foolish and would dishonor him."
A shudder ran through the dying man's frame, and speech became more difficult. "Your son's wife...she is alive?"
Caine nodded. "I thank you for saving her life, and that of her unborn child."
"The line of Caine...must continue. That is why...I killed the man...who wanted...to harm her."
Jack's Wong's jaw dropped. "You, Grandfather? I figured it was one of our men. No one took credit for it, but I thought -- "
"I...ended his...worthless life. Then I...severed his...manhood from...his body." Wong's breath rattled in his throat. "It was...because of what...I did...that caused...this woman...to seek vengeance...against Caine. She tried...to kill...his wife."
"Violence only begets more violence." Caine sighed. "What has happened to that woman?"
"She's dead," Jack snarled. "After she hit Grandfather, she smashed her car into the side of a building when she tried to get away."
The elder Wong closed his eyes briefly. "It...must stop, Grandson. Violence...is not...the way."
"There is always another way," Caine agreed, and gently turned Lee Wong's arm so the brand of the tiger showed.
The dying man moved his other arm to reveal the dragon.
"Grandfather? You are Shaolin? You are a priest like Caine?"
Lee Wong's complexion was gray, and his lips were tinged with blue. "Once. I have hidden...my past. Dishonored my vows. Secret. No one...knew." His eyes sought Caine's. "Talk with me...Master Caine...before I die. Help me...to find...my path...again."
"I will help you, Chin Lee. You will find the Way again, if you truly seek it."
Peter sat in a chair next to Kacie's bed, holding her hand in his and tenderly stroking her temple with his fingertips as he sang to her softly.
*** "Tomorrow morning, if you wake up and the sun does not appear, I, I will be here.
If in the dark we lose sight of love, hold my hand and have no fear. 'Cause I, I will be here."
"I will be here when you feel like being quiet;
when you need to speak your mind, I will listen.
And I will be here when the laughter turns to crying;
through the winning, losing, and trying, we'll be together,'cause I will be here.
"Tomorrow morning, if you wake up and the future is unclear,
I, I will be here.
Just as sure as the seasons were made for change,
our lifetimes are made for these years.
So I, I will be here."
"I will be here, so you can cry on my shoulder.
When the mirror tells us we're older, I will hold you.
And I will be here to watch you grow in beauty,
and tell you all the things you mean to me; I will be here.
"I will be true to the promise I have made to you
and to the One who gave you to me.
I will be here.
And just as sure as the seasons were made for change, our lifetimes are made for these years.
So I, I will be here.
We'll be together, 'cause I will be here.
I will be here."
Without turning his head, he asked, "Lee Wong is dead?"
Caine rested his hand on Peter's shoulder. "Yes. He is at peace now."
"Kacie's sleeping," Peter informed his father unnecessarily. His voice caught and he cleared his throat. "She-she was having back spasms and they gave her a muscle relaxant." He continued to caress her temple as he spoke. "She wanted me to sing to her until the medicine made her fall asleep. I'll bet I sang the same song to her ten times."
"She will be all right, Peter. You need not worry."
"I know. I know. I-I just don't want to let go of her hand." He kissed the fingers he held and fell silent, blinking rapidly against the moisture stinging his eyes. "Why did he do it, Pop? He-he could have saved himself. Why did he choose to save Kacie instead?"
"He was Shaolin."
Snapped out of his reverie, Peter whipped his head around to stare at his father. "He was what?"
"He was at our temple only a brief time. I did not know him well. His name was Chin Lee. He left only days after you and I went there to live."
"He was a priest?"
"Yes."
"So he had the brands? Pop, was he the one who...?"
"Yes. He ended the life of an evil man."
Peter fastened his eyes on Kacie's face, peaceful in repose. "Then-then-then he saved her twice."
"Yes."
"Pop, Wong has been in Chinatown for a long time. Those brands are hard to hide. Why is it that you didn't know of him? Or-or-or Lo Si? You're both Shambhala masters. Couldn't you sense his presence, his training?"
Caine shrugged. "We are Shambhala masters. We are not omniscient. Chin Lee had buried the light within him with evil deeds and darkness. He hid the brands from the world --" Caine tugged on his own long-sleeved shirt cuff. "-- By tailoring his shirts to always cover his arms. His servants were forbidden to speak of them. Even his own family did not know."
Peter held Kacie's hand in both of his. "Did he help Kacie because he was grateful to her for the way she treated him when he was a patient here?"
Caine nodded. "He could see the light within her. He knew of her child. He felt strongly that the line of Caine must continue. He appointed himself her avenger when she was taken. He became her protector when she was rescued."
"I wish I could have thanked him before he died, Pop. Even though he stood for everything I hate, I'll never forget what he did for Kace." Peter felt Caine's eyes upon him and turned his head to lock stares with his father. "He sacrificed himself for her. That makes up for an awful lot of things in my mind, Pop."
"No man can completely cover his evil deeds. But...Chin Lee found his path again. Before he crossed over, he became truly Shaolin."
"It's finally over, isn't it, Pop? Are we finally safe to look forward to our future?"
"We are."
Caine's next words were so low, Peter didn't hear them.
"For now."