Mrs Pa woke to find that it was morning: not dawn, but full into the day with the sun burning through the blinds of the room in the temple annex and the smell of jasmine drifting through the air like a scented sea.
"Here," Inari's voice said. "I've brought you some tea."
Mrs Pa struggled into wakefulness; she felt as though she'd been asleep for years.
"Precious Dragon—?"
"Precious Dragon woke not long ago and now he's sitting outside with Mhara and Robin. He's quite safe."
"Nothing came in the night?" Mrs Pa questioned.
"Nothing came," Inari reassured her. But in that, Mrs Pa soon discovered, Inari had, unbeknowingly, lied.
They might not have noticed the footprint if Precious Dragon hadn't spotted a bird in the bushes and gone over to look at it. His exclamation of surprise brought Robin running, and caused Mhara to turn his head and walk slowly over. Inari and Mrs Pa, hearing some commotion, rushed outside.
"What is it?" Inari breathed. The footprint was at least eight feet long, a spined, spiked ridge: if it had not been imprinted so clearly in the soft earth around the temple, Mrs Pa might have taken it for erosion.
"It is a kuei," Mhara said, crouching down by the footprint and holding out a hand. His face was very grave.
"But how can that be?" Mrs Pa asked, bewildered. "I thought you said they'd taken human size, like the ones we saw."
Mhara's blue gaze came up to meet her own. "I thought they had."
"But if this great big thing was outside, why didn't we hear it? Why didn't it attack us?"
Mhara raised a hand and gestured toward the outer limits of the bushes. Mrs Pa blinked. A blue glow was visible, the color of a summer sea or an azure sky, perhaps a hundred yards around the perimeter of the temple, just inside the clawed end of the footprint.
"I put this place under heavy wards last night, the strongest that I know," Mhara said. "I've also sent a message to my cousin Kuan Yin and asked for her protection. She is held back in much that she tries to do these days, but I believe she has done something, for we were not touched as we slept. I don't think the kuei that made this footprint was any larger than the kuei that you saw, but it is a message: they are powerful and they are on their way. We need to get to Sulai-Ba, therefore."
"I will do my best," Mrs Pa said. The idea of another long walk made her heart sink. "But I'm afraid that I'll slow you down."
Mhara smiled. "You'll be traveling in a lot more comfort than you did yesterday, Mrs Pa. I've sent for a car."
"Goodness me," Mrs Pa said faintly, when the car arrived.
Mhara had the grace to look embarrassed. "It's not the sort of thing I'd normally choose to travel in," he said, as they stood in front of the gleaming white and silver limousine. It was at least twenty feet in length. "I'm afraid it's the kind of official vehicle that Heaven thinks I should have, as the son of the Emperor."
"What sort of car do you think you should have?" Mrs Pa asked.
"Something small that runs on ecological fuel. Or a bicycle. My Heavenly clan is living in the past, you see. They're much too grand."
"Perhaps you should ask for a bicycle."
"I did. They sent me this."
"Oh dear," Mrs Pa said, but secretly she was rather impressed by the big car. At least they could get everyone in it, although Robin stayed behind to look after the temple in Mhara's absence. Mrs Pa worried about that, but then again, Robin couldn't actually be killed and that was encouraging. Neither could Inari, who was also staying behind, at Mhara's insistence. She had wanted to come, but the Emperor's son said that it would be better if they went alone to Sulai-Ba, because the kuei were more likely to follow them there. But even though Inari could not be slain, she could still be sent back to Hell, and Mrs Pa worried about that, too.
Precious Dragon sat with Mrs Pa in the second row of seats in the limousine. The back rows stretched behind them, fading into dimness. The limo seemed much longer from the inside than it did even from without, and the rows of seats made Mrs Pa uneasy, as though she might look back and see something suddenly sitting there.
Then Mhara joined her in a flurry of indigo garments.
"Who is driving?" Mrs Pa wondered aloud. But as she spoke, a shadowy form appeared in the driver's seat and a beautiful face looked calmly back at them. Mrs Pa couldn't tell whether it was a man or a woman, nor how old it was. It had pale golden eyes and white hair, but its face was unlined. Of course, it must be from Heaven, and things were different there. Mrs Pa felt a sharp pang, a sensation familiar to her in the years after Mai's death. This is where Mai should have been, not Hell. The thought of everything that had been denied to her daughter made her heartsick. You cannot let yourself be bitter, she thought. Look what has come of that old mistake, and she turned her gaze to her grandson instead. The pearl made a small bulge in his cheek.
"Are you all right, Grandma?" Precious Dragon asked, with that penetrating gaze, and she lied as she answered, "Why yes, I'm fine."
Doors closing, said the limo. The driver put a gloved hand on the wheel and they glided out into the suburbs toward the city center. This was much better than walking. Mrs Pa was even able to enjoy the view of the passing shops; normally, she did not have the time to look, but as the limo sped toward Sulai-Ba down long, tree-lined boulevards she marveled at the chic designer clothes in artful boutiques, the well-dressed people sitting at pavement cafés over long, cool drinks. That was the sort of life that her employers enjoyed. It must be nice, she thought. But none of them had a grandson as marvelous as Precious Dragon, and none of them was riding in a limousine with the son of the Emperor of Heaven. The life of an elderly cleaner was not without incident, after all.
They passed the Opera, which looked far more splendid than Mrs Pa remembered, and then the beautiful designer homes in the district just beyond Sulai-Ba, finally drawing to a halt in a neat little street in front of a small park. Hibiscus blossoms blazed red in a hedge and jasmine spilled down onto the sidewalk.
"We'll have to walk from here," Mhara said. "There isn't room for the car around Sulai-Ba itself. Can you manage, Mrs Pa?"
"I'll be fine," Mrs Pa said. Mhara helped her out of the car, just as the Celestial chauffeur melted away.
The street was really quite run-down, and several of the houses were boarded up and derelict. Litter was strewn about the sidewalk. The lawns of the little park were yellow and dusty in the heat; the jasmine shriveled and wilting. Only the hibiscus still blazed redly in the hedge.
"That," Mhara said quietly, following her gaze, "is another reason why I'm not keen on using the car. It—changes things."
He led them through the little park. Mrs Pa sighed. It had been such a wonderful city, and yet it had all been illusion. She'd once heard that the Buddha had made a similar journey when he was still a human prince; his father had made sure that he saw only the most beautiful things along the way, sweeping the beggars aside. Then the Buddha had realized how things really were and renounced all his wealth. It seemed Mhara had similar views and she respected him all the more for that. She could see now why he'd been so keen on a bicycle.
"We're not far from Sulai-Ba," Mhara said, clearly wanting to reassure Mrs Pa. But her blisters had healed overnight, and the walk was not nearly as painful as it had been on the previous day, even though she was still stiff. Besides, she could see the ruined temple now above the heat-bleached trees, the shattered roof rising in a dark arc over the city. She reached out and took Precious Dragon by the hand, not knowing what else they might find inside the vaults of Sulai-Ba.