Trancing the Tiger (Chinese Zodiac Romance Series Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page A

face and bare arms clung damp against her skin. Never mind what on earth had compelled her to do so. As she’d darted through the Gardens, her instincts had taken over.
    Hide. Mask my scent.
    She’d made a false track toward the creek before doubling back to these bushes on the opposite side of the clearing.
    Opposite from them.
    She sank into the burrow she’d dug with her nails as a familiar figure stalked into view near the pavilion. Sheng. What the hell was he doing here? Meeting his friends?
    He paused, cocking his head this way and that. Searching.
    For me?
    As his friends joined him, a spike of panic jolted her spine, paralyzing her. A force deep inside her recoiled, snapping the boundaries of her sanity.
    From the group she’d fled earlier, one man stepped forward. He inclined his head, and his eyes gleamed…orange. The color and the menace glinting from them didn’t blast the air from her lungs. Her recognition of him did.
    Snake.
    Every bone in her body screamed that this man, he was the one to fear. Why? She frowned, certain she’d never met him. As she blinked, the sci-fi effect of his glowing eyes disappeared. Must have imagined it.
    Sheng and the snake-eyed man exchanged words, too low for her to detect. The two flanking men shoved the middle man toward Sheng. Perhaps they weren’t so friendly.
    The leader and his two companions slithered off. Continuing their search for me?
    Sheng and the man remained in the clearing, joined by two others who drifted out of the forest like an image from a painting—they’d blended so well.
    A perfectly mastered animalistic control settled over Sheng. With precise movements, he rotated in a circle, his brows slashed in determination as he examined every inch of the clearing.
    For me.
    She slapped her hand over her mouth to muffle the sounds of her breaths. The snake-man hadn’t caught her. Would Sheng?
    After several minutes, he shook his head at his friends. Demonstrating feral grace, he stepped into the center of the clearing. “Lucy, if you value your life, come forward.”
    Her brows shot up at his commanding declaration. She hadn’t survived this long by placing her trust in the wrong people.
    The tall, slender woman brushed past him. “Try a little civility, Li.”
    He scowled at the young woman’s chiding, but didn’t argue with her.
    “Lucy, I’m Mei. I know you’re frightened, but some very bad people are about to swarm this place and we’d really rather not be here when they do. I imagine you wouldn’t either.” She offered her hand. As much of a white flag as Lucy was ever going to get. “Please. We won’t hurt you.”
    Lucy’s nose twitched and her gaze fixed on those dangling fingers. The girl seemed trustworthy enough. The three men with her, not so much.
    What if the warning rang true? How long could she hide? The air emitted the warmth of day, but not for long. The thin camisole and skirt she wore wouldn’t protect her against the cool night. She chewed her bottom lip. The moment she abandoned this burrow or made any movement, they’d discern her location.
    Mei glanced back at the others, shrugging.
    Their actions didn’t appear hostile. Didn’t mean she trusted them. If she bolted, she might be able to outrun them. She’d won first place in every track and field event she’d participated in, until her parents had pulled her out, declaring she’d be better off focusing on her studies.
    Each night after that, she’d snuck out, sprinting through the empty streets. Even as an adult.
    Until the quarantine.
    She suppressed a shudder. Here goes nothing.
    Soundlessly, she rose and took one step back. All four heads jerked in her direction. She sucked in a breath and bolted out of the thicket, heading for the main entrance because she hadn’t spotted any others on her map.
    Pounding footsteps tracked hers. She pumped her arms and legs faster across the grass clearing, nearly taking flight as she vaulted across the narrow creek. The tangle