The Lamb and the Gray Battle

October 1, 1981

Frankie leaned on the desk. Dr. Ian Kearney was a spindly man, ancient. The man declared that he was over two hundred years old. His hair was wild, completely white and darting in all directions. But nothing else hinted that he had demon blood.

"I want to know everything about Mrs. Ao," Frankie said.

Dr. Kearney put a stack of books in front of him. "Then you'll have to learn the way the rest of us did."

"You know who she is."

"Of course, I do. Every Irish scholar has figured it out. And we're all smart enough to keep our mouths shut."

"Just tell me."

"And get myself killed? No, thank you."

"Ao Guang is impotent."

"King Ao Guang," Dr. Kearney said.

"You called him Ao Guang in your book."

"Yes, and you must have skipped a few chapters."

Frankie said, "Ao Guang used to be like that, but now he's a kitten. He hasn't killed anybody—"

"Since I was a small child," Dr. Kearney interrupted. "Just because he hasn't, doesn't mean he can't."

"How do you know she exists?"

Dr. Kearney said, "Nianzang wasn't born of the foam. And if you actually read, you'd be able to figure it out for yourself."

"I did read."

"Oh really? Tell me about She-Meimei."

"Servant girl. Got herself killed after Prince Nianzang was poisoned."

"She was a princess of the She Clan," Dr. Kearney said. "Serpent Clan, cousins of the dragon clans. Madame Long thought she would please her son."

"Ao Guang wasn't going to lower himself to some snake-lizard demon."

"King."

"King," Frankie said.

Dr. Ian folded his arms. "And what was he going to lower himself to, young man?"

Frankie groaned. Though King Ao Guang was known for being liberal with his son, he also advertised that he took a vow of celibacy in 1446. Frankie turned to the stack of books, started organizing the lineage section of the Dublin University Library.