Electric Shadows of Shanghai by Clare Kane

Author:Clare Kane [Kane, Clare]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781911293033
Google: dUvDAQAACAAJ
Goodreads: 28243630
Publisher: Watchword
Published: 2015-12-18T05:00:00+00:00

Feifei immediately fell asleep in the guest room. The bed was comfortable, the sheets as warm as an embrace against her skin. She had cried all her energy out, there was nothing to do but submit to sleep and think about the consequences tomorrow. She woke two or three times in the night, each time seized with panic when she recalled what had happened. She thought of Will’s hard, steely face when he told her she had to go elsewhere.

Morning came quickly and Feifei woke to the door bursting open.

‘You need to leave now, before my wife gets up.’ Will stood in the doorway, his Chinese barking and harsh.

‘Wei’er, I’m so sorry,’ Feifei said flatly.

‘Hurry up. Where are your clothes?’

‘My dress is ruined.’ Feifei would meet him with the same coldness, if that was what he wanted. She rested her head deeper into the pillow. ‘Your wife is so kind I thought she might lend me some clothes today. She really is a lovely woman, Will.’

‘Yes, yes. A lovely woman. Come on. Where is your dress?’

‘She took it.’ Feifei saw that Will was getting impatient. He strode over to the bed and Feifei wondered for a moment if he might strike her, if he might colour the bruised palette of her face again. But instead he sat down on the bed beside her and took her hand.

‘I’m sorry, Feifei. I don’t mean to be cruel. I simply panicked last night and I’m panicking now. What were you thinking of coming here?’ Feifei reached long fingers out towards his wrist and rubbed it gently. There was no point, she thought, in making an enemy of Will, not when everything else remained so uncertain.

‘Longwei hit me, Will. We had a terrible argument. He told me I can’t be in films anymore.’

‘What?’ Will seemed genuinely shocked. ‘How can he say that?’

Feifei let her eyes close and sighed. ‘I can’t tell you, I can’t tell anyone. But it’s a disaster, for me, for my daughter, my mother.’ She had been trying to elicit sympathy from Will but was surprised to find tears, real, ugly ones, spilling out from under her closed eyes. She let her body go slack as Will leant over and held her.

‘Ssh, ssh. Everything’s going to be all right. You’ve still got Hollywood.’ He laughed softly and she did too, hiccuping into his shoulder.

‘Morning, Feifei. I brought a dress that might fit you … oh!’ They both turned to see Amelia in the corner of the room, a blue dress crumpled over her arm. ‘I’ll just leave it here.’ She set the dress down on the back of a chair and pulling her spine straight left the room, closing the door hard behind her.

‘Will, I’m so sorry.’ Feifei looked at him, stricken. She reached to touch his face but he pushed her away.

‘Get up, Feifei, you need to go.’

‘I’m sorry.’ She frowned. ‘Will we start our lessons again?’

‘I thought you had to stop.’

‘Because of Longwei. But I don’t think he’ll be home for a while now.

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