Dragon Lady of Shanghai

An excerpt from Dragon Lady of Shanghai

The metallic strike of a Zippo echoed from behind Garvy. He straightened and started to turn.

"Easy, Mistaah Gaahvy," came the cool, feminine voice of China. "I must aask you to put down youah revolvaah." Garvy heard her take a heavy drag off a cigarette.

The detective dropped the Enfield on the floor and turned slowly. Wan How Mai stood before him, smoking casually, a silver pistol of Asian make held loosely in her left hand. More shocking was how her nude form was only lightly draped in rich red silk marked with golden Mandarin characters. The swell of her bosoms, the plane of her belly, and one sleek, bare thigh lay boldly exposed.

"You have quite a way of slipping up behind a man, Mai," Garvy drawled.

She smiled and blew a smoky plume at him. "It will be the laast time, Mistaah Gaahvy."

"Oh, I don't think so, doll." And like lightning, his hand flicked out from the folds of his trenchcoat and unleashed the length of slender chain. It struck her hand and knocked the gun aside, but when he snatched it back, it caught the flimsy silk robe around her shoulders and tore it open, exposing her nakedness to him. She started to turn, but he rushed at her and twisted the pistol out of her grip as he caught her up in his arms from behind.

"Beast!" Mai hissed. "I'll burn you!" And she jabbed out her cigarette on the back of his hand. Garvy grunted but held firm, gripping her bare belly with one hand and her naked breast with the other.

"You little yellow tart," he growled.

She squealed and twisted in his grasp, bringing her face perilously close to his. "You filthy beast," she gasped as she struggled. "Release me!"

But Garvy pulled her closer. "Stop struggling, Mai. It's no use." Their eyes met in a burning gaze. Her dark orbs burned with hatred... or something more. He loosened his grip and she pulled away, backed away into the ornate divan, her silk robe falling away.

"You filthy beast," she said again, this time quieter, staring intensely, completely naked now, but for a pair of red high heels.