The Storm Gathers in Hexia

The air in Hexia was thick with an unspoken tension, a suffocating humidity that had nothing to do with the city’s proximity to the mighty Yangtze River. It was a city holding its breath. The usual vibrant pulse of commerce and life had been replaced by a low, predatory hum. In the shadowed corners of ancient teahouses and the tinted windows of luxury sedans that prowled the streets like panthers, unseen eyes watched and waited. Forces that had remained dormant for decades, even centuries,...