Xiang sat alone at a table in the club’s upper balcony, watching the partiers below. He was bored. Out. Of. His. Fucking. Mind. And when a pair of beautiful women approached him and tried to say hi, he ignored them, and they moved on, throwing shade at him as they departed. Xiang didn’t care. He wasn’t the kind of man who enjoyed satisfying fleeting desires, and he hadn’t come here to party. He was enduring this cesspit for one reason only: to lay low until he had the opportunity to use Pandora’s Box. Until then, all he could do was sit, wait, and try not to go insane. At least Talon had no difficulty passing the time here. He was down on the dance floor, tearing it up in a performance that was part acrobatics, part martial arts, and all attitude. People had backed away to give him room, and now a small crowd watched him, clapping and cheering as he executed one seemingly impossible move after another Xiang saw a large man making his way through the crowd. At first glance, there was nothing special about him. He was tall, fit, muscled, and tattooed, and he exuded absolute confidence, as if there wasn’t a man—or woman—in the place that he couldn’t take on. A bonafide badass, Xiang thought, but then so were a lot of people here. But what set this man apart were subtle qualities that most people would never recognize. But then Xiang wasn’t most people. Outwardly, the man appeared to be just another partier trying to get the lay of the land, checking people out, looking for a bed partner or someone to pick a fight with. Maybe both. But he moved with a relaxed precision that told Xiang this was a man whose mind and body were in perfect balance. And while he looked at the people he passed with what appeared to be only mild interest, Xiang could see the intense concentration concealed in his gaze. This was a warrior, and he’d come here looking for something—or someone. Xiang smiled. Now things were getting interesting.
xXx: Return of Xander Cage: The Official Novelization, Tim Waggoner
