The King's Queen

Chapter 69

Shock paralyzed his body; his mouth opened and closed, but no words came out. His eyes bulged as he stared at the person before him, and then all the breath in his body converged in a single broken gasp.

"Ren."

***

13 years ago- Japan

The breeze whistled through the garden trees, shaking the cherry blossoms down to the two boys playing in the yard. Kiyoshi squinted through the mist of petals and then brought his arm back to throw the ball. Jun just managed to catch it, and his face scrunched up as if he'd eaten something sour.

"Throw it back!" Kiyoshi called out to his brother. A tiny frown crossed his face when he saw Jun's expression. "Does it still hurt?"

"Nope," Jun answered quickly, massaging his wrist. The bandages were coming undone. Jun knew that if he admitted to being in pain, his mother would forbid him to play.

"Mother isn't here," Kiyoshi reminded Jun, almost as if he could read his thoughts. "Father says she won't be back until nightfall."

The two boys exchanged a delighted grin at that. Their mother was the most beautiful woman in the region. Her hair swept down her hips like a tapestry spun with charcoal threads, her dark eyes glistened like a thousand falling stars, and her lips were as red as blood.

The brothers; however, were convinced that she could not bleed and that she must be an onryō* (a vengeful ghost). Her heart was like granite.

Jun took a small step forward and tossed the ball back to Kiyoshi. The ball missed its mark by mere inches and rolled through the garden before coming to rest near the engawa* (a Japanese-style veranda/terrace). Kiyoshi followed it, sifting through the grass with his hand.

"Ki-chan, is that you?"

Kiyoshi looked up at the weak voice that spoke to him. Ren was lying on a tatami mat, his head barely propped high enough to see below the engawa. Kiyoshi immediately smiled at the sight of his other brother.

"What are you reading, nii nii* (older brother)?" he asked, momentarily forgetting his search for the elusive ball after seeing the bright red book in Ren's hand.

"It's a story about a dragon." Ren's body trembled as tried to sit up. Kiyoshi immediately went up to the engawa to help him. Ren's skin was ice cold. "The dragon is all alone and searching for his family."

Jun soon came over to see what was taking Kiyoshi so long. Ren stared wistfully at the ball in Jun's hand. "C-Can I play, too?"

"You have to stand up first," Kiyoshi said, nodding enthusiastically. He quickly scanned the garden for any sign of his mother, but of course, she was nowhere to be seen.

She won't be back until nightfall, he reminded himself.

Kiyoshi tried to assist Ren, but he couldn't do it by himself. He glanced at Jun for help. Jun also looked around before coming closer. Ren eyed the bandages on Jun's hand. It was his fault his brother had gotten hurt.

Jun reached a hand out to Ren, but a blur that moved with lightning speed immediately pushed him back. Before either of them had time to process what was happening, Jun flew across the engawa, colliding with the wall.

A red imprint was forming on his face as he stared wide-eyed at the woman in front of him, both beautiful and heartless.

Lady Fujihara's eyes burned with fury as she lowered the hand that had struck Jun. Kiyoshi and Ren shrank back against the magnitude of her presence. She wasn't supposed to be back yet.