Himitsu (Book One of the Kakureta Hana series)

XIII: Ju San

At first, I think it is a dream.  A strange dream, sure, but a dream nonetheless.

I have not seen Yori for what has seemed like ages, and my body yowls with the fact that it is not receiving even the little bit of food she sneaks to me.

Moriko has all but outgrown her own clothes, and I have wrapped her in my kimono, making her look even thinner and even more fragile than she is.  I can count my ribs without much effort, feeling only hard bone where muscle and fat used to be.

I am curled in the corner of the cell, Moriko asleep against the crook of my bent arm.  Idly I trace the stones of the wall next to me with my free hand, noticing that I seem to be leaving more grime on the wall than it is leaving on me.

I sigh, laying my head against my shoulder and watching Moriko's lips move in her sleep.  In the silence, I miss even what little noise she makes when she is awake.  And I wish that Yori had had more news for me about Ryuu the last time I had seen her.

The quiet begins to unnerve me, and I move my ear closer to the babe until I can hear her slight breaths.  Anything to break the oppressive weight of nothingness.

Then I hear it: the creak of a door opening somewhere in the darkness.  The faint sound of feet moving across the floor before the sound of a door gently closing echoes.  My heart beats against my chest as I sit up and press myself against the wall, listening to the same noises again as they seem to get closer.

It is clearly someone who is looking for something, hence why they are opening all the doors.  However, they do not seem to know that I am here, and I hope that whoever they are, they find what they seek long before they reach the cell I am in.

Moriko whimpers, a faint noise, but I pull her closer to my chest, praying that the searcher did not hear her.  It does not seem as if they did, for the footsteps do not rush to where we are immediately.

They do continue to get closer, the almost rhythmic sound of opening and shutting doors causing my fear to grow the louder they become.  I shut my eyes, knowing that if we are found, I do not stand a chance of defending myself against even the weakest of people.

Even my breathing seems too loud as I hear the door directly across from mine open, the cell that Emi had been in.  Frozen with eyes locked on the shadowy form of the door, I hold my breath, barely hearing a mumbled curse coming from the person outside.

The door shuts a little harder than those that had preceded it, and I hear the footsteps move across the hall.  For what seems like an eternity, I wait for the sound of them trying to open the door, and just as I am about to breathe out a sigh of relief, I hear a metallic clang.

I pull my knees up to my chest, bowing my head over the tent that I have made to cover Moriko.  "Please...please," I whisper almost silently, terror making my mouth stiff.

When the air brightens, I dare to look up, eyes barely picking out a person standing in the partially open doorway.  Once my eyes adjust to the light, they immediately dart to the dagger that is clutched in the intruder's right hand.

Has Taro sent someone to kill me?  If so, why did he not tell him where to find me?

Then I allow my gaze to drift further up, mind registering that the way the unknown person stood was familiar.  Once I manage to see their face, I definitely wonder if I am dreaming.

That is, until they begin to close the door, clearly unable to see me in the dark corner.

"Wait," I say, praying that they hear my faint voice.

The man hesitates for a moment, back already half-turned away, before whispering, "Sakura?"

"Please tell me that I am not sleeping."