Chapter 86: Insight into the Map
The sunlight hit Kian like a blunt palm across the face.
He squinted against it, mouth dry and tasting of stale wine, and for a long moment the ceiling above him refused to make sense.
Where am I?
The couch beneath his back was too short, one leg hung off the edge, and something warm was curled against his chest, breathing in slow, even puffs.
Jia?
Hm, did I come back home yesterday night?
His mind was still groggy.
Oh, the woman in his arms was not Jia.
It was Jiao Yin.
Her hair tickled his nose, her head tucked under his chin.
He blinked the sleep from his eyes and tried to remember why half his body felt like wet sand.
The last clear image was moonlight on bare skin, Jia’s legs hooked around his waist, the high branch swaying like a ship in the wind. Then, he and Jia had found a weird fruit and he had eaten it.
After that, the night turned into a smear of cold air and distant lanterns, and somehow he had ended up back here.
He shifted carefully, and the movement pulled a soft grumble out of Jiao Yin.
"Young master." Her voice came out without much sleep, and she opened her eyes to look at him. "You’re awake."
Kian let his head drop back against the cushion and groaned. "Barely."
Jiao Yin yawned against his chest and slowly pushed herself up on one elbow, blinking at the noon light spilling through the window slats.
"What happened last night?" Kian asked.
His voice sounded like gravel rolling around in an empty cup.
Jiao Yin rubbed one eye and sat up the rest of the way, her thin robe slipping off one shoulder.
"You came back late, carrying Jia. She was already asleep, so you put her to bed." She paused, then added with a small shrug, "Then you came out here and started drinking."
Kian grunted.
That explained the sour taste on his tongue.
"I woke up when I heard the cups," Jiao Yin said.
She pulled her knees up and hugged them, watching him with an interested expression.
"You kept saying the night was too good to waste, so I sat with you."
Kian turned his head, one brow arching. "And then?"
Jiao Yin smiled faintly, not quite meeting his eyes.
"You drank too much and fell asleep on the couch. I tried to wake you, but you pulled me down and wouldn’t let go."
She paused, then added in a quieter voice, "So I just stayed."
Kian stared up at the ceiling for another long breath, then looked at the empty cups scattered across the low table.
The wine bottle lay on its side, a dark ring staining the wood beneath its mouth.
His arm still tingled with returning blood, but he made no move to pull it free from under her warmth.
"Jiao Yin."
"Yes?"
"Help me up."
Jiao Yin left the couch and helped Kian up.
Kian was still swaying when Jia stormed into the living room, her hair a wild nest and her robe hanging off one shoulder.
"On hell," she snapped, jabbing a finger at his chest. "What the fuck was that fruit last night? I feel my head shake."
Kian caught her wrist before she could jab him again. "It’s a heavily alcoholic fruit."
"And you left me on the bed alone. That’s also annoying."
"I thought you didn’t mind, since you were asleep."
"I did mind! I woke up twice and it was annoying to be alone." Jia tried to pull her hand free, but he held it, and her scowl only deepened.
Kian opened his mouth, then closed it. Arguing with Jia in this state was like throwing stones at a hornet’s nest.
Jiao Yin quietly stepped around them and began gathering the empty cups, keeping her head up curiously.
Jia’s glare moved to her, then back to Kian. "And you dragged Jiao Yin into your mess too. Look at you two cuddling on the couch like that."
Kian rubbed his forehead. "I fell asleep."
Before Jia could fire back, Mia walked in from the garden, a small watering can dangling from her fingers and dirt smudged on the hem of her robe.
"You were not alone, Jia," Mia said calmly, setting the can by the door. "I was there."
Jia blinked, her whole body going still. Then she looked from Mia to Kian and back again, her mouth opening and closing like a fish pulled from a pond.
"Oh yeah," she muttered. "You were."
She couldn’t quite tell that she wanted Kian to be the one there. Even Jia was not that mean.
Mia looked between Kian and Jia, then set the watering can down with a soft clink and wiped her hands on her robe.
"You two were super drunk last night. Like, embarrassing drunk. Kian was trying to kiss me calling me Jia, so I kicked him out." She held Kian’s gaze, her mouth curving into a little smile.
"Ah, you guys are twins. Don’t blame me!"
Mia scoffed. "But before that, Mother is already up. She’s been checking that map all night."
Kian’s head stopped throbbing for half a second. The fuzziness behind his eyes sharpened into one cold, focused point.
"The map?"
Mia nodded toward the back room. "She hasn’t moved since before dawn. She said you told her to look into it."
Kian frowned.
He didn’t remember saying that either. Fuck, he should really stop eating random fruits in this world.
He didn’t remember much after the moonlit branch and the fruit, and he sure as hell didn’t remember telling Feimei to study anything alone.
"Where is she now?"
Mia pointed toward the corridor. "Her room. Still bent over the table, last I looked."
Jia made a small, annoyed sound behind him, but Kian was already moving, crossing the living room with a speed that made the windows rattle in their frames.
He found Feimei seated by the low table near the window, the skin-map spread before her like a peeled-open secret.
Her black hair had fallen loose, and her red eyes were too bright, too focused, tracing the dried blood circle over and over.
"Why are you doing this without me?" Kian asked from the doorway.
Feimei looked up, blinking like she’d been pulled out of deep water.
She was confused.
"Didn’t you tell me to look into it?"
Kian exhaled through his nose, scrubbing a hand over his face. "Oh shit, I was drunk."
Feimei blinked. "Oh, it’s okay. I found something anyway."