Chapter 4: A Thread Unraveled, IV
When morning came, I rolled up the futon and moved around the shop like a ghost. My hands knew the routine even if my mind didn't.
Shuji said nothing. He only watched me—the kind of watching a man does when he's already guessing what you'll say before you say it.
I finally broke the silence.
"There was a handprint."
He didn't ask where. He didn't ask whose.
He just nodded, then turned away. "Go back to the Tachibana estate."
That was all.
***
The sun was low and bright by the time I arrived. A few servants bustled around the gate, sweeping leaves and hanging freshly laundered curtains along the outer walkway. Rin was already outside, seated beneath a blooming bush of late-season chrysanthemums. She wore a darker kimono this time, sleeves gathered loosely in her lap. She looked up when she saw me, and didn't wait to speak.
"You saw it again."
I nodded.