“I cannot give it to you.”
“Why not?” Keishin asked.
“Because I had to swallow it to hide it from the Shiikuin.”
“I…I understand. That was the right thing to do,” Hana said.
“I cannot give it to you,” Haruto said. “But I can tell youeverything I saw. I know that it was not my place to look, but after I had folded time, I could not stop myself. I am sorry.”
“Thank you.” Hana threw her arms around him. “Thank you.”
“But Hana…” Haruto said.
“Yes?”
“The story I will tell you will not be easy to hear.”
Chapter Thirty-three
The Trial and Sentencing of Ishikawa Chiyo
Twenty-one years ago
The morning at the pawnshop began as it always did, with the bubbling of a kettle and the brewing of green tea. Beyond that, nothing was the same. A heaviness filled the room, making it difficult to breathe.
“Say something,” Chiyo said, her thin hands wringing her skirt over her lap. “Anything. Please.”
Toshio looked up at her from across the table. “Nothing I can say will change the fate you have doomed all of us to live.”
“What I did,” Chiyo said, “I did for us.”
“You did it for yourself.”
“Perhaps.” Chiyo lowered her eyes. “And I would do it again.”
“But you cannot.” Toshio slammed his fist on the table and stood up. “You cannot do it again. You will not be able to do anything ever again because, after today, you will be dead.”
Chiyo walked toward him. “I am still here now.”
Toshio took a step back, breathing hard. “Don’t.”
Chiyo circled her arms around him and pressed her cheek against his chest. “Tell her stories about me so that she won’t forget about her mother.”
“I will tell Hana one story about you.” Toshio pushed her away. “I will tell her about this day so that she will know never to be as foolish as her mother.”
“Will you really let these be the last words we exchange, Toshio? You loved me once…”
“I…” Tears eroded the edges of Toshio’s voice. “I still do.”
“But you wish that you did not.”
Toshio clenched his jaw. “I wish I could hate you for what you have done to us. It would be easier to forget you when you are gone.”
“And I wish that I did not have to steal that choice, but it was the only way.”
“There was another way.” Toshio’s voice broke. “You could have been content with what you had. You could have just been happy. You…you were always enough for me.”
“Then have me now,” Chiyo said. “While we still have time.”
