“What am I, chopped liver?” Shota scoffed. He brandished hiskusarigama.
Kai scoffed. “You never were a match for me, Kaga. I could kill you without breaking asweat.”
“Kaga?” Shota repeated, blinking in confusion. “Are…are yousaying…?”
“This is ridiculous,” I snapped. “Raiden is not Haruki, and Shota is notKaga!”
Tears burned at the corners of my eyes, and I felt the sudden, irrational need to stomp my foot and engage in a full-on temper tantrum. “I’m not Fumiko, and none of this is real! You’re just using your magic to manipulate us, aren’t you!” I accused, jabbing a finger athim.
Kai’s face slackened with shock. “You really have no idea, do you?” He glared at Raiden over my shoulder. “Did you deliberately keep this from her? And you sayI’mselfish!”
“Wait a damn second.” Raiden held up his hands. His gaze darted between us, and he looked as if someone had just dropped an anvil on him. “I knew about you and me, but I had no idea Shota wasKaga!”
I whirled around to face Raiden. “What is that supposed to mean?” I demanded. “Were you lying to me this wholetime?”
“No.” Raiden clenched his jaw. “I wasn’t certain it was true, so I didn’t push it. But I did warn you back at Ryujin’s palace that there was a strong possibility you might be Fumiko reincarnated. That’s why I didn’t want to come here, but you dismissed myconcerns.”
“Yeah, well, you didn’t exactly give me specifics, and youdefinitelydidn’t tell me aboutyoubeing Haruki’s reincarnation.” I crossed my arms over my chest. “Is Kai telling the truth aboutthat?”
“You already know that I am,” Kai said. “The moonlight in your hand isproof.”
I frowned. I’d completely forgotten about the sliver of moonlight. My heart sank as I realized it hadn’t pulsed in my hand, not once during this entire conversation. Either Kai was telling the truth,or...
“You could be mistaken,” I said, my voice tinged with desperation. “Just because you believe I’m Fumiko doesn’t mean it’s true. And Raiden andShota…”
“Aika.” Raiden’s voice was heavy with defeat. “I had strange dreams when I was small, dreams in which I saw both your face and Kai’s. And when I was fourteen, a fortune teller told me I would meet a woman who would help me reunite theclans.”
“Raiden told me all about the dreams,” Shota said. “When he first met you, he said the memories came rushing back, and that he was confident you were the person the fortune teller hadmentioned.”
“Sothat’swhy you’ve been pushing me away.” My mind whirled with the implications of all this, even as relief at finally knowing the truth swept through me. “Because some fortune teller told you guys that Raiden and I are supposed to betogether?”
“Ridiculous,” Kai scoffed. “That fortune teller is obviously a charlatan. Haruki is the wrong man for you, Fumiko. He will only bring you ruin anddisappointment.”
“I think you’ve got me confused with yourself,” Raiden snarled, his face reddening with anger. “Youare the one who brought ruin and disappointment on us all when you killedKaga!”
Kai flinched. “I admit that killing Kaga was a mistake,” he said. “Amatsu whispered lies in my ear and convinced me that Kaga was going to kill Fumiko once the four of us completed the marriageritual.”
“Wait a damn second.” Shota held up a hand. “Thefourof us? What does that mean? I thought she was marryingHaruki!”
Kai shook his head. “You really don’t remember anything, do you?” His gaze locked with mine. “Do you truly recall nothing of our time together,Fumiko?”
“I…” I wracked my brain for something,anything,that linked me to him. But though I felt that same tug in my heart I felt for Raiden and Shota, I was drawing a blank. How was all of this possible? Was I somehow imprinting on every male shaman I ran across? But then again, I’d felt no connection at all when I’d first met Mamoru, and he was ashaman.
Thank the gods for that.The very idea of being forcibly attracted to that old man made meshudder.
“I can see you are familiar with all the players in our story,” Kai said silkily, “but clearly you all have the wrong version. Fumiko did not choose Haruki. She choseallofus.”
“All?” Raiden said in a strangled voice. “She was going to marry all three clanleaders?”
“Well that explains a lot,” Shota said weakly. He was staring at me as if he’d never seen me before. “A shaman queen with three husbands. That has to be afirst.”
“There were some who protested, but Queen Himiko approved of Fumiko’s decision,” Kai said. He smiled proudly at me. “You were strong like your mother, Fumiko, but you did not have her head or passion for battle. You knew that choosing only one of us for your husband would not be enough to quell the hostilities, so you decided to bind yourself to all ofus.”
“You’re lying,” Raiden growled. He took a step toward Kai, gripping hiskatanatighter. “There is no way she was meant to marry all ofus.”
“For once, you and I are in agreement,” Kai said, raising his sword. “Fumiko is mine, and I shall complete the marriage ritual once and for all and break thiscurse!”
“Stop it!” I shrieked as the two of them charged at each other. Raiden’s dragon blade flashed with white-hot energy, and he launched a lightning bolt atKai.
