Page 29 of Old Secrets

Aiko giggled, and she said, “We can take care of that matter with little difficulty.”

Before I could begin the dance of paying for the piece, Jake had his wallet out, and he approached one of the miko, gesturing to the painting I liked. Aiko assisted him with the sale, and like my ofuda, they packaged the painting and the wooden board it was mounted on in a box. Jake adopted the same custom of accepting the item with a bow and both hands.

Unlike my first prize, the painting wouldn’t fit into a sleeve, but Aiko solved the problem with her phone, summoning someone from the Inquisition to take our purchase to our hotel.

“Karma enjoys seeing the shops, especially jewelry and trinkets,” my husband informed our guide.

I did? Puzzled, I canted my head to the side. Rather than argue with him, I considered why he might want to look at jewelry.

Then I remembered.

London.

We’d gone shopping for rings in London.

Criminals enjoyed patterns, and sometimes, playing the bait meant catering to the expectations of those criminals. “We could look for a new set of rings, Jake. We can get a new set of rings every time we go to a new country.”

“That could get expensive quickly, Karma.”

I shrugged. “We can afford it. It’s a meaningful but small way of gathering things of emotional value when abroad.”

Jake huffed at me. “I couldn’t argue with that even if I wanted to.”

“While traditional Japanese ceremonies do not use rings, there are stores that sell them,” Aiko informed us, and after a few moments of thought, she gestured towards one of the nearby streets, which featured a collection of shops and stalls. “Our traditional custom is called san san ku du. It means three, three, and nine, the principles of the marriage ceremony. One of the threes represents the bride and groom and their parents, three couples joining together in the ceremony. The next three represents the sins or flaws of hatred, passion, and ignorance. The point of the ceremony is to provide freedom from those sins or flaws as they join in marriage. The ceremony uses sakazuki cups, from which the three couples drink sake.”

“That sounds so much nicer than our ceremonies,” I admitted.

Aiko offered a little bow. “I would be pleased to show you one of the stores specializing in such ceremonies. I realize that you do not have familial colors in the United States, so Jake-sama can choose his familial colors or something that appeals to his family’s nature, should you wish to have ceremonial garb to take home with you.”

“We’d like that,” Jake replied before I had a chance to make use of my saddest eyes on him. “It can be a new beginning for us, Karma.”

Every day could be a new beginning for us, if we allowed it. Rather than say that, I bobbed my head and offered Aiko a short and brief bow. “We would be honored if you showed us, Aiko-san.”

“Please follow me.”

Like two children set loose in a candy store with unlimited money, Jake and I rampaged through the shop dedicated to Japanese marriage ceremonies. We couldn’t decide on which sakazuki we liked best, so we got one set each. In what surely counted as some offense, I picked Jake’s attire. He picked mine, and to my amusement, he’d found a white kimono with a silvery kitsune theme, although I believed the decorations were more meant to protect from the wily ways of fox demons rather than celebrate them.

The shop also sold ceremonial tea sets, of which we bought three, as we both fell hard for the elegant designs.

“Yesterday, I had respected money,” my husband informed me in a whisper while Aiko and the couple operating the shop discussed our needs and purpose in raiding the store. “Today? I find money has no value and we should spend more of it.”

“We’re going to have to come back to Japan and do a proper ceremony here.”

In the Japanese tradition, we would have our parents take part, and my statement carried the weight of my hope I could have a future with parents in them.

I missed my pa, and all I had left of my ma were quiet regrets that time would dull until nothing but memories remained.

“We can do that once this mess is all over,” Jake promised, and he leaned over to kiss my temple. “I suspect once the Chinese find out what we’re doing here, they’re going to join the party. We’re going to need a new house just to have extra rooms to display our ceremonial items. This stuff is too gorgeous to just shove in a closet.”

I dug out my phone, took a few photos of what we were up to, and texted them to Mellisa, along with the hint we’d need a larger house to hold our new purchases.

My phone rang, and I stepped to the side, as I’d learned the Japanese did not approve of phone calls being held openly. “I’m in a store, Mellisa.”

“Do you need us to come rescue you?”

I laughed. “No. We’re having a good time. How are you and Amelia doing?”

“We’re also having a good time. We’re going to be watching the fireworks in a few minutes. Our guide has fed us, so we’re about to burst. We also met your stand-in and her mate.”