CHAPTER 22
The Mock Marriage
THE INCIDENT FROM the school week faded away the following Saturday, when the sun shone a brilliant orange. The birds chirped in the trees and sang their hearts out. It was a beautiful day to hold the mock ceremony between Jas and Mr. Tanoshii’s grandson, Daiki. Fillmore had insisted on a grand affair to celebrate the tying of the two families in future matrimony. In fact, he had paid for all of the extravagance.
I saw Stella and Willow helping Jas into her miniature wedding outfit. It was an ancient Chinese robe in the color of fresh blood. The long sleeves billowed out, and the skirt fell below her feet, brushing the floor with its silken radiance. Tiny embroidered multi-colored flowers wound their way across the smooth red fabric.
A fake golden headdress perched on her head with tassels streaming down and covering her face. I saw the cheap shiny paint which covered the absurdity already flaking off. At least Fillmore hadn’t wasted his money on a crazy hat. I silently thanked him for his stinginess since the pretend gold wouldn’t weigh down my poor daughter’s head. Stella and Willow began covering the elaborate headpiece with some cloth—it wouldn’t do to have the groom see her face before the completion of the ceremony.
They guided Jas outside to the waiting palanquin. The little bride-to-be would be transported in a sedan chair, with its long curtains hiding her body from prying eyes. The vehicle used to be only for those with royal status, but I guess Fillmore felt he was equivalent to an emperor.
Now, it was manned by four workers from Fillmore’s company, their muscles stretched taut to hold up the poles of the carriage to carry my little girl. The rest of the family climbed onto regular horse-drawn carriages. They would meet Jas at the ceremony held at Mr. Tanoshii’s home.
His house was a sturdy little structure, and its outside frame retained the original wood color. Inside, Mr. Tanoshii had torn down the doors and installed sliding screens to block off the bedrooms from the rest of the living space. I wandered through the clean interior, noting an interesting sunken floor and a low table with silken cushions in one area before exiting to the back where the party was held.
Paper lanterns floated on lines that crisscrossed over several orange trees. The backyard oasis held natural rock formations, and its centerpiece was a giant koi pond. The fish flashed their ornate tails and glittered in the sunlight. A fidgeting boy stood in front of the water, tugging at an odd-looking hat covering his head. I recognized him as the future groom.
Daiki was swathed in a red robe, its color the exact duplicate of Jas’ ceremonial dress, except blue dragons swirled across his fabric. He tried to scratch underneath the monstrosity stuck on his head. Instead of the extravagant but delicate beadwork that decorated my daughter’s crown, his headpiece was a clunky dome with two rectangular flaps sticking out of it. They looked like two shortened oars sticking out of his scalp. A thin line of sweat ran down the side of his forehead, but he straightened his back and forced a smile when he heard the horses’ hooves beating down the street. Mill, Willow, and my in-laws had arrived.
Pretty soon, I also heard the grunts of the laborers carrying the sedan chair as they approached. Willow extracted Jas from the parked palanquin. My daughter’s face was still covered by the solid fabric veil, so she couldn’t see, and Willow had to lead her over to the waiting Daiki. Fillmore cleared his throat and secured the attention of all in the yard, which consisted of the immediate families involved. “We are here to celebrate the future union of Daiki and Jasmine. I look forward to many years of happiness through the intertwining of our families.” Everybody clapped politely, and Fillmore stood to the side. It was time for Daiki to remove the veil and see his future bride.
His hand trembled as he reached for the cloth. His fingers slipped a little, but he managed to grasp one corner and lift it up. When Jasmine was revealed, she looked like the brightest flower in that ornate garden. Mr. Tanoshii himself uttered a little gasp of delight.
In fact, compared to my girl, Daiki seemed common and plain. Against her milky skin, his tan complexion looked dirty. His eyes crossed a little as he gazed at my beautiful daughter. He seemed satisfied, and to seal the deal, he took hold of Jasmine’s hand and clasped it in his own. Mr. Tanoshii nodded his head and said, “Time to eat and celebrate.”
The food spread across one long table. It consisted of a mish-mash of appetizers. Cut sushi rolls smelling of fresh seafood commingled with crisp pot stickers dunked in tangy sauce. Straw mats were scattered on the lawn for the families to put their plates down and relax together. Jasmine and Daiki were served first, of course, and took their food to a more secluded spot beneath an orange tree.
They looked at each other and exchanged polite greetings. After a few questions about each other’s school, they lapsed into silence. Daiki looked at his plate of food, smiled at Jas, and started eating. My daughter followed suit, but cleaned her plate faster than he. Still hungry, her chopsticks hovered over her husband-to-be’s plate and grabbed everything in sight. She transferred every last morsel onto her own dish.
“Hey,” he said. “Oh, never mind. I’ll get some more.”
When he returned, Jas noticed the new food on his plate, and I saw the gleam in her eye. She took those items as well.
“What are you doing?” Daiki asked. “You have plenty of food left.”
Jas straightened her shoulders and looked him in the eye. “That’s my food you’re eating, and I’m claiming it.”
“This banquet is for everyone,” he said.
“My YehYeh paid for all of this, so it’s mine.” She stole the last rice grain left glistening on his plate.
“Brat,” he said. Daiki marched off. At first, I thought he would enter the house to cool his anger, but he lingered near the buffet table, filling his plate up.
He returned to Jas’ side.
“Great, you got me some more,” she said.
“If you want it, you can have it.” Daiki threw the heap of food at her.
My daughter’s hair was covered in sauce, and pieces of fish were scattered across her robe.
“You want me to share, huh?” Jas said. “Well, here you go.” She gathered the stray bits of food and started smearing them on Daiki’s clothes.
Then it progressed to a full food fight, and the parents became alarmed. As the adults drew closer to the pair, Daiki said, “Who wants to be married to you, anyway?”
“Fine by me,” Jas said. “I’ll take all our stuff back then.” With these words, she yanked the headpiece off Daiki’s head and pulled hard at his robe. It ripped with a loud screech, showing his naked boy chest underneath.
Daiki’s mother gasped, marched over to the food table, and grabbed the tablecloth. Dishes flew off and clattered onto the ground. Porcelain shards sprayed the nearby grass. She ran over and covered Daiki with the food-stained fabric.
Mr. Tanoshii went up to Jas and wagged one finger in her face. “How dare you.” He enunciated each word. Jas looked at the chaos around her, and her eyes opened wide as she scanned the debris. She backed up a little from Mr. Tanoshii and bit her trembling lip.
Stella, Willow, Fillmore, and Mill flew to Jas’ side. They started guiding her away from the beautiful backyard oasis, but Fillmore turned back once. “Don’t worry. I’ll make sure little Jasmine apologizes for her behavior. I trust this mistake won’t affect our partnership—”
“What partnership?” Mr. Tanoshii said.
***
The business contract was sent over the next day, torn to pieces. As a result, the men in the household grew disturbed. Fillmore decided to follow Mr. Tanoshii’s every step; he hounded the poor man. My father-in-law showed up at the pool hall, tracked Mr. Tanoshii to his favorite grocer, and stood outside the old man’s home. Mill followed his dad, both to restore the previous partnership and to ensure Fillmore’s sanity. Stella, as the matriarch, decided on a different way to bridge the gap. She tried the womanly art of persuasion and appealed to Daiki’s parents to re
instate the marriage between their son and her granddaughter. Jas had school, and Willow, neglected, was left to herself.
After a week spent in a silent house, Willow sat on the back porch, moping. She attempted to catch some insects in a jar, but they hopped out of her way. “What’s the point?” She screwed the lid back onto the container. She looked past the wheat field and over to the stables. I could hear the neighing of the horses even from this distance. “At least I’ll have some company with a living creature over there.” She walked with slow steps to the barn. No stable hand was in sight, but the buckets for feed and the brushes lay within easy reach.
I saw her take one of the soft bristle heads and approach a tan filly. At first, Willow’s strokes were short and hard. The horse shifted around, but didn’t move away. After a few minutes of attacking the knots in the mane, Willow eased up on the poor animal. Her motions grew longer and smoother; the coat shimmered in the sunlight. The brushing grew rhythmic and lulled me like a heartbeat. Then I grew tired of the swishing sound and flew over to Jas’ school to see how my daughter was doing.
***
The school session flowed like any other. Jas paid attention during the lessons and ignored the boys afterward. She was also careful not to mark any possessions or people with ink, especially with the aftermath of the Daiki incident.
Jas took the long route back to my in-laws’ house. The path she took led her through heavy brush and dirt roads to the backside of the property. When she neared the stables, Jas stopped walking. I noticed her picking off the burrs stuck to her long skirt.
I chuckled to myself even as Jas moved closer to the barn, her head turned to one side. I squinted from the sunlight into the dim surroundings. Two figures emerged, silhouettes in the distance. One displayed the distinct hourglass shape of a female. The other had the broad shouldered look of a male. Their heads were bent close together. I heard Willow’s voice float out to us: “At least you can understand me.”
The man straightened up. Even from the outline, I knew it wasn’t Mill. This stranger was two inches taller than my husband. He also seemed skinnier and ganglier than Mill. He reached down to Willow and pulled her into a tight hug. She didn’t resist. He started mumbling something to her. I couldn’t pick up the words, but I could hear his soothing tone and the deepness of his voice.
Jas could, too. She tensed as she realized the man wasn’t her father. Her lips compressed into a fine line, and she pivoted back the way she had walked. She marched off into the tall brush, her feet stomping hard and crushing the plants underneath.
I felt frozen. I debated whether to fly to the stable and solve this new mystery or to chase after my daughter. Before I could choose either course, Sage appeared.
CHAPTER 23
Always Tell the Truth, Rule 9
SAGE RUSTLED HER WINGS at me, oblivious to my inner turmoil. I would never be able to catch Willow’s illicit actions in the barn or run after my daughter now.
The angel said, “The new commandment is: You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.”
“Fine,” I said, irritated. Who had time for this nonsense? I needed to find out what was happening in the real world. “Jas won’t be able lie to family. Now let me go.”
Sage nodded and flew away. In a few seconds, she had disappeared into the sky and looked like nothing more than a white bird winging across the horizon.
I didn’t know how much time had passed during my conversation with Sage. Time worked in funny ways in this in-between world. Where should I go? Should I satisfy my curiosity with Willow or find my daughter?
No, I needed to make sure Jas was okay. I had seen her running away from the house. Where could she have gone?
In the blink of an eye, I was at the threshold of my parents’ home, and I had guessed right. They were there seated in a triangle, with Jas at the apex. They’d had the same little family formation with me when I was ten, when my father’s arm had gotten blown off during a work accident.
“It’s already been a day since you’ve arrived,” my mother said. “Not that I would mind letting you sleep over a second night.” She stroked Jas’ hair.
“Thanks for letting me in,” my daughter said.
“Anytime. It’s been a while since we’ve seen you.” My mother leaned over, giving Jas a hug, and inhaling the sweet scent of girl. “Too long. But I’m worried that you ran away. You need to start opening up about why you left.”
“Can’t I just stay here without any questions?” Jas asked.
“We’re trying to be good grandparents.” My mother placed her hands on her hips. “Not like your other set,” she said.
My father jumped in. “We’ll have to say something to your family. Even though they don’t like us, I’m sure they’re worried sick.”
“I doubt it.” Jas moved farther away from my mother and bumped her elbow into a wall; some of the wood flaked off. “You know, there’s not enough room here.”
“We think it’s quite cozy,” my father said.
“The space does make it hard to avoid talking to us,” my mother said. “Just say what happened. We might be able to help.”
Jas licked her lips and turned her eyes to the wooden wall behind her back. “I don’t want to.” She started tracing the lines of the wood grains with her fingertips.
“We can’t help you if you don’t speak,” my mother said. “Anything.”
Jas gazed around the room, avoiding my mother’s eyes. “Tell me about Ma.”
“I don’t know much about Willow.”
“No, my real mother.”
Jas moved over to the shelf that held my clay figurines. My father joined her, staring at the collection. He took one of them down, the metal dragon. “She created this for you when she was pregnant.”
Jas touched the body, tracing the undulating spine down to its tail.
“Topaz didn’t talk much either,” my father said. “She poured her emotions into clay. That’s where her real passion lay, not in the fig factory where she worked.”
My mother stretched out her hands, scarred from years of fig picking and said, “Goodness knows, I didn’t want to pass my job to her. She deserved better, but we had few options. You, though—if you return to your other set of grandparents...” My mother gritted her teeth. “Stella and Fillmore are well-off. Look, they’ve already started giving you an education. Don’t take your nice surroundings for granted.”
“Who knows how long that will last?” Jas said. “Mr. Tanoshii tore up the contract.”
“That’s okay. Fillmore still has his carriage business,” my mother said.
“For now,” my father said. “Didn’t you hear about the new refrigerated rail cars? They’re made of wood and insulated with felt made from cattle hair.” He scratched the stubble on his chin. “In fact, they might need a strong man like me to add ice to the cars. I can keep Fresno’s fruit and vegetables cold during the long ride to the cities out east.”
“What’s that have to do with the Woos?” my mother asked.
“Well, I think the train business will boom. It’ll catch on with passengers, and if all the produce and people ride on trains, there won’t be a need for stagecoaches.”
My mother silenced him with a withering look. “I’m sure your grandparents will be fine, Jasmine. Plus, what about the feelings of your dad and stepmother? I bet they miss you.”
“No, I can’t go back.” Jas’ face reddened. “I saw something. Willow was…”
“What did you see?”
“I thought she’d be like a mom to me, but I saw her in the stables with a man. Not my dad.”
My mother shook her head. “Business? Maybe there was a reason—”
“They were holding each other.”
The physical closeness Jas and I had witnessed could have meant something important or nothing at all. Jas thought it was an attack on her family, but it was hard to say without concrete facts. I would have to go back to the barn to find out for sure.
CHAPTER 24
The Stranger Revealed
I RETURNED TO THE STABLE and twilight had settled in. I could still see inside the stalls, and I spied two figures bent close together. The larger hand, masculine in form, but with the smoothness of a woman’s skin, stroked a stallion. A smaller delicate hand followed suit. It was a kind of silent dance that they performed, their fingers touching the ghost imprints left by the other’s palm.
The man stopped stroking the horse, his hand stilled. Willow placed her hand next to his, motionless as well.
“Who can I turn to?” she asked. I heard a tinge of panic in her voice. “They’re all distracted by the pool hall mess, even Stella.”
“They’re concerned about the Woo family name,” the man said. His voice, a smooth bass, had a soothing quality to it. “Trust me. I understand how important reputation is to them. That’s why I knew I couldn’t stay here, so I went to a hotel instead.”
“But Jasmine’s been missing since yesterday. It’s already dark, and they’re not worried. Do you know what Fillmore said? ‘She’ll find her way home.’ He has no heart for anything except fixing that torn-up contract.” Her fingers trembled against the horse’s glossy coat. “And you would think that my husband would care a little at least. It’s his flesh and blood who’s lost, after all.”
“Mill?” The man slid his palm down the back of the horse and slapped it once on the rear. The stallion neighed in outrage. “He does whatever it takes to make Dad happy. He’s always been the number one son, and I was the leftover.” It was Andy talking in the dark. After all those years, he’d finally come home. How long had he been out at that boarding school? First, secondary school, and then higher education. Ironic. Fillmore had placed Andy on the dreaded scholar track, just like his parents had done to him in Fillmore’s younger years.
Willow whispered to the horse, calming it down. Then she asked, “How can Millerton put the needs of an old man above those of a little girl?”
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