Clue and The Shrine of the Widowed Bride (Clue Taylor Book 1)

by Wendie Nordgren

  In the children’s section, I found a book called Myths and Legends of Cassini and wondered if Palena or the man/spider were mentioned inside. Then, something in my mind clicked. I wracked my brain for the words I had seen written on the piece of paper in Winks’ work room. It had begun with the letter “K.” Finding a wall-mounted library catalog, I typed in a “K” and skimmed the hundreds of entries. I felt a wave of triumph when I spotted “Kiyohime” in the list and saw the name was associated with a book titled Monsters and Mayhem.

  Clearing the search, I found the book in the horror section and sighed. I carried it downstairs, checked on the ladies, and settled into a chair near a window to read. What I learned was not comforting.

  According to local legend, there had once been a young woman who had lived with her aging grandmother on a rocky peninsula. Her parents had been lost in a storm at sea leaving the two of them destitute and alone. One day as she gathered oysters along the shore, she found a large pearl and rejoiced that some of the troubles she and her grandmother faced would end.

  A young fisherman, handsome and strong, had seen the young woman as she found the pearl, but he was wicked. He came to her on the beach and wooed the pearl away from her professing his love. The handsome fisherman promised he would love her and care for both her and her grandmother for all of their days.

  Ecstatic in both her newfound love and good fortune, she trusted the handsome fisherman with her pearl and her virtue. As he kissed her farewell upon the shore, he promised to come back to meet her the next day. Filled with happiness and joy for the first time since her parents had perished, she eagerly awaited the coming of dawn.

  The young woman rushed to the beach to await her lover. She hoped each moment to see his arrival, but he never came. The next day and the next, she returned and waited fearful that her love had been lost to the sea as her parents had been.

  Then, the day came when she spied him in a fishing boat and waved to him smiling at her beloved with love-filled eyes. He pointed at her and laughed with the other fishermen. Loudly, he bragged that he had fucked the ugly girl and taken her pearl. He joked that payment was the only way she could entice a man to place himself between her legs.

  Shame and an all-consuming pain burned her soul from her, leaving something vile in place of something which was once good and true. The core of her being turned to ice so cold that she burned, and with all of her spurned rage, she prayed for the handsome fisherman to suffer. Her hateful prayer was answered as lightning struck the fishing boat consuming it within flames that were reflected in her eyes as she smiled at the fishermen’s screams. Rapturously, she watched as the fishermen were charred to ash. Her pleasure at their gruesome deaths combined with her searing rage transforming her into a serpent demon.

  Her heart was so cold and dead that her flesh could only be warmed by Cassini’s fleeting sun, a sun that shone for a few short hours, as short as her happiness had been. Her eyes turned as red as flames. Her legs transformed into a serpent’s tail. The rocks of distant shores became her home, and she was named Kiyohime.

  Her pearl was never found. It is promised that whosoever finds the Eye of Kiyohime, a large pink pearl the size of an egg, and leaves it for her on a rocky crag, will free Kiyohime of her curse, earn riches untold, and that never again would a ship of fisherman be lost to lightening.

  “Clue?” I jumped at the sound of Mrs. Stone’s voice. “Dear, we’re ready to go.”

  “I’ll go put this book away and meet you at the transport,” I said as my heart began to slow. By the time I had re-shelved Monsters and Mayhem and walked outside, the ladies were just seating themselves in the transport. “Mrs. Stone, if it’s okay with you, I just thought of something I need to do.”

  Smiling cheerfully, she said, “That’s fine. Have fun.”

  I got my helmet and hover board out of the back of her transport and followed the coastline to Dorado. Eel scowled at me when I entered his shop.

  “What are you doing back here?” he said with a frown which made him even more menacing with the scar that bisected half of his face.

  “Is that any way to greet a paying customer?”

  The frown disappeared, but he narrowed his eyes at me. “In that case, how may I help you, Miss?”

  I made a show of looking in the cases not finding what I wanted. “I want a stone I found made into a pendant or something so I don’t lose it.”

  Eel pulled out a black piece of velvet and spread it out on the counter between us. “Show me what you’ve got.” I fished my sea glass out of my pocket. “You’re kidding, right?”

  Standing up straight and feeling a bit insulted, I said, “No, it’s pretty. I found it on the beach.”

  “There’s a jewelry store in Scorpius.”

  I smiled and said, “But you’re special, Eel.”

  He began pulling items from a cabinet. “Don’t call me that. Eel is what liars, thieves, and whores know me as. To you, I’m Mr. Julian. Got it?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Pointing with his chin, Mr. Julian said, “Any of these strike your fancy?” He showed me a couple of girly bracelets, pendants, and ring settings. However, one ring setting had been designed to look like a silver snake. I put it on my right index finger. The tail wrapped around my finger. The head of the tiny snake rested upon its tail and would hold a stone.

  “I like this one.” I took it off and handed it to him.

  Mr. Julian worked quickly and efficiently as he set the stone in the snake. “There you go, blue sea glass in a sea serpent setting.” My eyes shot up to his. “Anything else?”

  “Maybe. I wouldn’t mind a necklace to go with it.”

  “Oh, really? What would you like?”

  Slipping my new ring onto my finger, I held my hand up to admire it. “Oh, how about something pink to go with the blue?”

  Mr. Julian led me over to a display case and pointed out a few items. I made a disappointed pout with my mouth and held my hand up again to admire my ring. “I think a pearl might go nicely with my sea glass. Do you know anything about the Eye of Kiyohime?”

  Mr. Julian’s hand struck out like the fangs of a snake grabbing my right wrist and bringing it down to the counter along with me.

  Coming within inches of my face with his, he said, “Clue, you need to shut the fuck up with that. Do you hear me? Do you want to end up like your pops?”

  “How might that be, Mr. Julian? Do you know how he ended up?”

  Releasing me and wiping his forehead with a silk square, he said, “All I know is he got tangled up with something way worse than the Protect and Serves. He’s gone. Winks would want you safe, Clue. Go home.”

  Completely frustrated, I said, “Tell me what you know.”

  “Get your little ass out of my store and go home. You’re gonna drop this or else.”

  Glaring at him, I asked, “Or else what?”

  “Or else, I might have to turn snitch to the Protect and Serves about you trying to sell me stolen diamonds. I’ll do it to keep you safe.”

  I leaned against the counter. “I never tried to sell you stolen anything.”

  Mr. Julian smirked. “Yes, but what might they find before they realize it?”

  The blood drained from my face. “How much do I owe you for the ring?”

  “Forty credits.” I handed him my chip. We never took our eyes off of each other as he scanned it. “By the way, nice helmet, kid.” I wondered if my cartoon dolphins were the only reason he refused to take me seriously. “Go home,” Mr. Julian said in a kinder tone.

  I turned and left. I had arrived at the store using a circuitous route in order to avoid the Two Moons and possible hangout of my whistling crotch rubbing assailant. Now, I rode my hover board along a street with stores that sold cleaning units and offered transport repairs. A few apartment buildings were scattered amidst the restaurants I passed. I began thinking that my helmet might also serve as a disguise.

  I had almost made it to the coastal road whe
n a transport careened in front of me. Unable to stop or avoid it, I hit the front right side and rolled over the hood. A man caught me before I could hit the street throwing me into the back. Another man threw my hover board in after me, and it hit me hard in the side. The sharp pain and my intake of breath from it prevented my scream.

  The doors locked as the men shut their doors and drove away. Gripping my hover board by one end, I lifted it and swung it at the back of the driver’s head. The passenger blocked my board with his left arm and with his right drilled his fist into the face opening of my helmet.

  The stars I saw were the clearest I had seen since Eris Space Station. My head dropped down against the seat while my senses continued to spin. Before the swirling ceased, the driver parked. I was dragged from the transport into a basement parking garage and shoved up a stairwell. I kicked out at the man behind me, but he caught my foot wrenching it and forcing me down.

  Then, he yanked off my helmet and handed it to the man who was leading the way. Now, with a good look at his face, I recognized him from the alley. Before I could scream or fight, a beefy hand delivered me another stunning blow, and I was dragged along. A drop of blood dripped from my nose and onto the black stone floor beneath my feet. One of the men shoved me forward from behind.

  A man stood across the room with his back turned to us. He wore a white suit and had a shaved head. His hands were clasped behind his back. “Miss Forester, it is so good of you to accept my invitation.”

  “Do you mean being struck by a transport, kidnapped, and punched in the face as an invitation? If so, how could I possibly refuse?”

  “How could I refuse my hospitality to someone asking so many questions?” The man stood facing a large clear plasti-glass box. I could see air holes in the top. “Do you know what this is?” he asked still with his back to me.

  “It looks like a cage.”

  “Very good, Miss Clue Forester of 888 Honjo Street. It wasn’t difficult to find out the transport driver took you to Scorpius. After that, a few credits here and there was all it took. I enjoy finding things whether it is information, people, or objects. However, when someone deliberately prevents me from finding something I want, it angers me. Then, I must expend my energies on cages such as this. Enough of my spirit flows through it to prevent passage from this reality to the next.”

  Was he planning to throw me in that cage just because I was trying to find out what had happened to Winks? How did he know that I had seen the other layer of reality?

  “You have a choice. Tell me where it is. Then, I will destroy Kiyohime once and for all,” the man said in a cold dead voice.

  I had no idea what he wanted or where it was, and Kiyohime’s story was a tale to frighten girls into remaining virgins.

  “I’ve told you. I lost it at the shrine. I can’t go in after it. It’s impossible. Please, don’t do this. Let her go,” said a man with a tired voice full of desperation.

  My eyes grew wide, and my pulse began to throb in my wrists. I knew a version of that voice. The men who had kidnapped me each grabbed me by an arm stomping down on my feet to force me to be still. The man in the white suit turned from the cage. As he did so, I saw a bruised and bloody Winks within it. Winks slammed his hand against the wall of his prison leaving behind a bloody smear.

  The white suited man walked to a desk where he picked up and unsheathed a wicked looking knife. He studied the knife’s edge as he strode slowly toward me.

  “I told you the truth! I swear it! If you let me out, I’ll find someone to enter the shrine for me! Don’t hurt her, please!” Winks screamed.

  My panic reached a crescendo. With the whomp of air, I felt the lift and drop. The men who had held me looked around for me in confusion. The man with the knife looked into my eyes and barred his teeth like those of an angler fish at me.

  I ran to Winks who stared at me in the soundless world of black, white, and grey. Shock had commandeered his expression. I searched for a release mechanism. Winks pounded on the plasti-glass and mouthed, “Run!” which I imagined I could hear.

  I turned and saw the toothy apparition floating toward me. With a last desperate look at Winks, I turned for the stairs plucking my helmet and hover board from the floor as I ran. The men noticed the disappearance of my items but turned in circles unsure of my location. I hopped on my board and rode it to the door. Opening it gave away my location. The apparition was torn between watching me in the other world and giving orders to his men in reality. He could not see me, hold Winks prisoner, and command his mortals all at once.

  Speeding down the stairs, from the garage, and straight to the beach, I fervently prayed that Palena would protect me. I’d never seen this stretch of beach, but sped recklessly down it in my terror. Aside from some mononoke terrorizing some feral cats, the beach was empty all of the way to Scorpius. I saw no trace of Palena.

  It had been dark for hours, and my thighs burned from exertion when the world finally thumped, and the lift and drop overcame me. I tumbled from my hover board and laid panting with my back against the sand. My helmet bit uncomfortably into the back of my neck. Although my body was stiff, my mind continued to race. Winks wasn’t dead. How could I save him?

  Fearing that if I didn’t force myself back up onto my board soon that I wouldn’t be able to, I dragged myself up. Thinking it best to avoid as much notice as possible, I made my way to the alley behind the Wisteria and in through the basement level where Dorian discovered me.

  “Lord Tanaka and Tadashi have gone to search for you,” Dorian said in disapproval as he took in my condition.

  “Dorian, I found Winks! Please, help me!” There was nothing I could do to mask the helpless anguish of my entreaty.

  I heard two long, loud, and distant howls. Dorian shimmered into his spirit wolf form and howled back in answer. Then, he shimmered back minus his clothing. Hysteria seemed like a living being who spread her arms out as if to embrace me. I fought my need to succumb to the comfort of her arms. However, laughter bubbled up from some unbidden part of me. With fake joviality, I said, “Dang, Dorian. Is it difficult walking with an extra leg?”

  Deadpan, he responded with, “If Tadashi is proving inadequate in seeing to your needs….”

  “No!” I interrupted.

  “Follow me.”

  As I stumbled to him, Dorian took my hover board and helmet from me. I made it to the lift in the hidden tunnel and leaned heavily against the wall. A drop of blood fell from my nose to splatter at my feet, and a pounding in my temples and stabbing in my eyes far worse than that which I had experienced previously caused my eyes to roll up in my head as I seemed to fall in slow motion. In horror, I observed Dorian’s manly appendage on my way to the lift’s floor.

  I awoke to terrifyingly guttural growls, snarls, and barks. In my attempt to both cower and cover my ears at the same time, I fell from Tadashi’s bed to the floor. My gorge rose, and I tried to crawl to the waste unit but wasn’t successful at that either. I felt a hand at my back and another in my hair.

  “It is alright. You are safe. Ignore them,” Lord Tanaka said softly. “If you have completed your demonstration, your mate needs you. Dorian was not attempting to seduce her.”

  “I found Winks. He’s alive. He’s in a plasti-glass cage with some kind of freaky anglerfish ghost man with a shaved head and a white suit. I couldn’t get him out. He was about to kill me when reality changed. He wants to destroy the Eye of Kiyohime. Winks can’t give it to him.” I heaved again splattering vomit on the floor. Gasping and crying, I said, “He lost it in a temple or a shrine, somewhere where he can’t go.”

  “Tadashi, might I suggest you help your mate to clean herself? I will call for a maid. Dorian, I believe Clue’s nose will require Dr. Benjamin.”

  Tadashi replaced Lord Tanaka at my side and helped me into the bathroom. By the time the doctor arrived, I was clean, the room was clean, and everyone was clothed.

  “I need to speak to Cosmo.”

  My head was h
urting so badly that even the lights caused me pain. The doctor was a middle-aged man and was wearing a dark suit. He wiped at my arm with something cold before sticking me with an injector. My body began to feel as though it were melting into the bed, and my headache seemed to float away. That was when Dr. Benjamin yanked hard on my nose. I flinched at the painful sensation, the sound it made, and the pressure he applied before stuffing my nose and putting stiff tape over it.

  “You need to rest for a few days, young lady. I will check on you tomorrow.”

  I could hear the doctor speaking quietly to someone just as I fell into a drugged sleep. I dreamed of Winks trapped in a blood smeared box, of the demonic red eyes of the scorned Kiyohime, and of a ghost possessed man intent on killing me. I jerked awake in a cold sweat.

  After a few minutes spent on personal hygiene, I found some of my clothes in one of Tadashi’s drawers. I dressed in the black leggings, one of his white T-shirts, and my black leather jacket. I pulled on my holey shoes and left the room.

  From where they sat upon the red couches, Tadashi, Lord Tanaka, Cosmo, and Dorian looked at me in surprise. To Cosmo, I said, “Did they tell you Winks is alive?”

  “You look like shit, but yes they did,” Cosmo said.

  “Fuck you. Are you going to help me get him out?”

  Clearing his throat, Tadashi said, “You are in no condition to rescue your father from a crime lord who has been possessed by a Yokai.”

  “He will be hunting for you now to use you against your father. You may remain here under my protection,” Lord Tanaka stated.

  “What about Winks?” I asked as I looked from Lord Tanaka to Dorian, Tadashi, and Cosmo.