Royal Sinners (Sinners 1)

Prologue : Per Il Sangue

Children must be good at hide-and-seek. If not, bad things happen. Yet, no matter how good they are, they are always found.

They lose once their eyes close and lose more after they open them. But they are not even sure if they can open them again.

"Hush for now, sweetie." I should have noticed the tremble in my mother's voice back then. Moments ago, just before I sliced my birthday cake, I requested to sleep for a while after a dizzy spell. The next thing I knew, Mom and I were hiding in the dark closet like we're running from the devil.

Turns out, we were.

"Hush."

But as a child who hated two things at the moment, I was bound to complain why one, we were shrouded in the dark and two, playing an untimely game on my birthday. I wriggled against her tight, restricting hug. I was nine back then and knew nothing. Until finally, I freed myself from her and out of the closet.

"It's hot!" I filled my lungs with air. She went after me in panic and dragged me back to the closet. I resisted. She froze at something behind me. The It came for us, and It was not uninvited.

"It's always a pleasure to see you, Yumiko Kyosei."

A dignified man with a smile so amicable, I thought he was a friend of the family. But he held scissors in his hand; blood dripped all the way down to the white fluffy carpet of my room.

"Please, not with my daughter watching." Mom pleaded after she snatched me and be hid behind her.

"Mommy, is he your friend?"

"Ah, principessa," the man said. "The fruit of a yakuza and a mobster, mix of two bloodlines. What a pretty woman you will be, soon breaking hearts, like your mother." His fleeting adoration was soon replaced with disappointment. "But you should've listened and stayed quiet."

In fear, I gripped Mom's dress. I'm used to scary men come and go in our home. They have scars, tattoos hidden in suits and glares that even angry people on TV could be scared of.

As a curious child, I peeped once while Uncle was having a meeting with his friends. One of them offered something on a handkerchief soaked with blood and begged for mercy. As I squinted for a better look, it was his finger.

Uncle took out his blade and cut the man's neck with no words of goodbye nor 'Hmm' like he does when I barge into his office. Blood spilt on the floor and no one spoke a word. His other friends sat there with approval while watching the body shook and squirmed until it stopped moving. I heard myself scream until they found me in the next room.

'Sorry,' Uncle said. 'But you'll find out sooner or later, we are not saints, even you. Your blood has been tainted even before birth, little sinner. You may not understand this now, but always remember, you are a Kyosei.'

I asked why he is bad and killed a man, but he just kissed my forehead.

'I'm envious. When I was your age, I had killed two. Your innocence is something we can't afford. There are no bad people, neither good people. We are mere survivors, doing everything not to cease breathing as human instinct and to some, rule, like our forefathers and their forefathers did. Weakness will bury you dead or alive. From now on, whatever you see or hear, don't be afraid. We only do that for the family.'