(Update, 2022-09-17: I'll be self-publishing the ebook and hardcopy soon, so I've archived these very early drafts for historical purposes.)
Washed-up online gaming champion Chie "Rose Crow" Shibuyama is forced out of retirement when her family is t...
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Chie Shibuyama had lied to herself again, but she was used to it, mostly.
"Guess the flavor," she said to her seven-year-old son Hayden as he sipped the cough medicine from the plastic measuring cup.
"Cherry!" Hayden said.
She kissed him on the cheek, tucked him under the covers, and said, "Now, you need to rest."
"But, Mom, it's too early, I don't feel sleepy at all!"
"I guess there's too much light outside." She pulled the drapes over the blinds and then sat back down on the bed.
"Just remember, the faster you get better, the faster you get to play with Daddy, okay?" She hugged him and kissed him on his forehead.
"The White Imperium!" he said.
She frowned and stood up. "I'm going to have a long talk with your father..."
"Mom, tell me a story."
She shook her head.
A sudden gust of cold air blew the drapes open. She shivered. It was freezing.
Why didn't I notice that the window was open when I closed the drapes? "Did you open the window today?"
"Nope." He coughed.
She walked over, slammed the window shut to make sure it locked, and then walked back around the bed.
"Please, please, just a short one?" He pushed himself up onto his elbows.
Knowing kids, with all the commotion, he'd be too excited to fall asleep. Slipping under the warm coverlet, she rested her back against the headboard and stretched her legs out next to his. "Okay, mister." She tousled his shoulder-length black hair.
He nestled his head back into his pillow and he blinked away the sleep.
"Mukashi, mukashi, a young boy and his childhood friend walked up a mountain searching for a famed treasure that would make them rich beyond all their dreams. It was said it was hidden in a series of caves and abandoned mine shafts near the ice-encrusted peak."
"Is this a real story or did you make it up?"
"Aren't both kinds real?"
"I like your made-up ones the best." He grabbed her hand and pulled his head into her armpit. "It's been a long time—"
She reached over and pressed her finger to his lips.
She wasn't sure how to proceed from there. Her phone dinged with a text message. An unknown number. More spam. She picked it up from the dresser and nearly dropped it. It was as cold as a glass of iced tea and a fine sheen of water droplets had condensed on it. She wiped it on her jeans and then placed her finger on the screen to slide it up to dismiss it, but ended up tapping it open instead.
