Now I knew what had caused the Mistress to go so pale.
Boys don’t cry!
You’ve been secretly meeting up with Sei, haven’t you? I know all about it.
Huh. I can’t believe you’re crying just because your dog was taken away.
Unable to bear all the nasty snide comments from young Master Kyoichi, Tatsu had punched him. But the young Master was stronger than him. Put on the defensive, Tatsu had said, out of desperation: I’ve seen your mother out with a young man, you know.
***
I placed the letter in the back of the rack the Mistress used for letters addressed to her, where it wouldn’t be seen. It was unthinkable that the Master or the young Master would find it there.
If the Mistress was looking for it, that would probably be the first place she would look and might even think she had put i
