He was unable to sleep and after tossing and turning for hours, decided to get up. She laid across from him in another bunk, her back facing the wall. Her arms wrapped around herself and at the smallest movement, they popped open. They stared at one another in the darkness. She watched him get up and go to his desk, her eyes on him as he lit a cigarette. 

    “I told you I wouldn’t harm you. Go to sleep.” 

    “Go to hell.” Flipping on a small desk light, he turned to lean back against his desk, eyes surveying her. With a huff,  she sat up on her bed. 

    “How the hell did we end up like this?”

    “Your guess is as good as mine.” He replied, blowing out smoke. Sighing, he reached up to pinch the bridge of his nose. 

    “All those times my brother warned me to stay away from you…I never listened.” 

    “That makes two of us.” She sighed and covered her face with her palms. 

    “Even now, we’re not listening.” 

    “In here, you have a choice. I’m giving you an opportunity to decide your fate.” 

    “You want me to thank you?”

    “No. I want you to choose wisely Beatrice.” It had been so long since she’d heard his voice. Cold then, now it was frigid and biting. The way he said her name, with a smooth powerful rasp sent chills down her spine. The feelings she thought had disappeared for him slammed back into her with an aggressive force. She watched him smash the butt of the cigarette into an ashtray and run fingertips through what appeared to be freshly buzzed hair. 

    “I expect you to answer by morning.” As he came around to sit on the edge of the bed, she blurted out a question without thinking. 

    “What happened to you?” Those intensely irresistible eyes of his lifted and once again, they were in a staring match. For the briefest of moments, the memory of being in her dressing room played in her head like a moving picture. He’d looked at her with those bewitching eyes of his the same as now. Though mostly silent, he had this uncanny ability to command the room. She’d be lying if she said his masculine energy hadn’t excited her both in heart and body. It had been the way he had easily made her feel so small as he towered over her, leaning in to take what he wanted. A kiss, her first kiss, and it had tasted like heaven. Surprisingly soft, his lips. Smooth and silky, his tongue. He’d had more than one drink that night. Citrus, spice, and brine from the vodka. Sweeter vanilla, oak, and caramel from bourbon. All of it had tasted so good. 

     He broke the eye contact at once and she struggled to swallow, damning her watering mouth.   

    “I left boyhood behind.” She was quiet as he continued, 

    “What happened two years ago between you and I…It was foolish and it should have never happened.” She tried to conceal it but hurt flashed across her features. 

    “We are in our respective places now.” 

    “I guess we are. ” His pounding heart threatened to ruin his entire stance.… Ignoring her, he got into bed and turned away from her, eyes blankly staring at the wall. 

*** 

    When the sun began to rise in the sky, he rose with it. She slept, though her brow was worried. Throughout the night, she had tossed and turned and finally fell asleep a little over two hours ago. Swallowing thickly, he stepped forward, enough that he stood above her. Leaning down some, he reached out to skim the delicate skin of her brow but hesitated. Inhaling a deep breath, he balled up his fingers into fists. What was he doing?

    She roused not, the small puffs of warm air against his forearm signaling deep sleep. The warmth from her skin took the chill from his fingertips and he wanted to warm his mouth with her lips, the kissable heart-shaped forms opened slightly to allow air in. Everything about her confused him and he didn’t like it. Frankly, it pissed him off. For a time, he’d been strong, his mind on matters of war and loyalty. And then yesterday happened and… here he was. Struggling not to kiss her awake. As he said, he didn’t like it. At all. 

    Leaving the private dormitory, he locked the door behind him. Stooping to tie his boots, he sniffed and began to head out for morning drills. Brisk air hit his bare arms and he felt a slight chill go through him as he came into the group of soldiers.  

    “Attention!” He called, causing the soldiers to assume the appropriate position. Coming to face the group of about 15 or so enlisted soldiers, he spoke again. 

    “At ease.” The small platoon extended their legs outward at once in a uniform fashion, hands firmly behind their backs. 

    “We have new faces I see.”

    “Yes sir!”

    “Step forward if you are newly enlisted.” 

    “Sir!”  Four or five fresh-faced soldiers took a step forward, eyes straight ahead as he approached them, hands behind his back. 

    “State your name.” He ordered one who stiffened up at his sharp gaze. Almost immediately, the boy began to sweat. 

    “Shoichi Okada, sir.” 

     “Place of origin.” 

    “Saori, Aichi Prefecture, sir.” 

    “Why have you joined our Army?” The boy looked nervous and swallowed so hard he heard it. 

    “Because I want to serve our Emperor.” A typical answer. An acceptable one. A more appropriate answer that he would’ve believed was if he’d said his father made him. Letting his eyes fall onto the next one, he tightened his jaw. Okada wouldn’t last long. 

    “You.” The next soldier stood at attention. 

    “Sir,”

    “Name.”

    “Teruo Yamakawa. Kushibiki, Tsururoka, Yamagata Prefecture. I joined because I was bored being at home.” Gaze steely, he bore them into the young man’s eyes and he dared not look back, instead, he looked past him, fingers still stiff in salute. A curt nod of approval was all he got as he moved on. He decided not to make a fuss about him not awaiting his orders. He paid attention, listened well, and was honest. Perhaps, he’d make it. Stepping firmly in front of the last couple of new recruits, he turned to face the long stretch of the track ahead. 

    “Newly enlisted, come to the front. All others fall behind them.”

    “Sir!” Doing as they were told, they assumed positions. 

    “We’ll start with stretching and two laps around the track. Upon starting, Head of the line, sound off.”

    “Sir!” 

*** 

    The bed she laid on was surprisingly comfortable and it beat the bug-infested mat she’d been laying on just a day ago. At the thought, she scratched her leg and dug clawed fingers into the sheets. Bringing her eyes away from the wall, she sat up with a sigh. Her feet had grown antsy and she needed to get up and do something. She wasn’t used to laying down for so long. Her routine of being up before the crack of dawn had been beaten into her and it wasn’t just something she could shake. 

    Placing her feet on the cold floor, she sat on the edge of the bed, wrapping her arms around herself. The past 24 hours were a blur and she wasn’t sure how she felt about any of it. Eyes taking in the ample room, quirks of his structured and methodical personality looked back at her. The icy coolness of the decor. His ashtray was placed in a way that it had almost perfect symmetry with the rest of the desk. A small vertical clothing rack, neatly arranged in color and size his uniform shirts, pants, and freshly polished boots. It was clear that he valued order and organization. Placing her hands into the palms of her hands, she cursed quietly. She knew the Good Lord had a sense of humor but this was far from funny. “Think about your options and ponder them well. I’ll give you 24 hours to make your decision.”

    He knew when he said it what choice she’d make. The only reason she’d ever consider was Ruby. She let her hands down and her fingers began to pick at the skin on the back of it. But then, she knew what lay ahead for her should she tell him no. Not even Ruby would be able to save her. As much as she hated to admit it, this cold emotionless room was the safest place in the whole camp. For what price, Bea? What price will he require you to pay? If he somehow reneged on his whole ‘I won’t hurt you’ promise and demanded more…physical favors… could she do it? 

    The door being unlocked made her jump away from her thoughts and she froze as he stepped in. Stiffly, she watched as he closed the door behind him. For a moment, they didn’t say anything…they just stared at one another. 

    “Have you made your decision?” He asked, breaking up the tense silence with the question.     

    “Guess you can say that.” She replied anxiously, those fingers picking at her skin again. Nothing she did went unnoticed and his eyes left her hands and drifted upward to her face. 

    “Speak then.” Her jaw tightened and she damned every word that was about to come out of her mouth. Lips dry and chapped, she tried licking them before answering, 

    “I’ll stay.” At her declaration, he showed indifference, taking off his cap. Placing it on one of the wooden knobs on the back of his chair, he leaned back against his desk and crossed his arms. 

    “I imagine you’re hungry so I’ll arrange for something to be brought to you. In about an hour or so, you are to bathe and groom yourself well. When you are dressed, we will leave the barracks.”

    “Where are we going?” She asked, expression apprehensive. 

    “My Captain wishes to meet the women awarded to us.” 

    “Awarded? Abducted is more like it.”    

    “As he will see you today, you must look and behave your best. You represent me when you leave this room.” Scoffing, she rolled her eyes and looked away from him. 

    “I’ll return shortly with some food.” And like that, the list of orders had been given and once again she was left alone, the door locked shut behind him. The silence was deafening and it coaxed tears to rise to the corner of her eyes. And soon, it comforted her as she began to shed those tears. 

*** 

    He returned with an acceptable meal of freshly steamed rice, fish, and some pickled vegetables. Miso soup and shoyu for dipping. A nice hot kettle of Sencha had been brewed at his request. Opening the door, he stepped in and shut the door behind him. Placing the tray on his desk, he began to separate portions onto two plates. 

    “Are you allergic to fish?” He asked quietly, scooping rice out of the bowl onto her plate. 

    “No.” Her monotone answer. Finishing up, he soon took his share and went to sit on his bed. Lifting hashi to his mouth, he watched as she stared at the food, having not made a budge or move. 

    “Beatrice,” That made her eyes meet his. 

    “Eat.” Annoyance flashed up onto her face. 

    “Stop ordering me around. I’m not a dog.”

    “Stop acting like one.” He replied, taking a quiet sip of his tea. Pushing herself up from the bed, she slowly approached the desk and stared down at the food. With shaky fingers, she gripped the plate tight and went back to her little spot on the bed, cautiously lifting the spoon of rice to her mouth. She ate it slowly, moving it around in her mouth as if to test if it was real. Realizing it wasn’t in any way tampered with, she soon nibbled on some small pieces of fish. It humored him to watch her eat skittishly, afraid the food was poisoned.

     Finishing up, he drank the last of his tea. More of this and perhaps she’d start to gain weight. It was obvious that she was malnourished. That he could see from her arms, neck, face, and legs. As she now represented him, he couldn’t let her continue to look like some wounded stray animal. 

    When she was done with what she could eat and drink, he hastily finished what she didn’t and grabbed both plates and utensils. A knock at the door caused him to turn. Trading the soldier the plates for extra soap, towels, and clothing for her, he closed the door once more. Giving them to her shocked person, he began to turn on the water, pleased in the hot water that sprung forth from the bottom. 

    “Let’s get ready.” He said with a glance, starting to unbutton his uniform. 

*** 

    She didn’t think he had been serious when he said they would share baths. Crouching down low in the water, she watched him wash his hair with a bar of soap. How wrong she was. Too many places to look and not…look. Too many stimuli at one time made her brain hurt. Trying to avoid glancing at his very naked body and failing…even the splash of water and soapy bubbles that spread out as he descended underwater unnerved her. What if he had his eyes open down there? Coming back up he lifted his hands to his face, revealing lean yet sinewy biceps. 

    “Hurry up Beatrice.” He said with a slight turn of his head, those sharp eyes cutting into her. Swallowing her heart back down, she lifted a shaky hand and accepted the soap he extended to her. Dipping down beneath the water, she curled up into a ball and hugged herself.

     When she’d come up, he was gone, the partition that had once been in front of the window now behind her, shielding her from his visage. Feeling nervous, she began to lather her dirty matted hair. Using the slip from the suds, she began to work out the knots and tangles. Tears welled up in her eyes and for a moment, she felt thankfulness wash over her. It had been six months since she’d last had a bath. She knew she had smelled like a rotten corpse. Now…now she felt like a human again. Quietly sobbing, she let the slick bar slide bubbles down across her arms and neck, lifting it to her face. 

    When she decided her hair was as detangled as it was going to get, she carefully stepped out. A provided towel to dry herself with and she gripped it closed tightly, peeking out from around the partition. He had his back to her, sitting at his desk. Sheepishly, she scurried to her bed. There laying on it was an army green dress, complete with pleats, matching buttons, belt, and two decoratively sewed patch pockets. To some, it would be considered extremely plain but to her, it was the most stylish thing she’d seen since coming to Mukden. A pair of plain round-toe flats laid neatly at the bottom. 

    Wasting no time, she lifted the towel to dry her hair which had retained surprising length considering she hadn’t put a comb to it in some years. Dressing in the provided dress, she began to flat twist each side of her head, the braid tails long enough thankfully to tuck them together. So focused on her task, she hadn’t paid attention to the eyes that bore into her, watching her movements. Once done, however, she smoothed down the dress fingers gliding over the pretty decorative pockets and lifted her eyes to see his on her. 

    He said nothing as he got up, lifting the cap to hide his still-damp hair. Slipping into her shoes, she began to follow him as his long confident strides led him to the door. Heart pounding in her chest, light of another kind blinded her as the thick heavy door was pulled ajar, leaving an open path for her.