As he sat there, the bustle of the teahouse carried on around him. He sat quietly at his rough hewn table against the wall. The sounds of the other patrons and the calls and smells of the herb market just outside blended around him unnoticed much like the cooling cup of indistinguishable tea that sat on his table untouched and all but forgotten since the first taste . To him it all just tasted like dirty water, but hey, when in Rome.

After scanning the crowd again for the umpteenth time his attention was drawn back to the ragged photo that sat on the table in front of him. It was time warn and the colors had long since faded, one corner still showed the scorch marks from and unfortunate incident with a candle some time ago. But for all its loving ware it still showed clearly the face of a young woman just reaching adulthood. Her clear blue eyes looked to someone unseen, her painted mouth pursed as if to speak to that unseen companion.

However it was the writing that was scrawled in a blank space of the picture in characters that he had not used in more than twenty years that made his heart almost stand still. When he had first received the picture it had taken him hours to decipher the text, but now he need not even look at it and the message played through his head.

James my love,
Even though it has been years since we parted I felt that it was time for you to know as I am not long for this life. You have a daughter and she will need your strength.
Farewell my dearest.
Sarah