Picture Bride

HISTORICAL FICTION BY Michael G. Malaghan Chapter 146 Sachiko quickly fell into a set routine. From her first day, she washed the breakfast and dinner dishes without being asked. She presented herself in the kitchen every afternoon, eager to peel potatoes, wash the green beans or shuck the cornhusks. She enjoyed learning how to cook....

HISTORICAL FICTION BY Michael G. Malaghan Chapter 145 Sachiko’s knees quivered as she stepped out of the Packard and looked up the path to the house on the hill. She took a few steps . . . slowly, hesitantly. The scent of plumeria blossoms should have reminded the girl of her childhood in Waimea. Instead,....

HISTORICAL FICTION BY Michael G. Malaghan Chapter 144 Dr. Tebbits had left the waiting room with Takeshi and Tommy on his heels. “I’ll find Kenta,” said Sachiko. Haru stood up and took a step before stumbling. She grabbed on to a chair arm with one hand while the other clasped Sachiko’s shoulder. “Okäsan, are you....

HISTORICAL FICTION BY Michael G. Malaghan Chapter 143 Haru sat in the tiny waiting room of the Queen’s Hospital, mindlessly twirling her wedding ring around her finger. Watermarks from exposed overhead pipes hugging the ceiling tear-dropped the faded mustard-colored walls. A lethargic overhead fan swished the antiseptic-infused air as ‘ukulele music from KGU’s “Hawaiian Hour”....

Michael G. Malaghan Special to The Hawai‘i Herald Chapter 142 “How is your father’s recuperation coming along?” asked Charles Hemenway as he carried his coffee cup from his desk to a chair facing a low, ivory-inlaid mahogany table with carved elephant legs. Sitting across from him on a matching leather-upholstered chair, Takeshi leaned over and....

HISTORICAL FICTION By Michael G. Malaghan Chapter 141 Nearly six thousand miles away, Kenji rose from bed and padded into the bathroom where he emptied his full bladder. A chill ran through him upon seeing a pink stream flow. As he washed his hands, Kenji tried to recall what he had eaten at dinner the....

HISTORICAL FICTION By Michael G. Malaghan Chapter 139 Kenta and Haru returned home to find the entire family gathered there. Unable to face the crowd, Haru headed for the stairway. “I need a bath,” she said, scurrying up the steps. A ball of calico fur bounced up the stairs in pursuit. Kenta put on his....

HISTORICAL FICTION By Michael G. Malaghan Chapter 138 A late-March rain-drenching front finally moved on. The return of the sun enticed Kenta’s class of one to move to the backyard picnic table. “Don’t think of algebra as some kind of spooky math,” said Kenta, trying to ignore the swell of his pupil’s breasts. “When you....

HISTORICAL FICTION By Michael G. Malaghan Chapter 136 The blood drained from Haru’s face. Five years had passed since Ume died — it was just after the Massie trial. Haru had last visited Irie and his three children three years ago. Haru rose to her feet, putting her hand over her mouth in a hushed....

HISTORICAL FICTION By Michael G. Malaghan Chapter 134 Across town, Haru’s eldest son Takeshi sat quietly in the back of the Throne Room in ‘Iolani Palace, scribbling notes as the Hawaiian Statehood Committee wrapped up its meeting. Seven United States senators and 12 members of the U.S. House of Representatives were reading their final remarks....