Chapter 2

Gyeongju, Korea 1824

            In the heart of the city of Gyeongju, a man in a grey suit made his way towards the town orphanage, where the children were taking a break from farm work.  Few casted a scrutinizing gaze as he sauntered past, but after a few steps, they forgot why they were confused in the first place.  The woman at the front table performed a humble bow, which he received with the tip of his bowler hat.  She didn’t recall his name, nor what he had requested, but she found herself guiding him to the children anyway.

            His specifications were precise, yet vague.  Nevertheless, she lined the children up, the cleanest in the front, and the rowdier ones huddled in the back.  The man in the grey suit ran his eyes quickly along the rows, until he found a pair of curious eyes peering back at him.  He did another scan, and noticed the other children off in their own worlds, barely sparing him a glance.  But the particular little girl in the back kept her eyes keenly trained on him.  His lip twitched into the smallest of smiles.

            Not a second later, the woman called the young girl over, “Please follow me.”

            The three walked inside, away from the high-pitched chattering of the young children behind.  She led them into an empty wooden room, nodding absentmindedly before sliding the door shut. 

            The man in the grey suit and the young girl sat in silence for some time.  The girl kept her eyes on the man, and the man did so likewise.

            “Do you like to read?”  The man asked with a smack of his lips.  His accent was heavy and stiff, but still understandable.

            The girl stared at the lock of chestnut hair slipping from under his hat.  “Your hair is not dark.”

            The man smiled, “It is not.”

            The girl shifted on her pillow, picking at the loose strands of her gown, “I do not know how to read.”

            “Have you ever wanted to?”

            The girl nodded, lips pursed into a thoughtful pout, “Yes.”

            “I have many books.  Would you like to come along?”

            The girl teetered back and forth, “What is your name?”

            “Names are not as important as they may seem.”

            “May I know?”

            The man scoffed, though not out of malice.  “Alexander.”

            The girl’s lips broke into a beam and she nodded fervently, “My name is Seulgi.”

London, England 1828

            Now nine, Seulgi Kang wandered the expanse of her single-room apartment with careful steps.  It was a moderate space with a large desk, a bookshelf taller than she was, and a single bed that shrunk with each day.  She traced the lines of her book with ink-stained fingers.  That was how she spent her days: reading and repeating until words of her favor were engraved in the back of her skull.  “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?”

            She did not leave the room unless accompanied.  Often Seulgi found herself watching the people below go about their lives, matching stories to long faces and personalities to most.  The days she went out were not as frequent as they were random. 

            There was a knock at the door that was different from the usual delivery of food.  Seulgi snatched the stool from under her desk and peeked through the peephole in the door, only to see an unfamiliar woman with a suitcase in tow.  She furrowed a brow.  Certainly, the man in the grey suit would not allow anyone to her door without reason.  So, she opened it.

            “Miss Kang?”

            The woman curtsied, tipping her head with a gentle smile.  Seulgi smiled at the familiar curl of the lip, “Hello, ma’am.  I’m afraid I didn’t recognize you at first.”

            The woman nodded, prying the door aside to further explore the small apartment.  “It is that time of year again, my dear.  Let’s get started, shall we?  You clearly have outgrown your clothes.”

            Belle Kingly was Seulgi’s favori