Alecia woke to the soft chime of temple bells ringing somewhere nearby, their sound drifting faint but certain through the paper walls. Sunlight slipped across the tatami floor in a clean, golden line. She didn’t rush. The air held that quiet stillness unique to morning. She rose slowly, wrapping herself in the light linen robe left out in the Airbnb. The scent of Ryokucha still lingered—yesterday’s tea, warm in the bottom of the kettle, as if it had waited all night.

Kennedy ...