by Sarah Ash
“I was enjoying a nap in the sun,” said an aggrieved voice behind her. Sakami jumped. Turning, she saw Honou behind her, yawning and stretching sinuously.
“How did you – ?”
“Fox secret.” He winked at her, tapping the side of his slender, aquiline nose.
“Have you grown?” She touched the top of her own head then reached out to see if he was at the same level, to find her hand only coming to his chin. He was already taller than she.
“So who’s this handsome young man, Sakami?” Mai appeared, carrying water from the well. Sakami tried not to panic. “I don’t think I’ve seen him round here before.”
“He’s called Honou.” Sakami’s mind went blank as she tried to think of a reason for Honou’s appearance. “He’s a cousin.”
“I thought all your family died in the fire.” Mai was smiling up at Honou, and to Sakami’s alarm she saw Honou grinning back. Foxes can charm mortals with their seductive and mischievous powers…
“A distant cousin. I – I brought him here from the rice fields. You remember – that’s why I had to go away for a few days.” It didn’t make a lot of sense but Mai seemed so captivated by Honou that she wasn’t paying attention.
“Pleased to meet you, Honou. My name’s Mai.”
“Mai,” repeated Honou, his grin widening. “Sakami, you never told me you had such a pretty friend.”
“I – ” Sakami began, and then broke off in exasperation. “You can flirt with Mai later. My brother needs your help right now.” She took Honou by the arm and dragged him away from Mai, who stood watching them as if entranced.
Around the corner, she took out the little pot and gave it to Honou. “This plant grows wild by the stream; Lord Kaito says it will save my brother’s life. Can you fetch some roots for him?”
Honou sniffed the dry herbs at the bottom of the pot and pulled a face. “Lord Kaito says?”
Don’t mention my name. Too late Sakami wished she had remembered Lord Kaito’s warning; Honou’s moods were so unpredictable. “It’s for my brother. He’s very sick.”
“I’ll see what I can do.” Honou suddenly leaned forward and kissed her cheek. “Cheer up!”
She stared at him, at a loss for words. He kissed me! Why would he… And then she regained her self-composure. “Please hurry, Honou. And be careful; there are Kites and Cranes out there. Don’t let them catch you – they’ll think you’re a spy.”
“Don’t worry; we foxes have our little ways.” He winked at her, then shot away.
Sakami’s hand rose to touch her cheek; it still felt warm where his lips had brushed her skin.
A fox’s kiss.
Chapter 22
A sea fog drifts in across Akatobi Island, filling the glade with swathes of grey mist. Masao, keeping watch over his young master as he practices, shivers in the sudden chill.
A dark figure, face concealed by a broad-brimmed hat, appears out of the fog, directly behind Lord Naoki.
“Naoki!” Masao calls out a warning but his body has gone rigid, as if encased in clay. He tries to shout again, but no sound emerges from his gaping mouth.
***
Masao awoke to a grinding headache.
That dream again.
The brightness of daylight stung his eyes like a wash of salt water, even when filtered through the canvas of the tent in which he lay.
And now I’ve reached the hung-over stage of the Kite Shadow…
“So you overdid it again?” The soft voice was lightly tinged with a teasing irony.
“Yūgiri?” Masao tried to focus as a pale shadow loomed over him. “You’re better?”
“Lie still.” The shaman placed one cool hand on his forehead and then slid the other beneath his robe to let it rest over his heart. Masao felt a shiver run throughout his body at Yūgiri’s gentle touch.
“Are my fingers cold?” Yūgiri sounded amused.
“Mm.” That must be it. But the daylight infused Yūgiri’s ashen hair with silvered glints, creating a faint radiance about his lowered head, and Masao suddenly felt a sudden overwhelming urge to reach out and touch the thistledown strands.
What’s the matter with me? This is just little Yū, my childhood friend, we used to hunt stag beetles together in the woods outside the castle…
“Do you do this to all the other shinobi?” he heard himself asking, forcing himself to concentrate on other matters. I must still be in the drunken stage.
“Only if Lord Toshiro asks me to.” Yūgiri’s face was so close to his that he could feel his breath on his skin, warm and faintly clove-sweet. “But the older shinobi are more experienced at conserving their energy.”
“Ouch.”
Yūgiri lifted his hands. “Did I hurt you?”
“Only with your words.” Masao managed a wry grimace.
Yūgiri sat back on his heels, folding his hands in his lap. “How do you feel now?”
Masao considered the question. The dream fog had cleared from his mind and at last the intolerable pounding in his temples had stopped.
“Better,” he said. But the images from the dream, the stifling feeling of being trapped in his own body, had not disappeared. “Yūgiri – ” he began just as Raiko stuck his head around the tent flap.
“Still lounging around in here, Masao?” He was smirking again; Masao had to repress the urge to cuff him. “Master Yoriaki wants to see you in the armorers’ tent. Better not keep him waiting.”
***
The dull, grating sound of grinding came from the armorers’ tent. Inside, Saburo and two assistants were bending over pots, busily pounding away at the contents, which from the acrid, dusty smell Masao guessed must be the saltpeter they had collected at the hot springs. Master Yoriaki was watching from a distance, an expression of distaste distorting his lean features.
“So here you are at last, Masao.”
Saburo glanced up, unwinding the cloth he had wrapped around his mouth and nostrils. “You look much better.”
“Thanks to Yūgiri.” Masao wondered what he might have said or done last night to provoke Saburo’s observation. “And I owe you my thanks too, for getting me back to camp. Without you, I’d never have made it alive. ”
“You acted as if you’d just downed a couple of bottles of sake,” Saburo said with a grin.
“The Kite Shadow can have that effect.” Masao, embarrassed, wondered what intimate secrets he might have inadvertently revealed. He changed the subject. “Is that saltpeter we collected of any use?”
Saburo nodded. “It’s powerful stuff; much more concentrated than the saltpeter on the island. If only there were more time to experiment to get the balance right – ”
“Let me know when you’ve finished those modifications, Saburo,” said Yoriaki. He spat. “Pah! It stinks in here. Let’s talk outside, Masao.”
Saburo gave an apologetic bow and turned back to his work.
“Modifications?” Masao echoed, not understanding.
“I’ve asked Saburo to make a new kind of fire arrow. One containing fire drug that explodes when it hits its target.”
Masao followed the Kite Shadow Master along the beach to where several shinobi were waiting. Yoriaki squatted down and, with the tip of his long knife, began to trace a map in the damp sand.
“Here’s the plan. Two groups, one to distract the Cranes, the other to investigate the siege tunnel Masao has discovered.”
“Won’t the Cranes have put traps in the siege tunnel?” Masao recognized the shinobi who had spoken up as scarred Chikaaki, the one who had come to their rescue on the mountain.
Yoriaki gave a scornful grunt. “They’re fools if they haven’t. That’s why your aim is to see if you can convince the Cranes that we’re mounting an attack on the main gate. Firing a couple of the arrows loaded with fire drug should keep the Cranes distracted. And while you’re keeping them busy, Masao can show me the hidden entrance. ”
Masao nodded. But as Yoriaki continued to outline his strategy, his thou
ghts drifted far away.
If only Naoki hadn’t been so determined to steal the Tide Jewels…What on earth possessed me to go along with his plan? It’s almost as if I was…possessed. Compelled against my better judgment. When was the first time he told me? But no matter how hard Masao tried to remember, nothing came back to him but the impenetrable sea fog from his dreams.
It’s as if there’s a gaping hole in my memory…
“Masao?”
Yoriaki and the other shinobi were staring expectantly at him.
“To repeat myself,” said Yoriaki pointedly, “as soon as the sun begins to set, we’ll make our move. So can you help Saburo to get those fire arrows ready?”
Masao had no idea. “I’ll do my best,” was all he said.
Chapter 23
It must be a lie.
Ever since Naoki had made his wild allegation about the burning of Sakuranbo village, Kai had been unable to get it out of his mind. As he prepared a healing infusion for Shun, a single thought kept playing in his mind like a dark, insistent melody.
Neither my father nor my mother would ever have done such a dishonorable thing,
But if not the Kites, then who had sacked the village? Who would go to such lengths to implicate them – and divert the blame? And why? What could they have been looking for?
If only Shun could remember what happened that night. Or Sakami…
“Is the medicine ready, my lord?” Yuna appeared at his side, jolting him out of his reverie.
“I’m grateful to you for letting me use your kitchen to prepare this medicine, Yuna-san.” Kai, realizing that all the kitchen maids were staring at him open-mouthed, turned back to stir the powdered itadori root he was infusing over the cooking fire.
“We’re honored to be able to help, my lord.” Yuna hurried forward to give him a cloth to protect his hands from the heat.
As Kai carefully strained the infusion into a clean bowl, he was disappointed to see how little liquid he had managed to extract.
Hurry back, Honou; this is the last of the dried root that I brought from the monastery. If only we weren’t caught like rats in a trap I could go out and gather what I need on the mountain…
“That must be proper medicine; it smells really nasty,” he heard the littlest maid observe tartly.
“They say the worse it tastes, the more good it does you,” added another.
“Quiet, Mai, Mami!” Yuna rounded on them.
But the moment Yuna’s back was turned, Kai saw Mai pull a defiant face, waggling her tongue like an impudent child. He was also aware that Sakami was silently scrubbing a cooking pot clean, her eyes fixed on the task. He had tried not to glance in her direction, knowing that if he did the other maids would notice. But he couldn’t help but feel sorry to leave without exchanging a single word with her.
***
Shun was still feverish when Kai came to his bedside; in spite of the humid warmth of the day, he lay shivering on the thin mattress. A fine growth of stubble darkened his upper lip and chin; no one had thought to shave him yet, or change his sweat-soaked tunic.
I must ask Yuna to release Sakami from her kitchen duties to care for her brother.
“This will make you feel more comfortable,” he said aloud, kneeling beside him to feel his pulse; it was stuttering, fast and irregular.
Next he checked the wound for signs of infection; he had not forgotten how Naoki, even with Master Seishi’s expert care, had burned with fever for a couple of days after the arrowhead had been cut from his shoulder. As the dressing was replaced, Shun murmured something under his breath that Kai could not catch.
“The wound’s clean enough,” Kai said softly as he measured a dose of the infusion into a little dish and raised Shun’s head. “You should be on the mend soon.” He tipped the dish to Shun’s lips and saw the archer grimace as he swallowed the bitter liquid.
“Well done,” he said quietly as he eased him back onto the mattress.
“Tastes bad.” Shun’s voice came out as a hoarse whisper. And then he looked up at Kai, as if recognizing him for the first time. “Please, Lord Kaito…look after…Sakami…if I don’t make it…”
“You’re going to be fine, Shun.” Kai spoke reassuringly, as he had so often heard Master Seishi do to his patients in the infirmary. But it grieved him to see such a strong and vigorous young man as Shun fighting for his life – and all the more so as he was Sakami’s beloved brother. “Just put all your strength into getting better.” Shun’s eyes closed again and he turned his head away with a little sigh.
Suddenly Kai was filled with a crushing sense of self-doubt.
Sensei, I hope I’ve made the right choice here. Have I been over-confident in my own skills? Suppose I’ve made the wrong judgment and Shun dies?
“Lord Kaito.”
He looked up to see Teiko-san striding briskly toward him between the rows of wounded men, two assistants hurrying after her.
“Your mother wants to see you.”
There was something self-satisfied about the way Teiko-san pronounced the words that made Kai feel uneasy. He nodded his assent and began to struggle to his feet.
“Leave the work here to us, my lord,” added Teiko-san pointedly.
Kai was reluctant to entrust Shun’s care to her but he had no option. “There’s enough infusion in the bowl here for another three doses.”
Teiko-san nodded as she took the medicine from him, her lips tightly pursed, as if she had been about to say something and then thought better of it.
***
Princess Asagao sat gazing at her reflection, her back to the door, as Lady Umeko and a younger maid combed her hair. The air was duskily scented with wisteria, her favorite perfume. She did not look round as Kai came in, but he knew that she could see him in her polished bronze mirror.
“You asked to see me, mother?”
“I wish to talk to my son alone,” she said, and as the ladies withdrew Umeko shot Kai a brief look of sympathy.
Asagao still did not turn around, continuing to check her makeup in the mirror.
“I’ve had to listen to the complaints of Master Ujiake and his daughter this morning. It seems that you’ve been impugning his competence as a physician and interfering in the care of the wounded.”
Kai said nothing. He knew that blurting out an impassioned defense would not impress his mother in the slightest.
“Well?” At last she laid down her mirror and turned to face him.
“It’s true that I’ve been helping to care for the wounded. I also identified the poison the Kite shinobi have been smearing on their blades and offered my suggestions as to how to counter its effects.” He kept his tone of voice level, even though an inner voice whispered, ‘Why must she always be so critical? Why can’t she forget her rank and just be my mother for once in her life?’
“Kaito, must I remind you that you are no longer a novice at the monastery? You’ve taken your brother’s place at the head of the clan. You can’t mingle with the servants and common soldiers any longer; you must preserve the distance that your high rank demands. If we were not at war with the Kites, you would be on your way to court to represent our clan at the Tide Festival. You are now one of the highest-ranking nobles in all Cipangu, one of the emperor’s elite.”
“The festival…” Kai found himself touching the Flood Dragon seal on his left wrist. He had lost track of time since he left the monastery. How can it go ahead? Lord Toshiro still has the Tide Jewels.
“Kaito, are you even listening to me?” Princess Asagao came toward him, her black-lined eyes glinting hard as polished jet. “I forbid you to go back to the guards’ hall. There is to be no more fraternizing with the servants. You are to conduct yourself as your high rank dictates.”
“I only came home to tend to Takeru’s wounds.” Kai was not going to let himself be intimidated this time. “But I’m not Takeru – I never will be. If I must take over running the clan, then I’ll do things my way.”
Sh
e stared at him; as he braced himself for another verbal slap, there came a discreet tap and Lady Umeko slid back the door. “General Tachibana is here, your highness.”
Only then did Kai realize that he had clenched his fists so tightly that his nails were digging into his palms.
Tachibana came in and knelt before the princess. He was in full armor and Kai heard the soft rattle of the silver-and-black-lacquered plates of his cuirass as he held out a letter.
“Is it still your wish, highness, to send this reply to Lord Toshiro’s challenge? If so, I must ask you to sign and seal it, in your role as leader of our clan.”
“Kaito, you will sign in your brother’s stead. I want Lord Toshiro to understand that we will not be forced into surrender without a fight.”
“Me?” At last Kaito began to understand what she was expecting of him. Umeko and the other ladies brought in a little table; they set out inks, pens, brushes, and the official clan seal while the princess proceeded to read aloud the letter she had dictated earlier.
“‘To Akatobi no Toshiro:
“‘Understand, my lord, that although we are prepared to enter into negotiations with you regarding the release of your son Lord Naoki, our first condition is that you immediately cease fire and withdraw your troops from our lands. Then and only then will we agree to meet you on neutral territory.
“‘If your clan perpetrates any further attacks on our stronghold, we will assume that you have no interest in negotiation and will deal with your son accordingly.’ ”
“Wait; what does that last sentence mean, mother?” Kai demanded. “That you would go so far as to order Lord Naoki’s execution?”
“To save our people, yes, I would.”
Kai stared at her, shocked at the bluntness of her reply.
“Lord Toshiro has always been headstrong and impulsive. If there’s no other way to make him pay attention, then we must remind him how much he has to lose if he continues with his current strategy.”
How much he has to lose. How could his mother speak so coldly about the taking of a life?
I have to find a way to protect Naoki.
