by I. J. Parker
Uesugi looked shocked. “Hideo?Oyoshi, you say it was Hideo? Are you certain?” He sighed deeply and closed hissmall eyes. “How sad! We all thought he had gone to the mountains to mourn myhonorable father’s death.” He sighed again, more deeply, shaking his head. “Atrue servant, a rare man. How inspiring!”
“What do you mean, inspiring?”Akitada asked sharply.
Uesugi scowled at his tone.Kaibara explained smoothly, “His lordship means that Hideo made the finalsacrifice by following his master into death, Excellency.”
“Nonsense. The man wasmurdered.”
There was a moment’s silence. “Murdered?”Uesugi burst into forced laughter. “Someone has been pulling your leg,Governor. Not you, Oyoshi, I hope? Who would murder good old Hideo? No, no, hejumped. As Kaibara says, it was a very moving tribute by a loyal man.”
Akitada said nothing andwaited.
Uesugi cocked his round face. “I’mafraid you made this long journey for nothing, my dear Governor. Especiallynow, when you are needed in the city. There have been disturbing reports ofunrest in Naoetsu. I hope it is nothing serious? We stand ready to assist you.”
“Nothing I cannot handle,” Akitadasnapped. “I brought my assistants to investigate the site of the victim’s falland talk to the servants. I take it that neither you nor Kaibara saw theservant Hideo after your father’s death?”
Uesugi and Kaibara exchanged aglance, then Uesugi said angrily, “You forget that this is a house of mourning.”
“I regret, but theinvestigation of a crime takes precedence over such considerations.”
Kaibara protested, “But even ifa crime had been committed, it would come under the jurisdiction of his lordship.It occurred in his domain. You have no rights here.”
Akitada looked at Uesugi. “Instructyour man in the proper respect due to my position!”
Uesugi’s face was purple, buthe hissed at Kaibara, “Apologize to his Excellency this instant!”
Kaibara looked murderous but heknelt and touched his forehead to the floor, muttering, “I hope your Excellencywill overlook a foolish soldier’s bad manners. I spoke carelessly out ofloyalty to my master.”
Akitada ignored him and said toUesugi, “The question of jurisdiction does not apply, since the crime wasreported to me in Naoetsu and the victim’s body was brought to the tribunalthere.”
“But even so, Excellency,”Uesugi replied, “such matters have always been handled by us. The authority ofthe high constable rests with the lords of Takata.”
“Not anymore. You recall that Ihave not requested a renewal of the appointment. I may reserve the position formyself.”
Kaibara, who had remained inhis abject posture, now popped up, his hand at his sword hilt. Uesugi shook hishead at him. “I trust you will change your mind, Excellency,” he said throughclenched teeth. “It takes manpower to enforce the law here. For the moment,Kaibara will assist you in your investigation.” He closed his eyes indicatingthat the interview was over.
“Thank you.” Akitada turned toKaibara. “Take us to the north pavilion!”
Kaibara led them out of thereception hall and down a long dim corridor. Rectangular patches of light fellthrough latticed windows high in one wall, illuminating family armor displayedon the other. Akitada slowed to look at swords, helmets, greaves, breastplates,battle fans, and batons. The collection was large, well-maintained, and ofsuperb quality.
“Look at that,” Tora murmuredwhen they reached a magnificent suit of black-lacquered metal plates tied withscarlet silk cords. Golden chrysanthemum blossoms tangled with waving silvergrasses on the breastplate. “It’s like a painting.”
Kaibara stopped. “You have goodtaste, Lieutenant.” He did not disguise his pride. “The armor is of verysuperior workmanship. Yosai made it for the late lord’s father who wore it inthe battle of Kanagawa. A decisive victory. That’s why we display it on thewall. Most of the other armor, very fine also, is stored in those chests.” Hegestured.
Akitada glanced down thecorridor. For well over a hundred feet, wooden metal-banded chests stood sideby side beneath wall displays bristling with spears, halberds, swords, bows,quivers, arrows, standards, and other battle gear.
Kaibara’s smile broadened as he saw Akitada’s amazement. “Your Excellency has noticed Lord Maro’s swords?” He pointed to matching gold-hilted blades, one long, the other short. Taking down the long sword, he pulled it from the scabbard with a soft hissing sound. The blade emerged and flashed bluish silver in a shaft of light as Kaibara raised it with both hands above his head. His face turned into a snarl of such bloodthirsty ferocity that Akitada stepped back, out of reach of the long blade.
Dr. Oyoshi cleared his throat,and Kaibara chuckled.
Flushing with anger, Akitada stepped forward and took the sword from the steward’s hand. “A fine blade” he commented. “A master made this.”
There was a moment’s pause,then Kaibara said harshly, “They say it drank the blood of a hundred warriors that day at Kanagawa. There’s not a nick in the blade, though his lordship,fighting from a horse, was slashing through bone.”
Returning the sword, Akitada said, “Forgive my ignorance. This battle, I take it, was fought many years ago?”
“Before my time. The late lord was a young man then. Both he and his brother were raised to a warrior’s life.”Kaibara replaced the sword and waited to move on. He seemed to have lost interest in the displays.
“There was a brother?”
“Yes. He was the older. When he died, Lord Maro succeeded. Shall we go on?”
They walked until Tora stoppedto exclaim at an unusually long, beautifully finished bow. A very long blackarrow with a black-dyed eagle feather and a finely crafted steel tip wasattached to its groove. “That bow must be at least one and a half times a man’sheight,” Tora cried.
“That one’s for archery contestsonly,” Kaibara said with an impatient sigh. “We carry shorter ones into battle.The quiver of long arrows gets in the way of the sword arm, and the contest arrows are too expensive to waste on the enemy” He strode off down the corridor without waiting for more questions or comments.
They emerged onto a draftyoutside gallery which took them to the north pavilion. Here Kaibara stopped andasked, “Where was the body found, Excellency?”
Tora and Akitada stepped to the railing and peered down.
“According to the fellow who brought it in,” Akitada said, with a warning glance at Tora, “it must have been just about here.”
“Who-?” began Kaibara.
“Look!” cried Tora. “There are scratches on the railing here. And there”-he pointed-”that looks like dried blood.”
Akitada squinted at the brown streaks. “Doctor?” Oyoshi came and peered also. He nodded. Akitada turned to the steward. “Please unlock the pavilion.”
Kaibara protested: He could notsee the purpose of inspecting the pavilion. Hideo had jumped off the wall, not killed himself inside. Then there was the matter of sacrilege. The room was where Lord Maro had lived and died; his spirit was still there and should not be disturbed. And in any case, he had no authority to unlock the door.
Akitada said nothing but stepped to the door and waited.
Kaibara shook his head, fished a key from his sleeve, and admitted them to the late lord’s death chamber.
The pavilion consisted of asingle square room, empty except for a fine hanging scroll painting of an eagleon a twisted pine branch, two thick tatami mats, and a large leather trunk. Themats were near one of the windows, the only one whose blinds of speckled blackbamboo were rolled up, revealing a view of distant snowcapped mountains. Theview from here was magnificent.
Tora and Oyoshi looked aroundcuriously, but Akitada went to the window. There was no gallery on this side;the outside wall of the pavilion joined the stone ramparts descending steeplyto the rock gully far below.
Suddenly he staggered back, convulsedby a fit of coughing. They all looked at him in dismay. He choked and gagged,stumbling toward
Tora who supported him anxiously. “Some water,” he croaked,grasping his throat.
Oyoshi said sharply, “Loweryour master to the ground against the wall there and loosen his robe at theneck. And you, Kaibara, fetch some water! Quick, man! There’s no time to belost! Do you want the governor’s death on your hands?”
Kaibara hesitated only briefly,then ran out. Akitada stopped gasping, jumped up, and went to the trunk. “Let’shave a look,” he said to the gaping Tora.
The doctor chuckled. “I thoughtthat did not sound quite natural.” He joined them and watched as they removedseveral silk quilts and a rosewood headrest from the trunk. “Lord Maro’sbedding,” he said and, when they lifted out a large lacquered and gilded box atthe bottom, “His writing box. What is it that you expect to find, sir?”
“I wish I knew.” Akitada openedthe box. Fitted cleverly inside were two carved ink stones, two porcelain watercontainers, four lacquer-handled brushes, and two cakes of the finest blackink. Akitada touched the ink cakes. “One is still moist,” he said, holding uphis black-tipped finger. “I suppose all those quilts kept the air from dryingit out. I wonder…” He listened toward the door, then shut the box, putting itback into the trunk. “Quick, Tora! Put everything back and close it!” Toraobeyed while Akitada resumed his reclining position against the wall, coughingweakly as Kaibara ran in with a flask and cup.
Akitada drank, croaked “Thankyou,” and allowed himself to be helped to his feet again. “Sorry,” he muttered,wiping his brow. “It must have been the way I breathed in when I looked out.What a nuisance!”
The doctor asked Kaibara, “Doyou happen to know what Lord Maro’s symptoms were before he died? I ask out ofprofessional interest.”
“I don’t know. I expect it washis age. His mind went years ago, and he would not permit anyone, not even hisson, near him. Only Hideo served him. This past summer his speech failed andfinally his body followed.” Kaibara paused and added piously, “The Buddha callsextraordinary men to him.”
Akitada was listening with halfan ear. He studied the room, its floor, walls, ceiling, windows, and door,without seeing anything out of the ordinary. Except for the crookedly fastenedblind, the room was almost too neat. Someone had taken pains to clean up afterthe old lord’s death. He was eyeing the thick tatami mats when Kaibara askedimpatiently, “Where to next, Excellency?”
Reluctantly Akitada abandonedhis train of thought. “Oh, the servants, I think. Hideo’s closest associatesand anyone who might have been near the north pavilion the night of Lord Maro’sdeath.” He cast another glance about and followed the others out.
Kaibara ordered the manor’sdomestic staff to assemble in one of the courtyards.
“Bow to his Excellency, thegovernor,” he told them. They fell to their knees. “He wishes to ask you somequestions about poor Hideo’s …”
Akitada interrupted him. “Thankyou. This will do very well. We won’t need to detain you any longer.”
Kaibara opened his mouth but,meeting Akitada’s eyes, he thought better of it, bowed, and departed.
Akitada scanned the gatheringof young and old manservants and maids, guards, cooks, and runners. Some lookedpuzzled, others hostile. He addressed them in an informal manner.
“As you may already know, yourfellow servant Hideo was found dead below the north pavilion. He must havefallen during the night Lord Maro died. I am here to find out how it happened.He served here all his life, and you all knew him. Some of you may have beenhis friends. Some may have seen him on the night of his death. And some of youmay simply have seen or heard something unusual that night. They are the ones Iwould like to speak to. The rest of you may return to your work.”
There was a buzz of excitement,and then the courtyard emptied quickly. Only four people remained: three maidsand one old man. The old man looked painfully shy and was wringing his hands nervously.Two of the women were middle-aged and haggard, staring back stupidly, butwithout fear. Akitada thought they almost looked pleased to be questioned. Thethird maid was a stocky young girl with plain broad features, bright blackeyes, and red cheeks. She was nervous, biting her lip and glancing over hershoulder as if she expected someone.
Proper protocol had to befollowed, so Akitada addressed the male first. “What is your name?”
“This person is calledKoreburo, your Excellency,” the ancient quavered, bobbing several bows.
“Well, Koreburo, what do youknow about this affair?”
“By the great Buddha,Excellency, I swear I know nothing. I’ve done nothing.” His gnarled handsknotted and unknotted, and he breathed, “Amida.”
Seeing that the man was inarticulatewith awe or fear, Akitada gentled his voice. “Calm yourself. You have nothingto fear from me.”
Koreburo took a breath andnodded.
“I see your hair has turnedwhite in the service of your master. You must be of an age with Hideo.”
“Ah,” cried the old man,sitting up a little, and raising a hand, fingers extended. “I’m five yearsolder and have served two years longer.” He waved two fingers of his other handat Akitada. “Hideo always said that he worked twice as hard, so he had reallyserved one hundred years to my fifty. But it isn’t so, Excellency. Hideo was agreat liar sometimes.”
Akitada smiled. “Only lifelongfriends talk that way to each other.”
The old man nodded, his eyessuddenly brimming with tears. “That’s the truth. We played go togetherafter work. I won mostly. When our old women were still alive, the four of uswent on a pilgrimage to Ise. Oh, what a time we had! Now he’s gone and there’sonly me.” He hung his head. “Nobody to talk to anymore. The young ones, what dothey know? They drink and gamble and chase the women. Hideo used to come to myroom after he’d tucked in the master. I’d have the go board set out andwe’d play, and all the time he’d worry about Lord Maro. He loved the master.”
“Koreburo,” cried one of theolder women softly. “Remember what Master Kaibara said!”
The old man shot her anirritated glance. “Yes, yes. I’m not to talk of unimportant things, but thismight be important. Because, Excellency, the night the master died, Hideo didnot come. I waited a long time and wondered. His lordship was getting worse,and Hideo had said the end was near. And so it was, wasn’t it?”
“Yes,” said Akitada. He wasintrigued by the maid’s warning. Evidently Kaibara had anticipated his visitand cautioned the servants. He wondered what he had told them, but decided notto press the old man. “Thank you, Koreburo,” he said. “If you remember anythingelse, you must come to the tribunal.”
He turned next to the woman whohad spoken, though he expected little from her or her companion. But precedencehad to be followed here, too. “And who are you?” he asked.
“This person is called Chiyo,your Excellency.” She bowed and pointed to her companion, “Mika and me, we weresweeping the corridor and we saw Hideo. He was running from the old master’sroom and then a little while later he was running back. That’s all we saw ofhim that night, your Excellency.”
“When was that?”
The two women exchanged puzzledglances. “I can’t say, your Excellency,” the first one stammered. “It wasgetting dark outside.”
The second woman nodded. “Thebanquet was half over. They were taking in the pickled salmon and plums. Weleft then to lay out Lord Makio’s bedding.”
“Did Hideo speak to either ofyou as he passed?”
They shook their heads, and thesecond one said, “He looked so worried, I don’t think he saw us. It wasn’t hisusual time to leave his master. Maybe he was sent for.”
“No, Mika,” chided the otherone. “Don’t be stupid. We’d been cleaning the end of that corridor. If somebody’dgone to fetch Hideo, we would’ve seen him. Nobody went down that corridorexcept Hideo.”
Akitada looked at herattentively. “And later?”
They exchanged glances again. “Wewere in Lord Makio’s room then,” said the first woman.
“But,” cried Mika, “the doorwas open. I heard
footsteps, and then I saw Master Kaibara going past.” She paused. “But I did wonder about the paper.”
“Mika!” said her companionreproachfully. “Don’t talk about unimportant things. Only about Hideo.”
“Sorry.” Mika put both handsover her mouth.
“Let her speak,” said Akitada.
“It’s stupid, really,”stammered Mika. “I thought Hideo must have the runs. He had a sleeve full ofpaper and he was running back to the gallery and that leads to the latrines.”
There was a stunned silence,and Mika put her hands over her face.
“You are very observant.”Akitada remembered his own visit to the convenience that night. He had not seenthe unfortunate Hideo, but that meant nothing. “If that is all, then perhapsthis young woman has something to add?”
The red-cheeked girl castanother glance over her shoulder, then bowed and said quickly, almost as if shefeared being interrupted, “This humble person is called Sumi and has served atTakata for five years. I look after the children when their parents are busywith their duties. Hideo’s grandson Toneo has been in my charge since hisparents died four years ago. The morning after Lord Maro died, very early, atdawn, Toneo came to my room and woke me. He said his grandfather had not sleptin his bed and he couldn’t find him. I got up, and we went to look for him.There was much confusion because the old lord had died during the night, butHideo was nowhere and nobody had seen him. Finally in the afternoon we went toMaster Kaibara. Master Kaibara said Hideo had been so sad that he had gone tothe mountains to pray for the old lord’s soul.”
Akitada had hoped for more thanthis. “Thank you,” he said. “I met Hideo’s grandson at the funeral. The boytold me about it.”
“Oh,” she cried. “I didn’t knowif Toneo was telling the truth. He said the governor himself would help himfind his grandfather.” A gate slammed, and she tensed.
Akitada followed her eyes andsaw that Kaibara was back. “Was there anything else on your mind?” he askedquickly.
