Black Arrow sa-4

by I. J. Parker

  He reached for her with a softlaugh and pulled her into his arms. “I have a surprise, little one. See!”Reaching into his bundle of clothes, he extracted the small package. “Take it!There is enough to buy your freedom.”

  She lifted the package. “It issmall.”

  “I changed the silver bars intogold. Now will you marry me?”

  She unwrapped the gold and satlooking at it with a rapt expression.

  “Well?”

  “Oh, Hito,” she cried, throwingher arms around his neck. “You are the most generous, the kindest, the strongest of men.”

  Her arms slid over his muscular shoulders and her fingers moved lightly across his chest and down to his loincloth. Hitomaro drew a shuddering breath.

  She smiled up at him, her pinktongue slowly licking her lips. Her practiced hands undid the cloth and,shaking with desire, Hitomaro pushed aside the folds of her robe. She sank backinto the silken quilts and parted her thighs.

  THIRTEEN

  RAISING THE DEAD

  Soon after Hitomaro left to visit Judge Hisamatsu, Akitada walked across thetribunal compound to the jail. He had explored in vain every conceivable stephe could take to locate the boy without endangering the child’s life. If Toneoknew something about his grandfather’s murder, any further attempt to locatehim might bring about his death.

  If, indeed, Toneo was stillalive.

  Akitada was convinced by nowthat the answer to the servant’s murder must lie in the master’s death. Andthat made the demise of the late Lord of Takata suspicious.

  Ducking through an icy blast ofair which whipped the skirts of his quilted robe about his legs, he pushed openthe door to the jail.

  Five men sat around a largebrazier on the dirt floor of the main room. Kaoru, his new sergeant ofconstables, and Dr. Oyoshi were bent over the black and white playing pieces ona go board, while the prisoners Takagi, Okano, and Umehara watched.

  Seeing the three prisonersreminded Akitada that he had made no progress in the case of the innkeeper’smurder. He was convinced of their innocence but could not let them go until hearrested the real killer, or at least had a notion of what had happened at theinn that day. Meanwhile Sato’s widow was agitating against him. He consoledhimself with the thought that getting to the bottom of the conspiracy wouldmore than likely clear up the Sato case also, and both Genba and Hitomaro wereworking on that.

  “Excellency!” Kaoru jumped upand stood to attention. The three prisoners knelt, their heads touching thefloor.

  “A very pleasant day,” Oyoshisaid, inclining his head. “Outside the wind howls, but here we are warm and atpeace. Will you join us, Excellency?”

  “Thank you.” Akitada loweredhimself to one of the thin straw mats and held his hands toward the brazier. “Pleasebe seated again. I must move my office here. It is as drafty as a hermit’scave.”

  Kaoru chuckled. “I doubt that,sir. Those caves are actually quite comfortable. Rock keeps out the cold muchbetter than wood and paper. Can I pour you a cup of wine?”

  “No, thank you, Sergeant. Youseem to know something about such religious retreats. I remember hearing in thecapital about extraordinary feats of self-discipline. For example, yamabushiare said to stand for hours under icy waterfalls in the middle of winter. Is thereany truth to such tales?”

  Kaoru looked uncomfortable. “Ithas been known to happen. Would your Excellency like to inspect the cells? Wehave a new prisoner.”

  “Ah, yes. The fishmonger Goto.”Akitada glanced at Takagi, Umehara, and Okano, who were watching him nervously,and wondered why they had special privileges but decided not to ask. Instead hesaid, “No, Sergeant. I came to speak with the doctor, but will have a word withyou also before I leave. I have an assignment for you.”

  Kaoru bowed and turned to thethree prisoners. “Come, you fellows. To the kitchen with you. It’s time tostart the evening rice.”

  The three odd charactersbrightened instantly and jumped up to scramble after Kaoru.

  Oyoshi chuckled. “Umehara makesa superb fish stew with cabbage and Okano has his mother’s touch when it comesto tofu. It melts on your tongue. Takagi keeps the fire going.”

  Akitada hid his astonishment. “Isee. They look well and contented. I had not expected such a change.”

  “No?” Oyoshi regarded him witha twinkle in his eyes. “You thought they were languishing in chains in freezingcells and blamed yourself for not having proved their innocence yet? Do notworry. Your new sergeant is a kind man, and I, too, am grateful. I know of nobetter place to relax and share an occasional meal.”

  Akitada smiled, but he dislikedhaving his mind read so easily. “Have you had a look at the body from themarket?”

  Oyoshi nodded. “You keep yourcoroner busy. The person, a male about thirty years old, was healthy except fornumerous old flogging scars on his back and legs.”

  “I am told he was a small-timecrook called Koichi. He has been arrested for assorted crimes and usuallypunished with the customary number of lashes.”

  “I see. The calluses on hishands and shoulders suggest that he may have worked as a porter.”

  “You are right again. When hewas not robbing people, that is. What about the cause of death?”

  Oyoshi placed a finger on theleft side of his chest. “A single stab wound here. Lieutenant Hitomaro showedme a silver-hilted knife. The blade is consistent with the wound. I understandSunada did it in self-defense?”

  “So he claims.”

  Oyoshi pondered this, thenasked, “Any news about the boy?”

  “No. I meant to speak to youabout something else. Yesterday, in Lord Maro’s room, you asked Kaibara aboutthe old lord’s symptoms before he died. Why?”

  Oyoshi met Akitada’s eyes andlooked away. “Just professional curiosity,” he said blandly. “Why?”

  “I have an extraordinary favorto ask of you. You may wish to decline. I want you to accompany me to Takataafter dark. The trip is likely to be uncomfortable in this weather, but thereis another reason why you may decide to refuse.” He hesitated. “You will needyour instruments.”

  The older man tensed. “Anunpleasant business involving sacrilege, I take it? I am at your service.”

  Akitada released his breath. “Thankyou.”

  A door slammed and firmfootsteps brought Kaoru back. “Will you stay for the evening meal, Doctor?” heasked. “A soup of rice, red beans, vegetables, and eggs, I’m told. Umehara saysit’s a specialty of the mountain villages in Shimosa province.” He gave Akitadaan uncertain look. “Perhaps your Excellency would also like to sample it?”

  Akitada was hungry. “Thank you,Sergeant. Soup sounds excellent in this weather. I accept with gratitude.”

  “Oh.” Kaoru looked both pleasedand embarrassed. “It will take another hour or two. Will you eat here or . .. ?”

  “Here. It’s warmer. I will comeback and tell you about your assignment. I’m afraid it will mean riding back toyour village tonight to make an arrest.”

  Kaoru stiffened. “Sir?”

  Akitada sighed, then said, “Iam aware that your people have given shelter to fugitives and I do not approve.Still I am willing to overlook the matter for now, but this particular man hascommitted another crime against your people since you took him in, and histestimony is needed in tomorrow’s hearing. Can I rely on you in this?”

  Kaoru bowed. “I know the man,sir, and he shall be here.”

  ¦

  Thedarkness in the woods was so dense that the three men rode close together,trusting to the sure-footedness of Oyoshi’s donkey to keep them on the narrowpath. It was not safe to light lanterns, for even though the woods offeredcover, there was always the chance that someone might be looking out across thelandscape from the galleries, as Akitada had done on his first, ill-omenedvisit to the manor.

  They emerged into a clearing.Fitful clouds scurried across the nearly full moon, which cast a gray light onthe scene. The icy wind tore at their straw capes; the horses snorted, and thebreaths of men and beasts hung in the
air like ghostly exhalations. Akitadapulled back on his reins and stared at the wooded hillside ahead. The shapes ofgrave markers marched up among the trees like lines of ghostly soldiers. Intheir midst, he had been told, was the entrance to the tomb of the Uesugichieftains.

  “There it is,” he said,controlling a shiver of nervousness. “Tora and I could not have found the placewithout you, Doctor.”

  “I gather ginseng root on topof the burial hill,” replied Oyoshi. “It grows particularly well in theseparts, with large, fleshy roots. My patients claim it helps them.” They kepttheir voices low even though the graveyard was deserted.

  Akitada glanced curiously atthe huddled figure on the donkey. “Don’t you believe in the curative powers ofginseng?”

  Oyoshi chuckled. “It’s enoughif they do. If a sick person has faith in its efficacy, then that person willfeel better shortly.”

  “I wish I had some of thatspecial ginseng from China that makes you live forever,” Tora muttered. “Whatif the old lord’s ghost comes after us?”

  “If he does, he’ll save you alot of hard work,” Akitada said dryly.

  Tora reached for his amuletinside the shaggy bearskin.

  Oyoshi said with a sigh, “Livingforever is a curse, not a blessing.”

  Tora shuddered visibly, andAkitada snapped, “Pull yourself together.”

  “Only the spirits of the deadmake me nervous,” Tora said defensively.

  “Ssh!” Akitada raised his hand.He thought he heard sounds: dry branches cracking and small creaks. They heldtheir breaths and calmed their mounts, but there was only the wind in thetrees.

  Akitada felt as tense as Tora,but for different reasons. In the murky grayness, the dim shapes of the gravemarkers stood in their patches of snow like a frozen army watching over thetomb in their midst. The image reminded him of their danger as they trespassedon the sacred land of ancient warlords. He took some consolation from the factthat the snow had been trampled by those who had attended the funeral. Theirtracks would be lost among the old ones.

  Pushing aside the sense ofimpending disaster, he said briskly, “Come. Let’s get it over with. Bring yourtools, Tora.” They dismounted, and tied up their horses.

  Walking across the clearing andclimbing uphill past the silent markers, they found the entrance of the tomb.The large stone doorway, its moss and lichen scarred by the recent opening, wasalmost as wide and tall as a man. When Akitada went closer, he saw that it wasinscribed with sacred texts and the Uesugi crest. Marks in the muddy groundshowed that the stone pivoted outward.

  “Come here, Tora, and see ifyou can lever it open.” Akitada said.

  “Amida!” prayed Tora, but heobeyed, selecting from among his tools an iron truncheon he had picked up inthe constables’ armory.

  It took a while. Akitada andOyoshi waited, stamping their icy feet and moving their arms to keep warm,while Tora muttered prayers and magic spells under his breath and probed thedoor to the burial chamber of the late Lord of Takata.

  Around them the ancient pinesand cedars stirred and creaked as the wind blew through them, and Akitada feltdoubly like a trespasser. Not only was this Uesugi land, the final restingplace of their dead, but it was a spirit world which should be inhabited atthis hour only by shifting shadows and strange sighs of the wind.

  “Hurry up!” His voice soundedunnaturally loud.

  Tora grunted, leaning all hisstrength into the iron bar. The space between the stone doorway and its framewidened with a harsh grating sound. Tora muttered another prayer, then put hishand inside and pulled. Akitada went to help him, and with more jarring andscraping, the great stone moved outward. A dark tunnel gaped before them.

  Tora backed away.

  “Come on” snapped Akitada. “Surelyyou don’t expect me to finish the job.”

  “Look!” Tora choked andpointed. “It leads straight to hell.”

  “Nonsense.” But when Akitadapeered down the tunnel, he saw faint firelight flickering deep inside. Behindhim, Tora was shaking so badly that his teeth chattered.

  “All right, stay here.” Akitadatook up the lantern, struck a flint and lit it, then ducked into the tunnel.The air was moist and cold, and it smelled of the earth. The tunnel was builtof granite: Cut stones formed the walls and large slabs the low ceiling. He hadto walk with his head bent. Under his feet were more stones. His lantern threwweird moving shapes against the wall beside him, as if shadowy creatures movedon either side.

  The tunnel was not perfectlystraight, but curved slightly to the left. After a few paces, Akitada found thesource of the flickering light. The tunnel suddenly widened and arched up intoa small chamber, and here rested a sarcophagus. Offerings of food for the deadlord had been placed at its foot between two burning oil lamps. The oil in thedishes was getting very low. Soon eternal darkness would descend on the tomb.

  He heard steps behind him andturned. Dr. Oyoshi joined him with his case of instruments and looked aroundcuriously. “I knew they built this,” he said. “Years ago. They said Lord Marorequested it. Look at the paintings.”

  Akitada, having bent over thecoffin to see how it opened, straightened up. The chamber was taller than thetunnel, and high on each wall and on the ceiling were panels of white plaster.Each panel was decorated with ancient directional symbols: the black tortoiseof the north, the azure dragon of the east, the red bird of the south, and thewhite tiger of the west. The colors shone fresh in the light, and on theceiling sparkled gold stars: astronomical constellations.

  “I have heard tales of theancient burials of the first emperors that must have been something like this,”he said. “Uesugi thought highly of himself.”

  Oyoshi chuckled. “Maybe. Or maybehe wanted nothing to do with the Buddhist rites that insist on cremationbecause that’s what the Buddha chose. Lord Maro was a strange man.”

  “I am told he went mad and hadto be confined. We need help with this stone lid.” Akitada called for Tora.

  Tora slunk in, looking greenand panicky, but he did as he was asked, and together they shifted the stonelid enough to reveal the corpse.

  Tora clutched his amulet andrecited a string of “Amidas.”

  “Go back and keep watchoutside,” Akitada snapped. “We can manage the rest.”

  Tora disappeared through thetunnel. Sounds of retching, interspersed with fervent calls upon the Buddha,reached them faintly.

  The smell of death anddecomposition was very slight. For once the season had favored them; the coldstone had kept the body fresh and pliable.

  The doctor placed the lights.Together they lifted the wrapped corpse and stretched it out on the stonefloor. Oyoshi unwound the silk wrappings. The emaciated form of a very old manappeared in the uncertain light. His protruding ribs resembled a bamboo cage,and the face, peaceful in death, was, with its sunken cheeks, toothless gums,and deeply recessed eyes, more skeletal than the body. Air currents surgedthrough the tomb, stirring the thin wisps of beard, and for a moment it lookedas if the dead man were about to speak.

  Akitada crouched, watching asOyoshi, on his knees next to the body, began his examination. In the flickeringlights, the scene reminded him of gruesome paintings of the demons of hell in aBuddhist monastery.

  Oyoshi was thorough butrespectful of the dead man. After verifying that the body bore no obviouswounds, he began his inspection with the head, first feeling the skull for softspots. These might mean that Lord Maro had been bludgeoned. Next he examinedthe eyes, ears, nostrils, and mouth for signs of bleeding. He inserted a silverprobe into the dead man’s mouth and studied it, and he looked closely at thethin neck. Then he went over the rest of the body, all the way to the old man’sbony feet with their yellowed toenails.

  Akitada, impatient anddisappointed, asked, “Nothing?”

  Oyoshi sat back on his heelsand shook his head. “No wounds, no signs of poison, no evidence ofstrangulation or smothering. No bruising. The condition of the body isconsistent with the disease of old age.”

  Akitada cried in frustration, “Bu
tthere must be something. Everything points to murder. Why else kill Hideo? Andwhy the suspicious behavior of Makio and Kaibara during the banquet, and nowToneo’s disappearance? None of it makes any sense unless the old lord wasmurdered that night.”

  Oyoshi looked at Akitada. “Youare worried about the boy, aren’t you?”

  “I am worried about a lot ofthings. One of them is this needless exhumation of a body. It is a sacrilegeand a capital offense. You and I, Doctor, and Tora also, will lose our freedomand perhaps our lives if anyone finds out about this. Let’s finish and leave.”

  Oyoshi nodded. “You took agreat risk. You are a man with a soft heart. I knew it the first time I laideyes on you. It is an admirable quality.”

  “And you are a foolish old man,”snapped Akitada, turning away. “Go ahead and wrap him up again. If you say hedied of natural causes, so be it. Tora, come help the doctor!”

  Tora did not answer or appear.Faint sounds came from outside. The doctor’s donkey brayed, and a horse gave afrightened whinny.

  Akitada said, “I wonder whatTora is up to.”

  They listened, but all remainedsilent. Akitada regretted having come unarmed on this excursion. Spurred by a suddensense of urgency, he helped Oyoshi wrap the body and then bent to lift it intohis arms.

  A shout came from the tunnelentrance. “Come out! You are surrounded.” It echoed crazily among the stones.Akitada almost dropped the late Lord of Takata, but instead slid the body backinto the open coffin. Oyoshi helped him push the heavy lid across, and Akitadaextinguished the lights.

  The voice came again. “Who areyou and what are you doing here? Come out.”

  They had little choice. Therewas no sign of Tora. Perhaps he was dead. For all they knew a small army ofTakata warriors waited outside.

  Akitada sighed. “Take yourinstruments, Doctor, and let’s go before they decide to close that stone door.”

  They emerged cautiously. Therewas no sign of Tora, but the snowy woods held no army either. Looking around,Akitada felt relief and wondered if-overwrought by thoughts of danger- he hadimagined the shouts.