The Shrine Virgin

by I. J. Parker

  "Taken aback by this outburst, Akitada asked, "Who is she?"

  "She is known as Tamba Shikibu. She is married to the governor of Tamba and a daughter of" Tachibana Moroe. A thoroughly depraved female." He glowered. "Really, I sometimes wonder at the lack of propriety among court ladies, but you would expect an older woman to have more sense. Even in these sacred surroundings, the princess's attendants are allowed a degree of freedom that is shocking."

  This made Akitada ask, "You suspect a romantic entanglement'"

  The priest threw up his hands. "Who knows' Anything is possible. And don't ask me for details. I'm completely in the dark. Speak to that woman." He paused, then muttered, "Though she'll lie, of course."

  Akitada thought there had been a great deal of lying going onalready. In fact, his own presence here was based on a lie. He asked. "How exactly have you managed to keep this covered up? Did you use a stand-in?" For the first time, the priest smiled a little. It made him look gentler. "My daughter Nobuko took the princess's place for the Tsukinamisai."

  "Your daughter?" Akitada regarded the elderly man and wondered how such a substitution could have succeeded. Princess Takahime was in her early twenties and by all accounts beautiful, though that could be an exaggeration. All imperial descendants were automatically endowed with perfections.

  "My daughter is twenty-one," said the priest, guessing his puzzlement. "She's the child of my old age, the one neither my wife nor I expected. And she is, of course, a shrine maiden and very familiar with the princess's duties."

  "You are to be congratulated," Akitada said, wondering if someone would someday look with the same surprise at his children by Yukiko. She had not given him a child yet and it was altogether possible that he would be taken for its grandfather. "How many people know what has been going on? There is your own household, and then the princess's establishment. And what about the other priests and attendants at the ceremonies?"

  "I cannot speak for the princess's palace, but here only my wife and daughter are aware. I have been most careful to announce that Her Highness would travel with my wife to and from her palace. The driver is unaware who enters the carriage at my house."

  Akitada nodded. It seemed just possible, though surely this could not go on forever. He was becoming very curious to meet Lady Tamba. "Can you write me a letter of introduction that will admit me to the Bamboo Palace?"

  The priest rose to go to a small carved desk. Taking a sheet of paper and rubbing some ink, he wrote, pausing now and then to tap the handle of the brush against his nose. When he finished, he waved the letter about to let the ink dry, then brought it to Akitada.

  "See if you approve," he said.

  Akitada read, "On behalf of His Majesty, I introduce to you Lord Sugawara. He has travelled far to bring a message to Her Royal Highness from her August brother."

  The note-on paper every bit as fine as his own letter from the imperial secretary-was addressed to Tamba Shikibu.

  "It will do very well," Akitada said as he gave it back to be folded and sealed. "Am I to assume that I may now use my own name?"

  The priest started. "No, by no means. It would cause people to wonder. The Tamba woman doesn't matter. She has her own secrets to keep and won't talk."

  Akitada nodded. "True enough. But you should know that I have been recognized already. The police lieutenant in Uji-tachi used to work with Superintendant Kobe in the capital. Of course I've sworn him to secrecy. He seems reliable."

  The priest sighed. "It can't be helped, but we must be careful."

  Akitada rose. "I agree. If there is any news, I'll return."

  The priest came to put a hand on Akitada arm. "I'm very glad you're here.," he said. "It's an enormous relief to know that someone else now bears some of the burden. I don't mind telling you, I've been nearly out of my mind." He squeezed Akitada's arm gratefully and added, "But remember, don't trust that Tamba woman."

  ==

  No wonder the high priest had panicked and reported to the emperor. If he was indeed right, and Akitada tended to believe him because he had seemed a rational man, then the situation was dire. Some weeks ago, perhaps as much as a month, the princess had disappeared. Akitada agreed with the priest that it seemed inconceivable that she could still be alive after all this time.

  Akitada's thoughts returned to the bodies of young women that had been fished from the river on what appeared to be a regular basis. Had they all been identified? Had it occurred to the priest to examine them?

  He had not mentioned such a thing, perhaps because he did not want Akitada to consider her dead. Or perhaps he knew something more about the disappearance that would explain the absence but could not be divulged. Akitada sincerely hoped this was the case. He also hoped that her ladies-in-waiting would know what had happened to her.

  As Akitada pondered what he had learned from Nakatomi, he came to a crossroad. Signs pointed either ahead to Geku, the outer shrine, or to Naiku where he had already been. He decided to complete his visit of the two most important shrines before noon and call on the ladies in the Bamboo Palace after eating something. His stomach rumbled, but he did not want to waste the day's abstinence, so he continued to the shrine dedicated to Toyouki, the kami of agriculture and crafts.

  He caught the end of the morning ceremony. It was performed twice daily by Shinto priests in pure white robes and shrine maidens in their red skirts and white jackets. He watched them appreciatively because this shrine celebrated all the things that people needed to sustain life and culture. The god blessed rice farming, salt-making, fishing, silk production, weaving of both silk and hemp, and pottery making. It struck Akitada again that anything befalling the Ise virgin would wreak havoc in many lives by bringing devastating droughts, earthquakes, storms, and diseases. Deaths and starvation would bring about rebellion and war, and the nation would be shaken. Humbly, he made his own prayers to the god before returning to Uji-tachi.

  He would do his utmost to return the lost jewel to its shrine.

  9 The Dragon Lady

  Back in Uji-tachi, Akitada returned to the place that served the excellentt fish soup and fortified himself with two large bowls of this before setting out for the Bamboo Palace. Since he lead done a significant amount of walking these last two days, he rented a horse for the journey. The beast was elderly and certainly did not make a good impression, but then neither did he in his plain black robe and the cap of a minor official.

  The palace was indeed quite impressive, though the buildings had been kept simple in keeping with the ancient shrines. But there were halls, pavilions, galleries, and outbuildings tucked away behind a tall wooden fence, and the large gate was manned by guards in the imperial colors.

  Akitada was stopped, gave his false name, and said that he had come from the chief priest with a letter for Lady Tamba. This produced grins and made it clear that the hostilities between the senior lady-in-waiting and the chief priest were known to all. It also proved the soldiers' lack of discipline the priest had mentioned. Their sneers made it clear that the chief priest was not held in great esteem. However, Akitada was admitted and allowed to dismount while someone went to announce him.

  He looked about him, trying to gauge the mood here. If they knew the princess was gone, they did not give any sign of it. Neither did they seem overly downcast by any illness that might have befallen her.

  A servant returned to take him to a reception room in the main building. This was large and empty. He waited, pacing back and forth. Somewhere in the distance he heard women's laughter, and was struck again by the normalcy that seemed to prevail.

  He had quite a long wait, which he ascribed to the hostilities between the chief priest and the senior ladyin-waiting. Finally a door opened in the back of the room, and an old woman with a white-painted face and painted eyebrows appeared. She wore the court robe of many layers of silk but was frail and walked up to him with small shuffling steps to peer over her fan with rheumy eyes. Akitada was somewhat astonished that the chief
priest should have been so outraged by someone who was so clearly feeble, when the old lady said in a cracked voice, "You are to come!" and turned to shuffle away again.

  Akitada followed her out of the main hall and along a series of galleries through some beautiful gardens to a pavilion. The old lady finally stopped, gasping a little from the exertion, and gestured at the door. "Go in," she croaked.

  Akitada bowed his thanks. Great age always deserved this honor, even when he did not know what function this woman had. Then he opened the door and stepped inside.

  The room was large and luxuriously furnished. Painted screens, tatarni mats with silk trimmings, green reed shades with brocade ribbons, an assortment of smaller furnishings, such as lacquer clothing trunks, bamboo book racks with books, braziers, lamps, desks, comb boxes, silver mirrors, and other oddments made it a suitable place for an imperial princess.

  But there was no princess. The only woman present was middle-aged, tall for a woman, but also fat, to judge by her round face, for her voluminous gowns and the fact that she was sitting made it hard to tell. Like the old lady's, her face was painted. Unlike the old lady, she disdained to hide behind a fan. Instead, she fanned herself with it angrily.

  "So you come from that man!" she snapped. "What new torment has he invented for me?"

  Akitada bowed. "Do I have the honor of speaking to Lady Tamba? Tamba Shikibu, the senior lady-in-waiting to her Imperial Highness?"

  She compressed her lips. "Yes. Be quick about it. I'm very busy."

  Clearly her anger was directed against the chief priest rather than against him. It occurred to Akitada that the level of hostility between these two important guardians of the Ise Virgin most likely defeated the purpose of providing proper guidance to the young woman through the wisdom of elders of both sexes.

  Not having been invited to sit down, Akitada cleared his throat. "It is true that I came here after speaking to the chief priest, however, my purpose is with you and my charge is from His Majesty. I am to speak to Her Highness and report back to His Majesty."

  She started. "Impossible. She can see no one." "Madam, I urge you to reconsider. You are refusing an imperial order."

  She bit her lip. "My duty is to the princess. I will not allow any man access to her. I would rather the than have her exposed to improper eyes."

  The dragon lady protecting her jewel! It might have been amusing, given the general laxity the priest had complained about, but Akitada would have none of it. He sighed, undid the seam of his robe and drew out the secretary's letter. "Allow me," he said, presenting it to her with both hands.

  She stared at him, then dropped the fan and took the letter in both of hers. Unfolding it, she read. It was impossible to see her changing color under all that paint, but her jaw sagged. She raised her eyes and stared at Akitada. "No," she gasped. "No, I can't. It's impossible. She's ill, very ill. She cannot be seen by a man." She drew a deep breath. "How dare you suggest such a thing?"

  Akitada walked to the nearest cushion and sat. "Madam, I am charged by His Majesty. I am also a married man with children of my own. I assure you Her Highness is quite safe with me, but of course, you may stay to make certain of it."

  She flushed and looked helplessly around the room. "It is cruel to torment the poor ill child so. She's had a very bad night. Perhaps you could come back tomorrow."

  "What illness is troubling the princess? Has she been seen by a physician?"

  "No physician, no. Lady Ayako no suke is knowledgeable about herbal medicines. I assure you, Her Highness is well taken care of."

  "May I have my letter of introduction back?"

  She looked flustered, then refolded it with trembling fingers and passed it back. Akitada tucked it away again. "I'm here incognito. It was thought safest not to cause people to wonder what's amiss. But something is amiss, and I intend to get to the bottom of it." He rose, made her a perfunctory bow, and added, "I shall return tomorrow."

  Closing the door behind him, he stood outside in the gallery for a moment. He thought he heard her moaning and pacing inside.

  So, the princess was gone, and Lady Tamba clearly had no idea how to get her back. He wondered what she would do next. He would be back the next day. She could not keep denying him.

  A dry cough made him jump. The frail old lady had been crouching around the corner of the pavilion. She was muttering under her breath.

  Akitada asked, "I'm sorry, I didn't hear what you said."

  She struggled to get up and he gave her a hand. She felt light as a feather. She looked at the wall of the pavilion and shook her head. "I told her! But would she listen? Not her! Never did listen to her mother. Now she weeps. Stupid girl. Nothing worse than raising headstrung slaughters." She shuffled past him and went inside.

  Akitada would have been amused by the thought that the dragon lady was about to get another lecture from her aged mother, but concern for the princess removed all humor from the situation. He walked away, found his way to the courtyard, and got back on his horse without having the faintest idea what he should do next.

  Again the sick fear rose in his stomach that the princess was dead, had been dead perhaps for weeks. If so, what was to be done? It would be for the emperor to decide. An investigation into her death-from illness or murder?--would only achieve the public catastrophe he lead been sent to avert. But her absence could not be hidden much longer, and the idea of a permanent substitution was unthinkable. He had failed before he had even begun.

  He lead not left the Bamboo Palace far behind when he encountered another rider. He recognized him as the sam aristocratic male who had passed him on the street in Uji-tachi. On this occasion, he looked, if anything, even more distracted. In fact, he looked frantic. Akitada reined in his horse. Anything that seemed out of the ordinary here aroused his curiosity and suspicion.

  "Forgive mec," he called after the horseman, "are you by chance headed for the Bamboo Palace'"

  The young mail halted his horse. "Yes, why?'" he asked, eyeing Akitada suspiciously.

  "I wondered, because I tried to see the princess. I was told she was ill."

  "Ill? Then she--" He broke off and looked toward the palace. "I must go," he muttered, and spurred on his horse.

  Strange.

  Since Akitada could think of nothing else to do with the rest of this day, he decided to find out who this young male was.

  ==

  According to Junichiro, the young nobleman was a Lord Minamoto, but they were a very large clan. The dwarf had also seemed interested in him. In fact, Akitada had been under the impression that,Junichiro had left him to follow this Lord Minamoto. Perhaps the dwarf had only hoped to earn more money from someone who was clearly much richer than Akitada, but Junichiro kept himself well informed about the local inhabitants and should be able to tell him something beyond the fact that the young man's name was Minamoto and that he was a hunter.

  He hoped to find Junichiro hanging about at his inn, but the dwarf was not there. Neither was the pretty maid. The entrance was empty, and the counter unattended. He called for service, but to no avail. From the back he heard voices raised in an angry argument. It sounded like a domestic quarrel between a man and his wife. He was about to leave again to start searching the town for the dwarf when the voices stopped and a door slammed. After a moment, steps approached and the landlady appeared.

  She had been weeping and her color was still high from the quarrel with her husband. Akitada had not liked the man and felt sympathetic as she dabbed at her face with a sleeve and muttered an apology.

  "I wondered if Junichiro had been by and asked for me," he said.

  "I don't know, sir. My daughter was here earlier." Fresh tears welled up.

  "Yes. I met her. She was very helpful. Could you ask her if she has seen Junichiro?"

  She shook her head. "Keiko's gone. It was only a short visit." It sounded forlorn and final.

  "I'm sorry. Well, I'll have a look around. Perhaps I'll find him. If he comes here, will
you give him a message that I'm looking for him?"

  She pulled herself together. "Yes, of course, sir. I'm very sorry I couldn't be more help. Junichiro may be at one of the other inns. He earns a bit of money offering to show visitors around."

  "Yes, I know." He, too, had fallen prey to the dwarf's enterprising methods. "I hope he isn't dishonest."

  She smiled a little. "No. Junichiro isn't a thief, but he can be a nuisance, sticking his nose in everybody's business."

  Akitada thanked her and went back outside. So Junichiro was inquisitive. No doubt, this was part of his success. He found out things and used the information to earn a few coppers here and there. It was what made him useful to Akitada-and also what would make him dangerous.

  As he stood outside the inn, he heard shouts in the distance. In a moment, the people walking on the street hurried aside, leaving the thoroughfare empty. Akitada looked down the street and saw soldiers riding toward ' him. The one in front carried a flag with the characters for "High Constable" painted in black on white ground. These soldiers, some twenty of them, were followed by an open sedan chair carried by eight strong bearers. In it sat a middle-aged man with a mustache and protruding eyes. He wore the formal clothes of a senior official. The bearers trotted past quickly and people bowed. The high constable ignored them. Another twenty soldiers followed, and then the procession was gone. Everyone returned to the street, and Akitada went in search of Junichiro.

  Finding him turned out simpler than he had feared. Junichiro was outside the Golden Dragon, talking to a man and his wife and gesturing along the road. The man listened, then firmly shook his head and drew his wife away with him. Junichiro looked after them, then raised his shoulders resignedly and made for the entrance of the inn.

  "Hey, Junichiro!"

  The dwarf stopped, saw Akitada, and waddled toward him, grinning. "There you are, master," he cried in his high voice. He grasped Akitada's sleeve and looked up at him. "I've been looking everywhere for you. The girl at the inn said you'd gone to the shrine, so I waited at the bridge, but you didn't come back. Where have you been?"