Kaibara.
His eyes were on Oyoshi. “Thegood doctor,” he sneered. “What a surprise! Have you taken to robbing tombsnow? And the tombs of your betters, too. Tsk, tsk! A capital crime. You shouldhave been more careful.”
Akitada stepped from theshadow.
Kaibara’s jaw slackened.
“Let me explain, Kaibara,” saidAkitada, adopting a reasonable manner. They had been caught red-handed, and hewas desperately searching for an adequate reason for their presence. “I wantedto spare the family’s feelings, but there was a suspicion that your late masterwas murdered, and we had to investigate. It would be best if we kept the matterto ourselves.”
Kaibara’s eyes went fromAkitada to the open tomb and Oyoshi’s instrument case. A slow, crafty smilecame into his face. “Is this so? A blasphemous insult to the late Lord ofTakata. And a highly illegal proceeding, I believe. Loyalty to my masterunfortunately makes it impossible to accede to your Excellency’s request.”
Oyoshi walked up to Kaibaraangrily. “Listen here, Kaibara,” he cried. “Don’t be an infernal fool and-”
Kaibara was quick. With theflat side of his sword he dealt the older man a vici6us blow across the face.Blood spurted briefly, and Oyoshi cried out and fell. Placing a foot on Oyoshi’schest, Kaibara raised his sword with both hands to strike down. “Pray to bereborn, pill peddler!” he cried.
“No!” Akitada leaped andgrabbed for Kaibara’s sword arm. Kaibara was hampered by his armor, but hetwisted away and lashed out with his other arm to punch viciously at Akitada’schest. Akitada gasped for breath but held on, determined to protect Oyoshi. Heshouted, “Drop that sword!” and twisted Kaibara’s arm back. Kaibara grunted andturned. Akitada saw the murderous fury in the other man’s eyes, knew that thenext stroke would be for him, and suddenly the struggle for the sword hadturned into a fight to the death.
It had not occurred to Akitadathat he was in danger of being killed. He had feared charges of trespass,sacrilege, grave robbery, and other serious offences involving recall andtrial, but not cold-blooded murder. He put all his strength into disarmingKaibara, but as he adjusted his stance to gain leverage, he slipped on a patchof ice and landed on his knees.
Kaibara laughed out loud. Hestepped back and bared his teeth. “This is much the simplest way,” he snarled. “Beggingon your knees won’t help you now, dog official.” He raised the sword again. Theblade flashed dull silver in the moonlight.
Oyoshi screamed for help, andthe blade hissed as it cut through the air. Akitada flung himself aside,scrabbling desperately on the muddy ground. Kaibara followed, loomed above himagain. Akitada’s fingers closed around a dead branch. He parried the stroke asit came. The branch slowed the blade but it bit into Akitada’s arm near theshoulder, and the pain, when it came, was paralyzing. Kaibara straddled him,his body monstrous in the heavy armor, the sword raised for the fatal stroke.Akitada thought of how he had failed Tamako and his unborn child and closed hiseyes.
He felt a crushing blow to hischest. A giant hand compressed his rib cage and he could not breathe. And thenthe night was shot through by flames and stars and a suffocating blanket offog. His last thought was, “So this is what it feels like to die.”
But death was slow in coming.Sounds penetrated the fog. Someone was shouting and cursing. The crushingweight was lifted from his chest, and he tried a deep, shuddering breath,savoring the cold, fresh air, savoring even the sharp pain. He welcomed it,because it meant he was alive.
“Here, move him on his side andlet me get a look at that shoulder.”
Oyoshi sounded strangelytongue-tied. And he was making spitting noises.
“It’s all my fault. I wish Iwas dead.”
Akitada opened his eyes. Torawas peering down at him with a stricken expression. “Don’t be an idiot,”Akitada muttered. “You’ll have to close the tomb.”
Oyoshi snorted. “Good! You’reconscious. Sit up, sir, so I can bandage your wound. Kaibara got you, I’mafraid.”
With Tora’s help, Akitadastruggled up. He gritted his teeth as Tora and Oyoshi eased the gown from hisshoulder. “Kaibara. Where is he?” Tora stepped out of the way, and Akitada sawthe lifeless form of the steward on the ground nearby. “Did you kill him, Tora?”
“I got here too late.” Torasounded bitter.
“But who …” Akitada’s eyeswent to Oyoshi. The doctor’s face was puffy and covered with blood. His eyeswere almost swollen shut.
“Don’t look at me,” Oyoshimumbled through cut lips. “He collapsed on top of you before he could strikeagain.” He tied the last knot of the bandage and stood up. Tora helped Akitadaput his arm back into his sleeve.
Wincing with pain and clutchingTora’s arm, Akitada staggered to his feet. Kaibara lay prone, his arms and legsflung out, and his face turned sideways. His helmet had slipped and a darkpuddle of blood was seeping from under his face.
When he bent closer, Akitadasaw what had killed the man. From the narrow gap between the top of the armorand the helmet guard protruded the long shaft of a black arrow crowned with ablack eagle’s feather. It had hit Kaibara’s neck in one of the few instantlyfatal places on the human body.
FOURTEEN
THE FISHMONGER
Hitomaro walked through the tribunal gate with a light step, returning the guard’s brisksalute and smiling with satisfaction at the trim appearance of the constablessweeping the courtyard. Kaoru was doing a fine job with them.
After the stormy weather, theskies had cleared and the sun sparkled on many small icicles hanging from theeaves of buildings. Hitomaro glanced toward the far corner of the tribunalcompound where a small wooden house stood. Private yet convenient, it wouldmake a fine home for a tribunal officer and his spouse. Today he would askpermission to live there with Ofumi. The place was humble but in good repair,and in time they would furnish the two rooms to their liking. They would savetheir money and buy some land where they would build a larger house and raise afamily.
Blinking into the sunlight,Hitomaro stretched, laughed out loud, and ran up the steps to the barracks roomhe shared with Tora. He could hardly wait to see Tora’s face when he told himthe news.
Whistling happily, he pulledoff his boots and placed them next to Tora’s.
“Hey, Tora!” he shouted. “Waittill you hear! I’ll take you out tonight and buy you the best meal in town andall the wine-” He walked in and came to an abrupt halt. “What-?”
Tora was seated cross-legged ona piece of white cloth. His torso was bare, because he had slipped his robe offhis shoulders. In front of him lay a sheet of paper, covered with clumsy brushstrokes, and on this rested his short sword. There was an expression of intenseconcentration on Tora’s face.
“What are you doing?” Hitomaroasked, his heart skipping in his chest because he guessed at the significanceof these preparations.
Tora bowed lightly. “I’ve beenwaiting for you,” he said with uncharacteristic calm. “Will you assist me?” Hereached for the other, longer sword beside him and extended it toward Hitomaro.
Hitomaro did not touch it. “Why?What happened?”
Tora laid the sword down again.“Last night we went to dig up the body of the old lord,” he said tonelessly. “Kaibarasurprised the master and almost killed him.”
Comprehension began to dawn. “Wherewere you?”
For a moment, Tora’s shoulderssagged. “Being sick with fear.”
“Is the master badly hurt?”
“A cut near the shoulder.” Toraadded bitterly, “I wish Kaibara had carved out my heart instead.”
“That’s not too bad,” Hitomarosaid soothingly. “I expect Kaibara waited till you were out of the way.”
“You don’t understand. I shouldhave hurried back, but I was afraid of the ghost and trembling like a foolishwoman. The master had no sword. Kaibara would have killed him, if someone elsehadn’t done my job for me and shot the bastard.”
“Kaibara’s dead? Who did it?”