Reiko saw Gosechi close her eyes as if in pain: She must have been hoping desperately that her suspicions had misled her and there had been no other woman in Daiemon’s life. But Reiko was hoping the woman would turn out to be a valuable witness.
“I wanted to find out who the woman was,” Hachiro said, “so I got on my horse and rode after her.”
“Where did she go?” Reiko said eagerly.
“To Edo Castle. The guards at the gate let her right in. I followed her to Chamberlain Yanagisawa’s compound.”
Reiko felt shock and amazement catch her breath. She’d connected the chamberlain with the murder! The woman seen leaving the Sign of Bedazzlement must have been sent by Yanagisawa to assassinate Daiemon. Probably she wasn’t a woman at all but one of Yanagisawa’s men dressed in female garb. Yanagisawa must have found out that Daiemon was having an affair with Gosechi and where they went to tryst. He must have seen a perfect opportunity to strike at the rival faction.
“How did you and Daiemon arrange your meetings?” Reiko asked Gosechi.
“Whenever I knew that Lord Matsudaira would be busy and he wouldn’t want my company at night, I would send Hachiro to slip a piece of red paper under Daiemon’s door,” said Gosechi. The bodyguard hung his head, sheepish at his role as go-between. “I would travel that evening to the Sign of Bedazzlement. Daiemon would come to me.”
Yanagisawa must have learned their habit, Reiko deduced. A spy he’d employed in the Matsudaira house must have given Daiemon the signal to meet Gosechi that evening. Unaware that she was spending the night with Lord Matsudaira, Daiemon must have gone to the Sign of Bedazzlement expecting amorous pleasure, only to find Yanagisawa’s assassin lying in wait.
“Did you ever get another look at the woman?” Reiko said, although without much expectation that Hachiro had.
“Yes,” Hachiro said. “When her palanquin went in Chamberlain Yanagisawa’s compound, the guards were slow to shut the gate. I rode up and looked inside. There were torches lit in the courtyard. A little girl jumped out of the palanquin and ran off. A woman climbed out and followed her. That’s all I saw because the gate closed then. But I heard the woman call, ‘Kikuko, wait for me,’ and the little girl call, ‘Hurry up, Mama.’ ”
His words collided against a wall of disbelief and astonishment inside Reiko. Her heart began to thunder with excitement. As far as she knew, there was only one little girl named Kikuko who lived in Chamberlain Yanagisawa’s compound. And there was only one woman whom Kikuko called “Mama.”
It was Lady Yanagisawa who’d left the Sign of Bedazzlement soon after Daiemon had arrived.
“Merciful gods,” Reiko said as she clutched the wall for support.
“What’s wrong? Who is the woman?” Gosechi cried, her face avid with fearful curiosity. “I can see that you recognize her. I thought I didn’t want to know, but now I must, so I can see her and understand why Daiemon wanted her instead of me. Please tell me who she is!”
“I can’t tell you,” Reiko said, for innate caution warned her to keep her discovery to herself at least until she’d decided what to do about it. Fortunately, neither Gosechi nor Hachiro had guessed Lady Yanagisawa’s identity. Lady Yanagisawa seldom ventured into society, and few people knew that the chamberlain had a daughter because he was ashamed of her.
“But I can assure you that this woman wasn’t having an affair with Daiemon. She didn’t go to the Sign of Bedazzlement to make love to him.”
There could be no other explanation: Lady Yanagisawa had gone to assassinate Daiemon, on the chamberlain’s orders. Lady Yanagisawa had no lover to meet in secret. She cared nothing for any man except her husband. And she would do anything to please him.
A chill of horror descended upon Reiko. Lady Yanagisawa was even more mad, desperate, and cunning than Reiko had ever suspected. Blackmailing Reiko was the least of the evils that Lady Yanagisawa had recently done. She’d stabbed Daiemon to death, thereby ridding her husband of a rival, weakening the Matsudaira faction, and clearing the way for the chamberlain’s son to inherit the Tokugawa regime and become the next shogun.
Gosechi, Hachiro, and her surroundings faded from Reiko’s perception as she marveled at what Lady Yanagisawa had done. The sound of gongs and chanting barely impinged on her consciousness. Yet even though revolted by Lady Yanagisawa’s crime, Reiko realized that her own luck had turned. Exhilaration dazzled her, for Lady Yanagisawa had unwittingly rendered herself vulnerable to a counterattack.
“Thank you for your help,” she told Gosechi and Hachiro. “Excuse me, but I must go.”
She left them gazing after her in puzzlement and hurried out of the temple hall. Her palanquin and entourage waited amid the crowds in the precinct. As Reiko jumped into the palanquin, she ordered her bearers, “Take me to Edo Castle.”
There she would have her final confrontation with Lady Yanagisawa.
33
At Senior Elder Makino’s estate, Hirata led Okitsu into the chapel where Sano waited with Agemaki and his watchdogs. “I found her hiding in the coal storehouse,” Hirata said.
Some two hours had passed since Sano had told his detectives to bring Okitsu to him for interrogation. They’d discovered that the concubine was missing, presumably because she’d heard that Sano had come back and she’d run for her life. Now, as Hirata propelled her toward him, Sano saw that her face and clothes were smudged black with coal dust. Her terrified gaze lit on Agemaki, who knelt where Sano had forced her to confess her actions the night of Senior Elder Makino’s murder. Agemaki had calmed herself, but her poise looked brittle and thin, like ice near a fire. Okitsu ran to her and collapsed beside her.
“I’m so glad you’re here,” Okitsu whimpered, clutching Agemaki’s arm. “You’ll protect me, won’t you?”
Agemaki pulled away from Okitsu. She brushed grime from Okitsu’s hands off her sleeve. The concubine stared at her, then everyone else, in uncomprehending fright.
“Every time I’ve talked to you about Senior Elder Makino’s murder, you’ve lied to me,” Sano said. “Now is your last chance to tell the truth.”
“But I-I did tell the truth,” Okitsu said breathlessly. “I was with Koheiji that night… we didn’t see Makino.” Her forehead wrinkled and her eyes darted as she tried to remember everything she’d said. “I saw Daiemon in the study.”
“You lied,” Agemaki said in a voice that dripped acid. “You and Koheiji were playing games with my husband. I heard you. I saw you. And I told them.” She flung out her hand, indicating Sano, Hirata, and the watchdogs.
Okitsu turned to Agemaki. Her expression displayed confusion, then hurt. “You told them? But how could you? I thought you were my friend.”
“I’m not.” Agemaki snarled. “Only someone as stupid as you are would think I could like a woman who stole my husband.” While Okitsu shrank away, as though struck a wounding blow, Agemaki said, “Well, your fun is over. These people know that Koheiji was hired to assassinate Makino. They think you helped. I can’t wait to watch you lose your head at the execution ground. I’ll laugh while you die, you dirty little whore!”
A mewl arose from Okitsu. “Please, please spare me,” she begged Sano, throwing herself on hands and knees in front of him. “Koheiji and I didn’t kill Makino. We’re innocent. You must believe me!”
“If you expect me to believe you, then you have a lot of explaining to do,” Sano said. “Begin with the sex show that you and Koheiji performed for your master.”