Spider, page 8
I should have reproved him firmly for talking about Emiko with such disrespect, but as I felt the same way, how could I?
“Haven’t I already shown you that I’m the soul of discretion? If I wanted to, I could give you the names of people who have trusted me with secrets that would make your eyes pop, but I haven’t named a single one. Besides, I have to admit, I have my own reason for wanting you to trust me.”
He paused, and I lost patience quickly. “What? I’m not as naïve as Niko. She may trust you, but I don’t. Tell me.”
“I want to go with you to Kobe.”
I stared at him in astonishment as he went on.
“You need an escort. You’ve been incredibly fortunate to get this far without either being turned back or arrested for breaching the regulations about women not traveling alone. I spent some time in Kobe, a year or two ago.” His eyes gleamed and I wondered wryly if a woman had been involved. “I’d be very pleased to go back. Once we get there, I’ll leave you. I’m not asking for any wages, just a reason to go to Kobe. In these troubled times, if I traveled on my own without a good reason for my journey, I would attract nearly as much suspicion from the militia as you and Niko have.”
“Why?” I asked suspiciously. “It seems to me that you should be very happy here with Soji. I’m sure he’s free with his cash, and you’re well-fed and have a roof over your head. Surely that’s an easy sort of living for you? Better than spending cold, wet days on the road for no reward.”
“I want to go to Kobe,” he repeated stubbornly. “I have friends in the kabuki there. I’m sure it wouldn’t take much persuading for them to find me a permanent part. I love the kabuki,” he added coaxingly.
I was sure there was something he wasn’t telling me. Yet on the spur of the moment, I decided to trust him. When it came to people, my instincts were usually sound—apart, it appeared, from Soji—and I thought I could trust Shō, as far as it mattered, at least. Besides, Niko was far shrewder than he might have guessed. I would have a little chat with her and see if he had let anything slip.
“Very well. When this wretched rain finally stops, you can come with us. Have you got papers to take you as far as Kobe?”
“No. My pass only takes me to Yumoto. I had no idea when we set off that I would get the opportunity to go any further. But it’s not a problem. I know where Soji keeps his seal. I told you, my calligraphy is excellent. I can easily write myself a new pass valid for travel to Kobe, in the same style as the old one. No one is going to dispute a pass sealed with an honorable samurai’s signet.”
Mentally, I began to re-assess my new escort. Perhaps he would be more of an asset than I had thought.
Although I was reluctant, I felt I had to speak to Niko about her indiscretion.
When I found her and confronted her with what Shō had told me, she hung her head in shame. But I could see from the set of her shoulders that she was not completely contrite.
“I’m sorry. I know I shouldn’t have told him, but he knew so much already, and I was so very proud of you I couldn’t resist telling him how brave and clever you are.”
I hid a smile and frowned instead.
“Besides, he’s such a nice sort of man. I’m sure we can trust him.”
There was something in Niko’s voice that made me catch my breath. I looked carefully at her face and knew I was right—she was trying to hide a silly smile. Did the dear girl think herself in love with Shō? I decided to nip any thoughts of romance in the bud before she could get hurt.
“I don’t know him well enough to know if I can trust him. And neither do you,” I said firmly. “All we know about him is what he’s told us, and by his own admission he’s no more than a riverbed beggar. He finds money wherever he can…and I don’t think he’s choosy about what he does.”
“He’s just like Akira, then.” Niko raised a defiant face to me. “The only difference between them is that Akira flaunts the terrible things he’s done as a yakuza to make sure his enemies are frightened of him. To a samurai, that must surely be far more dishonorable than making an honest living however you can.”
I was dumbfounded. What had gotten into my sweet Niko to make her speak to me in such a way? I answered my own question ruefully. She really thought she was in love with Shō. I was about to choose my answer carefully when she threw her arms around my waist and clutched me tightly. I spoke gently to her bowed head.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I should never have answered back like that. But I do like Shō, and I’m sure he can be trusted.”
“You’re probably right. And I daresay he is a nice man.” Nice? That wasn’t at all the word I was looking for. Rogue would be better. “And anyway, I’ve agreed that he can act as our escort to Kobe.”
Niko raised a radiant face and beamed at me.
“But he’s told me that once we get to Kobe he’s going to leave us, so don’t get too fond of him, Niko.”
Her answer left me speechless.
“Oh, don’t worry about that. It’s a long way to Kobe, and I daresay I might be able to change his mind before we get there.”
I reminded myself that Niko had seen a lot more of the world in her young life than I had, and there was no reason at all for me to worry about her.
Perhaps I should worry about Shō, instead.
Eleven
Watch! Do you see how
The spider’s mate enjoys her
Binding him with silk?
The rain did not stop that day, or the next. My stoic belief in karma was beginning to wear very thin, to the extent that I decided that if the weather did not improve, we would leave anyway. I had to get to Kobe, to Yo. If the gods had decided to turn their faces from me, then I would act without their favor. I would wait until late at night and then we would steal away unseen. Shō would come with us as our escort. I rather thought it would be an excellent test of his loyalty to see if he was prepared to exchange his comfortable futon and full belly for a cold, wet, and probably dangerous journey.
If the rivers on the other side of Mishima were still running too high to cross, then we would leave Tokaido Highway and take the back roads until we found somewhere where the terrain was passable. I reasoned there must be somewhere. No matter if it extended our journey, at least if we were moving it would be better than sitting here and worrying, unable to do anything. I knew Soji would think I had run away from him, and I was sorry for that, but I would have had to turn down his proposal eventually, so better he realized I was not for him sooner rather than later. I wondered if he would tell Emiko I had walked back into his life; I doubted it. Still less did I think he would tell her of his plans to make me his second wife.
I knew with absolute certainty that Emiko would have loved having me in her household as a mere concubine. She would have gloated over my inferior status. My life would have been a misery from dawn to dusk. Did Soji, I wondered absently, ever regret forgiving Emiko for taking a lover before they had married? Any other samurai would have put her aside immediately. Truly, my brother-in-law was a decent man. I felt suddenly guilty at my spiteful thoughts as it occurred to me to wonder if—in spite of all the evidence to the contrary—it was possible that Soji actually enjoyed being married to my domineering, selfish sister. When I knew Shō a little better, I decided I would ask his opinion on the matter. I thought it extremely likely that, under the circumstances, the two men had discussed such matters, probably at length.
Perhaps it was because I had so much to think about, but that evening, sleep eluded me. I lay on my futon, trying to decide if the rain was lessening. I rather thought it was, and the knowledge cheered me greatly. I was suddenly ravenously hungry. Just like Shō, I thought I would find my own way to the kitchen and get something to eat. I was so hungry that even the thought of a little cold rice was enticing.
My lamp had gone out. No matter, my training as a samurai meant I had no need to rely on my physical senses. My sensei—Riku, the venerable warrior monk who had taught me all the skills I needed to become a warrior—had demonstrated to me that there was far more beyond the five senses than was contained within them. Blindfold me and stop up my ears and I could fight and beat an unseen and unheard foe by instinct. The darkness in Soji’s house bothered me not at all. Just as a spider has no need to see to feel the vibrations in her web that announce mate and prey alike, I navigated by instinct.
Matsuo found me as soon as I entered the kitchen. He grumbled happily, deep in his throat, and leaned against my legs. His weight threatened to unbalance me, but I did not push him away. I missed my constant companion and was very pleased to see him.
“Niko.” I called her name softly, surprised that she hadn’t felt Matsuo rise from her side. When she didn’t answer, I slid the shoji that led into her cubby hole aside and glanced in. She wasn’t there.
Anger gripped me hard enough to churn my gut. I hadn’t warned Shō to keep away from her, but surely he must be sensible enough to understand that this unripe fruit was not for him? Even if Niko had been unwise enough to throw herself at him, he should have told her to leave at once. I had threatened to take his head off once already. If he had harmed Niko, he would find very soon that it had not been an idle threat. Although, for Niko’s sake, I would try and keep my temper. I sighed as I admitted to myself that Niko was probably almost as much to blame as Shō. It was obvious that she had gone to him, whether he wanted her or not.
I gulped down some cold rice and vegetables to appease my hunger with no enjoyment at all.
“Stay, Matsuo. Wait for Niko. She’ll be back very soon.”
Matsuo wagged his tail and went to lay on Niko’s futon obediently. I thought it a shame that all males were not so sensible.
As I left the kitchen, I realized I didn’t know which room Shō was occupying. Although small compared to his main residence, Soji’s hunting lodge had been added to by successive generations of his family until it sprawled in a haphazard fashion. I turned into one corridor and found myself at a dead end. I retraced my steps and paused to think. My guest bedroom was off to the left; if Shō’s room was close to there, I would have heard him coming and going. Logically, it must be in the other direction. Soji’s apartment was that way. No doubt he would want his friend close to him.
I walked quietly. The important thing at this moment was to retrieve Niko from whatever danger she had put herself in quietly and without fuss. No matter what I thought of him, I needed Shō to escort us to Kobe. Later, I would explain to Shō that his behavior was not acceptable. When I had finished with him, I doubted that he would even glance at Niko on our journey.
I paused at what I assumed was the first guest bedroom in the next corridor. I could hear nothing at all from inside, nor could I sense any human presence. The next room was also silent. I began to walk very carefully. The next room was dark, but the one beyond—which I guessed was part of Soji’s private apartment—was lit dimly. I was puzzled. If Niko and Shō were together in any of the rooms I had gone past, I would have heard something. Suddenly, my confusion turned to horror. Could I have been so very wrong about both Soji and Shō? Was it possible that Shō had lured a love-sick Niko to Soji’s apartment so both men could enjoy her?
The thought enraged me so much that I was almost careless. My hand was on the shoji, ready to slide it back, when a faint voice stopped me.
“Ah, Shō, dear boy. Don’t, I beg of you, be so very wicked.”
Soji. Even though the words were barely more than a whisper, I knew his voice too well to be mistaken. Shō answered him, but I could not make out his words. I paused and closed my eyes to enhance my hearing. I relaxed slightly when I could not hear Niko. She might think herself madly in love with Shō, but she was worldly-wise enough to scream loudly if she thought that he was trying to force her to do anything she didn’t want to do. So, wherever she was, it wasn’t here.
I was about to turn away and leave the two men to whatever game they were playing when I heard an unmistakable noise. Flesh being struck, quite hard by the sound of it. The blow was followed by a whimper. I paused, interest overcoming caution. Besides, I had to be absolutely sure Niko was not here before I turned away.
I slid my fingernails into the edge of the shoji and tugged. It took me many moments, working slowly and silently, until I could slide the screen far enough back to allow me a slit wide enough to see through. Before I looked, I waited for a voice to challenge me. There was nothing. I guessed that whatever was going on inside the room was interesting enough to keep the participants distracted. And from a purely practical point of view, I was looking from shadow into light. The eyes of whoever was inside the room would be accustomed to the light. For them, the blackness of the corridor would be absolute.
I peered carefully through the narrow slit.
The furthest wall of the room appeared to be an outside wall. It was constructed of rough, gray stone, slashed with a crisscross of sturdy battens. The wood looked splintery and rough. The whole wall looked uncomfortably like the exterior of one of the lattice brothels I had seen in the Floating World and which had haunted my dreams afterward. But here, there were no whores penned behind the lattice, calling out and baring their breasts to entice the men who passed by. Instead, Soji hung at an angle, attached to the lattice by thin ropes.
I closed my eyes abruptly, sure that the flickering light was making me see things that weren’t there. I tried again. This was no illusion. Soji was stark naked apart from the ropes that bound his body from chest to knees. Shō stood unbound at his side, a long and obviously old and very well used muchi riding crop clenched in his fist. I focused on the crop, trying to ignore the rest of the scene. It was perhaps as long as my arm. The handle was decorated lovingly with very fine mother-of-pearl inlaid over what looked like copper. The business end was a single, flexible plait of leather. Soji moaned. In response, Shō raised the muchi and brought it down with a practiced flick on Soji’s tree of flesh. It seemed to me that the already engorged tree jerked and reared up to meet the blow eagerly.
Perhaps it was my mind’s attempt to block out what I was actually seeing, but the dominant thought in my brain was that I had seen this sort of bondage before. It was part of the samurai tradition of hojojutsu. In what seemed like a different lifetime, my father and Isamu had been called to fight for our daimyo, Lord Akafumu, in a struggle over disputed land. Our daimyo had been successful, and as part of the punishment meted out to his defeated enemy, many of the captured officers were marched back to Akafumu’s court to receive their sentence. As my family had taken an active part in the conflict, the sad procession of captured officers was marched through our lands. Isamu had just begun my training as onna-bugeisha, and I dared to ask him what would happen to the men.
“If the officers are of high enough rank, Lord Akafumu will allow them to commit seppuku so they can die an honorable death. I can’t imagine that any of them would refuse, but if they do, he will have them executed. Most of the hoi polloi will be sold off as slaves. A few of them will be executed as an example to anybody who might be thinking of causing trouble.” Isamu saw my appalled face and shrugged. “Don’t think too much about it. If we had lost, then Father and I would be the ones who were roped and tied and led like donkeys.”
That was where I had seen this peculiar style of bondage. All of the prisoners had been bound in an elaborate style. Their hands were captured wrist to wrist behind their backs. From their wrists, the rope ran in a diamond pattern across their backs and around their necks; I guessed that a sharp tug on the rope would cut off their breath. A long length of the same rope ran back to their jailers. Some prisoners were led in single file, others in groups.
Taking my horror for interest, Isamu said cheerfully, “Come on. I’ll show you how it’s done. You may need to keep a prisoner securely confined one day. You tie me up—I’ll explain to you how to do it as we go along.”
He handed me a long length of cord, and I followed his instructions carefully. Or so I thought. When I had finished, Isamu wriggled his shoulders and tugged on his wrists and he was free.
“How did you do that?” I demanded. I was genuinely astonished. I had worried that I had tied the cord so tightly it might hurt him.
“It was easy,” Isamu scoffed at me. “Did you think you were playing with a doll when you tied me? Here. I’ll show you how it’s done properly.”
He spun me around and gripped my shoulder fiercely, flicking the rope one-handed. There were no knots in the elaborate diamond that ran across my back. Even the final loop that held my wrists was finished with two slips that allowed the end of the rope to act as a halter to pull the prisoner along. But in spite of that, my bindings were tight. So tight that I could not move my arms a single bit and my shoulders and elbows immediately began to ache. Much worse, I hated the fact that I was restrained against my will. I felt demeaned, knowing that my captor had total control of me.
“Please, Isamu, let me go,” I asked humbly.
“Bad, isn’t it?” Isamu said shrewdly. “You’ll never forget what it’s like to be at somebody’s mercy. Let it be a lesson to you for the future.”
I nodded and took a deep breath of relief when he released my bonds.
The memories ran through my head in a moment. Soji groaned again, and—my own bondage still clear in my mind—I almost threw the screen wide and ran in to release him. I would deal with Shō first. Grab the whip from his hand and use it as a weapon against him. Once I had him tied—and how wise Isamu had been, to ensure that I knew how to perform hojojutsu correctly—I would then release poor Soji. Shō was his guest. I would leave it up to Soji to decide what this traitor’s punishment should be.
As I tensed, marking out my steps and making sure there was nothing to impede me, Soji spoke, and I froze before I could move.
“Shō, dear one, what is the matter with you tonight? You’re using that muchi as if it was a feather. Have you forgotten how to give me pleasure?”
