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Authors: Christina Courtenay
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her sad thoughts.
Midori sent him a smile of gratitude. ‘Thank you. Am I that transparent?’
‘Only occasionally. There are times when you are a little like your mother. She never could hide her emotions.’
‘I know.’ It was one of the things about Hannah that her father had loved and Midori remembered him teasing her mother about it. With an effort she put thoughts of her parents out of her mind and adjusted her glove to protect her wrist from the sharp talons of the bird, which shifted restlessly from one foot to the other. She concentrated on admiring the creature as its feathers gleamed a deep amber in the rays of the morning sun and the slight breeze rippled through the shiny surface.
The temple bell clanged as they rode past, stirring up memories of that cold day last winter. Midori shivered. It didn’t matter whether she ever saw her mother’s grave again, since her spirit travelled with her. Nevertheless, she glanced towards the burial ground out of the corner of her eye and sent up a prayer to the gods to keep the rest of her mother’s and father’s ashes safe.
A short distance along the track a man waited with spare horses loaded with provisions for the journey and Midori’s belongings. She had only packed a single bamboo basket, lined and covered with oiled cloth and tied at the top so the contents couldn’t spill out. As the servant brought the pack horse alongside Midori’s own she noticed the fastenings had come undone on her basket and ordered the man to halt for a moment so she could retie them. As she bent to perform this task, however, she drew in a sharp breath.
‘Ichiro, someone’s tampered with my things.’ She looked at her brother, who came over to peer into the opening.
He frowned. ‘How do you know? It looks undisturbed to me.’
‘I packed my amber-coloured
kimono
last, as it’s my least precious one, but now the blue one is on top. See?’
‘Hmm. Well, you’ll have to check later to see if anything is missing. We don’t have time to stop now.’ Ichiro looked around them with narrowed eyes, as if he was afraid they were being spied on at this very moment. ‘We must make haste, away from here.’
Midori nodded. He was right and, if anything had been taken, there was nothing she could do about it now.
Later, when they stopped for a quick meal, Midori emptied out the contents of her basket to see if anything was missing, but everything was still there.
‘I think someone just searched through my belongings, then put them back, although in the wrong order,’ she told Ichiro. ‘As far as I can tell, all the silver you gave me is still sewn inside my garments and the few trinkets I brought are intact.’ She didn’t tell Ichiro about the golden cross, but she had squeezed the seam in which she’d hidden it to make sure the package was still where she had put it and to her relief had felt the small bump inside.
‘Good. Perhaps they were just checking to see what you brought.’ Ichiro didn’t seem unduly concerned and Midori tried to relax. She was probably making too much of this, but it was hard to quell the anxiety altogether.
‘You really think someone’s watching us?’ she asked him.
‘Yes. Whoever told the
Shogun
of your existence must bear us a grudge. There wouldn’t be any point in informing the authorities unless you knew something was going to be done about it. They will have made sure the
Shogun
’s men know your whereabouts.’
‘It still doesn’t make sense. What have I ever done?’
‘It’s not you personally they’re after. If you were taken and burned, it would be seen as confirmation that I had harboured a Christian in my household and therefore brought dishonour on the entire clan. There are certain of our neighbours who wouldn’t be unhappy if such a fate should befall us.’
‘Yes, of course.’
Ichiro put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed. ‘Stop worrying. I know my lands better than anyone. Father taught me well. I will
Midori sent him a smile of gratitude. ‘Thank you. Am I that transparent?’
‘Only occasionally. There are times when you are a little like your mother. She never could hide her emotions.’
‘I know.’ It was one of the things about Hannah that her father had loved and Midori remembered him teasing her mother about it. With an effort she put thoughts of her parents out of her mind and adjusted her glove to protect her wrist from the sharp talons of the bird, which shifted restlessly from one foot to the other. She concentrated on admiring the creature as its feathers gleamed a deep amber in the rays of the morning sun and the slight breeze rippled through the shiny surface.
The temple bell clanged as they rode past, stirring up memories of that cold day last winter. Midori shivered. It didn’t matter whether she ever saw her mother’s grave again, since her spirit travelled with her. Nevertheless, she glanced towards the burial ground out of the corner of her eye and sent up a prayer to the gods to keep the rest of her mother’s and father’s ashes safe.
A short distance along the track a man waited with spare horses loaded with provisions for the journey and Midori’s belongings. She had only packed a single bamboo basket, lined and covered with oiled cloth and tied at the top so the contents couldn’t spill out. As the servant brought the pack horse alongside Midori’s own she noticed the fastenings had come undone on her basket and ordered the man to halt for a moment so she could retie them. As she bent to perform this task, however, she drew in a sharp breath.
‘Ichiro, someone’s tampered with my things.’ She looked at her brother, who came over to peer into the opening.
He frowned. ‘How do you know? It looks undisturbed to me.’
‘I packed my amber-coloured
kimono
last, as it’s my least precious one, but now the blue one is on top. See?’
‘Hmm. Well, you’ll have to check later to see if anything is missing. We don’t have time to stop now.’ Ichiro looked around them with narrowed eyes, as if he was afraid they were being spied on at this very moment. ‘We must make haste, away from here.’
Midori nodded. He was right and, if anything had been taken, there was nothing she could do about it now.
Later, when they stopped for a quick meal, Midori emptied out the contents of her basket to see if anything was missing, but everything was still there.
‘I think someone just searched through my belongings, then put them back, although in the wrong order,’ she told Ichiro. ‘As far as I can tell, all the silver you gave me is still sewn inside my garments and the few trinkets I brought are intact.’ She didn’t tell Ichiro about the golden cross, but she had squeezed the seam in which she’d hidden it to make sure the package was still where she had put it and to her relief had felt the small bump inside.
‘Good. Perhaps they were just checking to see what you brought.’ Ichiro didn’t seem unduly concerned and Midori tried to relax. She was probably making too much of this, but it was hard to quell the anxiety altogether.
‘You really think someone’s watching us?’ she asked him.
‘Yes. Whoever told the
Shogun
of your existence must bear us a grudge. There wouldn’t be any point in informing the authorities unless you knew something was going to be done about it. They will have made sure the
Shogun
’s men know your whereabouts.’
‘It still doesn’t make sense. What have I ever done?’
‘It’s not you personally they’re after. If you were taken and burned, it would be seen as confirmation that I had harboured a Christian in my household and therefore brought dishonour on the entire clan. There are certain of our neighbours who wouldn’t be unhappy if such a fate should befall us.’
‘Yes, of course.’
Ichiro put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed. ‘Stop worrying. I know my lands better than anyone. Father taught me well. I will
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