Laura Rowland - The Iris Fan

“Lord Ienobu is afraid because what’s happened today proves he’s responsible for the attack on Your Excellency,” Yanagisawa said. “He knew that Yoshisato was alive and on the loose and if Yoshisato returned to court, he would take back his place as your heir. There were two ways for Lord Ienobu to prevent that. He had to find Yoshisato and kill him-or to make sure you died and he became shogun before Yoshisato showed up.” Yanagisawa held up his thumb, then his forefinger. “But he couldn’t find Yoshisato.” Yanagisawa folded down his thumb. “So he chose option number two.” He pointed his forefinger at Ienobu, who was jittering so hard that the floor shook. “He sent an assassin to murder you, Your Excellency.”

The shogun sat up, panting. “Yanagisawa- san is right!” His red, tearful eyes blazed at Ienobu. “You tried to have me killed so that you could rule Japan!”

Yanagisawa tasted victory coming, so sweet after years of humiliation from Ienobu.

“I didn’t!” Terrified, Ienobu extended his clasped hands to the shogun. “Please, Uncle, believe me!”

To cap his argument, Yanagisawa said, “If the assassin had succeeded, you would be dead now, Your Excellency. Ienobu would be shogun. And if your son ever surfaced, Ienobu would slaughter him like a lamb.”

“Traitor!” the shogun screamed at Ienobu. Spasms gripped him; he moaned. “I want your head on a post by the Nihonbashi Bridge!”

“I swear on my life, I’m innocent!” Ienobu bleated.

Sano stepped forward. “Pardon me, Your Excellency, but even though Lord Ienobu’s motive for the attack on you looks stronger in light of these new circumstances, there’s still no evidence against him. There are other suspects.”

“He’s right!” Ienobu gasped with relief that someone was taking his side. “Let him finish his investigation. It will prove that someone else is guilty!”

The angry determination on the shogun’s face wavered. A curse on that bastard, Sano! Yanagisawa thought. He wouldn’t let Sano redirect the tide that was finally flowing in the direction he wanted. “Sano- san is right,” he said. Sano frowned in surprise at his capitulation. “We don’t know for sure who stabbed Your Excellency, but one thing is certain: Yoshisato is back.” He felt the warmth of Yoshisato’s dazzling light. “Yoshisato was your first choice for an heir. Lord Ienobu was only a poor second. You should rename Yoshisato as your heir.”

“Yes, yes!” the shogun exclaimed, clutching at Yoshisato. “You are my heir.”

“And Acting Shogun,” Yanagisawa prompted.

“And Acting Shogun. Nephew, I don’t need you anymore. Good-bye!”

Sano, Yanagisawa, Yoshisato, and Lord Ienobu exited the palace. A crowd of officials, troops, and servants outside, abuzz with gossip and speculation, halted them on the veranda. Yoshisato smiled and bowed to them. They quieted, gawking at the soul risen from the dead. Sano saw Masahiro in the back, craning his neck. Yanagisawa spoke into the pool of silence.

“The shogun has renamed Lord Yoshisato as his heir. Lord Yoshisato is now the Acting Shogun.” Yanagisawa’s voice rang with triumph.

Exclamations burst from the crowd. Sano recognized officials who were Ienobu’s allies, saw panic on their faces. Under his stoic manner he, too, was reeling with shock. Never had he imagined that the investigation he’d started four years ago would end like this. He was delighted to have Ienobu knocked out of first place in line for the succession, but he’d delivered control of the regime into the hands of Yanagisawa and his pawn.

Yoshisato stepped forward. An anxious hush descended as his new subjects waited for the changes they knew would come. “Many thanks for coming to welcome me back.” He surely knew that many of these men were loyal to Ienobu, but he spoke as if to friends. “I shall visit each of your departments soon. You shall brief me about everything that has happened while I’ve been away, and we shall discuss how we can work together on behalf of my father’s government.”

Before the fire, Yoshisato had asked Sano to be part of a coalition to improve the government, stamp out corruption, and reduce political strife. Evidently he still wanted the coalition; he was still idealistic. But his pleasant words to Ienobu’s friends contained a threat: Switch your allegiance to me, or woe betide you. He was making good use of his experience as a gangster boss, but that didn’t alleviate Sano’s qualms.

The crowd quickly dispersed. Only Masahiro, the sentries, and Yoshisato’s gangsters remained. Sano supposed that everyone else was eager to discuss this historic event, spread the news, and figure out how to survive the coup. “Find your mother and tell her what happened,” Sano said to Masahiro. She wasn’t going to be pleased. He couldn’t leave yet, and if she couldn’t hear it directly from him, better Masahiro than the gossips.

Masahiro ran off to obey. Yanagisawa and Yoshisato faced Lord Ienobu. Vindictive satisfaction shone in their eyes, but Sano perceived a strange, uncomfortable air between the two.

“How does it feel to have the power shifted to the other hand?” Yanagisawa gloated.

Fuming yet helpless, Ienobu started to sidle around his two enemies.

“Not so fast,” Yoshisato said. “Here’s my first order to you: Vacate the heir’s residence by sundown.”

Ienobu spoke through gritted teeth. “I’ll see the two of you in hell before I let you rule Japan.” He scuttled away like a fleeing cockroach.

“I’ve waited four years for this day,” Yanagisawa said, watching Ienobu’s retreat.

“So have I,” Yoshisato said.

Sano had noticed that they hadn’t looked at each other since he’d sprung Yoshisato on the shogun. They were a united front against Ienobu, yet somehow divided. Yoshisato said to Sano, “We’ll talk soon.”

Yanagisawa’s eyes narrowed with disapproval at this hint of camaraderie. Sano found himself caught in a familiar spot-between his liking for Yoshisato, his bad blood with Yanagisawa, and his duty. “Talk about what?” Sano asked Yoshisato. “The fact that you’re Yanagisawa- san ’s son and not the shogun’s?”

“Oh, come now, you can’t really want to fight about that again!” Yanagisawa regarded Sano with exasperation.

Much as he liked Yoshisato, Sano resisted being sucked into an allegiance with him. “You shouldn’t be allowed to inherit the dictatorship. You’re a fraud.” And Yanagisawa was his partner in his fraud and his quest to seize power.

“So why did you bring me to the palace? You knew the shogun would rename me his heir.” Antagonism tinged Yoshisato’s voice. Sano had the peculiar sense that he really had died in the fire and been reincarnated as this gangster who would thrash anyone who crossed him. “Why didn’t you tell Lord Ienobu that I was in town and let him do away with me?”

“Because the shogun deserved to know the truth about what happened to you. Because Ienobu engineered the death of the shogun’s daughter even though he didn’t kill you.”

“Which means you have to choose between a fraud and a murderer,” Yanagisawa said.

“That’s no choice!” Sano was exasperated, too. “Neither Yoshisato nor Ienobu deserves to be the next shogun! And you certainly don’t deserve to control the regime.”

“One or the other of us will be,” Yoshisato said, “and I’m the top contender, not to mention Acting Shogun.”

The threat gleamed like a knife blade through his civil manner. And Sano had once thought that Yoshisato had inherited none of Yanagisawa’s ruthlessness! By bringing Yoshisato back to court had he supplanted Ienobu with a worse villain?