I Parker - The Fires of the Gods

‘Perhaps, but he was not with the others when they tortured that poor little thief.’

Kobe grimaced. ‘Jirokichi. They call him the Rat. You have a fondness for rats, it seems. He has a reputation, that one. It’s surprising that he was tortured by a gang. Thieves generally protect each other.’

‘Tora says Jirokichi works alone, and those juveniles were bent on revenge for an earlier incident. What is strange is that one gang apparently turned on the other to set him free. I think it means those boys work outside the organization. You found the evidence of arson in the warehouse?’

Kobe nodded. ‘So far, the older men and the girl haven’t talked, but I’ve postponed serious questioning until I can be there. We’re still rounding up all the street boys in the area.’

‘It struck me as significant that the gang freed Jirokichi and then let the young devils run. Perhaps one of the gang has a relative among the arsonists.’

‘Perhaps. But the protection racket run by the organization has been threatened by the fires. Merchants stop paying if their shops burn anyway.’

They sat in silence, pondering this, until Seimei and Tamako’s maid brought in trays of food. There was rice, a vegetable dish, fried bean curd, and pickled melon.

Akitada was hungry and ate with relish, but Kobe only picked at his food. He said suddenly, ‘Do you think the fires have a political purpose, that they are directed at Michinaga and his sons?’

‘Yes. But it’s hardly something I can meddle in.’

Kobe sighed. ‘I have to meddle in it, and I’m no more fit to face the consequences than you.’

‘I know. But you must inform Chancellor Yorimichi, at any rate. Can you talk about your investigation of the Kiyowara murder?’

‘Yes.’ Kobe speared some melon with a chopstick and chewed. ‘As I said, the suspicion falls on the son. He was overheard quarreling with his father. When we asked him about that, he was evasive and looked frightened. So far his mother has protected him, and word has come down from the chancellor’s office to handle the family gently.’ Kobe grunted his disgust.

‘What about the weapon?’

‘No sign of it, but we could not very well search the mother’s pavilion. Whatever it was, it crushed the skull in several places. Most of the damage was to the front of the head. You would think Kiyowara would have defended himself against the attack, but perhaps the first blow was unexpected and struck with great strength. A man, even a young man, could deliver such blows in anger. And he kept striking after his father was down.’

Akitada tried to imagine Katsumi in a violent rage and failed.

Kobe asked, ‘What will you do about the case?’

‘I cannot return to the residence, but mean to talk to the major-domo again. He lives outside. I’ll let you know if there is any new information.’

Kobe pushed his bowl aside. It was still half full. ‘Well, I’d better go and arrest the son.’

Akitada said quickly, ‘Don’t! There might be another explanation. Let me ask a few more questions.’

‘Very well, but it cannot wait much longer. I’ll be following up the business of the arsonists until I hear from you.’

Akitada reached across his desk and opened a small box, taking from it Tora’s amulet. ‘Tora found this in the street after he collided with one of the young rascals. I believe it may belong to the youth Tojiro.’ He waited until Kobe had opened the pouch and looked at the amulet inside. ‘I want to know more about that boy who looks like Katsumi. This is a religious object. I’ll start with Abbot Shokan, I think. He has lost an acolyte and has been suppressing information.’

Kobe reinserted the amulet and handed it back to Akitada. He frowned. ‘Do you think this Tojiro is related to the Kiyowaras or that he is the abbot’s missing lover? You can’t have it both ways.’

Yes, that was the problem. Back in the pit, with Demon perching on his shoulder, it had seemed entirely feasible. Akitada said evasively, ‘I wish I knew. Perhaps it’s a family keepsake. And Tojiro keeps appearing in both cases.’

Kobe gestured towards the amulet. ‘You have only that amulet and a vague resemblance to young Kiyowara. It seems farfetched.’

‘Yes. I had not meant to tell you this much.’

Kobe chuckled and got up. ‘Well, let me know what happens. It’s time I went to see what our prisoners have to say for themselves.’

It rained off and on throughout the day, but Akitada enjoyed the excursion. He was finally back on his own horse. The animal was his single weakness for luxury, and he had steadfastly turned down astonishing offers for it from wealthy and powerful men.

Besides, the rain had cleansed the air over the capital, which had been heavy with the stench of smoke and wet rubble for weeks. In the country, the farmers tended their fields, opening sluices to control the abundance of water that had gathered in ditches and holding ponds. The crops looked green and healthy.

Later, in the forest, dripping branches released their moisture in a sibilant cadence, and small birds groomed themselves among the wet branches.

Abbot Shokan received Akitada eagerly. ‘You’ve found him,’ he cried. ‘I knew it. If anyone could, it would be you. Come, come. Sit and tell me. Did you bring him back with you? But no, they would have told me. When will he return?’

Akitada sat, waiting out the effusion. Perhaps his lighter mood had shown in his face. He rearranged his expression. ‘I am very sorry to disappoint Your Reverence, but if I have found your acolyte, I have misplaced him again.’

Shokan’s face fell. ‘What can you mean?’

‘I believe I found him briefly, but he escaped. At the moment, the police are looking for him. He seems to be involved in setting all those fires that have plagued the city for so long.’

Shokan’s lower lip trembled. ‘That cannot be,’ he muttered. ‘He would never… It would be a betrayal of all his principles…’ His voice trailed off, and he shot Akitada a frightened glance.

‘I think Your Reverence knows that the crown prince has enemies at court and in the nation.’

Shokan tried to look blank. ‘What? I cannot imagine what you mean. You must do what you can to rescue the boy if he is arrested.’

‘I am afraid I cannot do that, Reverence. But Superintendent Kobe is a fair man. He will not hold him, if the youngster is innocent.’

Shokan sat for several long moments, staring at Akitada. ‘Then he’s lost,’ he said heavily after a while and bowed his head. ‘He showed such promise. They say the sandalwood tree is fragrant in its first leaves. That is the way he came to me, a young sandalwood tree. Oh, the corruption of this world must be terrible if it swallows up even the innocent children.’

Akitada was uncomfortable in the presence of such grief coming from an old, fat man who had led a life of ease. He thought it hypocritical, though clearly the emotion was real. Perhaps this was what happened to those living ‘above the clouds’. They no longer had any connection with the poor, the laborers, the market women, the prostitutes, and all the innumerable peddlers, traders, and entertainers that scratched out a living from each other and from those just slightly better off than they.

It was even doubtful that this imperial prince-turned-cleric knew anything of Akitada’s world.

His voice harsher, he said, ‘Surely a man of Your Reverence’s status in the political and spiritual spheres can intercede and change even a condemned man’s fate. In fact, you never needed me for that.’ He reached in his sleeve and brought out the amulet. Placing it before the abbot, he asked, ‘Have you ever seen this?’