“Hey, what are you doing?” Startled, Hirata leapt to his feet.

Haru rose, sashayed toward Sano, and pressed herself against him. “The truth is that I find you most appealing. Let me show you how well I can cooperate. Perhaps then you’ll be satisfied that I’ve done nothing wrong.”

Her nerve appalled Sano. He shoved Haru away. “You can’t seduce us into thinking you’re innocent.”

Haru looked puzzled, as if her ploy had worked in the past and she didn’t understand why it had failed this time. Her face crumpled, and she let out a sob.

“Crying won’t help you either,” Sano said contemptuously.

Now the girl’s expression turned furious. A howl erupted from her, and she launched herself at Sano. The impact of her body knocked him off balance, and he staggered. Her fingernails clawed at him; lines of pain seared his cheek.

“Stop it!” Sano shouted, fending off her flailing hands.

Hirata seized Haru. She turned on him and raked her nails down his face. “Ow!” he cried, and he let her go, clutching his left eye.

“You demon!” Sano grabbed Haru.

She was stronger than she looked, and she fought like a wild beast. “You’re all out to get me!” she shrieked. “Everyone blames me for everything. I hate you all. I want to kill you!”

Satisfaction filled Sano even as the girl’s fists, elbows, and knees battered him. Though he hadn’t gotten answers from Haru, at least he’d forced her to reveal her true self. Hirata, his eye bleeding, grabbed her legs, and she kicked his stomach. Magistrate Ueda and a trio of guards burst into the room.

“What’s going on here?” the magistrate said. Seeing Sano and Hirata struggling with Haru, he said, “Guards. Subdue her.”

With their help, Sano and Hirata overpowered Haru. Finally she stood captive, writhing in the guards’ grip.

“The old man deserved it!” she shrilled, her face distorted by fury. “I didn’t want to marry him, but they made me. He treated me like a slave. He beat me. He deserved to die!”

Magistrate Ueda frowned; Hirata gaped. A thrill of horror and anticipation rippled through Sano. “Are you saying you killed your husband?” he asked Haru.

Eyes crazed and hair tangled, Haru looked like a madwoman. “That policeman forced me to have sex with him in the cottage. I’m glad he’s dead!” She spewed incoherent curses.

Sano said,“I interpret that as a confession of murdering her husband and Commander Oyama.”

The worry of the past days fled him in a rush of relief. With the question of Haru’s guilt settled, the investigation wouldn’t come between him and Reiko any longer. Reiko would have to admit she’d made a mistake about Haru and abandon her dubious quest to prove that the Black Lotus was involved in crimes. Sano looked forward to regaining peace in his life.

“Sumimasen-excuse me, but we can’t be sure that what she said is really a confession, because she didn’t actually say she set the fires or hurt anyone,” Hirata said.

“Attacking us is proof that she’s capable of harm,” Sano said, touching the bloody scratches on his face.

“Even if she did make a confession,” said Magistrate Ueda, “it doesn’t account for the other two murders.”

Sano said to Haru, “Did you kill Nurse Chie and the boy?”

Wild sobs wracked Haru; struggling to free herself, she seemed oblivious to his words.

“Well, we’ve got her for her husband’s murder and Oyama’s,” said Sano, driven by his need to solve the case and serve justice. “That’s enough for now. I’m sure we can get a full confession from her later.”

Magistrate Ueda spoke in a quiet, grave voice for Sano’s ears alone: “She’s in no shape to make a valid confession, and there’s still a chance that she’s innocent. For your own sake, don’t let emotion impair your judgment.”

These words brought Sano to the dismaying realization that his antagonism toward Haru and wish to have her gone from his life had undermined his objectivity. He, who prided himself on serving honor through seeking the truth, had almost compromised his principles. Although tempted to blame Reiko, he knew the real fault was his own.

“Thank you for your advice, Honorable Father-in-law,” Sano said, chastened.

New apprehension filled him as he wondered if this case would destroy everything he valued. He was no longer certain whether convicting Haru would solve his problems with Reiko. Though he still believed in Haru’s guilt, he dreaded telling his wife about the arrest. After he took Haru to jail, he must go to the Black Lotus Temple to speak with High Priest Anraku and check Haru’s stories with Dr. Miwa and Abbess Junketsu-in. His prejudice against the girl required extrameticulous investigation of all angles of the case before he could discredit Reiko’s evidence in favor of Haru.

“I shall charge Haru with the murders of her husband and Commander Oyama and order a trial to determine whether she’s guilty of those crimes, the other murders, and the arson,” Sano decided. “The trial will be delayed until the investigation is complete. Haru is under arrest. She’ll await trial in jail.”

“No!” she screamed, fighting harder. “No, no, no!” She continued screaming as the guards dragged her out of the room.

19

Shinagawa was a village south of Edo, and the second of fifty-three post stations along the Tōkaidō highway. The palanquin ride from the Zōjō district brought Reiko there by afternoon. Between Edo Bay and the wooded rise of Palace Hill, the highway ran past teahouses filled with citizens greeting travelers or seeing them off on journeys. More travelers browsed shops, gathered at the stables, and lined up for inspection at the station office. Hawkers called customers to inns. Now Reiko peered through the palanquin’s window at passing samurai from nearby daimyo residences, and the many monks who came to Shinagawa for illicit amusements. Looking down a side street, she saw banners stamped with the Tokugawa crest protruding from a large crowd gathered between rows of connected houses with thatched roofs.

“Stop over there,” she called to her bearers.

They obeyed. Reiko alighted from the palanquin. The mist had cleared, but the sky was overcast and the air cool; a damp wind wafted charcoal smoke and the smell of horse manure from the highway. Reiko and her guards walked toward the banners. The crowd included laborers, housewives carrying babies, and curious children. Men’s serious voices emanated from the center.

When the guards cleared her way through the crowd, Reiko saw Minister Fugatami, his samurai entourage, and a group of aged male commoners dressed in dark robes, standing around a well, a square wooden structure fitted with a pulley and bucket. Fugatami acknowledged Reiko’s arrival with a slight nod. His sharp features were grim as he returned his attention to his companions.

“This is one of three wells that we believe were poisoned by the Black Lotus during the past year,” said one of the commoners, a dignified, white-haired man. Reiko supposed that he and his comrades were village elders and he was their senior, giving Minister Fugatami a report on incidents involving the sect. He lowered the bucket into the well and drew it up, full. “The water has a peculiar odor.”

Fugatami sniffed the water and grimaced. “Indeed. “ He dipped a hand into the bucket, examined the liquid that ran off his fingers, then said to his attendants,”Note that the water also has an oily texture and faint greenish hue.”

“People have complained of the odd taste,” said the elder. “Fifty-three have become ill with diarrhea after drinking. Fortunately, none have died, and we’ve sealed the bad wells, but we’re worried about possible future incidents.”