The Way of the Traitor: A Samurai Mystery Read Online Free PDF Page B

checked men in and out, hanging a wooden name plate on a board to indicate someone's entry, or taking one down when someone else left.

oIf you will please come this way? Sano's escort led him, Hirata, and the captain into the rambling, two-story mansion with half-timbered walls and latticed windows. They left their shoes and swords in the entryway and walked down a corridor past chambers where officials argued loudly as they pored over maps and secretaries drafted reports about the disaster. At the corridor's end, by the open door to a garden, stood two men.

One was perhaps fifty years of age. Broad across the shoulders and chest, he exuded an air of elegance even as he paced in agitation. Two ornate swords hung at his waist. His rust-colored silk kimono, patterned with gold ginkgo leaves, emphasized his ruddy complexion. The graying hair drawn back from his shaved crown was glossy with oil.

oIt will be very bad for us if we don't find him at once, he fumed. Despite his anger, his voice had a mellow, melodious tone "like that of an actor feigning emotion in a Kabuki drama. He wiped his sweating forehead with his sleeve. oWhat a fiasco!

The other man was a spare, plainly dressed samurai with ashen hair and a stiff posture. Sano, approaching with his party, heard him mutter, o... never would have happened if...

oAnd what's that supposed to mean? The first man's smooth voice tightened. oYou " Then he spied his visitors.

oGovernor Nagai, may I present the shogun's envoys. Deftly the escort managed the introductions.

oI'm here to perform an inspection of Nagasaki, Honorable Governor, Sano said when his turn came.

Shrugging off his agitation like a discarded robe, Nagai bowed in a relaxed, courteous manner. The lines of his face smoothed into a pleasant expression. His coarse features "broad, porous nose, thick lips, and fleshy jowls "had an agile mobility that lent him a semblance of handsomeness.

oWelcome to Nagasaki. You had a pleasant journey, I hope? Yes. Well. The words issued from Governor Nagai in a honeyed flow. oI apologize for the temporary state of confusion. But everything is under control.

Sano had heard Nagai mentioned in Edo. His admirers praised the administrative skills that had raised him from lowly provincial inspector to commissioner of finance, then won him Tokugawa Tsunayoshi's favor and a prestigious Nagasaki governorship. His detractors said he abused his power to enrich himself, and got away with it because of his talent for pleasing the right people.

Governor Nagai gestured to his companion. oThis is Ohira Yonemon, chief officer of Deshima. He was just leaving to make sure no more barbarians disappear.

Ohira wordlessly bowed his farewells. On him would rest the major blame for any problem on Deshima, Sano knew. His square jaws were clenched, his pale lips compressed, and he looked physically ill. His skin had a blanched pallor, with purplish pouches under the eyes as if he hadn't slept in a long time. As he walked away, his rigid shoulders trembled.

The captain stepped forward. oThe Honorable Chamberlain Yanagisawa's orders, he said, handing Governor Nagai a scroll case.

Governor Nagai read the enclosed document with a neutral expression, and his geniality didn't waver when he addressed Sano again. oYes. Well. Come, let's go to my private office and discuss your plans for the inspection, he said.

After ordering an assistant to give the captain quarters in the barracks, he ushered Sano and Hirata upstairs to a bright, spacious room. Sliding doors opened onto a balcony, below which the city's rooftops spilled down the hill in a picturesque clutter. In the distance, sky and sea were azure; the harbor looked deceptively peaceful. Faint street noises drifted in on the warm breeze. Governor Nagai knelt behind the desk, his back to shelves filled with ledgers. Sano and Hirata knelt opposite on silk cushions. The room held the usual cabinets and chests found in any official's