The Samurai's Lady

by Gaynor Baker

  Chapter Thirteen

  Katharine watched enthralled as Fujito pulled the oars back with seemingly little effort, his biceps bulging as they constricted with the effort. Then she caught him looking at her and looked away quickly. She heard him chuckle.

  When Tadanori, who had been sleeping in the back of the boat, joined him they discussed where the best landing spot should be on Shikoku. They decided it should be Kochi on the pacific coast.

  “There she is!” Tadanori called out They were in sight of the smallest and least populated island in the country and Fujito breathed easier than he had since leaving Hakone. Shikoku"s mountains left very little land, except on the coast for populating. The Shogun had no real interest in controlling the isolated domains with little revenue. They would be safe here.

  The wind came up from nowhere, buffeting the craft, causing Fujito to tighten his grip on the oars to maintain control. While Fujito kept the boat as steady as he could Tadanori climbed the mast to batten the sail.

  “Storm"s coming from the Northeast. Looks like a big one.”

  Turning her head in the direction Tadanori had pointed Katharine saw heavy black clouds covering the blue like a blanket. Fear tightened her stomach, but she knew she would have to calm herself; Fujito had more than he could handle just keeping the boat from capsizing.

  She met Fujito"s eyes with her own. His smile encouraged her.

  The wind increased and changed direction, almost upending the craft. Tadanori could tell they were off course; he was a good navigator.

  “We"ll have to detour!” He called over the wind and the sound of the waves smacking the side of the craft. Fujito nodded.

  The way to their right was clear; the storm had not yet encroached on the Bungo Strait.

  “Try to turn her! I"ll help from this end!” Tadanori called.

  “All right!” Fujito"s answer came back.

  Katharine huddled in the corner on the bottom of the boat and tried not to think of the shipwreck that had brought her here. Her heart beat wildly every tine a wave hit the side of the boat and thanked the Lord that they hadn"t had to start bailing yet.

  She heard Fujito"s voice and the mention of her name but could not make out the rest.

  She was glad he and Tadanori were talking; it meant he was still alive, and all right. With sinking heart, she wished she had told him how she felt the night before. Now they might drown and he would never know. Her eyes filled with tears and mixed with the rain. They were successful at turning the boat into the narrow Strait. Ahead the sky

  began to clear and to their left, the sun was just going down; its rays, partly hidden by the

  dark storm clouds cast an eerie glow on the distant horizon.

  The wind was still up and would not let them land at Uwajima.

  “We"ll go on to Matsuyama.” Tadanori said. “We can out run it.”

  “All right.”

  The rowing was easier now and after a few miles, they were able to let the sail out and carry them straight on to Matsuyama. Fujito made his way carefully to where Katharine huddled in her safe corner.

  “Are you all right?” He asked, stooping in front of her.

  “Yes.” The relief at surviving the storm overwhelmed her and she began to laugh. “From boiled lobster to drowned rat. Makes quite a tale doesn"t it?” “Depends on whether that"s t-a-i-l or t-a-le.” He said. Then he laughed. Taking her in his arms, he held her close.

  “But I"m soaking wet.” She protested.

  “That"s all right.” He laughed. “So am I.”

  Tadanori called for his help to steer the boat to port. He touched her cheek with the backs of his fingers and returned to the front of the boat. They docked at Matsuhama the closest port.

  The storm stayed over the ocean that night, but the next morning they could see the black clouds encroaching on the northern shore and hear the thunder far out to sea.

  They had to stay in their rooms at the local ryokan but Katharine was glad of the rest; it had been a terrible night.

  “How did the boat fare?” Fujito asked over a late meal that served as breakfast. “Not badly.” Tadanori answered. “We lost a few boards and an extra oar but that"s about it. I think we missed the major part of it, but there seems to be a stronger onebrewing. You can hear the thunder over the water.”

  Katharine tensed. She hated thunder and lightening, had done since was a small child.

  “How long do we have until it reaches here?” Fujito asked

  “Shouldn"t get here until tomorrow sometime.” The other man answered. “We"ll get to Matsuyama before it breaks over land.”

  The walk to Matsuyama did not take long and they arrived just before midafternoon.

  Katharine thought the town was beautiful with its castle on top of the hill. There was the main street with its teahouses and shops, the ryokan and horse stables. They had almost reached the ryokan when they heard someone hailing them from further down the street. A hand waved. They stopped to let whomever it was catch up tothem. Katharine squeezed Fujito"s hand, tight, remembering Hakone. “Easy.” He whispered, squeezing hers back.

  “Isamu!” The man called as he came closer.

  “Hataro!” Fujito smiled.

  He bowed to them both in greeting and asked where they were staying. Fujito told him and asked what he was doing in Matsuyama.

  “My cousin lives here. In fact, why don"t you come and meet him?” “All right.” Fujito accepted.

  The house was not far away and located near the bay.

  “Fujito Isamu I"d like you to meet my cousin Tsutaro. He is one of us, also.” The men bowed to each other.

  “And this is Katsuko.” Fujito said.

  Tsutaro bowed to her also. She returned it.

  “Please.” Tsutaro said, “I would be honored if you were to have dinner at my home this evening.”

  “Domo.” Fujito answered.

  After the meal Tsutaro"s wife showed Katharine the garden. The trees already bore bright green leaves, and some of the flowers were already in bloom. “Spring comes earlier here on Shikoku than it does to the north.” She explained. They stopped to admire a long table on which several bonsai trees were set. Katharine admired one that seemed to be growing out of a rock.

  “I"ve never seen one like that before. Isamu has a few at home but I don"t remember seeing anything like that.”

  “Domo arigato.” Haruko said. “Tsutaro loves this one more than the others. He"s very proud of it.” She deftly changed the topic of conversation. “Hataro told us all ofwhat you two have been through.” She said softly. “I want you to know we are prayingfor you every day.”

  “Thank you.” Katharine was touched that two people they hadn"t met until today could be praying for them. Perhaps hat"s why they were driven off course by the storm,

  so that they could meet them.

  They heard laughter from inside. Haruko saw the look in Katharine"s eye as she watched Isamu at the Go board Tsutaro had brought out.

  “You love him, don"t you?”

  “Yes.” Katharine felt tears spring to her eyes.

  “Does he know?”

  She shook her head. “I haven"t told him because I"ll be going home in a few weeks when the ship docks in Hirado and I don"t want him to be burdened with more pain. He will be sad enough to lose me without knowing that I loved him. Getting overeach other will be easier that way.”

  “That"s a very pragmatic way of looking at it, Katsuko, but have you thought that you are depriving him of the love you could have shared while you are here? Don"t you think it would be better if he could look back on this year knowing that for at least someof the time he was loved?”

  “I hadn"t thought of it that way.” Katharine considered. Watching him bent over the board in concentration she came to the decision to tell him before they left Matsuyama.

  The next day was hotter and more humid than the one before. The storm that had settled over the ocean the day before moved inland. They could see the black
clouds over the distant mountains. Fujito suggested a walk around the town after the evening meal.

  By the time, they"d finished breakfast; the sky was almost covered in a blanket of cloud.

  “Look, doesn"t that look like Toyo?” She pointed at the large black stallion nearest the entry to the stable.

  „Toyo?” He asked, smiling. “Is that what you named him?”

  “Yes, I know it"s silly. But I loved that horse.”

  “I know you did koibito. But I don"t think you need to worry about him any more. I"m sure the magistrate has brought him back home by now.” He caressed her cheek withthe side of his thumb. “Did you have a horse at home?” “Yes. He was exquisite. But not all black, like Toyo. He had a white star on his forehead and two patches of white on his back legs. We used to ride over fences andthrough fields like we were being chased by the wind.” A look of sadness came into her eyes.

  “What happened?” Fujito asked, very quietly.

  “He hurt his leg.”

  He knew what would come next and held her close before she had to bring the pain to consciousness.

  “Maybe we"ll have a stallion of our own someday.” He whispered against her hair. It was the first seed on the way to convincing her to stay. “Why Toyo?” He asked to bring her back to the present.

  “Well, remember one day you were telling me about Hideyoshi?”

  “Yes?”

  “Toyo is short for Toyotomi.” It had been Hideyoshi"s other name. Fujito put his arm around her shoulder. “Oh my Nikko.” He chuckled. Suddenly he felt her musclestense. “What is it?”

  “Kazu, there!” She pointed in the direction of the clothmaker"s stall. Fujito frowned. He shielded his eyes from the sun and looked in the direction she indicated.

  It did indeed look like his brother-in-law. But he dealt mainly in silk. What would he be doing buying cotton cloth in Matsuyama?

  “Stay here.” He told her. He walked across the road to the shop.

  The longer Katharine watched, the more frightened she became. She hid behind the trunk of a lone tree that had been planted in the large square between two buildings.

  Fujito walked by the shop pretending not to be paying any attention but trying to decide between two of the kimono hanging near the doorway. He paused to look at a boltof cloth just outside the owner"s line of sight, just far enough away to hear the customer"s

  voice. When he spoke, he knew the man was not Kazu. He nodded pleasantly to him and after the owner had finished, purchased the silver one with a design of mountains on the back.

  Relieved that it had not been Kazu he made his way back across the street to where he"d left Katharine. When he reached the spot, she was gone. He called her name softly so as not to draw attention.

  “I"m here.” She said in a loud whisper. “What are you doing?” Fujito asked. A small smile tugged at he corners of his mouth.

  “Hiding, what does it look like?” He heard echoes of the old Katharine and only just stifled a laugh. But he couldn"t stop the smile on his lips.

  “It isn"t him.” He assured her.

  “No?”

  Fujito shook his head. “He looks a lot like him, but it isn"t him.” He extended a hand and helped her squeeze out of the tight space.

  He heard thunder and knew the storm was almost over the town.

  Suddenly the thunder crashed like a cymbal overhead. Fujito grabbed her hand and pulled her away from the tree just as a bolt of lightening hit it. One of the branches cracked as it snapped and fell to the ground with a loud clatter. Stunned by what had just happened, Fujito held her close as if he thought she would disintegrate before his very eyes.

  “Are you all right?” He whispered.

  “Yes, I think so.” Her breathing came in shallow gasps.

  “Easy. Try to take deep breaths. You"re all right now.”

  A woman came running out of a nearby teahouse just as large drops of rain pelted the ground.

  “Are you all right?” She asked. “Dozo. Come and get out of the rain and have some tea.”

  “Domo.” Fujito answered.

  The woman led the way into the teahouse and brought them a tray with the tea and a plate of sweets.

  “Domo.” Fujito said accepting the tray from her.

  The tea and sweets were lovely and helped Katharine to relax even more. The only lightening they could see came from the doorway, the outer doors being closed to protect the shoji walls. The thunder was barely audible through the tile roof.

  When the rain had let up somewhat, they left the shop. When Fujito went to pay the woman would accept no money.

  “Please, Sama. Accept it as a gift, to one who cheated death.”

  He could not old back a smile. “Domo.” He said, bowing.

  Just as they reached the ryokan, the winds came up again blasting cold rain against their thin garments and soaking them to the skin.

  The hostess saw them approaching and slid the door open for them. “Arigato.” Fujito said. Then to Katharine, “Let"s get out of these things and into fresh dry ones.”

  After he had changed, he knocked on the frame between the two rooms. “Come in.” She called.

  She was kneeling in front of a lantern in the process of lighting it. Her hair hung in long wet ringlets down her back. It almost took his breath away. “Here.” Fujito said tenderly. He took a towel from the shelf and kneeling behind her began to pull it gently down the length of her hair.

  “Your hair is beautiful.” He said softly.

  “Thank you.” She turned her face to his. He kissed her temple.

  The already dark sky became darker as the sun set behind the islands in the Inland Sea.

  The room had no outer doors. The roof over hang was he only thing that prevented the room"s shoji from getting soaked.

  Suddenly the sky was split with a pink-white light as lightening flashed across the horizon. Fujito heard her sharp intake of breath. “Easy.” He calmed her. He lit the two lanterns. Their orange-yellow glow was deepened by the blackness. “Why don"t we read something?”

  “All right. What?”

  “Well, we"ve got some Shakespeare and some haiku.”

  “All right.”

  He found the book of Sonnets in the pack and, kneeling beside her opened the book. Picking one, he began:

  “If the dull substance of my flesh were thought/ injurious distance should not stop my way/for then dispight of space I would be brought/ from limits far remote where thou dost stay.

  “No matter then although my foot did stand/ upon the farthest earth removed from thee/for nimble thought can jump both sea and land/ as soon as think the place where hewould be.” He looked up to watch the expression on her face then continued.

  “But ah, thought kills me, that I am not thought/ to leap large lengths of miles when thou art gone/ but that so much of earth and water wrought/ I must attend times leisure with my moan. Receiving naught by elements so slow/ but heavy tears badges of

  either"s woe.”

  She was enchanted by his voice as well as the sonnet and begged for another. “All right.” He smiled. Flipping through the pages, he found one. He put his arm around her shoulder and drew her close.

  “Being your slave what should I do but tend/ upon the hours and times of your desire/ I have no precious time at all to spend/ nor services to do till you require.” He deposited a quick kiss on her cheek. She smiled up at him and he set another on her lips.

  “Nor dare I chide the world.” He continued with a smile. “Without end hour/whilst I, my sovereign, watch the clock for you/ nor think the bitterness of absence sore/ when you have bid your servant once adieu/ nor dare I question with my jealous thought/ where you may be or your affairs suppose.” He kissed her temple.

  “But like a sad slave stay and think of naught/ save where you are how happy you make those/ So true a fool is love (I"ll love you still)/ though you do anything (I"ll thinkno ill)”

  She knew the sonnetand knew he"d changed the personal refe
rence from Will Shakespeare to the reader to fit their own situation. When she raised her eyes to his he was smiling fondly, the love he held for her evident in his soft brown eyes. “Who taught thee how to make me love thee more? The more I hear and see just cause for hate/ although I love what others do abhor/ with others thou shoudst not abhormy state.” Fujito quoted the verse from memory as he took her hand and raised it to his lips. He kissed her knuckles then held her hand to his cheek. Looking into her eyes, he quoted the last two lines.

  “If thy unworthiness raised love in me/ more worthy I to be beloved by thee.” Katharine wanted to cry. Now that she was ready to confess her heart, she was torn between wanting to go home and staying here with this man whom she knew would protect her to the end of his life, a man for whom she could no longer deny her true feelings. She knew the leave-taking would be painful, for both of them. The tears that filmed over her eyes obscured her vision.

  “Easy.” He drew her into his arms. “Does Shakespeare always make you cry?” He asked smiling.

  She shook her head, smiling through her tears. “Isamu I—”

  No, she told herself. Come what may she had to tell him. Whatever else happened, at least for the rest of her time in Japan she loved him.

  “I love you.” She said softly.

  “Oh koibito!” He sighed into her hair. “You don"t know how long I"ve waited to hear you say that. Aishiteru.” He captured her mouth with his. His heart thrilled at the response of her lips. He deepened the kiss in response as she put her arms around his neck. His eyes closed against everything but the feel of her against him, her lips on his.

  Lightening flashed, he felt her muscles tense.

  “Easy.” He whispered against her cheek before reclaiming her mouth. The thunder above the Sea was overshadowed by the heartbeat that seemed to be in her very breath. Her eyes were closed against the raging storm over the Sea but inside her heart, a tempest of desire burned her very soul.

  She felt his lips lessen their hold on hers. Her eyes fluttered open as he eased himself away.

  Before she could speak, he stroked her cheek with the backs of his fingers. “Oh the things you could make me do koibito.” He smiled. His voice was a husky whisper.