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The Dragon Scroll
[Sugawara Akitada 03]
By I. J. Parker
Scanned & Proofed By MadMaxAU
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CHARACTERS
(Family names precede given names.)
Main Characters
Sugawara Akitada Nobleman, presently in his mid-twenties, a minor
government official on special assignment to Kazusa province
Seimei Family retainer of the Sugawaras and Akitada’s
trusted companion
Tora A deserter who becomes Akitada’s servant
Persons Connected with the Murder Cases
Fujiwara Motosuke Governor of Kazusa province; cousin of Kosehira
Secretary Akinobu Motosuke’s right-hand man
Captain Yukinari Commandant of the provincial garrison
Prefect Ikeda Administrator of a local district; subordinate to
Motosuke
Lord Tachibana Retired former governor of the province
Lady Tachibana His young wife
Master Joto Abbot of the Temple of Fourfold Wisdom
Kukai Deacon of the temple
Higekuro Crippled instructor in martial arts
Ayako His older daughter, also a teacher of martial arts
Otomi His younger daughter, a deaf-mute painter
The Rat A beggar
Hidesato An unemployed soldier
Fujiwara Kosehira Nobleman in the capital; Akitada’s best friend
Takashina Tasuku Another friend in the capital
Lady Asagao Lady-in-waiting in the imperial household
Others
Minamoto Yutaka President of the Bureau of Censors
Soga Ietada Minister of justice
Sato, Peony, Junjiro Servants in the Tachibana household
Scarface, Yushi, Jubei Three hoodlums
Jasmin A prostitute
Jisai A peddler
Seifu A silk merchant
(Also assorted monks, soldiers, and townspeople)
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THE
DRAGON SCROLL
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PROLOGUE
THE WATCHERS
Heian Kyo (Kyoto):
Leaf-Turning Month (September), a.d. 1014
T
here were two watchers in the garden that night.
One was the old man on the veranda who leaned forward a little when he heard light footsteps on the path from the small pavilion in back.
The young woman was coming back. Alone! He feasted his eyes for a moment on the shimmer of multicolored silk gauze and the sparkle of gold in her hair. The light of the moon was uncertain under the trees, and his eyes were weak with age. It was a moment before he realized that she was weeping. She stumbled near the street gate, her full sleeve pressed to her face, a slender arm groping the way. At the gate she stopped to look back toward the pavilion; then she slipped out and was gone.
The old man grinned toothlessly. A lovers’ spat. His boarder was an exceptionally handsome young man. No wonder he had been able to form an alliance with a lady of a rank so exalted that she wore fabrics and golden hairpins forbidden to lesser mortals.
He was pleased. His life had contracted to the narrow span of garden viewed from his veranda, and the vicarious enjoyment of the secret pleasures of the highborn filled his lonely hours with intriguing speculations. He looked forward to other nights and more entertainment. Sighing happily, he tottered off to bed.
The second watcher was also pleased. He had been crouching in the shrubbery, having followed the couple to their hideaway. He, too, had noted the golden jewelry in the lady’s hair. When she rushed past him into the street, it was an unforeseen piece of luck. He had not expected her to leave so soon—or alone—and he followed her.
♦
The lady ran quickly through the deserted streets. She had never before passed this way, or anywhere, alone. Ordinarily she traveled by carriage or palanquin, and always with attendants, but this was no ordinary errand. Whenever they had walked this way together, she had hidden behind her veil and allowed him to lead her. Now she looked anxiously for familiar landmarks.