Red Chrysanthemum by Laura Joh Rowland Page A

she didn’t do it. I can explain-”
    “What’s to explain?” Hoshina said. “Lady Reiko was caught literally red-handed.”
    “It’s obvious she’s the murderer,” said Captain Torai.
    Furious, Sano turned on them. “I didn’t give you permission to join this meeting. Leave,” he ordered. Things were bad enough for Reiko without their accusations.
    But Lord Matsudaira motioned them to stay. They knelt, smirking at Sano. Lord Matsudaira fixed on him a gaze replete with menace. “The evidence against your wife is very incriminating.”
    “It doesn’t prove she’s guilty,” Sano objected. “Please hear me out, and you’ll agree that she was framed.”
    “ ‘Framed,” “ Hoshina scoffed. ”Is mat what she said? That’s the excuse all criminals offer in their own defense.“ He addressed the shogun: ”With Your Excellency’s permission, I shall arrest Lady Reiko.“
    Panic beset Sano. Events were moving too fast in the wrong direction. “I forbid you!”
    “He’s trying to protect his wife from the law, at the expense of justice,” Captain Torai told Lord Matsudaira.
    “You’re trying to persecute Lady Reiko for your own purposes!” Hirata burst out.
    “I haven’t heard one reason why she shouldn’t be convicted of murder this day,” Lord Matsudaira challenged Sano.
    Even as Sano opened his mouth to answer, the shogun piped up nervously, “I can’t believe that Lady Reiko, could, ahh, do such a terrible thing. She’s such a nice, pretty young woman.”
    He emphasized the word “pretty,” as though Reiko’s looks were a better proof of her innocence than her character was. But Sano welcomed any support during a battle. “Thank you, Your Excellency.” Hoshina scowled. “May I tell my wife’s side of the story?”
    “Permission granted,” the shogun said with a daring look at Lord Matsudaira. He sometimes chafed at his cousin’s domination and welcomed opportunities to resist it.
    Lord Matsudaira also scowled. “Very well, Chamberlain Sano. I’m listening.”
    Sano gave a fast, abridged, but persuasive recital of Reiko’s tale. When he told about the boy Lord Mori had strangled, the shogun exclaimed in horror. Lord Matsudaira shook his head. Even Hoshina and Torai seemed disturbed. But after Sano described how Reiko had fallen unconscious and awakened to find herself beside Lord Mori’s corpse, Hoshina burst out laughing. Torai echoed him.
    “That’s the biggest lie I’ve ever heard!” Hoshina said. “If your wife expected you to believe it, Honorable Chamberlain, she must think you’re an utter fool.”
    “I thought the part about spying on Lord Mori was far-fetched.” Torai sneered. “No woman does things like that. Not even the unconventional Lady Reiko.”
    The shogun giggled. Sano’s heart dropped because the shogun swayed with whatever wind was blowing the hardest at the moment.
    “Lady Reiko’s story sounds dubious at the very least,” Lord Matsudaira said. “Especially the part about Lord Mori stealing and killing children. I’ve known him for years. He’s always seemed a most honorable, decent man.”
    “There’s never been the slightest rumor of a stain on his character,” Hoshina rushed to add. “And he was a strong, loyal subject of the regime.” His tone reminded Lord Matsudaira that Lord Mori had helped bring Lord Matsudaira to power.
    “He may not have been so loyal,” Sano said, determined to counter Lord Matsudaira’s bias in favor of the murder victim.
    “I had him under investigation for plotting a coup,” Hirata said, reminding Lord Matsudaira that he himself had suspected Lord Mori of treachery and ordered the investigation.
    Lord Matsudaira glanced at the shogun. His expression warned Sano and Hirata that they were verging on a forbidden topic. The shogun was unaware that his cousin had seized control of Japan and the fealty of many of his subjects. No one had told him, and since he rarely left the palace, he saw little of what went