Masters of Fate, Slaves to Duty

Chapter 8


The days that followed their disappearance troubled Miki. When he arrived later that evening to pick up Yume and her luggage, all he found was an empty pistol, a pool of blood on the ground, and three wounded men. He cautiously approached Yume’s bedroom where the trail of blood seemed to end. Inside, Akihiro and Daven were busy with an unconscious Jonathan. It appeared that he had a wounded shoulder, and on closer inspection, he noticed that Daven’s leg was also bandaged.

The two of them explained what had happened to the best of their recollection. Looking around the room, he saw Yume’s kimono discarded on the floor, specks of blood marring the pure white fabric. Jonathan’s clothes were also in a state of disarray, like he had been interrupted in what he hoped was a moment of intimacy with the woman he still loved.

Leave it to Tatsumaki to charge in and play the part of the hero for her again. When he asked where they had gone, Daven could only say ‘home’. Miki wasn’t sure what that meant. Maybe they were back at the castle awaiting his return?

Before Miki could load her trunks into the waiting carriage, bells tolled from down the street. The police were responding to the gunshots.

“We can’t stay here,” Miki said to the two men, who nodded in agreement. “Akihiro, help me with Daven. The two of you are coming to the palace with me.”

As each man moved to take an arm, Daven was shaking his head.

“No, I can’t leave Foxx,” he said, worried about his friend’s condition.

“He is not our concern any longer,” Miki said sternly. “If word gets out about what happened here tonight, it would not bode well for your country’s relations with Japan.”

Daven turned away in defeat, knowing that Miki’s words were true. Together with Akihiro, Miki got the men to the carriage discreetly before the police arrived. It was almost daylight when the men knocked on the palace doctor’s door. Graciously, he allowed Daven to stay with him as he tended his wounded leg. Miki and Akihiro immediately reported the incident to the Council of State, who was none too pleased with the evening’s events.

“Sir,” asked Miki. “What is our next step?”

The Council rubbed the bridge of his nose, as if he was trying to relieve some pressure that was building in his head. He had known Tatsumaki could not stay away from her, regardless of his orders. He would have to personally report this to the Empress, and he dreaded the outcome of that conversation. Fortunately, she was still out in the countryside at the current moment.

“Let it be,” he said.

Akihiro bowed at the command, and quietly exited the room, leaving the other two men. Miki was stunned into silence, his thoughts going through every extreme it could comprehend. Before he could object, the Council held up his hand.

“I know you worry about her welfare, as does her brother,” he stated as he rose from his seat behind his desk to stand next to Miki. “I fear our actions have not been in her best interest, and at this point, this is the only way to rectify them.”

Miki stared at the ceiling as he tried to control his anger. “With all due respect, Tatsumaki is not the man he once was. There is nothing he can give her now that would benefit her in any way. She is in a dark place, and I believe he can only push her further down that path.”

“And as soon as he was back in her life, she regained a piece of her happiness that we had not seen for quite some time,” the Council said matter-of-factly. “She does not need us to make her decisions for her any longer. She is not the reckless woman we employed before. We both know she is capable of taking care of herself.

“And who knows,” he continued. “Maybe Tatsumaki is the medicine she has needed all this time.”

~*~*~

The trek across the country took them just over two weeks, all of it on foot. She was glad when Hikone Castle came into view on the horizon. A cry of birds welcomed them back into his quiet little city located on the banks of Lake Biwa.

Tatsumaki had sent word ahead that they would be arriving, and that the residence should be ready for their safe return. As they stood at the main gate, Yume noticed that the estate walls now extended to the property next door. Inside, she saw that the interior wall was missing, opening up to a whole building that was acquired with the sale. The estate now had three separate buildings, along with a small bathhouse and the outdoor springs, all of which were now interconnected with covered stone walkways.

Two young women met them at the gates. Both of them were breathing hard from their daily chores, their long dark hair damp with sweat. Their brown eyes shined at the arrival of the tenant and his guest. They both bowed gracefully, and introduced themselves as Kiyomi and Matsuri. When they arose again, Yume noticed that the girls were actually twins, but unlike her children, these two were identical. If it were not for the different colored clothing (Matsuri in red, Kiyomi in blue), she would not be able to tell them apart.

“They are my former housekeeper’s daughters. I promised her I would take them in if anything ever happened to her,” Tatsumaki had explained. It turned out their mother had died a couple of years before, and Tatsu had bought the neighboring property so the girls would have a house of their own.

Yume followed the trail to the second building, only to discover that her room was no longer there. Tatsumaki had converted the entire section that included her room and Shinra’s old room into a dojo, also for the girls. They had been trained with swords at a very early age, and even now they kept up with their disciplined practice on a daily basis even though the modern age was quietly sweeping across Japan.

Yume was growing more morose by the minute. She had asked him if any of her things were still here, and Tatsumaki tried to explain it away.

“Honestly, I didn’t know if I would ever see you again, in my life or in my home,” he’d said coldly. “I stored what was left behind on the second floor of the new house so it was out of the way.”

So, there was no place for her here any longer was what she surmised. All that was left of her in his life were things, items that someday she had every intention of coming back for. But time had passed, and Tatsumaki had moved on, and put her and their past behind him.

She asked him where she should sleep. The “girls” had also prepared a room for her in the new house. Yume found that with each compliment that dripped from his lips about the twins, she had to hold her tongue. It was creating an ugly feeling within her that was unknown and unnatural, jealousy.

Yume simply nodded to him with the realization, and excused herself. She decided that these thoughts could wait. What she required now was rest. Two weeks on the road, constantly moving to keep hiding from nameless attackers had taken its toll on both of them. She hadn’t even had time to come to grips with everything that had happened back in Tokyo, back in the home she had shared with Jonathan and Daven.

But that too could wait. Her feet led her to the room that was ready for her. It too was on the second floor. Of course it was sparse. There was no furniture inside, simply an old trunk in the far corner, and bedding spread out in the middle of the floor. Both windows to the room were opened to let in the fresh air, but the summer heat was upon the city now, so there was nothing she could do to cool the room down. Yume simply stripped herself of all clothing and collapsed onto the bedding, using only a sheet as cover. Before long her weary mind and body succumbed to much needed slumber.

~*~*~

When Yume opened her eyes again, the sun was setting low in the western sky, yet the room had not cooled. Moving to the trunk, she found some of her old robes, and selected a dark blue one covered in flying cranes. As she dug further into the old trunk, she found the sword Tatsumaki had given her on her first stay. Yume held the sword close to her chest, and thought of happier days. For a moment, she could see Shinra’s shining face as she charged up to the main house with her sword in hand, thinking the home was under attack. Turned out it was only Tatsumaki returning from his investigation.

Then her train of thought switched to the dark warehouse and Shinra on his knees before her as she slit his throat with her sword. She could still hear the sound of his blood pouring from his body as it coated both her and the sword, his silent cry still ringing in her ears. The vision changed to Tokyo, and to her standing before the burning Tosa residence, the sword clenched in her hands while Tamaki kept a tight grip on her son’s throat. Yume threw the sword back into the trunk, and ran downstairs.

Before she could make it outside, Yume crashed into Kiyomi, and both women and a basket of fresh laundry tumbled into the yard.

“What the…” Kiyomi said from beneath the shaking woman.

Yume went from shaking to sobbing, unable to control her emotions in front of this young girl. Though confused, Kiyomi wrapped her arms around the woman, and started to stroke her pale hair.

“It’s all right now,” she whispered, trying to soothe the woman. “You’re safe here. No one is going to hurt you.”

Before long, the frustration and fear seeped out, and Yume was under control again. Kiyomi let go of her so she could sit up.

“I’m so sorry,” Yume pleaded, bowing to the young girl. “No one was meant to see that. I honestly don’t know what came over me.”

Kiyomi smiled at her, the look in her eyes forgiving. “I’m only happy that I could help. I wonder where you would have gone if you had not run into me first.”

Yume couldn’t answer that. She didn’t know herself. “Please,” she said. “Do not tell him you saw me like this. The last thing he needs right now is someone else to worry about.”

Kiyomi shook her head. “Your secret will not pass my lips.”

After Yume finished helping Kiyomi collect the now dirty laundry, they set off together for the main house. Dinner was ready. They entered to find Tatsu and Matsuri sitting together having a war of words rather than eating. Kiyomi only laughed.

“Are you two still arguing about that?” she said, breaking the tension between the two and switching their attention to the new arrivals.

Matsuri ignored her sister and smiled to Yume. “Well, she finally arises when the sun sets,” she said before taking a bite of her fish.

Yume took a seat across from Tatsumaki, who started eating rather than acknowledging that she was there. She chose to ignore him, thinking instead about her past professions that kept her asleep during the day.

“Is that inappropriate?” Yume asked the outspoken girl as she picked up her bowl of miso.

Matsuri laughed. “It is since you went to bed yesterday!”

Yume almost dropped the bowl of hot soup in her lap. “Yesterday?” she asked, looking to Tatsu. “Is this true?”

Tatsu finally looked at her, his eyes dark and tired from his own lack of sleep. He opened his mouth to speak, but Matsuri spoke up first.

“Yeah,” she said while shoving another piece of food into her mouth. “We tried to wake you for dinner last night, but you wouldn’t budge. Maki told us to leave you alone, that you would wake up when you were ready.”

Yume shot another look to Tatsumaki. “Maki?” she asked.

Matsuri pointed her chopsticks at Tatsu. “That’s right! I can call him that since someday he’ll be my husband! Ow!”

Yume felt the table shake when Matsuri jumped, and watched as Kiyomi pulled one hand up from under the table to place it next to her dish.

“I apologize for my sister’s rudeness,” she said, ignoring the dirty looks coming from Matsuri. “You see, since Tatsumaki is our caretaker, it is also his duty to find suitable husbands for us.”

Yume could see Tatsu becoming more uncomfortable with the conversation, but he couldn’t stop Matsuri from speaking.

“Yeah, our parents left sizable dowries for the both of us, but I keep telling Maki that he can have mine and just marry me. He may be old, but the girls around town say he’s……ow! Stop pinching me, Kiyomi!”

Yume looked down to her food as her body decided it was no longer hungry. “I see,” she said, barely audible to the others seated at the table. “Please, excuse me.”

Yume could hear the girls arguing as she left the main house. The sky was dark now, and the stars shined brightly. Yume was happy to see them again; they were getting harder to see from Tokyo. She could hear bullfrogs from the lake singing their mating song, and the trees in the yard rustled quietly in the summer breeze. Yume had forgotten how peaceful this small town had been, a silent refuge from all the turmoil in her life.

She found her usual seat next to the pond, and lied down to stare at the night sky. Yume reminisced about doing the same thing on Jonathan’s ship, the Stronghold. They had been about two days outside of Yokohama. The air was still cool, so the two of them had gathered blankets and huddled together on the deck of the ship to watch the stars.

Even now the sky calmed her. Through all the changes in her life, the night sky was her one constant. It did not ask her to give up her freedom. It did not require a life of servitude from her. It did not ask her to become something she was not. In fact, it did not ask any questions, nor did it make demands. In some ways, Tatsumaki had been her night sky. He had been a constant when everything was tumbling out of control. He had accepted her when she was a whore and a spy. He had loved her enough to ask for her hand in marriage and turn her into a mother.

But fate had decreed that was not enough. Their love had to be tested with another trial, one of time and distance. They had failed that one significantly. So here she was, looking back up to the one stable thing in her life. Maybe her son was right, maybe her spirit was no longer here and already up in the stars, just waiting for her body to join it. Honestly though, she had lived as someone else’s wife with the assumption that she would never see Tatsumaki again. And yet, she still never gave herself over to Jonathan. Why would she do that to him if she truly believed Tatsu was not out there, somewhere?

But he was here now, and though she was weary, she was not going to be defeated so easily. Yume looked across the water to the main house. She could see the twins cleaning up the dining table, and she could see a light on in Tatsu’s old office. And that was where she found him, sitting at his desk behind a pile of papers and scrolls. He was pouring over one in particular, a pair of spectacles sitting low on his nose. She leaned against the door frame and watched him work.

“It’s rude to stare,” he said without looking at her.

Yume didn’t move. “You’re working again?” she asked.

Tatsu put down the scroll, and took off the glasses to rub the bridge of his nose, a move she had seen the Council perform several times.

“I sent word to the Chief in Kyoto that I was back. He sent me some case files about crimes in this area.”

Yume looked at his face in the candle’s light. His skin was tanned and aging, his eyes were still tired, and now he had small lines forming around his mouth. His hair was in disarray, longer now than when she saw him at the spring dinner party. It was almost to his shoulders again, and his strips of gray were more pronounced with the length.

“Did you need something?” he asked, picking up the spectacles again.

She ignored his question, and asked one of her own. “Have you slept?”

Tatsu shuffled some papers on his desk, dodging of her question. Yume wasn’t falling for his act. “I don’t know if I got the chance to thank you for helping me. The last few weeks were a little hectic.”

Tatsumaki cleared his throat and went back to his scroll. “I have to leave tomorrow. There was a murder-suicide in the neighboring village. The Chief is asking me to look into it immediately.”

Yume understood the abrupt dismissal; the Council did it to her all the time. Tatsu had never treated her like an outsider before, and at the moment, it hurt. She turned to leave, but had one final question for the night.

“Will you marry her?”

Silence filled the space between the former lovers. She waited while Tatsumaki chose his words carefully.

“I may have to.”

~*~*~

The next two days were filled with solitude. She slept alone, ate alone, and bathed alone. She avoided the twins, and they in turn left her in peace. During the day, Yume poured over the case files in Tatsu’s office. She did not believe she was clever enough to solve the cases by herself, but she was aching for something to read, and fortunately she had taken lessons with the children, so she could read most kanji now. Some of the more complex characters gave her trouble, but she could get the gist if she just kept reading.

The evenings were spent on the roof of the new house in silent contemplation. The tiles were nice and flat, and the roof was the highest point on the estate, making it optimal for sky-viewing. She used to do the same thing at the palace with Miki, but even up on a higher roof, she still couldn’t see a sky like this in Tokyo.

And as she sat there on the roof between the heavens and the earth, her mind wandered to that dark place that she had not forgotten. Over those two nights, she tallied up all the things she had accomplished in her life. She had saved the throne for the brother she never knew she had. She had become a mother to two beautiful, vibrant children. And she got to experience the love of many men, some physical and some familial.

For the love of one man, she had taken on a corrupt police chief and the Kyoto branch of the Yakuza. For the love of her family, she had defeated a group of revolutionaries from Choshu and Tosa. For the love of the land she calls home and its prosperity, she obeyed the Emperor’s orders and married a man who had saved her live yet could never love.

But what had all that brought her? She had received mental and physical scars at the hands of people like Nanaka and Tamaki, and learned the mistrust of others due to the actions of Shinra, Ayame, and Emiko. Top those with the unrequited love of Miki and Jonathan, and the scales were officially tipped.

Lives were lost, trusts were broken, and ties were severed. Friends had turned to enemies, men had turned into beasts, and families had been separated. And with all these thoughts, Yume could not shed a tear. She was somehow content that through all of these trials and hardships, she had made the world around her a better place for those she loved. She had done the best she could with what she had in each moment of time, which left her with no regrets. And for her, that was enough.

So on that third night, the blackened clouds had rolled in. A summer storm was blocking her stars. It whipped her hair with its winds, and drenched her body with its rain. And in the storm’s fury, she stood on the northernmost tip of the roof with her back toward the ground and her face to the sky. And as the heavens withdrew and the earth opened its arms to embrace her, she prayed for peace and happiness to find her children and Miki, and she prayed for Tatsumaki’s heart to discover love again. And for just a brief moment before the dark abyss engulfed her and the pain subsided, she thought she saw Tatsu’s face smiling down on her.

If the mention of some of my past characters confuses anyone, please read the preceding stories Rebel Encounter & Fuel to the Fire. Enjoy!