“Suppose she did know Tadatoshi,” Sano said. “That doesn’t mean she killed him.”
“That’s not all there is to my story,” Colonel Doi said. “Your mother plotted to kidnap Tadatoshi.”
More outraged than ever, Sano exclaimed, “That’s ridiculous! She would never have done such a thing.”
“Perhaps not on her own,” Doi said, “but she didn’t act alone. She had an accomplice. He was Tadatoshi’s tutor, a young Buddhist monk named Egen. They wanted to extort ransom money from Tadatoshi’s father.”
“How do you know?” Sano said.
Maybe it’s true, the detective part of his mind whispered. You can’t decide that a suspect is innocent just because you want her to be. And how well do you really know your mother?
“I overheard Egen and your mother talking,” Doi said. “They said they needed money and Tadatoshi’s father was rich. Your mother said, ‘He’d do anything to save Tadatoshi.’ Egen said, ‘We’ll watch Tadatoshi and wait for the right moment.’”
The dubiousness of this evidence didn’t ease Sano’s fears for or about his mother. “This conversation took place when?”
“About a month before Tadatoshi disappeared.”
“That would be forty-three years ago,” Sano said. “What a memory you have, if you can remember an entire conversation after that long.”
“My memory is good,” Doi said, refusing to be shaken.
“Then let’s test your memory a little further. Did you actually hear my mother and this tutor say they were going to kidnap Tadatoshi and collect ransom?”
“Well, no,” Doi admitted reluctantly. “But that’s what they meant to do.”
“If so, then why didn’t you stop them?” Sano said. “You were Tadatoshi’s bodyguard. Why did you just twiddle your thumbs and let him be kidnapped?”
“I didn’t realize what their conversation meant,” Doi said, defensive now. “Not until yesterday, after the skeleton was found. Before then I’d always thought Tadatoshi died in the Great Fire. So did everyone else. But now I know better.”
“Was there any ransom demand ever made?” Sano said.
“Well, no, but—”
“You didn’t hear my mother and the tutor admit they killed Tadatoshi, did you? Because if you did, you’d have taken action against them then.”
Doi’s testy expression was his answer. “When they kidnapped him, something must have gone wrong and they killed him instead of ransoming him. He was murdered, and she did it.”
He pointed at Sano’s mother. Lord Matsudaira and Lord Arima nodded judiciously. The shogun followed their example.
“Those are some pretty big leaps from a vague conversation you heard forty-three years ago to kidnapping to murder,” Sano said disdainfully. The shogun frowned as if vacillating, and Lord Matsudaira started to look wary. “Have you any proof that things happened as you expect us to believe?”
“I don’t need any.” Doi’s posture stiffened with anger. “I know what I know.”
“That’s not good enough.” Sano said, “Your Excellency, this man has made up his whole story.”
“That’s a lie,” Doi declared. “Why would I?”
Sano couldn’t say, Because you’re Lord Matsudaira’s lackey and it would benefit him if my mother was condemned. For the shogun to learn about their fight for control of the regime would be worse for Sano than for Lord Matsudaira, whose blood ties to the shogun might shield him from execution for treason. He could live to fight another day, but Sano, an outsider, would be put to death.
Instead Sano said, “Maybe you feel guilty because Tadatoshi died on your watch and you need someone to blame. But I bet you have an even more personal reason for accusing my mother. You killed him, and you’re trying to protect yourself.”
“I didn’t!” Offense darkened Doi’s face. “I was loyal to Tadatoshi. I would never have touched him!”
“My findings indicated that Tadatoshi was hacked to death with a sword. Does my mother look capable of that? It sounds more in your line.”
Doi tightened his features, masking alarm. The shogun said timidly, “Sano-san has a good point.”
“Sano-san is just trying to save his mother,” Lord Matsudaira said. “Don’t listen to him. She killed Tadatoshi. She deserves to be condemned.”
“Not on such flimsy evidence from a man who looks to be an even better suspect,” Sano said.
“I’ll vouch for Colonel Doi’s truthfulness, Honorable Cousin,” Lord Matsudaira said with a narrow-eyed glare at Sano. “I advise you to execute this woman at once. Furthermore, the murder of your relative constitutes treason. By law, her whole family should share her punishment. That includes her son—Chamberlain Sano.”