Lady Samurai

Chapter 40

They were very close now. Lord Takeda could smell the salt in the air. He knew they were almost there. They had been riding hard, with only brief stops to let the horses rest a little, before forcing them onward again at full speed. But soon Lottie will be in his arms. Safe again...

When Takeda's troops entered the village, the whole population rushed out of their houses and fell to their knees in respect. Their Lord had never visited before and this would become the base of legend for generations to come.

Takeda was oblivious to all that. He motioned for Nabutada to come closer. "Ask them about Kazuki. I am sure he was here." He grumbled.

Nabutada bowed and dismounted. He briefly described Kazuki and demanded to know his whereabouts.

One of the peasants, village elder perhaps, mumbled something, not lifting his head, pointing to somewhere.

"My Lord." Nabutada returned to report. "He says that a merchant looking like Kazuki was buying food here. He was staying with poor relatives, some distance away."

"Let's go!" Lord Takeda reined his horse and galloped away, leaving prostrated villagers behind.

After a short while he saw a house... A hut, he corrected himself with dismay. She lived here?!...

Two people were sitting in front of the house, bent over a fishing net. Seeing so many riders and recognising the banners, they both fell to their knees.

Not waiting for his people to dismount, the Lord jumped off his horse and in three quick strides reached the door. He went inside and literally froze in shock.

The interior was almost bare. There were only a few essential pieces of furniture. All looked home-made. The poverty of the place was striking, but it was clean and tidy. His attention was instantly drawn to the tiny Tokonoma. With surprise he took in an elegant flower composition and a drawing hanging above it. Its artistry struck him as something unexpected; he would have never expected to find such beauty in a peasant's home. 'How could they afford it?'... But then a new thought occurred to him; the lines were clean and expressive, but it wasn't a typical Japanese style. It must have been done by a foreign hand...

He stood there for a long time, trying to imagine Lottie's life in this place, yet failing. He could not equate her elegance and poise with such humble circumstances. Once more, he marvelled at the strength of her character, the character that shaped her into the person he fell in love with.

When he finally stepped outside, Nabutada was waiting to report his findings. "The horse is gone, My Lord. Nobody else is here."

Lord Takeda squatted next to the old couple. "Where is Kazuki?" He asked gently. "And Lottie?"

Hearing this name, the woman dared to lift her eyes for a second. She must have known who he was. A flicker went through her face, but she dropped her head again.

"I will not hurt her." The Lord said quietly, just so only the old people could hear him. "Nor you... Where did they go?"

He feared they wouldn't say anything, but eventually the woman mumbled something. Her husband tensed visibly, but didn't react in any other way.

"Arigatō." Takeda rose. "Nabutada, order our people to mount. We are leaving." He went inside the house again, just for a moment.

When he came out, he jumped onto his horse and gave the sign to depart. He didn't even look at the old couple, still on their knees, prostrate in the dirt in the most humble way.

A moment later the riders disappeared in a cloud of dust.

"Why did you tell him?" The old man got to his feet and helped his wife up. "Lottie insisted..."

"Oh!" The woman cut him off. "You, men!" She sighed with exasperation. "You will never understand these things! She loves him. She carries his child. And he loves her too."

"How do you know?"

"He came here looking for her, didn't he? Besides, I could hear it in his voice. He will take care of our Lottie and her baby." She announced with conviction.

They turned and walked stiffly into the house. On the low table in the corner of the room they found a heavy leather pouch full of money.

*

Their route ran through a small copse of trees, further leading to a hill and the big road going straight to Edo. In order to save time they decided to risk travelling in the open.

Both, Kazuki and Anna were tired. From the very beginning she imposed a murderous pace. The quicker she got to Edo, the better. Once there, she could hide and wait for the opportune moment to find passage out of Japan. A few more days and everything would be fine. But there was a price to pay for such haste and they had to walk, allowing the horse to rest from time to time.

Anna rubbed her stiff neck, thinking of the pleasures of a bath and massage.

And then she felt a pricking unease. Instinctively, she looked around, but everything looked calm and peaceful. However, used to trust her instincts she tensed, expecting danger. Then she realised it was too quiet, too peaceful.

One look at Kazuki told her that he had felt it too.

"My Lady, please mount." He ordered.

Without protests she jumped on the horse and drew her revolvers from the saddle bag. She cocked the hammer and held them ready to fire.

Not a moment too soon, as they were suddenly surrounded by many men, masked and fully armed. They had obviously been hiding in the trees and long grass, just waiting for their prey to enter the trap, waiting to kill them.

Anna did not hesitate. She took aim and fired six shots in quick succession. Four attackers fell to the ground, dead or injured. But there were many more.

"Run, Ana!" Kazuki shouted, as he advanced and threw himself into the fight.

He used his staff to disarm one of the assailants, splitting his skull with a powerful stroke. He then grabbed the man's sword and easily dispatched the next closest assassin with it. Then another. And another... Four bandits killed in the blink of an eye. Kazuki positioned himself between Anna and the attackers, who were circling him now with weariness.

"Go! Now!" He barked.

"No!" She screamed back. With fear, but also with resolve.

"You must think of the child. Go! Travel south. Lord Takeda's lands are to the south. But you must go now!" He snatched a brief moment to look back at her. "Goodbye."

She had no choice. With tears in her eyes, almost blinding her, and a gut wrenching sense of dread, she knew her friend was about to die. Someone she cared about... Her curse returning to taunt her.

There were simply too many of them. If she stayed, they both would be dead in moments. He was sacrificing himself, giving her time to get away. But she couldn't force herself to leave him. She took aim and fired again. A few more attackers fell to the ground.

And then she heard the 'click', 'click' sound. Both her guns out of bullets, they were now next to useless. She had no holsters and no time to waste, so she let them drop to the ground. With the last distraught glance at Kazuki, she kicked the horse and forced him into a gallop. If she managed to reach the hill and the road beyond, she might yet have a chance.

She heard arrows buzzing past her ear. One of them must have found its mark, because the horse shuddered and neighed with pain as an arrow struck a hind leg. The next one embedded itself in Anna's shoulder. The pain was excruciating, but she had to keep going.

She had almost lost all feeling in her arm and it hung useless at her side. Her horse was still running, but she could feel his strength was waning.

All she could do now was to lay low on the horse's neck, hold on to the saddle and wait for the inevitable.