"What in hell could have delayed her?!" Commander Morrison, as always, was allowing his emotions to get the better of him. Norton was trying to mitigate him, but the soldier was as quick-tempered as always. He was pacing impatiently from wall to wall with a face like thunder. But they were all quite unsettled.
When the servants led them inside, Anna was still absent.
They slowly walked in, unsure what should happen now. Mr Bracknell vowed that in the future he would pay more attention to the things Anna was telling them over and over again. They had allowed themselves to rely on her far too much.
As they walked, they could see many Japanese sitting on both sides of the hall and Lord Matsuda, at the other end, resting on a raised dais. All of the Lord's officials were dressed with great care, in richly decorated layers of silk kimonos. And each of them was armed with two swords. It all made quite an intimidating impression on the westerners. If they were to believe Anna, those swords were able to wreak havoc at the slightest provocation.
In the moment they entered, Lord Matsuda's face clouded with displeasure that their interpreter was absent. He was so looking forward to learning things about the foreigners, but he would have to curb his curiosity and wait for another opportunity. He quickly composed himself and his face became inscrutable.
After a few steps the Americans stopped. "We will have to manage ourselves, I guess." As a sailor, Norton was quite used to the unexpected and he took the new situation in his stride. "I think we should bow and wait for the invitation to sit down."
The others followed his lead, bowing with a little stiff backs.
Lord Matsuda nodded slightly in reply. With a gesture he beckoned them forward and indicated they should sit down on prepared cushions.
While they were settling down, a guard appeared at the side of the Lord and quietly reported something to him. Matsuda's expression registered astonishment, but he regained control almost immediately.
"Something must have happened!" Mr Trent was very nervous. Without Anna everything seemed almost impossible.
Matsuda gave an order and a small screen door opened at the back of the hall. The Americans drew a collective sigh of relief as they saw Anna entering.
But she was quite pale and her kimono looked crumpled and dirty in places. On her arm she had tied a scarf of some kind, that added to the general impression of dishevelment. However, her face was blank and inscrutable. She knelt at the door and bowed deeply.
Lord Matsuda invited her closer with a gesture, so she rose slowly and approached the sitting Americans. She knelt and bowed again.
"We are glad you were able to join us." The Lord spoke before she had a chance to open her mouth.
"My Lord, please forgive my tardiness..."
He stopped her with a gesture. "Let us not talk about it now."
She understood that he had been told about the incident, and didn't want to discuss it now, in front of everybody.
"Hai, Matsuda-Sama." She bowed with gratitude. Even if she wanted, she wouldn't be able to describe what had happened in the garden, so after a moment she started the official part of their meeting. "Lord, my companions wish to express their gratitude for the welcome they have received in your domain."
"I am glad they find their stay here pleasurable. I trust they don't lack for anything."
"We have everything we might wish for, My Lord. And as a sign of gratitude we would like to offer you a small token of our friendship." She motioned to her companions.
Mr Bracknell got up and approached the dais, where he deposited the gifts she had advised them to prepare. He bowed and then returned to his place.
"Lord, we do not possess anything worthy of your attention, but please honour us by accepting this modest gift as a token of our gratitude for your hospitality, and in hope of our future cooperation."
The Lord nodded to one of his officials, who brought the box to him and then opened it. Matsuda looked inside and smiled, looking again at Gai-Jin. "I accept."
"ArigatÅ, My Lord." She motioned to the others and they all bowed.
For a short time they all sat in silence while their host was considering something.
"Please, convey to your companions that I would like to invite them for a small banquet, to celebrate their arrival... I believe we can manage without your services, so you can return to the inn," he added as an afterthought.
"Thank you for your concern, my Lord." She bowed very low, understanding his intention to spare her further discomfort and allowing her to tend to her wound.
She turned again to the Americans. "Lord Matsuda has just invited you to a banquet to celebrate your arrival. This is quite a big honour," she explained. "But you will have to manage without my help, I'm afraid, as I was not included in that invitation. You know what to do. Just be polite." She was still very pale and they became worried.
"Ms Mitchell, is everything all right?" asked Mr Johnston. "Has something happened?"
"I am fine." She tried to smile reassuringly. "It is just a headache..."
"You look as if somebody has assaulted you!" Morrison never played in diplomacy. "Has anybody attacked you?"
"No! Nothing like that. I just had a stumble and fell... Just a headache," she repeated to reassure them. "Remember to bow and thank for everything. You must go now. It's rude to keep him waiting."
"But..."
"You must go!" She stopped their protests, seeing a servant who waited to escort them to another hall. "I will see you tomorrow."
When they left and Anna found herself finally alone, she could drop the mask of indifference and the expression of pain returned on her face. She slowly got up and went out.
The corridor was teeming with people. They all jumped to their feet when she appeared. "My Lady." One of the men bowed low. "Your palanquin is ready."
"Thank you." She smiled with gratitude. Suddenly, it didn't seem such a bad way to travel.
It surprised her greatly that the servants followed her a few steps behind. "I am quite fine..." She tried to speak, but another man cut her off.
"We have orders to make sure you are taken to your palanquin and safely escorted to your residence."
She couldn't understand that at all. But presently she found herself outside, in the courtyard. Her palanquin was surrounded by armed soldiers.
Seeing her emerge from the building, one of them bowed. "My Lady, I am Harada Daisuke. I am the commander of your guard and I have been ordered to protect you on your way back to the inn."
"My guard?" It all seemed so strange.
"We will protect you from any danger."
"I am sure I will be quite safe..."
"These are my orders," he cut her off.
There was no point in protesting. So she allowed herself to be helped into the palanquin and with a sigh of relief she collapsed onto the cushions.
They must have been rushing, because the return trip was much shorter and she was jostled inside the box as if in a storm at sea.
When a guard helped her to get out, she was met with more surprises. She was surrounded by servants and guards, who were looking around in alert readiness and who seemed to think she was in mortal danger. After a moment she noticed a visibly concerned Reiko, running towards her.
"Ana-San! I was so worried."
"What is going on?" Anna looked around. There were at least thirty people surrounding her.
"Lord Takeda sent a word that you had been injured in an attempt on his life. The doctor is waiting inside." Reiko was rushing Anna to go in.
"But why are there so many people?"
"Lord Takeda sent some of his own servants to make sure you are comfortable. Please, let us go inside."
"But I am fine." Anna tried to protest. "It is only a graze..."
"These are Lord Takeda's orders," Reiko interrupted her.
"And everyone obeys? He is not even a local Lord!"
"Ana-San, Takeda-Sama is one of the greatest and most powerful DaimyÅs in Japan." She could hear awe mixed with pride and a pinch of fear in Reiko's voice. "We are all greatly honoured by his visit to this domain."
Anna had some trouble with first believing and then accepting all that. Why such a powerful Lord would want to spend time with her?... But she had to put these questions out of her mind, because she was led into a room where a doctor was already waiting for her.
Reiko helped her to take off the outer kimono and bare her left arm. The doctor washed the wound and examined it carefully. Afterwards he dressed and tied it with a silk bandage.
"Your wound doesn't seem to be dangerous." He shared his diagnosis. "However, I will come again later to make sure that the arrow was not poisoned and the wound is not infected."
"Poisoned?!" moaned Reiko.
"I am almost certain it wasn't poisoned," Anna said to calm her down, when the doctor left. She needed to calm everyone down. "All this commotion is quite unnecessary."
"Ana-San, you have saved the life of a great DaimyÅ!" Reiko looked at her with admiration. "You must expect gratitude."
"I would do the same for anybody else!" Anna grumbled, suddenly embarrassed.
"Perhaps. But it was Lord Takeda's life. His honour will not allow him to forget that."
"Well, if he was the target, why all this protection for me? Nobody knows me here... and it should have stayed this way."
"Why do you fight it so much?" Reiko looked at Anna with a flare of curiosity. "It is a great honour for you."
"I know, of course. But... it draws too much attention."
Her last statement seemed to be illogical to Reiko, who reasoned it would be very useful to have a Great Lord, like Takeda, in your debt. She was looking at Anna with calculating eyes, suddenly suspecting there was something more hiding behind this strange behaviour...
Anna claimed that she was tired and sent everybody away. Her arm hurt now even more, but she had expected it. The rush of danger had subsided and now her body finally registered pain. She laid down to rest, but couldn't settle down. In her mind she replayed the assassination attempt and... her conversation with Lord Takeda. Why couldn't she stop thinking about him? Why was she risking her own life in order to save his?
She was quite confident that she would have managed to shoot the assassin, if she was wearing her usual clothes and carried her guns. It was only her vanity and... appreciation in the samurai's eyes that compelled her to wear a kimono. But she wasn't going to make this mistake ever again! Although the assassin was targeting the Lord, she wasn't going to take a risk again.
And Takeda?
From the very beginning she had known that he was someone more than just a soldier. He was of course a samurai, but she would have never suspected him to be a powerful DaimyÅ... What was he doing here? And what could he want with her? A Lord of his status wasn't just polite to Gai-Jin without some reason. Was it because she was a woman?
This thought prickled.
She hated being judged by her gender. She had more intelligence and character than most men she knew. She could take care of herself in the American West and she was self-sufficient. It now made her very angry to think that he was interested in her only as an exotic woman!
She got very hot. With some difficulty she struggled out of her kimono and put on her cotton shirt and trousers. She was thirsty, but didn't want to call for a servant. She felt crowded as it was. Instead, she laid down again, desperate for some sleep. But just before she drifted away, she slipped one of her revolvers under the pillow.
Just in case...