Page 48

Chapter 48

Kazashita

I broke through the outer line of jungle that opened onto a sandy shore dotted with boulders. The docks lay some two hundred paces away.

There were no men, no sailors, no wakō .

Worse, there were no ships.

I ran to the water’s edge and cried out.

I screamed and pleaded, hoping against hope Kaneko—or someone—would hear me.

No one did.

My heart lurched into my throat. I’d only begun to guess at the feelings that arose each time I saw Kaneko. He resented me, but that shell had begun to crack as we’d spent more time together. I’d allowed myself to dream, to hope, that one day we might . . .

Something flickered in the distance. I covered my eyes with a hand and squinted against the sun’s brilliant reflection. Whatever I’d seen wasn’t the sun against waves; I was sure of it.

Far from shore, metal glinted, reflecting light from some ri away. Above the flickering, sails billowed and bloody pennants snapped.

I knew those flags well.

One was the banner of the wakō , and the other, the crystal blue of Fujita Kichi Taichou .

Kichi now knew I’d betrayed him. He knew I harbored his slave. He knew I could no longer be trusted.

And he had Kaneko again.