Free The Scarlet Kimono (Choc Lit) by Christina Courtenay Page B

She seemed less agitated.’
    Taro shook his head. ‘I don’t know. Why should a woman I’ve never met be affecting me? It doesn’t make sense. I have enough trouble with the women around here, some more than most.’
    Yanagihara drew himself up haughtily and prepared to turn away. Taro had often seen him do this whenever his visions were laughed at or scorned. ‘Wait,’ he said, holding up one hand. ‘I didn’t say I don’t believe you, it’s just that I find it unlikely, but you have been right before. I shouldn’t doubt you.’
    Yanagihara relaxed and turned back. He nodded once more. ‘We shall just have to wait and see. Try to think of other things, my lord. Go and have a bath and massage, let the serving ladies pamper you, entertain you. The world is full of women, and this particular one is still far away. I will tell you when I sense her presence coming closer.’
    ‘Thank you. Yes, I’ll take your advice.’ A relaxing bath, some food, then a visit to his wife. He would overcome her reluctance, somehow. Yes, that was what he would do. The dream had unsettled him, that was all. No woman had the power to make him miserable. He wouldn’t allow it.

Chapter Nine
     
    Plymouth, Devon, 29th June 1611
     
    The Plymouth quayside was shrouded in a fog as thick as pease pottage, which blanketed the streets and muffled all sounds. Hannah thanked God for its protection, but shivered at the eeriness of it all the same.
    There was something about fog which made her feel unreal, as if she was walking through a dream world. A nightmare even. She didn’t like it. The swirling mass came rolling in from the sea, drifting this way and that. The wisps of moisture seemed to be possessed by restless spirits, reaching out their insubstantial claws to grab at passers-by. She muttered a swift prayer to ward off any evil.
    Hannah knew Edward’s clothes fitted her tolerably well, but it felt strange to be wearing boys’ garments. Added to this, the pair of old knee-length boots, which he had recently outgrown, were slightly too big. Compared to walking with a long skirt her legs were wonderfully unrestricted, although the breeches chafed in places she wouldn’t normally notice. She ignored the discomfort and lengthened her stride to what she hoped was a more manly one.
    As Hannah rounded a corner and turned onto the main thoroughfare, a flesh and blood hand shot out of the darkness. It pulled her into the shadows before she had time to protest, and she cried out in fright. Her heart leapt into her throat and her stomach turned to ice.
    ‘Lookin’ for a good time, lad? It won’t cost you much, seein’ as how it’s prob’ly yer first time.’ The voice was silky, but the hand that held her was a hard vice clamped around her wrist, dragging her inexorably closer. ‘I like first-timers, I do …’ A cackle of laughter erupted near Hannah’s left ear and she was hauled towards a massive bosom. The overwhelming stench of some flowery scent, coupled with the woman’s own body odour and fetid breath, was almost too much for Hannah. She gagged and gasped for breath.
    ‘No, leave me be!’ Hannah panicked and fear gave her added strength so that she managed to free herself from the grasp. She took to her heels and ran without looking back, the cackling ringing in her ears. She had known being abroad at night wouldn’t be easy, but she thought that by dressing as a boy she would be spared unwanted attention. It had never occurred to her she’d be propositioned by the ladies of the night. Obviously, her disguise worked better than she had thought.
    Hannah stayed as far away from the lights of the taverns as possible and kept to the shadows where she hoped no one else would notice her. None of the shops were open and the only people about were drunken sailors wending their way from one alehouse to the next, singing raucously. Hannah made sure to keep well away from them.
    ‘Oi, there!’ The shout coming from somewhere behind