Free Death of a Doll Maker by I. J. Parker Page B

safe?”
    “Taste it.”
    The dumpling was the best thing Tora had ever put in his mouth. “Oh, I know I’ll go straight to hell for this. How do they manage all this killing of animals when it comes to their souls?”
    “Buddhism isn’t very popular with the Chinese. They’re mostly devout followers of Master Kung-fu-tse.”
    Tora ordered another plate of dumplings. “My master will like this. He’s not altogether convinced the Buddhist priests are right. By the way, how’s your prisoner?”
    “Mitsui’s weeping and shaking like a leaf. He’s sure he’s going to the mines for the rest of his life. Or worse, as the case may be.”
    “What’s worse than working in the mines?” Tora recalled conditions in the penal colony of Sado and shuddered.
    “You know about mines?”
    “Yes. My master was in one on Sado Island.”
    Maeda stopped chewing. “You’re pulling my leg. He’s a nobleman, isn’t he?”
    “Yes. But it’s the truth. I swear. He was pretending to be a convict to check into a murder there. He escaped. Barely.”
    Maeda shook his head in amazement as he thought about this. “He must be a very brave man. You may have a point about mines being worse than a quick death. Here it’s cheaper to lose a prisoner while rowing him across the bay to the convict boat. Being chained hand and foot hampers the swimming.”
    “That’s horrible. Is there a lot of crime in Hakata?”
    “Not so you’d know. But plenty of bodies wash up. Okata enters them as accidental drownings.”
    “What? Doesn’t a coroner look at them first? You do have a coroner?”
    “Yes, a good one. Doc Fujita’s a trained physician. That reminds me. He had a look at Mrs. Mitsui. She had twenty-four stab wounds, most to the chest and belly, but also several to the face. Some cuts were very deep. Fujita says the knife was sharp and more than the length of a hand. She bled to death.”
    Tora nodded. “It sounds either personal or the work of a madman. A husband might’ve done it in a fit of anger.”
    “I took him back to the house and made him check if anything was gone. He said their big knife is missing. It’s about the right length. He insists the killer must’ve got in and used the knife to kill her.”
    “Any signs of someone breaking in? She’d gone to bed.”
    “No, but he says she would’ve left the door unlocked for him.”
    “Careless. So what now?”
    “Hmm. If he’s innocent, I suppose we are left with a madman.”
    “Oh well, that narrows it down.” Tora looked disgusted and poured himself some more tea. It was sweetened with honey, and he thought it a very acceptable substitute for wine.
    Maeda waved a waiter over to order another dish, which appeared in the form of fluffy objects like tiny hairy pillows.
    “Golden Dragon’s Beard,” said Maeda. “Try it. It’s sweeter than honey.”
    Tora eyed the hairy objects with a shudder. “Thanks, I’m too full.”
    Maeda picked up a pillow, tearing it into sticky pieces before putting them into his mouth. He rolled his eyes and rubbed his belly. Tora decided the hairy things couldn’t be too bad and took a small bite from another pillow. The sticky strands separated and stuck to his chin.
    Maeda laughed and reached across to wipe Tora’s chin. “Tigers don’t have beards in my experience.”
    They finished the sweet with sticky fingers and faces, but the waiter brought bowls of warm water to wash off the remnants of the meal.
    Tora burped with satisfaction. “Best meal I’ve ever had. I’m beginning to like our Chinese neighbors.”
    Maeda grinned. “They say most devils live near a temple.”
    Tora sobered. “Or marry shrine priests,” he said.

8
    FATHER AND SON
    T hey located the modest house belonging to the Zhou family and asked for Suyin. Her family received Maeda with the greatest respect in a large room which served as living quarters for many Zhous of all ages. Parents, wives of sons, unmarried daughters, and grandchildren all seemed to