She knew now that in spite of her passion for Lightning, they couldn’t live together. She must get away from him before they disagreed again and he made good on his threat.

Excuse me, Sōsakan-sama, but you have visitors.”

Sano looked up from his desk, past the detectives gathered in his office for the morning meeting at which he issued orders for the day. In the doorway stood the manservant who’d interrupted the meeting.

“Who are they?” Sano asked, surprised because callers rarely arrived so early.

“The Council of Elders.”

“The Council of Elders!” Sano rose in amazement. He dismissed his men, then hurried to the reception room. There he found three of the five officials seated in a row before the alcove. Pallid daylight and cold air seeped through the windows; the charcoal braziers emitted whiffs of heat that dissipated at waist level. Sano knelt and bowed.

“Welcome,” he said. “This is an honor.”

The elders had never called at his house. Whenever they wanted to see him, they summoned him to their chamber at the palace. This visit had a clandestine air, underscored by the absence of Senior Elder Makino.

The man at the center of the row spoke: “I hope we are not inconveniencing you.” This was Ohgami Kaoru, in charge of the regime’s relations with the daimyo. He had white hair and pensive, youthful features.

“Not at all,” Sano said.

“How kind of you to receive us so promptly,” said the elder seated at Ohgami’s right. Uemori Yoichi was short and squat, with baggy jowls. He was the shogun’s chief military adviser.

“It’s my privilege,” Sano said, as he wondered why the council had come, particularly the third man, Kato Kinhide, who was an expert on national finance. Ohgami was Sano’s sometime ally, and Uemori had never overtly opposed him, but Kato was an outright foe. Sano turned to Kato, appraising the broad, bland face with eyes and mouth like slits in worn leather. A suspicion formed in Sano’s mind.

“We’re glad you’re available,” Kato said, “when you must be very busy with the murder investigation.”

Sano saw his suspicion confirmed. Kato would never favor Sano with his presence, unless to talk about the important topic of the moment.

After tea and cakes had been served, pipes lit, and pleasantries exchanged, Ohgami said, “Sōsakan-sama, we’ve come to bring you news.”

This surprised Sano, because information customarily flowed from him to the elders, not the other way. He understood why Ohgami might help him, but not the others. And why did they want to talk here instead of at the palace?

Ohgami carefully tapped ashes out of his pipe, forming a line on the smoking tray in front of him. He looked toward Uemori, who said, “You may be aware that Lord Matsudaira Dakuemon was in Yoshiwara the night of the murder.”

Sano nodded, because Lord Dakuemon was on his list of people to interview.

“Dakuemon is a member of a Tokugawa branch clan,” Uemori continued. He sucked greedily on his pipe, and a deep, phlegmy cough shook his loose jowls. “He’s a bit older than Mitsuyoshi was, and not quite as personable nor favored by the court.” Uemori paused, then spoke in a tone laden with significance: “But now that Mitsuyoshi is dead…”

Lord Dakuemon was a strong contender for the position of heir to the regime, Sano thought.

“Perhaps you should pay special attention to Lord Dakuemon’s movements on that night,” Uemori said.

That Uemori had handed him a new suspect alarmed as much as intrigued Sano, since this one was a Tokugawa clan member and therefore off-limits to him because of the shogun’s prohibition against investigating Lord Mitsuyoshi’s family, background, or enemies.

“You might also check into Sugita Fumio,” said Kato. He refilled his pipe, measuring in the tobacco grain by grain.

“The head of the Judicial Council?” Sano said. This was the body that ranked just below the Council of Elders and supervised various government departments. “But Sugita wasn’t in Yoshiwara that night.”

“Perhaps you missed him,” Kato said.

“Why might he be considered a suspect?” Sano hid his dismay at seeing another prominent man implicated in the murder.

“Many years ago Councilman Sugita wanted to marry a certain lady, but her family married her off to Lord Mitsuyoshi’s father.” Kato used the tongs on his smoking tray to search through the metal box of hot coals and drop precisely the right size ember into his pipe. “But Councilman Sugita still loves the lady and bears a grudge against her husband. Might his grudge not have extended to Mitsuyoshi, the offspring of her marriage?”

This story sounded far-fetched. “Is there other evidence to say that Councilman Sugita killed Lord Mitsuyoshi?” Sano turned to Uemori. “Or any that Lord Dakuemon did?”

“It’s your duty to find evidence,” Uemori said with stern reproof.

That personal interests lurked behind the men’s guise of altruism became obvious to Sano. He knew that Sugita wanted a promotion to the Council of Elders, and had begun a campaign to oust Kato and take his place. What better way for Kato to defend himself than by incriminating Sugita in treasonous murder? Sano also knew that Uemori had a longstanding feud with Lord Dakuemon’s father, who constantly lobbied the shogun to expel him from the council. Uemori wouldn’t like Dakuemon to become the shogun’s heir, because his father would gain power to ruin Uemori. That the elders wanted to enlist Sano in their war against their enemies didn’t necessarily mean he should disregard their theories; yet he foresaw difficulties in determining whether Councilman Sugita or Lord Dakuemon were involved in the murder.

“You’re aware that His Excellency has forbidden me to investigate Lord Mituyoshi’s connections,” Sano said. Of course the elders knew: They’d been present when the shogun issued the order. “How am I to use the information you’ve given me?”

A smile shifted the baggy skin of Uemori’s face. “That is for you to decide.”

Ohgami nodded. He’d added more ash to his smoking tray, in a pattern of crisscrossed lines.

A rush of anger flashed through Sano as he comprehended the elders’ intentions toward him. They knew his tendency to place justice above duty. They expected him to defy the shogun’s order and pursue Councilman Sugita and Lord Dakuemon as suspects. Whether or not either man was guilty, the scandal would ruin the reputations of both. Whether or not Sano solved the case by investigating them, he would suffer harsh punishment for his disobedience. But the elders would manipulate him without caring what happened to him.

Stifling his resentment, Sano addressed Ohgami: “Is there another suspect that you want to bring to my attention?”

“Oh, no,” Ohgami said mildly. He regarded his ashes with the air of an artist contemplating his creation. “My only purpose here is to help my colleagues help you.”

Sano’s resentment turned to indignation because he understood Ohgami’s real purpose. Ohgami was battling Senior Elder Makino for control of the Council. He must have promised his two colleagues that he would help them destroy their enemies if they allied with him. Hence, he’d brought them here, safely away from Makino and the shogun, to draw Sano into his scheme.

“Many thanks for your concern,” Sano forced himself to say.

He wasn’t surprised that his ally would exploit him so callously, for self-interest dominated all relationships in the bakufu. Yet a powerful rage clenched his hands on the empty tea bowl he held. Sano stared at his guests, sitting smugly confident before him. He’d saved them and the entire city from the Black Lotus, but they would use him as if he were a rag for cleaning up messes, then crumple him and throw him away! Hatred tinged his vision with blood.

But his habit of maintaining outward calm was so strong that the men seemed to notice nothing amiss. They took their leave, and Sano sat alone, immobilized by fury, until a sharp pain in his left palm startled him. He looked down and saw that he’d crushed the fragile porcelain tea bowl. Blood oozed from his cut hand.