Excerpt from The Concubine's Tattoo by Laura Joh Rowland, plus links to reviews, author biography & more

"Help!"

The corridor was empty. Clutching her throat, Harume staggered in the direction of voices that sounded distorted and far away. Ceiling lanterns burned as bright as suns, blinding her. She grabbed the walls for support. Through a haze of dizzy nausea, Harume saw winged black shapes pursuing her. Claws snatched at her hair. High-pitched shrieks echoed in her ears.

Demons!

Now the attendants served sake to Sano's mother and Magistrate Ueda, honoring the new allegiance between the two families, then passed cups of liquor to the assembly, which proclaimed in unison, "Omedeto gozaimasu--congratulations!"

Sano saw happy faces turned toward him and Reiko. His mother's loving gaze warmed him. Hirata passed a self-conscious hand over the black stubble on his head--shaved during their Nagasaki investigation-- and beamed. Magistrate Ueda nodded in dignified approval; the shogun grinned.

From the table before him, Sano picked up the ceremonial document and read in an unsteady voice, "We have now become united as husband and wife for all eternity. We vow to execute our marital duties faithfully and spend all the days of our lives together in never- ending trust and affection. Sano Ichiro, the twentieth day of the ninth month, Genroku year three."

Then Reiko read from her identical document. Her voice was high, clear, and melodic. This was the first time Sano had ever heard it. What would they talk about, alone together, tonight?

The attendants handed Sano and Reiko branches of saka tree with white paper strips attached, leading the couple to the alcove to make a traditional wedding offering to the gods. Small and slender, Reiko barely came up to Sano's shoulder. Her long sleeves and hem trailed on the floor. Together they bowed and laid the branches on the altar. The attendants bowed twice to the altar, then clapped their hands twice. The assembly followed suit.

"The ceremony is successfully completed," announced the priest who had performed the invocation. "Now the bride and groom can begin to build a harmonious home."

Pursued by the demons, Harume somehow found her way through the winding passages of the women's quarters, to the door leading to the main palace. There stood the castle ladies, dressed in bright, colorful kimonos, attended by servants and a few male guards. Harume's strength was fading. Wheezing and choking, she crashed to the floor.

In a loud rustle of silk garments, the crowd turned. A flurry of exclamations arose: "It's Lady Harume!" "What's wrong with her?" "There's blood all over her mouth!"

Now a shifting collage of shocked, frightened faces hovered over Harume. Ugly purple blotches obscured the familiar features of these women she knew. Noses elongated; eyes burned; fanged mouths leered. Black wings sprouted from shoulders, fanning the air. Silk garments became the lurid plumage of monster birds. Claws reached out to grab.

"Demons," Harume gasped. "Don't come any closer. No!"

Strong hands seized her. Authoritative male voices gave orders. "She's ill. Get a doctor." "Don't let her disrupt the sosakan-sama's wedding." "Take her to her room."

Panic infused strength into Harume's muscles. As she kicked and thrashed and gasped for breath, her voice burst from her in a scream of terror: "Help! Demons! Don't let them kill me!"

"She's mad. Stay back--out of the way! She's violent."

Down the corridor they carried her, trailed by the screeching, flapping horde. Harume struggled to free herself. Her captors finally set her down, pinning her arms and legs. She was trapped. The demons would rip her to shreds, then devour her.

Yet even as these fearsome thoughts flashed through Harume's mind, a more terrifying power gathered within her body. A gigantic convulsion surged through bone, muscle, and nerve; stretched sinews; drew invisible chains tight around internal organs. Harume screamed in agony as her back arched and her stiff limbs shot out. In a cacophony of shrieks, the demons let go, thrown off by the force of her involuntary movements. A second, stronger convulsion, and darkness seeped across her vision. External sensations receded; she couldn't see the demons or hear their voices. The wild, erratic pounding of her own heart filled her ears. Another convulsion. Mouth open wide, Harume couldn't draw another breath. Her final thought was of her lover: With a grief as agonizing as the pain, she knew she would never see him again in this life. Then one last gasp. One more unspoken plea:

Reproduced from the Concubine's Tattoo by Laura Joh Rowland. © 1997 by Laura Joh Rowland, used by permission of the publishers - St Martin's Press.