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He reached the end of the corridor, slid the shoji open and stepped through, swiftly closing the door behind him.

The rectangular room he had entered was large enough for twenty tatami straw mats. Jack guessed it was a reception room of some kind. At the rear was a polished cedar dais, adorned with a single zabuton cushion, behind which was a large silk wall hanging of a white crane in flight. Otherwise, the fawn-coloured walls were completely bare.

No windows. No other doors. No escape.

Jack could hear his pursuers running down the corridor.

He was trapped.

Then Jack noticed the crane shifting slightly as if caught in a breeze. But with no windows or doors, something had to be causing it to move.

Jack hurried over to inspect the hanging more closely. There, concealed behind the silk screen, was a secret bolt-hole. Without a second thought, Jack scrambled through, pulling the wall hanging back to hide the entrance just as the shoji was jerked open.

‘So where is he?’ demanded a voice.

‘He can’t have vanished,’ replied another, this one female.

Jack held his breath. He could hear the two of them pacing the room.

‘Well, he’s not here,’ said the first voice. ‘Maybe he doubled back?’

‘I told you we should have checked that first room. Come on!’

The shoji slid shut with a soft whoosh and the voices receded down the hallway. Jack let out a relieved sigh. That had been too close. If he’d got caught, it would have been all over for him.

In the gloom of the bolt-hole, Jack noticed a narrow passage leading off to his left. With no other choice open to him, he turned and slipped along the walkway. He had no idea where he was headed, but after a couple of turns the passage lightened, a dim glow filtering through the translucent walls.

‘Where can he have gone?’ said a voice, close by his ear.

Jack froze, then realized his hidden walkway ran parallel to one of the main corridors. He could see his pursuers’ silhouettes through the paper-thin wall. Yet, as he was in shadow, they were completely oblivious to his presence, barely a knife thrust away.

‘Let’s try down here. He can’t have got far.’

Jack heard their bare feet pad away down the corridor before continuing along the passageway until, to his surprise, he hit another dead end.

Convinced the passage must lead somewhere, Jack felt around for a door. He tried to slide the wall panels back, but nothing shifted. He gave one a firm push to see if it opened that way. All of a sudden, the lower section gave way and he was catapulted into the main corridor.

‘There he is!’ came a shout.

Jack jumped to his feet as the false wall sprang back into place. He ran as fast as he could, dodging left and right down the warren of corridors. Spotting a narrow staircase, he was up the stairs in three quick bounds. As he landed on the top step, the entire staircase retracted upwards, Jack’s weight triggering the hidden fulcrum. From the corridor below, the staircase had completely disappeared into the ceiling.

Astounded as he was by the remarkable staircase, Jack had the wits to remain silent and still. Oblivious to his presence above their heads, his pursuers shot by beneath.

Walking carefully back along the steps, the staircase descended to its original position and Jack backtracked down the now deserted corridor until he found a door he hadn’t yet tried. On the other side was a long corridor with a highly polished wooden floor. It ended in a wooden gateway that had to be the way out.

With barely the length of a ship’s quarterdeck to cross, he knew he could escape the daimyo’s castle. Jack started for the exit, but as his foot went down, the floorboard warbled like a bird. He tried to lighten his movements, but however softly he trod the floor sang out with every step he took, mocking his attempted flight.

He could hear the pounding of feet coming his way.

Jack ran as the floor sang even louder.

‘Got you!’ said the guard, grabbing hold of Jack. ‘The game’s up.’

11

THE GOLDEN TEA ROOM

Jack let himself be led back down the corridor and towards the reception