Chapter 21 : Temple Of The Peaceful Dragon

The alleyway swung left, then right, and Jack emerged into a small

courtyard. But Akiko was nowhere to be seen.

He heard footsteps receding down a passageway off to his right. He

followed the sound until the passage opened out into a large tree-lined

courtyard. Before him was a temple with an arched roof of compact green

tiles overlapping like the scales of a snake. A set of stone steps led up to a

pair of solid wooden doors.

Jack cautiously approached the entrance. Above the door was a

wooden sign upon which the name of the temple had been carved.

He immediately recognized the last symbol as 'temple' and tried to

remember the other kanji characters Akiko had taught him. He thought the

first might be 'dragon', the second 'peace'.

The sign spelt Ryōanji.

The Temple of the Peaceful Dragon.

He tried the door, but it was locked.

Jack sat down on the steps to consider what to do next. It was then that

he noticed a tiny gap in the outer wall of the temple, on one side of the

doorway.

The wall was constructed of an alternating pattern of dark cedar

panelling and white-washed stone. One of the wooden panels was not quite

flush to the wall. Jack put an eye to the gap and was rewarded with a

glimpse of an inner garden. A series of small stepping stones led across a

mossy manicured lawn to a wooden veranda on the opposite side.

Jack pushed his fingers into the gap and the panel slid smoothly aside.

Through the concealed entrance, Jack slipped into the temple garden.

Perhaps this was where Akiko had disappeared to.

He crossed over to the veranda and followed it round to where it

bordered a long rectangular Zen garden of raked grey pebbles, in which

fifteen large black stones had been placed in a pattern of five irregular

groups. Under the pale moonlight, the garden looked like a ridge of

mountain tops thrusting through a sea of clouds.

The garden was deserted.

Through an archway on the far side, Jack spied a smaller plot of raked

pebbles, decorated with one or two shrubs but little else. At the end of a

stone pathway that bisected the garden was a simple wooden shrine. Its

shoji doors were drawn shut, but the warm halo of a candle could be seen

through the washi paper and Jack thought he heard voices coming from

within.

He stepped off the wooden walkway towards the shrine, the pebbles

crunching underfoot.

The voices stopped suddenly and the candle was extinguished.

Jack jumped back on to the walkway, silently cursing his haste to cross

the stone garden. He hurried round the edge, keeping close to the shadows.

He hid in an alcove near the entrance to the shrine and waited.

No one emerged.

After what seemed an age, Jack decided to risk a peek inside. Ever so

slowly, he approached the shoji and slid it back a touch. There was a waft of

freshly burnt incense. A statue of a Buddha sat upon a small stone pedestal

surrounded by offerings of fruit, rice and saké, but otherwise the shrine was

empty.

'Can I help you?' asked an authoritative voice.

Jack spun round, his heart in his mouth.

A monk in black and grey robes stood over him. The middle-aged man

was muscular and compact, with a shaved head and dark glinting eyes. Jack

thought about running, but there was something in this man's demeanour

that suggested it wouldn't be a good idea. The monk exuded a lethal

stillness. The tips of his fingers were held together as if in prayer, but his

hands looked as deadly as two tantō blades.

'I… was looking for a friend,' stammered Jack.

'In the middle of the night?'

'Yes… I was worried for her.'

'Is she in trouble?'

'No, but I didn't know where she was going –'

'So you were following her?'

'Yes,' replied Jack, the guilt striking him like a slap across the face.

'You should respect people's privacy, boy. If your friend needed you,

she would have asked for your company. She is clearly not here, so I think

it's time you left.'

'Yes. I'm sorry. It was a mistake…' said Jack, bowing low.

'It is only a mistake if you do it twice,' interrupted the monk, though

his expression remained unforgiving. 'Mistakes are lessons of wisdom. I

trust you will learn from this one.'

Without another word, the monk escorted Jack back to the main gate

and indicated for him to leave.

'I do not expect to see you here again.'

He then closed the double doors and Jack was left alone on the stone

steps.

Jack walked slowly back to school, contemplating his actions. The

monk was right. What business did he have spying on Akiko? She had only

ever shown him trust. When he'd asked her to keep his father's rutter

secret, she had. He, on the other hand, had not respected her privacy and

was breaking her trust by following her around. Jack hated himself for it.

Still, doubt plagued his mind. Akiko had denied going out at night, so

what was she doing that was so secret she had to lie about it?

When he returned to the Hall of Lions, he passed Akiko's room and

couldn't help peeking inside. He realized then that he must have followed

someone else to the Temple of the Peaceful Dragon.

For there Akiko was, fast asleep in her bed.