Shiraishi seemed stunned, staring at the paper in her hands. Wakabayashi bowed again, and left. Akiko had no idea how to react. How could Shiraishi have signed such an agreement? She clamped her mouth shut on the question before she could ask it, however; this wasn’t the time. But what could she say? She suddenly realised that she was likely to lose her home, again.

There was a sudden sound of cheering from outside. Shiraishi looked up sharply, her face crumpling, and then sat down, hard, on the floor, her shoulders shaking. Akiko hesitated for a moment, then ran out of the house to see what was happening.

Looking down the steps, she could see the protesters gathered at the bottom, around Wakabayashi, cheering. Naoyuki was there, and Mrs Watanabe, although she couldn’t see Mr Akiyama. Wakabayashi had obviously just told them what was happening. Akiko could feel tears pricking at her eyes as a gust of wind struck her, quite strong and laden with grit.

The wind drew the protesters’ attention, too, and they looked up, seeing her. Mrs Watanabe pointed at her, exultant.

“You’re finished! You and your kami, you’re all finished!â€ And then she laughed.

Akiko realised that she had clenched her fists, and forced herself to relax. She couldn’t help the situation by shouting at the protesters.The wind buffeted her again as she turned and went back into the house.

Shiraishi was still sitting on the floor, now crying quietly. Akiko sat down beside her, wondering what to do. Tentatively, she reached out a hand, resting it on the priest’s shoulder. The older woman stiffened for a moment, then let out a wail and leant against Akiko’s shoulder, sobbing.

Akiko had no idea how to react, and finally, tentatively, put an arm around the priest.

When Shiraishi quietened down, Akiko asked the question that had been bothering her.

“How much are we short?â€ If the lender called the loan in early, only 80% had to be repaid, and Akiko knew that they hadn’t spent all of the money. Could they actually make it up? Shiraishi sobbed a couple of times, and then managed to answer.

“About twenty million yen.â€ Akiko sucked her breath in sharply. That was a lot of money. More than they could borrow easily, that was clear.

“Can we find it?â€ Outside, the wind had picked up again, howling round the entrance.

“Twenty million yen!â€ was Shiraishi’s only response. It was true that Akiko couldn’t see any obvious way to raise that much money, certainly not in a week. It was enough to buy a reasonable-sized flat.

Akiko wasn’t willing to give up. They couldn’t give up. They couldn’t do anything about the kegare if they didn’t have a shrine, and how would Tamao react if the precincts were destroyed? They had to think of something.

“Revd Shiraishi…â€ she began.

“Leave me alone!â€ the priest shouted. Then she took a deep breath. “I’m sorry,â€ she said, more quietly, but without looking at Akiko. “I just…â€ She stopped, her shoulders heaving a couple of times, and then tried again. “I can’t…â€  Again, she couldn’t finish, but Akiko understood enough. She stood up.

“I’ll be outside if you want me, Revd Shiraishi.â€