Tom’s senses kicked into overdrive as he and Chuck continued to press not just their lips together but their bodies. The manly touch and smell of his husband made Tom tingle all over and feel warm inside.

‘Tell Chuck the truth about yourself. You’re only postponing the inevitable,’ Tom told himself. He just couldn’t summon the strength yet. He blamed it on the Swan Song mission.

It took all Tom’s strength to avoid breaking down again because of the horrible work he had to do. At night Chuck was the release that kept him sane.

‘You’re using Chuck like a crutch. One day he won’t be there, then what will you do?’

Synopsis- Ripley makes some vital decisions as tensions rise between rival Yakuzas.

This chapter is probably the closest I have ever come to something X-rated. There is a very violent scene below but also more importantly a long scene with two people getting very intimate.

I must thank Puddin for her helping me prepare this story for publication.
 

~*~
 
Police detectives Yeijiro Mazaki and Juri Hayakawa reported in to the Yokohama Police Force Chief of Detectives, Matsusuke Morisue, after their one day visit to Izu Oshima.

“We have one lead,” Yeijiro said. “There was a person who was pretending to be a fisherman. He had a very distinctive tattoo of a tiger in a cloud with a paw outstretched as if to claw someone.”

Matsusuke listened to a description of the body art. “It sounds like a Yakuza who works for Dai Hashimoto.”

Juri nodded her head. “That is what we think also. At present, Yeijiro-san and I are trying to identify who this person is.”

“This lead is very thin,” Yeijiro admitted. “As yet we have no way of connecting them to the murder we are investigating.”

Matsusuke thought he and his detectives time was being wasted. If not for political pressure, the Reina Shimizu murder investigation would be a closed matter. “You are to keep investigating till I say otherwise, Yeijiro-san.”
 

~*~
 
The car taking Keiji Watanabe to his Lake Yanagawa home arrived there at 1 p.m. No matter how hard he tried, the elderly Oyabun could not get out of the vehicle unassisted. Joji Sato and a bodyguard had to come to his assistance.

“Welcome home, Oyabun-san,” Radek Krejci said to Keiji. Since his employer looked more frail than usual, Radek snapped his fingers. A bodyguard quickly came forward with a wheelchair for the Oyabun.

Keiji got in it without protest. The trip from Yokohama had sapped too much of his energy.

“Oyabun-san,” Rika Watanabe said as she walked alongside her employer. “Should I prepare lunch now or do you wish to rest?”

“Of course I want to eat,” Keiji said angrily as he was pushed into his home. “Begin making my meal at once.”

As Rika shuffled off to the kitchen, Radek asked a question. “Where do you want to go, Oyabun-san?”

“The bedroom.”

Radek and a bodyguard took Keiji to his bedroom. The Oyabun then asked to be left alone.

It took a couple of minutes before Keiji could summon the energy to stand on his own two feet. He was still unsteady and in need of leaning on the walls and furniture as he made the way to the bathroom.

Keiji needed to make this trip solo. In his mind a man stopped being a man when he needed assistance with his bodily functions.

As he used the bathroom, Keiji didn’t feel particularly well. He attributed this more to his lack of a good night’s sleep than to the recent diagnosis given to him by Dr. Koretomo. How could he possibly have prostate cancer when only just the night before he had gotten it up in order to have sex with Rika?

The doctor was just wrong in his diagnosis, or more generously, being cautious. Doctors would rather overtreat than undertreat their patients, because they were unsure of themselves and feared censure, unlike warriors like himself, whose hearts were courageous. Keiji had decided this long ago.

Keiji had refused Dr. Koretomo’s prescription for him to undergo chemotherapy and radiation. He still had a Yakuza to run, or to help advise after Dai Hashimoto became Oyabun. This would all be impossible if he suffered the weaknesses that came with those treatments. The doctor would realize this if he were half as smart as he pretended to be.

Someone knocked tentatively on the bathroom door, again arousing his contempt. “Leave me alone here. I need no help.””¨

“I apologize, Oyabun-san,” Said Rika Watanabe. “All I came to do is tell you that your lunch is ready.”

“Leave me, I will be out soon,” Keiji said in a foul tone of voice. Other than for obtaining something to eat and to have sexual intercourse with, women were of as little use as doctors to the elderly Oyabun.
 

~*~
 
After the attempted hit on Hiromi Sato, Akihisa Uno spent the night celebrating his ‘success’. It wasn’t till a little after 5 a.m. that he finally crashed at his sister Momoko’s apartment.

It was in the early afternoon when an old friend called Akihisa on his cell phone. His name was Iemitsu Anzai. “Did I wake you, Akihisa-san?”

“Yes, I was out late screwing,” Akihisa bragged as sat up in bed. In fact he had no girlfriend at present.

“Then you haven’t lost your touch, Akihisa-san,” Iemitsu said jovially. “I am glad life is treating you well.”

“It is, Iemitsu-san. Last night I did an important job,” Akihisa said to his friend, bragging about his skill and courage. He even went into great details about the job he did in the wee hours of that morning. “I shoot that evil Watanabe bitch Hiromi Sato two times.”

Akihisa got his first warning something may have gone wrong when Iemitsu went silent for a minute. “Are you still there, Iemitsu-san?”

“Yes, I am. Akihisa-san, did you say you shot someone named Hiromi Sato in Yokohama last night?” Iemitsu wasn’t a Yakuza but had other friends, other than Akihisa Uno, that is, who were.”¨”¨

“That is what I said,” Akihisa replied testily. He felt groggy and had a terrible hangover from his early morning celebrations.

“You should turn on the television. I would in particular watch TBS if I were you.” Right after saying this, Iemitsu suddenly hung up the phone.

Akihisa was puzzled but not troubled yet when he turned on the apartment television set.

He began to eat a late breakfast as a TBS variety show was just coming to an end.

During the commercial break, a news brief was given. Akihisa’s eyes almost popped out of his head when he heard the second local news item.

“An American woman was shot in Yokohama last night. More details at 5 p.m.”

Momoko Uno had a computer in her apartment. Akihisa immediately turned it on. As the machine warmed up, he scrambled to gather some clothing and food together for himself He placed all of it in two bags.

A problem Akihisa immediately encountered was a lack of clean male clothing. He quickly decided to pack some of his sister’s clothes. In his present state of mind it was better for him to be thought of as a pervert than to be recognized as someone wanted by the Inagawa-kai.

When the computer was finally ready, Akihisa signed onto the internet. He went straight to the Tokyo Broadcasting System’s website. His worst nightmare was confirmed, he had botched the assassination of Hiromi Sato.

Moments later, Akihisa was out of his sister’s apartment and running wildly down a Tokyo sidewalk. His state of panic was so complete all Akihisa could think about was he had to get on a subway. Where he would take that underground transportation to was still unknown.
 

~*~
 
Joji Sato was energetically working on the arrangements for Hiromi Sato and her husband to travel to Hong Kong in two days, the assignment entrusted to him by Keiji Watanabe.

First, Joji had to find a charter jet company able to fly the couple plus their belongings. This wasn’t a difficult task but did consume over an hour of Joji’s time. The next thing he did was place a phone call to Qing Li of the Golden Dragons triad.

“Hiromi Sato will be arriving in Hong Kong this coming Sunday.”

“Thank you for informing me of this.”

“You do remember the arrangements her Grandfather asked of you only this last Sunday?”

“Yes, I do. We will honor our obligation. Thank you for calling.”
 

~*~
 
Gabrielle had just finished the Dr. Wagner part of her Swan Song presentation, explaining his scientific contribution to Tom’s sex change, changing his actual DNA, right down to the cellular level, so that Tom could impersonate the real Hiromi without any fear of detection, even under close medical testing or fingerprint analysis, when Chief Inspector Sylvia Chang interrupted.

“That is just extraordinary, Agent Tanaka.” She looked over to Maurice Gao and said “Don’t you agree, Maurice?”

“It reminds me of some fiction I read on the internet.” Maurice Gao had been riveted to everything Gabrielle said.

Gabrielle smiled. “Before he got Dr. Wagner’s therapy, Agent Ripley expressed similar sentiments.”

“You may continue, Agent Tanaka,” Sylvia Chang said. Other than for the purpose of bringing lunch to her, Hong Kong police personnel were under orders not to interrupt the Chief Inspector until told otherwise, so she didn’t expect any distractions.

“Now let me describe why Operation Swan Song is being conducted, and our aims for the infiltration of the Yakuza organization,” Gabrielle said before continuing her power point presentation.
 

~*~
 
Before heading downstairs to meet Her Imperial Highness, Tom made a phone call to Ryoji Ishii. “Is the audit completed?”

“Almost, Sato-san. Yuka and I are crunching the last numbers as we speak. I am sorry to hear of what happened last night.

“I am all right, Ryoji-san. The other reason I’m calling is to ask about our Yokosuka business enterprises.”

“What is it you want to know, Sato-san?”

“I’d like to see the latest financial reports on these. I would like them saved to disk and have them brought to me at Kanagawa no later than 4 p.m. today.”

“Yes, Sato-san, I will get on that at once,” Tom said before he hung up the phone. It was time for him to go downstairs.

To greet Her Imperial Highness Nobuko Princess Tomohito of Mikasa, Tom stood in the center of the lobby along with Kanagawa’s Senior President and Vice-President of Domestic accounts. On both sides of the marble floor were other senior bank officials.

Tom didn’t feel at all nervous. He had gotten to meet President Bush and the First Lady while he was recovering at Walter Reed Army Hospital from wounds he had suffered in Iraq. The only thing bothering Tom as he waited for the Princess were the shoes he was wearing. They were tight and not suited for standing in one place for too long.

Finally the time had arrived. A middle aged man wearing thick black glasses came around the corner and bowed.

“May I present Her Imperial Highness Nobuko, Princess Tomohito of Mikasa.”

An elegantly dressed middle aged woman came around the same corner as the gentleman who had introduced her. The moment the Princess appeared, every bank employee gave their deepest bow for they were now in the company of a member of Japan’s royal family.

Tom, if he had able to look forward more than a few feet, would have seen the Princess was not alone. A few steps behind her were two assistants, a man and a woman who were about twenty years younger than Her Imperial Highness.

The introductions soon began. “Your Highness, I am Hiromi Sato, Chairperson of the Kanagawa Bank holding corporation. I am humbled and honored by your visit today.”
 

~*~
 
Ryuku Kinjoh gave Dai Hashimoto a report on the hit on Hideki Inagawa. “I have no reason to believe Hideki survived.”

“Good work, Ryuku-san.” Dai was much pleased with Ryuku’s work, not just that day but overall since her promotion to shareigashira. She was a formidable Yakuza.

“Tiger-san, others besides myself deserve credit. Tsuki and Sado-san had the most difficult jobs of all and they performed excellently. Akira-san also gave me useful input.”

“You and Akira-san make a good team,” Dai said, and Ryuku thanked him once more for the compliment, saying only that she had good teachers. “Where is Akira-san now?”

“Akira-san is resting at my advice. He worked very hard not just on today’s work but last night also when he came to the assistance of Sato-san.”

Just as he’d overlooked Hiromi Sato, Dai had been slow to appreciate the excellent Yakuza work Ryuku Kinjoh performed. Dai was very pleased by people who took the initiative to go forward with profitable plans than he was with those who waited for orders to be given before they dared to do anything.

Dai always felt women should be treated with great respect. He believed that they were God’s most beautiful creation. Dai also admired strong women, his wife for example. Mina Hashimoto had bore him five children, run the family household, met her husband’s needs, and only rarely complained.

Hiromi Sato and Ryuku Kinjoh were also strong women but of another type. The Watanabe Yakuza would be weaker without them.

“Ryuku-san, I have another important job for you to do.”

“I will do anything you order, Tiger-san.”

“The Oyabun has decided Sato-san is to leave for Hong Kong on Sunday. I wish you to supervise the packing and readying of her things.”

As hard as she tried not to, Ryuku couldn’t prevent herself from frowning. She had avenged the near hit on Hiromi-san and now she was being given household work to do. It hurt Ryuku even more that her friend would be leaving and that Dai had done nothing to prevent it.

Dai must have read Ryuku’s mind, for he addressed both her concerns. “Hiromi-san is leaving but I will do everything within my power to make it last only for a short time. Tomorrow I will speak to Oyabun-san about this and other matters.”

“The Inagawa-kai see Hiromi-san as their enemy. They know how important she is to us.”

“I totally agree, Ryuku-san,” Dai said as he nodded his large head. Then he returned the conversation to present matters. “Now I need you to see to Hiromi-san’s belongings. I ask you to do this job because I know you and she are friends. I think Hiromi-san would prefer you doing this work for her, rather than a stranger.”

Ryuku bowed to Dai. “I will get right on it.”

Dai then picked up a nearby phone and placed a call to one of the shareigashiras. The killing of Hideki Inagawa would undoubtedly lead to attacks on either the Watanabes themselves or their business interests. Like a General preparing for an enemy attack, Dai would begin the process of deploying his men in the best way possible for both defense and counter attack.
 

~*~
 
Chuck wasn’t among the Bank employees who greeted Her Imperial Highness. While that was taking place he was busy with a large currency transaction. Almost eight million dollars were sold and Japanese Yen was acquired in its place.

When it was over and his client said he was happy, Chuck was monetarily wealthier from his work but was hardly satisfied. The only reason he stayed working at Kanagawa Bank was because it let him be near to his wife and because Chuck felt a good husband should provide financially for his family’s household even if the wife was the primary breadwinner.

Even if Chuck wanted to stay home, he knew he would be far too restless just to sit around a house or apartment. Chuck always preferred to be busy by day. If he wasn’t working, he would exercise or participate in some sport. Night time or weekend hours were for family and loved ones.

Chuck liked to think that he was generous and open-handed in his daily life, always willing to help out a mate or respond cheerfully to any call upon his time. He was even generous to strangers who were in need of assistance. He considered angry people, people who would fly off the handle at the drop of a hat, to be stingy and mean by nature, and he wasn’t like that. To piss off Charles McBride, a person had to work extraordinarily hard.

Either that, or insult his wife. Like the stranger in the Macau Casino who’d asked Chuck for Hiromi’s number because he thought she was a hooker.

‘How can anyone think that about my little sports car?’ Chuck thought as he looked at a photo of his wife that was prominently placed on his desk.

Some men were just pricks was Chuck’s conclusion. Women were sex symbols and little else to them. Ladies with large breasts either natural or augmented even more so and they were also labeled as lacking in brain power by these idiots.

Hiromi Sato certainly wasn’t dumb, she was a brilliant financier. Overall, she was an extremely intelligent woman, and that was what had first attracted Chuck to her, from their very first meeting.

Chuck didn’t think of Hiromi as a sex symbol, but did think she was a beautiful woman, and a woman made more beautiful by her breast augmentation. Hiromi, in her husband’s opinion, was one of those women whose appearance was enhanced by large breasts, which made her seem more womanly, and less like a child.

After his wife’s surgery, Chuck eventually came to realize that he’d been selfish when urging Hiromi to have the breast augmentation. He had wanted a more beautiful wife but hadn’t appreciated how Hiromi might be looked at in a poorer light by others, who didn’t realize how brilliant the woman inside her head was, but could only see her big breasts.

That idiot in Macau had driven the point home, which had pissed Chuck off, but it had also made him feel angry towards himself, for asking Hiromi to do it for him, angrier for this selfish desire of his than for any minor slight he given her before that day.

Without admitting his misgivings, Chuck tried to make it up to Hiromi by giving her gifts, compliments, and being much more attentive to her needs than he already was. The gifts usually consisted of flowers, and were usually chosen spontaneously, whenever he woke up feeling that Hiromi deserved some special sign of devotion from him.

He also complimented Hiromi on her appearance, whenever it was particularly outstanding, and sometimes just when the light from a window caught the smooth curve of her cheek so perfectly, her delicate skin more precious and beautiful then any worldly treasure, the glance of her beautiful dark eyes that went right through to his heart. So he let her know how much she meant to him all the time, not only how nicely her breasts complimented the lines of her clothes, but how she looked in those clothes all the time, almost like a fashion model, and when she wore her hair up, like women do when they want to draw attention to their slim necks and expose the wonderful hollow at the base of their necks, just where the breastbone meets the clavicle, the sculptured shape of her delicate throat seemed more beautiful and precious to Chuck than the arc of a rainbow, the curve more wonderful than the wing of an angel.

Chuck knew that his wife liked these kind words for he would see her blush in response, but they were only her right, no more than she deserved. Chuck was in love with his wife and, unlike some men, didn't see her as his conquest or prize, something he had wrested from life, but a gift he hardly deserved, as if someone had hauled him out of a crowd and offered him a treasure.

There were other things he did for her. Sitting to pee was one. Hiromi didn’t like dirty toilets, and Chuck had come to realize his urine splattering while he stood up to relieve himself was something his wife intensely disliked, not because the seat might be soiled, because he always raised the seat, but because the drops might land on the floor or the walls, making them stink of urine, which he realized once, when he’d sat down to tie his shoes after urinating one morning. It only took the once.

Before going to bed at night, Chuck would massage Hiromi’s feet or back, because he realized that her shoes, which she wore to appear taller, were very uncomfortable after a few hours, and they threw her back into an arch that was hard on her. So he treated this as lovingly and as matter-of-factly as he might have done for a sports injury, part of the game that one suffered for the sake of the game, but needed immediate treatment to avoid lasting injury. He didn't think of it as a special favor at all, or begrudge the slight effort it took, but treated these therapeutic interventions as a necessary contribution to their team. This usually took place while the couple listened to music or watched television together, but he was always sensitive to the state of her back and shoulders when he put his arm around her, or held her in an embrace, and immediately volunteered his services whenever he detected any tension.

Chuck did his utmost to be a good husband to Hiromi. She deserved one because she was so wonderful, the best thing that had ever happened to him.

The only thing Chuck wished was different about Hiromi was her work. He wished she would quit working for her family. Chuck knew his wife felt neglected and abandoned as a child and as a result was driven to show them they had not been fair to her. She wanted some kind of apology and he thought this was unlikely to ever happen.

Chuck still recalled how Hiromi had gotten angry at her grandfather less than two weeks earlier. The old man wasn’t going to give Hiromi what she thought was her right once again. If Chuck was his wife, he’d tell the Watanabes to all go take a flying leap. They still didn’t appreciate her after she had made them all mounds of money.

The financial work Hiromi did for the Watanabes, which Chuck was kept in the dark from, and preferred that it was kept that way, was the only cause of tension between the husband and wife. In fact it was the only reason Chuck hadn’t proposed marriage long ago to Hiromi. He didn’t know if he could have lived the rest of his life with a mob queen.

As Chuck daydreamed away the time, he asked himself why Hiromi would want to be the head of her family. Maybe she wanted to change the Watanabes, make them legitimate business people rather than ruthless gangsters. That would be an ambitious goal if that was what Hiromi intended. Chuck could admire that ambition inside his wife but he thought it was totally unrealistic.

Now Hiromi looked set to leave the Yakuza with a not so friendly kick from Keiji Watanabe to send her on her way. Good riddance to them all. Chuck and Hiromi could lead their own lives, safe from gangsters and all the hazards that came with them.

Chuck got up from his desk and made his way to the rest room. A female currency trader named Tomoko Kido passed him in the hallway. Tomoko was due to give birth to a baby boy sometime in the last week of July.

As Chuck entered the bathroom and headed straight to a urinal, he hoped Hiromi would be like Tomoko in a year’s time. Chuck so wanted to be a father, and through their frequent heart to heart talks they had, he knew Hiromi had the same strong desire to be a parent.

Chuck knew growing a child within herself and giving birth was both hard work and painful for a mother. He would make sure Hiromi felt extra appreciated during any pregnancy.

‘2009 can be such a wonderful year for Hiromi and I,’ Chuck thought to himself as pulled the urinal handle. A life with Hiromi, with a newborn baby, or with one on the way, and living in either Hong Kong or Australia without gangsters around them had a very sweet taste to it.
 

~*~
 
When lunch was brought for Gabrielle, Sylvia Chang, and Maurice Gao, messages were also delivered. Most were for the Chief Inspector but one was addressed to Gabrielle.

“Is it anything urgent?” Maurice asked as he sipped some tea.

“No,” Gabrielle said. Inspector Yoshida wanted the FBI agent to call him but not till she was through with Chief Inspector Chang. “It isn’t.”

None of the messages for Sylvia needed her immediate attention either. She and Maurice made small talk with Gabrielle as they all ate lunch.

“Is this your first visit to Hong Kong?” Maurice asked. He often had a light airy way of talking that Gabrielle considered odd for a policeman.

“No, I have been to Hong Kong once before. A Swan Song debriefing of Agent Ripley was done here last January.”

Gabrielle didn’t know that she’d made a damaging admission until she noted how grim Sylvia Chang’s facial expression became. Maurice also looked displeased.

“An undercover law enforcement operation was conducted here in Hong Kong?”

“It was just a debriefing, Chief Inspector.”

Sylvia shook her head. “This was a serious violation of protocol. What do you think, Maurice?”

“I agree.”

“Agent Tanaka, I have many years of law enforcement experience. During that time I have learned many vital lessons. One of which is that the different branches of police must communicate with each other.”

Everyone stopped eating as Sylvia gave Gabrielle a brief lecture. The Chief Inspector wasn’t angry because Hong Kong turf had been violated, instead it was due to the possible dangers that had been overlooked by the Swan Song committee.

“Did you know of the stormy relationship the Watanabes have with a triad we call the Golden Dragons?” Sylvia asked.

“I only learned of it when Ripley mentioned it during her visit here.”

Sylvia mentioned a few other ways the Swan Song debriefing could have gone wrong. “That is why the local authorities should be contacted, officially or unofficially. I or one of my colleagues could have supplied back up or information to lessen the risks. It is done all the time.”

“I apologize for my mistakes, Chief Inspector.”

Sylvia’s stern facial expression grew softer by many degrees. She only held Gabrielle partly at fault for her superior’s failure to notify the Hong Kong police. The FBI agent was working outside her usual turf and was young. When these factors are combined, procedural mistakes are to be expected.

Gabrielle’s superiors, on the other hand, were much at fault, because they knew, or should have known, better. The Chief Inspector already knew who her FBI superior was, Grant Williamson. A Deputy Director who Sylvia had dealt with before.

Grant definitely knew better than to play tricks within the jurisdiction of another agency. As a result he had earned a very black mark in Sylvia’s book, one he could pay dearly for at a later time. Police officials are human too. They can hold grudges just like anyone else.

Sylvia, having successfully given a lesson to Gabrielle, ended her lecture. “If you should find time, there are many places to enjoy here in Hong Kong. Maurice may be able to help you.”

“Yes, ask me anything you like,” Maurice said rather gleefully.

Gabrielle looked at Maurice for a second. The Probationary Inspector came off as a very odd fish to her.

“The real Hiromi Sato had a live-in boyfriend?” Sylvia asked.

“Yes, she did. We didn’t know that before Ripley entered the field.”

“It is frankly astonishing then that she hasn’t been unmasked to the Watanabes by now.”

“The husband, who likes to be called Chuck, isn’t a Yakuza.”

“She has gotten married since the operation began?” Maurice asked in shock.

“Yes, Agent Ripley did. He had to do this.”

“Amazing, just amazing.” Maurice said merrily.

Lunch was soon over, and after a decent interval relaxing for a few moments, Gabrielle re-started her Swan Song power point briefing for Sylvia Chang and Maurice Gao.
 

~*~
 
Roger Hyde returned to the Grand Hyatt conference room at 2:30. There were five men waiting there, all looking forward to employment by Mrs. Sato, but who he had yet to interview.

Before he was able to get started, Roger’s cell phone began to ring. “Roger Hyde.”

“Can you please hold for a call from Ishimoto-san?” Asked a man with a Japanese sounding voice.

“Of course I can,” Roger replied. It was Watanabe shareigashira Hideichi Ishimoto who supervised Hiromi Sato’s bodyguards.

“Mr. Hyde, have you completed interviewing people for positions on Hiromi-san’s staff?”

Roger was immediately caught off guard by Hideichi’s question. Only the day before had the British bodyguard briefed his superior in regards to what he would be doing the next few days. “No sir, I have not.”

“You will have to complete them at once. Hiromi-san was attacked last night in Yokohama.”

Roger listened to a brief description of that morning’s events. “It is good Sato-san is safe. Do we know who made the attack?”

“It was the Inagawa-kai. The Oyabun has decided Hiromi-san will leave for Hong Kong on Sunday.”

The biggest problem Roger had with the sped up arrival of his boss was simple. Her home wasn’t furnished and her goods were either in the custody of Hong Kong customs or still back in Japan. He told all of this to Hideichi.

“You will have to make other arrangements.” Hideichi felt pleased by Hiromi Sato’s departure. He expected to get promoted to Saiko-komon status at the Watanabe Yakuza meeting scheduled for the first of August.

“I will be ready for Sato-san whatever day and time she arrives.” Roger replied confidently. He had even more work to do now, but knew how to solve most of his problems. Furniture, he could either buy or rent, even clothing could be brought in on approval, and catering services were widely available in the city, so the remaining staff hires were his only pressing problem.
 

~*~
 
By the time Ryuku Kinjoh arrived in Hiromi Sato’s apartment, the place was already incredibly busy. Men or women were at work in almost all the rooms.

Ryuku went straight to Hiromi’s bedroom. Six women, mostly wives of male Yakuza, were standing around doing nothing.

“Kinjoh-san, we were told to come here but not what to do,” One of the women said.

Ryuku looked around the bedroom. Someone clever had brought wardrobe cases, boxes, and tissue paper to the room.

‘Dai-san is right, this job is important too,’ Ryuku told herself. She knew how Hiromi-san valued her belongings. “Listen carefully, this is how we will work…..”
 

~*~
 
In the kitchen area, Juanita Perez was gathering food in order to feed her employer for the next two days. The fifty-nine-year-old Philippine born Grandmother was worried about the future. What would she and her family do if she became unemployed because of Hiromi Sato’s move? Juanita sent three-quarters of her monthly salary back to the Philippines.

Juanita suddenly remembered something important. She called out to Seamus O’Rourke. “Mrs. Sato has some dry cleaning that needs to be picked up.”

Seamus grabbed Tsuki Tono as the female Yakuza headed towards the master bedroom. “You’re a lovely bird if you don’t me saying so. How would you like to do Sato-san a small favor?”
 

~*~
 
“It is not easy now,” Princess Tomohito said to Tom in a quiet tone of voice that was laced with emotion. “The illness my husband suffers from has changed both of us.”

Tom and Her Imperial Highness were alone in his office. A short meeting to review if there was anything that needed to be improved about Kanagawa’s relationship with this particular member of the Japanese royal family had morphed into a longer informal affair, one where relationships were discussed in an intimate way only women could understand.

“Our husbands are a source of our strength. When they become weak we must draw more on ourselves and other loved ones.”

Tom hadn’t known the Princess long at all but he already felt a strong admiration for her. She was a strong woman who carried many burdens but with grace.

“My children are at University now.” Prince and Princess Tomohito had two adult daughters. Their names were Akiko and Yohko. Both Princesses were studying outside of Japan.

Tom saw how the Princess was unburdening herself to him. He felt greatly honored just to hear her inner thoughts. “I am sure you still feel your children are with you wherever you go.”

“Do you have children?”

“No, not yet, but my husband and I hope to start a family very soon. We were only married on the 31st of May.”

“Let me congratulate you. May you have many happy years together.”

“Thank you.”

Princess Tomohito and Tom spent a few minutes discussing Japanese politics. Her Imperial Highness was the granddaughter of a former Prime Minister and the younger sister of another.

Both Tom and Her Imperial Highness expressed dismay over several recent political scandals. It was only fourteen months since the Cabinet member in charge of Agriculture had committed suicide.

“I do not like saying this, but too many of our leaders today think just of themselves. They do not consider how their selfishness reflects on the Japanese people.”

Tom became even more impressed by Tomohito. She was a very wise and intelligent woman. Japan would be much better off if they made better use of women like the Princess.

“I have overstayed my time,” Princess Tomohito said apologetically after taking a glance at her watch. “Thank you for giving me some of your valuable time today.”

Tom had all the time in the world for the Princess but understood how tight important people’s schedules were. Her Imperial Highness meeting with Tom had gone almost twenty minutes past its allotted time. “Thank you, Your Highness, for allowing me to assist you and your family.”

Just as when Her Imperial Highness had arrived at Kanagawa, there was a formal farewell ceremony, so Hiromi pressed the call button on her desk phone to let her secretary know that they were about to leave. By the time they were at the door to her office, the Bank’s executives and many of its employees were gathered in the lobby as a symbolic statement of thanks for Princess Tomohito’s continued patronage.

When Tom was finished, he went back to his office. There was both Swan Song and Yakuza business waiting for him there.

Tom’s first job was to begin making copies of Kanagawa records for the Swan Song committee. While his computer was doing this, Tom made a few phone calls.

“Kimi-chan, how did everything go?” Chuck asked.

“It went excellently. The Princess and I had a good talk.”

“I am glad. When will we be going home today?”

Tom’s watch told him it was a little past five. He had work to do, but Keiji Watanabe had demanded that his granddaughter be at his home before sunset. “We will be leaving in thirty minutes.”

“I’ll come down in a few minutes. Love you, Kimi-chan.” Chuck hung up the phone.

There were many bank files to be copied. Tom required two compact discs for this Swan Song work.

Tom placed a second phone call to Watanabe shareigashira Takahiro Mureta. “What can I do for you, Sato-san?”

“I’d like to have a talk with you. Can you be at Lake Yanagawa tomorrow morning at half past eleven?”

“Yes, Sato-san, I will be there as you ask.”

Chuck showed up in Tom’s office about fifteen minutes later. He sat quietly as his wife did some last minute work.

“We can go now,” Tom said as he began shutting down his computer. He also put the two compact discs in a bag. “Can you carry this for me?”

“Of course, Kimi-chan,” Chuck said as he took the bag.

On the elevator ride downstairs, Chuck made mention of something. “Have you heard anything about us leaving for Hong Kong on Sunday?

””¨”¨Tom was caught by surprise. “No, I have not.”

Chuck told Tom about a phone call he made. “I spoke to Juanita to ask if a book I’m reading could be brought to me. She said it was already packed for our Sunday trip.”

Operation Swan Song had been altered once again. Tom would offer no resistance. Keiji Watanabe had enough reason to be angry with his granddaughter.

‘I will be giving the committee updated Watanabe and Kanagawa files plus my inside knowledge. If that doesn’t please them, tough shit.’ Tom thought to himself in a moment of inner toughness.

In fact Tom was in a contemplative mood for some reason. Operation Swan Song was coming to an end but had it and he accomplished their mission? Just how much was going to be changed as a result of Agent Ripley’s work?

When Tom and Chuck arrived downstairs, they were greeted by members of Hiromi Sato’s protective detail. Bodyguard Yuri was back at his job.

“Come this way, Boss. We have the limousine for your trip to Yanagawa.” The Russian bodyguard had two bandages on his face as a result of Ana Ramierez’s shooting. One was over his right eye and one under it.

Tom had been prepared to drive himself and Chuck to Keiji Watanabe’s home, but he preferred the limousine now. He was beginning to feel tired from a lack of sleep.

“How are you feeling, Yuri Alexanderovich?” She used his familiar patronymic as a gesture of respect, because she knew that he’d come very close to death in her service, an effort in which another brave woman had died on her behalf.

Yuri was still partly deaf from the shooting. Tom had to ask his question two times before Yuri understood it. “I’m all right, Sato-san, and thank you for asking. There still is a ringing in my ears.”

Tom spoke to Kimo as Chuck climbed in the limo. “Kimo, I want you to drive. You did a very good job last night.”
Ӭ
“Thank you, Boss.”

“Boss, the Oyabun is requesting that you call him right away,” Yuri said before he closed the limo door behind Tom.

Tom called Keiji Watanabe only moments after he got settled in the limo. “Grandfather, I am coming to you right now. Charles and I are just leaving the bank.”

“That is good, granddaughter. I am feeling a little tired tonight. It will please me if you and Charles would stay at Goro’s home rather than the guest house.”

The Mt. Fuji area home belonging to the late Goro Watanabe was only fifteen kilometers from the Keiji Watanabe estate. It made little difference to Tom where he stayed the next few nights but he had to admit he preferred the Goro option. That particular house was much more modern and there were more things to do there.

“Yes, Grandfather, I will do that. We will not be having dinner with you tonight then?”

“No, you will not. I would like you and Charles to come over tomorrow afternoon at five.”

As they talked, Tom formed a definite opinion. Keiji Watanabe would use dinner on Saturday evening to announce his granddaughter’s early departure for Hong Kong. Tom could only speculate on why Hiromi Sato’s grandfather had made this abrupt change of plans.

“We will be there as you ask, Grandfather.”

Tom fell asleep shortly after he ended his phone conversation with Keiji. Chuck was exhausted also, but instead of sleeping he let his wife use his chest as her pillow. The Australian spent most of the trip in silence with his left arm gently wrapped around Tom.

When Tom got out of the limousine at Goro’s old home, he felt slightly invigorated. Juanita was waiting as her employer entered the house. She said dinner would be served in ten minutes.

“Kimi-chan, what do you want us to do after dinner?” Chuck asked.

“I don’t know. Maybe we will watch some television,” Tom said before setting off for a bathroom. He wanted to freshen up and go pee before sitting down for dinner.
 

~*~
 
“Agent Tanaka, that was a most interesting briefing,” Sylvia Chang said to Gabrielle just after the FBI agent ended her Swan Song power point presentation.

“Thank you, Chief Inspector. Do you or Maurice have any more questions?”

“After we assist you in retrieving Ripley, will she be taken to Japan or the United States?”

“To the United States. Ripley will be given Dr. Wagner’s formula right away.”

“It will make her male again?”

“Yes, just as long as Ripley has not become pregnant.”

Sylvia Chang spoke again. “Am I correct in assuming Ripley will begin their debriefing after their treatment is completed?”

“Actually we plan to begin debriefing her on the flight to the United States,” Gabrielle explained. “A patient takes at most forty-eight hours to complete their recovery from Dr. Wagner’s formula. The debriefing will start again as soon as Ripley is up to it.”

Maurice had a couple of more questions. Gabrielle answered all of them, finally bringing the briefing to a close at just a few minutes after six. It had been a long day.

“Chief Inspector, I been asked by Director Williamson to tell you that if you or any member of the Hong Kong police should have questions for Ripley, to please submit them to me. The Director promises they will be asked.”

Sylvia smiled before expressing her gratitude. “Thank you, Agent Tanaka. That will be greatly appreciated. We may want to ask Ripley some triad and narcotics-related questions.”

Gabrielle was out of Chief Inspector Chang’s office a few minutes later. Maurice was with her. He was going to give the FBI agent a tour of Hong Kong’s main police headquarters.

“Before we get started, why don’t you read the message you received earlier,” Maurice said once they were out in the hallway.

Gabrielle opened the envelope containing Inspector Yoshida’s message. She almost immediately went pale.

“Is everything all right?” Maurice asked.

“There was an attempt on Ripley’s life last night.”

Maurice immediately ushered Gabrielle to somewhere more private. He had the FBI agent sit down because she looked so disturbed.

“That is just horrendous.”

Gabrielle again noted oddness in Maurice’s way of talking. ‘What is it with this guy? I’m not in the market for a boyfriend, and besides he’s engaged.’

“There will be a Swan Song conference call at eleven this evening. Can I do that here?”

Maurice nodded his head. “We have a special area for such calls. I will make sure it is available for you.””¨

“Thank you.”

“Gabrielle, would you like me to give you the tour now or later?”

“I would prefer it now. After we are done, I would like to go back to my hotel to rest for a bit before the conference call.”
 

~*~
 
After six hours of frantic circling on the Tokyo Subway system, Akihisa Uno finally emerged above ground. He was now in Tokyo’s Nakano ward.

Since leaving his sister’s apartment, Akihisa had spent almost all his time trying to find a safe place of refuge. Using his cell phone and other personal devices, he called or texted every friend he had. Even remote acquaintances who he hadn’t talked to in some time weren’t spared.

Most of these people called had hung up on Akihisa. He wasn’t very well liked. A couple of girlfriends, real or imagined, told Akihisa to go screw himself.

Two male friends were very eager to help Akihisa when they spoke to him. He hung up on these people. It could be a Inagawa-kai setup.

A few acquaintances were unavailable. In these cases, Akihisa left a vague message asking for them to call back.

One friend named Suezo Amori was incredibly blunt when he spoke to Akihisa. “I can not talk to you, Akihisa-san. The Inagawas have put a large bounty out for your head.”

It was around 6:30 when Akihisa found someone who was both willing to help and was a person he could trust. Her name was Tamiyo, or Tammy, Bunya. She and Akihisa had dated for a couple of weeks a few years ago.

“Akihisa-san, you can come stay with me for one night,” Tammy said.

“Thank you. You don’t know how much this means to me.”

“You will have to be here by 7:30. I have plans for the evening.”

“I may not be there by 7:30.”

“Then I suggest you stay somewhere else,” Tammy said as she nervously twirled a strand of her hair.

Tammy thought of Akihisa more as some lost puppy than an ex-boyfriend of hers. The guy was cute but not housebroken. She would give him temporary shelter but not become his owner.

“I will get there by 7:30. Do not leave.”

The closest a Tokyo subway came to Tammy’s apartment were the six-car trains of the Marunouchi Line which stopped at the Nakano-Fujimichō Station. That station was little less than a mile walk from where Tamiyo Bunya lived.

All of Akihisa’s senses went on high alert the moment he emerged above ground. He had felt safer riding the subways. Now as he joined the masses of Japanese people returning home from a day of work, Akihisa felt more scared than at any time since leaving his sister’s apartment.

Akihisa walked at a hurried pace to Tamiyo’s apartment. Running was out of the question. There were too many people around.

When he got to the apartment house, Akihisa staked it out for about two minutes. When he was sure no one suspicious was around, he quickly darted across the street and into the building.

Tamiyo Bunya lived in apartment 2B. She answered Akihisa’s knock in less than thirty seconds. “Good. You’re here, Akihisa-san. I was about to leave.”

Akihisa pushed his way into the apartment. This wasn’t a time for courtesy. “Is anyone else living here?”

“No, we are alone,” Tammy growled back. She thought to herself, ‘Akihisa-san, you are nothing but trouble. Maybe I should kick you out now.’

Akihisa looked around the apartment. It was a one-bedroom affair. Tamiyo kept it very neat, just like her personal appearance.

Tammy pointed to the couch. “You will sleep there, Akihisa-san, but only for tonight. Tomorrow you will have to find somewhere else to stay. Now I must leave.”

“Thank you, Tamiyo-san,” Akihisa then watched his ex-girlfriend leave the apartment.
 

~*~
 
“Will you be here later?” Gabrielle asked Maurice as they began to leave the police station.

“No, Gabrielle, I will not. Sergeant Lee is expecting you. He will get you set up for your conference call later.”
Ӭ
“Thank you, Maurice. I appreciate your help,” Gabrielle said as she and Maurice exited the police station. A police car was waiting to take Gabrielle back to the South Pacific.

As Gabrielle and Maurice exited the police station, Deming ‘Three Finger’ Choy was entering it. He was a small-time thief and often worked as an informant for the Hong Kong police.

Deming, who always had an interest in sports, made particular note of Gabrielle. He still remembered watching the figure skater Kristi Yamaguchi win an Olympic Gold medal. Deming noted the resemblance of Gabrielle to the famous athlete.

People go in and out of the Hong Kong police department all the time. Very few of them resemble famous people. Deming wouldn’t soon forget who he saw that day.
 

~*~
 
It was a quiet summer night in Yokohama’s Isogo-ku ward. Most businesses were closed for the evening. Pedestrian and vehicular traffic were light.

That gave the attack the Inagawas had planned a high chance of success. A new shopping center was the target. Its buildings were near completion and some merchants had begun the process of moving in.

At a few minutes before 10 p.m., a car pulled up along the shopping center’s main entrance. A man climbed out of its back seat, looked both ways, then threw an incendiary device through a window facing the street. Ten seconds after the car drove away, an explosion occurred.

With no one in the area to call for help, the fire had plenty of time to grow out of control. The Yokohama Fire Department when it did arrive, found almost all of the shopping center consumed by flames.

The Inagawa-kai had chosen the shopping center because it was a business interest of the Watanabes. The two Yakuzas were starting to go at it tit for tat. Human blood was likely to be shed the moment living targets could be found by both sides.
 

~*~
 
“Kimi-chan,” Chuck said after letting out a big yawn. “I feel too tired to stay up any longer. I’m going to bed now.”

Tom and Chuck were seated next to one another on a living room couch. “Yes, I am very tired also.”

Tom and Chuck shared one last kiss before getting off the couch and heading to the bedroom. While her husband was in the bathroom, Tom placed a quick phone call.

“We do not want to be disturbed before tomorrow morning at seven.”

“I will see to that, Sato-san. Have a good night’s sleep,” Simon Dawes said.

After she hung up the phone, Tom took all his clothes off. He then lay down in bed and began the wait for her husband. Chuck was brushing his teeth before going to bed.

Chuck arrived in the bedroom only wearing a pair of boxer shorts. He smiled broadly when he saw his wife naked in bed.

Tom smiled back at his handsome husband. As he did, His eyes were drawn to the prominent bulge that was forming in Chuck’s boxer shorts.

“Does your skin still hurt?” Tom asked as Chuck walked over to their bed.

“No, Kimi-chan, it is much better now.” Chuck then slid took off his boxer shorts and climbed into bed beside his wife.

Chuck rolled over and took Tom gently into a loving embrace. The couple immediately began to kiss.

Tom’s senses kicked into overdrive as he and Chuck continued to press not just their lips together but their bodies. The manly touch and smell of his husband made Tom tingle all over and feel warm inside.

‘Tell Chuck the truth about yourself. You’re only postponing the inevitable,’ Tom told himself. He just couldn’t summon the strength yet. He blamed it on the Swan Song mission.

It took all Tom’s strength to avoid breaking down again because of the horrible work he had to do. At night Chuck was the release that kept him sane.

‘You’re using Chuck like a crutch. One day he won’t be there, then what will you do?’

When they had kissed sufficiently enough, Tom sank his head into Chuck’s chest as the Australian gently alternated between massaging her neck and running his fingers through his wife’s hair. “I love you so much, Kimi-chan. Would you like me to make love to you?”

‘Listen, he wants you,’ Tom told himself as he continued to fill his nostrils with Chuck’s manly smell. He softly said. “Yes, Chuck. Let's make love.”

After Chuck released him from his embrace, Tom rolled onto his back. He spread his legs wide, opening himself to his husband, and waited eagerly for Chuck to get on top of him so he could wrap his legs around him as he made love to him.

Chuck got on his hands and knees and crawled up the bed between Tom’s legs, but instead of immediately penetrating his wife with his erect penis, he bent his face down and began to alternate between licking and sucking Tom’s breasts.

Tom should have expected this foreplay from Chuck. He had done it many times before. In no way was Tom complaining. After all, his husband was just showing in another way how much he loved him, but at the same time Tom wanted him inside his body.

“I love you too,” Tom softly muttered as Chuck teased her left nipple with his tongue. The tall handsome Australian man switched to the other nipple a few seconds later.

‘I don’t deserve such a loving man and who is also a good friend,’ Tom said to himself, ashamed. He’d realized that he was being a coward because of how he much he valued his relationship with Chuck.

Maybe in the beginning days of Swan Song, Tom had an excuse. He didn’t know what Chuck’s reaction would be. That couldn’t be said now. Chuck would without a doubt be angry, but even in that mental state he wouldn’t hurt a fly.

Chuck stopped sucking on Tom’s nipple and instead looked him in the eye. “Is everything all right, Kimi-chan?”

‘There, Tom, that’s the type of man you’re married to. He is a caring person who thinks of your feelings all the time. Chuck knows when you’re bothered by something big or small. How many men in his position now would be like that, attentive to your slightest need when many men would be grunting away by now, and then roll over and go to sleep?’ Tom, from his unique experience of having intercourse as both genders, knew that he’d rarely thought of anything but his own needs when making love to a woman.

Tom knew Chuck deserved someone far better than himself. He’d have to hurt his husband, and in process hurt himself. At least Tom deserved any suffering from his deceit but Chuck deserved something far better.

‘I can’t tell Chuck till we’re both out of harm’s way,’ Tom told himself. The Watanabe power struggle and the Yakuza war breaking out around them could endanger Chuck if he were suddenly to bolt. At least Tom could protect the two of them for the time being.

Tom didn’t think he was a total coward then. He would put his own life on the line to save Chuck. ‘Chuck is the only pure person in this whole stinking Swan Song business.’

After giving Chuck a warm smile, Tom said. “I am all right. Let me take you for a ride.”

He didn’t ask Chuck to make love to him. Tom wanted to make love to Chuck to alleviate the feelings of guilt he had.

Chuck was all too happy to oblige his wife. He shifted positions slightly as Tom made sure he had his legs spread as wide as possible. A few moments later he felt the familiar presence of Chuck’s penis inside him.

The next step was for Chuck to put his arms under his wife. He always cradled Tom as he made love to her.

When they made love using the missionary position, which was almost always, Tom had to crane his neck to look Chuck in the face. The body of Hiromi Sato measured 5’4 in height which is slightly tall for a Japanese woman. However Chuck was a strapping model of 6’4 masculinity.

Tom preferred to look his husband in the eyes during lovemaking, even kiss him if possible, but had no problem with instead finding his face looking into Chuck’s manly chest. Its touch to his skin was exhilirating.

Chuck bent down and kissed Tom and he kissed him back. No words were spoken. A twinkle in Chuck’s blue eyes was like a question. ‘Are you ready?’ Tom always smiled in reply. Which meant: ‘Yes, give me all you got.’

All Chuck ‘got’ came slow rather than fast, and it was his choice. He took pleasure in giving pleasure to his wife. That meant trying very hard to get Tom sexually excited. This particular night it would take a while. Chuck however, had a mountain of patience.

Chuck’s penis didn’t thrust inside his wife’s vagina but moved in small steps. Tom, not a passive lover at all, would press her husband’s body in towards her. He did this by gripping her husband’s buttocks and grinding herself up against him.

The best description of Chuck McBride’s lovemaking is delicate but passionate. He was gentle with his much smaller wife. Tom at the same time felt the passion inside his husband. It was of a contagious variety, even in moments of despair, it made Tom feel adoring towards Chuck.

“I love you,” Tom whispered to her husband. Her vaginal muscles were by now clutching her husband’s penis desperately.

Chuck didn’t respond, except to smile. He was in his little sports car, had her engine running, and was happy they were both enjoying the ride.

“You are too good to me,” Tom said. This time the words began as a whisper but by the last syllable came out like a moan. Tom was sexually excited and Chuck knew it. His lovemaking remained gentle but picked up a notch.

Tom was really feeling warm inside now. He also knew Chuck was getting ready to explode. If the timing was right, they would go together. To accomplish this, Tom pressed her husband as hard against himself as he could.

‘Why would I ever want to be a man again when I have the perfect lover and husband?’ Tom thought to himself between peaks of passion that caused loud moans to escape from his mouth.

The time had come, Chuck’s penis was very firm now, and Tom could tell that he was holding himself back, waiting for her. Tom was ready too. He had begun to breathe more rapidly and Chuck’s neck had become very red as his tension built up, which excited Tom even more, seeing the effect he had on his husband.

Chuck’s penis became extremely rigid and began to spasm. At the same moment, Tom felt incredible tension building within him particularly in his pelvis region. His breathing was growing increasingly rapid.

Both husband and wife began to climax within a split second of each other. Chuck was shooting sperm into his wife as a wave of pleasure engulfed Tom and all the built up tension inside him was released. His back arched, his vaginal muscles spasmed and lastly his breathing became so fast he was almost gasping.

It was over almost as fast as it began. Tom’s breathing decreased and his body slowly went slack. Chuck was still there and he had a very big smile on his face.

“You like it, Kimi-chan?”

Tom responded by pulling Chuck’s lips to his own till they met in a passionate kiss.

Chuck’s penis began to withdraw not long after the kiss ended. He stayed on top of his wife for a short time, then rolled himself off of Tom.

“Can you get a pillow for me, please?” Tom asked.

Chuck handed his wife one of the spare pillows. Tom placed it under his buttocks at the same time he bent his knees upward.

“I was told this can improve my chances of getting pregnant.”

Chuck smiled. “That’s good, Kimi-chan. I so want us to be parents. If you don’t mind, I have to use the bathroom for a minute.”

“Go ahead, I will lay like this for at least ten minutes.”

Chuck then kissed Tom before climbing out of bed.

Tom did a great deal of thinking in the short time Chuck was gone. He had made a decision and it was a big one. Tom had to come clean to herself before she could come clean to Chuck, Gabrielle, and her parents and sisters.

‘You’re no more a man now than these Yazuka around you are all peace loving humanitarians. Accept it, you’re a woman in mind, body, and spirit,’ Tom told herself.

The first step in the acceptance of her new gender, was for Tom to stop thinking of himself as a man. That meant both male pronouns and the name Tom didn’t fit her anymore. She was a woman, a her, a female, et cetera, ad infinitum.

Tom wasn’t a Tom anymore. She was, if with reservations, Hiromi Sato. A name she rather not be connected to but she had a mission to finish. Hiromi would have to do for now. A new female name would be selected later.

‘The first step is to accept who you are. My name is Hiromi, I am a married woman. I am an undercover agent codenamed Ripley. Everyday life will be much easier for me now.’

Chuck was out of the bathroom. As he walked back over to the bed, Hiromi didn’t take her off eyes off her husband’s now flaccid penis. Just looking at it made her feel warm inside.

‘I don’t think like a man anymore,’ Hiromi thought as Chuck climbed back into bed.

“Are you tired, Kimi-chan?” Chuck asked before bending over to kiss his wife.

“Yes, but I want to finish what I am doing now. I’m trying to make us a baby, now that you’ve given me one of the necessary ingredients.” She smiled up at him, desperate for his love, for his baby growing inside her, her empty womb filled to the brim with their child.

Chuck smiled at his wife as a sign of approval, and began talking about his day at work. Hiromi listened but her mind was thinking of other things.

Hiromi certainly didn’t think like a man any more. The reasons for this admission ran much deeper than the attraction she felt for Chuck and the desires and dreams he stirred in his wife.

Women are often called emotion-driven creatures. But all people, male and female alike, are driven by their emotions. Their emotions color how they see the world and are the basis for any decision making.

The difference between men and women was what emotions were more dominant for each. Men will get outwardly angry easier than women and are more assertive. Women like intimacy and quiet communication.

Women are quicker to sense danger. This was a result of their capacity to reproduce. As a mother, or potential mother, a woman will first think of how some action will affect the precious thing known as life.

This foundation of womanhood was now at the essence of the person who had once was known as Tom Slater. Hiromi didn’t know if these changes could be reversed. If they couldn’t, life as a person everyone saw as a man would have been a struggle.

Hiromi liked the changes in her. Maybe because they made her like the one person she had admired and loved the most. It was her mother, Midori Slater. Maybe her ‘conversion’ was started back in the early Swan Song days when she used her mother’s maiden name as an alias.

All Hiromi knew was that she would now be content in living life like her mother had. That included the wish to have children.

As if Chuck knew what Hiromi was thinking of, he began speaking to his wife’s abdomen in a very deep voice. “Little tadpoles hear this – One of you hurry up and get to that egg!”

Hiromi laughed her head off. As she thought of how truly blessed she was to be married to this man, Hiromi now wished young Tom Slater had listened more attentively in sex education classes to the female mechanics of conception.

Chuck wanted a baby but would he feel the same way when Hiromi told him the truth? Was Hiromi using Chuck just to ensure that her gender change was permanent?

The answer to the first question was a tossup, although she hoped that he would stay with her, even after she admitted everything. As for the second, the answer was a big no. Hiromi had felt her initial urge to become a mother the previous January when visiting Australia, when she’d first felt the ache of her empty womb yearning to be filled. She didn’t need a baby to stay female. Hiromi just had to say no when the offer was made to give her the DNA treatment.

An attentive Chuck noticed Hiromi hadn’t spoken a word in at least a minute. “Kimi-chan, you seem preoccupied.”

“I’m sorry,” Hiromi said as she took Chuck’s hand. “A lot has happened the last few days.”

“Yes and I’m glad you are safe.”

Hiromi had so much on her mind, she had forgotten to tell Chuck about the phone call she got from Dr. Koretomo. “Grandfather has prostate cancer.”

Chuck began asking his wife questions. Hiromi answered these to fill her husband in on Keiji Watanabe’s condition.

“He won’t undergo treatment?”

“The doctor said Grandfather refused his plan of chemo and radiation,” Tom said as she straightened up in bed. The pillow under her butt was now a thing of the past.

“Have you talked to your Grandfather about it?” Chuck asked as he embraced his wife. His penis almost immediately sprung back to life and Hiromi liked that.

“Do you mind if I take a quick shower?” Hiromi had become a little sweaty from her lovemaking with Chuck. She wanted to become fresh again before bedtime.

“Of course Kimi-chan, I do not mind. Would you like me to wash your back?”

“Yes, please.”

Chuck was in the shower with his wife a couple of minutes later. In order not to get her hair wet before bedtime, Hiromi had put a shower cap on.

“Did you talk to your Grandfather yet about what you learned?”

“No, but he is unlikely to listen to me.”

“I am so sorry, Kimi-chan,” Chuck said as he began to embrace Hiromi in the shower.
 

~*~
 
Grant began the latest Swan Song meeting with a question. “Inspector, what have we learned about last night’s attack?”

Inspector Yoshida recalled the events of the last twenty-four hours. “The Yakuza known as the Inagawa-kai were behind the hit on Agent Ripley.”

“Why would they want Hiromi Sato eliminated?” Grant asked.

“The Inagawas and Watanabes have always had a tense relationship,” Inspector Yoshida said before going on to elaborate further.

“Do we know where Ripley is now?” Grant asked.

As he was closer to the situation, Inspector Yoshida did most of the talking with Grant. “No, we don’t. She was seen today at Kanagawa Bank. A member of the Royal Family paid the bank a visit this afternoon.”

Gabrielle pitched her old idea of retrieving Tom Slater and Chuck McBride under the cover of her meeting them for lunch. Grant didn’t veto the idea, but shelved it for the time being. The FBI Deputy Director said he may consider it if more developments came forth.

“Agent Tanaka, how did your briefing of Inspector Chang go today?”

“It went well, sir. Tomorrow is when we will begin preparing for Agent Ripley’s pickup,” Gabrielle said as she once again had to hide how worried she was for Tom Slater right then.

“Keep me informed. This meeting is adjourned.”
 

~*~
 
Akihisa was woken by the sound of his cell phone. As he was unfamiliar with Tamiyo’s apartment, he had to fumble about for half a minute till he found it. “Hello.”

“It is a long time since we last spoke, Akihisa-san.”

It took a few seconds for Akihisa to recognize the voice. The caller was named Kenichi Nagai. The two men had been friends since their junior high school days.

“What is it, one year?” Akihisa asked.

“More or less. What has been keeping you, Akihisa-san, that you have no time for me? Is it a pretty girl?”

Akihisa, in personal danger or not, was prone to bragging and exaggeration. “I have two of them right now.”

Kenichi roared in laughter. “Now I know why you took so long picking up your cellphone.”

Akihisa and Kenichi reminisced for a few minutes before getting down to business. “You are in need of some help, Akihisa-san?”

“Yes, I am.”

“What is it you are asking for?”

Akihisa was desperate and completely sober. This caused him to let down his defenses. “I need help in getting away from Tokyo.”

“I think I can help you, Akihisa-san. When is it you wish to depart?”

“Today,” Akihisa said as he rubbed his eyes. “Can you loan me one or two sets of clothes? I have none with me now.”

“That will not be a problem. Akihisa-san, do you remember where my Uncle has his business?”

“Yes, I do.”

“Meet me in the shed behind my Uncle’s business at 8:30 this morning. You can make that appointment?”

“Yes, I will be there.”
 

~*~
 
Hiromi and Chuck rose from bed at 7 a.m. The first thing they did was exercise and only after that sit down for breakfast. The ever efficient Juanita had food on the table for her employer within minutes.

After she was finished eating, Hiromi made a phone call. “Grandfather, how are you feeling this morning?”

“I am feeling a little bit better.”

“That is good.”

Keiji was sitting up in bed as he talked to Hiromi. “Granddaughter, I would still like you and Chuck to join me at 5 p.m.”

“Grandfather, we will be there as you ask.”

After Hiromi was through talking to her father, she powered up a desktop computer in the house. Chuck came over to inquire about what his wife was doing.

“I just want to check some financial records I brought from work yesterday. Do you mind?”

Chuck bent down and kissed his wife. “No Kimi-chan, not at all. I’m going to put my bathing trunks on. When you’re done, would you like to go for a swim together?

“Yes, I would like that.”
 

~*~
 
Gabrielle hadn’t slept very well at all on Friday evening. The attempt on Tom Slater’s life had made her very upset.

The thunderstorm that came through Hong Kong on Saturday morning didn’t help with Gabrielle’s attempt to get some rest. One lightning strike at 5:37 that morning was so close to the South Pacific that it rattled windows in the hotel.

The thunderstorm did not dissipate for almost another thirty minutes. As hard as she tried, Gabrielle couldn’t fall back to sleep.

Gabrielle decided to use her early and involuntary wakeup call to satisfy her curiosity about Tom and the life he was leading. She got herself dressed and had room service delivered to her by 7 a.m. After she was through eating, Gabrielle went downstairs and had a hotel employee hail a taxi for her.

The taxi took Gabrielle to Victoria Peak. More specifically, to the Hong Kong home of Hiromi Sato. People were at work there, so Gabrielle didn’t have the taxi linger too long in the area.

“I’m sorry, this is not my friend’s home,” Gabrielle told the taxi driver. “Can you take me to the Botanical Gardens next?”

The driver complied with Gabrielle’s request even though he thought the woman was nuts. Hong Kong’s Botanical Gardens didn’t open till 10 a.m.

Gabrielle wasn’t going to the Gardens. She just wanted to be dropped off on Arbuthnot street which ends where the park is located. The Hong Kong branch of Kanagawa Bank was located on Arbuthnot.

The taxi was almost to the Gardens when Gabrielle’s cellphone began to ring. “Tanaka.”

Maurice Gao said, “Good morning, Gabrielle,”

She recognized his distinctive voice instantly. “Hi Maurice, how are you?”

“I’m well, thank you. Gabrielle, may I ask where you are now? I’m at the South Pacific and I was just told you left a short time ago.”

Gabrielle looked at her watch. It wasn’t even 8:30 and Maurice said he wouldn’t be picking her up till 10:00. “I’m down in Central. I’m just touring around.”

“If you want, Gabrielle, I can help do that for you also. Would you like me to come to where you are now?”

The taxi was just pulling up outside the Gardens when Gabrielle gave her reply. “No, Maurice, I’ll come back to the hotel. Driver, can you please take me back to the South Pacific?”

Without complaint, the driver did as Gabrielle asked. He enjoyed making easy money by driving tourists in circles.
 

~*~
 
Akihisa Uno was late getting to the business run by Kenichi Nagai’s Uncle. It was closer to 9 a.m. than 8:30 a.m when Akihisa arrived there.

The Nagai Brothers kennel was off a side street in Ebisu, which is in Tokyo’s Shibuya ward. Few people were stirring and no cars passed Akihisa as he walked towards the business.

Akihisa was still wearing the clothes he had on the night of the attack on Hiromi Sato. He had tried to put on the clothes belonging to his sister. Even though the siblings were of similar builds, he could not get the pants on. All thoughts of using a female disguise were immediately discarded.

A tall metal fence surrounded the back yard of the kennel. There was a direct entrance from the street and the gate was not locked. Akihisa looked around the neighborhood before going inside.

Akihisa carefully surveyed the back yard. It measured about fifteen feet wide by thirty to forty feet long. A three-story building, home to the kennel and some other business was at one end. The building had a set of small downward stairs that accessed a basement. On both sides of the door were some hatches.

At the other end of the yard was the metal shed Akihisa had been told to hide in. Alongside the fences were some maintenance tools, a yard broom, a broad shovel, and a metal drum being used as a garbage can.

Directly opposite the gate and against the fence on the other side of the yard, were some wired cages. Akihisa counted seven dogs living in these.

From the moment he entered the yard, these dogs began to bark and growl at Akihisa. Some of the animals were both large and aggressive. Since they were all caged, Akihisa paid them little heed as he walked to the shed at the opposite end of the yard.

Nothing appeared amiss to Akihisa till he got to the shed. No one looked to be around. He began calling out for his friend.

“Kenichi, Kenichi, are you here?” Akihisa got no reply. So he decided to enter the shed, think that his friend must have been delayed, and it would be better not to be seen by anyone passing by.

The shed was small, dark and unoccupied. Akihisa stepped into it nevertheless, wondering if his friend was inside and distracted for some reason. He'd only taken a few cautious steps out of the dim light spilling in from the door when he felt something brush the front of his leg and looked down to see the dim line of a thin black wire stretched across his path. He backed carefully away. Unfortunately, it was the release of pressure on the string that set off a booby trap designed personally for him.

He heard a click above him and looked up just in time to see the contents of a tub balanced on a shelf above the door hurtling down toward him as it tipped over, a few sticks falling into the light from the door and down suggesting some sort of elaborate practical joke. Was Kenichi-san mad at him for some reason?

It was only when whatever it was hit him that he realized, from the smell and taste, that the tub had been filled with slaughterhouse waste, which now drenched him with blood and stinking intestines mixed with gobbets of meat and scraps of fat, all of which now covered his head and shoulders, the stench of blood and grease and shit making him instantly nauseous as he stumbled back out into the open yard.

Still disoriented, half blind, he was trying to clear the worst of the muck and slop from his eyes and face, cursing his friend Kenichi, when he heard the unmistakable click and rattle of someone unseen padlocking the yard’s only gate from the outside. He was trapped!

With horrible insight, Akihisa suddenly regained his good sense. He realized that he was in great danger and had to get out of the area at once, but the fences were very high, and had no purchase for climbing, even if his hands weren't slippery with blood and grease.

Another sound caught Akihisa’s attention, a quick staccato pair of sharp buzzes, each followed immediately by its own metallic click, and he looked toward the sound, seeing blearily that the gates of the two hatches by the stairs were now swinging wide, evidently released by some sort of electrical catch. Soon after, the sounds of loud growling could be heard.

Akihisa, still dazed from the booby trap, but thinking as quickly as he could, staggered towards the east side wall where he’d seen the tools, thinking that he could defend himself with them, or hide in the metal can. But suddenly he heard a rush of sound as dogs came charging out of the hatches and into the yard. Two were of the Presa Canario breed, the other a Rotweiler, but Akihisa didn’t know that, because they were behind him, but he could hear the scrabble of their claws as they closed the distance toward his back, and their angry growls as they chased him down.

He was stretching out his hand toward the shovel, the safety of the steel drum just a step or two beyond, when one of the dogs caught him by his right ankle and he fell forward, catching himself so awkwardly on his hand and straight arm that he heard a bone snap, but strangely felt no pain. He turned to face his attackers and found himself staring at the first Presa Canario, which clamped down on his face, wide jaws outspread, so he didn't see the second, which went in for the kill as the Yakuza struggled, biting into his throat with its strong jaws and clamping down on his windpipe. The third dog, now worrying at his belly, was almost an afterthought.

Akihisa, now sprawled awkwardly on the ground, felt incredible pain as the three dogs gnawed his flesh, and even tore the skin and muscle from his body in three separate places. He tried to struggle but it was hopeless. Akihisa's vision narrowed, and his last conscious thought, the darkness swooping in from the edges of his vision to claim the center, was that one of the dogs must have sliced open his carotid artery. As a student of mayhem and death, he felt a moment of pride as he recognized the exact cause of his own demise, even as the pain of the many teeth and fangs tearing at his body faded into nothing and the darkness shut him in forever.
 

~*~
 
Tokuro Inagawa watched through a window as the three dogs continued to maul the now lifeless body of Akihisa Uno. While it did not make up for the loss of his son Hideki, Tokuro felt some satisfaction from what he had just witnessed.

Kenichi Nagai was in the room with Tokuro. The young man was nervously shaking because he was in fear for his own life. He knew Tokuro Inagawa was a ruthless man and he might prefer there to be no witnesses.

So it came as a big surprise when Tokuro handed Kenichi an envelope containing one million yen or approximately twelve thousand American dollars. Kenichi immediately began to bow in gratitude.

“Domo arigato, Inagawa-san.”

“Now clean up the mess. I want no trace to ever be found of Akihisa-kun.”

Kenichi again bowed towards Tokuro. “Hai! I will do as you say, Inagawa-san.”

As Tokuro got in his car, he thought of Akihisa’s accomplices for a moment. It would please him if they met with a similar brand of ‘Yakuza justice’. For the time being, the grisly death of Akihisa Uno was enough satisfaction for Tokuro.
 

~*~
 
Maurice was patiently waiting in the South Pacific’s lobby when Gabrielle returned to the hotel. “Did you get much sight-seeing done?”

“No, not really. You’re here kind of early.”

Maurice gave Gabrielle another of those odd smiles of his. “Yes, Gabrielle, I am. I thought we would go to the airport now. That is if you are ready.”

“Yes, Maurice, I’m ready.”
 

~*~
 
To be continued in Part Nineteen

Author's note- A few very slight details about Tom Slater's life before Operation Swan Song, were loosely based on the life of a serving United States Army Officer and military blogger. Captain Ziegenfuss like Captain Slater was wounded in Iraq and while recovering at Walter Reed Military Hospital, was visited by then President Bush and the First Lady.