“Yes, Hiromi-kun, it is, but circumstances have changed,” Tokuro Inagawa said, before going on to detail how difficult the economy was at present. Many other commodity prices were dropping. Weren’t illegal narcotics also a commodity?

Tom refused to budge an inch. Truthfully, she’d give it away to the Inagawas or whoever first showed up at the Yokohama docks when the cargo was unloaded. Naturally, that wasn’t the way organized crime worked and if Tom actually attempted what she dreamed of doing, she would end up just as dead as Reina Shimizu.

“You have not given me a reason to change the fee. Our costs have remained the same.”

“We are not satisfied with the present arrangement.”

Synopsis- Captain Slater takes steps to extricate herself from the world of the Watanabe Yakuza.

I must thank Puddin for her help with this story.
 

~*~
 
Hideichi Ishimoto was shown into the study of Keiji Wantanabe. The elderly Oyabun was waiting for the shareigashira.

“What can I get you to drink?” Keiji asked at the same time he waved with his right hand to tell Hideichi to sit down. The Oyabun had on a kimono, one he usually wore when going to bed.

“Scotch and water,” Hideichi replied. One of Keiji’s bodyguards took it upon himself to prepare the drink.

While this was happening, Keiji and Hideichi continued to sit across from one another. Neither Yakuza saying a single word.

‘What must it be like to sit here and have control of this mighty city,’ Hideichi thought to himself philosophically as his drink was prepared. ‘One day I may not just sit in this room, but own it also.’

A moment later Hideichi had his drink. He was allowed one sip, before Keiji Watanabe asked him why he asked for a meeting that night.

“I have heard some rumors. They disturbed me greatly.”

“Like what, Hideichi-san?”

“There are unhappy members in our family.”

Keiji was a wise Yakuza. He knew there would always be dissatisfied underlings in his employ. Only a very foolish underling would ever challenge a Oyabun. Especially one who had Dai Hashimoto in his side pocket.

It was late and Keiji felt no need to mask his impatience. “As there have always been, Hideichi-san. Why did you come to see me tonight?”

Hideichi put down his half finished drink. He was both respectful and loyal towards Keiji Watanabe. “It is the people who are grumbling that makes feel this is a matter of concern.”

“Like who?”
 

~*~
 
Across the hall from where Keiji and Hideichi met, a meeting of the physical variety was taking place. Charles McBride had just completed making love to his wife.

“I love you,” Tom said to Chuck.

“Love you too, Kimi-Chan,” Chuck replied. He continued to lay on top of the woman he married, and thought to be Hiromi Sato.

As Chuck continued to kiss her, the bedside phone began to rang. Tom immediately felt a strong urge to curse. ‘Why now?’

Chuck stopped what he was doing for a second. “Aren’t you going to get that?”

A phone call at this time of the night and on her private line, could only mean one thing. Someone wanted to talk Yakuza business with Hiromi Sato. “No.”

Chuck smiled. He hated the interruptions as much as his wife. He then heard the answering machine pickup the call but it was too far away to decipher what was being said.

With the distraction over and done with, Tom got back to more pressing matters. “So what will we do now for dessert?”
 

~*~
 
“Is that all?” Keiji asked Hideichi. The list of disgruntled Watanabe personnel had not impressed the Oyabun. If this was all Hideichi had to tell him, Keiji planned on telling the shareigashira that he did not enjoy having his rest period disturbed for such trivia.

“There’s more, Oyabun-san,” Hideichi said as he was given another drink. He wouldn’t drink it. The shareigashira had consumed enough alcohol for the day. “My sources tell me some disturbing things. People who we have put much trust in.”

“Like who?”

“Takahiro Mureta is one. He has voiced his unhappiness over Hiromi-san’s transfer to Hong Kong to me personally.”

Keiji nodded his head. Takahiro was a Watanabe shareigashira that oversaw the family’s legal export business interests. “Anyone else?”

“Ryuku Kinjoh. I have heard it through my sources that she is very displeased. She does not like the path the family is on at present.

Keiji was not surprised by Ryuku Kinjoh’s loyalty to his granddaughter. After all they were both of the same gender, and this created a bond that men rarely felt towards another of their own. It was also well known that Hiromi and Ryuku had been friends for the best part of ten years.

A wise Oyabun, and Keiji considered himself this, should not be surprised by murmuring after a major organizational decision is announced. As the old saying goes, you can’t please everyone. The reaction of Takahiro Mureta, Ryuku Kinjoh, and others would only be of concern if it turns into an active act of disloyalty.

As he looked across at Hideichi Ishimoto, Keiji had to evaluate this family member’s loyalty. There were few people distrusted more by Yakuza than informants. These people had motives, often sinister ones for revealing the information they dispensed. At other times it was an attempt at self preservation for the informant.

There was the occasional do gooder informant. A person moved by conscience to reveal the actions of others.

Keiji hadn’t decided yet what classification of informant Hideichi fell into. The Oyabun asked a question to help him decide.

“My granddaughter, has she spoken about any of this?”

Hideichi knew the real reason for Hiromi Sato’s departure to Hong Kong. He agreed with Keiji, there was no place for a woman so high in a Yakuza family. It was a sign of weakness and made the Watanabes look vulnerable. Plus a woman’s thought processes were most often driven by emotion rather than reason. Their judgment couldn’t be trusted for that reason.

It was Hideichi’s opinion he could do a better job managing the Watanabe finances than Hiromi Sato had. Hadn’t he done a good job at this work before Goro Watanabe stunned everyone by making his cousin the family’s financial counselor? Hideichi could never forget how some Watanabe Yakuza, not just himself, didn’t agree with that particular decision.

”No Oyabun-san, I have heard nothing,” Hideichi replied stiffly in an effort to hide his ambition to be appointed to Saiko-komon status.

Keiji wasn’t fooled. “Have you spoken to Hiromi-san at all recently?”

Hideichi had to think for a moment. “Yes, we spoke on Monday about the upcoming transaction with the Inagawa-kai. Before that I don’t know when we last talked.”

Keiji knew Hideichi had chosen not to allow Hiromi to handle his investments like so many other family members had. The shareigashira was under no obligation, but Keiji thought it an unwise decision. His granddaughter had made him and other Watanabe Yakuza’s wealth grow at excellent rates.

In mid-2007, Hiromi had counseled her Grandfather and others she advised to shift at least some of their investments to less risky holdings. The reason she gave was a predicted economic downturn caused by the housing bubble having popped and the effect this would have in other areas of the world-wide economy.

The early signs of a economic downturn were already being felt as Keiji and Hideichi spoke. Keiji was now glad he followed his granddaughter’s wise financial advice. No matter what his other faults were, Goro Watanabe had proved a good judge of talent in Hiromi Sato’s case.

How were Hideichi’s investments doing now? Had he gotten good advice from someone not Hiromi Sato or was the shareigashira going to lament his decision not to use her as a financial counselor?

This question was important, because it said volumes about Hideichi Ishimoto’s judgment. Did he allow jealousy to color his business decisions?

“Have we learned anything more about Sunday’s incident involving Hiromi-san?” Hideichi asked Keiji.
 

~*~
 
Across the hallway, Keiji’s granddaughter was cuddling quietly with her husband before calling it a night. Their piece was suddenly interrupted by the ringing of the bedside phone.

Tom let out a small growl as she disengaged herself from Chuck McBride’s arms. ‘Why do people seem to call only at the absolutely worst times?

“Sato,” Tom said after she answered the phone.

“Forgive me for calling so late, Sato-san,” Said Ryoji Ishii, Hiromi’s first assistant at Watanabe Trucking.

Tom didn’t hide her annoyance at being disturbed. “You better have a good reason for calling me now.”

“I do, Sato-san. Tokuro Inagawa called. He wishes to speak to you.”

Tokuro was Hiromi’s opposite number with the Inagawa-kai Yakuza family. “Now??”

“Yes, Sato-san. That was Tokuro-san’s request. He was asking for your private number so you could speak with him.”

Tom’s anger only grew. “You are not to share my private number with anyone without my prior approval.”

“I know that, Sato-san.”

“Do you know what Tokuro-san is calling in regard to?” Tom asked before looking over at Chuck. Her husband was still awake, but his eyelids looked ready to close.

“No, Sato-san. He said it was something he would only discuss when on the phone with you.”

Tom grew only more annoyed but not with Ryoji. “Tell Tokuro-san I will not speak with him tonight if I am not told first what it was to be discussed. Plus I will only call him. If he can’t meet these conditions, then he can wait till morning to call me. Is that clear?”

“Yes, Sato-san, it is. I will call Tokuro-san back immediately,” Ryoji said before he hung up the phone.

No mention was made of a return phone call, but Tom was sure she would be getting one. Tokuro Inagawa seemed hell bent on discussing something and she had a pretty good guess what it was.

Tom tried to forget all of this for the moment. She would try getting some sleep, but first she turned to look at Chuck.

Chuck was fast asleep and was beginning to snore. Tom decided to let her husband sleep and get some of the same herself. Not at all troubled by the phone call she had just gotten, Tom managed to fall fast asleep less than two minutes later.
 

~*~
 
“It is very unlikely those trying to capture my granddaughter were law enforcement,” Keiji told Hideichi at the end of a long explanation. Shortly after Sunday’s incident, the Oyabun made use of the extensive contacts he had with the local police. All of them said the same thing. What took place on Sunday wasn’t an arrest attempt.

“Then who were those gaijin that tried to capture Hiromi-san?”

Keiji looked Hideichi in the eye. He was becoming troubled by the shareigashira’s lack of respect for Hiromi. It was all too obvious because of his use of the informal Hiromi-san.

Hiromi Sato was Hideichi’s Yakuza superior. The shareigashira would never address her with such familiarity face to face.

‘You really detest my granddaughter don’t you, Hideichi-san? Are you forgetting she is also my flesh and blood?’

Keiji considered ending the evening right then but instead laid a possible trap. The Oyabun wasn’t ready to dismiss the possibility that Hideichi was behind the attack on his granddaughter.

“Two of our friends with the Yokohama police say it was a military operation.”

Hideichi who had been at Wednesday’s inquest like meeting, vividly recalled how Hiromi Sato’s attackers seemed bent on her capture rather than her death. “What possible reason would any military want Hiromi-san?”

“That is a good question, Hideichi-san. Do you have a theory?”

“No, Oyabun-san, I don’t.”

The answer satisfied Keiji for now. If Hideichi had put forward a theory, he may have become suspect in the Oyabun’s mind. There was no logical reason for the military to want Hiromi Sato.

Keiji remembered Ai Toguchi’s confession before being ‘shown to the street’. That she had been asked by the police to put the beeper on Hiromi’s car. Were there gaijin in Japan pretending to be police and military? More importantly, who were they working for?

Without answers for the present, no action could be taken. Reprisals would be swift if those who were responsible for the attack on Hiromi Sato were ever identified.

“There will be a meeting soon. At it, I will announce certain changes to the family.”

“Oyabun-san, I await your wise decisions. Has the time and place for the meeting been decided?”

Keiji saw no reason not to give Hideichi the answers he wanted. “The first Saturday evening in August.”

Hideichi remained stiff in his chair. ‘In less than a month, I will be sitting in Hiromi-san’s office.’

It was late and Keiji needed sleep. “Is that all, Hideichi-san?”

“Yes, Oyabun, it is,” Hideichi said before rising from his chair. “Thank you for taking the time to see me.”
 

~*~
 
Tom looked at the alarm clock. She hadn’t gotten ten minutes sleep since last hanging up the phone. Now someone was calling her again.

“Yes,” Tom growled into the phone receiver.

“I’m so sorry, Sato-san, to bother you again. Tokuro Inagawa says that you must call him tonight.”

“Did he say what he wants to speak to me about?”

“Our upcoming business transaction.” Ryoji Ishii replied. The answer came as no surprise.

Tom immediately sat up in bed, not a stick of clothing on her body. Chuck liked it when his wife slept naked with him.

“Ryoji, will you hold on for two minutes?” Tom asked before feeling a sudden twinge of neck pain.

“Of course, Taro-san.” Tom replaced the phone receiver but not before first putting Ryoji Ishii on hold.

If Tom was going to talk to Tokuro Inagawa, she would place the call from Hiromi Sato’s office area. Before that could happen, Charles McBride woke up.

“Kimi-chan, where are you going?”

“I have a couple of phone calls to make. They won’t take too long,” Tom said as he put a bra back on. Before his wife exited the bedroom, Charles McBride was asleep again.

In addition to the bra he put on, Tom donned a bathrobe over his naked female body. Then she went to the office area of the apartment.

Wearing a bra always when standing becomes a necessity for any DD breasted woman who doesn’t use her upper torso to entertain. Walking about with large unsupported breasts quickly becomes uncomfortable. If a bra isn’t worn, gravity will cause them to sag more quickly than ones that didn’t have augmentation.

Another reason for the bra, was to help stop the sudden neck pains Tom had begun to feel since being woken for a second time that night.

As soon as she was seated, Tom got back on the phone with Ryoji. “Do you have Tokuro’s phone number?”

“Yes, Taro-san, here it is……”

Tom was on the phone with Tokuro Inagawa two minutes later. She wasted no time with pleasantries. “What is it you are calling me about?”

“The shipment that is due in Yokohama next week. I have been told to re-negotiate the fee you are charging us.”

Right then Tom felt like cursing over the phone but didn’t. This phone conversation could have waited till morning.

“Tokuro-san, this is the same price we have charged in the past.”

“Yes, Hiromi-kun, it is, but circumstances have changed,” Tokuro Inagawa said, before going on to detail how difficult the economy was at present. Many other commodity prices were dropping. Weren’t illegal narcotics also a commodity?

Tom refused to budge an inch. Truthfully, she’d give it away to the Inagawas or whoever first showed up at the Yokohama docks when the cargo was unloaded. Naturally, that wasn’t the way organized crime worked and if Tom actually attempted what she dreamed of doing, she would end up just as dead as Reina Shimizu.

“You have not given me a reason to change the fee. Our costs have remained the same.”

“We are not satisfied with the present arrangement.”

“Very well,” Tom said wasting no time. “As we have no other choice, the captain of the cargo ship will get instructions to dispose of the contraband. The down payment you made to us will also be forfeit.”

Tokuro-san who had sounded reasonable in his demands till now, turned to anger. “You can’t do that.”

“Why not? We have taken all the risks so far. Till the cargo off loads in Yokohama, it is our property. Much expense has been incurred and it is only fair if we keep the deposit at this late a date.”

Tom listened to Tokuro Inagawa’s strong objections for less than thirty seconds. “It is late and I am going to bed. Is the deal still or not?”

“I feel we need to have a meeting, Hiromi-kun.”

So far Tom had taken a hard line with the Inagawa-kai Saiko-komon. That was partly for appearance sake. The Watanabe Yakuza had to maintain an appearance of strength to its closest rival or look vulnerable.

Discarding the narcotics at sea was not a real option. Tokuro Inagawa had to know that. “All right then. We will have to meet very soon for the shipment is due to dock in less than five days.”

Tokuro began to talk again like the matter could be settled that night. Tom quickly cut him off.

“This will not be decided tonight. I have to consult with my Oyabun first. That won’t take place before tomorrow morning.”

“Then what do you suggest we do, Hiromi-kun?”

Tom suggested, and gained Tokuro’s quick acceptance, to a plan that involved them both appointing an emissary to work out the details of the meeting that would take place. When this work was done, the two Saiko-kamons would have their chat.

“Is there anything else?” Tom asked.

“No, Hiromi-kun. I heard you were in some difficulty last Sunday.”

Tom wasn’t surprised that Tokuro had heard what happened. The Inagawas kept close tabs on the Watanabes and vice versa. “Yes, but no harm was done.”

“That is good then.”

When his phone call to Tokuro Inagawa was finished, Tom placed another. This time it was to Ryoji Ishii.

“I have chosen you to handle the arrangements for my meeting with Tokuro-san,” Tom told Hiromi Sato’s assistant.

Ryoji Ishii had just become father to a newborn baby daughter. The girl wasn’t sleeping through the night as yet and this was fatiguing both her parents. That probably accounted for his unusual reply to an order from Hiromi Sato.

“Sato-san, this isn’t my usual work. Wouldn’t it….”

Tom cut him off. “You do whatever work I TELL YOU to do. If you want to sit in my chair one day, Ryoji-san, I suggest you do as I order you.”

“My apologies, Sato-san. I will get on this right away.””¨”¨Before hanging up, Tom had one last thing to say. “Make sure you speak to Yuri about the security arrangements. I will only meet Tokuro on Watanabe turf or at a neutral site.”

“I understand, Sato-san. It will be done as you say.” Tom hung up the phone a few seconds later.
 

~*~
 
Another phone conversation was taking place less than forty minutes away from the Negishi Bay apartments. Gabrielle Tanaka was speaking to Tom’s mother.

“Mom, I haven’t learned anything new since we last spoke.”

“That is all right, Gabrielle,” Midori Slater said from Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. She, her husband Stewart, and their grandson Shannon were hoping to catch Space A available seats on a flight to Germany later that day.

Space A also known as Military Space Available flights allows military members, active and retired plus immediate family, to travel on US military owned and operated aircraft. With the exception of a slight federal departure tax and/or a federal inspection fee, travel is free but without frills if space was available.

“I know you are trying.”

“How are you, Mom?”

“I’m all right, Gabrielle. So are Shannon and Stuart.”

“That’s good to hear. I hope all of you enjoy the trip.”

“We will try,” The trip to Germany would most likely be bittersweet for the mother. The reason for the Slaters traveling to Germany was in order to attend a wedding. Ilsa Slater was getting remarried.

Stewart and Midori were happy for their daughter-in-law but at the same time felt they were losing three family members. The wedding would make it increasingly difficult for the parents of the late Stewart Slater Jr. to be a part of their grandchildren Paul and Nicole’s lives.

“Mom, when should all of you be back to Washington?”

Around July 25th. We don’t know for sure.”

“All right, Mom. I promise to call if I hear anything about Tom.”
 

~*~
 
Tom had hoped to sleep through till the alarm clock went off, but a full bladder caused her to make a bathroom trip at a little after 3:30 in the morning. Taking care of personal business caused her to remember why Tom Slater was living like she was.

The assignment that had been given him was called Operation Swan Song. Tom had to get a message or messages back to the committee.

After Tom was finished in the bathroom, he went to the office area of the apartment rather than to bed. There she sat down and began to think of the messages she wanted to write.

To facilitate the writing process, Tom turned on the computer in the room. As soon as it was finished warming up, he opened the program Notepad. For a half hour Tom wrote, and then revised, what he wanted to tell the Swan Song committee.

The second message was very simple to write. It being based on a code Tom had worked out with Gabrielle Tanaka before the operational phase of Swan Song began.

Almost as important as the messages themselves, was the method they would be transmitted. The previous day, Tom had come up with one possible ‘courier’ as she called them. That person would be responsible for getting the message back to Swan Song.

For the message to Gabrielle, Tom had to come up with alternate plan. Simply because the reliability of the first courier was unknown. The second one however could be trusted to do as Tom asked.

When finally satisfied with both messages, Tom had them printed off. When this was done, she put the pieces of paper in separate envelopes. By the time all of this work was done, it was 5 a.m.

‘Now what do I do?’ Tom asked herself after yawning. If she went back to sleep, the alarm clock would waken her in less than forty-five minutes. Would that little amount of sleep make the coming day any easier for her?

Tom decided not to go back to bed, but instead do some web surfing. Through the Yakuza work she did, Tom spent many hours behind a keyboard. This made her not want to use a PC when not at work.

Until Chuck woke up, Tom decided to while away her time on the office computer. After closing up notepad, she signed online. When that task was complete, Tom went straight to google.com.

The second of the two messages Tom had written only minutes earlier gad given the male Army Captain, now living in a Japanese woman’s body, at least a temporary jolt back to reality. Tom was deep down, no matter what the body he had, a heterosexual male.

To reinforce this, Tom did a google search for pictures of Kristi Yamaguchi. He could never forget how that lovely FBI agent Gabrielle Tanaka, resembled her cousin. Tom tried to daydream himself back to life before Operation Swan Song by looking at photos of the figure skater.

Tom’s return to reality worked till Charles McBride walked into the room. “Kimi-chan, you’re up early. What happened?”

“I got up to use the bathroom and just couldn’t fall back to sleep,” Tom said before noting the two envelopes with the messages inside, were out in the open. Chuck wasn’t paying them any attention.

Chuck came up behind Tom and started to give her a neck massage. “Is everything all right? You seem a little tense?”

“I am all right. Just the usual things on my mind,” Tom said. The massage Chuck was giving her felt so good.

Chuck bent down and kissed his wife. “Then think of what we talked about last night. You do remember?”

“Of course. The farm in Australia, the kids, us.”

“You forgot the pony.”

Tom laughed. “That too.”

As hard as Tom tried not to, he was falling back underneath the ‘magic spell’ Chuck McBride cast over all women who had the slightest bit of heterosexuality in them. The handsome well built man from Australia just need to be in a female’s presence for them to become enraptured.

Tom was more than that in Chuck’s presence. He had allowed the man to physically love him, plus undergone plastic surgery, said yes to his marriage proposal, and just the night before said he wanted to bear his children.

Chuck had caused Tom Slater to change. The questions remained. Would Tom be able to change back, or more to the point, did he want to?

“What is that you’re looking at?”

To fight Chuck’s spell, Tom tried to keep his eyes on the computer image he had been looking at before his husband came in the room. “Just some photos on the internet. You know who she is?”

“Of course. The figure skater, Kristi Yamaguchi.” Chuck said with a broad smile.

What had drawn Charles McBride to Hiromi Sato? Appearance-wise, she was pretty but not spectacularly so. The breast augmentation done the previous November had helped. Tom was of the opinion it made her prettier rather than preposterous, like some women do after getting their breasts enlarged to DD size or larger.

As for Hiromi’s personality, the woman was psychotic. Maybe she hadn’t always been that way, especially when she and Chuck first met. Yes, that seemed to make sense to Tom, either that or Chuck had some very weird tastes in women.

“Yes, that’s her.”

“That lady at the party in May, what was her name?”

“Gabrielle.”

“Yes, Gabrielle. They look a little alike.”

Tom then tried to put a different spin on the conversation. “Who do you think is prettier? Me or….”

“You of course, Kimi-chan,” Chuck said before bending down again to kiss his still seated wife. “Are we going to do our morning workouts?”

“Yes, of course. Give me a few minutes to shut down the computer and straighten up. I’ll then meet you in the exercise room.”

“All right then. See you shortly.” Chuck then left the room.

Before turning off the computer, Tom made a picture of Kristi Yamaguchi the background for the office computer. As he did, Tom suddenly recalled something Gabrielle said in Hong Kong.

“If I get pregnant, Dr. Wagner won’t be able to change me back.”
 

~*~
 
Roger Hyde was also awake. As he waited for room service to be delivered, the British bodyguard placed a phone call from his Hong Kong hotel.

“Hello,” Said a Chinese female voice.

“Is Guy Chadwick home?”

“No, he isn’t. Can I take a message?”

Roger thought to himself for two seconds. “My name is Roger Hyde and I’m an acquaintance of Guy. Can you possibly tell me when he’ll be home or how I can get in touch with him now?”

“Guy is away on business, but he gets back to Hong Kong this afternoon. He should be home tonight if you want to call back.”

“I’ll do that, thank you for your assistance.” Roger then hung up the phone.
 

~*~
 
“Can you do me a big favor?” Tom asked Chuck as he drove both of them to the office.

“Of course, Kimi-chan, but it will have a price.”

“What’s that?”

“Lunch together this afternoon.”

There was Kanagawa Bank business that needed tending to, but Tom gave Chuck a smile. “I think I can arrange that.”

“What do you need me to do?”

Tom told Chuck to open the black hobo bag she was using that day rather than one of her more normal purses. Chuck was like most men, in that he was very reluctant to enter or comb through one of the most female of territories.

“There are two white envelopes. Could you please express mail for me the one that is addressed?”

“All right, Kimi-chan, but can’t you get Aki or Suki to do this for you?”

“I’d like if you do this for me.”

“All right, Kimi-chan,” Chuck said as put the envelope in his jacket pocket.

Before dropping Chuck off, Tom gave his husband instructions as to how he wanted the envelope mailed. Hopefully this indirect form of communication would find its way to Gabrielle.
 

~*~
 
Gabrielle and Inspector Yoshida were shown into the office of Keiji Watanabe at 10 a.m. sharp. The Oyabun of the Watanabe Yakuza acted very somber, like he was in a state of mourning.

“Thank you for seeing us, Watanabe-san,” Inspector Yoshida said.

“How can I help you?”

“Let me first say we are most sorry for the loss of your wife, Ai Toguchi.”

“Thank you.”

“We hope you do not mind answering a few questions, Watanabe-san.”

“Not at all, go ahead.”

“When was the last time you saw or spoke to your wife?”

“Wednesday morning before I left for work.”

“You did not see her that evening?”

“No, when I got back to the apartment she was not there.”

“When did you get back home?”

Keiji paused in order to think for a moment. “Shortly after 7:30.”

Gabrielle remained quiet, it was Inspector Yoshida who was did all the questioning. She noted the time for Keiji Watanabe’s return home. It was over a half hour before Ai Toguchi took her fatal plunge.

Inspector Yoshida was also aware of the gap Gabrielle was thinking of. “You did not see her at all when you got back to the apartments?”

“No, I did not.” Keiji had to work hard to conceal his disgust with being repetitively questioned by these ordinary officials.

“Did your wife give any indications she was depressed?”

Keiji pretended to get all choked up before giving his answer. “It is my regret I did not see the warning signs.”

Gabrielle broke her silence. “You said there were warning signs. Like what?”

Rather than continue to look distraught, Keiji’s facial expression began to show just a tiny bit of frustration or annoyance. “She said her health worried her.”

Keiji remained as general as possible when answering Inspector Yoshida’s last few questions. Not quite fifteen minutes after the interview began, it came to a quiet close.

“He’s guilty as sin,” Gabrielle said on the way back to the Yokohama police station.

“Agreed, but we have no proof for murder charges.””¨

“Did you notice what was missing from the office?”

“What is that, Gabrielle-san?”

“There were no pictures of family members in Keiji Watanabe’s office. What do you think that tells us?”
 

~*~
 
Tom called Ryoji Ishii into his office at 9:45. Hiromi Sato’s chief assistant looked frazzled and in more need of sleep than his Taro could use at that same moment. “Can you give me an update?”

“I am still speaking with Tokuro-san’s representative. Right now I am waiting for his return phone call.”

Tom listened quietly to the rest of what Ryoji had to say. Ryoji Ishii was much more than the ambitious assistant to Hiromi Sato; he was her likely successor as the Watanabe Yakuza’s financial advisor.

Ryoji had handled a few delicate tasks for Goro Watanabe over the years. Why not then make him your plenipotentiary in the talks with Tokuro Inagawa, Tom asked himself? Tom decided not to. It was a potentially dangerous meet, and he had enough blood on his hands from Operation Swan Song.

“This meeting can’t take place any later than tomorrow 6 p.m.”

“Yes, Taro-san. I understand that.”

After telling Ryoji to keep him informed, Tom dismissed the man. Then he buzzed Suki.

“Yes, Taro-san.”

“I’m going to take a rest now. Do not disturb me for anything till 11:15.”

“Yes, Taro-san, I will do that.”

“Suki, when the time is 11:15, please come in and wake me if necessary.” After ending the call, Tom transferred his weary body to the office couch and began to make himself comfortable.
 

~*~
 
By the time Roger Hyde arrived at Hiromi Sato’s future Hong Kong home, the fumigation of the residence was complete and a dozen workers were putting away their last equipment. After he parked his rented Bentley, Roger went right to work with an outdoor visual inspection of the house and the property it was on.

Roger, who was very thorough and particular when it came to his profession, began to make notes in a notepad he keep on his person at all times. Hiromi Sato should be in less danger living in Hong Kong than she was when in Japan, but precautions had to be taken.

The Hong Kong home of Hiromi Sato was at end of a cul-de-sac. It was bordered on one side by a home whose owners Roger still had to check on. And the other side by a small undeveloped lot that consisted of jungle like brush. At the front of the property now belonging to his boss was a nine foot high stone wall.

From the stone wall two means of entry had been carved out of the wall, both of which were protected by manned gates. One gate and its path led to the home’s main doorway, the other gate and path took a circuitous path to the west side of the residence. This area was mostly used for service vehicles and people who worked at the house.

As for people attempting to gain entry at the back of the Hong Kong property, Roger need only worry about mountain climbers which seemed unlikely. A terrace that jutted out to the edge of a Victoria Peak cliff supplied a panoramic view of Hong Kong and its harbor. As Roger stood near the terrace’s edge, he found the view breathtaking.

The terrace was the last exterior part of Hiromi Sato’s home and property that Roger had to look at. Before going in the house, the bodyguard wanted to check the security shacks he had seen earlier. While walking around, Roger had noted nine security cameras and there were likely more that were hidden or hard to find.

Whoever the previous owner of Hiromi Sato’s was, they had taken their privacy and safety very seriously. That would make Roger Hyde’s job of preparing Hiromi Sato’s new home so much simpler.
 

~*~
 
“Taro-san,” Suki Kobayashi said as she gently touched Tom’s left shoulder as he lay asleep on the couch. “It is 11:15 now.”

Tom opened his eyes. The nap had been short but refreshing. “Thank you ,Suki.”

“If there’s nothing else, Taro-san, I…..””¨”¨”No, Suki, don’t leave yet,” Tom said as he sat up. “I need your help with a small project.”

Tom spent a little over five minutes explaining to Suki what he wanted her to do for him. It didn’t surprise Tom in the slightest that she was surprised by his request and had questions for him.

“This is unusual, Taro-san, but I will do what you ask.”

“Thank you Suki,” Tom then gave his personal assistant the envelope with the Swan Song message inside it plus a whiskey bottle. “You shouldn’t be at risk. If I thought you were, I wouldn’t ask this.”

Tom had chosen Suki to help deliver the Swan Song message because she was one of the few people surrounding him that he knew, based on Tom’s nearly twenty-year-old childhood memories, was not Yakuza or a potential informant for them.

There was certainly a risk that Tom could be wrong, but at this stage of Operation Swan Song, he had no other choice.

Before Suki left the office, Tom told her of the reward he planned on giving her. “Suki, I will write you a check on Monday so can have your breasts done like you wish.”

Like so many other young Japanese women, Suki dreamed of having plastic surgery done to improve the appearance of her breasts. Tom had paid for her nose job, and had heard at lunch the previous day that Suki would like having her breasts enlarged too.

“Sato-san, you need not do that for me.”

“I want to, Suki. Thank you for helping me out. Did you call my gynecologist like I asked?”

“Yes, Taro-san, but they are on vacation this week. I was asked to remind you of your appointment Tuesday afternoon.”

‘I better tell Chuck no till then. Will he believe I have a headache four straight nights?’ Tom asked himself. “Thank you, Suki. I don’t need you for anything else.”

Right after that Tom began shutting down his office. Before he exited, he made a quick phone call.

“Kimi-chan, it is good to hear your voice. I just got back to the office.”

“Did you do what I asked?”

“Of course,” Chuck replied. “The young woman who took the envelope from me said it should be delivered Monday. That is what you wanted?”

“Yes, it is. Thank you.

“You’re welcome, Kimi-chan. Are you coming over now?”

“Yes, right this minute. See you soon.” Tom then went to use the restroom, not to use the toilet, but to check her appearance. She wanted to look just right for her husband.

Try as hard as Tom could, he was like a moth to a flame when it came to Chuck McBride. Would the Swan Song committee and Gabrielle be able to save his life and masculinity, or was she irreversibly headed for a life of wearing brassieres, lipstick, and earrings? Tom couldn’t answer that question before leaving her office, and wasn’t sure that she wanted to, or what she wanted the answer to be.
 

~*~
 ”¨
Roger continued to test the out-of-date security system, when he heard a female voice from not too far away. He went to check who it was.

It took two seconds to find her. She was young, Eurasian, well dressed, and looked like she knew the property very intimately.

Roger Hyde walked up to the woman. “Can I help you?”

“I was about to say the same thing,” The woman said before giving Roger a very pleasant smile.

Roger noted that the woman spoke with an accent that sounded like it came from Cambridge, England. He used to have an Aunt and Uncle who lived there. “My name is Roger Hyde. Yours?”

“Teresa Wu. Here’s my card.”

Roger Hyde took the business card offered him. Teresa Wu was who she said she was. Her profession, printed clearly on the card, was home management services.

“What does a home management services specialist do?”

“I manage the household for my employer. A home like this requires many workers to maintain it.”

Roger nodded. “Did you used to work here?”

“Yes, I did, for the previous owner. I was going to offer my services to your employer. I’m assuming you work for the new owner.”

Roger smiled. “Yes, I do. I’m here to check and assess the home for her. My employer may be interested in employing you but I can’t make any promises. Can we sit down and have a chat?”

“Of course. Let me get my binder first. It is in my car.”

Teresa and Roger were seated in the security area about two minutes later. The binder had profiles and references for people seeking work again at Hiromi Sato’s house.

While Roger studied what was in the binder, Teresa asked a few questions. Like the British bodyguard, she had a habit of taking notes. “I noticed you said your boss was a she.”

Before answering Teresa's questions, Roger had to ask himself if he could trust the woman. After only seconds of quick reflection, Roger decided he could.

“Yes. Her name is Hiromi Sato.”

Teresa noted the name. She knew it was Japanese. “Where will Miss Sato be moving here from?”

“Yokohama, Japan.”

“Is she married?”

“Yes she is. Her husband is named Charles McBride but everyone calls him Chuck. He and my boss have no children present.”

“That’s good to know.”

“My employer and her husband are around thirty years of age.”

“That is useful information. What does your employer do?”

“She’s a banker,” Roger answered as he continued to look at some of the profiles. “Are all these people at looking for work at present?”

“Most are,” Teresa said, as she took a moment to point out some of the profiles that had red tabs. “These people have already found new jobs or are not looking for work at this moment.”

Right at that moment, a middle aged woman dressed in a Hong Kong police uniform, stuck her head into the security room. Roger who still had his head in the binder, didn’t look up right away.

Teresa on the other hand sensed they had company and turned around. This action caught Roger’s attention.

“I can wait,” The police woman said before withdrawing.

“Do you know who she is?” Roger asked.

“Chief Inspector Sylvia Chang. She is the first woman ever to hold that high a post in the Hong Kong police force.”

“Do you know why she would be here?”

“I haven’t a clue,” Teresa said. “Do you?

Roger saw that Teresa had become very tense. “I haven’t the foggiest. This is only the seventh or eighth time I been to Hong Kong. Most of those visits were for two to three days.”

“Someone should show you around Hong Kong then before you leave. It would prove most useful for when your employer arrives,” Teresa said as the tension poured out of her. Then she really lightened up. “If you have time.”

Roger smiled. He was in the market for a new girlfriend and Teresa Wu might just be it. “Yes I think I’ll have some. Perhaps tonight, if someone can help me out.”

Teresa and Roger got back to business. They began to discuss just how many people would be hired, pending Hiromi Sato’s approval and background checks being done.

“If you look inside the front cover of the binder, you will see I made a list. Ms. Sato may add or subtract of course. When do you see her next?

“I’m returning to Japan on Sunday afternoon.”

“Do you know when Ms. Sato will be moving in?”

“On or around July 25th.”

“Then people will have to be hired very soon. Much work will have to be done.”

Roger nodded his head. “Can you tell me what happened to the last owner of this home?”

Teresa told a very short story of a wealthy Chinese merchant family that fell on hard times. “The house was up for sale for almost two years. I regret to say it wasn’t given the proper care it needed for part of that time. The owners had to cut back on staff and services.”

“My boss will change that. She can be most particular in what she needs and her surroundings.” Roger and Teresa talked for about ten more minutes.

Teresa stood up. “Will I be hearing back from you?”

“Yes, Teresa,” Roger replied without saying his inner thoughts ‘Sooner than you think.’ “Thank you for chatting with me today. Can I keep this binder?”

“Of course you may. I brought it here with the purpose of giving it to you.”

Roger then walked Teresa over to her car. Sylvia Chang was still around. She seemed to be walking a beat around the Sato home. The Chief Inspector’s gaze fixed upon the ground in front of her.

Teresa had barely departed his presence, when Roger started the process of finding out why a police inspector had come to see him. “My name is Roger Hyde.”

“I know who you are already, Mr. Hyde,” Sylvia said, after taking her eyes off the ground to look Roger straight in the eye.

“As do I, Inspector Chang. Why are you here today?”

“You work for a Hiromi Sato, a resident of Yokohama, Japan?”

“Yes, I do. You seem very well informed, Inspector. Would you like to talk inside?””¨

“I try to keep tabs on all visitors to Hong Kong. Especially those who have organized crime connections. And no, we can speak out here. It is too lovely a day to be spent inside a stuffy room.”

“Mrs. Sato is a banker. She owns…..”

“I know what she owns, Mr. Hyde. The East China Commerce Bank is one of her holdings. Another is Kanagawa Bank, which is headquartered in Yokohama Japan. Hiromi Sato is also a member of the Yakuza run by her grandfather. Isn’t that right?”

The Hong Kong Chief Inspector had a annoying habit that was common to many policemen and policewomen. She gave the answers to her questions before a person being interrogated had a chance to answer.

“Keiji Watanabe is a businessman.”

“No, he is the Oyabun of one of Japan’s largest and most powerful Yakuza families. Hiromi Sato is his granddaughter and she works for him.

“Worked,” Roger Hyde said firmly. It made no sense to protest any longer what was or wasn’t Hiromi Sato’s background. “When my boss arrives here, she will be a banker only.”

“Once a Yakuza, always a Yakuza.”

“Chief Inspector, have I or my employer broken any Hong Kong laws?”

“As of right now, not that we know of.”

“Then why are you here?”

“I have come to issue advice and a warning.”

“Let me guess, don’t break the law?”

“Yes. Have you heard of the triad known as the Golden dragons?

”Yes, I have. Why?”

“Their head dragon may not be happy if he were to learn Hiromi Sato has come to live in Hong Kong.”

Roger knew where Chief Inspector Chang was going with her statement. She was referring to the decade old incident where Watanabe Yakuza Saiko-komon Dai Hashimoto chopped off the legs of two Golden Dragon triad members who had come to Yokohama. The chopped off appendages were then sent back to their boss.

Sylvia Chang was very well informed. She just didn’t know the whole story of the Golden Dragon-Watanabe connection and Roger wasn’t about to tell the policewoman.

“We’ll be careful.”

The Chief Inspector began studying the ground again. Neither she or Roger said a word for over a minute.

“Anything else?”

“No, Mr. Hyde. Have a pleasant day.”
 

~*~
 
Chuck and Tom had lunch at a Noodle bar just two blocks from Kanagawa Bank. Nothing exceptional took place while the couple ate their meal.

Tom did note a western man who kept looking oddly at him. By now Tom was pretty used to the stares he got from men because of his big breasts.

Then, just as Tom and Chuck were getting ready to leave, Kimo approached them. “Boss, there is a man here who would like to speak to you.”

Kimo then handed his boss a business card. Tom looked at it for a few moments. “Let him come over.”

“My name is Sebastian Roux,” Said the same man who hadn’t been able to stop looking at Tom for the last half hour. “May I ask yours?”

Tom noticed Sebastian’s French sounding accent. That made sense because his business card mentioned an office in Quebec Canada. “I’m Hiromi Sato. This is my husband Charles.”

“It is good to meet both of you.”

“Why did you want to speak to me?”

“If you don’t mind me saying, Mrs. Sato, I been admiring you since I first set my eyes upon you.”

Tom smiled. “Thank you. Your business card says you are a recruiter.”

Now it was time for Sebastian to smile. “It is really a misnomer. Most people would say I am a talent scout.”

There was no hurry to get back to the office, so Tom let Sebastian amuse her. “What type of talent do you scout?”

“Many types Mrs. Sato. The one I thought you have the qualifications for is a job in modeling. Has anyone told you this before?”

“No, I have not had said to me before.” Tom looked over at Chuck. The guy was grinning at what Sebastian Roux just said.

Sebastian went on to make Tom a sales pitch. The man from Canada described several modeling companies he recruited for.

“They are all perfectly legitimate, and the work they would hire you to do would be non-adult in nature. I can almost guarantee you work next week. You could even become another gravure idol.”

Gravure idols are Japanese models who pose in bikinis and other provocative clothing for photo spreads in magazines and photobooks aimed largely at men. A gravure idol doesn’t pose nude or do sexually explicit acts.

“May I ask your age?”

“I’m twenty-eight but turn twenty-nine in November.”

“You hardly look a day over twenty. What type of work do you do now?”

“I’m a banker.”

“You are beautiful and intelligent.”

“Thank you, Mr. Roux. You flatter me, but I regret to say I am not interested.”

Sebastian Roux didn’t take no for an answer very easily. He insisted that Hiromi take time to think it over and speak to her husband about what he had just offered her.

“If there is a question of trust….” Sebastian began saying.

“It is not that.”

“You can check my references. Ask around about me if you wish.”

Chuck leaned over and whispered in Japanese in Tom’s ear. “Kimi-chan, why don’t you think about it.”

Either Sebastian spoke Japanese or was an excellent mind reader. “Please think about it. Call me at the number on my card. If I don’t answer, leave a message. I will get back to you within twenty-four hours.”

Tom caught between her pushy husband and this salesman, stayed non-committal. “If I were to call back, you would remember me?”

“Mrs. Sato, you are very hard to forget.” Sebastian excused himself a minute later. Tom and Chuck left the restaurant a few moments later.

Chuck tried to persuade his wife into calling Sebastian the following week, but Tom’s mind was made up. As they crossed the street in order to get back to Kanagawa bank, Hiromi Sato’s cell phone began to ring.

Tom didn’t answer it till he was safely on the sidewalk again. “Hello, Grandfather.”

“Granddaughter, I am returning your phone call,” Keiji said. After his interview with Gabrielle Tanaka and Inspector Yoshida, the elderly Oyabun had gone to the doctor for a routine checkup.

“I am returning to the office from lunch. Can I call you back in just a few minutes?” Before meeting with Tokuro Inagawa, Tom needed to know if there was any flexibility in the terms of the deal between the two Yakuza families.

“Yes, granddaughter, please do that. I am back at the office now.
 

~*~
 
Japanese Self Defense Forces Lt. Colonel Tazio Ichinose took another puff on his cigarette as he studied the military plan in front of him. Its title was Operation Amatstbu. Amatsubu translates to Raindrop in English.

Amatsubu was still being fine tuned, but training for it would begin at once. The order for the Operation had been handed down by the Minister of Defense himself, which is hardly unique in Japan’s military. What distinguished the plan from past ones was its target. The Watanabe Yakuza based out of Yokohama.

Members of the Yakuza are arrested all the time but rarely have warrants been issued for those at the very top of these organized crime families. The Oyabuns and other leaders usually went to great lengths to protect themselves from criminal prosecution. Operation Amatsubu therefore would be history making.

It would also be bloody. If the warrant was for one or two of these gangsters, the arrest could be done by as few as four policemen, depending on where the criminal was at the time. That wouldn’t work with these arrests that totaled twenty-nine in number including the Oyabun of the Watanabe Yakuza himself. Ordinary police would stand a good chance of being gunned down.

That’s why the assignment had been given to the part of Japan’s Self Defense Force known as Tokushu Sakusen Gun. These troops were the equivalent of America’s Special Forces.

Lt. Colonel Tazio Ichinose was the Tokushu Sakusen Gun’s second in command. His chief of planning, Captain Hideyuki Awano, had spent day and night for almost a month considering the possible options for arrest. The plan before Tazio was considered the safest option with the most likely chance of success. After a very thorough study of Amatsubu, the Lt. Colonel agreed.

Tazio pressed a button on his. A young looking sergeant entered the room less than a half minute later. “What can I get for you sir?”

“Have Major Senichi Hoshino report to me at once.” The sergeant on receipt of these orders, left Tazio’s office.

As soon as the sergeant left the room, Tazio lit up yet another cigarette. Then he went back to the process of scrutinizing and evaluating Operation Amatsubu in his mind.

The Defense Minister had made it clear. There were to be as many of these gangsters arrested at the same time as was safely possible. If not, the Watanabe Yakuza under threat of arrest would scatter.

For Amatsubu, two locations were considered. One was in Yokohama itself; the other was in the Mt. Fuji area. There were advantages and disadvantages to staging the assault at both these places.

How would Major Hoshino know enough Watanabes were gathered at the Lake Yanagawa home of Keiji Watanabe? The source had to be some kind of informant. These people were notoriously unreliable. The possibility of a trap being set couldn’t be easily dismissed.

It was well known that large numbers of those to be arrested, lived in the same Yokohama apartment house. An assault there was considered and rejected. For the reason that too many innocent lives would be taken in the process of making the arrests.

Tazio vaguely knew of Operation Firecracker. Why had it targeted just one person? The only conclusion he could draw was that another very secret operation was under way. He also incorrectly assumed at this point, that the target of Firecracker was one of those an arrest warrant had been issued for.

Because of Firecracker’s failure, the Watanabes would certainly be on high alert. The place chosen for the assault phase for Amatsubu was unlikely to have the element of surprise. The Tokushu Sakusen Gun personnel making the assault would surely face armed resistance.

Military members are paid to put their lives at risk. It didn’t mean however, that these people didn’t value their life or those of the ones serving with them. Tazio knew some of the men in his command wouldn’t survive Amatsubu. He would try his hardest to minimize casualties but at the same time accept some were inevitable.

Someone then knocked on Tazio’s door. “Enter.”

Major Senichi Hoshino entered the room. After exchanging a salute with the young officer, Tazio asked the future Field commander of Operation Amatsubu to take a seat.

“Senichi-san, I am assigning you the command of an upcoming operation, codenamed Amatsubu.”

Without a word being spoken, Major Hoshino took the folder tendered to him by his commanding officer. Senichi began to read Operation Amatsubu’s half page summary.

“When is this operation to take place?”

“We don’t know yet, Senichi-san. You and your men are to begin training for it at once.”
 

~*~
 
Ryuku Kinjoh was in the kitchen area of a Watanabe-owned restaurant she supervised. The noise in the room was near deafening, which accounted for the fact that she didn’t answer Akira Sudo’s attempts to call her till his third try.

“My day is hectic, Akira-san,” Ryuku said from a less noisy area of the restaurant. “Why are you calling?”

“Our meeting with Tiger-san has been postponed.”

“I hope there is a good reason.”

“Yes, Ryuku-san, there is. I been asked to help Sato-san in some business matter. It will require my attention all of tomorrow.”

“That is good. When will we see Tiger then?”

“Is Sunday at 1 p.m. all right?”

“Yes it is and you may pick me up at 12:30. Have you told Katsuaki about the postponement?”

“Of course, Ryuku-san. Katsuaki-san will also be there on Sunday.”
 

~*~
 
It was around 4 p.m. on Friday afternoon that Ryoji Ishii informed Tom of the time and location for his meeting with Tokuro Inagawa. It was set for 10:30 a.m. the next day in Osaka.

“Sato-san, the Yamaguchis have offered to host the meeting,” Ryoji told Tom over the phone.

“All right, that is satisfactory,” Tom replied. The Yamaguchi-gumi had a long history of mediating disputes between other Yakuzas. “What else can you tell me about the meeting?

Ryoji filled Tom in on the other details. That bodyguard Kimo would accompany him, Akira Sudo would pick them up at the airport and so forth.

Tom’s talk earlier in the afternoon with Keiji Watanabe had set the criteria for lessening the fee the Inagawas paid for the drug transaction. The Oyabun wanted to cultivate good will with the rival Yakuza, not hostility. Another war similar to the one in 2002-03 would be bad for business.

“Good work, Ryoji-san.”

Tom took the time spent driving home to the Negishi Bay apartment house to think about where Operation Swan Song was going. Another day of controlling the body he was in, had both given time for his emotions to subside and reinforce his reason to take control. With any luck, his superiors and Gabrielle would be in possession of the messages he sent by the beginning of the next week.

‘Then what?’ Tom asked himself. While Hiromi had been in control at the time, he knew what happened the previous Sunday was either an attempt at retrieving Tom or communicating with him. The question was which.

Tom Slater had a strong sense of duty. He had volunteered for Swan Song knowing it would be dangerous. That was certainly the present state of affairs. However the bottom line was Tom wouldn’t or couldn’t make himself end his part of Swan Song without some kind of orders from Major Hollins, Gabrielle, or the Swan Song committee. Only if his life was in extreme peril would he turn away from the mission he had been assigned.

Was Tom in extreme peril now? No, he didn’t think so. The only possible threat Tom faced at the moment, came from within the Watanabe Yakuza. He could sense the warning signs of a power struggle brewing around him.

Chuck interrupted Tom’s train of thought by asking a question. “Kimi-chan, is everything all right?”

“Of course it is. Why do you ask?”

“You’re so quiet tonight.”

“I have a few things on my mind,” Tom confessed to Chuck.

“Like what?”

Tom took her eyes off the road and looked over at Chuck for a few seconds. The glance was perfectly safe, for they were stopped at a red light.

“That Sebastian guy we met this afternoon, and your suggestion. I’m thinking about it.”

“It was an idea,” Chuck said as the light turned green. Tom went back to looking at the Yokohama road he and his husband were on.

“Where am I supposed to find the time to model?”

Chuck laughed. “Yes, that could be a problem.”

“The demands on my time won’t lessen after we move to Hong Kong.”

“I suppose not. If we went…..”

Tom knew where Chuck was going next with the conversation. “Went to Australia and bought a farm? That won’t happen for a few years at least. By then I’ll be over thirty.”

“You’ll still be as lovely as ever, my little sports car.”

“Thank you, but by then I’ll have either given birth or be pregnant with the first of the eight kids we’re planning to have.”

Chuck let out a loud laugh. “I thought you said two or three last night?”

“I’m making a joke. In all seriousness, modeling isn’t an option.”

“All right, Kimi-chan,” Chuck said as he touched his wife’s left hand. “I won’t ever mention it again.

While the Fairlady waited at another red light, Tom pointed to his upper torso. “I only had these enlarged so you can enjoy them and no one else.”

“I appreciate that, Kimi-chan. They are very beautiful, as is the rest of you.”

“By the way, I have to go to Osaka tomorrow on business.”

“All right, Kimi-chan. When will you be back home?””¨

“Sometime late tomorrow afternoon, or in the early evening I think.”

Chuck didn’t say anything else.

Tom went back to thinking about his Swan Song mission. Should he make amends with Keiji Watanabe? Hiromi Sato’s grandfather might still be angry as a result of her outburst on the previous Sunday. Could he even see Tom as a threat?

The only risk Tom could see in apologizing to Keiji, was that it could stir the Hiromi Sato persona again. He still had a very tenuous hold on the body they both inhabited. Another jolt could send Tom over the edge.

As he neared the Negishi Bay apartment, Tom made a decision. He would think some more before supplicating himself before Keiji Watanabe. It may not be necessary even, especially if the Swan Song committee or Gabrielle made contact.

Chuck spoke up as Tom pulled the Fairlady into the parking garage. “Do you know what’s for dinner tonight?”

“No, but we’ll soon find out.”
 

~*~
 
While Teresa Wu, his date for the evening, was in the ladies room, Roger Hyde tried calling Guy Chadwick for the third time.

The former SAS Captain was home and after a minute of pleasant conversation with him, Roger got right down to business. “Guy, I am a little busy at present. Do you have some time available tomorrow morning to talk business with me?”

“All the time you could ask for. Would 11 a.m. be a good time?"

“Yes, it is. Talk to you then.”
 

~*~
 
Tom had a quiet evening with Chuck that night. He claimed to be tired, in addition to needing to get up at 5 a.m. the next morning. The couple therefore went to bed at 9:30 without making love.

The sound of the bedside phone beginning to ring at 2:43 in the morning was like a jolt of electricity to Tom. He had been in a deep sleep and dreaming of Gabrielle Tanaka when his eyes were forced to open.

By the time Tom had cleared his head of cobwebs, the answering machine had picked up the call. Tom grabbed the phone before the caller hung up.

“Sato-san, please forgive me for calling at such an unpleasant hour,” said the voice of Ryoji Ishii.

“Why are you calling?”

“It is about today’s meeting. Tokuro Inagawa has called it off.””¨

Tom immediately sat up in bed. “Did he give a reason?”

“No, Sato-san, he did not.”

“Is the deal still on?”

“Yes, Sato-san, it is. At the terms we originally discussed.”

Tom didn’t say anything. Why had Tokuro Inagawa first insist on re-negotiating a deal and this causing whirlwind preparations to be made to discuss the matter, only to reverse directions again and say the deal was fine?

It made no sense, unless Tokuro was playing mind games with Tom. Was the cancellation something innocent or were they part of some sinister ploy directed at the Watanabe Yakuza and perhaps Hiromi Sato herself?

The Inagawa-kai, because of their dominance of Tokyo, felt they were the most powerful of all the Yakuzas. They were also notoriously jealous of the Watanabe control of the Port of Yokohama. Their discomfort over others having even the slightest influence over their affairs, and the envy they had because of the Watanabe control of Japan’s largest port, always made for shaky relations and distrust.

“All right, Ryoji-san. Thank you for calling.”

Tom tried to go back to sleep but it wasn’t going to be easy because he now felt like he was being squeezed in multiple directions. The sudden cancellation of the meeting troubled him. Were the Inagawa-kai about to start another war with the Watanabes?

If Inagawas had war in mind, Tom would be in great peril. Would he be able to save himself? Or could anyone from Operation Swan Song save the two of them, both Tom and his husband?
 

~*~
 
To be continued in Part Fourteen