“I agree with you, Audrey-san. Ripley should not be prosecuted, but it is not my decision.”
“Minister Hatoyama is calling the shots?”
Kazu Ippitsusai remained silent. He had said too much already.
“Are you telling me Japan’s Prime Minister is behind it?”
“I cannot say, Audrey-san.”
 |
Synopsis- Chuck and Hiromi have arrived safely in Australia, so Hiromi made her promised confession to him. It didn't go well, and Chuck became angry about being fooled by Swan Song and by his wife. He's run off home to try and help the original Hiromi, to whom he still feels loyalty, because he's never been sure that the old and the new weren't one and the same person. In order to help Hiromi’s legal defense, Gabrielle has given a affidavit that's almost sure to get her in hot water with almost everyone else at Pine Gap.
Thank you to Puddin for all her help preparing this story chapter for publication.
Grant Williamson and Robert Mueller discussed Agent Ripley’s Swan Song presentation as they travelled to their Alice Springs hotel.
“What are we going to do about Chuck McBride? He could blow Swan Song.”
Robert was a little testy with Grant, maybe due to the jet lag he was suffering. “I know that, Grant. Tomorrow, I want you to speak to the Australians. Ask them if they can put McBride under surveillance, including a tap on any phones he or his mother have if possible.”
“Superintendant Carey should be able to help.”
“Grant, do it by the book. I don’t want to hear any more complaints from our Swan Song allies.”
“Yes, Director, by the book.”
“Do not keep me waiting,” Keiji Watanabe called out to his cook/housekeeper. “You know what can happen if you refuse me.”
Riko Watanabe sheepishly walked towards Keiji’s bed. If she did not comply with the elderly Oyabun’s demands for sex, her husband or children could be killed.
Keiji had felt unusually energetic all day long. For that reason, and ignoring the fact he had barely able to walk two days earlier, Keiji still thought the doctors were wrong about him having prostate cancer.
‘I will prove it by having sex with this useless woman,’ Keiji thought to himself as Riko slid her naked body into bed alongside him.
Riko immediately laid flat on her back. She was trapped and losing hope with every passing day. As Keiji penetrated her, she asked herself one more time when would her torture end.
People heading to Yokohama’s main train station late Sunday night, were greatly inconvenienced. Due to the fire at The Rosebud, a six-block area had been cordoned off and as a result, drivers had to find another way to the transportation hub. The only people allowed closer to the burnt out nightclub were emergency workers and credentialed members of the news media.
The first reporter got to crime scene less than five minutes after ambulances began arriving A string of barricades manned by policemen kept reporters approximately one-hundred feet from The Rosebud.
“Can you tell us how the fire started? Who owned this club? How many people were killed?” The first reporters on the scene asked members of the Yokohama police. No answers were given to any of the questions.
The reporters began seeking out people who survived the fire. These people were being kept far away from the media. In part so they could grieve and receive medical treatment if necessary, partly so the police could question them first.
When media members learned information would be slow in coming, they naturally began talking among themselves. All of them knew about the war between the Watanabes and Inagawa-kai.
“This is a Yakuza owned club,” Said a reporter from the Kanagawa Shimbun.
“Are you sure?” A radio news reporter asked.
“I am ninety percent certain.”
“If you’re right, the squabble between these gangs has gotten out of control. The police will have to take action.”
Back at the outer perimeter, a woman in her twenties was pushing her way forward. “Let me through. Let me through.”
“Are you a news reporter? Otherwise I can’t let you go further,” Said a patrolman named Takenao Shibaguchi who was working the outer perimeter.
“I am a reporter for the Miura Sun. Please let me through.”
“Where is your media card?”
“I left it at home by accident. My editor called me and I ran out without it. Please, let me through. Otherwise I will get in trouble with my editor.”
Takenao was in a quandary. He had a boss too, Sergeant Matsuzawa, who may become angry if people under his command did not obey his order.
On the other hand the woman looked like a reporter. A notepad and pen were sticking out of her handbag. Takenao decided to let the woman through.
“Thank you,” Watanabe Yakuza member Tsuki Toni said to Takenao as she stepped around the barricade. As soon as she was clear, Tsuki ran in the direction of the Rosebud.
Tsuki wasn’t allowed around the second barricade. She instead hovered close to the real reporters, hoping this would allow her to gather information.
Akira Sudo had been the first Watanabe not present at the club to learn of the Rosebud fire. He tried calling Katsuaki Koike on his cell phone, but only got his voice mail. Phone calls to known associates of his were equally fruitless.
Since he was a long ways off from the club, Akira called up Tsuki. She was an eager hardworking Yakuza who was just coming off a shift working as one of the listeners at the home Keiji Watanabe was living at.
“Sudo-san, I must thank you for allowing me this opportunity to assist you and Tiger. I will call you as soon as I learn the information you are seeking.”
“Don’t call me, Tsuki-san. Come to Tiger-san’s home instead when you are finished. We look forward to hearing what you learn.”
Like the real reporters at the inner barricade, Tsuki only heard rumors about what happened that night. The members of the media were talking endlessly but she mostly kept to herself. Tsuki did not want to draw suspicion on herself that she did not belong there.
A police spokesman came to barricade shortly after ten, “A fire took place tonight at a club called ‘The Rosebud.’ I regret to report there were deaths involved,”
Tsuki listened to the official statement. Like the real reporters, she didn’t wait for the spokesman to stop talking before trying to ask some questions.
The spokesman was tight lipped. “Nine bodies have been recovered so far. A few of which have been identified but no names will be released as yet. Next of kin are still being notified.”
One of the tasks given to Tsuki by Akira, was to try raising contact with any Watanabe Yakuza who were at the club. One of Katsuaki’s men had called in to inform the shareigashira of the fire but the call ended abruptly for some unknown reason.
“Can we speak to some of the survivors?”
“They are getting medical aid right now. We may make them available to you later.”
“I have a deadline. Can you please help me?”
“Sorry, we cannot do what you ask at this time.”
Tsuki, unable to gather more information, decided around midnight that it was time for her to report in to Akira and Tiger. Before she left, Tsuki overheard an exchange between two newspaper reporters.
“You won’t believe the rumor I just heard.”
“What is it, Tarumi-san?”
“The singer Raku Minobe, she died here tonight.”
Gabrielle really enjoyed washing Hiromi in the shower. Sometimes she giggled like a schoolgirl because of what she was doing. It was like having her first sexual encounter all over again.
Hiromi on the other hand was keeping up a serious front. Gabrielle didn’t fail to note how tense her friend was. She wondered how long that state would last.
“I really like your breasts,” Gabrielle said as she gently washed them.
“Thanks, Gabby.”
“Chuck was right. Big breasts look good on you.”
Hiromi instantly frowned at what her friend said. Gabrielle saw this and immediately stopped washing Becky’s breasts.
“What’s wrong?”
“Chuck,” Hiromi said as tears began forming in her eyes. “He won’t be coming back, will he?”
Gabrielle hugged Hiromi really tight. She was really crying hard now. “Becky, it’s all right to cry. I’m here for you.”
Hiromi and Gabrielle were right under the shower head by now. The water was spraying down on them.
Gabrielle gave Hiromi a kiss. She understood why she was being so emotional now. Becky had been keeping her feelings of loss buried inside herself for over a day. Now she was letting go.
“Chuck might come back. I’d even bet on it. Once he learns you’re pregnant, Chuck will come running back. He’ll want to spoil you and ask if his little sports car would like to go for a ride again.”
“You really think so?” Hiromi asked Gabby as she looked her right in the eye.
“Yes, I think so. Chuck wanted to be a father,” Gabrielle said as she kissed Hiromi’s forehead.
“I might not be pregnant.”
“No way, you’re not pregnant. I saw that hot dog you ate today. That’s some pregnancy craving you were having,” Gabrielle said with a slight laugh which elicited a slight smile in return from Hiromi.
“I almost had another one at dinner time.”
Gabrielle hugged Hiromi extra tight. “See, I’m right about you being pregnant. I think I’m right about Chuck too. So don’t give up hope. I love you very much. Your parents love you very much. We’re here for you now.”
“Thank you, Gabby, and I also love you.”
“I love you too, Becky.” Hiromi said to Gabrielle. The two women then shared a passionate kiss.
As they dried themselves off after showering, Gabrielle told Becky about Owl. “Do you remember how Emiko Takagi died?”
“Yes, Gabby, I do. She suffered a stroke and died about five days later. Why do you ask?”
“If you remember, the committee was really impatient as she lay in the hospital. There was a possibility the operation might be delayed or even cancelled.”
“I remember all of that. Plus my wanting to get drunk one night because I feared my gender might have been changed permanently for no good reason.”
Gabrielle laughed. “I remember that too and haven’t things changed more than a little since then.” Hiromi grinned slightly but didn’t say a word. “In the first couple of weeks after you took Hiromi Sato’s place, I came into possession of emails I wasn’t supposed to receive. Grant Williamson, Inspector Yoshida, Major Hollins, and others conspired to have Emiko Takagi murdered.”
Hiromi’s incredulity was so complete, she struggled when trying to say her next words. “I can’t…..You know…..Gabby that is insane.”
“Tell me about it, Becky. Some of the people we’re both working with are so impatient and so concerned with their career advancement, they are willing to kill innocent people.”
“Swan Song isn’t worth it if I’m working for scumbags.”
“No Becky, don’t think like that. The changes you hope to achieve if Swan Song is extended would be a very worthy accomplishment.”
“Does the FBI Director or Grant Williamson know you have knowledge about what was done to Emiko Takagi?”
“Becky, if Grant and The Director don’t know now, they will by morning. I sent all senior Swan Song members a copy of my affidavit on that subject and some other Swan Song matters.”
“Gabby, you know this will end your FBI career. You may not even be able to work in law enforcement again.”
“Becky, I don’t care one iota about all that. Right now the only thing I care about is protecting you.”
Tears began to form in Hiromi’s eyes again. “You love me that much?”
“Yes, Becky, I do,” Gabrielle said to Hiromi as she held her hand. “I’m doing it because you’re my best friend. Chuck is your husband, your place is with him if he still wants you. I’m not trying to destroy that.”
“The last thing I want to do is you hurt you, Gabby.”
“Becky, you will never hurt my feelings. I will be very happy if that dream of living with Chuck on a farm with a bunch of children and horses comes true for you.”
“I’d like you to be part of the dream too, Gabby. Would you come live with us if Chuck and I both asked?”
Gabrielle laughed slightly. “Yes, Becky, I would, but not before Chuck and I got a few things straight. I won’t do what you’re doing for him.”
“Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it, Gabby.” She grinned at her and wriggled her hips. “He made Tom Slater into a mostly heterosexual woman, and I can assure you that Tom had no such inclinations before they met. That’s because he is so kind and gentle. Once he takes you for a ride, you won’t want Chuck to stop.”
Gabrielle couldn’t believe what she was hearing, and what she could be letting herself in for, but kept all her reservations to herself. “We’ll figure everything out when the time comes.”
Hiromi changed topics. “What is going to be done with the real Hiromi?”
“I’m not sure, Becky.
“She should be put in witness protection,” Hiromi said firmly. “I may say something about it to the committee. That’s if Chuck doesn’t blow Swan Song to smithereens first.”
“Chuck might do that?”
“I don’t know, but he won’t stand by and do nothing as the real Hiromi is kept in prison. Say you’re right about Chuck, that he will come back to me, but he’d probably only do that under the condition that Hiromi is treated fairly. He knows that Hiromi was involved in organized crime, and he’s a realist. If she has to spend time in prison, he could accept that, but he might also argue that she had acted under duress, and you know what the Watanabes are capable of when anyone ‘betrays’ them, Gabby. My own direct involvement in my friend Reina’s murder, and my failure to report the murder of the guard -- and the very likely off-stage murders of the two prostitutes -- were both under the implied threat of death if I failed to act as the ‘family’ required. Plus, the real Hiromi was crazy. I know, because I was inside her head during my fugue. The Watanabes -- my grandfather mostly -- made her crazy through their cruelty, and I agree completely with what my husband will try to do to help her. I want to help her too. Whatever her feelings for Chuck may have been before I took her place, and however much she’d been involved in the Yakuza business, she was the one who made it possible for us to meet, and I owe her.”
“Becky, I don’t know if I can do anything about Hiromi. I will try for you and Chuck.”
“Thank you, Gabby. That is all I ask of you.”
Ӭ
When they were through talking about Swan Song, Hiromi and Gabrielle went to bed together. They were both very tired as Gabrielle took a babydoll nightie from her purse and slipped it over her head.
“You came prepared?” Hiromi asked Gabrielle as she fixed her pillow.
“I don’t really like to sleep naked. If you want….” Gabrielle was being flexible with Becky, just like she’d been in Hong Kong.
Gabrielle was really coming to understand her friend that night. Hiromi had to be hardworking and strong during the day. At night she needed someone to comfort and love her. That’s why Hiromi went to pieces in the shower. She had to, so she could be strong again tomorrow when doing her Swan Song work.
“No, Gabby, your nightgown is fine with me.”
When they were through settling into bed, Gabrielle tried to kiss Becky.
Hiromi backed away from her kiss.
“Is there something wrong?” Gabrielle asked. She already noticed how Becky’s emotions swung wildly sometimes. Pregnant women due to high hormone levels were sometimes like that, and there was also the absence of Chuck to consider.
“I was thinking of Chuck again. He’s my husband and I betrayed him, and now I’m going to sleep with you.”
Gabrielle was patient with Becky. Her kiss wasn’t meant to be a signal she’d wanted to have sex again like they had in Hong Kong. In fact, she didn’t. The whole situation was too up in the air, and her own worry about Becky was too overwhelming. “Becky, I know you’re worried. I’m worried too, about you as well as Chuck. All I wanted to do is kiss you before going to sleep. When Chuck comes back, I’m sure he will be more than all right with me being here with you now. He let you see me in Hong Kong.”
“You’re probably right, Gabby.” Hiromi and Gabrielle then kissed her. “Thank you for being here with me.”
“You’re welcome, Becky. I love you very much. Can I hold you while we both try going to sleep?
“Yes, Gabby, I’d like that.” Hiromi turned her body till she was laying on her left side, then snuggled back against her in a spoon position.
Gabrielle then repositioned her arms to hold her close and leaned her head against the graceful curve of her neck and shoulder, inhaling her special scent. Was it different from their night together in Hong Kong? She wasn’t wearing the same perfume, but was there something else? Was Becky pregnant now? What would that mean for whatever their relationship was now? She didn’t know whether to be happy for her friend and one-time lover, or anxious because of the uncertainty. She had to make do with another snuggle into her neck, trying to memorize this moment now.
“That feels just right, Gabby,” Hiromi said to Gabrielle, after she was enveloped in her lover’s arms. “Good night.”
Audrey Grasso was still awake. She had just finished reading the affidavit given by Gabrielle Tanaka.
‘They killed an elderly woman in her hospital room,’ Audrey thought, while shaking her head. ‘I have to see Tanaka in the morning and get copies of those emails.’
Agent Tanaka may not be able to help Audrey immediately. Her FBI superiors would likely tell her not to cooperate with the JAG attorney. The solution to that would be the pre-trial discovery process in the days leading up to Captain Slater’s murder trial. The highly incriminating emails would have to be turned over to Audrey eventually, but she knew from experience that the prosecution would likely try to delay that until she went through the motions.
One murder didn’t cancel another out, but the potential revelation of what other Swan Song members -- evidently acting under official orders -- had done to Emiko Takagi may just cause that to happen. If not, a major scandal would rock both Japan and the United States in the months ahead. Audrey Grasso would have to report the crime to the proper law enforcement authorities, not just as part of the defense of Captain Slater, but also because of her responsibilities as an officer of the court.
Audrey wouldn’t immediately confront the Swan Song committee with what she had learned. The JAG attorney needed to compose a well thought-out legal strategy first.
While reading Gabrielle’s affidavit, Audrey had written some notes to herself, cataloguing both potential legal problems for her client and making note of all the weaknesses she’d already seen in the legal theories available to the prosecution. She reviewed and revised these till it was almost midnight. Then the JAG attorney turned off the lights in her room and went to sleep.
Tsuki Tono arrived at Dai Hashimoto’s home shortly after midnight. Akira and Dai were waiting for her.
“The police were not very forthcoming with information, Tiger-san. What I just told you is all I could learn,” Tsuki said as she concluded her report.
“You did good work, Tsuki-san,” Dai said.
“Did we lose anyone in the fire?”
“I’m afraid so. Katsuaki-san was one of those who perished.” While Tsuki was trying to learn something from the police, Dai had gotten a phone call from one of Katsuaki Koike’s men. It was to tell Dai that the shareigashira had died in the blaze.
Other people who had perished in the fire included Katsuaki’s brother-in-law, Brian Taylor plus his parents. The rumor about Raku Minobe dying was also true.
“That will be a great loss to the family. I never worked for Katsuaki-san but I had heard great things about him.”
Akira spoke up. “Thank you for doing the work I requested of you. You may go now, Tsuki-san.”
“Are we sure the Inagawas are responsible for the fire?” Akira asked Dai right after Tsuki left them.
“There is no question it was the Inagawa-kai who caused the fire.” Dai knew he would begin to feel the loss of Katsuaki Koike very quickly. He was the most able Watanabe shareigashira and very wise. Dai had always put great store in Katsuaki’s advice.
“The fighting has to end.”
Dai nodded his head. The cost of the war with the Inagawas had spiked beyond anyone’s estimates that night. Should even worse losses happen, the Watanabe Yakuza could face financial collapse.
The responsibilities of being Oyabun weighed heavier on Dai than he had ever anticipated. He had hoped to count on the wisdom of both Katsuaki and Hiromi Sato, and maybe even Keiji Watanabe, as he began his new job. Katsuaki was now dead, Hiromi forced to live outside of Japan, and Keiji would be of little use due to his declining health and meddling behind the scenes.
Dai would only admit to himself that he was insufficiently prepared to be Oyabun. He now knew the Watanabes were in business more than the simple gang he’d been involved with since childhood, when he’d first stood lookout outside when the adults had gone inside to strong-arm a reluctant businessman. They were still engaged in illegal activities, but a business nevertheless. They’d made much more from Hiromi-san’s banking and investment activities than they had from everything else combined, if he understood the reports Hiromi had prepared before she left for Australia. In order to survive, a business needed the strongest possible management, and some of what Hiromi-san had been trying to tell him was starting to make sense.
The Watanabes didn’t have good management now, and it was Dai’s responsibility to make sure that it did -- even if he had to step aside -- for the good of the family. Dai, while strong at operations and enforcing discipline, was below average at business management and finance, and he was honest enough to admit it. Those were Hiromi Sato’s strongest skills, but she could also be tough when needed and rated very good or better when it came to operations and strategy. Dai could imagine an important role for himself, because his skills were still seen as necessary by the older generation he was increasingly a part of, but he needed someone like Hiromi-san by his side to handle the financial side that he couldn’t understand.
Dai also knew now that he had made a big strategic blunder when he authorized the killing of Hideki Inagawa. It had, been overkill and he realized that now. The assassination attempt on Hiromi was a call to action for the Watanabes, but Dai should have chosen a subtler form of retaliation against the Inagawas.
What Dai should have done was seek out Hiromi’s advice before acting. She was so wise, in addition to being clever with money. Hiromi-san may well have thought up a way of hurting the Inagawas financially. That would have sent a strong message to the Inagawa-kai: stay away from the internal affairs of the Watanabes, or their own profits would suffer.
Instead, a war was raging between the two Yakuzas and a way to end it -- without Dai and the Watanabes looking weak -- was not easily apparent. That was just another strong reason for Dai to get Hiromi Sato back to Japan. She still might able to bring the war to an end before even worse damage than the Rosebud fire took place.
It was late and Dai was exhausted. The next moves of the Watanabe Yakuza needed to be well thought out and carefully crafted, but his head hurt. “You can go now, Akira-san. We will talk again in the morning.”
People across Japan woke up Monday morning to learn a fire in Yokohama had taken the lives of thirty-one people, with another eight people listed in critical condition. Conflagrations with that large a casualty list were rare in Japan and therefore big news. When you factored in that one of Japan’s most beloved entertainers died in the blaze, the Rosebud fire became an even bigger news story.
All of the coverage on Monday morning was either via the internet or on television. In the latter case, it was the talk of every morning program across the country. Reporters and program hosts talked about what they loved most about Raku Minobe. One female co-anchor in Kyoto who had interviewed Raku exactly one week ago, broke down in tears when recalling her recent encounter with the singer.
There was nothing in Monday morning newspapers about Raku Minobe’s death. It wasn’t till the Japanese print media’s deadlines for publication had passed that law enforcement had confirmed the singer’s death.
Japan’s newspaper editors weren’t discouraged when they saw the blitz of news done by their competitors in the news business. Print reporters, partly out of arrogance, think they are the only media member who can cover a story in depth. In their eyes, Television and internet reporting was all gloss and little substance. The Japanese people were smarter than that and when Tuesday morning rolled around, they’d turn to newspapers like they had for years.
Before that could happen, editors and reporters would have to get to work quickly. With a new sun barely in the sky, newspaper reporters across the country were called at their homes. All were informed of Raku Minobe’s death if they weren’t aware of it already, then the men and women were told to report into their offices earlier than was their norm for a workday morning. The television “talking heads” might have their five or ten minutes in prime time, but digging deep for the details was what newspapers did for a living, and every major paper in Japan planned to have at least a front-page above-the-fold “splash” and a two-page interior spread available by three in the next day’s morning, as well as a column or two in the women’s section, and condensed updates on their web sites as teasers to make people buy the paper so they could read the full story.
When Hiromi woke up on Monday morning, she was surprised to find herself all alone in bed. At first she began to wonder where Chuck was but then mentally reminded herself of what had happened over the last two days.
Hiromi saw a light on in the outer room. Still naked, she got out of bed and went to find out what Gabrielle was up to.
“You’re up early?” Hiromi asked her friend.
Gabrielle turned away from her computer screen. Unlike Hiromi, she was fully dressed. “Hi, Becky, did you sleep well?”
Ӭ
“I can’t complain,” Hiromi said as she walked up to the pretty FBI agent and hugged her. After sharing a quick kiss, Hiromi pulled up a chair alongside Gabrielle. “What are you working on?”
Gabrielle first explained how she had woken up just after four. “I couldn’t go back to sleep, so I decided to get up and get some FBI work done. There’s coffee if you want.”
The Pine Gap “guest” room had a coffeemaker. She went and grabbed herself a cup, then returned to sitting alongside Gabrielle.
Hiromi had a sudden thought. “Should I be drinking this while I’m pregnant?”
“Becky, I honestly don’t know. Doctors have differing opinions on the subject. Some say moderation is all right, others prefer if their patients avoided all caffeinated drinks.”
Hiromi pushed her coffee cup away. Gabrielle gave it back to her.
“Until you see a OB/GYN, limit yourself to one cup in the morning and avoid all caffeinated sodas, because those sneak up on you, and they often add more caffeine to them than a full cup of expresso. There’s no sense making yourself crazy until you’ve talked to a doctor. Then you can go as crazy as you’d like, but I’ve never heard of any of my friends being told to eliminate coffee completely, only to cut down.”
“Thanks, Gabby, for thinking of me and the baby.” Hiromi suddenly had a thought. Assuming Chuck came back, would he support her desire to adopt Shannon? Chuck hadn’t said a word either positive or negative when his wife mentioned the topic.
After taking a small sip of coffee, Hiromi asked a question. “Gabby, what are you working on?”
“I am going to submit two reports to my FBI bosses today,” Gabrielle said as she took some pages out of a folder on the table in front of her. “This is the first one.”
Hiromi began reading about the various options the Swan Song committee had for getting Agent Ripley another helper should an extended Swan Song be approved. “The committee doesn’t have too many options.”
“No, Becky, I’m afraid we don’t.”
Hiromi read about the possible use of disgraced Army Major Ed Hollins. She let out a small laugh before commenting. “I think he would rather face a court-martial than have his gender changed even temporarily.”
“You’re probably right, Becky.” There were other problems with the Major Hollins option. For one thing, he was confined to his Yokota Air Base quarters while his Operation Firecracker-related legal problems were sorted out.
“How about the other men who were assisting Major Hollins?
Gabrielle nodded her head. “There was a Captain Higgins. I don’t know what his status is now, but I’ll check on it.”
Like his superior officer, Captain Higgins wasn’t being allowed to depart Japan and his duties had been strictly curtailed. The Swan Song committee hadn’t invited him to any of the Pine Gap teleconference calls.
“Dai and others will be very paranoid about my safety when I go back to Yokohama. It will be next to impossible for someone new to gain access to my inner circle.”
“I understand, Becky. How about the bank Hiromi owns?”
“You mean banks, Gabby. The employees at both Kanagawa and East China who have regular contact with me, total ten or less at each bank.”
“They’re mostly bank officers, like Vice-Presidents, am I right?”
“Yes, Gabby, you are. Don’t forget, I also have a secretary at both banks,” Hiromi said between sips of her coffee. “By the way, an East China branch is scheduled to open in Yokohama on September ninth. You can tell that to the committee but I’ll be damned if I can see an easy way of using that to get me an assistant. I‘d need someone with an accountancy background at least, and banking experience would be a huge plus. Neither Hollins nor Higgins seem likely to have been working as bank officers during their off hours.”
Gabrielle totally agreed with what Hiromi said. “I suppose the committee could always kidnap someone again but I’m limiting the report to lawful efforts.”
Another option would involve the Swan Song committee approaching Miriam Andrews. The drawbacks to that option were Miriam’s total unfamiliarity with Operation Swan Song plus her limited training as an agent. To work as a bodyguard was one thing, to do the same work and covertly communicate with outsiders was another.
“Roger might be possible. He has always come off as honest to me, and he’s a trained soldier. The committee might be able to approach Roger, but how that can be accomplished without tipping off the people who want to do harm to Hiromi Sato is beyond me.”
Gabrielle agreed with Becky’s assessment of Roger Hyde. “I’ll amend my report to include Roger also.”
Hiromi had another possibility for Gabrielle. “I have a bodyguard named Yuri Titov. Everything I said about Roger applies to Yuri too except he is in Russia at present. His mother was ill and Yuri flew home the other day. The committee may be able to safely approach him there.”
“What else can you tell me about Yuri?”
“He is in his late-forties, fought in Afghanistan against the Mujahideen as part of the Soviet Union’s special forces also known as Spetsnaz. Yuri came to work for the Watanabes at about the same time Hiromi began studying at Tokyo University. He’s worked as a bodyguard for her ever since, and Yuri also taught her super advanced defensive driving methods and how to recognize if someone or some people were tailing her.”
“I’ll include Yuri in the report also,” Gabrielle replied as she made notes on top of a folder.
“Yuri had a famous uncle too, Gherman Titov. He was a Soviet Cosmonaut and Yuri was immensely proud of him. Yuri seemed to like me, especially if I addressed him Yuri Alexandrovich,” Hiromi explained, “because using the formal patronymic is a respectful thing to do in Russian culture. If not for the actions of Yuri and the quick thinking of Kimo, I may not have survived the assassination attempt of two weeks ago.”
“Would Kimo be a possibility?”
“I don’t know all that much about Kimo. He only began working for Hiromi in early 2007. He’s in Japan right now. Kimo didn’t want to work in Hong Kong for some reason.”
Gabrielle asked herself a question as she continued writing notes based on what Hiromi was saying to her. ‘What am I forgetting?’
“Gabby, are you all right? You have looked very tired to me ever since we met at McDonald’s last Tuesday.”
“I just have lots of work that needs being done.” Gabrielle was exhausted. In the last two weeks she had averaged less than six hours sleep and her waking hours were full of ceaseless activity.
“Yes, and I have been giving you even more.”
“Becky, that isn’t a problem. I want to save your life.”
“After Pine Gap is done, why don’t you take some time off.”
“I already told Mom and Dad I would visit them this year either at Thanksgiving or Christmas.”
“Try to get a rest before then too. I love you.”
“I love you too, Becky.” Gabrielle was touched by Becky’s concern for her.
Hiromi’s eyes became very big as she read the last options. “Chuck or you…. I mean you as Chuck.”
“Becky, it’s just an idea.”
“Chuck is very easy going, but I don’t see him going for that idea and I wouldn’t blame him. There can’t be two of him around.”
“I agree, Becky, but that isn’t what I’m proposing. The second report that I’m working on is about putting the real Hiromi in witness protection like you suggested. Chuck is going to choose between you and her at some point, and I honestly still think Chuck will choose you, but say he doesn’t, then the Swan Song committee puts him and the real Hiromi in witness protection.”
“How is the real Hiromi doing?”
“I don’t know, Becky. While I’m here at Pine Gap, I’ll look into it.”
“You’re willing to become Chuck to help me?”
“Yes, Becky, I am. I’m willing to make sacrifices, big and small, to ensure you survive this Operation. You are so brave in wanting to extend Swan Song with everything else that’s going on right now.”
“You mean dumb, don’t you?” Hiromi asked with a nervous laugh.
“No, I really think you are incredibly brave, Becky Slater.”
“I love you, Gabby.” Hiromi and Gabrielle then kissed long and very passionately.
Gabrielle was the first to speak after the kiss ended. “I love you too, Becky.”
“You would really become a guy for me?”
Gabrielle didn’t have any curiosity about being the opposite sex. She was a woman and preferred to remain that way. “It would only be temporary, so I can help you with Swan Song. When that is over and finished, I’d go back to Dr. Wagner.”
“Gabby, you’re not forgetting the mental changes that Dr. Wagner’s formula can cause?”
“No, Becky, I’m not. I know there’s a risk but your need of help outweighs that.”
“When Swan Song is over, we would live together happily ever after?”
“Yes, Becky, if you let me be yours forever.”
Hiromi, who had just finished her coffee, glanced at a wall clock. “We'd better wrap this up. It is almost half past six.”
“When Chuck comes back, do you think he would be willing to help Swan Song?”
“Gabby, I don’t think Chuck is the person to do a Reina Shimizu-like part in Swan Song. He’s too honest, isn’t trained for the work, and if he is ever caught, it would doom both me and him. Reina was very careful and look what happened. She wasn’t caught because she made a mistake, but because a stupid guard got caught with whores, and brought down Reina with him as he fell.”
“Becky, you have some very good points there.”
“Chuck could be used for emergency messages, maybe, as a last resort before bailing. But that’s only if Chuck is willing. I’d keep any Swan Song role for Chuck as simple as possible.”
“You should know that Justice Minister Katoyama says that Japan is planning to arrest all the high-level Watanabes as a giant publicity stunt, although that’s not quite how he put it. All of what we just talked about could be moot, but Director Mueller gave orders for everyone to work as if Swan Song will continue.”
“That would be a disaster, Gabby, and you know it as well as I do. Most of them would skate, the Swan Song involvement will come out in the open, which would taint the government case against everyone! Hell, they could argue in court that the government ordered them to commit crimes, since I -- working for the government, and passing on orders as I was told to do -- was involved at some point in almost every bit of financial data I’ve passed on to Swan Song. How do they think I got it? Plus, the Inagawa-kaí, who are much more vicious than the Watanabes, would take over Yokohama during the confusion, collapsing the existing balance of power into one super-Yakuza nightmare in the entire southern region of Greater Tokyo. Don’t those idiots have the slightest clue!? Is there a Grant Williamson clone at the head of every government department in the world?”
Gabby grimaced. “It seems like it, some days, but that’s just the beginning. The committee is still concerned about the continuing influence of Keiji Watanabe. They believe, and I concur, that he’s behind the assassination attempts on you, and will try again unless he’s ‘neutralized.’ You know what that means, in the quaint euphemisms they like to use.”
“I do. I told Swan Song about the bomb, and I’m sure you did as well, but I also told them that the Triads were officially ‘troubled’ by the intrusion of Watanbe ‘troubles’ into their territory. They apologized very delicately, but I had the distinct impression that they’d prefer to see the matter handled ‘internally.’ If I’m free, I could talk to Dai about this, since he knows about the problems with Keiji. I agree with Swan Song’s assessment, and I believe Dai will concur, however reluctantly. There have been Oyabuns killed before, and Keiji should have honorably committed suicide or officially retired as soon as he became incapable of real leadership, so this situation is in large part his ‘fault,’ through his own weakness and indecision, which demonstrated our vulnerability to the Inagawas. Even Dai will be able to see this and justify it to the others at his former level, once it’s explained to him carefully. Keiji will be given the opportunity to rectify the matter personally, as a matter of respect, but the situation will be handled. I won’t put Chuck at risk, nor our baby, for anything. In that sense, I don’t care what sort of mess the Japanese authorities make of things, as long as my baby, Chuck, and you are safe.”
“I feel the same way, Becky. I don’t care whether my career is left in shambles or not anymore. I used to think it would matter a lot, but your idea of living the simple life on a ranch is starting to look like the only truly sane ambition among the lot of us.”
“Thank you for saying that, Gabby.”
“You’re welcome, Becky. You know I love you. If I or the Swan Song committee can’t come up with a plan, Swan Song will be terminated and you and Chuck will be safe. Will that bother you?”
“No, Gabby, it won’t. I’ll do whatever I’m ordered to do, even if the order is cast as a vague ‘suggestion,’ like it was with Swan Song. I’m not a hero, Gabby, I want to be a wife and mother first, then maybe an accountant, and definitely not some sort of female James Bond super-spy with a license to kill. I’m just here because I have a hard time saying no when my country asks me to do something, however ill-advised it seems to have been in retrospect. Hell, I was a soldier, and still am until officially separated from the service; it’s our job to take care of cleaning up after diplomatic blunders and, in the USA at least, not usually the result of villainous plots to take over the world.”
“And in the meantime, the light of day is sweet, and it’s a pleasant thing to stand in the warm sun.”
“Exactly.” She smiled.
Sadao Koba reported for work at six on Monday morning. The young Yakuza was still assigned to one of the rotating listener details working at the temporary home of Keiji Watanabe.
“Did anything interesting take place last night?” Sadao asked a Watanabe Yakuza named Tsutomu Kusatsu.
“Not really, Sadao-san. Most of what we heard constituted snoring and other sounds made when one is asleep. By the way is the Oyabun still married?”
“No, he was recently widowed. Why do you ask?”
“Before going to sleep, he screwed the cook that works for him. I got the distinct impression she didn’t like it.”
The two Yakuzas traded places a minute later. The next time Sadao spoke to Akira Sudo, he planned to mention what Tsutomo had told him. It was most likely inconsequential, but Sadao would let someone more important than he in the Watanabe Yakuza make that decision.
Gabrielle and the Slaters began having breakfast together shortly before half past seven. As families do, they talked about their plans for the day.
“Don’t you worry about us, dear. Your father and I will keep busy.”
“That’s good, Mom. I am sorry about not being able to spend more time with you and Dad.”
“We know you’re busy, Rebecca. Your father and I cherish any time you are allowed to be with us.”
The cafeteria had a television in it and CNN International was currently on. Since the volume was turned down low, few people paid any attention to it.
“Mom, what did you and Dad do last night?”
Stuart fielded Rebecca’s question. “Your mother spent a long time on the computer that you gave her. I read a book or watched television.”
“Gabrielle, did you call your Mom yet?”
“No, Mom, I haven’t,” Gabrielle said as she looked across the cafeteria. Scott Avery had just come in and had nodded his head in Gabrielle’s direction. In the meantime Hiromi and Stuart began talking politics and sports.
Midori stood up soon afterwards. “I am going back to the room. Rebecca, can you and Gabrielle come by before beginning work?”
“Yes, Mom, we can.”
Gabrielle was next to excuse herself. “Becky, I have to check on something. I’ll meet you at Mom and Dad’s room in ten to fifteen minutes.”
“All right, Gabby. Talk to you then.”
Gabrielle went back to her room. Just inside the door were two manila envelopes. Scott had come through for her and Becky. He had printed off all thirty-one emails belonging to Grant Williamson that made mention of either Owl or Emiko Takagi.
Gabrielle only had enough time to glance at a dozen or so of the messages. Of those, at least three were highly incriminating against Grant Williamson and other Swan Song officials.
Gabrielle also saw that none of those emails were addressed to the FBI Director. Grant Williamson had really stuck his own neck out when issuing the order to terminate Owl, but the director’s hands seemed to be clean, at least in the paper trail.
She put the emails back in the envelopes they came in. Gabrielle’s room had a miniature safe, and that was where she placed the documents. After making sure the safe was locked, Gabrielle left her quarters.
Hiromi got to her parent’s room first. When she and her father arrived, they found Midori online and talking with Chiyo Tanaka via Skype.
“Where is Gabrielle?” Midori asked.
“She’ll be here in few minutes. Is that Gabrielle’s mother?”
“Yes it is. You should say hello to her,” Midori said at almost the exact same moment Gabrielle walked into the room.
“Gabby, your Mom is on Skype.”
Gabrielle bent downward till her face came into view of the webcam. “Hello, Mom, how are you?”
“I am well, Gabrielle, how about yourself?”
While Gabrielle was talking with her mother, Midori Slater was pushing a second chair close to the desk on which the laptop was placed.
“Mom, how is Shannon doing?” Gabrielle asked as she sat herself down in one of the chairs.
“Shannon and your father are playing on the living room floor.”
“That’s good, Mom. Thank you again for taking care of Shannon.”
“You’re welcome, Gabrielle. Shannon is a delightful boy.”
Midori spoke to Hiromi. “Sit down, you should speak to Gabrielle’s Mom too.”
Hiromi did as her mother said.
Gabrielle moved over so her best friend could also say hello to her parents.
“Hi.”
“That’s Rebecca, Mom,” Gabrielle said as she leaned her head back in the direction of the webcam. By doing this, Hiromi and Gabrielle’s faces totally filled the computer screen in Astoria Oregon.
“Hello, Rebecca,” Chiyo Tanaka said. The story told to her days earlier by her daughter and the Slaters had become very real to her. “You are working with Gabrielle?”
“Yes, I am,” Hiromi said as her and Gabrielle’s faces touched again.
Before reporting to work at Watanabe Trucking on Monday morning, Ryuku Kinjoh made a detour to Dai Hashimoto’s home. He had very precise instructions for a phone call he wanted Ryuku to make.
Both of Hiromi’s long-time secretaries, Aki and Suki, were already working when Ryuku arrived. They brought their new Taro phone messages and tea.
“Thank you for bringing these to me,” Ryuku replied as settled in behind her desk. “Did you both have a good weekend?”
“Yes, Taro-san, I did,” Aki replied.
“Suki, I am very sorry to hear of what happened to your brother’s wife and baby.”
“Thank you Taro-san. Is there anything I or Aki can get for you now?”
“No there is nothing I need now.” Aki and Suki immediately left the room.
Ryuku took a disposable cell phone out of her purse. She carefully entered into it the number she had for Hiromi. After five successive rings came and went without an answer, a generic voice mail message followed.
“After the beep you may record a message.”
Dai began speaking as soon as the beep concluded. “Hiromi-san, it is Ryuku and please forgive my intrusion. I hope you and Chuck are enjoying yourselves. There are a few matters I need to speak to you about when you have time. Can you please text message me with the best time for me to call?”
“It has been nice talking,” Hiromi said to Chiyo Tanaka. “Thank you for taking care of Shannon for me. When my present work is finished, I’m going to be Shannon’s mother.”
“Goodbye, Rebecca. I look forward to us meeting one day.”
Gabrielle spoke next. “I got to go too, Mom. We will talk again no later than Tuesday your time, I promise.”
Hiromi went straight from her parent’s room to where her debriefing was to take place. Four people, three men and one woman, were in the room already. One of them came forward and introduced himself.
“Agent Ripley,” Said a barrel-chested man whose voice had a deep South Texas twang to it. “My name is Fred Wenz. I will be one of the persons asking questions of you the next few days. I hope you got a good night’s sleep.”
Hiromi allowed Fred to take her right hand. He was very gentle with it. “Yes, Sir, I did. I am ready to be debriefed as soon as you are. Has my lawyer been notified of this meeting?”
“Yes the Major was told and I had a good talk with her this morning. She’ll be joining us eventually. The first matters we’ll be asking you about, Capatin, is the structure of the Watanabe empire and the personalities involved. If you will you need Major Grasso, you can stop the debriefing at once. Captain, we can also delay the debriefing till the Major is here. It is your choice.”
Hiromi thought for a few moments. “We can get started now.”
Robert Mueller’s day-to-day FBI work didn’t suddenly disappear while he saw to Operation Swan Song matters. It was because of his other duties that Robert didn’t get around to reading Gabrielle Tanaka’s affidavit till Monday.
“Grant, what the fuck have you done?” Robert asked as he and The Deputy FBI Director rode together in a limousine that was taking them from their Alice Springs hotel to Pine Gap.
“What are you referring to, Director?” Grant asked defensively.
“I’m talking about Owl, of course! According to a sworn affidavit given by Agent Tanaka, a First Lieutenant DW Walters, on orders given to him by the Swan committee last July, which I will remind you was under your chairmanship at the time, murdered one Emiko Takagi.”
‘That backstabbing Tanaka bitch! She is going to be the death of me yet.’ Grant thought as he struggled to answer Robert Mueller’s question.
“Grant, will you answer my question?” Robert asked impatiently.
‘I've got to do something about Tanaka,” Grant thought to himself “Sir, the committee and I were facing a set deadline for the switch of Agent Ripley and Hiromi Sato. Ms. Takagi suffered a massive stroke less than a week before it was to go down.”
“Emiko Takagi was Sato’s Aunt?”
“Yes, she was. Every year Hiromi Sato would return to Hokkaido and visit her Aunt during the time of the Bon festival. The committee planned to snatch Beancounter during her yearly visit back to Kushiro.” Beancounter was the Swan Song code name for the genuine Hiromi Sato.”
“The stroke suffered by Owl was massive but she was holding on to life. Beancounter went to be at her side. She didn’t leave the hospital at all while her Aunt was still alive.”
“You spoke to her doctors, I suppose.”
“Yes, Director, I did. They all said Owl could cling to life for an extended period of time. Her major organs were all strong.”
“So you made the decision to have Emiko Takagi poisoned?
When Grant got time, he was going to find out how Gabrielle Tanaka learned of Owl. “Sir I didn’t make the decision on my own. I did it after consulting with other Swan Song members. Major Hollins thought it was a good idea. Owl was brain dead and going to die was the argument he and others made. The Japanese Swan Song members agreed and signed off on the decision to kill her.”
“Grant, do you understand that you, Major Hollins, Lieutenant Walters, and the Japanese officials all committed murder?”
“Sir, we thought we were doing the right thing at the time.”
Robert shook his head again. “Agent Tanaka was left out of the loop?”
Grant was honest. Director Mueller would find out the truth soon enough. “Yes, she was. I don’t know how she came to learn about Owl.”
Robert planned on having a word with Gabrielle Tanaka. She had been derelict in her FBI duties by not reporting to him earlier on what had been done to Emiko Takagi.
“It doesn’t matter, Grant. Do you have a clue as to the difficult position you have put me and the Bureau in? You have involved not just yourself, but our country’s military and the Bureau in the thick of cold-blooded murder. Not to mention your getting high ranked Japanese officials and law enforcement involved in it. It is going to be almost impossible to keep a lid on this. Especially if the Japanese insist on prosecuting Ripley, though frankly I can’t see how they can do it now. If what happens to Owl goes public, the current government in Tokyo may collapse as a result.”
Grant said nothing to Robert Mueller. To say he was sorry wouldn’t change anything.
“When we get to Pine Gap, I’m going to ask for another meeting with Minister Hatoyama. Tanaka sent him the affidavit also. You'd better pray, Grant, that he doesn’t have plans to arrest you too.”
Grant received a email on his PDA as he and Robert arrived at Pine Gap. “Director, I just got word from Superintendant Carey. After some legalities are taken care of first, Charles McBride will be put under surveillance as you asked. It will begin sometime this afternoon.”
“Please thank Superintendant Carey personally for me, Grant.” Robert continued to give Grant Williamson Swan Song orders, but he had no intention of letting that sorry state of affairs go on much longer. He needed to install someone who still had the brains he was born with if they were going to come out of this with their own cojones intact.
Chuck McBride began calling attorneys shortly nine on Monday morning. His first attempt at making someone believe his and the real Hiromi’s story was no more successful than his talks with journalists had been the day before.
Patricia McBride had a suggestion for her son. “Why don’t you call McKenzie Smith? He used to be your Grandfather’s solicitor.”
“Thank you, Mum. I will try calling him next.” With the help of Google, Chuck had the solicitor’s phone number less than a half minute later.
“Smith, Dobbins, and Smith. How may I direct your phone call?”
“My name is Charles McBride. I’d like to speak to McKenzie Smith about a legal matter.”
“May I ask what type of legal matter?”
“It is one involving me and my wife. It is rather complicated.”
Unbeknownst to Chuck, the receptionist nodded her head. It sounded like a divorce proceeding and Smith, Dobbins, and Smith did perform that type of legal work. “Yes we may be able to help you, Mr. McBride. Has Smith, Dobbins, and Smith, ever represented you before?”
“No, but my late Grandfather’s legal affairs were handled by McKenzie Smith.”
“That would probably be McKenzie Sr. May I ask what your Grandfather’s name was?”
“Charles Hughes.”
“Can you hold for one minute?” The receptionist asked Chuck. She wanted to check the firm’s computer records. Chuck said of course he could wait.
The receptionist was back on the line in half a minute. “Thank you for holding, Mr. McBride. My records show that it was McKenzie Sr. who handled the estate of your Grandfather in 2005.”
“Yes, that is right. My Grandfather died a few days before Christmas 2004.”
“I have to inform you Mr. McBride that McKenzie Sr. is in semi-retirement now. He still comes to the office but only intermittently. Would you like to speak to his son?”
“Yes, if you can arrange that for me.” Chuck was again put on hold. His wait lasted for almost five minutes this time around.
“Mr. McBride, are you still there?” McKenzie Smith Jr. asked when he finally came on the phone.
“Yes I am.”
“I am McKenzie Smith Jr. You have a legal matter concerning your wife you wish to speak to me about?”
“Yes I do.”
“I have an opening at half past two this afternoon. Can you make it?” It was Chuck’s lucky day. McKenzie Smith Jr’s appointment calendar had been booked solid for two weeks till a client cancelled his Monday appointment with the solicitor.
“Yes, sir, I can but I think you should know this is a very unusual matter.”
“We can talk about it at your appointment, Mr. McBride. Sorry but I’m in a rush right now. Please arrive at my office a half hour early. You must fill out some forms and answer a questionnaire. I will talk to you at half past two. Good day for now.” McKenzie Smith immediately hung up the phone.
After she was through talking to her mother, Gabrielle went straight to one of the large rooms set up for Swan Song work. A computer work station was waiting for her.
“Good morning, Agent Tanaka,” Said Inspector Yoshida as settled into a work station adjacent to Gabrielle’s. The Yokohama policeman unsurprisingly had a cup of coffee with him. “I trust you slept well last night.”
“My sleep was short but pleasant,” Gabrielle replied. She hadn’t forgotten how tightly Becky was hugging her when she woke up.
The ‘Find Ripley a helper’ report, as Gabrielle had termed the document she was writing, was in need of polishing plus amendments based on what Becky had suggested. She worked on that important task for almost a half hour before a nearby conversation broke her conversation.
“There was a big fire in Yokohama last night.”
Gabrielle immediately stopped working on the report and went to visit a Japan news website. The Rosebud fire and the death of Raku Minobe were prominently featured.
‘That is absolutely horrible but is it related to the Watanabes?’ Gabrielle asked herself as she finished reading an article on the fire. Details were still sketchy.
She turned to Inspector Yoshida for answers. “Do you know anything about last night’s fire?”
Inspector Yoshida was also just learning about the fire. “Agent Tanaka, please give me a few minutes. I am trying to contact one of my colleagues in Yokohama. They should be able to help us.”
The Slaters had plans to take a walk as soon as Midori was finished talking with Chiyo Tanaka. When the couple wasn’t travelling, they went on up to two-mile walks together twice daily. Stuart’s physicians told the retired master sergeant this was a good form of exercise as he recovered from open heart surgery.
What Stuart and Midori didn’t take into account Monday morning was the weather. “I think it is too windy, Stuart.” The couple hadn’t walked more than one hundred feet.
It was winter in Australia and the Slaters were dressed accordingly. However the wind was really gusting when the couple tried to walk. The registered temperature of six degrees Celsius felt more like zero to them.
“I think you’re right,” Stuart replied back to his wife. “Let’s go back inside.”
Among the many underground facilities Pine Gap had was a fitness room. Midori and Stuart paid it a visit but not till after changing their clothes first.
Stuart got on a treadmill. Midori set the speed and slope for the machine taking into account her husband’s recent health history.
“I can go faster than 2.0,” Stuart told his wife as the treadmill started. The slope was set at 0.5.
“Stuart, I don’t want you to overexert yourself. Let us try this first, you can always speed it up later,” Midori said before she got on a treadmill adjacent to her husband’s.
As they exercised, the couple talked about their daughter. “What do you think about Rebecca?”
“Rebecca looks good. She is healthy and happy too. I like that, Stuart. Do you?”
“Yes, I like it. The only thing that concerns me is that husband of hers. Chuck should be with Rebecca now.”
Midori partially agreed with Stuart. Charles McBride hadn’t made a good impression on the couple. “I agree, Stuart, but let’s not judge Chuck too harshly yet. When Chuck comes to Pine Gap, we will listen to what he says. Let us try to be open minded about him. From what Rebecca says, he was placed in great danger, and his former girlfriend abducted, all without telling him. If I'd been kidnapped and replaced with a ‘better’ version, I'd certainly hope that you'd be a little upset when you found out.” She pursed her lips and stared at him meaningfully, which is surprisingly hard to do when you're on a treadmill. The bouncing spoiled the effect.
Stuart nodded. “You're right, of course, and I’ll do that, Muffin. But what if Chuck doesn’t come back to Rebecca?”
“We will be strong for her then. Rebecca will need that from the two of us and Gabrielle. Whatever happens, it is still my hope Rebecca chooses Gabrielle.”
“Yes, I would like that too, Muffin. I like Gabrielle, and know she cares for our child, and don't know enough about Chuck to make a reasonable judgement, despite the very poor impression he made at our first meeting. I was a little surprised by Rebecca’s announcement that she could be pregnant, but I’m fine with it. And Chuck is her husband, we can't ignore that if he wants to take responsibility for his wife and child after his initial confusion. We can't interfere in our daughter's relationship with her husband, especially if she's pregnant with his child.”
“I am too, Stuart. We are going to be grandparents again, and that makes me very happy. Whatever Rebecca decides to do about her family is her business now. We'll do our best not to meddle, even if we do know best...” She smiled at her husband, who smiled back, not breathing hard at all.
“Sir, we have no idea where The Minister may be at this moment,” Said United States Air Force corporal Sean Ogden.
Robert Mueller hid his annoyance better than Grant did. “We were supposed to be a meeting with him this morning at nine thirty.”
Corporal Ogden checked the message log once again. “Sorry sir, I don’t have any messages. Maybe the other Japanese members can help you. I saw one or two of them in the cafeteria this morning.
Grant had tried that already. He had talked to a Kazu Ippitsusai briefly. Kazu didn’t know where the Minister was either.
After thanking Corporal Ogden for his assistance, Robert and Grant went out into the hallway. “Our Japanese friends could be showing us who is really in control of Swan Song’s future.”
“Or maybe the Minister needed to consult with Tokyo. He seemed greatly disturbed by what Ripley told us about the Watanabes connection to Japan’s Royal Family.”
“Yes, Grant, that is another possibility.”
Hiromi was away from Hong Kong, but her home was hardly inactive. Men hired by Teresa Wu were in the process of putting fresh coats of paint on both the house’s interior and exterior.
Roger Hyde was watching the work that was being performed, at least when he wasn’t watching the tasty Ms. Wu.
It was shortly after nine when Roger’s cell phone rang for the first time that day. “Hyde.”
Hideichi Ishimoto wasted no time on pleasantries. “There is a job I have for you, if you’re interested.”
Till setting off for Hong Kong, Hideichi had been Roger’s real boss. It was the Watanabe shareigashira who saw to the staffing of Hiromi Sato’s bodyguard detail and how much those men and women were paid.
“I work for Mrs. Sato now, Ishimoto-san.” Roger had never particularly liked Hideichi.
“What I would ask of you would pay well. Are you interested?”
“I can’t say. Can you tell me what the work is?” Roger asked suspiciously.
“Not over the phone I can’t. Could you come to Yokohama?”
Roger’s level of suspicion went through the roof. “No, I bloody can’t.”
“Then I will have to get someone else.” A dial tone followed. The Hideichi-Roger phone call ended as abruptly as it had begun.
Teresa Wu came into the room a few seconds later. “Who was that who called?”
“It was just a former boss of mine, love,” Roger said to Teresa before the couple shared a brief kiss.
Roger was already thinking if he should gather Dmitri and Miriam and the three of them set off to Australia for the purpose of finding and then protecting their boss from danger. The British bodyguard’s intuition was telling him Hideichi Ishimoto was going to make an attempt on Hiromi Sato’s life.
Yokohma police Chief Inspector Keisuke Mushashibo had been assigned to work the Rosebud fire. He was also a close friend of Inspector Tetsuro Yoshida.
“The investigation is still young but I can tell you the fire was definitely a deliberate act, Yoshida-san,” Keisuke said into his cell phone. He was standing in the alley alongside the Rosebud. At the same time arson investigators were working inside the burned out building.
“Was the club Watanabe-owned?”
Men and a few women went walking by Keisuke as he talked to Inspector Yoshida. The crime scene had been made semi open to members of the media. “That is still being investigated, but I believe it was. If so, these gangs have finally gone too far. Yoshida-san, I heard you are not in Japan now.”
“Yes, I am away on police business.”
“You must have learned of the fire through the press. Those people are all around me now. They are like ants on poorly discarded food,” Keisuke said.
Inspector Yoshida was not surprised by the intense media coverage. Raku Minobe was one of Japan’s most beloved celebrities. His wife and children loved listening to her music as did he. Keisuke was being circumspect in his answers because of possible media leaks.
“I will not keep you from your work any longer, Keisuke-san. Thank you for being patient with me.”
“Yoshida-san, I am always available to you. Feel free to call me at any hour if you need more information on the fire.”
As soon as the phone call ended, Inspector Yoshida told Gabrielle and Maurice Gao what he had learned. The Hong Kong Probationary Inspector also had a work station in the room.
“Thank you, Inspector. If you learn anything new, please let us know.”
Audrey Grasso finally managed to locate Kazu Ippitsusai. After a quick exchange of greetings, the JAG attorney got right down to business. “Kazu, is it Japan’s intention to prosecute Agent Ripley for murder?”
Kazu did not hide his discomfort well. His head remain bowed as he answered Audrey’s question. “I am not supposed to say.”
“We have worked together before, Kazu-san. In the future we may work again and I look forward to it. Off the record, can you tell me what the plan is for Ripley?”
After a short pause, Kazu answered Audrey’s question. “Notwithstanding the Status of Forces Agreement, my government plans to prosecute Ripley for murder.”
“Kazu, I know you are a smart prosecutor. You have to see all the problems that will occur if Ripley is tried for murder.” Audrey went on to list them. They included the lack of physical evidence, Ripley not being read her rights by Gabrielle Tanaka before they talked, to the bigger difficulties. What was done to Emiko Takagi plus the illegal incarceration of Hiromi Sato.
“There are two Hiromi Satos at present, both with what would presumably be the same DNA signature. I can request she be produced and demand chain of custody documentation, but would have to warn you that revelation of the Swan Song technology in open court would destroy the utility of DNA evidence for every prosecution from that day forward, and quite possibly past convictions as well, so criminals may be walking free for years to come if this avenue is pursued. Does the Japanese government want to burn a very useful investigative and prosecution tool for a single case they have no real chance of winning?”
“I agree with you, Audrey-san. Ripley should not be prosecuted, but it is not my decision.”
“Minister Hatoyama is calling the shots?”
Kazu remained silent. He had said too much already.
“Are you telling me Japan’s Prime Minister is behind it?”
“I cannot say, Audrey-san.”
Audrey thanked Kazu before going back to the room where was Hiromi was being debriefed. “Did I miss anything important?”
“Not at all Major. I been asked questions concerning where the Watanabes work and live. We’re just beginning to talk about Keiji Watanabe.” Hiromi wasn’t feeling particularly good at the time.
While Fred Wenz began asking Hiromi questions about Keiji, Audrey racked her mind for what possible reason the Japanese had for pushing ahead with a murder prosecution. What made the fate of Agent Chrysanthemum, real name Tonichi Ogawa, so important?
One of the reporters allowed closest to the Rosebud crime scene, was Yasuhiko Okamura of the Kanagawa Shimbun. Yasuhiko was a veteran print journalist who did most of his newspaper’s crime reporting in addition to writing general news stories.
Yasuhiko was well suited for his work as a reporter. He was single and likely to remain so forever. This allowed him to begin covering a story at any hour. Today was one such example. His Kanagawa Shimbun editor had called Yasuhiko well before ten in order to give him his assignment.
“I will go straight to the club,” Yasuhiko said after learning the barest details of what happened the night before.
“That is not what I request of you, Yasuhiko-san. Come to the office first. Kanagawa will cover the fire itself as a team effort shared with several lead reporters, so there'll be at least three or four bylines. I want you working on deep background and investigation. The Rosebud was owned by the Watanbes, and even I can tell that there's a huge story here. You're going to bring that story to life. We'll want biographies on everyone who died or was hurt in the fire, the story behind the ownership and the recent struggles between the Watanabes and rival gangs. Even if the police don't dare call it arson yet, we'll work on that assumption, because that's the story, even if it's only speculation. When more evidence comes out, that's just icing on the cake. Even if it turns out to be an accident, the larger picture is still the gangs, because they owned the building, and they've been in the news lately. Wasn't there a suspicious death at one of their offices some time ago, and some reckless driving incidents with guns fired, not to mention other mysterious violence and deaths all over? See if you can make some links.”
Yasuhiko had lived in Yokohama his entire life. It was a big city but he knew it well. A fire with such a high death toll had to involve criminal violations at least. Fire safety laws were meant to protect such calamities from happening. At worst, the fire was a deliberate crime. The Rosebud fire had to be one or the other.
He dressed properly, gathered his working materials, two cell phones, his laptop, a small camera he could keep in his suit-coat pocket, several pads of legal paper, and a stack of his cards to hand out to people he interviewed. He then walked down to the subway station a few blocks from his door. He walked into his building around half an hour later, since the trains were on a reduced schedule late at night.
“You are to supervise Mobu and Mana-san,” The editor told Yasuhiko after he arrived at the Kanagawa Shimbun’s offices. “This fire is a big story. I want our readers to know all its details and our deadline for tomorrow's morning edition is three o'clock.”
Mobumasu ‘Mobu’ Hiranuma and Mana Yamagata were two young reporters. Each had worked with Yasuhiko before but not all three of them together on the same story.
As the senior reporter, Yasuhiko set the tasks the three reporters would work be set to. “Mana, I want you to go through our morgue to see if you can find out anything about the club. Eventually, you'll probably have to make a trip to City Hall, but I want as much as we can find about the club owners immediately, before we have to go to press. If you can come up with enough of a story frame from the records alone, there's an ‘assisted by’ tagline at the bottom of the story for you. It will look good in your tearsheets.”
Like most newspapers, the Kanagawa Shimbun kept track of many important facts and people as a matter of course, and had both “backgrounders,” already-prepared reports on subjects that might be of interest in future stories, but also an extensive collection of past articles going back from before computers even existed, so some older information might be on microfilm. Newspaper reporters call this archive of stories “the morgue” all around the world, because it's where the “dead” stories are kept.
“I will do as you say, Yasuhiko-san.” Mana was glad to have even the smallest part in the media coverage of the Rosebud fire. She had only graduated college two years earlier, so the offer of a credit, even at the bottom of the story, was a great honor.
“Mobu, your job will be to come with me to the Rosebud. You will look through the crowd of onlookers for witnesses and persons who know anything about the club. I will study where the crime happened and make inquiries of the police. In the morning, we can start interviewing neighbors, but that will be for later follow-up; we have to have a story put together in three or four hours. Again, look for story frames, and there's credit for you if you find a good one. We'll probably go with a few sob stories, but we may get lucky and find an eyewitness who was overlooked by the television trucks. Their bright lights sometimes make it difficult to see into the deepest shadows.”
“That is a good plan, Yasuhiko-san. Has the paper sent photographers to the scene yet?”
“Yes, Mobu-san, I was told two photographers are already there, but it never hurts to have a pocket camera handy. Sometimes you get lucky, but you never get lucky if you're not prepared.”
Yasuhiko and Mobu arrived at the Rosebud soon afterwards. After they showed their media identification, the two reporters were allowed inside the barricades.
While Mobu went looking for witnesses, Yasuhiko just stood and looked at the burned out night club. In his mind he pictured people screaming and running all over the place
The next thing Yasuhiko did was to slowly walk around the club. He had a PDA on him, and he occasionally stopped to take notes. He paid close attention to anything laying on the ground.
More importantly Yasuhiko kept his ears open. He twice tried asking police a question only to get the brush off. To get information from law enforcement, the reporter would have to resort to eavesdropping. There was nothing the police could do to stop that.
Yasuhiko saw the burnt out remains of the truck that been used to blocked the Rosebud’s rear entrance. It quickly became clear to the reporter what had happened the night before. People became trapped with no way to get out, but why was the truck there?
‘Was the parking of the truck an accident or a deliberate act?’ Yasuhiko asked himself as he quietly looked for clues the police may have overlooked.
While Yasuhiko was making a mental picture of what happened the night before, Mobu was looking to find witnesses to the fire. This was proving to be a tough task for Mobu and there were two reasons for it.
The first was that most of the people near the Rosebud on Monday morning were different from those who had been there on Sunday night. They knew nothing but rumors, and Mobu had plenty of those already.
Secondly, those people who had been present on Sunday night were afraid. They knew the Watanabes owned the club. With few exceptions, these neighbors wouldn’t talk for fear of punishment from Yakuza like Dai Hashimoto.
After much trying, Mobu found someone willing to talk. He was a teenage boy who was helping out at his parent’s candy store.
“I worked yesterday also.” The teenager named Yukio Tomita said eagerly.
“Did you see the fire?”
“No, but I was around when persons arrived at the club. I was paid to park cars.”
Yukio took out the fifty dollar bill he was given. “I made good money, you think? That's worth almost five thousand yen.”
“Yes, you did.”
“I made over four thousand yen in tips too. It was easy money.”
“Who paid you the money?”
“I don’t know his name. Except that he was a big man.”
The teen’s mother admonished her son for talking too much. “Say nothing more, I tell you.”
Yukio suddenly changed his attitude. “I won’t talk to you anymore. Go away!”
Mobu left the candy shop but didn’t go far. He remembered when he was the Yukio’s age. He had no fear and if his parents said not to do something, he would sometimes test them by doing the exact opposite. For those reasons, Mobu stayed close to the candy shop. He was sure Yukio would come back to him.
“Are you feeling well, Agent Ripley?” Fred Wenz asked.
“My stomach is a little upset. I can still answer your questions,” Hiromi replied. She was feeling slightly nauseous in fact.
“We can take a short break if you want.”
“I’m fine sir. Please continue with your questions.”
Yasuhiko continued trying to find police willing to talk to him. “Was last night’s fire deliberately set?”
“I cannot say. Ask our spokesman the next time he speaks.” A young patrolman answered
“Were people trapped in the building because of that truck?” Yasuhiko asked. It was his practice to be persistent when asking questions of uncooperative people. They often cracked if you kept pushing them.
“I do not know.”
“Do you know how the fire started?”
“No.”
“Do you know where it started?”
“It began in the front and…..” The policeman began to say and then realized he had said too much. “You make me say something I was supposed not to. Now leave me alone!”
Mobu was right about Yukio. The teenager came out of the candy shop less than ten minutes after getting the warning from his mother.
“Thank you for helping me, Yukio-kun. I’d like to hear more about the people at the Rosebud yesterday. You do not know any of their names, do you?”
“No, I never learned them. I just do what was asked of me.”
“Can you describe the big man to me? What was he wearing yesterday?”
“He was wearing a suit and tie, but that is because it was special occasion.”
“Do you know what the special occasion was?”
“I don’t know for sure. Someone say they came from church.”
“The big man, he was dressed up. Can you describe him some more? Is he big because he’s tall or because he was fat? Does he smoke? Does he have a moustache or scar?”
Yukio described the man the best he could. “He has a big tattoo on his arms. It wasn’t visible yesterday, but I see it other times.”
Mobu knew what a tattoo could mean. The big man may be a Yakuza member and that would explain many things.
He thanked Yukio for his help and gave him a crisp new thousand yen note as a tip, leaving his card behind as he told him that if he saw the man again, or remembered more about that night, there might be another thousand yen available.
Yukio smiled very broadly and bowed. He was a very clever boy.
Yasuhiko saw a woman crying. He went to her side and asked what was wrong.
“What happened yesterday make me feel very sad.”
“Is that because Raku Minobe died here?”
“Yes and no. I love Raku but the party here yesterday was supposed to be a celebration. A new baby girl had been born.”
“How do you know that?”
“My brother Nobukazu worked at the Rosebud till yesterday. He was one of the people who got out.”
“Is your brother all right?”
“Yes, Nobu is very all right. He is home now.”
“Would it be possible for me to speak to him?” Yasuhiko then told the woman he was a reporter for the Kanagawa Shimbun. “I am working on a story about what happened last night. “
“Let me call my brother and ask if he can help you.”
Kunio Hatoyama had still not arrived at Pine Gap. Robert and Grant went to see Corporal Ogden again in hope he may have some news.
“Sorry, sir. I tried calling the hotel the Minister is staying at. He is not in his room and no one knows his whereabouts.”
“This is very frustrating,” Grant mumbled.
“I understand, sir. I’ve been working very hard to help you find the Minister.”
“We know that, Corporal,” Robert replied.
“Maybe the Minister paid a visit to Ayers Rock. You know it is about a five hour drive from here.”
Ayers Rock, also known as Uluru, was a large sandstone rock formation in the southwest part of Australia’s Northern Territory. It was one of Australia’s most popular tourist destinations plus a World Heritage site.
Corporal Ogden continued talking. “Maybe that’s why the Minister is unavailable. I just hope he didn’t get abducted by a dingo.”
Grant didn’t find Corporal Ogden’s joke funny but Robert allowed himself a chuckle. The FBI Director knew the Corporal was referring to the disappearance of nine-week-old Azaria Chamberlain in 1980. The girl’s mother, who was tried and convicted of murdering her daughter but eventually exonerated, claimed a dingo snatched Azaria. Dingos were a breed of canines unique to Australia.
“I hope the Minister is safe also, Corporal. Please notify me if you learn his whereabouts.” Audrey Grasso then walked into the room. The debriefing of Hiromi Sato was taking a short break.
Grant and Robert were summoned back to the room less than five minutes later. Corporal Ogden had an update for them “An aide to Minister Hatoyama regretfully informs us that the Justice Minister had to be admitted to a hospital with an irregular heartbeat. He has been discharged and is resting now.”
Robert read the handwritten version of the verbal message Corporal Ogden was giving. The aide to Minister Hatoyama said his boss hoped to return to Pine Gap on Tuesday though no time was mentioned.
“Thank you, Corporal,” Robert said.
Audrey listened in while Grant and Robert talked. She was in the room to see to some of her own work. Her presence should appear completely innocent to the FBI people.
Robert and Grant didn’t speak again till they were out in the hallway. “Director, do you think the Japanese may have had a change of heart or do you think they are avoiding us?”
“I don’t know, Grant. The Japanese officials I know prefer to avoid confrontations. It is part of their culture to do so. Right now Minister Hatoyama knows he is the lone dissenter against Swan Song going forward and that plus something else, maybe the Emiko Takagi business or maybe not, is making him uncomfortable right now.”
Keiji Watanabe felt drained on Monday morning, so much so, the elderly Oyabun had only gotten out of his bed to make bathroom visits.
Dai Hashimoto was travelling by car when he got a phone call from Keiji. “It is good to hear from you, Oyabun-san.”
“I have a request to make of you, Dai-san,” Keiji said from a sitting up position in bed. “The meeting I scheduled for next weekend. I still wish it to take place.”
“When would you like it held and where?” Dai asked. A meeting might just give him a safe means for bringing Hiromi Sato back to Japan. In one week’s time Keiji would be having a birthday .
“I would like it to take place next week on Tuesday or Wednesday at the Negishi Bay Towers.” Keiji wanted to be well prepared for the meeting and that required time. Also the conflict with the Inagawas would require many security arrangements to be made.
“Oyabun-san, I will begin working on this at once.”
Akira Sudo stopped by Keiji’s home in order to check on the listeners. Sadao told him what had taken place the night before.
“Rika-san is a married woman,” Akira replied before pausing for a few seconds of thought. “I would like to hear the tape.”
The tape was played for Akira. He felt disgusted by Keiji’s abuse of Rika. Women were not supposed to be treated that way.
“Thank you for bringing this to my attention, Sadao-san.” The next time Yakuzas were to be made Watanabe shareigashiras, Akira planned on recommending to Dai Hashimoto both Sadao and Tsuki Tono for those positions.
Gabrielle was not so consumed with her work that she failed to note the other goings on in the room. All the Japanese working on Operation Swan Song had gotten up from their work stations in order to talk among themselves. The talk had lasted ten minutes by then.
What they were talking about was a big mystery to Gabrielle till she paused from the work she was doing in order to visit the ladies room. She had to pass her Japanese co-workers on the way there.
As Gabrielle approached, all conversation came to a stop. She acted normally when entering the rest room.
‘They’re talking about me and that affidavit I gave,’ Gabrielle thought as she closed the lavatory door behind her.
Mana Yamagata called Yasuhiko with an update. “I’m afraid it not easy to learn the Rosebud’s owner. One company is listed as owner, when I check that company, another corporation is owner of that company.”
“Keep working on it, Mana-san. I have confidence in you, and that sort of interlocking chain of companies is typical of Yakuza efforts to hide their involvement in a business. Everyone in the neighborhood seems to know who's really in charge, so there's light at the end of that tunnel.”
Mobu also approached Yasuhiko with an update. “I just spoke to a nearby pharmacy owner. One of the Rosebud workers is supposed to collect his insulin today. He usually stops by the pharmacy around two.”
Both reporters understood the Rosebud worker could very well be among those who died. “That is good work, Mobu-san.”
“Have you learned anything? Was the fire an act of arson?”
“Offically, the police do not say. I have heard them talking sometimes. They say it was arson and that Yakuza were involved.”
“Should we not tell this to Endo-san?” Iwao Endo was the Kanagawa Shimbun’s City Editor.
“Not yet, we need to have more facts first.” Just before Mobu had come to visit him, Yasuhiko had just gotten off the phone with Nobukazu Sato. Nobu, who had been a waiter at the Rosebud, gave the reporter a very detailed account of what had happened the night before, including the fire bomb that had been thrown through the window.
Not too far from where Mobu and Yasuhiko were standing, a female television reporter was on the air live. Millions of people across Japan were eager to learn anything involved with Raku Minobe’s death.
All the work Sachiko Isozaki had done on the stockings given to her finally produced results. She had finally made a DNA match from bits of skin found inside the stockings and the samples of suspects which had been supplied to her.
Sachiko was in the middle of accessing the database of previous results, when a flashing message in large red letters appeared on her computer screen. The lab technician was to call her supervisor at once and touch nothing in the meantime.
Tetsuzan Narita was in the lab less than two minutes later. “I got your message, Sachiko-san. What have you discovered.”
“Look for yourself. Evidently we've been locked out of our normal access to our DNA files, which tells me that there's interest for the top in exactly what we do with this case.”
Tetsuzan read the message then clicked on the link provided. Before entering his user name and password, Tetsuzan asked Sachiko to step to the side.
Once Tetsuzan was logged in, another message appeared on the screen.
“This criminal investigation is to be reported to Yokohama Chief of Police at once. Till speaking to him, make no mention of this matter to anyone.”
Below the message was information on who the DNA had been matched to.
Name- Hiromi Sato
Age- 28
Place of birth- Hiroo, Hokkaido Prefecture
Current Residence- Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture
Occupation- Banker and known senior member of the Watanabe Yakuza
Tetsuzan picked up a nearby phone and pressed zero for the Operator. “Yes, I’d like to be connected to Chief Kasahara’s office. It is most urgent we speak.”
Before leaving the lab to meet with Police Chief Takeji Kashara, Tetsuzan gave Sachiko new instructions. “You are not to talk about your work with anyone, Sachiko-san.”
We’ll continue the debriefing at one fifteen,” Fred Wenz announced to everyone in the room. “Thank you for being here, Agent Ripley. We appreciate your co-operation with us.”
Hiromi grabbed her purse and was out of the room in a matter of seconds. She needed to go pee very badly.
Dr. Wagner was waiting out in the hallway for Hiromi. “I have some news for you, Agent Ripley.”
The smile on Dr. Wagner’s face told Hiromi all she needed to know. She and the German scientist shared a quick hug.
“I am so happy for you,” Dr. Wagner whispered in Hiromi’s ear before their hug ended.
“Thank you, Doc. I am very happy too.”
Before the women went on their separate ways, Dr. Wagner handed Hiromi one sheet of paper. “That is the lab report confirming your pregnancy. I thought you would like to have it.”
“Yes, Doctor, I would. Thank you for giving it to me.”
Hiromi went straight from Dr. Wagner to the nearest bathroom. That nausea she had been feeling earlier was morning sickness.
‘I've got to send Chuck a copy of my results,’ Hiromi thought as she sat down on a toilet. She was very happy to be pregnant but at the same time sad because her husband wasn’t with her. It was very difficult for Hiromi to keep herself from crying as she peed. ‘I should write Chuck a short letter too.’ She thought for a minute, and then amended her first idea. Maybe a long letter would be better.
Midori and Stuart Slater met up with their daughter near the cafeteria. Hiromi told them the big news right away.
Both Stuart and Midori took time to hug Hiromi and say how happy they were. After that was completed, the family went into the cafeteria together.
“I’m having a little bit of morning sickness, Mom. What do you think I should eat?”
A daughter normally forms a strong bond with her mother early on life. Hiromi felt a strong bond to her Mom but it had obviously started out as son-mother.
Thanks to Dr. Wagner and her formula, that bond had changed to daughter-mother. Not that Tom Slater’s love for his mother had ever been weak, but her gender change had strengthened those feelings as she started identifying more with her mother, and her mother's life, than with masculine role models that didn't interest her as much anymore. Now that Hiromi was beginning down the path to childbirth, another strong bond was forming between Midori and her. They had each conceived a human life inside their bodies, and were mothers, although Hiromi was now a mother-to-be, but the process was more-or-less inevitable. One of the big differences she'd noticed, since becoming a woman, was how subject she was to biology and time. Every month, she'd had her period, an entire cycle of changes that culminated in the visible reality of changes that had been going on inside her. Now, those periods had ceased, and another cycle had started, no more within her control than her menstrual cycle. When she'd been a man, she'd always felt that she was in control of things, of her male body. Sex was something of her choosing then, but she'd been introduced to the reality of rape as a woman, seen women who'd been trafficked into prostitution, forced to have sex against their wills, and she didn't feel nearly as much in control as she had back then.
Stuart noticed the bonding that was happening, so he decided to stay quiet except for one comment. “I don’t think you should be eating another of those hot dogs today.”
Hiromi laughed. “You’re right, Dad. Maybe I can eat one tomorrow.”
Gabrielle joined the Slaters in the cafeteria a few moments later. “Congratulations, Becky or should I call you Agent Mom now?”
Hiromi laughed once again. “No, Ripley is still fine and thanks, Gabby. How did you learn about my news?”
“I bumped into Dr. Wagner on the way here. She told me. Of course the big grin on her face sort of gave me a clue. I think you're probably the first to become pregnant within the inner circle, and I think she's a little jealous.”
On the advice of her Mother, Hiromi had Chicken soup for lunch plus lemon jello for dessert and ginger ale for her beverage. The food seemed to soothe the slightly queasy feeling left over from her early morning sickness.
Audrey Grasso came to speak with Hiromi. “Captain, when you’re through eating, I will need to speak with you right away. Can I come to your quarters at 1300 hours?” Audrey had to get herself some lunch to eat also.
“Yes, Ma’am you can, but I must inform you of something. The continuation of my debriefing is supposed to start again at 1315 hours.”
“Let me handle that, Captain. I will see you again at 1300.”
Audrey went to speak to Fred. The debriefer, who was also in the cafeteria and having lunch, spoke first. “What can I do for you, Major?”
“When lunch is over, I need to have a word with my client.”
“That is fine, Major. Can you estimate for me how much time you will need with the Captain?” Fred asked before he took a bite of the cheeseburger he was having for lunch.
“I would say approximately an hour.”
“That won’t be a problem, Major. When the two of you are finished, just return to the room and we’ll get re-started.”
Yasuhiko got to interview a very unhappy delivery driver. “These thieves never show me or anyone else any respect.”
The reporter quietly listened as the driver, whose name was Sachi Miyahar, ranted away. Sachi had a pallet full of supplies for the burned out night club. Unable to deliver them, he would spend the rest of his route having to move the pallet off the truck at every stop he made in order to get other goods off his truck, and then reload it. He described this process in excruciating detail.
“They say over thirty people died here last night,” Yasuhiko observed.
Sachi grew angry. “I didn’t mean it that way. The Yakuzas who owned this club could have called and cancelled the order. Now I've got to work extra hard for nothing.”
“Are you sure the owners are Yakuza?”
“Of course I am. Anybody who comes here has to know it. My wife bawled her eyes out this morning when she heard Raku Minobe died. Then I didn’t know her death happened here. She was so sweet, I can’t believe Raku Minobe was a Yakuza. If I make a guess it would be that she was in wrong place at wrong time.
Yasuhiko thanked Sachi for his time and observations. He then called his editor at the Kanagawa Shimbun. “I or Mobu-san have heard from six separate people now who say the Rosebud was Yakuza-owned.”
“Thank you, Yasuhiko-san, for that information, and continue with your work.”
Gabrielle and the Slaters were with Hiromi when Major Grasso arrived. For Audrey, it was the first time she got to meet either Stuart or Gabrielle.
“Agent Tanaka, that was a very interesting affidavit you swore to.”
Midori Slater had met Audrey the day before. “Rebecca, your father and I will go to our room now.”
Hiromi had a pretty good idea why Audrey wanted to talk so soon after their talk of the day before. “Mom, Dad, this will concern you also. Could you please stay for me? Gabby, can you hang around also?”
Audrey didn’t have a problem with the Slaters being present. Gabrielle was another matter. “Captain, that is your decision, but I do need to mention….”
“Major, I know who Gabrielle works for. I also know she is my friend. Why don’t we get down to business?”
Two chairs had to be taken out of Hiromi’s bedroom in order for everyone to sit down. Audrey Grasso began talking again as soon as everyone was settled.
“Thank you again, Agent Tanaka, for your very interesting affidavit. I have never read anything like it before.”
“I’m trying to help Captain Slater.”
Hiromi spoke up next. She wasn’t ashamed of her love for Gabrielle. “Gabby and I are very close friends.”
Audrey could have mentioned ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ to Hiromi, but that was the least of Agent Ripley’s problems. “Agent Tanaka, when you have a chance, I’d like to see those emails you received.”
Gabrielle had all thirty-one emails with her. She handed them to Audrey. “The two I received last August are stapled together separately.”
Audrey needed less than a minute to read the August emails. She then passed them to Hiromi, who after reading the documents passed them on to her Father and Mother.
“Am I reading this right? My daughter’s superior officer had an old lady murdered?”
“You read it right, Dad.”
Gabrielle gave a brief explanation of the emails to Stuart and Midori. “My FBI boss ordered the murder and apparently I wasn’t supposed to know. I got the emails by accident. Becky didn’t know anything about it till I told her this morning.”
“Why would they do that?” Midori asked in disbelief.
Gabrielle told the Slaters and Audrey about Grant Williamson’s career goals. “It was always obvious to me that Grant had big plans for himself, and that he’d use and discard people to advance his career. Still, I was shocked by what I discovered, Mom, Dad. We’re supposed to be the good guys,” Gabrielle said. “I started collecting information to protect Hiromi as soon as I saw those two emails, but couldn't say anything to her because I was afraid that knowing what was being done behind her back might frighten her into making a mistake that could cost her her life.” She could have sarcastically mentioned that murder wasn’t taught at any police academy she knew of, but suppressed the impulse.
“Instead, the committee is composed of murderers just like the Yakuza they are so eager to arrest,” Hiromi added.
Stuart Slater was totally disgusted by what Major Hollins and his men had done. “They’re supposed to be men of honor who defend against the enemies of freedom, not murderers of an old lady.”
“Dad, I am disgusted by it as much as you are,” Hiromi replied.
Gabrielle spoke next. “This will be a big scandal in Japan and the United States.”
“I think it will be worse in Japan,” Midori said.
“You’re probably right, Mom. If this ever became public knowledge, it could topple their government.”
Audrey chimed in. “Captain, the main reason I’m here is what I learned earlier today. The Japanese intend to prosecute you for Tonichi Ogawa’s murder.”
“They can’t do that!” Stuart said angrily.
Stuart’s emotional response was understandable to Audrey but it was also an unneeded distraction. She had many things to discuss with Captain Slater. They would be gotten done quicker if the two military officers were speaking in private
Midori was on the verge of tears. Hiromi tried to comfort her. “Mom, don’t cry. I’m a fighter.”
“What Becky did was done under duress. Reina Shimizu was going to die that night no matter whether Becky pulled the trigger or not.”
“I agree with you, Agent Tanaka.”
Hiromi was remarkably calm. A nightmare was headed her way but it seemed no worse than many of the ones she had faced since Operation Swan Song had begun.
“We have to fight these bastards. I’ll go to the Army Chief of Staff, we’ll….”
Midori turned to her husband. “Stuart, please don’t get so upset. It is not good for your heart.”
Stuart did calm down. “Is the FBI planning to let my daughter be tried for murder?”
“I don’t know yet, Sir.”
“My wife and I won’t let Rebecca go to jail for the rest of her life.”
Gabrielle knew Hiromi faced more than life in prison. Every year Japan put people to death for murder.
Hiromi had her cell phone out and was checking messages. There were five in all waiting for her. Two from Kanagawa Bank, One from East China Commerce, A call from Roger Hyde, and lastly the one from Ryuku Kinjoh.
“I’m here to prevent that from happening, Sir.”
“That Emiko Takagi business you told us about should stop any prosecution of my daughter dead in its tracks.”
“Maybe, Sir, but we need to use it carefully. I’m working on a legal defense for your daughter which I believe has an extremely good chance of success. If you let me, I want to begin discussing it with her right now.”
Gabrielle looked at her watch. “I better go check on my work. Good luck Becky, and please tell me later what the Major has to say.”
“I will, Gabby. Bye.”
Gabrielle paid a quick visit to her quarters. Her feet were hurting and she wanted to change shoes.
When Gabrielle got to her work station, she found large amounts of debris all over it. Only the computer she had been using was untouched. It looked like someone emptied the contents of a garbage can on the place she was supposed to work at.
The chair Gabrielle was supposed to sit on was in bad condition also. A sticky substance was all over it.
Gabrielle looked over at Inspector Yoshida. He refused to make eye contact with her. Everyone else in the room from Japan was also avoiding eye contact with Gabrielle.
‘I get the message,’ Gabrielle thought to herself as Maurice Gao walked up. The Probationary Inspector had come into the room just moments after her.
“Gabrielle, what happened?”
“I’ll handle this, Maurice.” Most everyone in the room was angry at Gabrielle due to the affidavit she had given. Not too many people like being unveiled as murderers or people who have conspired to murder. The trashing of Gabrielle’s work station was just their first form of retaliation. She expected more to follow.
Right at that moment, FBI Director Robert Mueller came into the room. He walked right up to Gabrielle. “Agent Tanaka, can you please step outside with me? I need to have a word with you.”
Before she replied, Gabrielle looked at Maurice for a second. What she had been forgetting earlier in the day had just popped into her head. She smiled. “Yes, Director, I am coming right now.”
As a light rain began to fall in Yokohama, another television broadcast was going on the air close to the Rosebud. This time it was done by a male reporter in his mid-thirties.
“Less than twenty-hours after Raku Minobe tragically perished in a fire; the Japanese people are beginning to ask one question. Why did she die here last night?”
To be continued in Part Twenty Seven
Comments
DHCF 25
It's great to see another chapter so quickly. I don't know how you write so much and still be so gripping.
Hugs
Karen
It's hard to do the right thing
no doubt. And in the middle of it all it is always the pawns who suffer from the abuse of their 'superiors'.
And they have the gall to persecute Becky for doing something that is clearly under duress.
Great story, the plot intrigues are starting to really tighten. I suspect before the end is over, the 'real' Hiromi will play a significant role in whether Becky retains her freedom or not.
I have my suspicions how that might play out but I want to stay schtum.
Kim
Whew!
This novel, and that's what it is, is getting intense in more than just physical action now. I have my own suspicions about things but won't say them out loud, or at least in a comment. Good stuff, Danielle! I look forward to the next chapter.
Duty, Honor, Country, Family - Part 26
I am continually impressed with the depth of each chapter.
May Your Light Forever Shine
May Your Light Forever Shine
Late to the Party
I made it! I finally read this chapter, and I see you've posted the next. Yay!
This twisty turny ride is making me a little queasy but I'm hanging on. I wonder if morning sickness is contagious. Heh.
I don't know how you're going to tie everything up. You've got so much going here. I'll be anxious to read the next chapter, though it might take me awhile.
Thanks and kudos!
- Terry