“Well, I’m not going to do it.’ I said. “I’m saying no tomorrow, and if that means I’m fired, so be it. I’ll find something else.”
“You could live with Hugh.”
“Without his job at Sendai, he’ll be out of the glamour-pad soon enough.” I made a face at Richard, “I’m coming home. I think it’s safe. You’ve been there for days and the only thing that’s died, probably, is my ficus plant.”
“Actually, I’m sleeping in your room now.” He folded his arms across his chest. “We’ll have to share it.”
“What?”
“It’s a necessity. I talked Mariko into coming back but she demanded her own room. Besides, I always liked your room better.”
“For its view of the sandal factory?” I asked, unbelieving.
“Look, you’re hardly around anymore. You’re driving me crazy with your indecision. And your phone calls! The people you blew off keep calling back.”
Reluctantly, I took the scrawled list he handed me. I still wasn’t ready to speak with reporters, nor my mother. I did call Joe Roncolotta. When he picked up, I was distracted by a hollow, banging sound on the line. I asked whether construction was going on, and Joe chuckled.
“I’m applauding you, doll, over the speaker-phone. You are becoming the most notorious young woman since Rie Miyazawa—come to think of it, your names are mighty similar—”
“If you’re trying to flatter me, she’s not the one.” Rie Miyazawa was an actress/model who had once been the toast of Tokyo for her starring role in a book of artistic nude photos. Now she allegedly battled anorexia and declining public opinion.
“Oh, everybody knows you’re really a nice little English teacher. In fact, one of my friends wants you to leave Nichiyu and open a new language school for him.”
“I hope you told him I wasn’t interested.” I never wanted to teach again.
“Yeah, I did. I’ve already started managing you.”
“Managing me?” I was incredulous. “I’m trying to keep a low profile, Joe. I’m wearing a wig and hiding out with my relatives because the yakuza put Hugh in the hospital—”
“Don’t say that word on the telephone,” he snapped.
“Where were you the Wednesday evening before New Year’s Eve, by the way?” I asked.
“Don’t tell me someone else got murdered?” he asked sarcastically.
“Assaulted. At Club Marimba.”
“Check my alibi with my secretary, hon, and can you keep safe until Friday night? I’ve got someone meeting me at TAC with information that may relate to your situation. It’s the black-and-white party. Meet me there at eight.”
“Should I pick up Mrs. Chapman on the way?”
“This should be just us. Given that the information’s confidential.”
“Okay,” I said, thinking it over.
“Plan on a long night and wear your slinkiest black or white dress. And leave the wig at home. I want Rei Shimura to appear as herself.”
“I’m moving back to my apartment tomorrow,” I told Aunt Norie as I fiddled with the oysters she had sautéed for dinner. She had been upset I’d traveled home without Tom, who was still at the hospital.
“Rei-chan, you aren’t thinking clearly about this.” She pushed a small saucer filled with my favorite pickled plums toward me.
“I can’t stay here forever. It’s not fair to you,” I popped a shriveled plum in my mouth, thinking its sour-sweet taste was like saying good-bye.
“You are my husband’s brother’s child. If anything happens to you—it’s bad enough, the news about you—”
“Was I on TV again?”
“Not you, but Glendinning-san was. The TBS network reported he is in the hospital with injuries from the ya-san. Now everyone knows!”
“That’s good. The yakuza are smart enough to know not to attack in front of a dozen camera crews. Haven’t you heard the safest place is in the eye of the hurricane?” I appropriated Hugh’s words for my own purpose.
“You received a telephone call today from a police chief. Long distance.” She pursed her lips, and I kept chewing. I’d never liked the flavor of oysters, nor the watery stuff in the middle. “Aren’t you going to call Captain Okuhara?” She went into the living room and came back with the cordless telephone.
“I’d rather enjoy my dinner first.”
“It’s urgent, he advised.” Aunt Norie slapped the phone in front of me.
I pushed my plate aside and began dialing the number she had written on a Hello Kitty notepad. It took three minutes to get transferred to Okuhara. By the time he came on, I was very tense.