Atonement for Iwo Read online

  d up her chin so she had to face him. “You’re purifying yourself, Kimiko. I know you don’t have to, but you think differently. It’s important to you, so do it in your own time and your own way and don’t worry about me in the interim.”

  She pressed her head against his chest, and he sensed her struggle for words. “Hush, hush,” he whispered, kissing her hair. And she remained quiet.

  CHAPTER 6

  It was Wednesday afternoon before an appointment could be made with Ichiro’s attorney. Master took no chances by arranging to meet Hiroko in front of the building directly before the meeting.

  “You’ve been avoiding me,” she greeted him, accusingly.

  “I’ve been avoiding you because I have no desire to have anything to do with you,” he snapped back. He was already on the defensive and sore as hell that he was making a hash of his explanation. “Come on,” he growled, cutting off her reply. “Or we’ll be late.”

  The attorney, Mr. Takahashi, was a plump man of about sixty, courteous to the point of subservience, but who did not waste a moment once the introduction formalities were concluded. Without referring to notes, he gave a concise history of the case, and concluded with the statement that the sentence of death had been expected from the start, and each appeal had only been a delaying action.

  “The best I had hoped for,” he explained, “was a series of errors in court procedure upon which I could base a request for a new trial. If only the boy had admitted that the conspiracy was communist controlled and had cooperated with the police, there might have been the possibility of a long prison term instead of the death sentence. His accomplices, although two of them were younger, had a number of prior convictions, and the court took this into consideration. But Ichiro could have pleaded extenuating circumstances, and we could have fought for a mitigation of his sentence.”

  “Could he now cooperate and hope for a commutation?” asked Masters.

  The attorney sighed. “No. I am fully convinced that it would change nothing that his cooperation at this late date would only increase public opinion against him. The principal problem, Mr. Masters, is the manner of homicide. In Japan, death is rarely imposed upon a murderer except in instances of multiple victims. However, in this case the victim was stabbed over forty seven times in a horrendous exhibition of brutality.” He sighed again. “I have already had a meeting with the Minister of Justice, pleading for a last minute reprieve, but it was useless. I have an appointment for another appeal at the middle of next week, and it was obtained on the premise that I would present new evidence, which I actually do not possess.” Masters then heard the remark which indicated the measure of the man. “I must keep fighting for this boy’s life, if only to enable him, in future years, to repay a part of the debt he owes society.”

  “Is there anyone higher up in the government who can be appealed to?” insisted Masters.

  “No. I have already overstepped the bounds of propriety by speaking to the Minister of Justice. Japanese law is very strict in that the courts must not be circumvented. Any further steps in that direction would be met with resentment and would not assist us in this case.”

  “How will he die?” Masters saw the shock on Hiroko’s face when he asked her to pose the question.

  “By hanging,” replied the attorney.

  “Is there no possible way of delaying the execution at least for a little longer.”

  The lawyer leaned back into his chair. “The courts are not vindictive, Mr. Masters,” he explained. “On the contrary, obtaining stays of execution in Japan is encouraged whenever the slightest new information might have some bearing upon the case, even if it would not really affect the final judgment. We have already tried the patience of the court by a number of somewhat irresponsible appeals. The attitude of the court is not that it wants its pound of flesh, but that all possibilities have been exhausted and that justice should be done.”

  “How is the boy taking it?”

  “He is frightened and makes no attempt to conceal it. He is also resigned to dying, but he is sad that his family and friends have been disgraced by his actions. Most important, he is aghast by the fact the he has taken a life, regardless of the circumstances. I firmly believe that with his present understanding, he would choose death for himself rather than take a life again, even if he could avoid retribution.”

  There was nothing more to be said. Masters and Hiroko left the attorney’s office and walked down the street, silent, deep in thought. He stopped in the middle of the block.

  “Hiroko, that fellow I met at your house Admiral Kowasachi. What is his relationship to the family?”

  “He has been seeing mother for about two years now.” She cocked her head to study him. “It is not what you think. Mother has not had any relationship with a man since father.”

  Kimiko had certainly concealed her past life successfully, thought Masters. He wondered how she explained her eye operations. Probably that it helped her business with Americans, in the event she did business with them. “What do you mean, ‘not what I think?’ Are you a mind reader?”

  “I know your nature.”

  “Well, smartass, what I was thinking was whether he had any pull. After all, he is an admiral.”

  “He has a lot of pull. He’s not only just a former admiral, but he also owns some very large companies. Mother said she asked him once. He replied that nobody can help. It would bring down any government that tried.”

  In spite of himself, Masters had to ask the question. “Why does he see your mother?”

  Hiroko chuckled. “I knew you would get around to that. Mother says he gives her financial advice, but I think she interests him sexually. After all, not many women in Japan have built up a business as large as Mother’s, and the idea would attract many men. In addition, I’m sure you’ve noticed that she is a beautiful woman.”

  “I’ve noticed.”

  “He is a very tough person. A lot like you.” She straightened up and thrust out her breasts a little further. “He has looked at me like he would enjoy a romp in bed.”

  “There’s your chance. He’s old, tough, and available.”

  “He doesn’t intrigue me. You do.”

  Masters shook his head with disgust. If only he learned to keep his mouth shut, maybe they could hold a conversation that made sense. “Look, Hiroko, let’s get to a more important subject. You will have to help your mother during the next few weeks. You will have to try harder than ever before in your life to give her consideration and hope.”

  Hiroko sighed in resignation. “But how, Keith? How can I tell her to replace the memory of Ichiro with something else? What can I give her in exchange?”

  He eyed her closely. “Have you ever thought of marrying? Of having children? Grandchildren would lessen some of the sadness.”

  She stood quietly, gnawing her lower lip thoughtfully. “Will you marry me, Keith?” she finally asked.

  He knew instinctively that she was deadly serious. “No. First of all, grandchildren with blue eyes and brown hair would not be Ichiro. Secondly, I don’t want to marry you.”

  “Is it because you are in love with Mother?”

  “That’s none of your business. Your entire concept of us is idiotic. You must get this absurd fixation out of your head.”

  She shook her head. “You’re saying it, but you really don’t believe it. It isn’t idiotic, Keith. You’re the one who is blind. You are looking only at twenty years difference in our ages.” She took his hand. “Keith, you would not be good for Mother.” When he opened his mouth to reply, she pulled on his hand. “Please, hear me out. Mother is essentially old Japan, and you would soon tire of what is now a novelty to you. She might enter into a relationship with you, but it wouldn’t make her any more happy and in truth, no more unhappy. If you had been raised in Japan, even though inherently a Westerner, you two would have a basis on which to build your happiness together.

  “But you and I could find common ground, and much more to yo
ur advantage than you think. I don’t know what kind of relationships you have had with other women, but I would surprise you. You wouldn’t tire of me.” Then she hit him where it hurt. “And you will need somebody like me. Tomorrow, next week, next year.”

  He felt like an imbecile, listening to this girl, being almost persuaded into conjuring up a picture of life with her. What the hell kind of an answer could a man give to a proposal made in the middle of the street from a girl who made his stomach tighten with a desire so strong that it actually hurt. But he could not pass it off lightly.

  “It wouldn’t work,” was all he could think of saying.

  Then this extraordinarily beautiful girl smiled. “It would work, Keith. I know it, because I know myself. You’re a hard man, an independent kind of man who could do anything you really wanted to do. I’m like that, too. And you’re soft and gentle at the right times. I know that when you make love to me, I will really feel like a woman. You’ll be good for me, and it’s not a father fixation which attracts me. I can make you happy. Do we have to make a shambles of Mother’s life to find out?”

  He sighed. “Hiroko, I’m fond of your mother, but you’ve got to understand that it doesn’t mean we will become involved. Even if I had never met her, I still wouldn’t want to become mixed up with a girl like you. You’re full of complications from A to Z.”

  She was neither offended nor sidetracked. Instead she kept attacking. “Does Mother love you?” she asked, certain of his reply.

  “Of course not. We barely know each other. And I’m sure she has no inclination to start any kind of a romance.”

  “Like blazes, she doesn’t,” she snapped back, coolly. “I know Mother, perhaps better than she knows herself.” She tapped his chest. “Did you ever sleep with a woman who loved you a little less than you loved her?”

  “I guess so.”

  “How soon afterwards did you leave her?” Masters pursed his lips. The girl knew where to strike. “Listen, Keith,” she pressed on. “With me, you’ll be fighting every day for more of my love, and every day I’ll give you more. It will never run out, and every night you’ll go to sleep knowing that the next day you’ll have more than the day before.”

  “Isn’t it just a bit disloyal to interfere with your mother’s feeling for the sake of your own?” He tried to become angry. “And goddamned selfish?”

  “Want us to go and tell her that we want to live together and see what happens? I bet she heaves a sigh of relief. You’ve swept her off her feet, Keith. You think differently, that it all came by itself, but the truth is that you touched Mother in a sentimental spot. That doesn’t mean you can live happily together for the rest of your lives. Mother needs a man from her own kind of people. He doesn’t have to be a hill farmer, but he has to understand the subtleties of our way of life.”

  She tapped his chest again. “You two went to the theater a couple of nights ago. I’ll bet Mother paid more attention to the performance than she did trying to explain it to you. How about it?”

  “What the hell is that supposed to prove?” he replied, knowing full well what she was getting at, and realizing that she was right.

  “Don’t tell me she enjoyed it more trying to explain it to you than if she had attended it with a man of our own people who understood it.”

  “For Christ’s sake,” growled Masters. “Life is not just going to theaters or liking or disliking sukiyaki.”

  “It sure is, Keith, and I can see you are waking up to the fact that a kid half your age knows a little more than just the way to a bedroom. I’ll make a deal with you. You spend a couple of nights with me and then I’ll go away for a week. If, before that week is up, you don’t come after me, I’ll return and be the politest, most cooperative girl you’ve ever met and I’ll do all I can to help you and Mother.”

  He was ready to welcome another heart attack. He drew a deep breath. “Okay, Hiroko. We’ve talked it all out. I’ve heard you and I say, no dice. Now get the hell away from me or I’ll smack your face.”

  She stared back at him defiantly. “You know I’m right,” she stated flatly. “In fact, you want me this very minute, don’t you?”

  He slapped her face, hard. She reeled back from the unexpected blow, but kept her hands by her sides, refusing to raise one to her stinging cheek. She stepped closer, erect, proud, oblivious of the people stopping to stare.

  “You want me badly, don’t you, Keith,” she said quietly.

  He slapped her again, harder. She stumbled to the pavement, but got up immediately and moved back towards him.

  He stood his ground for a few moments, then, acknowledging defeat, he turned and strode through the crowd that had collected, walking rapidly, almost at a trot, away from her. After a few blocks, he halted, panting, sweat trickling down his brow, and looked round. She had not followed.

  He almost decided not to go to Kimiko’s house for supper, but finally admitted that the situation must be faced or he would have to catch the first boat out of Japan. Kimiko was waiting outside the hotel at half past six

  “You seems tired, Keith,” she observed with anxiety as he climbed inside the car.

  He almost laughed. “It’s been a long day.” Glancing at her, he was suddenly filled with a great tranquility. “I should have rested after the meeting with Takahashi.”

  “Then you must lie down for a while before supper. I have a chaise lounge in the garage. We will put it in the garden for you to take a nap first.”

  He covered her hand on the steering wheel. “I’m all right, Kimiko. I don’t have to be babied.”

  She turned soft eyes on him. “Please don’t be offended, Keith, if I want to watch over you a little.”

  He smiled and leaned over to kiss her cheek. “I’m not really offended. Secretly, I enjoy being babied now and then.”

  “Good. Then I shall make a greater effort.” Her voice faltered. “Hiroko came to the store and said Mr. Takahashi was unable to think of anything else to help Ichiro. Were you able to think of anything?”

  “No.” He hesitated. “Will you be able to face it?”

  She sighed deeply. “We are not truly fatalists, we Japanese. Losing Ichiro will be losing the part of me that had more meaning and importance than anything else. I would be the happiest woman on this earth if I could give my life for his. And when he dies, I shall continue living but food will not be as sweet nor the garden as restful. There will be nothing to work for, to build for.”

  “There is Hiroko.”

  “Yes, but she will have everything she needs.”

  “Some day she may have sons.”

  Kimiko had never thought of that. The implication suddenly struck her. “Yes,” she said. “It would be good to hold a boy child in my arms again.”

  “See, you are a fatalist at heart.”

  She considered it carefully. “I guess we all are when it serves our purpose. But I cannot believe it when I think of Ichiro. I will never accept his death, not even at the ceremony for his ashes.”

  Masters steered her back to brighter thoughts. “Does Hiroko have a boy whom she likes?”

  “No. She has many friends, but no one has really appealed to her. I can understand that. She is a modern woman who is seeking more out of life than the women of my generation sought. One day she will find her man, and, like all of us, drift back to the comfortable ways of the generations before us.”

  “What do you mean by that?”

  “Oh, the relationship between man and woman, the knowledge that a woman is happiest when she is giving all of her thoughts to her husband and children. That learning things, or having abilities, are of value only when they are devoted to the well being of the family and not for the sake of the woman herself. Each generation goes through the same struggle, but when the girl is properly raised, she sooner or later reverts to the time tested way of life.”

  “Obedience to the male?”

  “No, love of being a woman which is essentially the same if you look at it practical
ly. I am sure every toiling farmer’s wife in the countryside envies my fine business and house and freedom. They do not realize how much more I envy them.”

  “Isn’t that somewhat prosaic?”

  “What does it mean this prosaic?”

  “Dull, commonplace.”

  “Not at all, dear Keith. I speak for every happy woman in the world; let me wash the sweat and dirt from my husband’s clothes, even in a cold mountain stream, and it is not labor, but an expression of love. Perhaps he has the facility to put it into words, or maybe he can show it only by his actions, such as looking at me fondly. It is the same. But what is all this living without it? Nothing.”

  “You’ve not conformed to the pattern.”

  “Yes, I have. I have Ito’s love inside me. When I did things I was ashamed of, I did it for Ito’s children, not only because I loved them, but because he did and that was more important. When I worked hard to build up my stores, it was Ito’s love that inspired me. It was not labor, ever.” Her eyes misted. “Now I have failed him. His son was to grow straight and good and to have sons who would remember from whom they came.”

  “That’s not your fault, Kimiko.”

  “Yes it is. I was left to do it, but I failed.”

  “There are still Hiroko’s sons.”

  She lifted her chin. “That is true. They must do, then.” She glanced at him. “You are a most subtle man. You have been guiding my thoughts in another direction, have you not?” She turned the car into the driveway and stopped before the entrance of the double garage. “I am always afraid to drive into it,” she explained shyly. “I have scraped the fenders so many times that I leave it to Hiroko.”

  Masters slid behind the wheel and drove inside. Kimiko was dusting off the chaise lounge when he got out, and he helped her push it into the garden. She made him lie down, covered him with a light blanket, then stole away. He was certain he would remain wide awake until suppertime.