Yaturo was no fool, and it was very smart of him to give John such a generous offer. After all, he didn’t want John to be occupied with anything other than finding Alexi. He wanted to ease his life, relax him financially, and give him all the support he needed. He knew firsthand that the task at hand would never be accomplished without a clear mind; there couldn’t be a single thing getting in the way of John’s concentration and motivation.
After John accepted the offer, he was properly introduced to Mitusa Oel, the second-in-command, Yaturo’s right arm. This time around, John felt more secure. He could instantly tell how strong the relationship between the two men was. They were like brothers. Mitsua was more relaxed than he was when John had first met him, and he didn’t have such a dry personality after all. In fact, he was quite the opposite. John discovered that he was a very outgoing person; it seemed the impression he intentionally gave to the public was contrary to his nature because he was very different around those he was personally close to. As John watched Yaturo and Mitsua interacting with one another, it was as if they somehow completed each other. John was sure that Mitsua had helped poor Yaturo move on after he lost his wife.
Once Yaturo told Mitsua about John and what his job was going to be, Mitusa was quite apologetic to John about their previous meetings, and all was well between them.
John explained to them what he had to finish before taking charge of the company, as he had some commitments to wrap up back home, such as his formal resignation from the paper and his divorce. That would be quite a headache, but with all that had been going on in John’s life recently, he had a thicker skin, and he was sure he could handle whatever came his way.
The three enjoyed lunch together, and Yaturo and Mitsua happily reminisced about their old trips and adventures, how they used to strategize their businesses and how well they executed their plans and dreams. They told John they always celebrated their victories with a bottle of their own beverage, their “lucky sake.” The bottle traveled the whole world with them. John enjoyed their stories and their humorous banter, and it helped to calm him down before the storm that was coming.
Chapter 4
As soon as the taxi stopped, John took a deep breath and stared at his house. It seemed like he’d been gone a lifetime on his world travels, even though it had only been eleven days. The garden seemed deserted and neglected; the grass hadn’t been mowed. He suddenly remembered the first day when he and Susan had moved in and his promise that they would always have the best garden in the neighborhood. John had always kept his promise, and his garden was always so beautiful, with its roses and tulips. It was arranged so delicately, so meticulously that envious strangers often rang the door to ask for the name of their gardener. When they were told that John himself, the humble owner of the property, did all the gardening, they were most impressed.
But now, gone were the days of a happy marriage and a beautiful garden. John’s family was broken, his garden looked like a mess, and even his car seemed to be covered in layers of dirt and grime. He opened the door and realized that the inside of the house wasn’t any more comforting or welcoming than the outside. Everything was dusty, the unwashed dishes were covered with mold, the sink smelled, and the whole house felt old.
It was clear that Susan had passed by, as most of her stuff had been taken, and some of the items from the living room were missing as well. If she’d had any decency whatsoever—which John realized she certainly did not—she would have at least offered the house a light cleaning and done a little mowing in the yard. But John didn’t give a damn. All he cared about back home was Adam, and with the agreements he had with Yaturo, the money he’d already gotten from him and what he would be earning in the future, his son would never have anything to worry about.
It took John several hours to bring some life into the dreary house. He packed his personal belonging and the things he would need for a much longer trip.
After he changed his clothes, he headed to his lawyer’s office. Jeff had been a family friend for a long time. John and Susan had rarely had occasion to use his attorney services, but whenever they did, he was always very efficient, professional, and loyal. Jeff had heard about what had happened from John a few days prior, and he passed John’s final desire of divorce to Susan, along with his terms. John specifically requested that all matters be handled through Jeff; he had no desire to meet with his cheating ex-wife.
They both agreed on the general conditions. Their joint property would be split 50/50. They would rent their house for the first year, with the intention of John buying it in the following year once he accrued enough money to do so. Bearing Yaturo’s offer in mind, John informed Jeff that he could likely buy the house sooner than expected, perhaps within mere months. At first Susan didn’t believe that because she knew all about John’s dire financial situation, but when she received the signed papers from Jeff, she no longer cared. She decided if John didn’t pay up as he was supposed to, she would simply take him to court. One way or another, she would get what was hers.
Everything else went smoothly, and the couple agreed when it came to custody of Adam, their son. John was sure that Adam would be in good hands, as Susan’s parents loved him and treated him like their own.
John spoke with Susan’s father and had arranged to meet him for dinner, where they could talk privately. John’s former father-in-law informed him that Adam was doing well, except that he occasionally mentioned that he missed his dad. John had great respect for his father-in-law and appreciated his willingness to provide Adam with a solid home environment. He informed him that he would open a bank account for Adam and that the boy’s grandfather would be listed as his official guardian. “The money in that account will be a little something extra,” he said, “on top of the child support settlement.” His father-in-law was very happy with John’s new offer; he had always believed in John and was really sorry that Susan had never appreciated him. After all the technicalities were settled, they enjoyed their dinner and agreed that John would pick Adam up the next day to spend some time with him before he returned to Japan.
Adam was very happy to see his father, and it was quite clear that the boy was doing fine, but it was difficult for John to see the confusion on his son’s face. Adam wasn’t yet aware of his father’s departure. He didn’t understand why he was living at his grandparents’ house instead of his own. John tried his best to avoid giving direct answers, as the kid was still small to handle the real issues at hand. He gave him a few gifts from overseas and took him to the zoo. They had lunch and ice cream, and when he felt his son was a bit more relaxed, John told Adam, “Son, I’m going to be doing something great, something that will make everyone very proud…and safe. I have to go far away to do this thing, so I need you to be strong. I promise I will call you often and that I will visit as much as I can.” John also promised that if Adam behaved and read more books, he would someday take him to Japan for a visit. John knew his promises would be hard to keep, but if he succeeded in his plans, none of that would be relevant. In fact, nothing going on in all of Earth would be relevant anymore.
Having settled his divorce matters with Jeff, John went to his boss and told him about his intention to leave and about the amazing offer he’d received from a Japanese magazine. His boss was always understanding, and John’s assistant had already covered for him during his time off. Truth be told, the assistant had been doing well, and John’s separation from the paper was a long time coming. John was so successful in the beginning that his boss didn’t think he would stick around for more than a few years, so he thought it more than fair that he’d had him onboard for a decade. John had to give up some of his benefits because of the sudden resignation, but that was all okay with him. It was a worthy sacrifice; he had to go back to Kyoto because what lay ahead was more important, and it couldn’t wait another day. Yaturo’s health was on the decline, and time wasn’t on his side.
-
Looking down from his first class seat, Kyoto w
as so beautiful. All the hills and the surrounding natural beauty made it a pleasure to watch as their plane came in for a landing. John enjoyed his trip, for Yaturo had insisted that he be seated in first class for the long flight. He had never been seated in that section before, but Yaturo was providing him with many amenities and firsts in his life. For the whole trip, John felt fresh and focused; he had solved all his problems back home and was ready to set off on his new adventure of finding the enemy and saving the world.
Takishi, his trusty cab driver, was waiting at the airport. John had asked to keep Takishi as his designated driver because they had formed quite a bond, and John felt at ease with him. As for the other preparations, he would depend on Hitari to arrange them.
Through his correspondence with Mitsua Oel’s office the day before, he learned he would be staying at a luxurious five-star hotel owned by Yaturo. He checked into the 150-square-meter royal suite consisting of a dining room, living room, meeting room, and a master bedroom. He was told he would do most of his work at the Eye of Analysis office, but all of his meetings with Yaturo, as well as his private work, would take place at his suite.
The view from the room was wonderful; he could see the entire panoramic landscape of Maruyama Park. In addition to being close to the Yasaka Shrine, the park was often visited during Hanami, the cherry blossom festivals. Locals and tourists flocked there during that fragrant and beautiful season of the year.
Yaturo had left a note on the meeting table: “Rest well. I believe in you! Meet you tomorrow morning at ten a.m.”
John’s flight had arrived just after three in the afternoon, and he had to fight off a bad case of jetlag. He didn’t want to go to sleep until nighttime in Kyoto, to get himself on a proper schedule, so he decided a nice stroll in the park would be a good diversion for him both mentally and physically. He was sure that by the time he got back to the hotel, he would be dead tired and able to go to bed when everyone else in Kyoto did.
Being a journalist, John seldom left without a small notebook in hand. Whenever something of interest crossed his mind, he would jot it down; any idea would be helpful now and might get him a step closer.
Resting on one of the cozy benches at the park, John scribbled down several scenarios from what he had already learned about Alexi. In the first, Alexi was telling the truth. If he was truly from the future like he’d claimed, he would now be the age of a child. His name would really be Alexi, and based on his appearance and the word he’d said to Yaturo, he was Russian or from one of the older Soviet countries. In the second scenario, the man was a liar, and everything he said and did was all part of some extensive cover-up. Yaturo would disagree with that scenario, but John knew that with any story, every possible angle had to be considered and taken wholeheartedly into account. Yaturo was convinced that the first scenario was the right one, and he’d come to the conclusion from his years and years of trying to get Alexi through his company and contacts around the world and from his two meetings with Alexi that Alexi was too confident and cocky to lie. Another scenario came to John’s mind as he pondered the first two: Maybe they’re both right to some degree. Hmm…
Having enjoyed the walk at the park and the beauty of Kyoto in general, John pondered how things might have been different if the United States would have chosen Kyoto as a site for the nuclear bomb instead of Hiroshima or Nagasaki. Kyoto was one of the initial planned targets, but ultimately, the bomb was deployed upon the other two. He wasn’t sure if it had anything to do with destiny or luck or a combination of both that Kyoto’s beautiful parks and temples were spared such. Was it destiny that took me to the cliff or pure luck? he wondered as he continued his walk back to the hotel. “Can I really change the world? Am I going to alter the past…or the future somehow?” he asked aloud to no one in particular.
Back in his suite, looking at that bathroom, as tempting as it was, he wasn’t ready to take a warm bath, as he was scared it might rejuvenate him. The last thing he needed was more energy; he decided a good meal from room service and a quiet sleep would do him good and prepare him to meet Yaturo in the morning. It was very important that they establish a clear plan and delegate their roles and responsibilities so that neither would interfere with the efforts of the other. They needed to avoid stepping on each other’s toes and work together.
The food came forty minutes later, and once again it was delicious. John wasn’t disappointed with any meal he had in Kyoto. In general, he loved the whole city. It was a relaxing place, and the people were kind. Everyone seemed positive and took the time to greet others with a warm and seemingly genuine smile. It was quite different from the cities John had encountered in the United States and other parts of the world. Even if he failed—which he truly believed he wouldn’t—Kyoto would still be his new home. Smiling at the thought, he laid his head on the comfortable pillow and fell into a dreamy sleep.
-
As expected, Yaturo arrived right on time. He still looked fragile but excited, and he was dressed rather casually in dark blue jeans and a long-sleeved brown and blue striped shirt. His clothing and demeanor gave off the impression that he was ready to get started, eager to get underway.
As they had their coffee, John told him all about his trip back home and all the developments there. Yaturo was glad that all had gone well and that John seemed to be bursting with energy and purpose, ready for all the work to come.
John informed Yaturo about the three scenarios that had been going through his head. “I think the third scenario might be our best bet,” he said. “So that we don’t waste any valuable time later, we should check all of the information we have for accuracy. We can review everything, starting from the first contact Alexi made with you, clear up to all the things that he had you do for him over the years. I’m going to need all the details about the people you’ve contacted and everything they were involved in. Also, I’ll need to know exactly what Eyes of Analysis has discovered and what they’ve truly been after. What search criteria have they used? for instance.”
Yaturo was more than happy to go over every detail. He explained that from the first moment, he was suspicious, and that led him to keep a close eye on each contact, as well as any businesses that seemed the least bit strange to him. “I looked out for any companies that seemed to be making easy money without clear sources of revenue. We checked out anything and everything that looked the least bit fishy,” Hitari went on to say. Then, he began to go into details. “The professionals at my company analyzed businesses all over the world. Whenever we had a lead—no matter how small—I used my contacts all over the world to gain access to data records. One problem is that in the eastern part of the world, everyone is still very precautious. Access to that data is not easy to achieve, and even when we did manage to retrieve it, it has not always been accurate. Cover-ups are very prominent in the Eastern Hemisphere,” he continued. “In any regard, whenever we suspect a person or a group, we dig up their full history. If our suspicions are even deeper, we will even look for things like fingerprints, so I could compare them with the fingerprint I have on record.”
John arched his eyebrow, then wrinkled his brow in confusion.
Yaturo grinned and stopped. “Oh yes! Did I not tell you already, John, that I have Alexi’s fingerprint? I managed to pull it off of the entry ticket he bought when we went inside the temple. It was just my luck that he paid for the tickets and handed one to me. I was very careful in handling it and got the fingerprint off of it later.” Yaturo went on, “It was true that I wasn’t thinking so clearly when I met him, but I have never been completely naïve about anything.”
In a shaky voice, John asked, “Have you managed to find a match or even a close possibility? Is there anything on record for this guy?”
“Unfortunately, no—nothing as of yet. Maybe he is really still unborn or a young child with nothing on record, or maybe there are only false fingerprints. We can’t tell.” Yaturo, a perceptive man, felt the disappointment in John’s eyes. “John,
you must get used to leads that take you nowhere. As I told you, this will require much work with little return—a world of patience. I have suffered such disappointments for more than a decade, but we have to keep trying.”
John nodded.
Yaturo then added, “Over the years, around 125 companies have fallen under our microscope for one reason or another. They seemed to fit with what I was looking for, but each and every one of them led to nothing more than a dead end. Either their work was legitimate or their family backgrounds were not even close or their looks were different. That doesn’t mean I have forgotten my initial suspicions or that they have fallen off our radar. There are answers out there, John. We only have to find them, and we must keep our eyes open wide at all times. We must—”
John held up his hand and interrupted, “But Yaturo, you have been considering his appearance to be based on what he looked like at your meeting. He told you to always wear a disguise. Do you not think he learned that from experience? Perhaps he was wearing a wig or colored lenses. You mentioned that his eyes were very bright blue when you first met him, but the next time he was wearing very large, dark glasses.”
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