“We’re not … we’re not going anywhere.” He collapsed forward.
“Why not, babe? Let’s go somewhere, anywhere. Just get out of here.”
“No … no … no,” he said, still in denial. “We can’t, baby … because you’re dead.” He began sobbing anew. “You’re not really here.”
Hisoka stared at him with her glassy, empty eyes. “No, I’m not. I’m right here.”
“No … you’re over there.”
Satoshi pointed to her body on the floor in the center of the room. The image that his brain had tried to protect him from. Now it moved from occupying the periphery of his vision to filling it entirely. The room before him had been painted in blood. Somehow, he hadn’t been allowed to see it, until now.
He looked up at the couch, but it was empty now. He was alone.
Hisoka’s body lay in the center of the floor. Glassy eyes staring. Head tilted at an unnatural angle. As if Masa had tried to twist it off.
Satoshi stood, his computer falling from his lap to the floor and breaking to pieces.
He fell down beside her, his knees squelching in the soaked carpet. He tried to pick her up, to cradle her. But there was no life left in her body. Her skin was a pale alabaster that was cold to the touch. As if she were carved from marble. Tragedy personified in a blood-soaked figure of the woman he had loved. As cold and lifeless as a statue.
He hugged her close, the noise escaping from his mouth an animal wail of pain and grief. In this moment, everything else faded away, and he was left with just her body. He lay there with her, weeping. Time lost all meaning as it washed over and past him, artificially elongated by the drugs coursing through him. Still he sat there, curled around her. It was all he had left of her.
She had wanted to leave, to get out of this city, but he’d kept putting it off. Now it was too late, and she’d never escape. They should have gone when they’d had the chance. He should have had the courage to just turn his back on everything and take her away. They could have done it, easily. He was the only thing stopping them. Her death was on his head as much as Masa’s. There was no doubt of that in his mind.
Waves of grief poured over him as he replayed the life they shared, then tortured himself by imagining the life they could have had together. The life that they would never have together.
He sat there for hours, his only indication of the passage of time being the dark night turning to dawn, dawn turning to morning. Somewhere behind the fog blanketing the city the sun was rising, illuminating the gray clouds and smog below.
When Satoshi finally stood up, his joints and back popped loudly. His legs almost gave out as a sensation of numbness flooded through them from sitting on them for so long. He began hobbling around the apartment trying to get any feeling at all back into them.
As he was moving about, he saw Hisoka’s purse lying on top of the kitchen counter, with an envelope on top of it.
Satoshi’s quaking hands picked it up, which he saw was from her hospital. His hands left a bloody streak down the front of it. When he realized what it contained, he told himself there was no point in opening it. But he couldn’t stop himself. He tore it open and unfolded the document inside anyway.
Gingerly, he held the paper, now dotted with blood from his fingertips, up to his face. It shook in his hands as he read it through. He nodded and let it flutter down to the floor, where it began soaking up more blood.
“A girl … we were going to have a daughter.”
Satoshi dissolved to the floor. His knees sank into the blood-soaked carpet with a squelch. He sat there, immobile. Time had stopped.
It was a long time before he noticed the message written on the wall. The message that had been scrawled there in large, uneven letters, handwritten in blood.
It read:
PARLAY?
Chapter Four
“Well, that was a lovely meal,” Eriko said.
Vasili glanced over towards Akiyama. He was still now, his corpse lying face down on his plate. It was facing Yoshii, who never once took his eyes off Eriko to glance at it. With Matsuo’s seat empty, Yoshii’s ranks were looking a little thin.
“But enough fun and games. You want to hear who’s going to take the reins from these shriveled, arthritic hands. I won’t keep you waiting any longer.”
There were murmurs of excitement from the assembled bosses—many of them no doubt excited just to be alive.
“Moving forward, this organization will face challenges the likes of which I was fortunate not to have to deal with. The Dark Army is wrapping its tentacles around the centers of power in this country. The cozy ties that the yakuza and right-wing have shared in this country in the past are dead and buried; now we either eat them or be eaten by them. Soon, I fear they will be moving into our turf. It is increasingly obvious that they have the ear of the Genyoto. So expect official crackdowns to come soon, and often, if the Genyoto should rise to power. It won’t be like it was before.
“The threats from inside the city do not just reside at its heart, but beneath its very surface. We know very little about the Invited, the Shinkyo Sect, the Cult of Under, or any of these other death cults lurking beneath the surface. I doubt they pose a direct threat to our interests. But manic religious fervor never mixes well with our kind. Like water and gasoline.
“Then there are the barbarians at the gate. Groups like the Taira-kai and the Shinminami-gumi want nothing more than to pile into this sinking vessel and loot it as it goes under. Tokyo is a city in crisis, and within all crises lie great opportunity. These invaders see that, they’re not stupid. We must remain vigilant. We cannot build a stupid wall the way the government can, so we cannot keep them out completely. Rather, we must be more nuanced in our approach. Let them in when we have to, but don’t let them walk all over us.
“And of course, you will have to do all of this in a city that continues to sink day by day. You must continue to ‘flood-proof’ your operations. You cannot assume that these concrete walls and other boondoggles will protect you. They are make-work programs designed for political patronage, nothing more. You must all, individually and collectively, be prepared for when the waters come. Because when that happens nobody can save you but you. Safeguards, continuity plans, alternative options, escape routes. Those of you without such contingency plans may very well perish.
“So who better than the one person here who has already been battle- and flood-tested by the worst this drowning city can throw at a person? I’m speaking, of course, about Aina Uchida.”
The room was silent now. The name had been greeted with shocked intakes of breaths. Only a handful of bosses looked pleased at the news. No doubt these were the ones already working with Uchida on various interests.
“Well, clap, you fuckers.”
The bosses were spurred on to muted applause. The news was unexpected by most, and probably unwelcome by many. Vasili glanced at the other major contenders to gauge their reactions. Yoshii was still sitting stock-still, wearing the same stunned look he’d had since the death of his ally. He should be getting used to that by now, Vasili thought.
Fujita had a fake grin plastered on his tanned face that did a poor job of masking his deep disappointment. Vasili chanced a brief glance in Chobei’s direction and was surprised to see him looking calmly resigned, as if he had known it was coming. Maybe he had. Resigned or not, he did not seem pleased about being passed over.
Uchida took the podium. She regarded her colleagues (now subordinates) with the same look of cold aloofness she always wore. Vasili couldn’t detect any sense of victory in her demeanor. He couldn’t even tell whether she was happy or nervous at the news. Uchida had always been a puzzle to him. That did not bode well for the future.
“Thank you all for your kind support. It is an honor to be chosen as the next leader of the Kaisha. I only hope to live up to the example set by my predecessor, and prove myself worthy of her trust.”
“You will,” Eriko said.
“
I am already looking into making arrangements to establish a headquarters within my territory along the border somewhere. I doubt you’ll want to mobilize armored convoys to fight off the natives in Edogawa every time you need a sit-down. So I’ll try to meet you all halfway.
“And on a personal note, I just want to say that I look forward to leading this organization in the days ahead. My team and I have a great many ideas for the future. And with your cooperation, we will be unstoppable. Thank you.”
“Thank you, Uchida,” Eriko said. “Now, enjoy your evening. Uchida will be seated outside. I suggest you all pay your respects.”
The bosses slowly began filtering out into the gathering area. Vasili, Nobunaga, and Takabe soon followed suit, taking up their customary positions at their usual standing table.
“Well … I can honestly say I didn’t see that coming,” Nobunaga said.
“I don’t think anyone did,” Takabe said before turning to Vasili. “Did you know?”
He shook his head. “No. I told her I don’t want it in the end. But she would not tell me who else she was considering.”
The two of them looked at him in open-mouthed shock.
“You did what?”
“I did not want it. I told her so.”
“What … why … how could you …?” Takabe couldn’t even get his head around this.
“Is not for me. Not at my age. I can do better work where I am now. With what I’ve already built.”
“What we could have done with control of the syndicate …,” Nobunaga said with a shake of his head.
“Maybe someday you have it. Edogawa is not so stable a place.”
“I suppose,” Nobunaga said. He still looked dumbfounded. “You know, for as long as I’ve known you, I still don’t know how much I really know you.”
“Yes. I am mystery.”
Takabe snorted on his drink. Nobunaga smiled.
Vasili looked over at Uchida. A few of the bosses had filtered over at times to pay their respects already. But now she was alone, with just her right-hand man standing off to the side. It didn’t seem to bother her, though.
“Well, better kiss the ring,” Vasili said.
Uchida watched him approach as Lee sidled up in front of her. He began lavishing her with praise. Vasili couldn’t remember Lee ever being able to spare more than a few words for Uchida. Now he was going on as if they were best friends.
“I was just talking with my men about how you would make a great leader,” Lee gushed. “I’m so glad to have you in charge. I’m sure you’ll prove every bit the hard-nosed leader Eriko has been.”
Uchida smiled calmly and clasped his hand in hers. “I’m so glad I have your support.”
Lee noticed she was looking beyond him, and glanced around to see Vasili. He nodded, then moved out of the way.
“Congratulations,” Vasili said. “I’m glad to see it was you.”
“Why’s that?” she asked with a grin.
“Because that means it wasn’t Yoshii or Chobei.”
She smiled wider. “I think just about everyone’s relieved at that. Except for Fujita. He doesn’t seem terribly pleased.”
“Eh, he’ll get over it.”
“I’m not good at beating around the bush, so I’m just going to ask you straight out. Am I going to have problems with you?”
“Me? I am cuddly Russian bear. Why would I be problem?”
Uchida’s smile died. “Because you were in contention for my job. Because you were close to the shacho. And because she chose me over you.”
“She asked me to be shacho. I said no. The job is yours. And all the headaches that go with it.”
“Why don’t I believe you?”
“Because we are snakes. And only snakes know the path of snakes.”
“That sounds better in Japanese.”
“Yes. But is true. I am no threat to you. In fact, I have something I need your help with.”
“Oh?”
“A little project. I am wanting laboratory space. To produce drugs, medications. I’m thinking Edogawa would be perfect for it.”
Uchida nodded as she flashed him a smile. “Well, then, let’s talk. I’m open for business.”
“Glad to hear it. I will be in touch.”
He walked away to where Eriko was sitting. Kuroda was saying something behind her, which Eriko seemed to be ignoring. She was watching the assembled bosses as they milled about, a devilish smile on her face.
“Hello, you horrible bitch,” Vasili said.
“Vasili.” She acknowledged him as if nothing were amiss.
“I still can’t believe you sometimes.”
“How so?”
“That shit with the poison. Not funny.”
“Oh, just a taste of poison for you all. Just to see who had a guilty conscience. You can’t say it didn’t work.”
“No, but I can say that I don’t like being poisoned for your little trick. My throat was closing up. You almost killed me.”
Eriko grunted. “Yeah, well, don’t think it’s the first time.”
“Eh?”
“Oh, come now. Wires get crossed, messages get mixed up, people get executed by accident. Or almost executed.” Eriko shrugged. “It happens.”
“Fuck me,” Vasili said in wonderment. “How many times have you almost had me killed?”
“Oh, I don’t know. A couple.”
“A couple. How many times is ‘a couple’?”
“More than one but less than five. Look, the point is, you passed. Your clean conscience and guilt-free lifestyle allowed you to pass my final test unscathed.”
“Yes. Those things.” Clean conscience indeed. “What would you have done if I had confessed to something?”
“Do you have something to confess? I can get you another plate of fugu if you’re still hungry.”
“No, thanks. If I did, I would have confessed by now.”
“And if you had, you’d be dead.”
“What about Uchida? What if she had some skeletons in her closet?”
“Oh, I didn’t poison her. It was her idea, in fact. One of the reasons I love her as my replacement.”
“Vultures of a feather.”
“Oh, shut up.”
Vasili smiled. So did Eriko.
“You did good,” Vasili said. “Throughout it all. You were good boss. And I’m honored to have served under you.”
She grasped his hand.
“Thank you, Vasili. I’m honored too, to have had such a strong ally as you.”
“Always.”
If Vasili hadn’t known any better, he would have thought that maybe Eriko was holding back a tear. But that couldn’t have been it.
“Well, how does it feel now, to no longer wear the crown?” Vasili asked after a pause.
Eriko just shook her head.
“Unburdened. And empty.”
Chapter Five
Chobei walked down the hall towards his mother’s private quarters, carrying a bottle of Ardbeg 18 and two glasses. He saw the door open to her trophy room and ducked inside. Eriko was sitting in the middle of the glass display cases, admiring them.
“That was some dinner party, Mother. Probably one of your best.”
She smiled. “Yes, I suppose so.”
“Is that where Takeuchi’s hide will go?” he asked, motioning towards an empty case.
“Yes, I think it will look lovely there.”
Chobei smiled. He opened the bottle and began pouring two glasses.
“Oh, no, I couldn’t. I’m about to pass out as it is.”
“Take it,” he said. “You’ve earned a drink after tonight. It’s not every day you get to celebrate your retirement. Besides, it’s your favorite.”
“Not yours?”
“It’s a bit peaty for my taste,” he said, pouring himself a glass. “But I’ll drink a glass to your health.”
They clinked glasses.
“Cheers, Mother. To you, and everything you’ve accomplished.”
They drank. She smiled. He grimaced.
“A little smoky for you?”
“It tastes like it’s been set on fire.”
“It grows on you.”
“I hope not.” He glanced around the room. “Well, how does it feel now to be free of the burden of leadership?”
She shook her head. “Strange. It feels like … my purpose is gone. If that makes any sense.”
“It does, certainly. Must be odd. All of a sudden, to no longer be the center of the universe. To know that the planets will keep revolving without your intervention.”
“I never thought I’d feel this way. Considering I never wanted the mantle of leadership to begin with, to be totally honest.”
“Really? I can recall you saying time and again how hard you fought to get it. It’s one of your favorite stories, you know. And lately you’ve tended to repeat yourself quite a—”
“I know what I said!” Eriko snapped. “And it’s a damn good story, so don’t complain about hearing it too much.”
Chobei smiled. “No complaints.”
“I admit, I fought for the top spot. But only because they would have killed me without it. If Umeki or any of my other rivals had gotten the position … well, then neither of us would be here now.”
“Well, lucky you got it, then.”
“Yes. I got it. I’ve never been more terrified than I was after I got it. Because that meant I had to rule.” She smiled to herself as she recalled the past. “I hadn’t been thinking that far ahead. I was just trying to stay alive.”
“Still, that being the case, it’s a testament to your strength of character that you somehow managed to fall into one of the most powerful positions in all of Japan.”
“Some people see power as an end in itself. It’s not. Power is a tar pit. You can’t escape, and the second you stop fighting to stay on top, it sucks you under. There’s no rest, no breathing room. Because there’s always someone underneath you willing to claw their way over you to the top.”
Her breathing had become labored, as if the tar pit of which she spoke were actually suffocating her. She took a moment to compose herself, then continued.
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