The Legacy

by Patricia Kiyono

  When they reached her apartment, Leigh felt in her purse for her keys then thanked Andy.

  She skipped up the step, keyed her way into the building then climbed the stairs to her third floor apartment. But as soon as she opened the door and stepped into her living room, she knew something was wrong. Very wrong. The windows, which had been closed against the cool spring breezes, were open. An open bottle of Scotch and a half-filled glass sat on her coffee table. And her prized manga books lay in a torn heap on the floor.

  “So, you finally decided to come home,” a voice behind her growled. She heard a boot connect with the door and it slammed shut. She froze. She knew that saying or doing anything only made things worse.

  Her stepfather circled around her until he came to a stop in front of her. He'd been drinking so heavily she could smell it even before he spoke. His eyes were bloodshot, and he was breathing heavily.

  “You've been hanging out with that Jap family again, haven't you? Whassamatter, our German heritage isn't good enough for you anymore? You wanna be Asian, or somethin’? Ha!”

  Leigh fought to avoid cringing from the spittle coming at her. Slowly, she backed up toward the door. If she could just get to it…

  “Don’t even think about leaving,” he warned.

  His face got closer to hers. His lips twisted in a sneer, and his eyes shone with anger. She closed her eyes and forced herself to stand still.

  “So now that you know what he’s like, maybe I should show you what it’s like with a real man,” he growled.

  Her eyes opened wide. “Dad, no!”

  The acrid smell of whiskey assailed her as dad's mouth came toward her. She turned her face away and his lips nested in her hair. His arms entrapped her like steel bands. He'd forgotten who she was again, crooning Kirsten’s name over and over. “I'll show you what you've been missing. You think I don't know how to be a good lover. I'll show you, I'll show you...”

  One hand was at the hem of her blouse now, stroking her skin. She tried to push him away, but he was stronger, and determined.

  The knocking jolted them both. The steel bands loosened, and she turned toward the door.

  “Leigh? You left your cell phone in the car.”

  Leigh turned to her father. “I have to answer it,” she told him. “He knows I'm not asleep yet, because he just dropped me off.”

  Without waiting for an answer, she pulled the door open. She would have stepped outside, but a sharp tug on her belt from behind kept her in place. She had to get help without alerting her stepfather.

  “Hi Andy,” she greeted him. Her eyes pleaded with him for help. “Thanks for bringing my phone back.” She brought her hand to her mouth. “I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't told me where I left it!”

  Andy stared at her a moment, and his eyes widened. He nodded. “Sure, Leigh. No problem. I would have been worried too.”

  He backed up slowly. “I'll—I’ll see you soon.”

  Leigh was yanked back into the house, and the door started to close, but Andy wedged himself in the opening. With a roar, Frank swung his fist, connecting with Andy’s cheek with a sickening crunch. Leigh tried to reach him, But Frank lifted the younger man and bodily and tossed him outside, slamming the door and locking it.

  He spun around and grabbed Leigh’s arms. Large, beefy hands enclosed her wrists like shackles.

  “Stupid, obnoxious kid,” he growled. "First the father ruins my life, and then his rotten kid has to shack up with my daughter!”

  Leigh bit down on her lower lip. She wanted desperately to ask what James Tanaka had done to ruin Frank’s life, but there was a better chance of finding out if she kept quiet and listened. She wasn’t disappointed.

  “I worked my tail off to build a business that would support your mother’s lifestyle. How was I supposed to know the bottom was going to fall out of the automotive industry? But everybody buys flowers. Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, weddings. All those things made Jim Tanaka rich. So rich that my own wife preferred him over me.”

  Leigh wanted to cover her ears, but Frank held both her hands in an iron grip, and she couldn’t move them. Her mother and James Tanaka? It couldn’t be. It had to be the alcohol talking, putting ridiculous notions in his head.

  Leigh closed her eyes. There was no way she could overpower him, but she had to try. Her jacket was torn from her body and she shivered, not because of the cool spring air from the open windows, but because she knew what he intended to do. She twisted, trying to get away, but he held her fast. Sloppy kisses rained on her face and neck and she cringed, reciting every nursery rhyme she could remember. Anything to get her mind off what was happening to her. Help had to arrive soon.

  She winced at the hard slap across her cheek. Her eyes opened involuntarily.

  “Don't do that!” His eyes were filled with rage.

  “You never want it from me! I can't help it that nobody wants to hire me. But it's worse when my own wife doesn't see me as a man.”

  He pushed her down on to the couch. A moment later, he landed on top of her, knocking the breath out of her lungs.

  “I'll show you what a man is,” he groaned. Unsteady hands groped at her blouse and tangled in her hair. Finally, he grabbed at the neckline and ripped it from her.

  He was reaching for her jeans when another knock came at the door. She opened her eyes again, as her father swore.

  “Open up! Police!”

  Leigh groaned as her father froze, effectively putting dead weight on her. The knocking continued.

  “Open up in there!”

  “What in blazes are they doing here?” He scrambled up and peeked through the peephole. Leigh rose and grabbed the afghan off the couch to cover up.

  “It's that stupid Jap again,” he whispered. “You make one squeak and you're dead.”

  He looked at the afghan wrapped around her and leered. “Kinda late for that innocent little maiden act, isn't it? I know you take it all off for your boyfriend out there. You could go running outside right now, and he wouldn't see anything he hasn't seen before.”

  Leigh's eyes widened and her jaw dropped. But she closed it again, knowing she would just irritate him more if she tried to reason with him.

  The police knocked again, and Frank growled.

  “Well, I’ll deal with you later. I’m getting outta here.” Frank padded back to the bedroom and opened the window.

  Leigh realized what her father intended to do. She ran after him. “Dad, no! We’re on the third floor! It’s too high!”

  Two things happened at once: the police broke through the apartment door and Frank Becker, in his inebriated state, slid out the window and dropped to the ground below.

  Chapter Five

  “Oh, honey, what an awful, awful thing for you to go through! You can stay with us for as long as you like.” Lily fussed about the Tanaka kitchen, getting refreshments for everyone, and then running off to prepare the guest room for Leigh.

  Kirsten Becker had been contacted and was booked on the next flight back from New York. She had promised Leigh that Frank would get the counseling he needed, and tearfully apologized for not taking Leigh’s claims more seriously.

  “I’m so sorry, Leigh,” she had said through her sobs. “I’ve been so caught up in my work and avoiding Frank, I forgot to be a mother to you. I promise you, it won’t happen again.”

  “It’s a good thing Andy figured out you were in trouble,” Craig remarked. “How were you able to warn him?”

  Leigh smiled tiredly. “Back in junior high, we took a summer workshop on lip-reading. We used to practice it in school when we wanted to communicate without being heard.” She looked at Andy, who sat beside her with an ice pack on his bruised and swollen cheek. “I counted on you being able to read what my lips were saying rather than what was coming from my mouth.”

  Andy nodded, but said nothing.

  James shook his head. “Frank will be in the hospital for quite a while, I’m afraid. Then he’l
l have to face the court. Even if you don’t press charges, he’s in trouble. Apparently he was seen driving recklessly, and threatened one of the other tenants into letting him into the building.”

  He looked into Leigh’s eyes. “I am so sorry you had to go through this,” he said. “I know your father was angry at me, but believe me, I did nothing to ruin his business.” There was a brief pause before he added, “And I never had anything going on with your mother.”

  “I know that, Mr. Tanaka.” Leigh assured him. “I think everyone knew that, even Dad. But he wanted to blame someone, and I guess he decided it was you.” She sighed. “At least maybe now he'll get the help he needs.”

  Lily came back into the kitchen. “All right, Leigh needs to get some rest. Honey, I've got a nice, hot bath going. There are fresh towels and one of Jenny's nighties on the guest bed. Let me know if you need anything else.”

  Leigh nodded her thanks and headed toward the guest room. Hearing footsteps behind her, she turned to see Andy right behind her. She raised a brow, but said nothing. He followed her into the bedroom, watched as she gathered the things she needed and then followed her to the bathroom door, stopping only when she turned to ask if he planned to watch her bathe.

  “Sorry,” he mumbled. He backed out and closed the door, but she didn't hear his footsteps walking away.

  She undressed and slid into the hot, soapy bath, indulging herself in the blissful warmth for a moment, and then scrubbing herself down. She needed to wash away all memories of the night. Then she toweled herself off with one of the fluffy towels Lily had set out for her and put on the borrowed nightie and robe. Combing out her wet hair, she looked at herself in the mirror.

  A stranger looked back at her. This was not the face she saw this morning when she got ready for work. Sighing, she pulled open the door and walked out.

  And stepped into a solid wall of muscle.

  “You've been waiting here all this time?”

  Andy nodded. “I couldn't leave. I had to make sure you were okay.”

  “Andy, I was just taking a bath.”

  Andy took a deep breath. “This whole—deal—with Grandpa and his dad made me realize that I can't just put things off. Not when they're important. I always thought you were the strongest person I knew. You knew what you wanted and went after it. I always knew I'd work here at Tanaka Farms, and it was just a matter of finding out how I would fit in. I never thought I could be a person you needed. But the thing is, I need—you. You've been my best friend all my life. But that's not enough any more. I want you to be—more than my friend. Would that be okay with you?”

  It was the longest speech she had ever heard Andy put together. And it was her turn to be speechless.

  Andy fidgeted. “Um. So, you're not saying anything. Is that a bad sign?”

  Leigh lips curved. “No, it’s a good sign. I’m looking for the right words to tell you how happy I am. I want the same thing. I feel the same way about you. You're my samurai. You’ve always been there when I need you, and like your grandfather, you always do what is right.”

  Andy’s sigh of relief met her sigh of happiness as they held each other tightly.

  * * * *

  Andy drummed his fingers on his steering wheel as Leigh climbed into his car. She said hello to his grandfather in the back seat, and then turned to Andy.

  “Where are we going?” she asked.

  “To the nursing home. Mr. Kimura said he wanted to see us all right away.”

  “Why? Is something wrong? Is he sick?”

  “He didn't say. He just said to get there as soon as possible.”

  Grandpa settled back in his seat with a frown. Andy couldn't help the unease in his stomach. The call from Mr. Kimura had been short but firm. Get your grandfather and Leigh and bring them to the nursing home immediately. There was something important Kenjiro needed to hear, and he wanted everyone there.

  He pulled up to the home's entrance and turned to Leigh. “Why don't you go inside with Grandpa while I park the car?” She nodded and complied. Andy took the time alone to compose himself. Kimura-san was like family. Hopefully the news wasn’t bad.

  He walked into Mr. Kimura's room to find everyone there. Mr. Kimura looked healthy and was smiling. Andy’s anxiety must have been evident, because Mr. Kimura chuckled.

  “I see I have worried you, too, Andy. I apologize for that. I wanted you all here because I wanted you to meet Mrs. Samuelson.” He gestured to an elderly woman seated beside his wheelchair.

  All the Tanakas and Leigh murmured their greetings, then turned their curiosity back to Mr. Kimura. He continued his explanation.

  “Mrs. Samuelson is also a resident here. Last night I discovered she was a nurse, often giving care to the terminally ill.” He turned his gaze to Kenjiro. “She took care of your father in his final days.”

  The woman went to stand in front of Kenjiro and reached out to touch him, but paused and brought her arm back to her side. She bowed her head when she spoke.

  “I am so glad to meet you,” she whispered. “I was a young nurse when I took care of your father, and I didn't understand anything about the Japanese culture. So when he talked to me, I didn't realize how significant his words were to him.

  “He kept talking about swords. He said he had to give them to his son. I didn't find any swords in his room, so I didn't know what he was talking about. Your mother and younger siblings didn’t know anything about swords, either. I thought he was having a flashback to when he was younger. Anyway, he talked a lot about his son. He said his son was a good man, and he had fulfilled all the virtues of the bush—bush—”

  “Bushido,” Mr. Kimura supplied.

  “Bushido,” she repeated. “I had no idea what that meant. I just thought he was reliving the past. But he kept talking about all the wonderful things his son had done, and how he had never acknowledged them. I just told him that I was sure his son knew how much he meant to him. But he wouldn't calm down. He said he needed to get the swords from storage and give them to his son.”

  Kenjiro's face darkened as he spoke. “I was in the army, stationed in Korea when he died. I tried to get a leave so I could get back as quickly as possible, but this was in the 1950s, and it took a long time for me to get back.

  “By the time I got home, he was gone, and the funeral was over. My mother was a wreck and all my energy was devoted to keeping the business going. Tanaka Farms had taken a big hit during the Second World War, when the family was “relocated” to the internment camp in Colorado, and we were still rebuilding, so I never gave the swords a thought. I knew about them, and I’d seen them once or twice, but it never occurred to me there was a story behind them.

  “My father was a stern man, and I had trouble pleasing him. That was one of the reasons I enlisted when the Korean War broke out—I wanted to prove I was as patriotic and as courageous as my older brother. But I worked a desk job there. I didn’t see combat. I never felt I lived up to his ideal.

  “When Andy found the letter, I realized that if my father had wanted me to have the swords, he would have given them to me.”

  “Don't you see, Grandpa?” Andy stood, his hands outstretched, begging his grandfather to understand. “You've shown every single one of the Bushido virtues in your life. And what Mrs. Samuelson says proves that your father truly believed you were worthy of the legacy. So you have the right to these things. They are yours.”

  “He's right, Dad,” agreed James. “Grandpa should have given them to you after Uncle Michio died. But he didn't. He probably couldn’t, if the swords were in storage at the house and the family was in the relocation camp in Colorado. Plus, he was probably too much in shock, overcome with grief. He probably forgot about the swords until he knew he was dying, and then he was unable to give them to you.”

  “But I still have trouble accepting the virtue about courage. I never did anything courageous. My brother was the warrior—he was strong and had the courage to fight for his country. I was a scrawny k
id who went to college. There was nothing courageous about that.”

  “My friend, I think you've forgotten the Bushido definition of courage.”

  All talking ceased, and all heads turned toward Kimura-san as he wheeled his chair closer to Grandpa. The swords lay across his lap.

  “Courage can be seen as a virtue only if it is exercised in the cause of righteousness. In other words, courage is simply doing what is right.” He paused until his friend met his eyes.

  “When your brother died and your family needed you, you came home from college and took care of them. You gave up your college life to work and help your family survive. And when your father died, you took up the reins of the family business and kept it going. That, my friend, is courage.”

  Kenjiro finally allowed his gaze to rest on the swords. “You really think so?”

  Mr. Kimura picked up the long sword with both hands and presented it to his friend. “I know so, Tanaka-san,” he replied gently.

  Kenjiro sighed. “I guess I've got a wall somewhere these can hang on.”

  He turned to his son. “But some day, soon, they will hang in your home.”

  James nodded. “Not for a long time, I hope. But someday.”

  Andy and Leigh looked at each other with contentment. The legacy had been passed to its rightful owner.

  About the Author

  Patricia Kiyono is honored The Legacy is included in the Japan Relief Novella series. During her first career, she taught elementary music, junior high social studies, elementary classrooms, and junior high social studies. She now teaches part time at Grand Valley State University.

  She lives in southwest Michigan with her husband, not far from her children and grandchildren. Current interests, aside from writing, include sewing, crocheting, scrapbooking, and music. A love of travel and an interest in faraway people inspires her to create stories about different cultures. She has written elementary school plays and educational materials. The Legacy is her first work of fiction to be published.