The pilot banked and flew out to sea and followed the coastline to the sprawling Victorian Gothic castle that had been the school known as DrakerCollege. When Kilmara had last seen it, it had been boarded up. Now the windows glistened with fresh paint, the grounds had been tidied up, and there were cars parked in the courtyard. It, too, was surrounded with microwave fencing and other detection equipment.
"You've had your beady eye on the island for training the Rangers for some time," said Fitzduane. "Fair enough. You've got a deal. I need security and you need space. You can hang your hat in a wing of Draker and train to the seaward end of the island."
"What about rent?" asked Kilmara, ever conscious of budgets.
"Peppercorn — as long as you're running the Rangers. The whole deal is cancellable at a month's notice. I get to keep any improvements. You guys have to make good any damage. Oh, yes — and the whole island gets classified as a restricted military area. I want to do some building and I don't want to get delayed by filing planning applications."
He spoke into his intercom, and the helicopter banked and headed low and fast toward Duncleeve. "We'll talk later. Our visitors are due soon."
They landed in the courtyard of the castle. Shortly afterward, a Range Rover pulled up from the airstrip and out stepped three Japanese.
The first was Yoshokawa. The second, a short, distinguished-looking man, was a stranger to Fitzduane. The third visitor was an extremely attractive woman.
The second man was introduced as Saburo Enoke, the Deputy Superintendent-General of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police, better known to his men as the Spider.
The woman was a Miss Chifune Tanabu. She was just presenting her card when the heavens opened and sheeted rain poured down on the exposed group. They fled inside.
* * * * *
The Great Hall had been equipped for the briefing. Various audio-visual aids were in place. Pinboards on wheeled stands lined one wall.
Outside, the skies had darkened and rain lashed against the long glass wall. Fitzduane suggested sliding shut the shoji screens to keep out the beautiful but depressing picture, but his visitors smiled and shook their heads.
"We're used to the restricted landscape of an urban environment," said Yoshokawa. "The sight of the open sea is a rare pleasure — whatever the weather."
The assembled group took their seats, and Yoshokawa addressed the meeting.
"This is an exceptional gathering," he said, "because matters will be discussed here today which normally would never be communicated between parties of such differing backgrounds. National interests are involved, and no nation wishes to air its flaws and deficiencies in public. However, we are confident that we are dealing with people we can trust and that we have a mutual interest. I now defer to Enoke-san, the Deputy Superintendent-General."
The Spider stood up. He spoke excellent English with a strong American accent. He spoke slowly, and in such a manner that it was clear what he said was carefully considered.
"We have much to be proud of in Japan, but like every country, we have situations and elements which are an embarrassment. Naturally, we do not like to publicize those negative elements. Nonetheless, in this case it is clear that there are advantages in cooperation. It has taken us some time to reach this conclusion. I regret that it has taken so long, and I can assure you all there that there will be no delays in the future. We are committed to see this matter through to a successful conclusion.
"I will now give you back to General Kilmara. He has been conducting the investigation here and is best qualified to present our mutual findings. But before I do" — he bowed deeply to Fitzduane — "I would like to apologize on behalf of our countrymen for the injuries you have suffered, Fitzduane-san. Activities of this dissident minority are a source of great embarrassment to us. We are deeply sorry."
Fitzduane, sitting at the head of the table, acknowledged the bow and smiled. Privately, he was getting impatient. He already knew some of the pieces, but he wanted to know more. Above all he wanted content, not platitudes. He hoped his guests had flown twelve hours or more for more than a few elegantly delivered words of apology.
Kilmara stood up. "What I am about to say is a distillation of five month's work by my unit, with contributions from many different intelligence sources. And I should add that the most beneficial help has come from my friends in Japan. For reasons that will be obvious, this is a particularly sensitive investigation from their point of view. Not just security issues are involved, but also political matters at the highest level. It is therefore vital that confidentiality be maintained."
Kilmara turned toward Fitzduane.
"You know that the attack on you and Boots was by Yaibo, and that the second attack was also mounted by Yaibo, even though the actual assault team were members of IRAP. We have now ascertained a definite link between the Hangman and Yaibo going back over nearly a decade. In-depth interrogation of Sasada confirmed that your killing was to be a straightforward matter of revenge for the Hangman, and was expected to be achieved without difficulty.
"Sasada," continued Kilmara, "was not supposed to be directly involved with the hospital hit, but he exceeded his instructions. He was an overzealous company man. His conscientiousness may have been ill-advised, but it has proved fortunate for us. He has provided the first actual direct link between Yaibo and the Namaka keiretsu. The Namaka organization is headed by two brothers, Kei and Fumio. They have a security chief called Kitano. According to our friend Sasada, Kitano issued the actual order to have you killed, Hugo — but Kitano does nothing without the Namaka brothers' approval."
The Spider indicated that he wanted to contribute, so Kilmara gestured that he should proceed. The Japanese was fiercely proud, and he knew how difficult it was for them to discuss any of the internal workings of their system. Nevertheless, he could sense a growing climate of mutual trust in the room and he was delighted that the DSG was abandoning his formal posture.
The Spider explained the background of the Namakas and something about the Japanese political system and their influence within it. "For some time," he said, "we have suspected a link between the Namakas and Yaibo based upon an examination of who has benefitted from Yaibo killings. Nonetheless, all Yaibo activities did not directly benefit the Namakas and we never had any hard proof. Further, the Namakas had considerable political influence up to — and including — ministerial level. It was not, and still is not, possible to just pick them up and sweat the truth out of them. Though we have been tempted."
The DSG made no mention of the manner in which the Rangers' prisoner had been interrogated, which now made him unusable as a witness. He had been extremely angry when he had first heard, but he was a pragmatist. The interrogation had taken place within the context of an extreme situation. Sasada would undoubtedly have kept silent otherwise. As it was, though they had not evidence against the Namakas they could use in court, the Namaka link with Yaibo had moved beyond speculation.
Fitzduane was picking up a nuance. "The situation with Namaka has changed?" he said.
The DSG nodded. "Has changed and is changing," he said with a slight smile. "Specifically, Hodama, a kuromaku — and for decades the core of their political backing — has been murdered. Secondly, a change in public opinion is beginning. We have a sophisticated economy and we would like a political system to match. More and more ordinary Japanese are getting fed up with money politics and corruption. Groups are organizing and lobbying for change. It is becoming less easy for corrupt politicians and their allies to suppress investigations and operate with impunity."