Shimura Trouble (20 page)

“He would know about drugs,” I said. “But it doesn’t mean he uses them, Dad, he’s the straightest arrow I know.”

“Agreed. When I confronted Michael about this behavior, he asked me to walk outside for a shaved ice. As we drank our ices, he explained about his work, and yours. He was concerned that you might never have a chance to tell me. I’m not happy about the risks involved in the work, but I understand the work you did with him had great meaning for the future of this country—and its relationship with Japan.”

“OCI is all in the past,” I said. “All I ever wanted to do is work with Japanese antiques. After this vacation, I’m getting back on track. For real,” I added, then laughed. I was picking up Hawaiian slang.

“I shall leave you to rest now, but I think more of Michael for telling me what he did. He’s a good man, Rei, and I regret giving you any other impression.”

“Oh?” This was magnanimous of my father, to say he’d been wrong about something.

“Yes, I was wrong. And you’re thirty years old now, my dear. Behave within reason, but don’t be afraid to follow your heart.”

I
WAS SORTING
through the few remaining clean dresses in my closet, wondering what I should wear to confront my own past and future, when my cell phone rang. It was Michael on the other end.

“Brooks,” I said, relief flooding through me like a gentle anesthetic. As awkward as things might be in a few hours time with Hugh, I would step into the Sebring at seven o’clock for my long-anticipated dinner date with Michael. I’d tell him everything, and he’d help me get over it. And then we’d have fun.

“I’m glad you answered—I was having trouble with reception earlier, because I’m on the North Shore. Are they going to let you out of Queen’s today?”

“You must not have heard that they let me go. I’m home, and you caught me in my room, figuring out what to wear tonight, if you’re still interested in dinner.”

“Of course. The reservation is on the late side, though. Do you think you can stay up till nine? Are you truly feeling fine?”

“Yes and no. My body’s more or less back to normal, but I’m a bit anxious about something.”

“And why’s that, honey?”

He used the endearment without any strategic reason—just affection, which made my revelation all the harder. “A visitor I never expected is coming to see me today. I’m not really in the mood to face him.”

“Kainoa?” Michael’s voice darkened.

“Actually, it’s someone flying in from Tokyo. Hugh.”

“Who?”

“Hugh! Hugh Glendenning, my ex. Edwin conned him into flying over here from Japan, saying I was deathly ill. I think it was all a way to get another person working on Braden’s legal defense.”

“If you didn’t invite him, then why would you see him?” Michael’s voice was tight.

I was speechless for a moment, then said, “Of course I’ll see him. I must explain about what Edwin did and make some apologies, at least.”

Michael was silent for a while, causing me to think our connection had broken. At last he spoke. “If you see Hugh, it’s over.”

“What’s over?” I asked.

Michael paused, then said, “This thing we have.”

Now I was mad. “Michael, you and I have never gotten past first base, so you’re a fine one to talk about having any kind of relationship, and I’m not hoping to rekindle anything with Hugh. He’s happily married to a beautiful actress and flew here intending to absolve me of all my past sins, or something like that, at my bedside as I lie dying—”

“He flew out here because he’s still in love with you, Rei.” Michael’s voice was somber. “When he finds out you’re OK, he’s not going to be content at the side of your bed, either.”

“I’m not going to be in bed, OK? I’m up and well and walking around,” I protested. “Come on, Michael. I didn’t have to tell you this at all, but I did it because—”

“Because why?” Michael interrupted. “Because it’s a handy way to cement the running-away-from-me scenario you started, just before you became ill?”

“You’re over-reacting, Michael. Just stop.”

“You have to decide what matters, Rei. Who you really want.” And with that, Michael Hendricks hung up on me.

I stood still, absorbing the shock. After a while, I clicked off the phone—after all, Michael wasn’t going to be able to phone back and apologize if the line was busy. And he would apologize; it was out of character for him to give me an ultimatum. Sure, he was jealous, but he’d calm down after a while. All men did.

I put off my thoughts about glamour gear for the evening and slipped into a clean T-shirt and shorts. I had to sit down on the edge of the bed to put on my socks, because I didn’t trust my balance.

The doorbell rang, and I started. It was too far from Waikiki to be Michael already, and I doubted it was Hugh, either. I waited for my father or somebody to open the door, but nothing happened, so I went myself.

“Rei!” Calvin Morita moved as if he intended to embrace me, so I stepped back, crossing my arms over my chest.

“Please don’t. I just woke up and was sick again,” I lied.

“Let’s sit down, then.” Calvin urged me over to the couch. “I’ll get you a glass of water, Rei. Ice?”

The last thing I wanted was Calvin Morita to hand me anything to eat or drink.

“Nothing right now, thanks,” I said, but he didn’t close the fridge door until he’d pulled out a bottle of mineral water for himself. Cracking off its top, he sat down across from me.

“Where’s Jiro?” I asked.

“Ah, the question you always ask me! He’s taking an afternoon nap. I took advantage of the lull to come over and welcome you home from the hospital. I saw your father, uncle and Tom at the pool.”

“I wonder why they didn’t tell me they saw you,” I said.

“Well, you were sleeping, weren’t you? I did have a chance to chat with them, and your father said you were the victim of food poisoning. If it turns out that it was the sushi, I’ll feel awful.”

“Why? I mean, why would you think it was the sushi?”

“You vomited, right? Did they talk to you about salmonella?”

“I’m sure the restaurant sushi was safe. Everyone else who ate it that night was fine.” I wanted Calvin out of the house; my gut was clenching and wrenching overtime, just being alone with him.

“Yes, and I was fine, too. I don’t understand. Your cousin told me that you actually ate at the home of Josiah Pierce earlier on the same day.” Calvin gave me a tell-me-more look.

“Yes, Michael and I were there. Mr. Pierce is cooperating with the health department, too.”

“How did you get invited over there?” Calvin blurted, as if no longer able to contain himself.

“He’s the uncle of one of Michael’s former classmates.”

“Oh, right. The Punahou connection!” Calvin seemed to relax slightly. “Well, I wouldn’t think you’d get sick at a place like a multi-millionaire’s Tantalus estate. That house is really nice, for an old place.”

“Have you been there?” I asked.

“Sure. I’ve dropped off Jiro’s father there a few times. They have a business relationship, as you might have guessed.”

“Really.” I stood up. “Calvin, it was very nice of you to stop in. I appreciate you keeping the heat on the health department, as well.”

Calvin stood up too, as if understanding his time was over. “I was wondering—did your doctor at Queen’s give you any medicines to take home?”

“No. The prescription was just rest and relaxation.”

“I hope that’s enough. Let me know if you have any symptoms like nausea that continue to trouble you.”

“My medical care’s all taken care of by Otoosan and Tom,” I said dismissively. “I couldn’t be more fortunate to have them in-house.”

“But they can’t write prescriptions in Hawaii, and you’re clearly under a lot of stress,” Calvin said. “I can see from your slight pallor, and the darkness under your eyes, that you aren’t sleeping well. You might benefit from a temporary course of Valium.”

“Valium?” I asked incredulously. Hadn’t I just told him I’d thrown up? And I’d been poisoned by a mixture of benzodiazepines and SSRI drugs.

“If you tried Valium once and didn’t react well, perhaps the dosage was wrong. It’s a matter of weight. What are you, about one hundred ten?”

Struggling to keep control, I answered him. “Calvin, thanks for your concern, but my weight is none of your business. I’d prefer not to be your patient, period.”

“That’s OK.” Calvin gave me a wave and headed for the door. “Just let me know if you change your mind.”

I LOCATED MY
relatives shortly after Calvin left; all three of them were at the swimming pool, having just eaten plate lunches purchased at its concessions stand. They hadn’t seen Calvin knock at the door, and agreed that I’d done well to reject a Valium prescription. I went back to the house to put on a bathing suit while the concessions stand prepared a special mini-meal for me, at Tom’s insistence. It was a two-scoop lunch, just fruit salad and rice.

After the meal, I submerged my body in the shallow end, while my father swam laps, if you could call the short distance from one side of the pool to the other that. I wondered how things had gone so crazy, so fast.

The sun moved and suddenly the pool was cold. I got out and lay on a chaise with the last Juanita Sheridan novel, and the last Harry Potter. My father had brought them out along with a water bottle and the cell phone, which he pointed out was showing an icon signifying that a message was waiting. Michael, I thought with relief, pushing buttons until I could find the number of the person who’d just called. I recognized it as that of Uncle Edwin’s household. Reluctantly, I dialed back.

“You feel better now?” Yosh asked in his rough voice.

“Yes. It’s just…everything was a bit overwhelming. I hope my outburst didn’t upset you.”

“I seen a lot worse yelling in our house. Hey, I want to tell you, I think it’s a nice idea you had, to visit the cottage.”

“Now that I have the maps, it will be easy to find our way via Barbers Point,” I said, glad I had something positive to think about. “When would you like to go?”

“Tomorrow. I’ll take Braden along, because Edwin’s got a sales conference. The boy say he don’t want to go, but he should see the place. It’s part of who he is, yah?”

“And what about Courtney?” I asked, mindful of the one who always was ignored.

“Well, she got school tomorrow, but she can go if we wait till two-thirty.”

“Fine. I’ll bring the minivan.” I wasn’t going to ask Michael to come with us after all.

EVENING WAS APPROACHING;
the sun had moved around the pool, and the little children and their parents were dragging their water toys behind them on the way home, while the young officers were arriving, hefting coolers and staking out grills. It was time for all of us to leave too—my father for tai-chi practice, and Tom and Hiroshi to pick up pizza in Kapolei.

I showered and pulled out the dress I’d selected earlier, a rose silk charmeuse dress that skimmed my body like a wave. Somewhere in me, I harbored the hope that Michael would drive over with roses and an apology. In the meantime, I might as well look nice for my meeting with Hugh, who’d last seen me looking very depressed in dirty gym clothes.

As I dried off and rubbed a plumeria-scented cream on my arms and legs, I slipped into matching lace underwear, also pink. I leaned before the bathroom mirror to apply my usual evening make-up: a tinted moisturizer, plum color for the lids, and a smoky gray liner. It was a kind of meditation, the strokes of the mascara wand, the etching of the lip liner. Here were the outlines: crisp edges distracting from the inward mess.

My face finished, I sat on the lanai, watching the sun slip farther down, and feeling the air cool against my skin. The sound of a car slowing down cut into my thoughts. I looked up and saw a long black Lincoln town car stop at the driveway.

It would be impolite not to meet him. As he emerged from the car, I started toward him, my bare foot squashing something soft. The lithe green lizard scuttled away, but not before I’d screamed.

“Darling, are you all right?” Hugh steadied me. I shook off his hands and took him in, handsome as ever in slim-cut khaki trousers and a white linen shirt that was only slightly wrinkled.

“I just stepped on a lizard.” I made a face.

“Are you sure it wasn’t a snake?” Hugh looked warily at the clipped lawn around us.

“There are no snakes in these islands. It’s one of the fun facts about Hawaii.”

Hugh turned back toward his limousine, carefully shielding his eyes from the sun. “May the driver stay where he’s parked? I don’t intend to keep you long, since you’ve just gotten out of hospital, but I did hope for a real visit.”

“It’s no problem. Uncle Hiroshi and Tom took our minivan to Kapolei to get some extra provisions. They won’t be back for a while, I’m sure.”

“I would have liked to see them. And where’s your father?” He gazed toward the house.

“He’s at tai-chi.”

“You must have made a miraculous recovery for them to leave you on your own, the first day out of hospital?” Hugh’s green eyes were looking at me with the skepticism I’d anticipated.

“I wouldn’t call it miraculous. In fact, I have some explaining to do. Tea?”

“Never thought I’d ask for this, but do you have any iced?” He pushed back a lock of damp blond hair from his brow.