Honorable Enemies (1994) (28 page)

"Okay," she said at the same time she saw the glass of win
e o
n the table. "Is this for me?"

"Yes. I noticed that you ordered white wine on our flights, so I took a chance on the Chablis."

"Perfect." Susan sighed. "Thanks."

"You're welcome."

Susan looked at him for a long moment, prompting Steve to turn and face her.

"You're staring," he said with a curious smile.

She covered her mouth and softly laughed. "I'm sorry. I know it's very impolite."

A knock on the door interrupted his response. He cautiously opened it while Susan concealed her Smith & Wesson behind her back. Steve signed the check while the young Malaysian woman carefully removed the plates of food from the warmer.

Susan stuck her handgun under a throw pillow and stared at the tantalizing array of delicacies on the room service cart. "There's enough food here to feed a professional football team."

"You told me to use my imagination," Steve teased while he opened the door for the woman to leave, then locked it behind her. "I think the best way to do this is buffet-style, then we can sit by the balcony and look at the lights of the city."

"Sounds good."

After they rearranged the furniture to accommodate the coffee table between them, Steve proposed a toast and they started sampling the specialties of Singapore.

Susan finished a few bites and reached for her wineglass. "What's your hunch? Do you think the owner of the freighter is the person behind the attack at Pearl Harbor?"

"I don't know," he said thoughtfully, "but there's something we're missing in this whole equation."

"What do you mean?"

He placed his fork on his plate. "That's what I was going to tell you. Our people at Langley are basically stumped about this deal, but they did come up with some information."

"Oh?"

"A few years ago a U
. S
. Navy destroyer, the USS Ingersoll, had a minor collision with a merchant vessel while it was returning home from a deployment in the Persian Gulf."

She stopped eating and quietly placed her utensils on the plate. "The Matsumi Maru number three?"

"No," he answered and reached for his wineglass. "The Matsumi Maru number seven, which is also registered in Singapore."

Susan felt that special tingle of excitement. "Do you think they're owned by the same person?"

"They aren't now."

He stared out the window for a moment, conscious of the speculative look she was giving him. "That's the problem. Our folks at the Agency discovered that six of the original eight Matsumi Maru freighters have been sold to various companies during the past eleven months."

"Including the one that we have a question about?"

"No," Steve answered, "which doesn't come as a surprise to me. Number three was sent to a salvage yard and then sold at auction when the owner didn't pay the bill to refurbish it."

He watched her closely. "They--our analysts at Langley--tried to track down the former owner of the ship, and there's no trace of the company. It dissolved--vanished into thin air the same as the bank accounts and holding companies associated with the mansion in Hawaii."

Susan's eyes narrowed. "The same pattern."

"That's the way I see it."

"What about the other ship? The one that isn't accounted for?"

"Number five went down during a typhoon about two years ago. That's the angle I want to pursue."

"You want to go after the insurance company."

"Exactly. If the ship was insured."

Susan looked bewildered. "Steve, think about the liability factor. It would be crazy to operate on the high seas without some form of insurance."

He refilled their glasses. "Maritime law, or admiralty law as some refer to it, has a characteristic feature that allows a shipowner to limit liability in most cases to the actual value of the ship."

"You're kidding."

"No." He shook his head slowly. "Most shipowners carry hull insurance to cover any damages to the vessel, and to protect themselves against claims by third parties, they carry protection-and-indemnity insurance."

"Are you saying that shipowners have liability limitations?"

"To a degree. Shipping was an extremely risky business long before they had even primitive forms of insurance. The idea of liability limitations is an ancient one that protected the shipowners from losing all their assets."

Steve's words had little conviction. His mind was on Susan, and he knew it would be impossible for him to remain emotionally indifferent toward her. She made him feel relaxed and comfortable.

"If an owner was found negligent," Steve continued halfheartedly, "he could satisfy his responsibility by turning over the ship and cargo to the claimants. Obviously, the laws have been modified over the years, but the basic maritime rules are still in effect."

"Where do you suggest we begin our investigation?" "Well," he answered slowly and raised his glass, "I'd say the
Port of Singapore Authority is a good place to start."

Susan smiled in her seductive way, then raised her glass t
o m
eet Steve's toast. "First thing in the morning."

CHIYODA WARD, TOKYO

Tired from the lengthy discussions with the enterprise groups, Prime Minister Genshiro Koyama felt groggy as Defense Minister Yutaka Isida and three members of the civilian-controlled National Defense Council entered his residence. They were served green tea while Koyama finished dressing and received a sketchy brief from an administrative aide.

The clear, star-studded sky was beginning to turn light when Foreign Minister Nagumo Katsumoto, looking like the model of neatness even at this early hour, was ushered into the elaborately ornamented meeting room.

A moment later, Koyama walked in and invited everyone to be seated. Yutaka Isida and the National Defense Council representatives appeared to be apprehensive and tense, while Katsumoto presented himself as calm and low-key. He had bee
n a
nticipating a problem with the U
. S
. military since the terrorist episodes at Yokosuka Naval Base and the air bases at Misawa and Yokota.

After the initial pleasantries were concluded, Koyama asked the senior defense official to explain the latest incident in the clash with the Americans.

The rumpled-looking bureaucrat in a black business suit appeared to be weary and needed a shave. Isida nervously fingered a small stack of reports and papers while he addressed his remarks to the Prime Minister.

"We have been monitoring the movements of the U
. S
. carrier groups in the western Pacific," he began awkwardly, "and we have become increasingly alarmed at the implications of their operating locations."

After glancing at his Foreign Minister, who showed no outward reaction, Koyama coughed. "Where are the carriers, and what are your primary concerns?"

Uncomfortable in front of the Prime Minister, the Defense Minister hesitated a moment to shape his answer. "The Independence group is operating in the South China Sea off the northwestern coast of Borneo, and Lincoln and her escorts are in the Java Sea between the Lombok and Sunda straits."

Genshiro Koyama frowned and thought about the collision between the American ship and the Aegis destroyer Kongo. "I thought the carrier was going back to the States for repairs. That's what I saw in my morning summary."

"That's what we thought," the worried man answered anxiously and shifted in his seat, "based on their normal operating practices. But she has been positioned in the Java Sea. We think they are trying to send us a strong message."

"Where's their other carrier group?" Koyama suddenly interrupted. "The . . ."

"Kitty Hawk," the defense expert offered, then went on when the Prime Minister nodded. "Her group is in the northern area of the Strait of Malacca. Again, the implied message, as far as we're concerned, is that U
. S
. forces can strangle our supply lines at their leisure."

"That's exactly what the Americans want us to believe," Nagumo Katsumoto said in his quiet and restrained manner. "They are as frustrated with us as we are with them, and they're demonstrating their military strength. Many experts think the American President is like tofu--nothing in the middle--but we can't afford to underestimate him and their Joint Chiefs of Staff."

Koyama examined carefully the look on the face of the Minister of Defense. "Isida-san, what is your recommendation in regard to the carrier groups?"

"We have discussed the issue at length," Isida explained in a halting voice, "and it is our recommendation that we increase our military visibility in the South China Sea and the straits of Lombok and Malacca."

The Prime Minister let his glance shift to Katsumoto. "What is your assessment of our predicament, Katsumotosan?"

The Foreign Minister tasted his green tea before he spoke. "The situation is not unlike that of a child who is more intelligent than his or her parents. At some point, when the child is strong and not dependent on the mother and father, he or she will stop smiling and agreeing to the parents' every wish and order."

Katsumoto placed his tea on the table. "Japan is ready to step away from American influence, but we need to continue to be a friend to the United States because of China's growing military threat and the unpredictable nature of North Korea's communist regime. We can accomplish this if we keep everyone's interest in mind."

Koyama gave his friend a disgruntled look. "We have to stand up for our rights, but we've got to be careful. Our parent has an arsenal of nuclear weapons."

"They aren't going to use nuclear weapons on us," Katsumoto said calmly, "and you know that as well as I do."

Koyama reacted with angry defiance. "Tell that to the survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki."

Katsumoto slowly turned to the Defense Minister and th
e d
elegation from the defense council. "If you'll excuse us for a few minutes. . . ."

After the men left the room, the Foreign Minister turned partially sideways to rest his curved back. "I agree that Japan has to become independent at some point in time, but I am firmly convinced that we can reach a reasonable solution with the United States if we're patient and don't provoke them."

"I don't agree with you," Koyama bluntly replied. "There is too much animosity and mistrust between our nations, and I
don't think the deep-seated antagonism is ever going to evaporate completely."

Katsumoto pondered the statement. "Let's think about what you just said, and examine our conscience with regard to our motives and values."

Koyama gave him a disgusted look and shook his head. "You know my feelings about the matter, so let's look at reality."

"I'm asking you to hear me out," Katsumoto said. "This is a pivotal point in our history."

Koyama tossed him a suspicious look.

"There are many factors and dynamics in play," Katsumot
o q
uietly continued, "that have worked to place Japan in thi
s d
ifficult position. We, as a unified country, must begin to address these issues face-to-face and be brutally honest with ourselves and the rest of the world."

He saw the look of irritation in the Prime Minister's eyes. "We can't afford to put bandages on our problems," Katsumoto went on as he returned the stare from Koyama, "then shove them under the rug and lie about everything like the Americans do. We need a fundamental change in our attitudes if Japan is going to be accepted and trusted by the globa
l c
ommunities."

Koyama frowned. "I don't like what I'm hearing. What ar
e y
ou trying to say?"

Katsumoto was straining to keep his emotions from spillin
g o
ver. "Face the truth and it will be much easier to deal with the
Americans."

"What truth?" Koyama shot back with open indignation.

Without blinking, Katsumoto glared at the Prime Minister. "We have been deceiving the world, ourselves, and our children. As a nation, the Japanese people have been programmed to believe that we are the victims of the war with the United States."

Katsumoto's perpetual smile had been replaced with a grim set to his mouth. "Because of the shock of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, our people have consistently refused to look at ourselves as the perpetrators of the war."

"I'm not going to listen to any more of this tripe," Koyama declared and rose to his feet, then looked down at the stooped man struggling to get up from his chair. "Furthermore, I strongly advise you to keep those kind of thoughts to yourself if you want to have a political future."

"Think about what I said," Katsumoto countered and abruptly turned to leave. "Facing the truth about Japan's past is the first step in winning our total independence from the United States."

Chapter
24.

When Steve walked into the hotel's executive center, Susan was having a spirited conversation with someone in her San Francisco office.