Chapter Four

"Mr. Lee, you can assure your boss that I've taken care of everything and his product will arrive on schedule," John Martin assured the young Asian man sitting before him. His guest's face was impassive, and Martin wasn't sure he'd pulled it off.

Lee looked back at Martin coldly. He remarked, "Mr. Martin, I'm an easy man to please. Our past relationships has been profitable for us both. Profitable because you are a very discreet man, and my boss appreciates your discretion. But he is a man who dislikes the glare of the media, and the recent death of your girlfriend threatens to blind him."

"That's not a concern. I can assure you of that," Martin said.

"So you've taken care of the problem?" Lee asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes, I have friends in the media, and they value our friendship. Linda's death will get no more than a day's run in the papers, and it will be a small story. Nobody's going to care about a dead whore," Martin smiled smugly.

Lee rose and returned Martin's smile. Lee's grin attempted no malice, and as a result, was all the more unnerving. Martin's haughty manner vanished and was replaced by a cold fear. "I'm glad to hear it, and my boss will be as well. We'll be watching you, Mr. Martin."


Ewa Beach was several miles outside of the city and was like going into a different world. Rita and Chris were impressed as they drove toward their host's home. The location was spectacular, a wide beach and steep cliffs were the main scenery. The Yokahana house was not a tall building but spread out quite a bit. "Well, here we are," Yoshi said, as he got out of his car and walked toward Rita and Chris's rental car.

Rita paused to look at the water and the beach, "The view is wonderful here, Yoshi."

Yoshi was just about to comment when suddenly two little voices cried out, "Daddy! Daddy!" His children, Nureko and Yoshi, Jr.,came running down the driveway toward him. After greeting his children, his daughter asked, glancing toward Chris and Rita, her manner shy,"Are they criminals?"

Yoshi laughed heartily. "No, this is Chris and Rita Lorenzo, they're friends and are here on their honeymoon. They'll be staying with us for a little while."

"What's a honeymoon?" Nureko asked.

"Ah, it's a trip that a newly married couple takes," Yoshi tried to explain to his daughter. He then led Rita and Chris on a quick tour around the front yard. He proudly showed off his landscaping skills, but his tour was cut short as a woman cried out,"Yoshi Yokahana! Did you forget your manners? Show our guests to the guest house and stop your foolishness!"

Yoshi turned and saw his wife, Mariko, glaring at him from the porch. "I was just showing them around."

Mariko frowned, "You can do that later! I'd like to meet our guests if you don't mind, and I'm sure they'd like to rest!" Yoshi grumbled and said something under his breath in Hawaiian.

Mariko walked out toward Chris and Rita and Yoshi made the introductions. Mariko hugged Rita and Chris and said with a warm smile, "Aloha and welcome to our home! Yoshi was so excited when he called and suggested you come and stay with us."

Rita returned Mariko's smile and sensed a kindred spirit in her. Mariko Yokahana was still pretty and showed few signs of middle age. Her eyes were dark and her skin was a light golden brown. She wore her black hair up and away from her face. Her Hawaiian style flower dress was light and very colorful.

"We were excited, too," Rita said, "this has been an amazing day to say the least! You must allow us to pay room and board."

"No, we won't accept any money, and that's final. Yoshi told me what happened, and I wanted you to stay with us," Mariko stated.

Chris wanted to protest but instead said, "It can't be everyday that you have witnesses to a murder staying at your home."

"No," Mariko agreed with a laugh, "this will be the first time, but you are more than witnesses, you're police officers, and that makes you family. Yoshi is a good judge of character, and he saw something special in you both, and besides, we were honeymooners once, too! Our honeymoon didn't go as planned either, but somebody helped us, and now we'd like to help you. You will not be a burden on us, trust me. Dinner will be ready in about 30 minutes. I'll show you to the guest house so you can unpack and get settled," Mariko said, leading Chris and Rita down a path which meandered through Yoshi's extensive Japanese style garden and down towards the beach.

The true distance between the main house and the guest house was not far, but gave the impression of solitude. The cottage was small, but quite adequate for Rita and Chris. Mariko explained the layout as they approached. The cottage was two stories high and surrounded by a veranda and included a screened-in porch. The ground floor contained a sitting room and a small kitchen, and the top floor contained the bedroom and bath. The furnishings were simple and added to the laid back feeling of the cottage.

"So," Mariko asked, "what do you think?"

Rita smiled, "It's great! I love the simplicity of it."

Chris agreed taking Rita's hand, "Absolutely! It reminds me of my beach house back home. It's a place to escape to."

"Yes, it is," Mariko agreed, "I'll leave you to get settled, and I'll send Nureko to get you when dinner is ready."

Finally alone, Rita went to Chris and said, "I just can't get over how quickly things change. I mean, just this morning we were guests at the Black Beach, and now we're here."

"Because of my mistake and Yoshi's hospitality," Chris said.

Rita looked up and shook her head, "Don't start, Chris, we've been over this. You didn't do anything wrong. Honestly, I'd much rather be here then at the resort."

She walked to a chair. Chris gazed at her for a second, then asked, "So, what did you think of John? Was he lying? Did he do it?"

Rita answered bluntly, "I think he's callous enough, and I think Yoshi's interview with him proved that. He didn't care that Linda Jenson was dead. In theory, it sounds like a slam dunk silk stalkings but—"

"Yeah, I know, why kill her at his resort and then leave the body to implicate himself? Doesn't add up," Chris stated taking the bags to the bedroom.

Rita rose and followed him up the stairs, "No, it doesn't, but I don't think Martin is totally blameless. He seemed more shocked then upset by Linda's death, and I'll bet you he knows something. She was killed for a reason. We're just not sure what it is."

After unpacking, Nureko arrived and led Chris and Rita back to the main house for dinner. The children had already eaten and spent their time watching television. Their discussion during dinner touched on many areas, but the murder was not one of them. At one point, Mariko asked about Chris and Rita's relationship. Since they'd become lovers, they'd never had an in depth discussion with anybody about their feelings for each other. Rita's natural reticence about personal issues usually prevailed, and Chris would follow her lead. However, they liked the Yokahanas and saw so much of themselves in them that they felt comfortable talking about their love and friendship.

Chris said reflectively, "From the first moment we met there was an instant attraction between us but—"

"But," Rita took over, "intermingled with our romantic urges was an incredibly strong friendship. For awhile, we lost track of each other and were both hurt by people we thought we could trust. When we finally got back together we craved friendship more than sex. I guess we were scared of our deeper feelings and didn't want to ruin our friendship."

"It's clear that you're in love and very happy, but what happened to make you cross that line?" Mariko asked. She and Yoshi were both having strong feelings of deja vu.

Chris smiled, "We realized that we'd never be able to love anybody else. We'd lost our hearts to each other and could never get them back. Didn't want to get them back! We weren't willing to waste anymore time, and we were no longer scared. We've been together, as a couple, for over eight months."

"How did you and your wife meet?" Rita asked.

Yoshi answered, "We met as rookies. We worked street patrol for awhile and then were transferred to vice. Like you, we had a special relationship, but we had less self control then you did. We were working undercover and things got bad, I was shot and another officer was killed; IAD was called in. We were cleared of any wrong doing, but split up as partners. I moved to homicide, and Mariko stayed in vice. A few years later, Nureko was born, and Mariko began working with run-a-ways, especially young girls."

"Getting split up, at the time, felt like the end of the world for us, but we learned to deal with it. There comes a point where you have to make a choice," Mariko said and excused herself to put the children to bed.

When she returned, the discussion finally turned toward the crime which brought the four of them together. Rita and Chris took turns explaining what they'd discussed while unpacking.

"I agree," Yoshi said, "Martin's cold, not stupid. Linda Jensen was killed someplace else and by someone else. It looks like someone's sending Martin a message."

"Maybe he's being setup," Mariko suggested.

"Perhaps," Rita said, "but it's a pretty weak attempt. Something else is going on here."

"What did the coroner say?" Chris asked Yoshi.

"Rita's hunch was correct, the bruises on her face and body were not the cause of death and were a few days old. She'd had sex, at least twice, but there was no sign of sexual assault. She was stabbed twice and blood loss contributed to her death, but the toxscreen picked up something interesting in her system-heroin. She died of a heart attack brought about by an overdose. What's interesting is that she wasn't a current user and didn't have any other fresh needle tracks on her body."

"I wonder what got her started again, or maybe it was a hotshot?" Rita asked.

"It's possible she was tricking when she took the hit, or maybe she just slipped back," Mariko suggested. "I checked with my friends in vice, and she was known to them as a part-time high-priced escort, but they never busted her."

"Which connects with what Martin told me," her husband said shaking his head. "We're not going to solve this case tonight, and it's been a long day."

"That's for sure. Sleep sounds really good right now," Chris said rising from his chair.

"We'll see you in the morning, and thanks again for letting us stay here," Rita said.

"I'll walk you over to the guest house," Yoshi volunteered.

"No, there's no need to bother yourself. I think we can find our way," Chris grinned. Yoshi smiled back and nodded.

"Okay," he said opening the back door for them, "you two have a good night."

"Thanks, we will," Rita assured him as she stepped outside. Yoshi watched as they walked down the path, fading into the darkness.

Chris kept a protective arm around Rita as they walked slowly down the path. "So," Rita began, "sleep sounds really good right now, huh? Is there anyway I can talk you out of that?" She asked tantalizing.

"Maybe," Chris suggested and turned toward her, "what do you have in mind?"

"I guess you'll have to wait and see," Rita said suggestively as she walked into the guest house.