When Ohata Bando came out of the elevator at her squad room's floor, an attractive thirty-something woman got in, followed by two men in business suits. Ohato went down the hall and through the glass doors into the squad room that was a mix of high tech and worn plaster. Eiji Suzuki waved her over to their desks. He took the Styrofoam box she'd been carrying from her and said, "You saw our guest?" He opened the box and dug into the food inside.
Ohato nodded. "Is she the reason you couldn't join me for lunch?"
Eiji nodded and smiled. "Another member of Sei's fan club - how she couldn't possibly be doing something to poor Kyohei; we're beasts for going after the poor little mobster."
Ohato sat down. "And did she say she knows that because she caught them making love? Because I can't see why you'd be smiling if we hadn't got a break in the case."
"She didn't, but she had one funny story to tell. At least, I think it was funny. That woman is one of the top event planners in Tokyo, but seven years ago, she was a high-priced call girl working for one of Bailan's outcall operations. One of her clients was a sumo wrestler who'd married into Bailan - that fact alone causing trouble - and when he started stalking Miss Former Hooker, things got a little sticky. So Laoban assigned Sei, who was 12 at the time, to be her bodyguard while they sorted things out, and as they spent time together they became friends and have been friends to this day. Hence, her membership in the Sei fan club. Anyway, the wrestler made his move, and Sei put the guy in traction. Twelve years old, she takes out a guy two or three times her size, and all she did was break a nail. And I'm pretty sure I know who the wrestler was because about that time one had to bow out of a match because of a 'traffic accident.'"
"Twelve year old takes out Sumo wrestler," Ohato deadpanned. "Very funny. Ha, ha."
"The funny part is this all happened about the same time Sei's boobs came in. One day, she was as flat as a pancake, and the next - poom!" Eiji cupped his hands above his pecs. "And she was horrified. She confided in her client that she was going to have her breasts surgically removed. Not reduced - completely removed, a total double mastectomy. Her exact words were - wait- this is genius -" Eiji flipped the pages of his spiral bound paper notebook to the page he wanted. "- Here we are - 'Sei told me, "How can I represent Bailan in negotiations with other syndicates and be taken seriously if I look like this?"' The ex-call girl talked her out of it - she said, 'it took some doing, but once I convinced her that her appearance could be an asset in dealing with men, she relented.'" Eiji dropped the notebook, leaned back in his chair, and chuckled. "Can you imagine? 12 years old and she wanted to get rid of her breasts because she was afraid the Yakuza wouldn't respect her? Have you ever heard anything more ridiculous? If my daughter had a rack like that she'd- Hello? Ohato?"
Ohata was sitting at her desk with an aghast expression. Then she got up and went to the media center that dominated one end of the squad room. She tabbed a keyboard and called up an image of Sei.
Eiji came up behind her. "What's got into you, Ohato?"
"It all makes sense, now, Eiji - the way she dresses, how she surrounds herself with teenagers. Odds are our favorite FBI profiler would say it's a combination of acting out and trying to regain her lost childhood."
"Are you serious?"
"You said it yourself - she incapacitated a sumo wrestler when she was 12. What kind of training would that take, for how long? And negotiating with other synidicates? At that age? Ever meet any 12 year olds who worry about that? Laoban wouldn't let her be a normal little girl, and at some level, she's trying to get that back before she's too old. Kyohei could be the first boy in her own age bracket she's had anything resembling any kind of normal relationship with." Ohato's jaw hardened. "That's it. I'm done with this 'molestation' case."
"Ohato. You're serious."
"We've been treating Sei like a perp, Eiji, hoping investigating the cybot will lead to evidence against her. But in fact, she's the most pathetic victim of all. If anything, we should be investigating Laoban for how he ruined her life."
"And you'd give her a pass on hurting Kyohei?"
"If we uncover actual hard evidence that she is physically hurting him, then yes, I will back you all the way. But if we learn Sei and Kyohei are engaged in a consensual relationship, I'm recusing myself from this investigation. I don't care what the letter of the law is in what prefectures - if he makes her happy, then I won't stand between them. And if you have a heart, you won't either."
"Well, it may be a moot point. We're gaining zero tractions on all fronts: RAPT and Bailan have traded notes with us on the cybot, and while Bailan is holding stuff back, it's agreed that we all have nothing. On the predator side of it, Sei hasn't left Japan since hiring Kyohei, and when she did, she didn't go anywhere near any child prostitution hot spots. There isn't any chatter in online chat rooms pedophiles use that can be traced back to her. Hell, her contribution to Bailan's human trafficking operation was to help make it so humane, no one has the heart to shut it down; Koruken is a close second in that regard. Right after you left, the cap'n said that if something doesn't break in a couple of days, we're going to drop it. And I can see his point."
"Wow. For you, that counts as coming to your senses."
"Very funny."