Rhapsody in Red

Chapter 16

At ten o'clock in the morning they rang the bell of the of the building manager apartment. The man appeared a few minutes later, unshaved and wearing part of a pajamas. After excusing himself for getting him out of bed on a Sunday morning, Leandro paid the balance of the rent and the manager, who said his name was Tomás, handed him the keys to the building and the apartment doors.

 It was one of the brown color typical houses of Brooklyn Heights, many of them built in the  XIX century and even at the time of the American independence, with stairs with several steps to reach the front door.

Leandro hauled his only suitcase and his backpacks into the corridor, while Aiko helped him with several smaller items, all of which had been moved in the Metro and down the street from the hotel where the young man was staying until then.

When opening the apartment Leandro felt a certain emotion. Although he had bought his small studio in Buenos Aires years before, it was the first time he had rented a house on his own. He left the suitcase on the floor and walked through the spacious living room, then opened the bedroom door, fitted with a large two-person sommier. The inspection of the bathroom and the kitchen proved also rewarding. The apartment was old but it was equipped with new comfort elements and its general aspect was clean and tidy. He turned and saw Aiko watching him ecstatically from the door observing his reactions.

"Well, it's really very good." Said the young man. When he observed that the girl was rushing towards him he opened his arms and received her in his arms. After a prolonged kiss she said.

"I'm glad to have been able to share with you this moment in which you have really conquered a degree of freedom that you did not have before..."After thinking about it for a moment she added." ...and that I still do not have."

"Don't be ungrateful with your uncle and aunt."

"I'm not, but it's a fact, I'm at their house."

"That will be so as long as you want it."

"What do you mean?"

"You can move in with me here whenever you want."

" Do not intend to go too fast." Then she looked towards the back part of the living room." It is an internal apartment, you do not have a window to the street but to a door to a small inner garden so you can go out and use it freely."

Leandro manipulated the handle of the door that led to the garden, which after a few moments gave way. Hand in hand they both walked out to the small place where plants survived, among which ran a short path of slabs. Leandro looked up at the windows of the apartments on the top floor. There was no one peeking at them so they felt a certain sensation of privacy. He circled Aiko's waist with his long left arm and pulled her close. Again they joined in a kiss with a lot of passion.

" Someone may show up in  the windows." said the girl in a whisper. "Let's go inside."

Once there she toured the bathroom and the kitchen.

"You know how to cook?"

"Not really."

"But you can buy everything you need in the supermarket almost right in front of your apartment."

" And how about you? " He answered. " I never knew if you know how to cook."

"I'm pretty good in the kitchen."

" Would you cook for me?"

"Of course."

 " Japanese meals?"

"If I can get the ingredients, without a doubt. Let's see the bedroom now." added the girl suggestively.

Upon entering she contemplated the neatly prepared bed.

"The landlords are quite efficient, it looks very nice." Then she turned around facing him.

"That bed looks new and is challenging us. Let's premiere it."

Leandro was quite surprised and only managed to ask.

"Are you sure?"

"I think it's time."

" Is it compensation for Matsumoto's revelation last night?"

"It is no compensation. It's a reward ... and not only for you."

Leandro barely managed to speak. She looked straight at him and asked.

"I've taken the breath away from you?"

"Nooo, I'm delighted".

"But you must be very soft and gentle. It's my first time."

"I will be soft like a Japanese violinist."

"I prefer an Italian one. Start with a tempo andante con brío."

"And how should I continue?"

" With a molto vivace."

"I do not have a metronome."

"I'll be your metronome."

That Monday morning, Aiko and Yoshida dedicated it entirely to planning the placement of a camera and hidden microphones in one of the premises where the young woman performed, in fact in the one she was going to play on that same day. They used the floor blueprint that the instructor had obtained.

"As you know, I have the blueprint of a second place, as well and they have promised the third one for tomorrow, Tuesday. We will plan the location of the equipments one by one."

After a careful evaluation they decided to place two cameras, one in the vast restaurant hall covering the main entrance to the premises and another in the corridor of the service entrance used for moving merchandise. In addition a microphone was placed under a table in a kind of private room for special guests. Yoshida explained how to adhere the devices on each substrate and how to place them to maximize their reach.

"To place them without witnesses you will have to leave the premises later than the clients and the staff."

"I think I can give a valid excuse."

When the meeting between the two was coming to an end Yoshida expressed.

"Before you leave, I want to introduce you to someone. Wait a moment."

Two minutes later he returned accompanied by a young Japanese man. Small, thin, hairless, and with a boyish face he seemed to be not older than twenty.

"Shinzo. She is Aiko Teruya, from now on your responsibility."

The young man bowed his head to the girl as a sign of respect, but did not say a word.

"Aiko, please meet Shinzo Watanabe. He will be your protective shadow."

" Protective shadow? What does that mean?"

" You didn´t think we were going to put you in the wolf´s mouth without taking some precautions to protect your life. Shinzo is an expert in all kinds of fighting and will be following you when you go to your work, without you seeing him. Actually, without anyone seeing him."

Yoshida opened a backpack he had brought and handed cell phones to each of his interlocutors.

"With these you will communicate in case of need. Please limit its use to emergencies." He asked  Aiko, then added.

"Are you sure you do not want to carry a gun?"

"No way! I cannot imagine myself carrying a weapon."

"All right. If you change your mind we have small but very effective weapons and you have already been practicing shooting in the polygon." He took another object out of the backpack.

"A spray?" The girl asked.

" It's a mustard gas spray, based on capsaicin. It momentarily deprives of sight to whoever tries to attack you and leaves him out of combat for a while. You just have to spray it in his eyes. Put it in your purse and keep it always handy when you're at your workplace."

Yoshida insisted that Aiko activate the device  pointing it to a wall to show her how to use it in practice. The girl then reluctantly kept it and then asked, addressing Watanabe.

"How will I let you know of my displacements? On the cell phone?"

"You do not need to tell me anything, I will be present when necessary. Except, of course, in the case when you change your plans and routine."

The young man withdrew with a new courtesy gesture from his head and Aiko reflected aloud.

"He does not look exactly like a samurai."

" Precisely his effectiveness consists in that. Never underestimate Shinzo Watanabe."

After her performance at the restaurant, Aiko spoke with the manager Mr. Suzuki, and told him that she would not go back home immediately pretending she didn´t feel well. The manager agreed and opened the door of a room that the girl had not seen before.

"Stay here as long as you need to recover. Anyway, you know at what time the cleaning staff goes away; logically you should leave before them."

Aiko waited until the last client as well as all the kitchen and service staff members left. She placed a microphone in the room where she was staying and that was not included in the plans and then surreptitiously placed the remaining microphones and cameras in the places agreed with the sensei. When she finished the girl picked up her things and walked to the door where she found Makayla, an African American woman who was the head of the cleaning team and who had a particular sympathy for her.

"Are you feeling better girl?"

"Yes, thanks Makayla. Until Wednesday."

As Aiko came out the fresh air revived her so she  decided to walk a couple of blocks before taking the Metro in order to relieve the tensions that had accumulated in the process of placement of the artifacts. She had not realized until that moment of the nervous effect that the action had produced in her body.

"And where is Shinzo Watanabe?" She asked herself looking in all directions and unable to overcome her skepticism. Having seen him would have calmed her anxieties after leaving the premises but she had to content herself with the confirmation of being alone.

When the girl finally started her journey to the Subway station, a shadow moved stealthily in the darkness of a closed door next to the restaurant.