Free Rising Sun: A Novel by Michael Crichton Page A

I
guess.
I live right across the way. But she hasn’t been in town much lately. Seems like she’s always traveling.”
    “Traveling where?”
    “All over. New York, Washington, Seattle, Chicago … all over. She has this boyfriend who travels a lot. She meets him. Actually I think she just meets him when his wife isn’t around.”
    “This boyfriend is married?”
    “Well, there’s something in the way. You know. Obstructing.”
    “Do you know who he is?”
    “No. She once said he’d never come to her apartment. He’s some big important guy. Real rich. They send the jet for her, and off she goes. Whoever he is, he drives Eddie crazy. But Eddie is the jealous type, you know. Got to be
iro otoko
to all the girls. The sexy lover.”
    Connor said, “Is Cheryl’s relationship a secret? With this boyfriend?”
    “I don’t know. I never thought it was. It’s just real intense. She’s madly in love with the guy.”
    “She’s madly in love?”
    “You can’t imagine. I’ve seen her drop everything to run and meet him. One night she comes over, gives me two tickets to the Springsteen concert, but she’s all excited because she’s going to
Detroit.
She’s got her little carry-on in her hand. She’s got her little nice-girl dress on. Because he just called ten minutes ago and said, ‘Meet me.’ Her face all bright, she looks about five years old. I don’t know why she can’t figure it out.”
    “Figure what out?”
    “This guy is just using her.”
    “Why do you say that?”
    “Cheryl Lynn is beautiful, and real sophisticated-looking. She’s worked all over the world as a model, mostly in Asia. But deep down she’s a small-town girl. I mean, Midland is an oil town, there’s lots of money, but it’s still a small town. And Cheryl Lynn wants the ring on the finger and the kids and the dog in the yard. And this guy isn’t going to do it. She hasn’t figured it out.”
    I said, “But you don’t know who this man is?”
    “No, I don’t.” A sly look crossed her face. She shifted her body, dropping one shoulder so her breasts thrust forward. “But you’re not really here because of some old boyfriend, are you?”
    Connor nodded. “Not really, no.”
    Julia smiled in a knowing way. “It’s Eddie, isn’t it?”
    “Umm,” Connor said.
    “I knew it,” she said. “I knew he’d get in trouble sooner or later. We all talked about it, all the girls here in the Arms.” She made a vague gesture. “Because he’s just going too fast. Fast Eddie. You wouldn’t think he was Japanese. He’s so flashy.”
    Connor said, “He’s from Osaka?”
    “His father’s a big industrialist there, with Daimatsu. He’s a nice old guy. When he comes over to visit, sometimeshe sees one of the girls on the second floor. And Eddie. Eddie was supposed to get educated here for a few years, then go home to work for the
kaisha
, the company. But he won’t go home. He loves it here. Why not? He’s got everything. He buys a new Ferrari every time he bangs up the old one. He’s got more money than God. He’s lived here long enough, he’s just like an American. Handsome. Sexy. And with all the drugs. You know, real party animal. What’s in Osaka for him?”
    I said, “But you said you always knew …”
    “That he’d get in trouble? Sure. Because of that crazy side. That
edge.
” She shrugged. “A lot of them have it. These guys come over from Tokyo, and even if they have a
shōkai
, an introduction, you still have to be careful. They think nothing of dropping ten or twenty thousand in a night. It’s like a tip for them. Leave it on the dresser. But then, what they want to do—at least, some of them …”
    She drifted into silence. Her eyes had a vacant, unfocused look. I didn’t say anything, I just waited. Connor was looking at her, nodding sympathetically.
    Abruptly, she began to speak again, as if unaware of the pause. “And to them,” she said, “their wishes, their desires, it’s just as