Deja Vu (36 page)

Within ten minutes, the tea was ready, and the three of them were seated at a tiled kitchen table. “Talk to me,” Yoko said after the tea was served.

Jack took the lead. “Listen to me, Yoko. We, Bert and I, wouldn’t be Harry’s friends if we didn’t… what I mean is … Harry is like a brother to both of us, you know that. It’s not working for him, surely you can see that. That… that guy in there, his so-called Master, has to be at least 150 years old. He sleeps through Harry’s training. Harry is training himself. He is still at the same level he was when he started three months ago. He has not gained one bit of ground. There’s no way he can be ready or even hope to win at the trials if he doesn’t switch gears. Can’t he get a new Master or something?”

“Master Choy is 103 years of age. He is full of wisdom, as all the ancients are,” Yoko said softly. “It would be disrespectful for Harry to say otherwise.”

“With all due respect, Yoko, what good is he to Harry if he sleeps all day. Didn’t you hear me? Harry is essentially training himself, and he is not advancing beyond his own level. Can’t you do something? If you can’t or won’t, will you tell us what to do?”

“Harry is my husband. I cannot interfere. It must be Harry’s decision. I can tell you this: he is not sleeping, he has lost weight, and he is not eating properly. All I can do is be supportive of his endeavors.”

Bert’s eyebrows shot upward. “Even if it means he will go to the trials and lose face? There must be something we can do.”

“How much are you paying that Master?” Jack snarled.

“A fortune,” Yoko said sadly. “We have had to tap into our nest egg. It is a complicated monetary situation, one neither of you would understand. I have been staying late at the nursery and doing most of the work myself to cut back on expenses. We pay all the expenses for the
dojo
out of the nursery profits. My money is dwindling.”

“That doesn’t make sense, Yoko. Those old ways don’t work here in the United States. You pay for something, you expect a return on that money. The guy just
sleeps.
Two days ago, I turned the surveillance cameras on and the old guy did not move a muscle for seven hours. And he damn well snores.”

“What do you want me to do, Jack?” Tears sparkled in Yoko’s eyes.

“I want you to fire the son of a bitch. Bert and I will train Harry. We’re qualified.”

“You aren’t a Master, Jack, and neither is Bert. One must have a Master to go to the exhibition. It does not matter how qualified you are. And it won’t look good for Harry if his Master quits in the middle or bows out for whatever reason.”

“So what you’re saying is we’re between a rock and a hard place,” Jack fumed. Yoko nodded.

“No, no, no, that doesn’t work for me,” Bert snapped. “I refuse to accept that. I say we try to talk to Harry. If that doesn’t work, we’ll go to Plan B.”

“And Plan B would be what?” Jack thundered. “Plan B’s, for some reason, don’t work all that well for us, or haven’t you noticed?”

“The VIGILANTES!” Bert exploded.

Yoko’s teacup shattered on the floor.

“Well, hot damn! Why didn’t I think of that?” Jack said, excitement ringing in his voice. “I do think, Mr. Navarro, you just might be onto something here. Yoko, what do you think?”

“I… I can’t be part of… I just can’t, Jack,” Yoko said, tears streaming down her cheeks.

“You won’t have a choice. You are one of
them.
You have to follow the oath you all swore. This is for Harry, for his lifelong dream. We can make it happen for him but only if we have help. Harry will understand. At least I hope Harry will understand,” Jack mumbled.

“Let’s call it a night now and attack this first thing in the morning,” Bert said. “We’ll call the girls when we get home. Then we’ll try and talk to Harry about it in the morning.”

Her eyes wet with tears, Yoko led the way downstairs and through the
dojo.
She allowed herself to be hugged and her tears to be wiped away by Jack. “It’s all going to work out, Yoko. Trust us, okay?” Yoko’s head bobbed up and down, but fresh tears trailed down her cheeks.