Page 96 of Crossed By the Stars

“What’s going on?”

Rana repeated what she’d said about Ito-san, and Jada stood. She wobbled, and I flung out a hand to stabilize her. She didn’t push me away, and I took it as a positive sign that she wouldn’t send me packing. Not yet.

“Let her in,” Jada said.

“Jada,” I warned.

She turned to face me.

“You weren’t there…” she croaked. “I…I owe her this.”

“You don’t owe her anything.”

She shook her head. “I do.”

And then she turned and walked out of the bedroom. I followed, knowing it was what I would always do for the rest of my life. I couldn’t not follow her. If it made me less of a man in the eyes of others, then I wanted to be the lesser man. I wanted to be the one who was there when she needed me.

The front door opened, and Cillian walked in with Ito-san at gunpoint. She was still in her blood-covered suit, but she’d washed her hands. There was a smear of blood on her neck and chin from where she’d been laying on Mori’s chest.

Jada went to the couch, and we all joined her. Ito-san didn’t sit. She stood as if she was still on guard. She looked around at all of us, eyes landing on Cillian’s gun, and said, “I’m going to reach into my jacket. It’s not a weapon. It’s a USB drive.”

“Slow and steady,” Cillian said.

She nodded and ever so slowly opened her suit jacket, reached into a pocket, and pulled out a small external drive. She handed it to Jada.

“This is everything you need to take it all down.”

Jada’s eyes widened. “What?”

“They were all circling like buzzards, even before you went to the FBI. Yamasaki-san had learned that your father had killed his brother?the one who shot ÉlodieArmaud?and had been plotting his own revenge. Yano-san was determined to bring theKyodainainto the twenty-first century and compete against the Russians with their cybercrimes. And after Ken’Ichi died and Hiroto Matsuda refused to get revenge, Ichika Matsuda started recruiting the aunties to take over everything, thinking she could do it as well as any of the men. She was poisoning her husband while running the West Coast for him.Oyabun…” her voice croaked, and she trailed off. It took her several long seconds to gather herself together again. “Oyabunknew it was coming apart at the seams, and he refused to let any of them have it. So, he compiled enough data to take them all down.”

Her father had been working against himself. It was as unbelievable as it was completely believable. A man like him would rather see everything he’d built disappear than hand it over to someone he didn’t feel was worthy of it.

“Your mother and grandmother will have protection. Their money is safe. Your money is safe. I was to ask if you wanted protection”—she looked around the room—“but I am thinking you won’t.”

“I don’t want my father’s money,” Jada said, voice trembling with the tears she was trying to hold in, but her body didn’t reflect it. Her chin was raised, shoulders back, and pride flowed from her.

Ito-san shrugged. “It is there whether you use it or not.” She waved to the drive. “Everything you need to know is on it.”

Ito-san started for the door, and Jada called after her.

“Kaida…”

Ito-san stopped and turned back.

“I’m sorry. You…you loved him.”

Ito-san’s eyes glimmered. “He was more than myOyabun. He was myOtosan, too.”

Jada inhaled sharply. “What?”

“My mother was his mistress long before you were born.”

“You-you’re my sister?” Jada breathed out.

“No. I was theOyabun’schild. I was nothing to you.”

And she left.