Murder on the Cliff

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  Murder on the Cliff

  A Charlotte Graham Mystery

  Stefanie Matteson

  MYSTERIOUSPRESS.COM

  For Dave

  AUTHOR’S NOTE

  This novel is based on the story of Townsend Harris, the first American consul to Japan, and the geisha Okichi. Although Harris and Okichi are historical figures, their descendants are products of the author’s imagination, as are the places and incidents associated with them. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  The author is indebted to Oliver Statler, author of Shimoda Story, and to Liza Crihfield, author of Ko-uta: “Little Songs” of the Geisha World.

  1

  Charlotte Graham stood on the lawn of the Newport Art Association waiting for one of the handsome young officers from the U.S. Naval War College to escort her to her seat. As an official representative to the Black Ships Festival, she couldn’t just sit down, she had to be escorted. She was glad the art museum was located on one of Newport’s highest points: a breeze off the ocean relieved the heat, which at ten in the morning was already intense. The traffic heading down Memorial Boulevard toward the beach was already heavy. Much of it was motorcycle traffic. Newcomers quickly learned that in order to get around Newport during the season, you had to give up the idea of driving a car. She had driven up last night from New York and was staying with her old friends, Connie and Spalding Smith. Spalding, a retired foreign service officer who had been posted for many years in Tokyo, was president of the Black Ships Festival. Connie and Spalding had invited her to join the United States delegation, and she had readily accepted. “The city by the sea” was one of her favorite places. She loved its smell—the pungent odor of old boxwood and privet, the cool, salty smell of the sea, the sweet honey scent of lindens in bloom. She loved the shimmering sea light that made you feel as if you were in Deauville or Honfleur, and the soft, sweet air, swept clean by the sea mist and fog. Even in the off season, there was an easy sense of leisure about the town, as if it were always a lazy summer afternoon. She also loved the variety of the architecture: the colonial mansions of Newport’s golden age, the sprawling cottages of the high Victorian era, and the imposing palaces of the robber barons, which attracted millions of tourists each summer. Newport even had an example of Viking architecture, or so it claimed. The mysterious stone tower in the park across the street was said to be the remains of an old Norse church built by Viking explorers.

  Against the backdrop of the mystery tower, a large tent had been set up for the opening ceremonies. The tent faced a statue of Commodore Matthew Calbraith Perry which was encircled by red-and-white striped banners of the kind used by the Japanese on festive occasions. Old Bruin surveyed the scene majestically from his lofty perch, looking more like a vainglorious Roman emperor than a distinguished naval hero. He clutched a cape, toga-like, in one hand, and a dress sword in the other. He was facing East, of course. Before Perry sailed into the Bay of Tokyo (then called Edo) in 1853 with his black-hulled fleet, the forbidden empire had been closed to the world for two hundred and fifty years. No one allowed in; no one allowed out, except for a few Dutch traders. The shogunate had even banned the construction of oceangoing vessels. Only frail little junks were permitted. But Perry had changed all that. Although the history books claimed he won over the Japanese with his negotiating skills, the cannon assembled on the decks of his “floating volcanoes” probably had a lot more to do with his success than diplomacy. In any case, Perry was revered as a hero by the Japanese for reasons Charlotte didn’t quite understand (although he came as an enemy, he did so with great style; and the Japanese always held style over substance, Spalding explained), which is how the Black Ships Festival came to be held every year in his home town. It combined the celebration of Japanese-American friendship with the celebration of Japanese culture: sumo wrestling, kite flying, the tea ceremony, flower arranging, paper folding, puppet theater … And this year, for the first time, geishas.

  Which was how Charlotte came to be there. That, and her friend Connie, or rather Constance Harris Montgomery Brandolini Smith. For Connie had been married almost as many times as Charlotte.

  In the park a Marine Corps color guard was presenting the Stars and Stripes, and the white flag with the red ball in the center which represented the Empire of the Rising Sun. A Navy band in dress whites played the “The Battle Hymn of the Republic,” and then the Japanese national anthem.

  “I hope they come for us soon,” said Connie, fanning her face with her program. “This heat is getting to me.”

  Her makeup had started to cake and damp marks had appeared under the arms of her green silk suit. Looking at Connie now, it was hard to believe she had once been one of Hollywood’s most beautiful stars. She had the kind of delicate complexion that didn’t stand up well to time and she had gained a lot of weight, but the passage of the years couldn’t erase her lovely pale blue eyes and the charm that had endeared her to millions of fans.

  It was said that Perry unlocked the door to Japan but Townsend Harris opened it. A distant relative of Connie’s, Townsend Harris was the first American consul to Japan and the first foreign diplomat of any stripe. He arrived in the small fishing village of Shimoda in 1856 (the Japanese had barred foreigners from the capital) and spent two lonely years hammering out Japan’s first foreign trade treaty. Or maybe not-so-lonely years. Harris was famous in Japan, not as a diplomat, but for his love affair with a beautiful young geisha named Okichi. After Harris’s return to America, Okichi was scorned by the townspeople because of her association with the foreign barbarian. For years she waited in vain for his return. Despised by her countrymen and despondent over her abandonment, she sought solace in Japanese rice wine. Over the years she sank deeper and deeper into poverty. Finally she took her life by plunging off a cliff. Or so the story went. Historians dismissed much of it as the fabrication of romantic minds, but it was nevertheless the most famous love story in Japan and the subject of countless books, plays, and movies. The most famous of the movies was Soiled Dove, the extravagant Hollywood production in which Charlotte had played Okichi opposite Lincoln Crawford as Townsend Harris (a miscasting if there ever was one). It had been her biggest box-office success, thanks in part to the sizzling love scenes. Charlotte’s on-the-set affair with her leading man had been one of her most notorious, though she was thankful she had had the good sense—on that occasion, at any rate—not to ruin it by marrying him. He had died shortly afterward in a car accident.

  Though much of the Okichi story may have been a myth, Okichi’s union with Harris had produced a child. Now, a descendant of Okichi’s child was coming to Newport with a group of geishas from a famous geisha house in Kyoto. Known as Okichi-mago, or “grandchild of Okichi” (though she was really a great-great-etc.-grandchild), the descendant of Okichi’s love child had traded on the famous story to become one of Japan’s most famous geishas. She would be the mistress of ceremonies for the Afternoon of Japanese Culture to be held on Okichi Day, the third day of the Black Ships Festival and the hundredth anniversary of Okichi’s suicide.

  As she waited for her escort, Charlotte cursed herself for being there. Although she loved Newport, she hated these kinds of functions. But she almost always gave in. Out of sense of obligation, she supposed. She felt that she owed it to her fans, who had been loyal to her for fifty years: half a century! More than that, if you counted the ones who’d been around when she’d made her first movie in the late thirties. God, she was getting old! Just how old always caught her by surprise when she thought ab
out it, which wasn’t often. It also surprised her fans, who still expected her to look just as she had then. She sometimes understood why Garbo had closed the door on her public when she was still a young woman. But despite her age, Charlotte wasn’t doing too badly. Although they sometimes expressed surprise that she was still alive, her fans still recognized her. Indeed, she still looked much as she had in her youth: the strong jaw-line; the alabaster white skin; the glossy black hair, once worn in a famous pageboy, but now pulled back into a tight chignon; the thick, winged eyebrows that had become a cause célèbre when she refused to let the studio makeup men pluck them to pencil-line thinness. Most of all, her elegant carriage and her long, leggy stride still identified her as someone special, even to those who had no idea that she was one of the century’s foremost stars of stage and screen.

  The young naval officers were seating the delegates according to status: first American, then Japanese. First to be seated were the governor of Rhode Island and the Japanese consul general for New England and their wives. Next came the mayor of Newport and the mayor of Shimoda, Newport’s sister city. As they awaited their escorts, an American couple broke away from a knot of Japanese delegates on the lawn and headed toward Connie and Charlotte.

  “My cousin,” Connie explained.

  An ardent Japanophile, Connie’s cousin, Paul Harris, was responsible for the addition of Okichi Day to the Black Ships Festival program. It was he who had arranged to import the geishas and had put Connie and Spalding up to asking Charlotte to participate. Charlotte had talked with him several times on the phone in the course of making arrangements, but she’d never met him. He was a short, homely man with warm brown eyes and a neatly clipped beard.

  “Miss Graham,” he said, bowing slightly from the waist, Japanese style. “We’re delighted that you could be here.”

  “I’m pleased to meet you. I’ve heard a lot about you from Connie,” she replied, and immediately regretted her words.

  He and Connie’s daughter, Marianne Montgomery, had been involved in a bitter and protracted legal battle over a house they had both inherited: the house that Townsend Harris had built on the Cliff Walk after his return from Japan.

  “If you’ve heard about me from Connie, it probably wasn’t favorable,” he replied good-naturedly.

  “Not at all,” objected Connie. “You know I have only good things to say about other members of the family. The Harrises have to stick together.”

  Though Connie had come to the rescue, it was nevertheless an awkward moment, which Charlotte did her best to smooth over by introducing herself to Paul’s companion, whose name was Nadine Ogilvie.

  “Paul is very happy that you could be here,” said Nadine. She had a low, melodic voice and a heavy French accent. She was a beautiful woman with strong features and glossy black hair. She was impeccably dressed in a stunning red suit, and wore a small fortune in diamonds and pearls. She was also Paul’s mistress, and had been for many years.

  “At last,” said Connie as a young naval officer came to seat her and Spalding and their Japanese counterparts, the president of the annual Black Ships Festival in Shimoda, and his wife.

  Charlotte detected a note of relief in Connie’s voice. She would be glad to get out of the sun, but also glad to get away from her cousin and Nadine. She didn’t want the family squabble to interfere with the festival.

  Connie and Spalding and their Japanese counterparts were fifth on the list, after the president of the Naval War College and a lieutenant in the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Forces.

  Once they had gone, Charlotte checked the program to see where she was listed. Which was at the bottom, just after Paul, who was listed as chairman of the Okichi Day Committee. It was obviously difficult to fit a movie star into the official protocol. The program identified her as “Miss Charlotte Graham: Okichi Day Delegate from the United States.” Had it identified her further, it might have said “first American to play a Japanese geisha.” Or “movie star who shocked the public by portraying an interracial romance.” Not only an interracial romance, but an extramarital one as well. On top of that, Soiled Dove had been one of the first films to deal with the theme of suicide, which had always been considered box-office poison.

  Charlotte considered Soiled Dove her best picture. It was the one she should have won the Oscar for—not that she hadn’t deserved her other four—but Okichi had been one of her best roles. Awarding her the Oscar, however, would have been endorsing the daring sexual content of the film.

  How times had changed.

  Finally a young naval officer arrived to escort Paul and Nadine to their seats, leaving Charlotte with the public relations people. Like the other U.S. delegates, she had a Japanese counterpart, Okichi-mago. But she was recovering from jet lag at Paul’s home, or rather Paul and Marianne’s home.

  Charlotte’s escort finally arrived. “Miss Graham?” he said, offering her his arm. As he escorted her to her seat, they chatted about Soiled Dove. It was one of his favorite movies. He had seen it four times, and planned to see it again that night; it was being shown throughout the festival at a local movie house.

  It was interesting that despite its dated subject matter—a relationship between a Japanese geisha and an American diplomat was hardly likely to raise eyebrows anymore—Soiled Dove had retained its popularity, and was among the most popular “classic” movies at the video stores.

  The ceremonies began shortly after Charlotte was seated. Spalding was master of ceremonies. After welcoming the Japanese delegates, he introduced the first speaker, a Shimoda official who spoke about the long friendship between the United States and Japan. Glossing over the “difficulties” of the past (What difficulties was he referring to? Charlotte wondered. Pearl Harbor? The Bataan Death March? Hiroshima?), he called for strengthening the relationship between the two countries. “As in a marriage, we need to work tirelessly to improve our efforts at understanding.” He was followed by four other Japanese speakers, none of whom spoke English. An elderly Japanese man translated their speeches, each of which then became twice as long. The fifth speech seemed interminable. Charlotte could feel her eyelids getting heavy, and fanned the sultry air with her program to keep herself awake. Platitudinous phrases drifted in and out of her consciousness: “The relationship between our two peoples has never been as important as it is today.”… “Our relationship is important not only to our two countries, but to the entire world.”… “We are poised to usher in a new era of peaceful competition and mutual understanding.”

  She was jerked back to consciousness by Spalding’s fidgeting. Tall, portly, and patrician, Spalding was usually a genial sort—he was known around town as Mr. Newport for his leadership in local charitable affairs—but at this moment he didn’t look genial at all. He was staring at the speaker, his bushy, gray-white eyebrows knitted together in a frown.

  Charlotte had lost track of what the speakers were saying, but she now pricked up her ears.

  The speaker was a slightly built Japanese man with wire-rimmed glasses. His snow-white hair was parted in the middle and combed straight back from his forehead. Unlike the earlier speakers, he spoke perfect English. But instead of platitudes about mutual understanding, he was talking about the end of the American century: “A century in which the typical American executive drives a Japanese automobile, cooks his food in a Japanese microwave, watches a Japanese television set, records his family vacations with a Japanese video recorder, and works in a high-rise office building owned by a Japanese company.”

  He was talking about an American economy “that has no substance.”

  Even American defense, he pointed out, depended on the Japanese: without Japanese semiconductors, American missiles couldn’t hit their targets. If the Japanese were to stop selling semiconductors to the United States, it could upset the military balance of the world.

  Charlotte could see a red flush rising like a tide from the stiff white collar of the vice admiral who was president of the Naval War College,
and who sat directly in front of her.

  And to what did the speaker attribute the end of the American century? “A family in decline, an educational system that doesn’t work, a corporate culture in which long-term refers only to the next quarter, and a failure to save.”

  Connie patted her husband’s arm; his face by now matched the color of the brick-red trousers he wore with a navy blue blazer. Several members of the audience got up and marched out.

  It was time, the speaker continued, for Japan to stand on its own two feet, for Japan to take the leadership in world affairs, in defense, in foreign aid. It was time for Japan to stop thinking of itself as a colony of the United States. As for the United States: if it didn’t mend its ways, it might find itself being considered a colony of Japan.

  There was a charged silence as the speaker returned to his seat. A few polite members of the audience clapped. Looking up at the statue of Old Bruin, Charlotte half expected it to topple over in astonishment.

  Then Spalding took the podium. After conspicuously failing to thank the previous speaker for his remarks, he delivered his closing comments with something less than his usual aplomb, and announced the laying of the wreaths. In pairs—one Japanese, one American—the official representatives placed the red and white chrysanthemum wreaths with black ribbons in front of the black wrought-iron fence at the foot of Perry’s statue. As each set of wreaths was laid, the Newport Artillery Company, wearing the uniforms of Revolutionary War soldiers, fired a smoky salute from an antique Paul Revere cannon.

  After the cannon salutes, the color guard retired as the Navy band played “The Stars and Stripes Forever” (with more than the usual fervor, Charlotte thought) and the ceremonies were over.

  2

  After the opening ceremonies, the delegates drifted back across the street to the art museum for a reception. Charlotte stood on the porch of the grand old house, which had once been one of the summer cottages for which Newport was famous, sipping a lemonade and savoring the cool ocean breeze.