Ridgway took a seat and directed the others to do likewise. "Where's Hirohito and just why do you think we can snatch him away from his own people?" he snapped.

Peters answered, "He's being held by Anami's people in northern Kyushu. I don't know exactly where and our agent declined to give specifics. It's far too risky for him to divulge that he has that knowledge as we are fairly certain the Japs are picking up a lot of what he's sending and decoding it by now."

Ridgway grunted. "And you really believe your man is in contact with him?"

The general had their brief written report, but wanted to hear their answers verbally. Their fear that it would be laughed away was already dissipating. They had hoped to see either Bradley or Nimitz, but this conference with Ridgway meant that at least someone at the top thought it was worth pursuing.

"The message from Nomura is necessarily cryptic," Peters continued, "but we strongly believe that is the gist of it. Our agent has located Hirohito, who is likely a prisoner, and the emperor wants out of his captors' hands so he can bring peace."

"Why?"

It was Johnson's turn. "Intelligence analysis says the emperor was never that strong an advocate for war against America and was more than ready to surrender after Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The subsequent overthrow of the Japanese government by Anami and his cohorts had nothing to do with Hirohito except to put him in personal jeopardy."

Ridgway shook his head. It was almost too incredible to believe. "And we're supposed to accept that this Nomura character of yours has landed on Japan, wandered around for months, somehow become Hirohito's best friend, and, as a result, the emperor will let us take him off Kyushu and out to an American warship? You know a few people on Bradley's and Nimitz's staffs think you guys are either drunk or hallucinating? Worse, there's the serious possibility that you've misread the message, or that the whole thing is a trap to kill anyone who tries to liberate Hirohito. For all we know, this Nomura character has either been captured and tortured or he's become a turncoat."

Johnson persisted, "General, Mr. Nomura has proven himself very resourceful. We do not believe he has been captured or is sending messages under any duress. There were key words to use and ways of phrasing things that would have tipped us off if that was the case. No, I believe he is dealing with Hirohito and that Hirohito wants to get somewhere so he can really and finally end this war. What we need is your approval and assistance in getting them out."

Ridgway cupped his chin thoughtfully. "I'm curious, gentlemen, just how had you planned on extracting Nomura in the first place when the time was right?"

"By submarine, sir," Peters answered. Inwardly, he exulted. Ridgway was still listening to them. He hadn't laughed them out of the office. "We were going to get him out the same way he got in. Only when the boat that landed him was sunk, we didn't think the navy would let us have another one."

"So you essentially wrote him off after that."

"Yes, sir. To be brutally frank, we wrote him off even before that," Johnson added with candor. "We thought he'd last maybe a week or so and really never expected to have to pull him off under any circumstances. We gave him some plans, but they were more like placebos to make him feel good. We never expected him to do this well or last all this time. We really thought he'd have been caught or killed a long time ago. What he's done for us has been nothing short of incredible."

"So I've heard." Ridgway had read the reports from Nomura and what was now a small but efficient cadre of other Japanese-American OSS agents operating on Honshu. When the book about these activities was written, he'd decided, it would be a helluva bestseller.

Ridgway took a deep breath and made a decision. "All right, we'll do it. First off, we need to insert some people in there to do some real operational planning. How do we get that message to him without tipping off Jap eavesdroppers?"

Peters handed Ridgway a typed sheet of paper. "This is part of his placebo, only we referred to it as a menu. It's a list of possible extraction locations, dates, and an equivalent alphanumeric code. All we have to do is tell him to designate the best time and place from his copy of the list, and you can send in what I presume will be an advance party."

"Very good." Ridgway grinned. God, if he could pull this off, he would go down in the history books as the general who ended the most miserable war in American history and saved many thousands of American lives. So too would this Nomura character, who must have a real set of balls to be doing what he was doing. Ridgway had long since decided he'd like to meet Nomura. Bradley and Nimitz had said he'd have to wait in line.

Ridgway chuckled. "Admiral Nimitz told Bradley that there was a new era dawning regarding cooperation between the army and the navy. I have a few thoughts on how to help out your Mr. Nomura and test the good admiral's sincerity at the same time. Gentlemen," he said, grinning, "I think the next few days are going to be very, very interesting."

Chapter 60

Emperor Hirohito moved his rook, pausing before removing his hand. Once he let go of the piece, the move would stand. Until then, it was tentative and reversible. Finally he let go and smiled. "I believe you are in check, Captain Nomura."

Nomura sagged. Damn, he was getting so close to winning. "Indeed I am, Your Majesty."

"A shame. For a while there I thought you were really improving, but then you made a couple of moves that disproved my theory. Unless, of course, your mind is not on your game."

Nomura smiled. "You are correct, sir. Many things are distracting me. With regrets, sir, it is truly difficult to concentrate."

"I understand, Captain. Chess in the midst of a war for survival must seem like a trivial enterprise. Now then, what solutions do you propose to my dilemma?"

Nomura took a deep breath. This was the moment he'd been both anticipating and dreading. To divulge anything would be to brand himself as either a traitor or a spy. If he had misunderstood what Hirohito wanted, or if Hirohito had changed his mind, he would place himself in mortal danger simply by opening his mouth. All or nothing, he decided.

"Sir. Arrangements that I would not wish to comment on are being made to free you. When that time occurs, you will be able to make any announcement you wish regarding your opposition to the war. Hopefully, the result will be the honorable surrender of Japan."

"Colonel Sakei and his soldiers will not surrender me to the opposition without a struggle."

"I know."

Hirohito looked saddened. He fully understood that men would die in the effort to free him. The blame was Anami's, and not his own. Anami, the man he had once thought of as a friend, had caused his imprisonment and continued the war, causing the deaths of so many tens of thousands. So what if a few more died? In a macabre way, it would be an investment, and the profit reaped would be the continuation of Japan. He accepted that.

"Captain, when I am, ah, freed from here, it cannot be to another prison cell, not even a highly gilded one."

"I understand." Nomura hoped the people in Washington understood that as well.

"Do you? Wherever I wind up, it must be as the emperor of Japan, the spiritual and constitutional leader of a sovereign nation that wishes an honorable peace with the United States. Any attempt to use me or to show me off as a trophy will backfire and result in my removal from the throne by the warlords. This could even occur in absentia."

Nomura nodded his understanding. He was almost too surprised to speak. Was the emperor signaling that he understood that the Americans would take him, and that he would not be rescued by another group of Japanese? Nomura did not think he had given any hint ofthat.