“Great! So he’s gotten all the thyroid cancer treatments figured out?”
“Eh, two of the more common medications. Will cover about eighty percent of the cases, he said.”
“Sounds good. So what do you need from me?”
“Chemicals, mostly. Here’s a list of the precursor chemicals he needs to begin production.”
Vasili handed him a folded slip of paper. Taku perused it and nodded.
“Okay, it looks like there’s some equipment on here, too. You can’t get that through medical goods suppliers?”
“I don’t know. I can ask. The chemicals are the hard part. Apparently buying them in large quantities triggers all sorts of red flags. But you have a way to get them?”
Taku nodded. “I’m still working it out, but I should be able to. If we set up a government-approved research facility, it can purchase them in quantity without raising alarm bells. Then it’s a matter of siphoning them off without being caught. Still trying to make it work, though.”
“Need help?”
“Possibly. I’ll let you know.”
“How soon can you begin importing this stuff?”
“I’ll begin working on setting up the test lab. Hopefully present it to the committee at our upcoming meeting. If all goes well … two or three weeks?”
“Worst-case scenario?”
“Maybe a month or two.”
Vasili nodded. “Sounds good.”
They stood up and shook hands.
“Pleasure doing business.”
“You too, Vasili.”
Vasili waved to the governor on his way out.
“Thanks again, big daddy!”
Chapter Twenty
Mei sat at the tiny ramen shop down the street from the Shibuya police station on the other side of Meiji Street. She looked at the steaming bowl of ramen sitting in front of her and sighed, then took up her chopsticks. She picked up some noodles and blew on them. After she ate, she would deal with the tail that would surely still be waiting outside for her when she was done. But she tried not to think about that. Right now she just wanted to enjoy her meal.
It was over too quickly. Soon she was staring at a mostly empty bowl with nothing in it but a thin layer of congealing soup, some errant noodles, and the ladle. She slowly put her bowl on top of the counter and gathered her things. She wanted to sit for a while longer, but the cook was already wiping her spot for the next person in the long line out the door.
She was supposed to meet Kameko tonight. But now that was in jeopardy unless she could shake the police tailing her. She left the cramped ramen shop and glanced around, but she didn’t see her usual pursuers. Instead, she saw two other men casually put their phones away and begin walking after her at a discreet distance. That was odd.
Both men were wearing respirators with mirror visors over the faces, making it impossible to identify them. This despite the fact that it was one of the clearest nights in recent memory, due to the rain that afternoon. But then, she already knew exactly why they were wearing them.
She looked into a traffic mirror on the side of the sidewalk, and saw another group of men after them. One of them was wearing a respirator that made it impossible to identify him, but the two with him didn’t have anything on.
Mei sighed. Somehow her night had gotten even worse.
“Alright, stay sharp,” Yakuta said. “Be discreet and hang back. We need to figure out what we’re dealing with here.”
Yakuta’s latest assignment (which just last night he had described as “bullshit” and “idiotic” to the other bar patrons) had taken a serious turn. When Nomura had tasked him with following Detective Kimura, he’d thought it must be a joke, but now he saw that the old man was onto something. Because their tail had picked up another tail. It was hard to get a read on them, but Yakuta suspected they were on the Path. Nomura’s suspicions about Mei might not be so unfounded after all.
Yakuta just wished he had better help in this. He glanced to either side at the two Dark Army recruits he had been supplied with. They were both young guys in their midtwenties with shaved heads and more enthusiasm than actual ability. He had gotten them to stop wearing their Dark Army uniforms and berets in favor of street clothes, which was a start. But they were still pretty hopeless.
“Thing 1, hang back here behind this group. You’re in her direct line of sight right now. Remember, use cover as much as possible.”
“I wish you wouldn’t call us that,” Thing 2 said. “What is that even from?”
“A kids’ book. Your parents never read you Dr. Seuss?”
They shook their heads.
“What did they read you? Chairman Mao’s Little Red Book? Mein Kampf?”
“I don’t know what those are either,” Thing 1 said.
“Never mind. Point is, we need to find out who these other guys are and what they want. Are they in league with her? Are they hostile? Who are they?”
“You’ve been following her more than we have,” Thing 2 said. “You haven’t seen them yet?”
“First time.”
“Probably confederates. Ozaki said she’s dirty.”
“We don’t know that for sure yet. That’s what we’re here to find out. So stay sharp.”
Tengu whistled and shook his head, a grin already plastered across his face.
“What is this, a fucking conga line?”
Lee just nodded as he walked beside Tengu. He was one of his top soldiers now that Satoshi was off running errands for the big man.
“Just about. You ever seen anything like it?”
“I’ve tailed people before,” Tengu said. “But there’s usually not this much … traffic.”
Tengu was referring to the chain of people following after the detective Vasili had told them to keep tabs on. First there was Detective Kimura, who seemed to be blissfully unaware that she was being tailed by two guys that Tengu pegged as yakuza. They, in turn, seemed to be ignorant of the trio tailing them. Who in turn, didn’t realize they were being followed by Tengu and Lee.
Tengu took his phone out and dialed the number for Mei that Vasili had given him. Up ahead on the sidewalk beside Meiji Street, he saw her take her phone out, glance at the number, then slip it back in her pocket unanswered.
“Just like every woman you call,” Lee quipped.
“Shut up. Probably not answering because she doesn’t recognize the number.”
He tried again when she was just arriving at the elevated walkway that would take her over the busy roadways to the front of the station.
“No luck. Hey, run ahead and meet her when she gets off. Tell her to pick up her fucking phone.”
“Are you serious? You want me to—”
“Yeah, and don’t use the walkway. I don’t want to tip the others off.”
Tengu smiled when he heard Lee grumbling curses as he set off at a run through the crowded streets. Cars began honking at him and swerving to avoid him as he sprinted through traffic.
Mei took her buzzing phone out and looked at the number. She didn’t recognize it, so she clicked the phone off and put it back. Her mind was reeling as she walked over the elevated walkway. She could shake one tail. She’d been doing it all week. But two was a different matter. And it frightened her to consider who else would be following her. Vasili’s warning rang in her ears now, the fear making it hard to think. As she walked along, she heard the honking of car horns and screeching tires.
As she was descending the steps of the walkway back to the sidewalk by the station, she saw a man leaning against the handrail with his respirator pushed off to one side. He was trying to look nonchalant as he tapped on his phone, despite being out of breath and panting. He looked up at her when she came down and whistled.
“Whoo, foxy lady with the three tails!” he shouted after her in English. “Why don’t you pick up your phone for me, baby?”
She kept walking but glanced back.
“Let me call you, baby!” he shouted after her.
Her phone rang again. The same number that had been calling her. She answered this time.
“Who is this?”
“Tengu. And my associate is Lee. The big man sent us to keep an eye on you. Thought you might be in danger. He thought right.”
“Your man said I had three tails. Who are they?”
“The guys right on you look like yakuza. Heard you pissed off Yoshii and some of the other whoremongers in Shinjuku. Might be them. Then you’ve got some cops? I think? Three men, at any rate. Two look a bit green, one guy seems to know his shit. Then us.”
“I knew about the cops. The two behind me are new.”
As she said this, she was coming out at Shibuya Crossing. She glanced up at the billboards with cameras trained on the intersection, which told her they were still close on her. She kept watching the billboard and saw a trio walking in lockstep after her. In another moment, she saw the guy who had shouted at her before. He had fallen back in with a guy who certainly fit the description of a tengu, who was now talking on the phone. The man gave a goofy wave up at the camera.
“Okay, I see. Now what do I do about them?”
“Well, your meeting with Kameko is canceled.”
“Obviously.”
“Lead them around for a bit while I think of something. The cops don’t frighten me. But the two right on you do. So stick to well-lit streets and heavily trafficked areas. No back alleys or anything.”
“Then what?”
“We’ll figure something out.”
Tengu hung up.
“So … what’s the plan?” Lee asked.
“Still thinking …”
They walked on in silence for a few moments. Tengu was clearly working something out, based on how he used his hands to gesture and visualize his thinking. Neither of them took their eyes off the cavalcade of people winding their way after Mei ahead of them.
“Okay, so here’s what I’m thinking. We need to take out those two guys right on her. But we can’t with the police right there. So what if you distract the police with something, then I—”
“What, ask them for directions or some shit?”
“Or whatever. I dunno, show a little creativity there. Then I can—”
“Why don’t you do that part, and I’ll take out the guys? I’m more creative with my fists and my knives.”
“And I’m highly recognizable,” Tengu said, motioning towards his face.
“And I’m not? Why? Because Chinese people all look the same to you?”
“Well … kind of.”
Lee shook his head. “So racist. And it’s not going to work.”
“Well, then, what do you have that’s better?”
“An extraction.”
“An extraction? And how do you propose we …”
Tengu trailed off. Then he took out his phone and made a call.
Chieko and Drake took the big van off the main street running through Roppongi and began navigating a maze of alleyways and backstreets. She became aware that her phone was buzzing and took it out to answer it.
“Tengu, what’s up? … Right now? We’re—I dunno—Roppongi-ish? … Just doing a cash run. … Me and my driver … Why? … The van? Yeah, it’s armor-plated, why do you …? Wait, what the fuck do you need it for? … A what? … For who?”
Drake cleared his throat. “It’s ‘for whom.’”
“Shut up,” Chieko said, then into the phone, “No, not you. Talking to my driver. So who is she again? … Uh-huh. And why should we care? … The Rock said that?”
Chieko sighed and looked at Drake. Then she made a wanking motion with her free hand.
“Okay, give me a time and an address.”
She hung up. Drake glanced at her quizzically.
“Turn around.”
“Where we headed?”
“Don Quixote in Shibuya.”
“I love that place! It’s like a Walmart on acid. What are we going there for? Furniture? Lava lamps? Kids toys? Sex toys? Because they have those, you know.”
“I know. We’re not going in, it’s just a landmark to head to. Tengu wants us to extract someone from the area. Apparently he can’t do it himself because he’s shit at his job.”
“An extraction? Well, that sounds like a real job!”
With that, Drake gunned the van down the next back alley. Several tight turns taken at speed put them on the highway to Shibuya.
“Permission to put on some music?” Drake asked.
“Denied. I need to wait for his call.”
Chieko looked over to see Drake grinning from ear to ear and practically bouncing in his seat.
“Look at you. You’re like an oversized puppy dog.”
“Whoo-hoo!” Drake’s eyes bulged out as he pumped one fist in the air.
Chapter Twenty-One
Chobei sighed as he looked down at the crystal decanter in his hand. To his mother, he looked like the petulant child he still was. Only now he was holding whiskey instead of plastic sippy cups.
“No, Mother, I don’t think you understand. See—”
“No, Chobei, I don’t think you understand. Vasili was absolutely right to urge caution. You ignored him, time and again. Now you’ve been attacked.”
She was referring to the shootout outside the restaurant. She didn’t know about Soseki’s breach of his office, because he hadn’t told her. Tamazaki was the only one who knew, and Chobei had sworn him to secrecy. If she had known about that, her approach might have been different. But Chobei dared not tell her or anyone about it. It was too embarrassing to him personally.
“But if I let this go, I’ll lose respect. From the Taira-kai. From my men. From—”
“Chobei, listen to me. You don’t command respect until you’ve earned it. And you, Chobei, you just haven’t earned it yet.”
He balked at that. “How can you … I mean, how could you even say something like?”
She shrugged. “Because it’s true. You haven’t become the leader your men need yet.”
“There you go, toss blame around, but don’t bother to actually teach me anything.”
“I’ve been trying to teach you. That’s what these meetings are about.” Eriko sighed in frustration and looked out the window. “And I don’t blame you, if you must know. I blame myself.”
“Why would you say that?” Chobei asked.
Eriko didn’t answer right away. She just sipped her drink and stared out the window at the city beyond. Finally, she turned back and answered him.
“Everything you have, I handed to you. I didn’t make you earn it, or fight for it. You never had to find your way, because I paved it for you. It made you soft. Spoiled.”
“Well, thank you for the vote of confidence, calling me ‘soft’ and ‘spoiled’ like I’m—”
“See, that’s exactly what I’m talking about. I didn’t mean to be critical of you, that was aimed at me. I’m saying I’m the one at fault here. And I … I’m sorry you’ve had to pay the price for my … lack of maternal instincts, let’s say.” She grew quiet. “I was never cut out to be a mother. I know that now.”
Chobei didn’t know what to say to that. He could tell his mother was drunk, drunker than he had ever seen her, in fact. Most likely a result of the painkillers mixed with the alcohol. He just sat there quietly until she continued.
“You know, when you were a child, you would scream and cry endlessly. It would go on for hours. We tried everything—”
“We?”
“Me and Kuroda. He’d take you for walks, burp you, give you massages, white-noise-makers, everything. But nothing worked. Finally, Kuroda came back one day with a pacifier. You loved that thing. Used to suck on it all the time. You remember?”
“Vaguely. I still used it as a child.”
“You did. Until you were about six, actually. I just never weaned you off
because it kept you quiet. Your dentist said it was warping your teeth as they were coming in, but I wouldn’t get rid of it. Every time I tried, you would just start bawling.”
“I remember having braces for five years. Is that why?”
“Yeah, it warped your jaw because you used it for too long. But then I always took the easy way out. Even when it warped you. I was a shit mother.”
“You were a fine mother. I learned a lot from you.”
“Huh. Not enough, it seems.”
“Well, what did you expect? You were never around. Kuroda basically raised me, and he’s not exactly warm and nurturing. I was just another one of his tasks to see to.”
“I tried. I gave you the attention and time I had, but—”
“But a few hours a week wasn’t nearly enough. You didn’t think I noticed? You didn’t think I saw that you had time for every cheap gangster that walked through the door, but couldn’t be bothered to say a few words to your own son?”
Eriko winced. “You’re right. I never gave you the attention you deserved. That’s why I’m trying to make up for my neglect now.”
“And I thank you for it,” Chobei said, softening. “That’s all I ask now, is that you mentor me as I go. Help me make the transition.”
“What transition?”
“The transition to shacho. If I’m being honest, there’s still much I can learn from you as—”
“Shacho?” she said, practically spitting the word out. “You as shacho?”
Chobei pulled back as if he had been slapped. “Yes, I assumed that’s what you had in mind.”
Eriko shook her head. “Out of the question. You … you’re far too inexperienced to be shacho. I’m sorry, but no.”
“Then what were all those tutoring sessions? All those talks and lessons? I thought you were grooming me for leadership.”
“Leadership, yes, of Kanagawa City. And even with my help and Vasili’s, you’re still making a mess of things there.”
“I can do this, Mother. With some help I know I can be the leader you need me to be.”
Tokyo Noir: The Complete First Season Page 63
