fic for sanjihan (part 1)
Gift fic for: sanjihan
From: imifumei
Title: The Alleys Are Always Blind
Rating: Maybe R? for language, innuendo, and violence
Pairing: Nishikido, Koyama, Tegoshi, Kato, Masuda, Yamashita, Akanishi, Matsumoto, Ninomiya, Murakami, mentions of Ueda, Shibutani, Uchi, Kusano, Sakurai.
Warnings: Film Noir AU, first person POV, mentions of character death, violence
Summary: Nishikido Ryo, private detective, takes on a case that has him dealing with an acquaintance from the past, a creepy hit man who isn’t all there, and a beautiful singer with a knack for lies of omission.
Notes: I recommend RainyMood.com for ambiance! I know that this is a NEWS fic exchange and I included a bunch of other people, but I kind of ran out of NEWS members and needed more characters so I hope you don’t mind. Some plot elements and scenes were inspired by a whole bunch of old movies, especially The Maltese Falcon. It was an interesting challenge to cast regular people into character molds that seem very archetypal, especially the feminine roles. I hope you like the results, sanjihan. It was fun writing for you! Special thanks to Dashiell Hammett and John Huston for help with dialogue. Also, I used dollars in amounts relevant to the American 1940s since I don’t know anything about yen inflation or what the 40s were like in Japan. Many thanks to my beta for encouragement and the mods for being great!
It was raining when I woke up at the crack of two and I wasn’t much looking forward to going into the office. There was a chill wind with a mocking howl in it and the rain beat down hard, like it was asking why I even bother getting out of bed. Work was scarce these days for a private investigator but I wasn’t getting hired sitting in my flea bag apartment so I pulled my hat low and walked the few blocks to my agency. I knew there’d be a pot of coffee and a warm smile waiting for me when I got there anyway, that made it a little easier.
Koyama Keiichirou, face like an angel and personality to match, handled my office business. Hell, he even occasionally handled my personal business. I told him he didn’t have to keep coming around when the money started getting tight, but he showed up every day anyway like clockwork. He was a tall drink of water in soft colors with his hair dyed a copper that could never have appeared in nature but it looked good on him. It had been months since I’d paid him a fair wage. I really should have made him find something better but I didn’t have the heart to fire him outright and besides, sometimes his was the only face I saw in a day. It kind of endeared you to a man.
Sure enough, he had a cup of joe for me when I walked in. I told him I’d be in my office and to hold my calls until I’d finished my cuppa.
I hadn't been there five minutes when the kid wafted in real pretty. He was dressed head to toe in white, a slick suit and satin tie that looked like money, with a face prettier than any I'd ever seen and just as dangerous. He even smelled expensive. He was trouble and I knew it but I wanted to know what he was doing at my agency before I turned him away. Still, nothin' worse than someone thinkin' I'm here just to serve.
"Sorry, Boss," Kei said, rushing in behind him. "I told him you were busy."
I gave him a nod to let him know I wasn’t mad and waved him off before turning to the kid and waiting for him to get to the point.
"Nishikido."
"That's the name on the door, yeah."
"Don't be so standoffish, Nishikido. You're going to want to talk to me."
"I don't think so, kid. I've already got a ‘Girl Friday’."
"I'm not here to work for you, Nishikido. I'm here because you're going to be working for me."
He talked real high-class and I knew the kid was used to getting exactly what he wanted exactly when he wanted it. He said his name was Tegoshi and he had a case for me.
- - -
- - -
Tegoshi Yuya’s problem was that he was a little too pretty. He seemed to have someone stalking him and my job, should I choose to take it, was to find out who and why. He was leaning toward it just being some crazy fan from The C-Note, where he sang jazz at night.
His two hundred dollar retainer made it difficult to turn down the job, especially when I knew that I was down to only three hot meals a week tops and Kei was practically living on beans to keep his cat in tuna. So I took the pretty boy’s money and I sent him off on his business, intent on tailing him that night to see what was what. I told him to keep to the front entrances of anyplace he went. I didn’t want to lose him in an alley and I couldn’t guarantee I’d be able to see anything in them.
He was easy enough to follow, the kid didn’t exactly keep a low profile, riding around in a white sedan that cost easily three times his salary. He hadn’t mentioned being anyone’s kept boy but I watched him get out of a big, shiny Packard Clipper complete with uniformed driver, wrapped in a lush fur coat that was totally out of place with the gritty streets of the neighborhood The C-Note was in. But, then, jazz clubs are notorious for being plush on the inside and dirty on the out. There was no way he was paying for all that luxury.
Around midnight, I nipped in for a drink and to check on the kid. The place was mostly empty. He was on stage belting one out so I hit up the bartender for a scotch neat and a few answers.
It seemed that most of the regulars weren’t in tonight on account of the fact that it was fight night. Somewhere across town there was a boxing match going on. Ueda "Sugar Bee" Tatsuya, so called because of his sweet face and mean sting, was the reigning featherweight champ but supposedly this young up-and-comer was going to give him a run for his money tonight. I didn’t know much about Masuda "The Muscle" Takahisa, I’d only seen him around, but what I’d heard about him wasn’t especially good. No one could read him and that was never a good sign.
I made my way back out to my Plymouth and waited for Tegoshi to finish his set for the evening. He left around two and his driver dropped him off at an all-night diner to grab a bite. I wasn’t surprised. He didn’t seem the type to cook. When he was all finished up, I left my car parked on a side street and followed him on foot till he was safely tucked away in an upscale apartment building with a doorman and a dark red awning that extended all the way to the street.
Walking back to my car, I passed a few dark alleys. I never saw the punch coming that laid me flat out on the pavement, but I sure as hell tasted the blood from my teeth cutting through the corner of my lip and saw the lights flash across my eyes as I went down. I wasn’t certain, but I thought I also heard a quiet little laugh.
When I shook the stars out of my head, I pushed myself up off the sidewalk enough to squint after whoever had clocked me. I couldn’t be sure, but from the profile and the dim street light, it seemed like none other than Masuda The Muscle. But it couldn’t be, not if he was fighting Sugar Bee across town.
I needed information. I’d have to put in a few calls.
- - -
- - -
First thing the next morning, one of those calls came to call on me in the person of one Kato Shigeaki, a freelance word-slinger who usually worked for The Daily News-Courier. He was a decent reporter, owing mostly to the fact that he could talk circles around most people. He could get just about any info from anybody, even if they didn’t want to give it up; turn their logic back on them until they thought he was doing them a favor by hearing them out rather than the other way around. I could hear him out in the front room, pleading his case with Kei, as ever.
"Come on, Koyama. When are you going to quit this crummy job and get some real work? We could use you in the steno pool at the paper, you know."
Kei and Kato were good friends from way back, but Kato had it in his head that my agency was the bottom of the barrel as far as clerical work went. I couldn’t say I disagreed with him, but you’d never hear me tell him so. I admired him for keeping on Kei about it, but bless his heart, Kei’s answer was always the same.
"But Shige, I like my crummy job."
"Don’t you think it’s about time you had a respectable job, though? Working for a private dick isn’t real money. Emphasis on the ‘dick’."
"Ryo treats me fine."
"He works you like a dog. Think about it, Koyama. You know I wouldn’t steer you wrong."
I was watching them from my office doorway. I had no beef with the guy but ruffling his feathers was always a lark. "Sure he wouldn’t, Kei. Can’t you see anyone with a haircut like that surely has good sense. And such a fashionable suit, too," I added sardonically.
Kato gave his serviceable charcoal grey vest and jacket a self-conscious straightening and rounded on me.
"Listen here, Nishikido. I’ve taken about all the riding from you I’m going to take."
"Well, there’s the door if you’re feeling huffy."
"Oh come off it. We both know I’m only here so you can pump me for information."
"What else would I want to pump you for?" Kato glared. I grinned back at him. Lord, but that kid was easy to mess with. "You’ve got some information for me?"
"Yeah, but you’re not going to like it."
"Well by all means, step into my office. Kei, would you mind grabbing some coffee?"
"Not at all, Boss."
"You’re an angel."
Kato filled me in on the details. Apparently The Muscle’s first fight against a major player in the boxing game wasn’t much of one. According to Kato’s sources, Masuda’s image was squeaky clean. He was quiet and respectable, kept his head down and his guard up. No one knew a lot about him except the general consensus that "that Masuda is a good boy". A real eats-his-vegetables-and-works-hard type. Wholesome. It made it tough for people to say he’d definitely thrown the fight even though it appeared that way from every angle.
"I wasn’t there, I was covering a fire in the East End business district but my source says that it looked like he just went down without hardly taking a punch. People were real up in arms. A lot of people had a lot of money on that fight. It was supposed to be a doozy too. He went down in the third round."
"That soon?"
"Yeah. He was out of there by eleven-thirty and no one saw him afterward."
So it looked like not only was he not a stand-up guy, throwing a fight like that, if rumour was to be believed, but he also didn’t have an alibi for the time Tegoshi was getting home last night. That jab I took to the kisser was tough; could easily have been pro-level. What I needed now was more information on Masuda.
"Great. Listen, keep your ear to the ground on him for me, would ya? You know where he’s staying?"
"I think I heard something about him staying at The Ivory Key Hotel."
- - -
- - -
Maybe tailing someone who had punched my lights out only the night before wasn’t the greatest idea, but I hadn’t known he was watching me last night and I was pretty good at my job when I had to be. I didn’t figure he’d spot me if I didn’t want to be spotted.
I left the Plymouth at home and took it on foot from where a taxi dropped me off by The Ivory Key. It was a nice place; clean but a little run-down. It had missed it’s heyday by about twenty years but maintained an air of respectability; an excellent choice if you wanted to maintain a certain image without coming off ritzy and full of dough.
I decided to bide my time in the hotel bar and waited until I saw him come down and make his way through the lobby and out the door. He moved quickly, hailed a cab, and was off into the night. I hailed the very next one and had the cabbie follow him as best he could. We were about four or five blocks behind him when I saw his car pull into a shipyard by the docks so I paid my cabbie and told him he could leave me off. I’d go the rest of the way on foot to avoid being heard.
It was dark behind the warehouse I’d tracked him to. I stuck to the shadows of the next building over. I couldn’t quite make out who he was talking to and I could only guess at most of what was being said. There were big floodlights between the buildings, meant to light the way for fish delivery trucks, and I couldn’t get any closer to Masuda and the mystery man without being caught in one of them and surely being spotted.
What I did make out was Masuda saying the name "Tegoshi" and a soft, mellow voice answering something that included the name "Yuya". Whoever it was, he was familiar with the kid. This wasn’t a simple case of a fan stalking him, it was probably the doing of someone close. I slipped into the building to wait them out.
Not too long after, two slick cars pulled up; one that matched Tegoshi’s Packard in every way but color, this one was black, and the other a black Continental.
It seemed I’d be needing more information from Tegoshi. When they pulled away I started the long walk back to my end of town. I was getting too old for all this late-night leg-work. Up all night tailing people and then early to rise? Well, I don’t guess early afternoon really counts as ‘early’, but still. Sure would be easier if I weren’t going back to my rinkadink apartment.
I turned my collar up against the night air. I was looking forward to going in to work tomorrow.
- - -
- - -
I was still feeling the jingle of Tegoshi’s retainer in my pocket come morning so I went in early and picked up some fresh doughnuts on the way, thought I’d surprise Kei with a breakfast of something that wasn’t day-old. I was none-too-pleased by the sight that greeted me when I opened the door.
It must have been an early morning all around because Tegoshi’s smooth black overcoat was tossed over the old leather chaise that served as our waiting area and he was sitting on top of Kei’s desk with his back to the door and leaning over Kei where he sat in his chair. Tegoshi was right up in his face, whispering something undoubtedly honey-smooth, and with a sleepy-eyed smile on his face that just screamed ‘I’m trying to seduce you now’.
I didn’t think I’d ever seen Kei blush so hard.
I cleared my throat and dropped the box of doughnuts on the table by the chaise. Kei jumped out of his chair like he was guilty of something and Tegoshi huffed and leaned back to regard me over his shoulder. Annoyance looked good on him. Almost as good as the blush on Kei’s cheeks.
I was peeved, naturally, with the kid coming into my office and gammin’ my office help, but I tried not to let it show.
"Just the man I wanted to see. I have a few questions for you, Tegoshi."
"Well, I aim to please."
"I’ll just bet. Wait here a sec. Help yourself to a doughnut," I said and went in my office to settle in a minute before dealing with the kid.
Kei followed me in with a cup of coffee and whispered frantically, "It’s not what it looked like, Boss."
"Relax, Kei. I’m not angry."
"I don’t want you to think-"
I held up a hand at the explanation. "Hey, I don’t own you. You’re perfectly welcome to have all the pretty boys you want whispering sweet nothings into your ear." It wasn’t the most delicate way of putting things but it was a good thing to remind him of. Maybe I was reminding myself a little too.
"Right. Here’s your coffee." He set it on the desk with a thud. Usually Kei would run interference for me for a few minutes but he left my office and immediately said to Tegoshi, "You can go right in."
He was upset. Damn. Well, hell, I’d never claimed to be delicate about personal matters, but I hadn’t meant to insult him. I’d have to do something nice to make it up to him. For now, it was time to get down to business.
"So, Tegoshi. Gimme the skinny on your wheels."
"I beg your pardon?"
"You heard me. What’s the deal with that big white chariot? A Packard doesn’t come cheap and no amount of batting those pretty little eyes is going to convince me you pay for it with your wages from singing."
That got his back up but good. He huffed. "Just what are you suggesting?"
"I’m not so much suggesting as saying outright that you have yourself some benefactor and I want to know who, I’m not too keen on being privy to the details of why."
The kid scoffed and got self-righteous. "I don’t have to sit here and take this."
"You sure don’t, but you will if you want the information I have for you and seeing as how you already paid me two hundred clams for it, you may as well stay and get your money’s worth. Now who pays for that shiny white Packard I saw you getting out of the other night?"
"I don’t see how that’s going to help you find out who’s following me." He sounded awfully defensive.
"Oh, I already know who’s following you, kid. I’ve moved on to the ‘wherefore’ of things."
"Well who is it?"
"You first."
Tegoshi bristled but I just stared him down until he answered. "Babyface."
Well wasn’t that just swell. Yamashita "Babyface" Tomohisa was a big man in these parts. He was what they call a ‘business man’. He owned several daylight businesses, a few clubs, and as many politicians. He ran things in the area for some higher-ups who didn’t like to have their names or faces seen around town so much. I’d known him when we were kids, but we parted ways when I told him I wanted to be a cop and he entered the business so he could get rich and take care of his family in style. Word on the street was he was a pretty good guy. . .for a bad guy. But a real tough nut. Everyone loved him and he’d never had a single bad act pinned on him or anyone associated with him. Him being a part of this made it a little more difficult.
"Now who’s my tail?" Tegoshi was on the edge of his seat.
"Might be safer for you if you don’t know just yet. I’ll contact you when I know more." I left Tegoshi spluttering curses and grabbed my coat to head out, let Kei know I’d phone if I wouldn’t be in later in the afternoon.
If Yamashita was involved in this, I needed to pay a visit to a mutual acquaintance of ours.
- - -
- - -
The Rusty Nail was a working class bar in the basement floor of an antiques store building in the same neighborhood as The Ivory Key. Well, the back end of the same neighborhood anyway. The Key was in the part that was just run down, The Nail was in the part that was down and saw a lot of running. There was a church up the street from The Nail, a little farther into the seedier areas, and I wouldn’t have been too surprised to find out the clergy were packing.
The Nail was more of a cusp establishment, a place where unsavories and those just down on their luck came together. Not as posh as The C-Note, but it was one of Yamashita’s many business ventures. This one was run by Akanishi Jin, the mutual acquaintance in question. The bar had only opened a few hours earlier and the regulars were still trickling in. Jin came over to greet me, wiping down the bartop with his ubiquitous bar rag. It didn’t look all that different afterward from how it had looked before. I guessed it was just one of those things bartenders do.
"Hey, Ryo. Can I get you a drink?"
"Isn’t it a little early still?"
"Hey, you’re the one in a bar at this hour."
Touche. I shrugged. "I guess a French coffee couldn’t hurt me if you’ve got any brandy that doesn’t taste like turpentine."
"Nah, our brandy has more of a vinegar bouquet." He chuckled.
"‘at’ll do then. Say, I’ve got a few questions for you."
"Shoot, but I can’t make any promises."
‘Course he couldn’t. This was a ‘business’ establishment. How much information got dished out all depended on who was paying, but that’s all right. I knew it when I walked in.
I laid it out for him while he wiped down a brandy snifter and built my beverage. "Sure. Listen, I’m working a case. Tegoshi Yuya has a tail and wants me to see what’s shaking. I have a hunch his, uh, partner is involved. I was wondering if you’d seen Yamashita lately."
"Tegoshi, the singer at The C-Note? Pretty?" He set my coffee in front of me. He wasn’t lying about the vinegar.
"That’s the one."
"That’s trouble."
I smirked. "I already said that was the one."
Jin’s voice dropped to barely audible over the din of the radio he had playing behind the counter. "No, Ryo. I mean that’s some shit you’re stepping in. Better not dig too deep."
"You mind telling me why?"
"Suffice it to say that Yamashita’s last kept man was declared dead. Not found. Declared." He kept a warm smile on his face but looked straight into my eyes and I could see he was stone serious with this warning. "Kusano was never even found, Ryo. But I’m positive that it was Yamashita collected the insurance money."
Seemed like Babyface’s reputation wasn’t as saintly as I thought. Jin left me for a few minutes to ponder that info while he went to check on his other patrons. When he came back he had another vinegar-and-joe for me. I hadn’t even finished the one in my hand yet. I raised an eyebrow.
"Compliments of the guy in the booth past the end of the bar."
It was Masuda, sitting alone, smiling a bit creepily in my direction and drinking plain milk straight from a delivery bottle. I hadn’t even noticed him. Some P.I. I was. With detective work of this caliber, I should have stayed on the force. Of course, they wouldn’t have me. I gave him a nod in acknowledgement of the drink.
"That guy gives me the willies," Jin muttered.
"He come in here often?"
"Meets with Yamashita a couple of mornings a week."
"You think he’s in Babyface’s pocket?"
"Besides you, Ryo, I don’t know anyone who isn’t. I’m pretty sure this kid’s been in it since way before he was a pro. He’s a little off, though and I’m not sure Babyface knows it."
Jin seemed a mite twitchy. "Something got you spooked, Akanishi?"
"Yea- No. I don’t know. It’s Babyface. He didn’t used to be like this, Ryo. It’s like he’s getting more . . . I don’t know. I don’t like it is all."
I thanked him for the information and went to pull out my pocketbook.
Jin barely kept himself from glancing in Masuda’s direction. "Keep your money. I didn’t tell you anything."
I finished my drinks and made my way toward the door. Masuda got up to meet me halfway. He clapped a hand on my shoulder like we were bosom pals and leaned in close to me. He had a sweet face and dark, shining eyes. It looked like he knew something you didn’t, and not something good.
"How’d you like that drink?"
"Fine. Thanks." From far off he was tough to read, sure, but right up close with his weird smile and quiet voice, he made my stomach churn and I didn’t think it was the breakfast of diesel java and lunch from a bottle.
"We’re friends now, right, Nishikido?" It was weird how he said my name like he knew me even though we’d never properly met. "Friends buy each other drinks. So now we’re friends, I don’t want to see you coming around anymore uninvited, right? Friends don’t drop in uninvited. Wouldn’t be polite."
"Right. Wouldn’t want not to be friendly."
He grinned a little wider and clapped me on the back. I was out the door in two shakes.
I stopped in at the drugstore next to The Rusty Nail to change a couple of quarters for nickels and use their pay phone to ring up Kato and tell him to meet me at my office, then I phoned Kei to let him know we were coming in. It started raining while I was in the drug store. I’d never catch a cab in this weather so I’d have to take the train back to the agency.
I had to walk back past the bar to get to the nearest station. I could just make out Masuda’s creepy, soft ‘hunh, hunh, hunh’ laugh as I passed the alley. It was the sort of laugh that made your lip curl and your spine slither. I wanted to hightail it out of there, but I caught a quiet choking sound on the wind and got the feeling I should check it out. I made my way down the alley, slimier than it would ordinarily have been what with the driving rain, and peeked around the corner to where the dumpsters behind the bar were. From my vantage point, Masuda had both hands on Jin’s throat, had him backed against the brick wall. He was choking the life right out of him and chuckling his snuffly little laugh the whole time. Oh yeah. Real friendly.
I grabbed a brick from a pile of alley debris and chuffed him over the back of the head. He went down with a sickening kind of sloppy thud into the alley trash at his feet and I helped Jin up from where he’d fallen to his knees, gasping.
"Get out of here," he choked out.
"We have to call this in, he’d have killed you if I hadn’t come along. I’ll use the bar phone to call the police." Not that I really knew what they might do.
"What for? He’ll just walk again. I’m not pressing charges."
"Jin, you can’t just-"
"I’ll take a vacation. You didn’t see anything. You don’t know where I’m going."
"I don’t know where you’re going."
"Exactly." Jin smiled. "I’ll be fine, Ryo. Get out of here before he wakes up."
Jin bolted from the alley. I didn’t have much choice but to get out of there too. Had Jin said ‘again’? That was curious. I hoped I wasn’t getting in over my head with this one. I usually like to steer clear of the organized crime scene but I remembered the way that Tegoshi had looked when he’d come into my office like he was genuinely scared and it made my thoughts a little fuzzy. I never could stand to let people fend for themselves if I could help them. I really should be catching that train but I opted to walk instead. Maybe it would clear my head and give me some time to think.
- - -
- - -
By the time I stepped into my office I was as soaked as a wino in the drunktank.
"You’re late," Shige said as I was shaking the water out of my overcoat.
"Yeah, well, I got held up keeping The Muscle from flexing his right into Akanishi’s windpipe."
Koyama was up out of his seat. "Oh my, is everyone okay?"
I soothed my hand over Kei’s shoulder. "Don’t you worry about me. Masuda’s gonna have a hell of a headache, though." I locked the office door so we could be sure to talk freely without anyone walking in off the street, not that it was especially likely, then turned to Kato who was sitting on the chaise. "Wha’d you find out? Anything on a connection between Babyface and The Muscle?"
"You sure manage to get yourself mixed up with some shady characters. Word on the street is that two guys who turned state’s evidence on Yamashita’s business practices a couple weeks ago got iced. It was gruesome. They were both strangled and I heard the cops liked The Muscle for it but there were never any prints and no witnesses so they couldn’t pin it on him."
"So there’s no doubt Masuda’s in Babyface’s employ."
"There wouldn’t seem to be."
"And he’s following Yamashita’s boyfriend around. And he threatened me for looking into it so his intentions surely ain’t pure. I need more information on this disappeared ex of Babyface’s."
"What disappeared ex?" Kato asked.
"Jin tells me that Yamashita’s ex-boyfriend is a ghost."
Kato and Kei shared a look. "Kusano Hironori?"
"Kusano. That was the name, yeah. What do you two know about it?"
"We used to know him, way back though. We haven’t been in contact in years. I heard he wasn’t around. Figured he just skipped town."
Kei leaned forward in his chair. "I don’t like this Ryo. These people will kill you as soon as look at you. I don’t want you to get mixed up in all this."
"I’m already mixed up, doll. Nothin’ for it now."
There was a knock on the office door and I could tell from the shadows on the frosted glass pane who it was. I opened the door.
"Ah, hello Lieutenant Matsumoto, Captain Ninomiya."
"Inspector Ninomiya now," he said.
"My apologies. Congratulations on the promotion. Step into my office." I let Kei take their hats and coats and lead the two into my office, gestured for them to have a seat. "Drink?"
"We’re on duty," Matsumoto said.
"Just for me then." I smiled and poured myself a brandy. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"
"You working a case, Ryo?" Matsumoto said.
"You know I’ve always got something cooking." It wasn’t true, but I did like to put on that front, especially in front of them.
"Yeah, sure, but that sweetheart receptionist of yours is looking a little skinny. You’re looking a little thin too. Maybe the P.I. business isn’t so good lately. You got anything else going on? Pick up a little side business?"
"I’m doing okay." I didn’t like the tone, though.
Then Ninomiya spoke up. "Where were you this afternoon?"
I narrowed my eyes at him. "Sounds like an interrogation to me."
Matsumoto threw his hands up. "We don’t want to make any trouble, Ryo."
"Hey, I don’t like this! What’re you birds squawking around here for?" I knew these guys back in my cop days and I know how they operate. I like to lay it on thick, get real up-in-arms so they get on edge. "You better tell me now or I wanna see you getting your hats."
"Hey, take it easy. We got work to do here," Ninomiya said.
Matsumoto made a show of studying his hands while Ninomiya laid it out. "We got a witness says you were the last one to talk to Akanishi Jin before he took a powder from The Rusty Nail this afternoon."
I didn’t like how this was starting to sound. "What’s your boyfriend getting at here, Jun?"
"Just this" Ninomiya went on, "He was seen going out the back real friendly with Masuda Takahisa and someone says they saw you leaving that alley after Masuda was beaned with a brick right to the brainpan."
Now, I didn’t see anyone around after I left that alley and there wasn’t anybody going to be out in that rain either. Dollars to doughnuts said it was Masuda himself who’d said something after I scrambled his brain. With his good name, he could make some trouble if he went and accused me of beating him. I looked Matsumoto and Ninomiya straight in their faces and said, "I don’t know nothing about that."
"Aw, be reasonable, Ryo. How are we going to get this sorted out if you don’t give us the lowdown?" Matsumoto asked.
"You want me to do your legwork for you there, Lieutenant?"
"How’s this for some legwork?" Ninomiya countered. "I have witnesses who’ll put you in at least two of Babyface’s clubs in the last week. Follow that with an altercation between you and one of the city’s fine young men, Nishikido, and I’d say you’re getting yourself into some trouble."
"All my years on the force and this is the treatment I get?"
"Years on the force my ass. You blew your good name in the precinct with that unlawful discharge."
"That wasn’t my fault and you know it, and so do the rest of the guys so don’t try to fleece me with that. I didn’t fire that gun and I didn’t hit nobody with it either and you know it. Hell, you were there when I was forced into retirement."
"Retirement? Hah. You haven’t kept your nose out of police matters for a straight week since you left the precinct. I’ve had enough of you. You think you’re such a slick private dick. You think you can skirt the law? I’m through putting up with it. Either you fill in the blanks or I’ll fill them in for you."
"Fine, you want to know what’s what? I’ll tell you this. That Masuda is one of Babyface’s boys. He ain’t no upstanding young man."
"So maybe you’re one of Yamashita’s boys too, huh?" Matsumoto suggested. "Maybe you and Masuda get into a little tussle ‘cause there’s trouble in the ranks and maybe he’s messing up your buddy Jin? If it was defense, I can see that getting understood by the powers that be. What’s say you give us a bead on Akanishi’s whereabouts so he can corroborate your story."
"That’s your story not mine."
"Where were you, then?"
"Where was I when? Probably walking home."
"Anybody see you?"
"Naw, no witnesses." I shook my head. "Well now I know where I stand. Sorry to get bent out of shape, boys, but my old work buddies trying to rope me in for assault got me a bit on edge. But it’s square now that I know what it’s all about." I gave them a sardonic smile to show ‘em just how appreciative I was of being treated like a common thug when I knew they didn’t have a leg to stand on.
"Aw, forget it Ryo," Matsumoto sighed and shook his head slowly. They both got up and started piling out.
"We’ll be in touch. Don’t get it into your head to be leaving town before we do."
"Yeah, you do that."
Matsumoto and Ninomiya left the office and I shut the door behind them.
"You stepped in it now, Nishikido," Shige said.
Kei came around the desk to sit on the front of it and I sank to the chaise to think a minute. "You think they’ll really nail you on an assault charge?"
"Not no way. They don’t really have any witnesses."
"Hmm." Kato crossed his arms and leaned back. "But now they’re thinking you’ve thrown in with a business man."
"This is no good, Ryo. There must be some way to get off this case. Can’t we tell Tegoshi to forget the fee and have done with it?"
"I’m afraid that’s not going to be possible now, angel. At this point I’m going to need to do their police work for them and bring in Yamashita if I’m going to get them off my case. You know how those two get when they think they have something. Like dogs with bones." I looked them both over. "You have some reporting you need to be doing, Kato?"
"Not just now, no."
"Well If you’re going to be hanging around, why don’t you run down to the diner and see if you can’t get them to pack up some sandwiches." I tossed him a dollar and a half.
"I’m not your errand boy."
"I’m buying you dinner, try to act grateful. Kei, see if you can raise Murakami on the line for me."
"Sure thing, Boss."
"You’re invaluable, angel."
Murakami Shingo was a bookie buddy of mine who knew everything about everybody. We went way back to the days before I joined the force. We’d been kids together back in the neighborhood. If anyone would be able to deal me the dirt on the business with Yamashita’s missing ex and keep it under his hat, it’d be Murakami.
"Got him, Boss."
"I’ll pick it up in my office."
"Ryo, Ryo, Ryo. Long time no hear from. When are you coming down to see me?"
The answer was ‘probably not ever or at least not real soon’. It was me hanging around with Murakami and the neighborhood types that got me into a scrape with the Commissioner and got me edged out of the force. It was a late night and we’d all been drinking and some not-too-close acquaintance of one of my old buddies come in, drunk and making a lot of noise about monies bet and owed and my old buddy Shibutani picked my standard police-issue up off the table where I’d left it and fired off a couple of rounds. One of them had nicked the guy. It caused quite a kerfuffle in the department, being a police weapon and in a gambling parlor, and I’d been asked to resign to keep from tarnishing the name of the department, which was a laugh anyway, but I couldn’t say no. I’d tried to keep away from that sort of thing since the incident, just to keep my nose clean. That, and I didn't have two nickels to run together.
"Now, Shingo, you know I’m not a gambling man." There was a pause on the line and then Murakami’s warm chuckling laughter. "Yeah and if you buy that I’ve got some oceanfront property to sell you. It’s nothing personal, Shingo. You just have to have money to bet money."
"I know you’re good for it, Ryo."
"Oh no, I won’t be getting into it with you. I’ve seen the knees of some of your other customers."
"Well you’ve got me there. So what can I do you for?"
"I need some information on Yamashita Tomohisa."
"Investigating Babyface, eh? Sounds troublesome."
"Yeah, more trouble than it’s worth. Listen, I’m trying to get the scoop on an ex boy of his, Kusano Hironori."
"Yeah, I remember him. A good kid. I seem to recall him doing some traveling over to Chiba with Babyface about nine or ten months back and not making the return trip."
"He was in Chiba when he disappeared, huh? That would explain why the Tokyo Metro Police don’t know so much about it." The various police departments weren’t great about sharing information on open cases. It was usually a combination of bad intentions and no intentions at all. Of course, if Yamashita had greased enough palms to make sure that the case didn’t stay open long, they didn’t really stand much of a chance of sharing that information anyway.
"This doesn’t happen to be about that fifteen K Babyface is into The Octopus for, does it?"
This was the first I’d heard about it and I could feel my skin crawling at the mere thought. I didn’t like anything having to do with The Octopus, alias Takizawa Hideaki. He rubbed me the wrong way. They called him that because he had enough fingers to have one in every pie in the goddamned city. He was one of the higher-ups Babyface ran things for on this end of town. If he owed The Octopus money, he was in deep because when you were on his good side, Takizawa would take real good care of you, but if you weren’t, then The Octopus was about as gentle and forgiving as his namesake. This was definitely information worth having. "What do you know about it, Shingo?"
"Just that he owes at least fifteen thousand aces to The Octopus and Takizawa’s calling it in. I got a good notion that’s why he rigged that fight a couple nights ago. Babyface wheedled The Muscle into his pocket back before he started fighting at the pro level. I’d give you good odds on it being for just that reason."
"You’re talking awful freely, Murakami."
"I lost a lot of money on that fight, Ryo. I got a mind to see someone sticking it to Babyface and seems to me you’re the man for the job if that’s the job you’re already on."
"How much money did Yamashita make on that fight?"
"About five thousand, give or take." I let out a low whistle. Five thousand at a stretch was nothing to sneeze at. Still, he’d need fifteen, all-told. I had an idea where he might get it. "You know anything about an insurance scheme he might have had on that Kusano?"
Murakami was quiet for a minute then cleared his throat and answered, "Naw, not much. But you could talk to Uchi over in the Chiba medical examiner’s office. He’ll have some information for you."
"Thanks, Shingo. You’re a pal."
"Some pal," Murakami said clucking his tongue. "Never even come and see me."
"Yeah, yeah. Say hello to the guys for me."
Now I’d just have to put in a long-distance to Uchi. This case was going to be murder on my phone bill but better it than me, I guess.
- - -
- - -
> go to part 2
From: imifumei
Title: The Alleys Are Always Blind
Rating: Maybe R? for language, innuendo, and violence
Pairing: Nishikido, Koyama, Tegoshi, Kato, Masuda, Yamashita, Akanishi, Matsumoto, Ninomiya, Murakami, mentions of Ueda, Shibutani, Uchi, Kusano, Sakurai.
Warnings: Film Noir AU, first person POV, mentions of character death, violence
Summary: Nishikido Ryo, private detective, takes on a case that has him dealing with an acquaintance from the past, a creepy hit man who isn’t all there, and a beautiful singer with a knack for lies of omission.
Notes: I recommend RainyMood.com for ambiance! I know that this is a NEWS fic exchange and I included a bunch of other people, but I kind of ran out of NEWS members and needed more characters so I hope you don’t mind. Some plot elements and scenes were inspired by a whole bunch of old movies, especially The Maltese Falcon. It was an interesting challenge to cast regular people into character molds that seem very archetypal, especially the feminine roles. I hope you like the results, sanjihan. It was fun writing for you! Special thanks to Dashiell Hammett and John Huston for help with dialogue. Also, I used dollars in amounts relevant to the American 1940s since I don’t know anything about yen inflation or what the 40s were like in Japan. Many thanks to my beta for encouragement and the mods for being great!
It was raining when I woke up at the crack of two and I wasn’t much looking forward to going into the office. There was a chill wind with a mocking howl in it and the rain beat down hard, like it was asking why I even bother getting out of bed. Work was scarce these days for a private investigator but I wasn’t getting hired sitting in my flea bag apartment so I pulled my hat low and walked the few blocks to my agency. I knew there’d be a pot of coffee and a warm smile waiting for me when I got there anyway, that made it a little easier.
Koyama Keiichirou, face like an angel and personality to match, handled my office business. Hell, he even occasionally handled my personal business. I told him he didn’t have to keep coming around when the money started getting tight, but he showed up every day anyway like clockwork. He was a tall drink of water in soft colors with his hair dyed a copper that could never have appeared in nature but it looked good on him. It had been months since I’d paid him a fair wage. I really should have made him find something better but I didn’t have the heart to fire him outright and besides, sometimes his was the only face I saw in a day. It kind of endeared you to a man.
Sure enough, he had a cup of joe for me when I walked in. I told him I’d be in my office and to hold my calls until I’d finished my cuppa.
I hadn't been there five minutes when the kid wafted in real pretty. He was dressed head to toe in white, a slick suit and satin tie that looked like money, with a face prettier than any I'd ever seen and just as dangerous. He even smelled expensive. He was trouble and I knew it but I wanted to know what he was doing at my agency before I turned him away. Still, nothin' worse than someone thinkin' I'm here just to serve.
"Sorry, Boss," Kei said, rushing in behind him. "I told him you were busy."
I gave him a nod to let him know I wasn’t mad and waved him off before turning to the kid and waiting for him to get to the point.
"Nishikido."
"That's the name on the door, yeah."
"Don't be so standoffish, Nishikido. You're going to want to talk to me."
"I don't think so, kid. I've already got a ‘Girl Friday’."
"I'm not here to work for you, Nishikido. I'm here because you're going to be working for me."
He talked real high-class and I knew the kid was used to getting exactly what he wanted exactly when he wanted it. He said his name was Tegoshi and he had a case for me.
- - -
- - -
Tegoshi Yuya’s problem was that he was a little too pretty. He seemed to have someone stalking him and my job, should I choose to take it, was to find out who and why. He was leaning toward it just being some crazy fan from The C-Note, where he sang jazz at night.
His two hundred dollar retainer made it difficult to turn down the job, especially when I knew that I was down to only three hot meals a week tops and Kei was practically living on beans to keep his cat in tuna. So I took the pretty boy’s money and I sent him off on his business, intent on tailing him that night to see what was what. I told him to keep to the front entrances of anyplace he went. I didn’t want to lose him in an alley and I couldn’t guarantee I’d be able to see anything in them.
He was easy enough to follow, the kid didn’t exactly keep a low profile, riding around in a white sedan that cost easily three times his salary. He hadn’t mentioned being anyone’s kept boy but I watched him get out of a big, shiny Packard Clipper complete with uniformed driver, wrapped in a lush fur coat that was totally out of place with the gritty streets of the neighborhood The C-Note was in. But, then, jazz clubs are notorious for being plush on the inside and dirty on the out. There was no way he was paying for all that luxury.
Around midnight, I nipped in for a drink and to check on the kid. The place was mostly empty. He was on stage belting one out so I hit up the bartender for a scotch neat and a few answers.
It seemed that most of the regulars weren’t in tonight on account of the fact that it was fight night. Somewhere across town there was a boxing match going on. Ueda "Sugar Bee" Tatsuya, so called because of his sweet face and mean sting, was the reigning featherweight champ but supposedly this young up-and-comer was going to give him a run for his money tonight. I didn’t know much about Masuda "The Muscle" Takahisa, I’d only seen him around, but what I’d heard about him wasn’t especially good. No one could read him and that was never a good sign.
I made my way back out to my Plymouth and waited for Tegoshi to finish his set for the evening. He left around two and his driver dropped him off at an all-night diner to grab a bite. I wasn’t surprised. He didn’t seem the type to cook. When he was all finished up, I left my car parked on a side street and followed him on foot till he was safely tucked away in an upscale apartment building with a doorman and a dark red awning that extended all the way to the street.
Walking back to my car, I passed a few dark alleys. I never saw the punch coming that laid me flat out on the pavement, but I sure as hell tasted the blood from my teeth cutting through the corner of my lip and saw the lights flash across my eyes as I went down. I wasn’t certain, but I thought I also heard a quiet little laugh.
When I shook the stars out of my head, I pushed myself up off the sidewalk enough to squint after whoever had clocked me. I couldn’t be sure, but from the profile and the dim street light, it seemed like none other than Masuda The Muscle. But it couldn’t be, not if he was fighting Sugar Bee across town.
I needed information. I’d have to put in a few calls.
- - -
- - -
First thing the next morning, one of those calls came to call on me in the person of one Kato Shigeaki, a freelance word-slinger who usually worked for The Daily News-Courier. He was a decent reporter, owing mostly to the fact that he could talk circles around most people. He could get just about any info from anybody, even if they didn’t want to give it up; turn their logic back on them until they thought he was doing them a favor by hearing them out rather than the other way around. I could hear him out in the front room, pleading his case with Kei, as ever.
"Come on, Koyama. When are you going to quit this crummy job and get some real work? We could use you in the steno pool at the paper, you know."
Kei and Kato were good friends from way back, but Kato had it in his head that my agency was the bottom of the barrel as far as clerical work went. I couldn’t say I disagreed with him, but you’d never hear me tell him so. I admired him for keeping on Kei about it, but bless his heart, Kei’s answer was always the same.
"But Shige, I like my crummy job."
"Don’t you think it’s about time you had a respectable job, though? Working for a private dick isn’t real money. Emphasis on the ‘dick’."
"Ryo treats me fine."
"He works you like a dog. Think about it, Koyama. You know I wouldn’t steer you wrong."
I was watching them from my office doorway. I had no beef with the guy but ruffling his feathers was always a lark. "Sure he wouldn’t, Kei. Can’t you see anyone with a haircut like that surely has good sense. And such a fashionable suit, too," I added sardonically.
Kato gave his serviceable charcoal grey vest and jacket a self-conscious straightening and rounded on me.
"Listen here, Nishikido. I’ve taken about all the riding from you I’m going to take."
"Well, there’s the door if you’re feeling huffy."
"Oh come off it. We both know I’m only here so you can pump me for information."
"What else would I want to pump you for?" Kato glared. I grinned back at him. Lord, but that kid was easy to mess with. "You’ve got some information for me?"
"Yeah, but you’re not going to like it."
"Well by all means, step into my office. Kei, would you mind grabbing some coffee?"
"Not at all, Boss."
"You’re an angel."
Kato filled me in on the details. Apparently The Muscle’s first fight against a major player in the boxing game wasn’t much of one. According to Kato’s sources, Masuda’s image was squeaky clean. He was quiet and respectable, kept his head down and his guard up. No one knew a lot about him except the general consensus that "that Masuda is a good boy". A real eats-his-vegetables-and-works-hard type. Wholesome. It made it tough for people to say he’d definitely thrown the fight even though it appeared that way from every angle.
"I wasn’t there, I was covering a fire in the East End business district but my source says that it looked like he just went down without hardly taking a punch. People were real up in arms. A lot of people had a lot of money on that fight. It was supposed to be a doozy too. He went down in the third round."
"That soon?"
"Yeah. He was out of there by eleven-thirty and no one saw him afterward."
So it looked like not only was he not a stand-up guy, throwing a fight like that, if rumour was to be believed, but he also didn’t have an alibi for the time Tegoshi was getting home last night. That jab I took to the kisser was tough; could easily have been pro-level. What I needed now was more information on Masuda.
"Great. Listen, keep your ear to the ground on him for me, would ya? You know where he’s staying?"
"I think I heard something about him staying at The Ivory Key Hotel."
- - -
- - -
Maybe tailing someone who had punched my lights out only the night before wasn’t the greatest idea, but I hadn’t known he was watching me last night and I was pretty good at my job when I had to be. I didn’t figure he’d spot me if I didn’t want to be spotted.
I left the Plymouth at home and took it on foot from where a taxi dropped me off by The Ivory Key. It was a nice place; clean but a little run-down. It had missed it’s heyday by about twenty years but maintained an air of respectability; an excellent choice if you wanted to maintain a certain image without coming off ritzy and full of dough.
I decided to bide my time in the hotel bar and waited until I saw him come down and make his way through the lobby and out the door. He moved quickly, hailed a cab, and was off into the night. I hailed the very next one and had the cabbie follow him as best he could. We were about four or five blocks behind him when I saw his car pull into a shipyard by the docks so I paid my cabbie and told him he could leave me off. I’d go the rest of the way on foot to avoid being heard.
It was dark behind the warehouse I’d tracked him to. I stuck to the shadows of the next building over. I couldn’t quite make out who he was talking to and I could only guess at most of what was being said. There were big floodlights between the buildings, meant to light the way for fish delivery trucks, and I couldn’t get any closer to Masuda and the mystery man without being caught in one of them and surely being spotted.
What I did make out was Masuda saying the name "Tegoshi" and a soft, mellow voice answering something that included the name "Yuya". Whoever it was, he was familiar with the kid. This wasn’t a simple case of a fan stalking him, it was probably the doing of someone close. I slipped into the building to wait them out.
Not too long after, two slick cars pulled up; one that matched Tegoshi’s Packard in every way but color, this one was black, and the other a black Continental.
It seemed I’d be needing more information from Tegoshi. When they pulled away I started the long walk back to my end of town. I was getting too old for all this late-night leg-work. Up all night tailing people and then early to rise? Well, I don’t guess early afternoon really counts as ‘early’, but still. Sure would be easier if I weren’t going back to my rinkadink apartment.
I turned my collar up against the night air. I was looking forward to going in to work tomorrow.
- - -
- - -
I was still feeling the jingle of Tegoshi’s retainer in my pocket come morning so I went in early and picked up some fresh doughnuts on the way, thought I’d surprise Kei with a breakfast of something that wasn’t day-old. I was none-too-pleased by the sight that greeted me when I opened the door.
It must have been an early morning all around because Tegoshi’s smooth black overcoat was tossed over the old leather chaise that served as our waiting area and he was sitting on top of Kei’s desk with his back to the door and leaning over Kei where he sat in his chair. Tegoshi was right up in his face, whispering something undoubtedly honey-smooth, and with a sleepy-eyed smile on his face that just screamed ‘I’m trying to seduce you now’.
I didn’t think I’d ever seen Kei blush so hard.
I cleared my throat and dropped the box of doughnuts on the table by the chaise. Kei jumped out of his chair like he was guilty of something and Tegoshi huffed and leaned back to regard me over his shoulder. Annoyance looked good on him. Almost as good as the blush on Kei’s cheeks.
I was peeved, naturally, with the kid coming into my office and gammin’ my office help, but I tried not to let it show.
"Just the man I wanted to see. I have a few questions for you, Tegoshi."
"Well, I aim to please."
"I’ll just bet. Wait here a sec. Help yourself to a doughnut," I said and went in my office to settle in a minute before dealing with the kid.
Kei followed me in with a cup of coffee and whispered frantically, "It’s not what it looked like, Boss."
"Relax, Kei. I’m not angry."
"I don’t want you to think-"
I held up a hand at the explanation. "Hey, I don’t own you. You’re perfectly welcome to have all the pretty boys you want whispering sweet nothings into your ear." It wasn’t the most delicate way of putting things but it was a good thing to remind him of. Maybe I was reminding myself a little too.
"Right. Here’s your coffee." He set it on the desk with a thud. Usually Kei would run interference for me for a few minutes but he left my office and immediately said to Tegoshi, "You can go right in."
He was upset. Damn. Well, hell, I’d never claimed to be delicate about personal matters, but I hadn’t meant to insult him. I’d have to do something nice to make it up to him. For now, it was time to get down to business.
"So, Tegoshi. Gimme the skinny on your wheels."
"I beg your pardon?"
"You heard me. What’s the deal with that big white chariot? A Packard doesn’t come cheap and no amount of batting those pretty little eyes is going to convince me you pay for it with your wages from singing."
That got his back up but good. He huffed. "Just what are you suggesting?"
"I’m not so much suggesting as saying outright that you have yourself some benefactor and I want to know who, I’m not too keen on being privy to the details of why."
The kid scoffed and got self-righteous. "I don’t have to sit here and take this."
"You sure don’t, but you will if you want the information I have for you and seeing as how you already paid me two hundred clams for it, you may as well stay and get your money’s worth. Now who pays for that shiny white Packard I saw you getting out of the other night?"
"I don’t see how that’s going to help you find out who’s following me." He sounded awfully defensive.
"Oh, I already know who’s following you, kid. I’ve moved on to the ‘wherefore’ of things."
"Well who is it?"
"You first."
Tegoshi bristled but I just stared him down until he answered. "Babyface."
Well wasn’t that just swell. Yamashita "Babyface" Tomohisa was a big man in these parts. He was what they call a ‘business man’. He owned several daylight businesses, a few clubs, and as many politicians. He ran things in the area for some higher-ups who didn’t like to have their names or faces seen around town so much. I’d known him when we were kids, but we parted ways when I told him I wanted to be a cop and he entered the business so he could get rich and take care of his family in style. Word on the street was he was a pretty good guy. . .for a bad guy. But a real tough nut. Everyone loved him and he’d never had a single bad act pinned on him or anyone associated with him. Him being a part of this made it a little more difficult.
"Now who’s my tail?" Tegoshi was on the edge of his seat.
"Might be safer for you if you don’t know just yet. I’ll contact you when I know more." I left Tegoshi spluttering curses and grabbed my coat to head out, let Kei know I’d phone if I wouldn’t be in later in the afternoon.
If Yamashita was involved in this, I needed to pay a visit to a mutual acquaintance of ours.
- - -
- - -
The Rusty Nail was a working class bar in the basement floor of an antiques store building in the same neighborhood as The Ivory Key. Well, the back end of the same neighborhood anyway. The Key was in the part that was just run down, The Nail was in the part that was down and saw a lot of running. There was a church up the street from The Nail, a little farther into the seedier areas, and I wouldn’t have been too surprised to find out the clergy were packing.
The Nail was more of a cusp establishment, a place where unsavories and those just down on their luck came together. Not as posh as The C-Note, but it was one of Yamashita’s many business ventures. This one was run by Akanishi Jin, the mutual acquaintance in question. The bar had only opened a few hours earlier and the regulars were still trickling in. Jin came over to greet me, wiping down the bartop with his ubiquitous bar rag. It didn’t look all that different afterward from how it had looked before. I guessed it was just one of those things bartenders do.
"Hey, Ryo. Can I get you a drink?"
"Isn’t it a little early still?"
"Hey, you’re the one in a bar at this hour."
Touche. I shrugged. "I guess a French coffee couldn’t hurt me if you’ve got any brandy that doesn’t taste like turpentine."
"Nah, our brandy has more of a vinegar bouquet." He chuckled.
"‘at’ll do then. Say, I’ve got a few questions for you."
"Shoot, but I can’t make any promises."
‘Course he couldn’t. This was a ‘business’ establishment. How much information got dished out all depended on who was paying, but that’s all right. I knew it when I walked in.
I laid it out for him while he wiped down a brandy snifter and built my beverage. "Sure. Listen, I’m working a case. Tegoshi Yuya has a tail and wants me to see what’s shaking. I have a hunch his, uh, partner is involved. I was wondering if you’d seen Yamashita lately."
"Tegoshi, the singer at The C-Note? Pretty?" He set my coffee in front of me. He wasn’t lying about the vinegar.
"That’s the one."
"That’s trouble."
I smirked. "I already said that was the one."
Jin’s voice dropped to barely audible over the din of the radio he had playing behind the counter. "No, Ryo. I mean that’s some shit you’re stepping in. Better not dig too deep."
"You mind telling me why?"
"Suffice it to say that Yamashita’s last kept man was declared dead. Not found. Declared." He kept a warm smile on his face but looked straight into my eyes and I could see he was stone serious with this warning. "Kusano was never even found, Ryo. But I’m positive that it was Yamashita collected the insurance money."
Seemed like Babyface’s reputation wasn’t as saintly as I thought. Jin left me for a few minutes to ponder that info while he went to check on his other patrons. When he came back he had another vinegar-and-joe for me. I hadn’t even finished the one in my hand yet. I raised an eyebrow.
"Compliments of the guy in the booth past the end of the bar."
It was Masuda, sitting alone, smiling a bit creepily in my direction and drinking plain milk straight from a delivery bottle. I hadn’t even noticed him. Some P.I. I was. With detective work of this caliber, I should have stayed on the force. Of course, they wouldn’t have me. I gave him a nod in acknowledgement of the drink.
"That guy gives me the willies," Jin muttered.
"He come in here often?"
"Meets with Yamashita a couple of mornings a week."
"You think he’s in Babyface’s pocket?"
"Besides you, Ryo, I don’t know anyone who isn’t. I’m pretty sure this kid’s been in it since way before he was a pro. He’s a little off, though and I’m not sure Babyface knows it."
Jin seemed a mite twitchy. "Something got you spooked, Akanishi?"
"Yea- No. I don’t know. It’s Babyface. He didn’t used to be like this, Ryo. It’s like he’s getting more . . . I don’t know. I don’t like it is all."
I thanked him for the information and went to pull out my pocketbook.
Jin barely kept himself from glancing in Masuda’s direction. "Keep your money. I didn’t tell you anything."
I finished my drinks and made my way toward the door. Masuda got up to meet me halfway. He clapped a hand on my shoulder like we were bosom pals and leaned in close to me. He had a sweet face and dark, shining eyes. It looked like he knew something you didn’t, and not something good.
"How’d you like that drink?"
"Fine. Thanks." From far off he was tough to read, sure, but right up close with his weird smile and quiet voice, he made my stomach churn and I didn’t think it was the breakfast of diesel java and lunch from a bottle.
"We’re friends now, right, Nishikido?" It was weird how he said my name like he knew me even though we’d never properly met. "Friends buy each other drinks. So now we’re friends, I don’t want to see you coming around anymore uninvited, right? Friends don’t drop in uninvited. Wouldn’t be polite."
"Right. Wouldn’t want not to be friendly."
He grinned a little wider and clapped me on the back. I was out the door in two shakes.
I stopped in at the drugstore next to The Rusty Nail to change a couple of quarters for nickels and use their pay phone to ring up Kato and tell him to meet me at my office, then I phoned Kei to let him know we were coming in. It started raining while I was in the drug store. I’d never catch a cab in this weather so I’d have to take the train back to the agency.
I had to walk back past the bar to get to the nearest station. I could just make out Masuda’s creepy, soft ‘hunh, hunh, hunh’ laugh as I passed the alley. It was the sort of laugh that made your lip curl and your spine slither. I wanted to hightail it out of there, but I caught a quiet choking sound on the wind and got the feeling I should check it out. I made my way down the alley, slimier than it would ordinarily have been what with the driving rain, and peeked around the corner to where the dumpsters behind the bar were. From my vantage point, Masuda had both hands on Jin’s throat, had him backed against the brick wall. He was choking the life right out of him and chuckling his snuffly little laugh the whole time. Oh yeah. Real friendly.
I grabbed a brick from a pile of alley debris and chuffed him over the back of the head. He went down with a sickening kind of sloppy thud into the alley trash at his feet and I helped Jin up from where he’d fallen to his knees, gasping.
"Get out of here," he choked out.
"We have to call this in, he’d have killed you if I hadn’t come along. I’ll use the bar phone to call the police." Not that I really knew what they might do.
"What for? He’ll just walk again. I’m not pressing charges."
"Jin, you can’t just-"
"I’ll take a vacation. You didn’t see anything. You don’t know where I’m going."
"I don’t know where you’re going."
"Exactly." Jin smiled. "I’ll be fine, Ryo. Get out of here before he wakes up."
Jin bolted from the alley. I didn’t have much choice but to get out of there too. Had Jin said ‘again’? That was curious. I hoped I wasn’t getting in over my head with this one. I usually like to steer clear of the organized crime scene but I remembered the way that Tegoshi had looked when he’d come into my office like he was genuinely scared and it made my thoughts a little fuzzy. I never could stand to let people fend for themselves if I could help them. I really should be catching that train but I opted to walk instead. Maybe it would clear my head and give me some time to think.
- - -
- - -
By the time I stepped into my office I was as soaked as a wino in the drunktank.
"You’re late," Shige said as I was shaking the water out of my overcoat.
"Yeah, well, I got held up keeping The Muscle from flexing his right into Akanishi’s windpipe."
Koyama was up out of his seat. "Oh my, is everyone okay?"
I soothed my hand over Kei’s shoulder. "Don’t you worry about me. Masuda’s gonna have a hell of a headache, though." I locked the office door so we could be sure to talk freely without anyone walking in off the street, not that it was especially likely, then turned to Kato who was sitting on the chaise. "Wha’d you find out? Anything on a connection between Babyface and The Muscle?"
"You sure manage to get yourself mixed up with some shady characters. Word on the street is that two guys who turned state’s evidence on Yamashita’s business practices a couple weeks ago got iced. It was gruesome. They were both strangled and I heard the cops liked The Muscle for it but there were never any prints and no witnesses so they couldn’t pin it on him."
"So there’s no doubt Masuda’s in Babyface’s employ."
"There wouldn’t seem to be."
"And he’s following Yamashita’s boyfriend around. And he threatened me for looking into it so his intentions surely ain’t pure. I need more information on this disappeared ex of Babyface’s."
"What disappeared ex?" Kato asked.
"Jin tells me that Yamashita’s ex-boyfriend is a ghost."
Kato and Kei shared a look. "Kusano Hironori?"
"Kusano. That was the name, yeah. What do you two know about it?"
"We used to know him, way back though. We haven’t been in contact in years. I heard he wasn’t around. Figured he just skipped town."
Kei leaned forward in his chair. "I don’t like this Ryo. These people will kill you as soon as look at you. I don’t want you to get mixed up in all this."
"I’m already mixed up, doll. Nothin’ for it now."
There was a knock on the office door and I could tell from the shadows on the frosted glass pane who it was. I opened the door.
"Ah, hello Lieutenant Matsumoto, Captain Ninomiya."
"Inspector Ninomiya now," he said.
"My apologies. Congratulations on the promotion. Step into my office." I let Kei take their hats and coats and lead the two into my office, gestured for them to have a seat. "Drink?"
"We’re on duty," Matsumoto said.
"Just for me then." I smiled and poured myself a brandy. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"
"You working a case, Ryo?" Matsumoto said.
"You know I’ve always got something cooking." It wasn’t true, but I did like to put on that front, especially in front of them.
"Yeah, sure, but that sweetheart receptionist of yours is looking a little skinny. You’re looking a little thin too. Maybe the P.I. business isn’t so good lately. You got anything else going on? Pick up a little side business?"
"I’m doing okay." I didn’t like the tone, though.
Then Ninomiya spoke up. "Where were you this afternoon?"
I narrowed my eyes at him. "Sounds like an interrogation to me."
Matsumoto threw his hands up. "We don’t want to make any trouble, Ryo."
"Hey, I don’t like this! What’re you birds squawking around here for?" I knew these guys back in my cop days and I know how they operate. I like to lay it on thick, get real up-in-arms so they get on edge. "You better tell me now or I wanna see you getting your hats."
"Hey, take it easy. We got work to do here," Ninomiya said.
Matsumoto made a show of studying his hands while Ninomiya laid it out. "We got a witness says you were the last one to talk to Akanishi Jin before he took a powder from The Rusty Nail this afternoon."
I didn’t like how this was starting to sound. "What’s your boyfriend getting at here, Jun?"
"Just this" Ninomiya went on, "He was seen going out the back real friendly with Masuda Takahisa and someone says they saw you leaving that alley after Masuda was beaned with a brick right to the brainpan."
Now, I didn’t see anyone around after I left that alley and there wasn’t anybody going to be out in that rain either. Dollars to doughnuts said it was Masuda himself who’d said something after I scrambled his brain. With his good name, he could make some trouble if he went and accused me of beating him. I looked Matsumoto and Ninomiya straight in their faces and said, "I don’t know nothing about that."
"Aw, be reasonable, Ryo. How are we going to get this sorted out if you don’t give us the lowdown?" Matsumoto asked.
"You want me to do your legwork for you there, Lieutenant?"
"How’s this for some legwork?" Ninomiya countered. "I have witnesses who’ll put you in at least two of Babyface’s clubs in the last week. Follow that with an altercation between you and one of the city’s fine young men, Nishikido, and I’d say you’re getting yourself into some trouble."
"All my years on the force and this is the treatment I get?"
"Years on the force my ass. You blew your good name in the precinct with that unlawful discharge."
"That wasn’t my fault and you know it, and so do the rest of the guys so don’t try to fleece me with that. I didn’t fire that gun and I didn’t hit nobody with it either and you know it. Hell, you were there when I was forced into retirement."
"Retirement? Hah. You haven’t kept your nose out of police matters for a straight week since you left the precinct. I’ve had enough of you. You think you’re such a slick private dick. You think you can skirt the law? I’m through putting up with it. Either you fill in the blanks or I’ll fill them in for you."
"Fine, you want to know what’s what? I’ll tell you this. That Masuda is one of Babyface’s boys. He ain’t no upstanding young man."
"So maybe you’re one of Yamashita’s boys too, huh?" Matsumoto suggested. "Maybe you and Masuda get into a little tussle ‘cause there’s trouble in the ranks and maybe he’s messing up your buddy Jin? If it was defense, I can see that getting understood by the powers that be. What’s say you give us a bead on Akanishi’s whereabouts so he can corroborate your story."
"That’s your story not mine."
"Where were you, then?"
"Where was I when? Probably walking home."
"Anybody see you?"
"Naw, no witnesses." I shook my head. "Well now I know where I stand. Sorry to get bent out of shape, boys, but my old work buddies trying to rope me in for assault got me a bit on edge. But it’s square now that I know what it’s all about." I gave them a sardonic smile to show ‘em just how appreciative I was of being treated like a common thug when I knew they didn’t have a leg to stand on.
"Aw, forget it Ryo," Matsumoto sighed and shook his head slowly. They both got up and started piling out.
"We’ll be in touch. Don’t get it into your head to be leaving town before we do."
"Yeah, you do that."
Matsumoto and Ninomiya left the office and I shut the door behind them.
"You stepped in it now, Nishikido," Shige said.
Kei came around the desk to sit on the front of it and I sank to the chaise to think a minute. "You think they’ll really nail you on an assault charge?"
"Not no way. They don’t really have any witnesses."
"Hmm." Kato crossed his arms and leaned back. "But now they’re thinking you’ve thrown in with a business man."
"This is no good, Ryo. There must be some way to get off this case. Can’t we tell Tegoshi to forget the fee and have done with it?"
"I’m afraid that’s not going to be possible now, angel. At this point I’m going to need to do their police work for them and bring in Yamashita if I’m going to get them off my case. You know how those two get when they think they have something. Like dogs with bones." I looked them both over. "You have some reporting you need to be doing, Kato?"
"Not just now, no."
"Well If you’re going to be hanging around, why don’t you run down to the diner and see if you can’t get them to pack up some sandwiches." I tossed him a dollar and a half.
"I’m not your errand boy."
"I’m buying you dinner, try to act grateful. Kei, see if you can raise Murakami on the line for me."
"Sure thing, Boss."
"You’re invaluable, angel."
Murakami Shingo was a bookie buddy of mine who knew everything about everybody. We went way back to the days before I joined the force. We’d been kids together back in the neighborhood. If anyone would be able to deal me the dirt on the business with Yamashita’s missing ex and keep it under his hat, it’d be Murakami.
"Got him, Boss."
"I’ll pick it up in my office."
"Ryo, Ryo, Ryo. Long time no hear from. When are you coming down to see me?"
The answer was ‘probably not ever or at least not real soon’. It was me hanging around with Murakami and the neighborhood types that got me into a scrape with the Commissioner and got me edged out of the force. It was a late night and we’d all been drinking and some not-too-close acquaintance of one of my old buddies come in, drunk and making a lot of noise about monies bet and owed and my old buddy Shibutani picked my standard police-issue up off the table where I’d left it and fired off a couple of rounds. One of them had nicked the guy. It caused quite a kerfuffle in the department, being a police weapon and in a gambling parlor, and I’d been asked to resign to keep from tarnishing the name of the department, which was a laugh anyway, but I couldn’t say no. I’d tried to keep away from that sort of thing since the incident, just to keep my nose clean. That, and I didn't have two nickels to run together.
"Now, Shingo, you know I’m not a gambling man." There was a pause on the line and then Murakami’s warm chuckling laughter. "Yeah and if you buy that I’ve got some oceanfront property to sell you. It’s nothing personal, Shingo. You just have to have money to bet money."
"I know you’re good for it, Ryo."
"Oh no, I won’t be getting into it with you. I’ve seen the knees of some of your other customers."
"Well you’ve got me there. So what can I do you for?"
"I need some information on Yamashita Tomohisa."
"Investigating Babyface, eh? Sounds troublesome."
"Yeah, more trouble than it’s worth. Listen, I’m trying to get the scoop on an ex boy of his, Kusano Hironori."
"Yeah, I remember him. A good kid. I seem to recall him doing some traveling over to Chiba with Babyface about nine or ten months back and not making the return trip."
"He was in Chiba when he disappeared, huh? That would explain why the Tokyo Metro Police don’t know so much about it." The various police departments weren’t great about sharing information on open cases. It was usually a combination of bad intentions and no intentions at all. Of course, if Yamashita had greased enough palms to make sure that the case didn’t stay open long, they didn’t really stand much of a chance of sharing that information anyway.
"This doesn’t happen to be about that fifteen K Babyface is into The Octopus for, does it?"
This was the first I’d heard about it and I could feel my skin crawling at the mere thought. I didn’t like anything having to do with The Octopus, alias Takizawa Hideaki. He rubbed me the wrong way. They called him that because he had enough fingers to have one in every pie in the goddamned city. He was one of the higher-ups Babyface ran things for on this end of town. If he owed The Octopus money, he was in deep because when you were on his good side, Takizawa would take real good care of you, but if you weren’t, then The Octopus was about as gentle and forgiving as his namesake. This was definitely information worth having. "What do you know about it, Shingo?"
"Just that he owes at least fifteen thousand aces to The Octopus and Takizawa’s calling it in. I got a good notion that’s why he rigged that fight a couple nights ago. Babyface wheedled The Muscle into his pocket back before he started fighting at the pro level. I’d give you good odds on it being for just that reason."
"You’re talking awful freely, Murakami."
"I lost a lot of money on that fight, Ryo. I got a mind to see someone sticking it to Babyface and seems to me you’re the man for the job if that’s the job you’re already on."
"How much money did Yamashita make on that fight?"
"About five thousand, give or take." I let out a low whistle. Five thousand at a stretch was nothing to sneeze at. Still, he’d need fifteen, all-told. I had an idea where he might get it. "You know anything about an insurance scheme he might have had on that Kusano?"
Murakami was quiet for a minute then cleared his throat and answered, "Naw, not much. But you could talk to Uchi over in the Chiba medical examiner’s office. He’ll have some information for you."
"Thanks, Shingo. You’re a pal."
"Some pal," Murakami said clucking his tongue. "Never even come and see me."
"Yeah, yeah. Say hello to the guys for me."
Now I’d just have to put in a long-distance to Uchi. This case was going to be murder on my phone bill but better it than me, I guess.
- - -
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> go to part 2