Right after sending the message to Toa his receiver vibrated to notify him a message had arrived. When he raised the device up again he was expecting to see something about how much he would need to pay for the information; but instead, it was a message from an unknown number. “Check your house. There’s a surprise waiting on your bed.”
YF knew it was Reina, and knew she did not mean what the message would suggest it meant. But still, he could not help but conjure up a thought of her lying on his bed. In that image she was wearing a long red shirt that flowed from her shoulders to just the bottom of her hips. He could see her sitting up on the comforter as he entered from the hallway, patting the spot next to her. “Come, sit.” That sounded like something Reina would say. As she smiled, her long, sharp fangs protruded over her bottom lip.
Officially and in the textbooks they said that purebloods were not that different from the rest of the Reo. But the average person never believed that for a second. YF hated to admit that most of his interactions with people of Reina’s social strata were more pleasant than ones with others. As much as he disliked them in theory, he was sure that the combination of their good looks, mesmerizing gaze, and adeptness with words helped them remain where they were as much as their money did. YF recalled the way Kita looked when she had slapped him. He touched his cheek. Even then, she seemed to maintain her poise.
YF was sure that whatever Reina wanted him to check at the house in Nishida was worth his time — she was oddly frivolously unfrivolous. And if Erika wanted him to go to Nishida to see her anyway, perhaps he could stop by the Black Hat and then get whatever Reina had sent him after. YF sighed. He knew he would eventually have to get rid of the house. Erika always followed up; maybe that annoying aspect of her was what had kept their family afloat as long as it had been.
***
YF told Katayama to man the koban — he seemed to prefer it anyway — while he himself went on patrol. But YF only stopped at the supermarket to pick up some items, which he stored in a large foam box. He then parked his scooter in an alley near the bus depot and rode the next bus out to Nishida Ward. YF spent the entire ride dreading to hear what Erika would say and curious about what Reina had left at the house. He was sure Erika would scold him about not coming earlier and talk more about the pregnancy. Even Erika knew she probably had to explain more about that.
When YF arrived at The Black Hat, Lydia was already smoking while leaning against the rail, where she usually was.
“You should hurry back there,” she said, motioning with her head toward the club. “It’s pretty urgent.” Lydia smirked and puffed out a cloud of smoke.
“Thanks. I’ll get going then,” he replied.
“Better hurry,” she repeated.
YF climbed up the few steps and walked past Lydia. When he reached the door, he kept his left arm around the box while he used his right to press the button. After the door slid aside, he entered the club and turned into the hallway, almost walking into Erika who was already standing there.
“Whoa!”
“Hey,” she said softly, looking him up and down. “Was hoping you’d come earlier.”
“Yeah, listen I—”
“But you’re here now,” she interrupted. “That’s all that matters.” She seemed to genuinely mean that.
The soft look in her eyes dispelled any dread he had accumulated during the bus-ride. “I’ll come more often.” He felt like he meant that as well.
“Anyway, I hope you’re hungry.” She looked him up and down again.
“Uh…sure.”
She grabbed his arm . “Come on, I scrounged some stuff and made your favorite.”
Erika then proceeded to practically drag him toward Lydia’s office, with a strength he did not remember her having. Her grip over his forearm grew tighter with each step she took.
She pushed open the door to the office to reveal a large fruit tart sitting in the center of the desk. A futon much thicker than the one they normally slept on was spread in front with two fans blowing over the surface.
“I could only get a small pack of blueberries but I think it’ll work.”
“Have…you ever made this before?” YF asked.
“No.”
YF wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer, kissing her gently on the forehead. “Thanks. I’m sure it took a lot of time. I may need to box it and bring it back to the koban though. I can’t be here too long. I also brought you some stuff.” He released her and presented the box he had been carrying, opening the lid to reveal a tub of icecream and a few containers of natto, raw eggs, and packets of microwaveable rice.
“You might need to heat the rice, the rest should be edible as is,” he said.
“It’s fine, don’t worry about it.” Erika took the box and set it down on the desk. She then hugged him tightly. “Do you have to go n—?” As she did, her collar bone pressed against the pistol he had holstered under his chest, causing her to loosen her grip and back up.
“I do have one more thing.” YF took off his jacket and lifted his shirt, undoing
the belly band wrapped under his chest. He handed it to her. “Here’s the band and inside the band is a gun. I’m fairly certain you know how to handle it from there.”
Erika plucked the gun by the handle gently such that the band flopped to either side. She frowned slightly as she examined it, before placing the gun-holster apparatus on the desk such that the muzzle faced the wall. “Thanks.”
“Just to make sure you and the baby are safe,” said YF.
Erika approached him again and pinched the bottom of YF’s shirt on both sides, pulling him toward herself. She wrapped her arms under his. “Can you stay a bit longer? I thought we’d talk about the baby.”
YF had felt good about seeing her up until that point, and he was sure such a conversation would ruin the moment — whether what she had to say was good or bad. “We can talk about it later. I trust you.”
Erika pulled back slightly and looked into his eyes. She had an expression he was not sure he had seen since their twenties. She suddenly wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down toward her, kissing him. As she withdrew her head slightly, he could hear her breathing growing more labored. She grabbed his hand and pressed it between her legs, her eyes searching his, as if looking for a response. YF nodded and kissed her back, wrapping his free arm around her waist and leading her to the futon.
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***
YF opened the door to the master bedroom. On top of the bed lay six large kimono storage boxes each with a suit bag placed on top of them. A handwritten note rested between the third and fourth boxes. YF picked the note up in his hand; the writing on it was immaculate, with characters etched across the expensive looking paper that reflected trained calligraphy skill. In an age where hardly anybody wrote by hand — and those who did, did not write this well — it was fascinating to see someone with the time and resources to dedicate to the craft.
After continuing to admire the writing for a few more seconds, he began to read it “The warm summer winds are receding and fall will soon arrive. I hope you are dressed warmly. I had access to some good tailors and thought I’d have these made for Tokai-san’s wedding. In addition there is a credit for the bride in the groom’s box, that she can redeem for whatever design she may choose. So long as she makes her order two days before the date, it will be done. Hayashi Reina.”
YF could guess that Erika would tell him to turn down the offer, and in any other circumstance, he would. Since this was about Eiji’s wedding though, he felt like he should pass the gift to him and let him decide what to do with it. YF set up a temporary entry password to the house using his receiver and arranged a courier to deliver the stuff to Eiji’s apartment.
***
On the way back to the bus depot YF stopped in front of a Tanaka dealership, staring at the rows of bikes displayed near the front window.
“Can I help you sir?” a sales representative emerged almost immediately from the shop.
“How much is an R1?”
“7,000,000 DTKs,” said the representative.
“So…that’s like a what, fifteen year loan?”
“On a payment of 40,000 a month it would come out to be around fourteen and a half sir.”
“No used ones I suppose?”
“Unfortunately not sir.”
“Thanks, I’ll continue to look.”
“Please, take your time.” The sales rep bowed once and entered the shop again, leaving YF again standing in front of the glass. He imagined getting the brand new bike and riding it west until he reached the edge of the main island. He could catch a ferry to the old country, and perhaps maybe even make it out to Ard. He was sure Kigali would know someone to show him around. Riding through the sand dunes sounded liberating, just like in the movies. YF knew in the end he would do whatever it took to take care of Erika and the baby. But maybe he could afford one ride alone for a month. One day. For the first time in his life, YF thought about getting out of the Akeha Metropolitan Area all together. The Capital, the Ward, Itsugo. What did it all mean in the end?
His receiver vibrated. “Gunfire reported in Itsugo Gochome. All personnel report for…”
When he read the message YF clutched the device and started sprinting toward the megabus depot. Seconds later, it vibrated with another message notification. It was from Katayama. “Patrolmen from other sectors are meeting at the Sanken-dori Junction before moving on to Daimon-dori. I will meet you there as well.”
YF reached the bus depot building and ran past the exit doors leading to the buses, instead following signs for the shinkansen. He reached the turnstile and swiped his receiver over the reader, making sure not to look down at the flashing number. Whatever it was, it was probably too much; the important thing was he had enough money to get on. YF reached the platform just as the train was about to depart. Everyone else was already seated as he made his way down the aisles and through multiple cars before arriving at his automatically assigned seat. It was situated between two other people. YF tried not to show his displeasure as he clutched his backpack close to his chest and took his seat.
Though the train was supposed to arrive in Itsugo soon, the Itsugo Shinkansen Station was not near the bus depot where he had parked his scooter. He would need to take the subway four stops to get there. YF swiped his receiver over the turnstile and made sure to ignore the exit fee indicator. He then sprinted to the subway platform at the other side of the building and rode the next train bound for the bus depot. Upon arriving at the alley where he had parked the scooter, YF haphazardly changed back into his uniform and mounted the vehicle. He then pulled on the throttle and accelerated into traffic toward Sanken-doori.
He reached the Sanken-doori junction about fifteen minutes later and found that the group had long left the gathering point. YF could hear the sound of automatic gunfire receding into the distance. With the normal shopping crowd dispersed, YF rode through the pedestrian street faster than usual, coming up about three fourths of the way to the end before seeing the other patrolmen.
“Senpai,” Katayama bowed slightly in greeting. But YF could tell that Katayama was furious beneath his polite smile and furrowed brows.
“Sakai?” a man in uniform named Toriyama he knew from his Sentinel days addressed him. “Where the fuck have you been?”
“Not where I should have been,” said YF.
“No shit.”
“I will answer in detail to the Magistrate. What happened here?”
“You tell him,” said Toriyama looking at Katayama. He motioned for the other patrolmen. “Let’s get out of here.”
***
“Three dead, two affiliated with Uwada and one affiliated with Nakajima,” said Katayama when they reached the koban.
“And can we prove that?”
“Division Four is giving us some guidance so that we can solve the issue ourselves.”
“Are any of ours hurt?”
“The sectarians started retreating before we arrived. They were firing at each other and not at us, so Toriyama ordered us to advance but hold fire,” Katayama replied. “They got away in a van.”
YF’s eyebrows furrowed. “A van?” “What color was it?” he asked.
“Completely black, though it looked like it had a fresh coat of paint on it.”
YF remained silent as he collected his thoughts. “I’ve got an idea on the van. You stay here or patrol as you see fit, I will look into it mysel—.”
YF turned to see a figure running toward them from the north end of the platform. It was Numata, and she was moving much faster in heels than YF thought possible. He glanced at the clock inside the koban and saw that she was much too early to be back from work. When she came within a few strides of them YF could see she looked very flustered. He raised his arm up slightly, hesitating just at the last moment before Numata wrapped her arms around him and pulled him into a hug. YF slowly continued raising his arm up until his palm pressed gently on her back. Numata continued to embrace him for a brief second before letting go.
“I heard about what happened.” She turned to Katayama and bowed once before raising one arm and hugging him briefly from the side.
“Are you all okay?” she asked.
“I wasn’t there when it happened,” YF admitted, looking past Numata toward the street.
“We didn’t engage,” said Katayama. “We had to apply first aid to civilians who were caught in the crossfire. The ambulance came and took them away. No innocents were killed.”
“And the sectarians?” asked Numata.
“Three,” said Katayama.
“Doesn’t the Village Office need to give you some more firepower? Vests?” asked Numata.
“It’s the Town Office now,” said YF. “And we can request that though I’m not sure if or when we’ll get it.”
Numata crossed her arms and frowned, seeming deep in thought. Both YF and Katayama remained silent the whole time, waiting for her to say something. As the seconds passed, her expression grew increasingly conflicted, in a way that YF did not like. Finally though, her look changed to one of resolve. “I have an idea.”