Tokyo Demons Book 2: Chapter 5, Part 1

 The trapped lab techs in the bathroom across the hall started pounding against the door. Jo heard someone move toward their cries for help.

“Calm down,” another voice ordered. It sounded like a male cop, but it wasn’t Ochi. “The door’s jammed shut with a chair.”

Jo heard more movement, scraping wood. The lab techs’ shouts suddenly grew clear without the muffled door to block them.

“They ransacked us!” one of them cried. “I don’t know why anyone would attack us like this!”

“Is anyone hurt?”

“No, but–”

“Move into the hallway,” Nakajima ordered. “We have to clear the room.”

It sounded like the techs obeyed. Jo heard slow, careful steps on the other side of the lab. Mitsuko, her body taut and ready to pounce beside him, clenched her hands into fists.

Jo very, very carefully peeked around the side of the lab bench. He immediately jerked back.

A pair of petite legs stepped toward him, her footsteps silent as a cat’s.

Shit, Jo thought. That’s her, right? He couldn’t be sure, but it sure as hell felt like her. His heart thundered in the quiet.

In a desperate bid, Jo pulled off his ski mask.

Mitsuko glared at him from his side. Are you crazy?! she mouthed.

Jo took a long breath. He listened for the steps, but only heard the ones from the cop across the room. He tried to count the phantom taps of nearby feet.

The silent legs stepped into his range of vision. Jo looked up the second Nakajima looked down.

Their eyes met.

She froze.

“This area’s clear,” the other cop called from across the room. “Do you see anything?”

For another long second, Nakajima stared down at Jo. Her gaze hardened.

“Detective?”

Nakajima’s jaw tightened. She looked up and lowered her gun.

“Clear,” she said in a tone of ice.

“Should we check the perimeter? Unit B said there’s a fire escape in the back.”

Nakajima returned her gun to her holster. She stepped out of Jo’s vision.

“Have them sweep it once, then assemble forces in front. We can start questioning the victims while we wait for paramedics.”

“Roger. And you?”

“I’ll close this room for the investigation. I’ll join you when it’s sealed off.”

The unknown cop left, his steps disappearing into the hall. For a long moment, Jo heard nothing but the dense crackle of Nakajima’s radio.

Then her hand grabbed his shirt and threw him to the floor.

Jo scrambled to get up, but Nakajima kicked him brutally in his wounded side. The burst of pain dropped him stomach-first back to the tile, curled and shaking as tears filled his eyes.

He heard Mitsuko pounce on Nakajima, her curse cut off in the swift slams of fists. Mitsuko spilled to the floor next to Jo, her mask suddenly gone.

A cold metal rod rammed up against the back of Jo’s neck. He choked as the rod forced his cheek against the floor, pinning him down by his cervical spine. The crushing force against his vertebrae made him forget the pain in his side.

“How dare you,” Nakajima whispered, her voice low. “This is a functioning public clinic.”

Jo struggled to open his jaw. “I’m sorry,” he offered lamely. “We didn’t–”

“Don’t talk back to me,” she hissed. “You know I can’t be seen around here. You dragged me into something that could cost me my career or my life.”

Mitsuko struggled by Jo’s side. He could barely twist his head enough to see that Nakajima had crammed another nightstick against her throat. How the hell could the tiny woman hold them both down?

“We didn’t…want to involve you,” Jo wheezed. “That’s why we didn’t tell you.”

“I’m not a fool. I knew to watch this place.” Nakajima scowled. “But I was a fool to let you think for yourselves.”

The metal rod ground up under Jo’s skull, sending shooting pains down his spine. He gasped and clawed at the floor.

Zayd’s hiding place was nearby. He had to be hearing this.

Kado! Jo silently screamed. Make Zayd use his power!

“So what now?” Mitsuko coughed, her voice dripping with venom. “You need us, right? Let us go!”

Nakajima narrowed her eyes. “Keep your voice down or they’ll hear us,” she warned. “And I don’t need anyone.”

Mitsuko let out a raspy laugh. “You needed Takeshi before the shit even hit the fan. You’d be stupid to turn us in now.”

Nakajima bared her teeth. “You have no idea what you’re talking about, you ignorant child.”

Mitsuko kicked out at Nakajima, but the older woman twisted out of the way. She pinned Mitsuko’s leg with her knee.

“You need to be taught a lesson,” Nakajima said coldly. “One of you is getting arrested.”

Mitsuko struggled again. “Bitch!”

“Choose.”

Blood roared in Jo’s ears. As he tried to think through the pain blazing through his spine, Mitsuko cursed.

“Fuck this,” she spat as she arched her body. When Nakajima jostled, Mitsuko shook violently to free herself.

Nakajima surged forward and jammed the nightstick hard up under Mitsuko’s chin. Mitsuko went rigid, her face falling as she choked.

“You have three seconds,” the woman said coldly.

Mitsuko fought to breathe. Jo’s eyes widened.

“Stop it,” he pleaded. “You’re suffocating her!”

“Two.”

Mitsuko’s mouth gaped open, but no sound came out. She clawed at the nightstick, her face turning red.

KADO! Jo thought. GET ZAYD, GODDAMMIT!

“I will use my power if I must. So do not be rash.”

Jo ground his teeth together. He hitched a breath through his screaming torso, his body helpless and tortured at the crux of his skull. Zayd wouldn’t save him. He didn’t consider it a “must.” He was willing to give up Jo for the sake of ending this.

Jo squeezed shut his eyes. Terror welled up in his chest as he spoke one of his greatest fears.

“Arrest me,” he begged.

“Detective.”

Jo’s eyes popped open.

The nightstick against his neck loosened. Mitsuko started coughing beside him, her airway restored. He saw Nakajima out of the corner of his eye; she jerked her head up in clear shock.

A female police officer had materialized out of nowhere. She stepped up behind Nakajima, her face unreadable.

Shit!

Nakajima let out a breath. “I found two perpetrators hiding,” she said thinly. “Help me cuff them.”

“No.” The unknown officer touched the gun holster at her side. “We’ve got emergency orders to prioritize the victims and paramedics. No suspects will be brought into custody.”

Nakajima’s eyebrows lowered. “Orders from whom?” she snapped.

“Units six, seven. Protocol eight two four three three.”

Nakajima froze.

Without warning, the metal weight was pulled from Jo’s neck, freeing him at last. He gripped the back of his spine in aching relief. He saw Mitsuko suck in breaths and run her fingers up her throat; without thinking he reached to her and shakily clutched her arm.

Nakajima stared at the new officer, something severe in her dark eyes. The other woman met Nakajima’s steely gaze without flinching. She kept her hand on her gun.

Nakajima’s upper lip curled back, revealing gritted teeth.

“Understood,” she hissed.

The cop took her hand from her holster. She bowed her head quickly and gestured for Nakajima to follow her.

Nakajima’s burning eyes trailed back to Jo.

“I’m leaving this room for one minute,” she said. “When I come back, it will be empty.”

Jo swallowed. He nodded.

Nakajima whipped out the tangles in her coat. Then she followed the police officer into the hallway, their steps eerily quiet in their wake.

Jo struggled to his feet, his grip shaking on the lab bench. He blinked his blurry eyes to see Zayd and Kado jumping to their feet.

A flash of anger ran through Jo. But before he could open his mouth, Zayd ran up to him.

And clasped his hand. When he pulled Jo in for a hug, Jo cringed back in surprise.

“What’re you–”

“Forgive me,” Zayd murmured. “I traded your safety for information.”

A gentle, external tendril of sympathy wrapped around Jo’s heart. Jo furrowed his eyebrows, confused with Zayd’s sudden affection. Zayd touched his chest and bowed his head at Mitsuko, murmuring the same apology.

“Wh-what information?” Mitsuko wheezed.

Kado cleared his throat. “We have to go,” he reminded them. “Someone said there was a fire escape.”

Jo suddenly remembered the windows. He looked up and squinted his eyes; sure enough, he could make out the faint outline of stairs in the dark. He grabbed Mitsuko’s bag from under the lab bench.

Still angry and confused, Jo helped Mitsuko climb onto the counter and push open the window. When they both reached for Zayd and Kado, Kado gripped Mitsuko’s hand.

There were no cops at the back of the building–Jo could hear the commotion localized out front. They snuck into the adjacent parking lot, behind a handful of buildings, then bolted through an alley. One of the vans was still waiting for them in the appointed rendezvous spot.

Aisha ran up, her dark headscarf blending her into the night. She asked Zayd something in Arabic and he pointed to Mitsuko and Jo.

“Go to Aisha,” he told them. “She will see your injuries.”

Jo flicked his eyes around, but didn’t see anyone else they came with. “You go first,” he murmured at Mitsuko as he nudged her toward the woman. Once Aisha started helping Mitsuko into the van, Jo grabbed Zayd’s arm and pulled him aside.

“What the fuck happened back there?” he demanded.

Zayd let out a breath. “I tried something dangerous,” he said quietly. “I did not expect Detective Nakajima to be there. But Kadoyuki-kun was hiding with me, and I wanted to read her mind…”

Jo stopped at that. From what Jo had seen, Zayd was the only member of the Church who actually got along with Nakajima. He felt a vindicated sense of revenge on the woman who’d throttled him.

“Read her mind about what, exactly?”

Zayd’s expression went grave. “You must not tell this to Mitsuko-san,” he warned. “Even if you love her.”

Jo recoiled slightly. “I-if this is Church business,” he stuttered, “I never tell her that. We have enough people tied up in our shit.”

“This is more than Church business. This is deadly information…more deadly than knowledge of Core.”

Jo was losing his patience. “Fucking tell me!” he snapped as he gripped his aching side.

Zayd fished out his phone. He unflipped it to show Jo a recently sent text.

Please, Zayd had typed. Peacefully stop Detective Nakajima.

“I typed it while you were speaking with the detective, Jo-kun. I sent it to my bodyguard.”

Jo’s head snapped up. “Your invisible bodyguard? You can contact him now?!”

Zayd licked his lips. “I recently left a message on the roof,” he explained. “I offered to match my father’s payment if he would let me give him direct orders. If he would…extend his power to protect the people around me.” He tapped the phone. “And this is the number he left me.”

Jo didn’t know what match my father’s payment meant, but the way Zayd hesitated on the words implied a shit-ton of money. Jo grabbed the phone from Zayd.

“I’m certain Shouri cannot trace it,” Zayd offered, “but I will have her try. This was the first opportunity to test his loyalty.”

“Then…the cop was your bodyguard?” Jo asked. “That wasn’t a ‘him.’”

“Correct–that bodyguard is a woman. And once she and Nakajima were near each other, and Kadoyuki-kun could hear their thoughts…” Zayd’s eyes glittered in uncharacteristic emotion. “Kadoyuki-kun could confirm what we suspected from the beginning.”

Jo felt a weird feeling of accomplishment rise in his gut. It took him a second to realize it was probably leaking out of Zayd.

“It’s true.”

Jo turned. Kado stood nearby, staring at them in the dark.

“D-Detective Nakajima is in Kiri. But Zayd-san already told me that.” Kado took a breath. “But so is the bodyguard. She used a Kiri code so the detective would leave us alone.”

Jo blinked. “What…the hell?” he blurted. “What the hell is Kiri?”

Zayd gripped Jo’s shoulder. “The final organization Core attacked,” he said quietly. “They are shinobi of the modern era…and the only people Detective Nakajima truly fears.”

To be continued in Chapter 5, Part 2.

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