CHAPTER 13
Teruo
Teruo pushed himself upright, heart thudding in his chest. His skin prickled as he saw Shinji’s spiritual energy slowly taking shape around his body, shimmering white in the darkness of the room.
Shinji’s back was rigid, his hands gripping the blanket tightly. His gaze was locked in the direction of the window, and his chest rose with shuddering breaths.
“Are you sure there’s a supernatural outside?” Teruo whispered, not wanting to spook Shinji further.
Shinji gave a frantic nod. “Yes. But I don’t know what they are.” His voice trembled. “I’d have to get closer. I don’t want to do that.”
“Could it be a neighbor?”
Shinji shook his head. “No one around here has powers.” He clenched his jaw. “They’re not moving, but their energy keeps flickering, like they’re trying to suppress it.”
Teruo’s gut tightened with unease. He didn’t like that answer. “Is it a ghost?”
“No, definitely not a ghost.”
“If Keiko’s outside, she could—”
“She’s not.” Shinji choked on his words and swallowed hard. “She went to her sister’s and Mr. Tamura tagged along.”
Teruo’s pulse pounded in his ears and he inhaled a long breath, then exhaled, needing to keep himself calm. If this was the killer, he was the only one who could protect Shinji. He shifted onto to his knees, to see Shinji better.
“Do you think it’s the extractor?” Teruo asked.
But Shinji gave no answer. His entire body was stiff with fear, eyes not leaving the window like he thought this person would jump to the second floor and come in through the window. Wasn’t the oddest scenario, Teruo realized with horror.
He carefully climbed off the bed and walked toward the window, pushing the curtain only a little. No chance of seeing anything. The blinds were up, but he still couldn’t see the main street from his angle. The rain had stopped, and coupled with the tension in the room, it felt unnaturally quiet.
His priority was protecting Shinji. If this was the extractor, they could kill Shinji on the spot. He couldn’t let this person linger outside.
Teruo headed for the wardrobe, yanking it open. He grabbed a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt, then put them on. Inside one drawer, he had a taser, good enough to defend himself.
“Teruo?” Shinji whispered with worry. “What are you doing?”
“I’m going out to check the area.”
Alarm flashed across Shinji’s face, and he moved from his spot toward the edge of the bed. “No! You don’t know what you’re walking into.”
“If this is the killer, they can’t hurt me, but they can hurt you. I’m not letting this person stay outside our home.”
Shinji pressed his lips together, hesitating. Then he blew a sharp breath, scrubbing a hand over his face. “Okay… okay.”
“Let’s stay on the line in case we need to talk,” Teruo said and took his earbuds from the nightstand, then called Shinji’s phone.
Shinji nodded and answered, putting the phone on the bed on speaker.
Teruo moved toward the door and mouthed, “Stay inside,” before leaving for the main entryway.
“Be careful,” Shinji’s voice came through the earbuds.
Teruo took the flashlight he always kept on top of the shoe rack, shoved his feet in his sneakers, and carefully exited the house, trying to make as little noise as possible. He locked it behind him and stepped out into the street.
A gust of warm breeze blew, carrying the damp scent of wet pavement and earth. The air was stifling and the humidity already made the t-shirt cling to his back. His fists were clammy around the flashlight and taser.
The empty street stretched, bathed in the dull glow of the streetlights. The steady hum of insects was the only noise—and the relentless pulse throbbing in Teruo’s head.
He’d rarely been so nervous in the past, even when murderers shot at him, but it was something about these invisible powers that frayed his nerves.
A few pebbles crunched underneath his shoe and Teruo winced.
He kept walking toward the left side, which the bedroom window faced.
But there were only rows of houses in that direction, all their lights turned off, and trees with crowns shrouded everything around them in shadows.
If someone was there, they were inside the small yards or the houses.
“Do you still sense them?” Teruo whispered.
“Yes,” came Shinji’s answer. “Still in the same place.”
Teruo was starting to think that maybe one of the neighbors had a supernatural visitor or perhaps someone new moved into the neighborhood and they only arrived just now.
Then a thought struck him, and his grip tightened around the flashlight.
He tilted it upward, sweeping the beam across the rooftops.
Then he saw it: a silhouette hunkered down on top of the house right next to theirs.
Before Teruo had time to react, the silhouette moved quickly and vanished behind the building.
“They’re running!” Shinji’s voice crackled through the earbuds.
Teruo sucked in a sharp breath and rushed down the street, keeping the light on the roofs.
“I can’t sense them anymore,” Shinji said.
Teruo skidded to a halt, frustration coursing through him. “Damn it,” he muttered, breathless. “Are you certain?” Teruo asked.
“Not entirely, but I can’t sense even that flickering energy.”
That could mean they were still around, but hiding even from Shinji now. There was no point in lingering around because he had no way to catch someone who jumped on roofs like the gangster.
“All right. I’m coming back inside.”
Teruo briefly wondered if this had been Nakajima and sent him a message just to confirm, but it was impossible since Shinji was familiar with Nakajima’s reiryoku and would’ve recognized it. And the gangster had no reason to run away from Teruo.
Only after he was up in the bedroom and saw that Shinji was okay, he finished their call.
“I’m sorry,” he told Shinji.
“It’s all right. I’m just glad they left, whoever they were.”
“Did you manage to sense more about their energy?”
Shinji shook his head. “I couldn’t make myself move…”
“Let’s go to sleep and tomorrow I’ll speak with Horiuchi.”
They crawled back into bed, and Teruo wrapped Shinji in his arms, hoping it would calm Shinji. This whole thing seemed to awaken a terror within Shinji that Teruo had never seen before. The faster they solved this case, the better. Now more than ever, he was determined to confront Horiuchi.
~ * ~
He fell asleep, but it wasn’t for long. Before the sun was up, his phone started ringing and he woke with a gasp. The screen showed Nakagawa’s name. This wasn’t good.
“Yeah,” Teruo mumbled, his voice rough from sleep.
“I’m sorry to wake you up, sir. We have discovered two more victims.”
“Shit… Text me the address and details.” He hung up and checked the time. Four thirty. This was going to be a very long Saturday. He let his palm land on Shinji’s shoulder and gently shook him. “Wake up.”
Shinji groaned and turned around. “What happened?”
“Two more victims,” Teruo said as he sat up in bed.
Shinji’s eyes snapped open. “Fuck, what? Two?” He rubbed his palms across his face and looked toward the window for a long moment before he got up. “Who called?”
“Nakagawa,” Teruo said as he started putting his suit on fast.
“Did she give you any details?”
“I didn’t ask. I’m too out of it right now to absorb info, but she’s going to text me about the situation.
” Teruo grabbed the tie. “I’ll make some coffee for the road while you get dressed.
” He fixed his tie as he walked down the stairs.
By the time he finished pouring the coffee into a thermos, Shinji was ready, though he looked tired and his face was pinched with worry. “Want a sip?”
“Thanks.” Shinji took a few good gulps and sighed deeply. “You good to drive at this hour?”
“Yep. Coffee’s kicking in. And the road isn’t too crowded. Shall we?”
“Where’s the crime scene?” Shinji asked as they walked to the car.
“You’re not gonna like it. Higashikurume.”
Shinji nearly tripped when he spun around. “That’s where two of the other field agents lived. Their homes were further from the headquarters, in a more non-supernatural neighborhood.”
“It’s them,” Teruo said. “Nakagawa sent a message about it just moments ago.”
“I was too late…”
Teruo held his upper arms in a firm but gentle grip. “Shinji, they’ve been dead for a while. Nakagawa didn’t know for how long, but their bodies are already decomposing based on her observations. There was nothing you could’ve done.”
“Not sure that detail makes me feel any better. This means the extractor has been killing people for even longer than we first thought…” Shinji stood still for a moment, with a blank look on his face, then a full-body shudder shook him.
He pulled out of Teruo’s grasp and slumped into the passenger seat.
Teruo had this odd impression there was something else plaguing Shinji’s mind.
This ordeal with an extractor loose on the streets seemed like it only scraped the surface of whatever rattled Shinji so much.
He was nearly losing control of his powers again as his energy had been faintly glowing this entire time.
The familiar pressure settled in Teruo’s chest but he bore with it along with a simmering anguish because he didn’t know how to help.
He eased the car onto the road and turned on the air con. Shinji was restless, tapping his foot and constantly fidgeting.
“Do you wanna talk about it?” Teruo asked.
“Talk about what? We don’t have enough info right now.”
“No, I didn’t mean the crime. I mean the thing that’s gnawing at you. You’ve been on edge lately and I have an odd impression it’s not just because of the issues with my soul.” He glanced at Shinji whose lips were pressed tight.
“I would tell you,” Shinji started, “but I loathe… uhm…”
“Burdening me?”
“Yes.”