CHAPTER 13 #3
No wonder the officer said she’d been brutalized.
This had been a bloody fight compared to the other one.
But why? Why had this particular victim been more difficult to kill compared to the other four victims—and the newest one too?
She was one person, yet she had more injuries on her than all the others put together.
Teruo glanced at Shinji, but if he sensed anything, he couldn’t say it out loud.
Right next to the victim was Suzuki and further away was Commissioner Horiuchi who stared right at Teruo. Teruo met her eyes and offered a curt bow.
You don’t intimidate me, he thought.
Shinji was right, he had no idea if he was brave or reckless, but he didn’t care anymore. And since Horiuchi was here, this was the perfect moment to talk to her.
“I’m gonna talk to the commissioner,” Teruo whispered. “You and Nakagawa handle the crime scene.”
“Wait, right now?”
“Yep. Right now.” Teruo made his way toward her because if he lingered any longer, he’d lose his nerve. He greeted Horiuchi and Suzuki. “Not the same M.O.?” he asked Suzuki.
“Brutal fight aside, she does have similarities with the other victims,” Suzuki said.
“Though blood loss might’ve killed her before this peculiar poison did.
These cuts are very deep and have seared skin around them.
They remind me of another case of ours and even today I still have no explanation. ”
Teruo figured it reminded her of Keiko’s death, when the insides of her body burst from the ghost’s aura. The seared skin was likely the result of an energy attack, as both reiryoku and a ghost’s aura seemed to leave the same burn-like marks.
“Keep Miyazaki and Nakagawa in the loop, please,” Teruo told Suzuki, then turned his attention to Horiuchi. “I need to speak to you in private, commissioner.”
She tilted her head in curiosity, then nodded, stepping ahead of Teruo.
They walked down the stairs and further away from the rest of the officers, stopping underneath a small tree’s shade.
The rainclouds drifted away and the first rays of sunshine broke through.
Heat pressed against Teruo’s collar and he loosened his tie a little.
Horiuchi turned to face him, her features as unreadable as always. “I appreciate that you and Sergeant Miyazaki remain professional despite your relationship. Not too many officers manage that.”
“You’re the only one who appreciates it, ma’am,” Teruo said, taken aback by her statement. He couldn’t be sure of the motive behind her words. “Assistant Commissioner Ogata kicked him out of my unit, depriving me of a perfectly good detective and depriving Miyazaki of career opportunities.”
Horiuchi pondered for a second. “I see. Maybe we could work something out.”
“That’s what I was hoping for.” Teruo swallowed the knot lodged in his throat as he prepared to put his cards on the table.
“I’m willing to come to an arrangement about both Miyazaki and the situation regarding your missing extractor.
The case’s progression has hit a roadblock because your people insist on classifying everything. ”
For the first time since Horiuchi became the commissioner, she was genuinely surprised. Her eyes widened, though only slightly, and there was a twitch at her corner of her mouth, though Teruo wasn’t sure if she was amused or astonished at his impertinence. Possibly both.
“You know,” Horiuchi stated.
“And you know that I know, so I thought laying it all out is easier than beating around the bush. I’m not the type to waste time with needless pretense.”
This time Horiuchi’s mouth quirked in a real smile. “Yes, I can tell. But what can you offer me in exchange for information?”
Ah, more games. He’d hoped Horiuchi wouldn’t do that, but she was an Onmyōryō member, after all. “A little bird told me you have a classified file on me, so I think you have everything you need already. What more could I provide?”
“More like a little fox,” Horiuchi corrected.
Teruo wasn’t surprised she knew about Nakajima Kazuya. He’d warned them she was getting closer. Teruo almost suspected Nakajima told her, but he didn’t want to make baseless accusations, not after Nakajima helped him.
“There’s a dangerous criminal still at large,” Teruo continued, “who can kill people like you and Shinji in the blink of an eye. Isn’t that reason enough to do anything within your powers to stop them?”
“It’s more complicated than that.”
“Is it?” Anger surged through Teruo at her nonchalance. “You easily blocked the healing rooms at the HQ to stop Shinji from healing. Surely, you can give me the name of your missing extractor, so we can find them.”
The smile fell off Horiuchi’s face and she pressed her lips tight. “That was a test. I needed to see for myself how Sergeant Miyazaki’s reiryoku behaves and how your soul reacts.”
Teruo’s chest rose with words he wanted to yell at her but couldn’t and blood rushed to his head, pounding in his ear.
Keep calm. Just keep calm. “With all due respect, ma’am.
Do you and the other Onmyōryō members who did your bidding realize how irresponsible it was to do such a thing?
I could’ve died. You could’ve put Shinji’s well-being in jeopardy. ”
Horiuchi shrugged. “It was a calculated risk, and I knew you wouldn’t die. Miyazaki’s safety has nothing to do with it since he isn’t the one losing his soul.”
“Nothing to do with it?” Teruo said through gritted teeth, struggling to rein in his anger because she was still his superior officer.
“Had I died, Shinji would’ve blamed himself for killing me because it is, after all, his energy that’s feeding from my soul.
He’d have to live with this for the rest of his life, even if it would’ve been your fault. ”
Her eyes narrowed, but she kept quiet.
Teruo wasn’t done. “You would’ve also left my mother without her son.
My friend Megumi would’ve had to live with some made-up excuse about my death.
This isn’t just about me. This is about the damage you’d do to the people I leave behind after my death.
So next time you and your ‘scientists’ from the Onmyōryō decide to ‘experiment’ think twice before playing with people’s lives.
I’m not telling you this as your subordinate officer, but as a human being to another human being. ”
Horiuchi shifted her weight from one foot to the other, glancing away for a moment. “Chief Hayashi, I assure you that was not our intention.”
“Doesn’t matter what your intention is, ma’am. You should’ve thought of the consequences. As far as I can tell, you’re pretty much up to date with my situation, aren’t you? You know I’m in a race against time, correct?”
“Correct,” she replied.
Teruo inhaled sharply. “So… what are you doing? Trying to get me to the finish line faster?”
Her shoulders slouched and she let out a sigh. “I apologize for the situation we created. Although, I reiterate it wasn’t our intention to hurt you, we should’ve gathered information in another way.”
Teruo mused over that statement. She needed information about his healing problem, and he needed to jump through the stupid hoops the Onmyōryō created.
She was likely tied up at her end too, because she probably didn’t hold all the power in the organization, otherwise she’d have done something by now.
He wanted justice for these victims. The organization they worked for seemed more preoccupied with decorum and regulations than finding the killer.
And perhaps Horiuchi could provide aid to Nakajima in order to fix Teruo’s soul.
Everybody had something to win—more or less.
At this point, he didn’t have much to lose by trying.
“If I give my full consent for the Onmyōryō to analyze my soul, are you willing to meet my demands about the killer and Shinji’s situation, including an assurance he won’t get in trouble for speaking with me about your world?”
A worrying grin spread on Horiuchi’s face and cold sweat dripped down Teruo’s spine. “Well, now we’re talking,” Horiuchi said.
Teruo felt like he’d just sold his soul to the enemy.