“I’m not peddling anything,” Li answered in perfect Japanese. “I have a message from my master for Sakutaro-san.”
“What is it? Sakutaro-san is a busy man.”
“My master said that the message must be delivered to Sakutaro-san in person. He assured me that Sakutaro would look upon it unfavorably if it was delivered to any ears but his own.”
“Who is your master? Sakutaro is too busy to have his time wasted.”
“Tell him my master is an old and powerful friend from the east,” Li replied. “I assure you he will want to talk to me. It could be worth quite a bit to him. My master is known for his generosity to his friends.”
After a ten minute wait, the guard in the shack set into the wall picked up a phone. He had a hurried conversation with someone on the other end, and after he hung up, the gate started to swing open.
Li smiled at the guard who had been watching him the whole time and walked to the open gate. The guard in the gatehouse held a short black rifle with a long magazine sticking out the bottom.
“Halt,” the guard at the gate ordered. When Li complied, he glanced at his partner briefly before he ordered Li to raise his arms. The guard checked him from head to toe. Finding nothing, he picked up a flat wand and waved it over Li’s body. When there was nothing found, Li was escorted inside the gates.
The guard led him through the front door of the house. It opened into a high-ceilinged great room with a curved staircase running up each side to the second floor. The place reeked of wealth and privilege.
Li tried not to gawk like a country bumpkin in the city for the first time. He was led through the house to a garden in the back, where there were several more hard-looking guards, each of them with a sidearm on their belt and an AK-47 in their hands. None of them threatened him directly, but it was implied in the way they stared and preened like hard-eyed peacocks.
Li fought down a laugh, secure in the knowledge that he could kill all of them without breaking a sweat.
An older man in a wheelchair was looking out over the garden. “You have a message for me. What is it?” he demanded, his voice clear and strong even though his body was thin and weak.
“You are Sakutaro-san?” Li inquired.
The man nodded. “Hai, now get on with it. I’m not getting any younger while I wait.”
Li stiffened, not accustomed to being spoken to that way. “Grand Master Peng Kun bids you greetings and says, ‘the Dragon fades while the Tiger rises.’”
Sakutaro stiffened in his chair and turned his head to stare at Li through rheumy eyes. “Leave us,” he ordered the guards.
“Sakutaro-san, your granddaughter issued orders that you must have one of us with you at all times.”
“My granddaughter worries too much. Tell her I said… Better yet, send for her,” he ordered. “If she is here, I won’t be alone, and she needs to be here for this meeting.”
Sakutaro nodded at Li. “She will be here soon. Would you like some refreshments while we wait? You look as though you have traveled a long way to see me.”
“Yes, it was a long trip.” Li heard heels strike the wooden floors in the great room.
Seconds later, the double doors burst open, and a stunning black-haired woman wearing six-inch spiked heels stalked into the garden with fire in her eyes. “Who let this man in to see my grandfather? Why wasn’t I notified? No one is to bother him.”
Li was shocked at the venom her voice held as she dressed down the guard who had refused to leave.
Sakutaro watched her, his mouth a tight line and his face flushed. “I did, granddaughter. I am the master of this house and the ruler of this territory. I see who I want, and you had best remember that. Do not confuse an old man’s love for his granddaughter with weakness. You would be wrong.”
The young woman’s face paled as she cut off mid-tirade. “My apologies, Grandfather. I only wish to keep you from being bothered with trivial matters.”
“Who decides what is trivial?” His voice was low and held a hint of menace.
She swallowed hard twice, trying to form the words but unable to.
“Leave us, all of you. My granddaughter and I have business with our guest. Have that kitchen girl bring refreshments.” He looked at Li. “Tea? Coffee? whiskey?”
“Tea would be fine, Sakutaro-san,” Li replied.
A young woman in a servant's uniform pushed a cart laden with cups and carafes through the door a few minutes later. When she started to serve them, Sakutaro stopped her. “Leave us. Granddaughter, you will serve our honored guest.”
The young woman stiffened at this but dutifully did as she was told.
Sakutaro watched her with a slight smile on his lips. “What news do you have from my old friend Peng Kun? It’s been many years since I heard that name. Is he well?”
Li accepted his cup with a nod. “He is well and will be pleased that you are also. We seek information, which Master Kun thought you could provide.”
Sakutaro waved his hand in a come-on motion.
“We seek information on a man called Akio,” Li told him.
The young woman jerked when he said that and dropped a fine porcelain cup on the floor, where it shattered into small shards.
“That is dangerous information you seek, my friend,” Sakutaro answered. “The last who sought him out died for it, and it caused untold anguish to many of his friends when the government came for them.”
“I understand he is dangerous, but my master requires that I obtain the information. Do you know where he can be found?”
“No, not the specific location, but I do have an idea where you may start. Understand that if I give you this information, all debts between Peng Kun and I are settled.”
Li nodded his agreement. “I will pass the message to Grand Master Peng.”
“A few weeks past, one of my associates became involved with the man you seek. He took someone he should not have and died as a result. It is not just the one you seek who poses risk. He is not alone, and the information I have received on his companions says they are not to be taken lightly, even though they are a woman and a strange childlike creature.”
“A creature that is some type of child?” Li mused. Akio also having a dangerous woman as a companion was not surprising to Li. Female tigers were more dangerous than the males.
Sakutaro shrugged. “Hai. My sources informed me that the child rescued the person who was taken alone. The damage she caused to the structure alone was extensive. She also killed with some weapons that are like none I have ever heard of. Are you certain you wish to hunt those beings?”
“I do as Grand Master Peng directs. What I want or do not want is irrelevant.”
Sakutaro nodded, “As it should be. The one you seek has been seen near the Shinjuku City area of Tokyo. The woman who was taken works at an entertainment facility west of that area. I will provide you with the address.”
Li bowed. “Thank you, Sakutaro-san. My master and I appreciate your assistance.”
“Assistance? I offer nothing further than a scrap of paper with a location on it. You were never here and neither my organization nor I will do anything for you or your,” he paused for a moment and looked Li directly in the eye, “Clan from this point on.”
Li nodded, understanding that the meeting was done and the crime boss felt the information was enough to settle whatever debt he owed Kun. “I will leave you now with my thanks.”
“Granddaughter, escort our guest to the door and return. We have things to discuss.”
Li stood and followed the young woman from the room, and she walked him to the door in silence. As he was leaving, she softly spoke. “You are on a fool’s quest. This person and the people around him are not human. They are some type of oni. Go back to China or die.”
Li stood looking at the closed door after she departed, wondering what had happened that made the knowledge, even if it was skewed, of the UnknownWorld not so unknown here. He would need to discuss that with Kun befo
re going any further.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
TQB Base, Tokyo, Japan
“Akio?” Yuko called over his chip. “Are you busy?”
“No,” he answered. “What do you need?”
“I wanted to talk to you if you have a few minutes.”
“I can meet you in the command center if you would like,” he offered.
“I’m on my way there now.”
Akio turned off the music and pulled on his boots, then made his way out of his room. A short time later, he walked through the command center’s door.
Yuko was already sitting there with two cups of tea in her hands. Akio nodded his thanks as he took the offered cup and sat, savoring the dark tea’s aroma before sipping.
“Thank you for coming,” Yuko started.
“Thank you for the tea,” Akio replied, gifting her with a smile. “It is delicious.”
Yuko blushed, slightly annoyed that he still had that effect on her after so many years. In many ways, she had grown into the confident, self-assured woman Bethany Anne had said she would. In others, she was still the star-struck young girl from the day she and Akio first met. She smiled at herself as she recalled her disappointment at finding out he wasn’t interested in girls.
That feeling made her hesitate, unsure of how to introduce the subject on her mind. “Akio, I wanted to ask how you are.” She rushed on, uncomfortable with the thought that she was prying. “You’ve been withdrawn since you and Horst returned from Australia. You spend all your time in here or locked away in your quarters. Eve and I are worried about you. Is there anything we can do to help you through this?”
Akio stared at Yuko over the top of the cup until she feared she’d offended him. She was on the verge of apologizing and leaving when he finally spoke.
“I have been dealing with old memories.”
Yuko stayed silent, watching his face as he thought about what he wanted to say.
“I have been remembering moments from my time with Kenjii, memories I had made myself forget,” Akio confessed.
“I have times when my memories haunt me as well,” Yuko offered. “I miss my parents intensely, but I have found that talking about it with Eve helps. Would you like to try that?”
Akio looked at her through hooded eyes. He hadn’t shared his private life when human, and his time as a vampire hadn’t changed that.
“If it is too painful, I understand,” Yuko went on. “I don’t want to pry, but it hurts me to see you like this. You have been my rock for many years. I want to be yours if you will allow it.”
“Yuko.” He closed his eyes, a pained expression on his face. “I don’t know how to begin.”
She placed her hand on his arm. Her expression—caring, concerned, loving, even—made him turn away. Although he knew inside that Bethany Anne had redeemed him, he still had centuries of experience in believing himself a soulless monster who was unworthy of love.
“Akio, you are my friend, and I love you. Know this: no matter what, that will never change,” Yuko assured him.
When Akio next spoke, his voice cracked from the emotions he’d put in a box many years ago and promised never to let out. “Yuko, I told you I thought Kenjii was dead. The reason I thought that was because I watched him die screaming while Isamu and Ogawa tortured him in front of me.”
His eyes lost focus as he fell into his memory. Yuko thought he’d finished until he spoke in a flat monotone.
“It was the spring of nineteen fifty-seven. Kenjii and I had spent whatever time I could steal since November of the year before. He knew what I was and accepted me. No, he loved me as a person, not as the monster I felt I was.
“I had feelings I hadn’t experienced since before I was turned: happiness, joy, love. Things I thought lost to me forever.
“I would sneak to his apartment in the night. Most times he was already in, but occasionally I would arrive and find the home empty. I enjoyed those nights because I was able to set up the tea service and prepare it for him. If he was home when I arrived, he wouldn’t dream of not playing the proper host, but those nights I was able to do that for him. It made his eyes sparkle like the stars in the sky when I surprised him.
“Kamiko summoned me and informed me that the criminal I’d left in charge of Chiba had become greedy. I was to go to their headquarters and kill all of them. I carefully contained the excitement that caused. I couldn’t afford to act any different than I had in centuries past. I took my leave and was in Chiba a short time later.
“I went through the warehouse like a man possessed. I didn’t feed, I simply killed and moved on to the next. When it was done, I took the time to clean myself up, having thought to bring a change of clothes with me. I was happy as I made my way to his home. The night was young, and I was not expected back until just before dawn.
“When I arrived at his house, the lights were on, letting me know he was home. I used my key and rushed up the steps to the living room, excited to see him.” He paused, his lips pursed tight and a pained expression on his face.
“Kamiko Kana was sitting on the couch, the one where Kenjii and I had spent many happy nights. She commanded me to kneel at her feet and remain silent. I tried to fight the compulsion but was unable to do so. My creator had given me to her, and I could no more disobey her than I could harm him the day I was made.”
Yuko covered her mouth with a hand, repressing a gasp.
Akio didn’t notice, lost in the retelling. “Kamiko forced me to follow as Ogawa took Kenjii from his home, the place where he felt safe. I could only watch as they dragged him past me, terrified by what was happening. His eyes begged me to save him.
“What came next was a horror no one should ever endure, or see. They tortured him before my eyes. Isamu directed it like a maniac conducting a symphony, but instead of beautiful music, he caused the gut-wrenching screams of a person in unbearable pain. The sights and sounds have stayed with me ever since.
“Heinz was there as well. He drew my blood with a syringe and explained his theory to Isamu, who tested it by dribbling my blood into Kenjii when the damage was too much for him to survive. The theory proved to be correct, so they played their sadistic games through the night. Between his screams, Isamu and Kamiko repeated that I was the ultimate cause of his suffering. I would have killed them all had I not been compelled, and Kamiko had to reinforce the compulsion several times that night. I was beset with rage such as I had never experienced, becoming more beast than man. I would have taken both of our lives had it not been forbidden. Anything to make the pain stop.”
Silent tears ran down Yuko’s face. Still, she listened as Akio relieved the burden on his soul.
“An hour before sunrise, they brought him back from the brink one last time. Isamu made me watch as Ogawa heated irons in a fire and held them to his face time and time again. I watched him die. One moment he was breathing weakly, and the next, he was gone.
“I died for the second time that day. Kamiko ordered me from the room and locked me in the metal casket that she used to punish us when we displeased her. I remained there for six months, growing weaker each day, wanting to die but unable to do even that.
“When she released me, she compelled me never to forget what I had caused and reinforced the orders that prevented me from taking any action against Heinz or her torturers. She then ordered me to feed and clean myself up.”
He chuckled darkly, the first sound that hadn’t come out dead and lifeless since he had started. “When I finished the bath and was wrapping the cord to hold my hair in place, the pain of looking at the long hair he’d enjoyed running his fingers through on so many nights was too much. In a fit of grief, I hacked it off.
“I might not have been able to take my life, but I could eliminate that reminder of our relationship. I had worn that style since before I was turned. Since then, I have worn it like this as another reminder of what happens when emotion is allowed to overcome common sense.”
Yuko’s face reflec
ted her horror. She knew that Isamu and Ogawa were worse than animals, given what they’d done to the people of Kume. This admission made some of what they’d said and Akio’s actions on the island that night clearer. He’d told her then that he had an old issue with the two. Now that she knew what it was, she wished they could travel back to that day and do it all over again. Well, maybe she’d skip the Nosferatu in the basement, but she knew now that neither Isamu nor Ogawa had suffered as they deserved. They had died much too cleanly.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Shandong Province, China
Miko traveled hard through the night, stopping only long enough to feed on three men he found camping just off the road. He had no compunction about taking the lives of bandits who preyed on the local farmers as they transported their crops to the trading post to trade for items they needed.
The fresh blood replenished his energy and allowed him to push on. By the time he felt dawn approaching, he had traveled another hundred kilometers. If not for the coming sun he could have continued.
He found a sign along the road that indicated he was ten kilometers from Linyi. He had managed to make good time on the route to Shanghai. He only had around five hundred kilometers to go, and should be there within two nights. Then he could book passage to Japan and start looking for the answers to his past.
He found an abandoned factory that showed signs of many years of neglect. The roof had caved in, and trees had sprouted around it and grown over the years, breaking the concrete as their roots searched out nutrients.
He worked his way through the broken concrete slabs, moving some out of the way and then back into place behind him as he went. When he found a doorway not blocked by debris, he forced it open.
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