Chapter 2

Waters knocked on the door, ready for anything. Well, almost anything. "Give me a minute." A man's voice said from inside. He sounded tired. After a few seconds the door swung open to reveal a middle aged man who appeared to be halfway through shaving. "Sorry, you caught me in the middle of getting ready for work. I thought I should throw a shirt on." The man apologized.

"Angelo Nicolosi?" Waters asked, more than a little surprised. From the guy's background, he was expecting a hardened Mafia soldier, not a balding, overweight, downtrodden businessman.

"Yeah, that's me." The man said. "What's this about?"

"I'm Detective Waters, Newark PD." Waters said. "This is my associate Detective Shirogane. We just want to ask you a few questions relating to a case we're investigating."

"Sure, come in." Nicolosi said as he waved the pair in. He pointed them to the living room. "Just sit wherever you want." Waters and Naoto sat in a pair of chairs on one side of the room and Nicolosi took a seat across from them. Naoto correctly assumed that Waters would do the talking, so she pulled a notepad out of her pocket and prepared to take notes. "So, what do I have to do with your case?"

"A Japanese national was found murdered in a shipping container on its way to a property you own." Waters explained. "Given your history with organized crime, it's not a big leap to conclude you're involved."

"Look, I know my family was into some terrible things." Nicolosi said. "And when I was young, I was party to it, but I've been clean for years. I paid my debt to society. I've got a good thing going now. Do you really think I'd risk going back to prison?"

"A body was found in a shipping container headed for your property." Naoto said. "How do you explain that?"

"I run a small business." Nicolosi said. "I've never ordered anything that would require a whole shipping container."

"You own this address, correct?" Waters asked, handing Nicolosi the shipping order. "Are you sure nothing would be shipped there surreptitiously, perhaps by an associate or relative of yours without your knowledge?" He gave him an out in hopes it would encourage him to talk.

Nicolosi laughed. "There's no way you could sneak anything into that place." Nicolosi explained. "There's no loading dock. There's not even a back door, definitely no room for a shipping container. Everything comes in off the street. It's a deli."

"A deli?" Naoto asked, not familiar with the term.

Nicolosi took the question the wrong way. "Don't believe me?" He asked. "Let me show you." He motioned the detectives to a laptop sitting on a table nearby. He opened Google Maps and used Street View to show them the storefront. "I run half a dozen delis and restaurants in northeastern New Jersey. I make damn good money, and every dime is legit."

"That still doesn't answer why that shipping container was headed there." Waters said. By now he was pretty sure Nicolosi was not involved, but was hoping he may have some lead as to who was.

"I know I have a criminal past." Nicolosi said. "It makes me a convenient target for a setup. I've made a lot of enemies, but it could just be someone who wants the heat on me so it's not on him. Look, I've got an important meeting to get to, and I'm already late. Are we done?"

"Yeah, we're done." Waters said. He stood up to leave but stopped short. "Angelo, you should get in touch with your accountant. Apparently he's been putting your money in offshore accounts of questionable legality. He also did a shit job of hiding it. The IRS will not be pleased, and I'd hate for a legitimate businessman like you to get in trouble because of his actions."

"Is that a threat?" Nicolosi asked.

"No, it's a friendly warning." Waters replied. "If I could find that information in less than an hour, the federal government should be able to dig it up in a few months or so." With that Waters left with Naoto close behind. They got in Waters' car and drove off.

"He's not our guy." Naoto said as the car rolled out of the driveway and onto the street.

"It would have been too easy." Waters said. "He's crooked, but not murder or weapons trafficking crooked."

"I'm not aware of any other leads." Naoto said. "What's our next move?"

"We're going to Paterson." Waters said. He did not sound happy about it. "Nicolosi might not be involved, but maybe the connection is geographic. The weapons may have been heading for a location near his shop. It might be worth taking a look around."

The drive to Paterson was surprising sedate. Naoto could only assume it was because Waters was too busy thinking about the case to drive like a lunatic. Naoto did thinking of her own but she was stumped. She needed more information, but it did not seem like there was anything out there. Whoever was behind the smuggling and murder was a professional and had gone to great lengths to avoid leaving a trail.

Waters turned off the interstate and onto the streets of Paterson. "There's…a lot of barbed wire." Naoto observed.

"There's a lot of crime." Waters said.

"It looks like a warzone." Naoto said.

"You don't know the half of it." Waters said. "When I was in university I had a summer job around here. A guy I worked with was in a wheelchair. One day some guy pushed him over, stole his wallet and keys, and took his car."

"That's terrible." Naoto said. She had seen many despicable things, but that was pretty over the top.

"You see the street signs?" Waters pointed. "They're up high like that because people steal them to sell for scrap. They even need barbed wire around the cemetery."

"To prevent vandalism?" Naoto asked.

"To prevent grave robbing." Waters said. "Valuables buried with the dead don't always stay there." Naoto was horrified. This place sounded like hell. "It's not all bad though. This is just a shitty neighborhood. Some parts of the city are actually pretty nice."

"Are we going to a nice part?" Naoto asked.

"Yes actually." Waters replied, much to Naoto's relief. The pair arrived at Nicolosi's deli a few minutes later. It was in a much nice part of town, no barbed wire, no bars on the windows. The deli itself was clearly a dead end. There was no way a shipping container, or even a particularly large delivery, would go unnoticed there. "Do me a favor and take a look around." Waters said. "See if there's any place around here that might fit what we're looking for. I'm going to ask around."

Naoto nodded and walked off to examine the surrounding structures. The block was a solid line of storefronts, clearly not what she was looking for. It was interesting though. There was probably no place in Japan with such cultural diversity in such a small area. In one shop a group of Hispanic men watched a soccer match, celebrating wildly when their team scored. Next door chefs and waiters worked hard in a busy Chinese restaurant. A small ice cream shop nearby was mostly empty, but the employees looked like they were enjoying themselves. It was a far cry from the city under siege she had just passed through. She made her way around the block, but could see no suitable buildings. The place was simply too busy for anything to go on in secret at street level.

Naoto circled back to the start and met Waters as he was exiting a store. "Find anything?" He asked.

"No, it's all stores like this." Naoto said. "I don't think we're looking for a place anywhere near here."

"I don't think anyone here knows anything useful either." Waters sighed. "This was probably a wasted trip."

"You know, after the neighborhood we passed through earlier, and with what you told me, I was not expecting it to be so nice here." Naoto said.

"Yeah, welcome to New Jersey." Waters laughed. "Farms, pristine nature, mansions, suburbs, urban sprawl, and crime-ridden hell-holes all within twenty miles. Oh, and the nation's worst traffic."

They got back in Waters' car. "Where to now?" Naoto asked.

"We're heading back to the station." Waters replied. "I don't have any theories at the moment, and I want to go over some evidence."

"There isn't much to go over." Naoto said.

After riding back through Paterson, Waters turned onto the highway and headed for Newark. Suddenly, a car flashed by at incredible speed. Seconds later, it was followed by a pair of speeding police cruisers. "Buckle up." Waters warned. He flipped a switch on his dashboard, activating the car's lights and siren. It was Waters' personal vehicle, but apparently it was outfitted for pursuit.

Waters floored the throttle and Naoto was slammed back in her seat. The car was a lot more powerful than it looked. Weaving through sparse traffic, they soon caught and passed the other police cruisers. All the while, Waters was on the radio talking to the other pursuing officers. Naoto was amazed by his ability to communicate effectively while driving with such speed and precision. It was like he had done it before.

The highway was winding and bumpy. The heavy but powerful police cruisers had great difficulty and were forced to slow, but Waters' light and nimble car seemed glued to the road. They steadily closed on fleeing car and soon were only a few dozen meters away. It was a high-end, heavily modified muscle car, and it was having almost as much difficulty with the twists and turns as the police cruisers. Naoto reached into her jacket and pulled out her revolver.

"Whoa, what are you doing?" Waters asked.

"I'm going to shoot out the tires." Naoto replied.

"Put that thing away!" Waters ordered. "This isn't an action movie." Funny, the whole trip felt like some kind of action movie to Naoto. She did as Waters asked and slipped her gun back into its holster.

They closed up behind the fleeing car. Naoto could see two occupants. The passenger seemed very busy. "I think they're up to something." Naoto warned.

Waters squinted, trying to see what Naoto was talking about. "Get down!" He shouted. Naoto immediately ducked. A burst of bullets shattered the rear window of the muscle car and slammed into Waters' windshield. Naoto was showered with broken glass. She looked over at Waters. He was totally focused on the car ahead, his knuckles white as he squeezed the steering wheel. Another burst struck the windshield but Waters kept up the chase. Now he was on the radio warning the other officers. Then, his entire demeanor changed. From a look of steely determination, his face shifted to a sly smile. He let off the throttle and began braking, ever so slightly.

"Are you hit?" Naoto asked. "Why are we slowing?"

"I've got 'em." Waters said. "Well, they've got themselves."

Naoto peeked over the dashboard to see the muscle car, now much farther ahead, approaching a turn. As they closed in, it became apparent that the curve was much sharper than it initially looked and much sharper than anything else on the highway. The muscle car's tires screeched and smoked as the driver struggled in vain to slow for the sudden curve. The car hardly turned before slamming almost head-on into the concrete barrier. The muscle car shot upward, rolled over in midair and slammed down on its roof before skidding across the road for several dozen meters. Waters drove up as the muscle car ground to a stop. He turned his car sideways, his door facing the wrecked car.

"Get out." Waters commanded. Naoto opened her door, slid out and ducked behind the car. Waters pulled a lever to open the trunk, jumped out his door and ran around to the back of the car. "Shirogane!" He called. Naoto looked to him and he tossed her a rifle. It was an M-16 or AR-15 by the look of it. Waters pulled out a shotgun for himself. "Cover me."

There was no movement from the overturned car. Waters approached carefully, his gun trained on the vehicle. Naoto aimed at the muscle car over the top of Waters' car's hood. She could not see any movement either. Waters approached the passenger's side. Holding his gun in one hand, he opened the door in the other. The passenger was very clearly, the unbelted man's head caved in on something during the crash. Waters walked around the other side, a little more relaxed now. The driver was unconscious, but he did not much interest Waters. What interested him was the gun that now rested on the overturned car's roof. It looked like an AK-47 but had Chinese lettering on it. Could it be one of the smuggled guns? He reached in with his foot and slid the gun away, keeping his gun trained on the driver. The other officers soon caught up and an ambulance was not long in coming. They would take it from here. The gun was very intriguing. It could be the break in the case the pair desperately needed.

"You're shaking." Waters said as he returned to Naoto.

"I've never been shot at before." Naoto explained. "I've never drawn a gun in anger either."

"You did fine." Waters said. "The first one's always the toughest." Naoto handed him the rifle and Waters packed both guns back into the trunk. "Unfortunately there's going to be a lot of paperwork for this one." He walked around to his driver's door. "Well, back to the station I guess."

"Should we really be driving this car?" Naoto asked. "It's pretty shot up."

"Just the windows." Waters said. "Thank God. That's an easy fix."

"You're taking this really well." Naoto said.

"When you've seen what I've seen, this sort of thing just doesn't hit that hard." Waters sighed. He slid into the car and Naoto followed suit. "I've got some good news. The gun they were shooting at us with looks like it could be one of the smuggled rifles. It looks like an AK but has Chinese lettering on it." Waters started the car and slowly drove off, carefully avoiding the debris that littered the road.

"Those aren't our guys, but they might know who is." Naoto said. "Smuggling those guns was an expensive operation, and it would make sense to sell a few to help finance the operation, even if they're planning to use most themselves."

"That's what I was thinking." Waters said. "Now we just have to wait for the driver to regain consciousness. He was in pretty good shape so it shouldn't be long."

"What about the passenger?" Naoto asked. "He was the one shooting right?"

"He's very dead." Waters said emotionlessly. "He should have been wearing a seatbelt." Naoto was now very happy she had not gone to the car. She was not squeamish but had no desire to see the gory scene.

"You're a very good driver." Naoto noted. "Your driving scares me, but you're very good."

"I've had a lot of practice." Waters said.

"You've been in other high-speed chases?" Naoto asked.

"Only one, no, two." Waters answered. "Was that your first?"

"I've never even driven a car." Naoto replied.

"We'll have to change that." Waters said with a smile. "And you're going to need a real gun."