Interlude 1
"You look tired."
I look up blearily from the precarious tower of documents on my desk. Kazu leans roguishly on one of the posts of my doorframe, filling the narrow space with his scarecrow-like figure.
"How could you tell?" I mumble, the words thick in my mouth.
"You were rubbing your temples. You only do that when you're tired."
Really? I was? I honestly can't remember.
"I've been here-" I glance at the clock. Blimey, 1 AM? "Seventeen bloody hours."
"Quite the long day. I sent everyone else home already." He takes a seat opposite me, offering a steaming mug of coffee that I hadn't noticed before. "Here. Figured you might like a boost."
I take it gratefully, too drained to complain that it's coffee instead of tea. Most of the force prefers the foul brew. Savages, the lot of them. "You're free to go too, if you like. I think I'm going to spend the night."
He takes a moment to consider the proposition before shaking his head. "I'll stay with you. Gets pretty creepy being alone here this late."
"I think I can handle it," I inform him drily. "But thank you. Your company would be nice."
It's moments like these that remind me how truly valuable Kazu is as a second in command. It's not too hard to find someone willing to follow orders, but he also brings an invaluable sensitivity to people and admirable initiative, among other things. The past few weeks since my promotion would have been unbearable without him.
I manage to work my way through a couple more documents before I toss my pen across my desk in a burst of exhausted frustration. "The next time the mayor wants to start a bloody revolution, he can bloody well handle the reconstruction paperwork himself."
Instead of chastising me for my outburst, Kazu chuckles sympathetically. "Let's be fair. You brought it upon yourself with all the changes you wanted."
"I didn't exactly do it for fun. The revolution didn't leave us with much choice."
"And you brought us through it. Now you get to enjoy the reward for your heroism.
"I think I hate you," I grumble. "If I had known that this is what I would be doing I would have told the mayor to shove it."
He grins. "Look on the bright side. It could be worse. You could be in charge of district six."
"At least I'd have people trying to kill me instead of bloody paperwork doing it."
That draws a bark of laughter from him. "Take a break, Liz. Get some sleep, or at least stretch a little. You're going to drive yourself insane."
Sleep sounds nice. I don't think I've gotten more than four hours a night for the past week. There's too much to do, though, and I'm the only one with the necessary authority to get it done. Bloody bureaucracy. I pick my pen with a forlorn sigh. "In a bit. I can't stop until I-"
A sharp rattle snaps my attention upwards, hand automatically darting for the gun under my desk. It's an ingrained reaction - too many close calls during the revolution left all of us a bit twitchy. I relax when I see that it's just one of the young cadets struggling to free herself from my window blinds. As soon as she can, she dashes jerkily into my office, greeting me with a hasty bow.
Petite and doe eyed, with a youthful face and shoulder length black hair, Hana Hasegawa is perhaps the last person you would expect to be a police cadet. Still, she's sharp, disciplined, and enthusiastic, and in these times that's enough to get you in. It's unusual for her to be so rushed. Something must have really shaken her.
Wait. That's odd. Didn't Kazu say he sent everyone home? Maybe she volunteered to stay?
"One of the cameras caught something in District Six, ma'am," she blurts, the words tumbling over each other. "I think we need to alert the station there immediately."
"What is it?" I ask curiously.
She pulls her phone out and hands it to me with a deft flip. "Take a look."
It's a still shot from a security camera, grainy and distant, but what I see sends a thrill of excitement that purges all traces of weariness. A dark figure, face half obscured by his trademark scarf, saluting the camera with a mocking hand.
Uncaring cockiness. A string of untraceable crimes and unprovable rumors. A criminal legend.
This is the man known as Liberator. My ever elusive prey for years. And he's taunting me.
"The bloody nerve of him," I hiss. A quick glance at the time stamp marks it as only a few minutes old.
"Kazu," I bark. He's already on his feet. Good man. "Tell the District Six station to ready reinforcements. We found Liberator.I'm going after him."
"Already on it." He bustles out of the room in a flurry of movement, one hand working his phone furiously, the other absently fiddling with the gun at his side.
"Hanezawa. Get your equipment. We're leaving ASAP."
She stares at me in wide-eyed shock. "But District Six isn't our jurisdiction."
"It's Liberator. He's always my jurisdiction."
"I really don't think this is appropriate-"
"I gave you an order, cadet," I growl, putting extra emphasis on the title. "Now move it!"
Her reluctance is obvious, but she moves to obey. I scramble to collect everything I need, heart racing with anticipation.
"Come on Liz," Kazu falls into step beside me with a wry grin. "Be nice. You're confusing the poor girl."
"What do you mean?"
"She's too used to you being Miss By-The-Book. I don't think she can handle all the rules you're ignoring."
"Then she would have had a panic attack working with me during the revolution."
He sighed with good natured exasperation. "We're going to be breaking more protocol, aren't we."
I respond with a feral grin. "We need to catch him off guard. Take a civilian car. Look for any signs of violence. Knowing Liberator, it's going to be dramatic."
"Of course we're breaking more protocol," Kazu mourns. "Let's take mine. Yours is too… conspicuous."
There's a brief silence as we finish our preparations. I break it.
"Kazu." My voice is alien to myself, cold steel on an overcast day. "I'm bringing him in this time."
He nods seriously. "I know."
"The - the Tokyo peace talks." My throat tightens, but I push on. "He's got to pay. I won't- I can't-"
"I know, Liz," Kazu interrupts. "We'll get him."
Yes. Yes we will.
Ready yourself, Liberator. We're coming.
