Chapter 5

The way was blocked... blocked by them. They had no eyes, but they seem to home in like a beacon was shining brightly. The gun was empty, all eight rounds having been spent. This was not the way the day was supposed to go... the way the plan was supposed to go.

Gendo Onodera was the son of a rising executive in a pharmaceutical conglomerate. As the father rose ever higher in the corporate structure, Onodera grew into a young man of privilege. He had the best of everything, went to the finest schools, had a bevy of girls swooning over him and all the trappings of what would appear to be a charmed life.

The only problem was that Onodera was jaded. He felt he had no excitement in his life as everything came easy to him. He longed to push the envelope, to find more exciting things to do. Sports did not excite him, neither did academics. Fast cars didn't do it, either. He had watched his father for many years-the man had an almost insatiable appetite for women. Onodera admired his father and tried to emulate him, but found the relationships he had with all the women who flocked around him were unsatisfying. There was not the thrill of the new, the challenge of the conquest-the women were too willing.

One night, Onodera found himself in his usual position, about to take advantage of another willing woman. However, he had misread this date, and she was definitely not willing to go to bed with him. With an anger rising in him, he attacked the woman and forced himself on her, raping her. He finally experienced the excitement that he had been seeking. However, when his excitement subsided, fear took over. Was he afraid of being arrested, of being exposed as a sociopath that should be locked away forever? No, he was afraid he would embarrass his father. Onodera called him and tearfully confessed his transgression. The elder Onodera was furious-not for what his son had done to an innocent woman, but for exposing the executive to a possible loss of face. Onodera's father quietly paid off the woman to keep silent and told his son not to never do that again, but to never get caught at it.

Onodera was properly contrite in front of his father, but he knew how to play his old man for best effect. Inside, he was savoring the thrill of dominating a woman, forcing her to submit to him and showing her just what her place was. He contemplated ways to feed the beast that had been unchained in him. He tried S&M clubs, but the women there were too willing to submit and he couldn't do all that he wanted to do to them. The times he tried, he was thrown out of the clubs, once after getting beat up by a bouncer. He realized that the only way he would be able to slake his thirst was to rape unwilling women. He just had to find ones that did not know him. Thus, the Chuo rapist was born.

Over the next year or so, Onodera claimed 15 victims. To comply with his father's edict not to bring shame to the family, he was meticulous in his preparations and fastidious in his cleanup of the women he raped-the better to ensure no potential DNA evidence fall into the hands of the police. His obsessiveness stymied the investigators, who could find no pattern to analyze, much less any physical evidence to prove that one man had assaulted all those women.

After more than a year of investigations with no results, Inspector Kumanosuke, chief of the Tokyo MPD sex crimes unit, was desperate enough that he decided to call upon his secret weapon. He called into his office to make a proposal to the only investigator uniquely qualified to crack the Chuo rapist case. He asked Officer Aoi Futaba if he would be willing to act as a decoy to flush out the rapist. Aoi agreed to the dangerous task. Two months of study, followed by a two month period undercover creating an irresistible target for Onodera's lust, resulted in Aoi making his biggest collar ever.

At the trial, Onodera's flashy lawyer (paid for by his father) tried every trick in the book to get his client acquitted. Aoi stayed away from the proceedings as Inspector Kumanosuke and he wanted to maintain the effectiveness of Aoi's undercover work. However, the lawyer began to sway the three judge panel with an effective argument saying that Aoi was the predator-that she had lured his client into a relationship and then cried "rape" because he rejected her. The fact that she did not appear in court was driven home to great effectiveness as proof that she was now ashamed of her cowardly act.

Kumanosuke called Aoi into his office one day and told him "that sicko's lawyer is about to get him acquitted due to the fact that he's painting you as a jilted woman out for revenge. There is only one way the state will be able to win the case. You must go and testify."

"I know, Boss" Aoi replied. "I've seen my good name dragged through the mud in this case time and time again and I don't want to let him walk. You realize, however, that this will completely destroy my usefulness as an undercover officer."

"That's what hurts the most. Actually, what hurts the most will be losing you, Aoi" Kumanosuke said dejectedly. "It took me some time to adjust to your preference for living as a woman; but, dammit, you've been my best officer for a long time."

"Well, I could go as a man" Aoi volunteered. "I've been thinking of volunteering to do so since that lawyer adopted this new line of attack. That will definitely take the wind out of his sails."

Kumanosuke laughed. "It'd be pretty hard to keep up the lie that you were sleeping with him when you show you're a man. Do you really think that would throw the lawyer? He's one of the best in Tokyo."

"I'm not taking this lightly, and no disrespect is meant, Boss" Aoi replied. "But I'm sure enough of it to bet you on it."

Kumanosuke sat back in his chair and smiled, with his hand on his chin. "I'll take you up on it. Loser buys the winner a fifth of single-malt scotch. We'll use it to toast your retirement from the sex crimes unit."

Two days later, the bailiff called out "Officer Aoi Futaba, please come to the stand." Onodera turned around to see the policewoman who had attempted to ruin his life, to stare her in the eye as she walked to the witness stand and shake her up. His jaw dropped, however, as in walked a tall, trim young man in a police uniform. He had Aoi's face and his hair was in a ponytail, but he didn't look at all like the woman Onodera tried to get close enough to to make her his next victim.

Aoi's testimony, and the visible proof that the whole "jilted lover" story was just a ploy, was instrumental in Onodera being sentenced to the maximum prison time for his crimes. As he was led out of the court room, he yelled at Aoi "I'll get out of prison some day and then you're dead-you hear, you're dead!"

Three years later, Onodera got a new lawyer-a young associate in a law firm looking to move up quickly. They found what they believed was a technicality big enough to not only force a new trial but to possibly get the convicted rapist out of jail while awaiting a new trial. Through a friend in the court system who did a little "massaging" of the court dockets, Onodera's lawyer managed to get the hearing in front of a judge who was known to be soft on criminals and sympathetic to accusations of police misconduct or abuse.

For his part, Onodera played a masterful part, appearing humble and contrite in court, repudiating his outburst at sentencing and saying he only wanted to get this ordeal behind him and live a quiet life in the country. The judge, her heartstrings sufficiently tugged, granted the appeal as well as Onodera's release.

Onodera was escorted to the door of the courthouse and then released. After thanking his lawyer and begging off a group of reporters that had been covering the hearing, he headed home just long enough to change into some nondescript clothes he used for his victim stalking. He headed off to a seedy bar that he had learned was the best place to get the item he needed.

Walking slowly into the bar, he stopped long enough to get a beer and drink it down in two gulps. He then walked to the back of the room and through a door into a dark corridor. He came to a heavy steel door and rapped on a slide placed at eye level. It opened, he gave a password sotto voce and walked into a room lined with guns of all descriptions. The man who opened the door asked him "OK what are you looking for?"

"I'm going to get..." Onodera started. The man cut him off. "NEVER tell me what you are going to do with my merchandise!" he roared. "I don't care, I don't want to know and if you say one more word that is not in answer to my questions I will gun you down myself!"

Onodera stepped back, shocked by the ferocity of the man's response. He put up his hands. "OK, I get it. I want a small pistol... preferably one the police use. I have..."

"Did I say anything about that?" then man said sternly. He turned and walked to a safe on the far wall. Spinning the dial, he quickly opened it, reached inside and took out a cloth covered item. He brought it over to a table and laid his parcel down, then unfolded the cloth. There sat a Sig Sauer P230-JP pistol-the exact model that inspectors in the sex crime unit carried.

"Perfect" was all that Onodera said.

"For you, 200,000 yen" the man stated flatly.

"Are you kidding me?" Onodera cried. The man started folding the cloth around the gun. "OK, OK, I can do it. What about bullets?"

The man pulled a pair of rubber gloves out of his pocket and slipped them on. He picked up the pistol and removed the magazine. There were eight 7.62mm hollow point rounds in the magazine. He slid it back in the magazine well and laid the gun back on the cloth. "Included" is all he said.

"And an extra clip?" Onodera asked. The man's nose wrinkled at "clip". "For you, 25,000 yen-loaded" he replied.

"Forget that-I'll only need one clip" Onodera bragged. He pulled out a wad of cash and started peeling off 10,000 yen notes. Laying them down on the table, he started to fold the cloth up. The man slammed his hand down on the cloth. "No!" was all he said.

Onodera picked up the gun and stuck it in his waistband, then adjusted his jacket to hide it. "Pleasure doing business with you" he said with a hint of haughtiness. The man mumbled "idiot" as he crossed to the door and let Onodera out.

Onodera made his way to a small, run-down hotel away from the main business district of Sumida ward. He got a cheap room and then spent the rest of that day wandering around Sumida looking for Aoi. He had heard from a fellow inmate that he was in the ward. That man had been arrested by Futaba for molesting women on a train. The guy told Onodera he was apparently supposed to be looking for a thief but was busting perverts.

Onodera finally spotted Aoi, but only saw a glimpse of him as he drove his patrol car down a street. By the time he had figured out it was Aoi, the car had turned down a side street and was out of sight. Onodera noted that Aoi had changed his hair color, however, and filed that away in his memory. He did spot a couple of places that would make good ambush spots and decided to work out a plan the next day.

Onodera woke up early the next day and took a chance that he'd spot Futaba at the train station. He waited there all morning but his target didn't show. He thought that it might mean that Futaba lived nearby but he wasn't sure. Around noon, he was hanging around the shops across the street from the train station when he saw Aoi walking back from lunch. Onodera hung back and followed Futaba back to Bokuto station. He browsed through nearby stores all afternoon while keeping an eye on the front entrance of the station.

As the afternoon started to wane, Futaba walked out of the front entrance of the station. Onodera, across the street in a department store, almost missed him but chose just that time to walk out the front door where he say his target. He followed him back the way they had come at lunchtime and saw that he went almost straight to the train station, just stopping to speak to the old couple that ran the store she had come out of at noon. They had walked past two different ambush sites that Onodera had found the day before.

The plan finally came together. Onodera would lure Futaba into a secluded alleyway after his next shift and kill him there. He wouldn't be missed until the next day, giving Onodera plenty of time to get far away from Tokyo. He had already arranged for an alibi to be manufactured for him, making it seem that he had traveled to Kyoto as soon as he was released from prison.

Satisfied with his plans, Onodera decided to celebrate his good fortune. He went back to the bar that he had gotten the gun from to have a few drinks. He walked into the dive and sat down at the bar. The bartender had been straightening up the bottles of liquor behind the bar. He turned around and immediately recognized Onodera. He leaned over the bar and hoarsely whispered "You can't be in here. You have to leave."

"What do you mean I have to leave?" Onodera retorted. "Is my money no good here? Am I not good enough for this dive? I've been welcome in the best restaurants and clubs in Tokyo...

"No, that's not it!" the bartender hissed. "The police watch this place all the time. They'll be suspicious about you coming in here twice in three days. You're not a regular. And then there's HIM" he continued, nodding towards the rear hallway.

"What does he have to do with it?" Onodera complained. "I'm just here to have a few drinks."

"He's very strict in his dealings with his clients" the bartender cautioned. "He doesn't deal with regulars and he doesn't allow his clients to become regulars. He feels it's safer for him that way. By the way, you aren't..."

"No, it's safely secured away." Onodera replied. "Look, I don't want to "party", I don't want to make trouble, I just want to sit here quietly, have a few drinks and then go home."

An intercom buzzed and the bartender picked up a handset. He listened for about 20 seconds and then said "I will" and hung up. Turning to Onodera, he said "You may stay here for now. Your immediate departure would be even more suspicious. Don't do anything stupid or you won't get to finish your personal business.'

Onodera put his hands up in front of him and said "Alright, alright. That's all I wanted to do anyway." He placed his order and the bartender brought him his drink. He sat there quietly, sipped the liquor and contemplated his good fortune. He had a smug grin on his face as he visualized the lifeless body of the man who had humiliated him laying at his feet. He relished the thought of being rid of the embarrassment and the accuser in less than twenty-four hours.

He looked down at his watch and noticed it was almost 10:00 PM. Onodera was determined to shadow his target on his last day and decided to call it a night. He stood up, tossed double the price of his drinks on the bar and said "keep the change" to the bartender. As he walked out, Onodera stumbled just a bit and chuckled. He had forgotten that it had been three years since he last drank so much.

Onodera went back to his room, checked to make sure his gun was still well-hidden and then crawled into bed. With the added inducement of the alcohol, he slept more soundly then he had in years. In fact, he slept so soundly he missed his alarm clock going off. By the time he woke up, it was almost mid morning. He realized he wouldn't be able to shadow Futaba all day. He decided to wait near the train station and pick up his trail at lunch again.

He ate a simple breakfast at the train station sitting at the counter and people watching as he ate. He heard a noise and looked over to see a policewoman running down the street calling out to pedestrians to watch out for her. She didn't seem to be pursuing anyone-in fact, if anything he'd swear that she was late! He couldn't help but laugh at the comic scene.

Finishing his meal, Onodera realized that if he hung around the same block people would begin to notice him. He decide to take a long leisurely walk around the ward, timing his return to the station for noon. As he wandered around, he played the part of a tourist interested in everything he sees.

Walking down one street away from the station, Onodera saw a patrol car drive by. He checked it out and spotted Futaba and another policewoman in the car. He watched it go down about three blocks and turn down a side street. Turning around to head in the opposite direction, he realized that he would have to change his plans. He figured it would be much easier to just start shadowing him after he left the police station that afternoon. Onodera realized that he was starting to obsess on his victim too much.

Deep in thought, Onodera didn't notice the black sedan sitting at a traffic light. He did notice the sound of a racing engine bearing down towards him and as he looked up he saw a car careening down the street. It looked as if the driver was fighting with a passenger in the rear seat. Onodera looked again and realized the passenger was really attacking the driver. Just as that realization registered in his mind, the car hit a glancing blow on the black car at the light, causing the car to lurch forward and to the left into a light pole.

The out of control car seemed to aim right for Onodera and he froze where he was, not believing his luck had changed in an instant from good to bad. At the last second, the car glanced off a Japan Post box between him and the street then traveled another two hundred meters before crashing into a storefront. It then burst into flames.

Onodera panicked. The only thing worse than dying before getting to murder Futaba was to get tangled up in a car crash investigation and be found carrying an illegal pistol. He looked around, noticed that there were very few people on the street and then discovered he was standing in front of an alleyway between two buildings. He turned and walked as slowly as he could down the alley until he felt that he would not be noticed and then broke into a run. He didn't stop until he got to the next street.

As he walked out of the alley, he heard the echos of two sharp reports from a block or two away. He didn't quite recognize the sound but suspected it might be gunshots. He almost turned the other way but decided to see if he could survey the scene from a distance to see what had happened.

Onodera walked down the sidewalk at a measured pace, trying not to seem too anxious. After he had walked about 20 meters, he heard two more reports; then before he made it another 30 meters three more reports echoed from the same direction, followed by the sound of a car engine starting up and zooming away. He continued down the street but slowed down even more. He noticed a few people beginning to walk around but the seemed drunk as they lurched and staggered in what seemed to be an aimless manner.

Turning the corner, Onodera cam upon a bizarre sight two blocks away. It looked like there were five dead bodies just lying there on the street. He panicked, thinking that the last thing he'd want to have happen is for him to be found at the scene of a mass shooting with an illegal gun.

Looking around, he saw what appeared to be an abandoned shop. The door was open, the lights were on but no one seemed to be inside. He ducked inside the store, crossed to the back and tried the door to the back room. It was unlocked so he cautiously went in.

Onodera called out, "Hello! Is anyone there? I'd like to make a purchase" but there was only an echo of his voice in the room. He turned around, crossed back to the front door and closed and locked it before rapidly walking to the safety of the shop's storeroom.

He sat down at the desk and placed his hands on the desktop. He realized his arms were quivering. He picked his hands up off the desk and they began to shake. He leaned back and covered his face with his hands and breathed heavily as he tried to calm down. Onodera sat there for what seemed like an hour, then got back up and went out front. He unlocked the door and opened it a crack to peek out at what he was sure would be a street swarming with police and media.

To his surprise, the only thing he saw was the exact same scene he saw an hour earlier-the five bodies lying where they fell. Puzzled and intrigued, he left the shop and walked across the street then down to the first set of bodies. He saw that one was an older woman that looked like she had been attacked by a vicious dog. The other was a policewoman. Looking at her closer, Onodera realized it was Futaba's partner-the one he had seen in the passenger seat earlier. She had been shot twice-once in the chest, once in the head.

Onodera glanced over to the other three bodies. They, too, all looked as if the had been mauled by a wild beast. As he looked closer he realized that the teeth marks were human. He looked up to see more seemingly drunk people filling the sidewalk. He counted eight to ten people, all headed his way. As they drew closer, Onodera could see their eyes were pretty much gone, as were various chunks of flesh from all over their bodies. They all had bloody mouths and one still had a piece of another person's flesh hanging from her mouth. Onodera let out an involuntary scream.

All of the people suddenly "perked up" as their heads turned to look at Onodera. Well, "look" wasn't the best word to describe the vacant stares facing him. There was no denying that they were all bearing down on him and they had seemed to pick up speed. Onodera panicked.

Onodera looked around him and saw only one way out-a shop with one of those entryways that had two display windows on either side of the entrance, making a glass hallway to the front door. He ran for it, praying to whatever gods he could think of that the shop door was unlocked. It wasn't.

Turning, he swept the area with his eyes. In addition to the ten people closest to him, another four had appeared and were homing in on the commotion made by the crowd. Onodera, his back to the door, slid down it to a crouching position and pulled his gun. He pulled the trigger and shot the nearest person... no, it was now a thing, in the chest. It didn't even flinch. He then remembered how the cop was shot in the head, so he adjusted his aim and shot it in the center of the face. It dropped like a felled tree. Onodera shot again, but the reports of the three shots had his ears ringing due to the sound bouncing off the hard glass surfaces and it made it hard for him to aim. He took a few more of the things out with some more lucky shots but all too quickly the slide of his pistol locked back as he expended the last round.

About eight of them were still attempting to get at Onodera but were struggling to get over the dead bodies lying in front of them. By now, Onodera had his face covered with his arms as he awaited his fate when he heard a screech of a car stopping. He heard the car door open and a few seconds later, shots began ringing out. One by one, the bodies dropped away as the unseen gunman dispatched the horde of beings trying to get at Onodera. There was a pause until he heard the slide of his rescuer's gun slam home again, and a few more shots felled the last of the things.

Onodera lowered his arms and looked out to see his savior. There stood a tall policewoman pointing a silver gun in his direction. She was breathing heavily and her makeup was all runny and smudged. There were blood smears on her uniform. She was both the most beautiful and the most frightening sight that Onodera could imagine.

"Aoi" was all he said.

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