Chapter 8

Miyuki walked briskly down the hallway with Inspector Kinoshita. "Inspector" Miyuki started as they approached Inspector Tokuno's office, "may I ask about the plan you were talking about and what I may have to do with it?"

"All in due time, Miyuki," Kinoshita replied, "but you'll be working closely with all of us. Oh, and you may call me Karouko in private."

"I see, Inspec... I mean, Karouko" Miyuki acknowledged. She wondered what the work would entail. They reached the Criminal Investigation Division office door and Kinoshita knocked. Inspector Tokuno invited them in.

Miyuki saw a small conference table in one corner of the room. There were six chairs around the table. Inspector Tokuno moved to one chair and Karouko sat two chairs away from him. She indicated to Miyuki to sit down in the chair opposite the one between the two senior officers.

"Kachou was just behind us, I thought" Karouko commented. "I wonder what's holding him up?"

The door opened and the Chief walked in. "I'm sorry I was delayed. I just talked with Futaba and she has agreed to evaluate Onodera and advise us what we need to do with him." He went to the chair between the two Inspectors and sat down.

"Miyuki" Karouko began, "how much do you know about the present situation in Tokyo?"

"Well... "Miyuki thought for a few moments. "I haven't seen any television or heard any radio news since I came to work. I only know what we have heard and seen in and around the station. I take it this is not a local outbreak."

"Before we go on, I must insist that anything we discuss here must remain between the four of us" the Chief interjected. "That being said, none of us knew how widespread this crisis was until just recently. We're still working on sketchy information, but it appears this is a worldwide event."

Miyuki gasped. "Worldwide? Why didn't we hear about it sooner?"

Karouko took over. "We know very little about what's going on. We don't know if it is a natural occurrence or man-made. We don't know if it was something that was spread beforehand and triggered or if it was spontaneous. We don't know if it's a plague, a contagion, a pandemic, a bio-weapon or somehow even a psy weapon. What we do know is that it has paralyzed the city and the government is on the verge of collapse, if it hasn't happened already."

Tears welled in Miyuki's eyes. She felt a sudden chill and began to shake. It was all too much for her; too much too fast. Inspector Tokuno spoke up.

"Miyuki, are you feeling OK? I know it's an information overload but we need you to keep it together right now. It's important."

Miyuki sat back in her chair, took a couple of deep breaths and willed her rising fear to retreat. "What can I do to help?' she said, with just a bit of a tremble in her voice.

Karouko nodded at the other two officers as she said "the three of us have been in contact with Headquarters since shortly after I was released by Nurse Okazaki. The situation has become so dire that we have been given orders to do whatever is necessary to maintain order in our area..."

Inspector Tokuno blurted out "We were NOT given orders to do whatever is necessary, we were asked to maintain order in the ward..."

The Chief spoke up "Tokuno, Karouko, please! We've argued about this enough. We don't have the luxury of time any more, we have got to do something." Turning to a wide-eyed Miyuki, he continued "Forgive us, Miyuki. You're seeing some of the inner workings of command for the first time, I suspect. We may have our disagreements in private but we have come to an agreement and we will stand united in public."

"We're in a real dilemma here" continued the Chief. "In the last hour or so, our contact with Headquarters has become somewhat sporadic. We're hearing a lot of chatter on the radios and it sounds as if certain locations are about to have a breakdown of order. To top it off, we're in a quarantine zone and have a number of officers from other stations who have made their way to Bokuto. We don't know these officers and we're concerned about the extent they may impact good order and discipline here. If there's one thing we're all in agreement on, it's that we have to maintain good order and discipline or everyone here may be doomed."

Karouko looked at her watch. "In about fifteen minutes, we are going to announce that we are organizing the officers present at Bokuto Station into a unit that will have as its task the survival of all the people presently here in the building as well as any who may still make it here. This will mean the defense of Bokuto Station and the eventual evacuation of all personnel here to a safe location."

"Where do I fit in to this?" Miyuki asked.

Karouko continued. "First, let me lay out the basic structure we have developed here. Among the three of us, Kachou is the most senior and has the most experience. Therefore, we have chosen him to be the commanding officer. Tokuno and I will be his seconds in command, as well as each leading a section of officers. You, Miyuki, will act as Kachou's aide-de-camp. No, you'll be more than that. With your insight, training and intelligence we'll be relying on you to come up with solutions to the problems we will face in the same way you saved the rescue party from the... I believe you're calling them 'walkers' now."

Miyuki fell back in her chair, stunned. In any ordinary situation this would be a dream position. However, with all they might face, what the three Inspectors were saying was that they were going to entrust her with the lives of everyone here. Could she do it?

"Are you sure you want me? Wouldn't Sugihara be a more experienced officer?" Miyuki stammered out. "I don't know if I could do it."

Tokuno gave Miyuki a fatherly smile and said "I believe in you, Miyuki. I was the one who initially suggested the position. Sugihara is an experienced officer, true, but you have an exceptional ability to think outside of the box that he just doesn't possess. That's one of the main reasons I would call on the Traffic Section to assist us in so many cases. You've proven yourself time and time again."

Kachou also smiled and said "Miyuki, I am not looking on you as an assistant or a secretary. I'm looking on you as a..." He searched for the words. "...as a tactical or strategic planner that will guide us through the next few days and weeks."

"Miyuki," Karouko added "when Tokuno brought your name up, we all agreed immediately. So far, that has been the only item we've agreed about without debate." She reached across the table and took Miyuki's left hand. "Believe in yourself, Miyuki. We believe in you."

Miyuki heaved a great sigh, then another. She sat up straight in her chair, looked each of the Inspectors in the eyes and then turned back to look at Kachou. With a new found determination in her voice, she said "I'll do it. I promise I won't let you down."

The three officers sat back in their chairs, each one breathing a sigh of relief. "Thank you Miyuki," Kachou said. "Now I think we'll be able to pull this off."

"What do I do first?" Miyuki asked.

"I hope you're a quick study" Karouko said as she reached behind her for a file on a bookshelf. Handing it to Miyuki, she continued "This is as much of the personnel files of all the non-Bokuto officers as we could get our hands on. Go through them and see what special qualifications we have on hand-as well as any potential trouble spots."

Tokuno picked up from there. "You can use Nakano's office. He was off today and did not report in. I fear the worst."

Miyuki stood up, shaking her head. "We must continue on" she commented, then turned and went to the door. Opening it, a thought popped into her head and she turned around, smiling. "Kachou, does this mean I'm excused from that traffic report?"

Kachou smiled back at Miyuki. "What traffic report? You work for me now and I didn't assign any traffic report." Tokuno snorted as Karouko looked at the two men like they had suddenly grown second heads. Miyuki laughed and left the office.

"What was that about?" Karouko exclaimed.

"This day started with Miyuki having to complete a traffic report by the end of the day" Kachou replied. "It was a task she was not looking forward to having to accomplish. Therefore, I take that joke as a good sign. She's overcoming whatever doubts she has about her ability to do the job. She's accepted the responsibility."

"Then that's a relief" Karouko admitted. "I never saw her so shaken as she was just a few minutes ago."

"Miyuki has fears, just like all the rest of us" Tokuno said, looking at the door, "but when she overcomes those fears, she's like a tigress." Turning to his fellow Inspectors, he continued "Have you two planned what you will say at the briefing?"

Aoi decided to stop by the woman's locker room before going to interview Onodera. She wanted to look her freshest when she talked to him, so he wouldn't be as likely to notice the fatigue that seemed to have taken over her body.

Walking into the locker room, Aoi had an unfamiliar feeling-a feeling that she was not in the right place. Attributing the feeling to fatigue, she went to her locker and retrieved her makeup bag. She crossed over to the line of sinks, put her bag down and looked in the mirror. The image that she saw shocked her-it was subtle, but she noticed a change in her face that made her look slightly more masculine. Shaking her head, she unintentionally said out loud "These last few hours have been rough on me."

She heard a voice behind her say, "But Aoi, you always look prettier than any of us!" At the same time, she detected the odor of an unusual perfume. No, wait... it wasn't perfume, it was shampoo. Yoriko's shampoo. She started to smile and looked in the mirror to see Yoriko standing behind her-but there was no one there.

The realization of what had happened to her partner-what Aoi had done to her friend-hit her like a bullet through her own heart. "Yoriko!" she wailed, gripping the sides of a sink to keep from collapsing on the floor. "Yoriko! Why did it have to be you?" Her tears-hot, salty and stinging-started flowing down her cheeks again. Gasping for air as she sobbed, it was all Aoi could do to keep herself upright.

Saori was hurrying past the locker room when she hear Aoi's wailing. Rushing into the room, she saw Aoi teetering on the edge of crumpling into a heap on the floor. "Senpai!" she exclaimed as she rushed to the taller woman's side.

Aoi continued to sob. "Yoriko, Yoriko, I'm so sorry I let you down" she choked out as she shook with the heaving of her sobs. Saori put her right arm around Aoi's waist and Aoi's left arm over her shoulder and attempted to move her to a sofa just a few feet away. Aoi hadn't noticed her, so Saori said consolingly "Senpai, please, let me help you to sit down. We can talk about it then."

Aoi came to the realization that the policewoman was trying to support her so she let Saori guide her to the sofa, crying and calling out Yoriko's name all the way. She let Saori help her sit and then doubled over as she continued to mourn her friend.

Saori sat down next to Aoi and began to stroke her hair. "Aoi, I know you're hurting" she began. "I can't imagine how much of a trauma you've been through. I can't speak for Yoriko, but I do know that you did what you could for her."

As Aoi listened to Saori, her sobs began to lessen. The words-no, the feeling that Saori had for her-flowed into Aoi's wounded heart and ease the ache she felt. She slumped towards Saori as she sat back up, though she still covered her face with her hands.

"Aoi, we need you to be strong now" Saori continued, putting her arm around her friend. "We need you more than ever. I know it's hard to think of it, but we'll have to wait until we get through this crisis before we can truly grieve-but grieve we shall. She was a friend to all of us. We will never forget her."

Aoi rested her head oh Saori's shoulder as she slowly regained her composure. Her breathing slowed to normal and she calmed down. As she did, she noticed that Saori's hair smelled similar to Yoriko's. Could that have been what triggered the episode? She slowly shook her head. Letting out a long sigh, Aoi said "Where ever did you get such wisdom, Saori?""From my friends here at Bokuto, silly" Saori chuckled. "May I ask what happened to you?"

"Well, I came in here to freshen up before I went to talk with Onodera..." Aoi started, the she sat bolt upright. "Oh, no! How much time have I wasted? I'm sure I look a wreck. I wanted to look fresh for the interview-I didn't want him to think he could get the upper hand over me due to fatigue."

"Don't worry, we'll get you fixed up in a jiffy!" Saori replied, then stood up and held out her hand to Aoi. "Cone on, girl, we've got work to do!"

Aoi took Saori's outstretched hand and stood up, then the two women went over to the mirrors and began the task of making Aoi look fresh and beautiful again.

Gendo Onodera had been thinking a great deal. It was all he could do. He had been locked in a holding cell since his arrival at Bokuto Station and, except for a lunched delivered to him by a stern-looking policeman, he had been all alone. The officer hadn't even come to collect the remains of the lunch.

Even in the isolation of the holding cell area, Gendo could hear activity going on all around him. At one point, he heard a group of people running down the hallway near the cell block, with a woman's voice shouting out what sounded like orders. He couldn't make out what they were saying but it sounded urgent.

Gendo wondered if they had found someone else in a situation like he had found himself in-surrounded by those... his mind struggled for the word for he could not call them people. He wondered also if they had been able to be as successful as Aoi was in rescuing him from certain death-not to mention what lay beyond. The sights, sounds and smells of that incident still haunted him as they swirled through his mind. He was finding it almost impossible to process the imagery, much less make sense of it.

What he could make sense of was his savior. He chuckled as he recalled the sight of Aoi, pistol in hand, with a shocked look on her face as she saw that he was the person she rescued. She could have shot him right there and nobody would have been the wiser. In fact, no one would probably ever discover the body. She didn't, however-she let him live, and even made sure he got safely to the sanctuary of Bokuto Station.

Gendo had drifted off to sleep and began to dream. He saw Aoi standing a short distance away from him, dressed in the blouse and skirt he saw her in so many times all those years ago. She held out her hand to him, and as he approached her to take her hand in his, she spoke. In a sharp voice she said "Onodera, wake up! We need to talk!"

Gendo was confused and started to say something to her but she repeated "Wake up, Onodera!" He then opened his eyes and realized he was still in the holding cell, but that Aoi was standing outside the cell and really was ordering him to wake up. He sat up groggily and said "What do you want to talk about, Aoi?"

Aoi snapped back, "That's Officer Futaba to you!"

Chastened, Gendo dropped his head. "I'm sorry, Officer Futaba. I meant no disrespect. I was just wondering what we needed to talk about."

Aoi relaxed a bit. She had never seen Onodera like this before. He had always been haughty and arrogant, believing himself in control of any situation. Perhaps his brush with death-and the undead-had really given him a change of heart. She knew it might be a real change, or just the result of the adrenaline rush of fear that would eventually wear off. She had to find out which it was.

"Please forgive my testiness just then" Aoi began. "This has been an unprecedented situation and everyone is on edge, including me. I need to see... "Aoi trailed off, unsure of how to phrase her intentions.

"You want to see if I still harbor my hatred of you and if I would be a danger to you and to the others here at the station" Gendo offered.

Aoi turned beet-red as she stammered "W-well... w-well... I wouldn't have put it that bluntly, but you are correct. We need to know if you can be trusted enough to be released. This is a very dangerous, even deadly situation..."

"Don't I know it!" Gendo interjected. "I almost became a human sushi bar for a group of them!"

As the enormity of the seemingly flippant remark sunk in, both Aoi and Gendo sat in silence. Finally, Gendo spoke in a quiet voice "Aoi, I mean Officer Futaba... May I ask you why you did save me?"

Aoi sat there, mulling the question over. Why did she save Onodera she wondered. After a minute she spoke. "To tell the truth, I did not know it was you when I started shooting. All I knew was that someone was about to be overwhelmed by... them. In fact, because you were shooting, I thought you were a police officer at first. I must say I was startled to see you in that entryway. I knew you were out and suspected that you'd be looking for me-that's why I was carrying a gun. In any other situation, I probably would have shot you on sight..."

Gendo was nodding his head. "I understand. I was so filled with bitterness and shame that I wanted to strike out at you-until I found myself in the doorway. Everything changed at that moment-I was certain I was going to die. The shame, the bitterness, the hatred-it all became so... useless. None of it seemed like it would make a difference at that time, or for the rest of my life. And then... you appeared as an angel of salvation for me..."

"Please, Gendo, don't go romanticizing that incident"Aoi cautioned, a concerned feeling rising within her. "I was only doing the job I swore to do as a policewo... officer." Aoi hadn't realized she had used his first name.

"I know, Aoi" Gendo replied. "I'm not saying that I feel that way, I'm just describing how it appeared to me at the time. But to answer your question, all that hate and bitterness... I left them in that doorway. I'm not the same man I was twenty four hours ago."

"I can see that, Gen... I mean, Onodera" Aoi observed, catching herself finally. "You'll be under constant observation and possible restrictions on where you can go, and of course you'll not be able to carry a gun, but I'll let the Chief know I believe that we will not need to keep you in the holding cell."

"Thank you, A... Officer Futaba" Gendo said humbly. "I'll be happy to submit to any conditions for release. I just want to survive, and I'm understanding we need to rely on each other to do so."

"If you keep that attitude, then we'll all come out of this alive." Aoi said in agreement. "However, until the Chief authorizes it, you'll have to stay where you are."

"Understood" was all that Gendo replied.

Aoi turned and walked out of the cell block.

When Saori Saga left the woman's locker room after consoling Aoi, she went directly to the infirmary to talk with Nurse Okazaki. Saori wanted to share her concerns with Kyou about Aoi's condition as she was worried that her senpai seemed still unable to handle the loss of her partner at her own hands. She walked into the infirmary and headed towards the nurses' desk but stopped short when she noticed Kyou wasn't there.

"She's just gone off to get me some tea and a roll. She should be back in a few minutes" said a man sitting on the couch by the windows. He wore a mechanic's coveralls and had bandages on his forehead and wrapped around the back of his right hand. Saori couldn't place him for a moment, then realized he was the driver of the vehicle that had crashed in front of the station-the one she had helped rescue.

"I see you're up. How are you doing?" Saori asked.

"About as well as can be for a man who crashed his car with his daughter and her friends in it" he replied. "By the way, I'm Toshiro Honda. I'm Megumi's dad and Nakajima's mechanic-Daimeru's, that is" he continued. "I remember seeing you out there with the rest of the rescue party. Thank you for getting us out of that nightmare."

"You're welcome" Saori replied. "Oh, by the way, my name is Saori Saga. I'm pleased to meet you" She held out her hand, which Honda grasped with a bit of a wince.

"Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you" Saori exclaimed.

"Don't worry, it's nothing" Honda assured her. "I actually injured it about five minutes before all Hell broke loose. The only injury form the crash was this bump on my forehead."

"I see" Saori said. She stood there and thought for a few seconds than asked with a puzzled face "You're Megumi's father?"

"That I am" Honda replied. "Oh, you must be the Saori she talked about a while back."

"Yes, I started my police career here at Bokuto Station" Saori said with a bit of pride. "Kobayakawa and Tsujimoto were my senpais."

"Hmm. I wonder why I don't remember you" Honda. "I thought I knew all the co-workers of Ken, Miyuki and Natsumi."

"That's because I transferred to Johoku Station about two years ago" Saori began. "I was chosen to join the cyber crimes division. I love my work, but I miss all my friends and senpais here at Bokuto."

Kyou walked into the infirmary just then. She had a plate with a roll on it in one hand and two big mugs of tea in the other hand. Saori spied a meat roll on the plate and her stomach reminded her she hadn't had time to eat since breakfast. "Oh, hello Saori" she said in greeting. " I didn't know you'd be here or I'd have brought you something, too." She walked over to Honda and handed him the roll and a mug.

"Thank you, but I'm fine, Nurse Okazaki" Saori replied as her stomach registered its disagreement to the statement. "Besides, I just stopped in for a minute to tell you something. I have to get to the meeting."

"Oh, that's right. It starts in ten minutes" Kyou acknowledged, looking at the clock on the wall. "I just hope it's good news they'll be passing out. Maybe you can let me know after the meeting-as soon as you're done eating, that is"

Saori's cheeks reddened as she realized her growling stomach was now audible to all. "I'll stop by if I can, Nurse Okazaki" she promised.

"Please, call me Kyou, Saori" the nurse asked her. "But what was it you wanted to talk to me about?"

Saori grew nervous. "Well, um... You see, it's about Aoi..."

Honda stood up and cleared his throat. Bending over to pick up his mug off the table beside the couch, he said "I think I should go check on Megumi and her friends. This has been the most frightening day of their young lives, I'm sure." He walked back to where the curtains were drawn around three beds.

Walking to her desk, Kyou sat down behind it and motioned for Saori to sit in the chair next to the desk. "What's your concern with Aoi?" she inquired.

Saori laid out the whole incident in the locker room to Kyou. Kyou sat there, staring intently at Saori with her hands pressed together and her index fingers touching her lips. When Saori finished with her recounting, Kyou folded her hands on the desktop and asked "so you believe that Aoi heard Yoriko's voice in her head and that was what set her off?"

Saori stared at the desk for a few moments and said "I don't know if she actually heard her voice or just recalled the memory of it. I just know that she was so distraught... I have never seen Aoi like that-ever! I wasn't sure if I should tell you, but I had to tell someone, and you are probably in the best position to help her if she needs it."

"You did the right thing, Saori" Kyou said. "I am worried that something will happen to her and... well, I don't want to see anything happen to her."

"Thank you, Nurse... I mean, Kyou" Saori replied with relief. Glancing at the clock on the wall, she jumped up. "I've got to go. I don't want to be late for the meeting!" She hurried out of the infirmary.

Kyou pulled Aoi's file out of the basket it was sitting in, opened it and began to make notes.

As she headed towards the cafeteria, Saori nearly ran into a group of people also heading in that direction. She realized it was the Chief, Inspector Tokuno and Assistant Inspector Kinoshita-and Miyuki was with them. In fact, she was carrying a small pile of file folders and talking with Inspector Kinoshita as she hurried by. Saori was sure none of them realized it was her they almost ran into. Then, they all froze in their tracks.

From the street outside came the wail for a police car siren, along with the incessant honking of a horn. The five officers broke into a run to get to the cafeteria, where they could see the street below. What they saw was a battered police car, lights flashing and siren wailing, sitting right outside the closed gate of Bokuto Station.

"Miyuki, go see what the hell is going on now!" the Chief roared. Inspector Kinoshita held her hands out as Miyuki thrust the stack of folders into them. She then turned around and took off running, her long ponytail bouncing with her steps. As she passed Saori, she spied the policewoman and barked out "Saori-with ME!" Saori fell in behind her at full speed. She wondered what would greet them at the gate this time.