Chapter 04: Exam.
In all of her life, Ichiyo hadn't lived such a dreadful night, even the night she was kidnapped and ended up on the sidewalk hadn't been as emotionally tormenting as it was this time, she killed a person with her own hands and that was something impossible to accept, she had become a criminal in the true sense of the word.
Since arriving in Yokohama, Ichiyo's life has been like an endless fall, she had experienced situations she never thought she would face before, she was kidnapped by the mafia, she jumped from the third floor to flee and miraculously survived it because somehow a member of the Mafia saved her and decided to take her over. She knew there was a quid pro quo for Akutagawa's deed, something surely sinister, like giving her a gun and asking her to kill someone, and that was just the start of paying back her debt to the man.
Ichiyo was sitting cross-legged on her bed, holding her first murder weapon in her right hand and Akutagawa's cell phone in her left hand, to her it was like her pact contract with the devil, it was also tangible proof that everything that happened that night was neither a dream nor an imagination, it was pure reality, she had committed murder.
Her ears were still ringing from the deafening sound of the pistol fire she heard over and over, the scene repeated consecutively in her mind as everything turned red to her eyes, the same color of blood that flowed from the wounds of the woman she shot. Since that night, she was no longer a normal girl, she had become Ichiyo Higuchi, a murderer.
Misfortune befell her and to torment her even more, time did not want to pass quickly as if this night was interminable, Ichiyo wanted a new day to dawn so that she would forget her sin and wash it away with the gleams of the sun, but it was a small hope that she clung to because deep down she knew her crime was just the beginning for so many others.
Much of Ichiyo wanted to flee, take her sister and go far away where no one can find her, not even Port Mafia, but even if she does manage to do so, she will not be able to run away from her memories or her conscience, she won't be able to run away from the debt she owed Akutagawa and she won't be able to run away from what she felt when she killed the woman, a delicious sense of superiority, a delight she has never felt before, she could no longer lie to herself and deny the fact that she took pleasure in avenging herself on the old woman, Ichiyo did not never felt strong like that in her life.
It was as if she had to choose whether to be a fragile sheep or a strong wolf, to be the prey or the predator. Ichiyo's decision was made the moment she pulled the trigger, she chose to be the killer not the victim.
There was no turning back for her, Ichiyo had fallen into an endless abyss and nothing could stop her fall, her only solution was to accept her fate and let herself be guided deeper and deeper.
One week was how long Ichiyo had to wait for Akutagawa to make a sign of life. During the past seven days she was on alert all the time, even when asleep she was on her guard.
It was weird that she felt the need to see the man again, even she couldn't understand herself. Since her last meeting with Akutagawa she couldn't do anything, she didn't go out, preferring to stay in the apartment in case he came. The cell phone he gave her was nearby all the time because she was sure he was going to call her and that was what really happened.
It was the start of the day, so it was early and since Ichiyo wasn't a morning person she was still sleeping. She jumped as the phone started ringing and rushed to pick it up from the nightstand, although she didn't know Akutagawa's number because he hadn't bothered to save it in the phone he gave her, Ichiyo was sure it was him calling her.
Panic washed over her which made her hesitate to answer, she ran her fingers through her disheveled hair to mend it before realizing it was a stupid gesture, it wasn't a video call so the man wasn't going to see her through the phone. Ichiyo coughed to adjust her voice and straightened up before pressing the green button.
"I'm in the parking lot, come on." She heard Akutagawa's voice before he hung up, not even giving her a chance to say anything.
Ichiyo looked at the phone with hatred, as if it was its fault that Akutagawa didn't greet her or ask her how she was, she couldn't even say anything, the man just grunted his order.
"Shit." She hissed as she jumped out of bed, rushing to her wardrobe.
Akutagawa had told her he was in the parking lot which meant he was waiting for her as she wasted her time thinking about unnecessary things, besides, she had another problem to deal with at the time, she had to choose an appropriate outfit.
After deliberation, she decided to wear a black summer dress she had chosen because of its dark color which she noticed the man was wearing all the time. As soon as she finished dressing she picked up her cell phone and car keys before running to the bathroom, washed her face quickly and combed her short hair into a bun.
She continued on her run to the kitchen where she found Nurse Keiko who apparently was making breakfast. This woman looked like an angel in the eyes of Ichiyo, she was old and had experience in her job, but she was also like a housekeeper, taking care of everything at home, the blonde often wondered how much Akutagawa paid her and especially how a woman like her had met a mobster like him. Keiko didn't talk much about her relationship with the man, which made the situation even more mysterious for Ichiyo.
"Good morning Keiko." She greeted the woman as she picked up a piece of cake, not stopping to run.
"Good morning," Keiko said looking at her in confusion, following her. "You're leaving already?"
"Yes, I am urgently awaited." Ichiyo answered hard as she tried to chew the cake and put on her shoes at the same time.
Before leaving she waved her hand at Keiko, she knew the woman was curious because since meeting her, Ichiyo had never had a business or a job.
Ichiyo wanted more time to prepare more mentally for her meeting with Akutagawa, but the elevator came quickly to the parking lot, so she had no time. Either way, she had spent a very long week waiting for that day, waiting for Akutagawa to contact her, that thought or rather that wish made her forget all her worries, but what she mostly forgot was the murder she had committed, she didn't know why, but she was so focused on waiting for Akutagawa, she stopped thinking about anything else entirely.
The reason Akutagawa had invaded her mind was the feeling of fear he aroused in her, she was afraid of him and she was worried about what he was going to ask her the next time they met, but on the one hand she was curious and intrigued, which is why she was eager to talk to him.
Hesitation inflamed Ichiyo's chest as soon as she saw the dark man standing next to the car, he was in a foul mood as usual, his naturally furrowed brows and narrowed eyes as he gave her a deadly gaze. Turning around and running away from the man was a tempting idea for Ichiyo and had really considered doing it, but she continued to automatically walk towards him as if she was attracted to a magnet.
"Hello." She whispered after she stopped in front of him, feeling uncomfortable not receiving an answer to her greeting.
"Let's go," He said, gesturing to her with his hand. "Give me the keys."
Ichiyo did so quickly and she waited for Akutagawa to get in the car before following him, this time he decided to drive himself because he knew their destination. The woman couldn't stand the silence anymore, she spent a week imagining different scenarios of their meeting and now that she was truly living the moment, she couldn't speak because she was paralyzed by the terror of Akutagawa. She wanted to slap herself on the face to chase away her fear and have the courage to strike up a discussion, but she was torn from her deep thoughts by the man's voice.
"It's time for you to take the exam." He said in his usual cold voice, keeping his eyes on the road as he drove.
"Which exam?" She asked as she felt puzzled, remembering what had happened the past week. "Wasn't it enough that I killed the woman to prove to you that I am worth it?" She cried out as she recalled the bad memory.
He glanced at her briefly which silenced her, for a moment she lost control over what was coming out of her mouth.
"I wanted to know what you are capable of," He answered her question which was unexpected for the girl. "And now that you're ready, it's time for you to take the exam."
"Which exam?" Ichiyo repeated her question.
"Do you remember that you are the property of Port Mafia," He reminded her of what he had said to her in the hospital months ago, this sentence remained engraved in Ichiyo's mind as branded with a hot iron. "So I decided to find you a better utility than the one you were destined to become, I negotiated with the godfather and he decided to integrate you into Port Mafia like all the members, by passing an exam of Entrance."
"What should I do?" She managed to say, her mind trying to figure out what she had just heard.
"I don't know, it's up to the boss to decide."
Ichiyo went into a kind of trance as she delved deeper into her thoughts, the situation had become too complicated beyond anything she could have imagined, it was true that she expected to work for the mafia because Akutagawa was one of them, but it had happened a little too soon than expected, she was not ready to fall into the world of crime even though she had already thought about it before. But her biggest concern at the time was going to meet the Godfather because he was the one who would decide on her exam, so Akutagawa would surely take her to see him.
She came out of her thoughts when the car stopped in front of a tall building, it was more precisely a very tall skyscraper that looked like a sort of corporation, so this wasn't the kind of place she expected Akutagawa to take her, it was way beyond her imagination.
The interior of the building was much more impressive than the exterior, everything was chic and luxurious, it was like a five star hotel except it was filled with armed men in suits, which proved that it was the siege of the mafia. Ichiyo looked around her in amazement, if this huge building was the headquarters of Port Mafia that would mean it's some kind of big organization, not a street gang as she thought. She had thought she was going to be part of a small group of criminals who kidnap girls and kill people, but in reality it was much more classy.
The realization hit Ichiyo when she was in the elevator, Akutagawa had told her that she was going to take an exam to enter Port Mafia and that the godfather was going to decide himself what it was going to consist of, so she was going to meet the head of the mafia to pass her exam and apparently she was on her way to do it.
She gave Akutagawa a quick glance who obviously hadn't noticed her gesture as he was focused on the elevator door, she didn't understand this man and she probably never will be able to do it because she couldn't find the reason why he was interested in her, he had saved her life and from what he told her earlier, he had negotiated with the godfather so that she was no longer a slave as she was intended to be after she was kidnapped.
The elevator ding broke the heavy silence and the door opened automatically, Ichiyo followed Akutagawa, walking behind his back down the halls until they came to a towering double door guarded by two men in black suits.
"He's waiting for us." Akutagawa growled, his bad mood seemed to be more ardent, he probably didn't like that the two men had been slow to clear the passage in front of him because that's what they did, widely opening the double doors to him, they were intimidated by him while he was half their sizes, they even almost roll out the red carpet under his feet.
Entering the huge office, Ichiyo stopped next to Akutagawa as her eyes roamed the room, her quick examination stopped when she noticed the man sitting in an armchair opposite the large windows, he was focused in reading the newspaper that Akutagawa had to clear his throat loudly to get his attention.
"Ah, you have arrived," The Mafia boss declared, folding the newspaper tight as if he was pissed off at it. "This is the girl you told me about."
Ichiyo nodded in greeting because she didn't know what to do or what to say, she continued to stare at the man watching her, he was clearly examining her.
"Yes it's her." Akutagawa replied, which was a relief for Ichiyo because the godfather's gaze turned to him.
"Are you sure?"
The boss's question had confused the blonde because she did not understand what he was implying but it was not long before she understood when the man standing next to her answered.
"I'm sure she's ready for her exam, you can give her her first mission," Akutagawa said. "And make it difficult, I don't want to make it easy for her."
The mischievous smile on the godfather's face made Ichiyo's blood freeze.
"Okay, I have a mission that even the black lizard will have a hard time completing," The godfather chuckled, his gaze traveling between Akutagawa and Ichiyo. "Does that suit you as a difficulty?"
Ichiyo watched the two men talk about her as she was unable to intervene because she had no choice, she didn't even understand all of the terms they were using in the discussion. If she had looked in a mirror at the time, she knew she wouldn't recognize her reflection because her face was no longer colored.
"It depends." Akutagawa took a few steps towards his boss.
"It turns out that there is someone very important that I want to eliminate," The Godfather spoke these words with fierce hatred as he pointed to something on the newspaper, it was too far away for the eyes of Ichiyo manage to see. "This man had dared to blackmail me as soon as he got his job when without my support he could not have done it."
"Do you want her to kill the new mayor of Yokohama?" Akutagawa interrupted his boss, from his voice he wasn't interested in hearing the details.
"Come here." The godfather addressed this time to Ichiyo which surprised her because it was the first time he had done so.
With heavy steps, she walked forward before stopping next to Akutagawa, she was standing like an army soldier, tensed from the fear that overwhelmed her.
"I, Mori Ogai, entrust your first mission to you," He said as he stood in front of her, flooding her with his shadow. "You have to kill the new mayor Kentaru Nagai, you have a month to do it."
"I, Ichiyo Higuchi, would accomplish my mission." She didn't know how those words came out of her mouth, maybe it was the heat of the moment, but at the time, she felt like she could do anything.
"It is not difficult enough." Akutagawa growled, breaking the mood with his scowl.
"What is bothering you?" Mori asked, from the look on his face he was as confused as Ichiyo was at Akutagawa's words.
"Killing the mayor is difficult but you gave her too long a time frame, instead of a month she will only have a week," Akutagawa explained before pulling a dagger from his coat. "And she has to do it with this, she won't have the right to use other weapons."
"I admit it's interesting what you suggest, but is she going to be able to?" The godfather's eyes shone with mischief. "She is not trained for this kind of work."
"Are you able to do it?" Akutagawa asked, looking Ichiyo in the eye which scared the woman but at the same time she felt her courage increase.
"I will do it." She said confidently, deciding to take her exam and pass it just to prove to Akutagawa that she was capable of it.
