Now then, time to establish another major player in the game. I suspect most criticism of this chapter will be leveled at my original character. Let's get on with this chapter.
While sipping at his soda, Wayne heard a knock at his door. He got up and walked over to his window. There was a female standing about 5' 3 with long black braided hair standing next to his Camaro ZL1 and admiring it. The knocking was heard again, and Wayne decided not to waste any more time. He strolled over to the door and slid it open, his eyes meeting those of a 5'4 brunette. Both eyes met each other's, the woman amazed at the face she hadn't seen for two years. Only one mutter escaped from her lips.
"Fortnell-san..."
"Come on Miyuki..." Natsumi complained from the passenger seat of her partner's sports car. "This detour for groceries had better have been worth it."
"With your appetite, any trip to the grocery store is worth it." Miyuki answered as she scanned the neighbourhood for any sign of the red muscle car the pair had seen earlier.
"Oh, so because I'm me... Hey, look!" Natsumi suddenly pointed out. Miyuki saw the red Camaro parked in one driveway, and parked her sports car on the street in front of the house. "Think it's him?"
"Positive. I'd know that car anywhere." Miyuki replied.
"Maybe it'll be worth it after all." Both women got out of the blue Toyota. Natsumi walked over and knocked on the door, while car-nut Miyuki started admiring the Chevrolet.
"Nice..." Miyuki whispered to herself as she looked inside the red muscle car.
"Come on..." Natsumi knocked on the door again. Within ten seconds, the door slid open. Natsumi's eyes met those of the person she never expected to see again. The person was a 6'4 American with black hair and brown eyes, very much like a person she used to know. In fact...
Natsumi gasped ever so slightly at the sight. She muttered one word. "Fortnell-san..."
Inside, the two policewomen could not believe their eyes. Their former colleague who they though had been killed two years ago was alive and well, and making a living under an alias
"So. Tell me why you guys are here." Wayne asked the two women as they sat on the chairs.
"We have a situation." Miyuki briefed. "There's a violent fugitive making a run for the docks."
"And how am I supposed to help out?" Wayne asked.
"Because you're Officer Tom Fortnell, one of the best police officers in the Bokuto station." Natsumi explained.
"I'm Wayne Crenshaw, and I work at an import company in the docks." Wayne responded.
"Come on Tom, stop lying to us." Miyuki spoke. "You look just like Officer Fortnell, you speak like him..." She looked to the ZL1 on the driveway. "And you're the only person I know in Tokyo who'd drive a Camaro."
"I saw the news reports." Wayne answered. "Fortnell was declared missing, presumed dead two years ago."
"But you didn't see the news reports." Miyuki pleaded. "Because you were there. You were shot and left for dead. We're here now. You don't need to lie to us anymore Tom. We know you're alive. Besides, you wouldn't lie to your old buddies, right?"
Tom sighed. "So what do you need me for?" He asked.
"Takashi Fujima." Natsumi took up the briefing. "Crime boss, wanted for rape, murder, human trafficking, among others. Heard of him?"
"Yeah, I've heard of him." Tom nodded.
"We haven't been able to catch him."
"So why do you need me?"
Miyuki piped in. "First off, he has a hostage. You remember Assistant Inspector Kinoshita?"
"Yep."
"Fujima's got her in his car so either we pay up the cash or we leave him alone. If we fool around, she's dead. You used to be one of our best officers, and it would be nice to have you back. The precinct hasn't been the same since you left us."
"What next?" Tom asked.
Natsumi took over the briefing. "Two, he has an army of mercenaries travelling with him. These guys are shoot-to-kill types, maybe special-ops. They have military grade automatic weapons, and they will blast through any roadblock we set up."
"Vehicles?"
"Seems to be black American jeeps."
"Hmm." Tom searched his memory. "We had a shipment of vehicles today. All black, all American, all bound for Nagoya. There's something off about that."
Natsumi faced Miyuki. "Think that's for them?" She asked.
"Maybe." Miyuki replied. She then turned to face Tom again. "Finally, three. Fujima is driving a Chevrolet Corvette ZR1. If you're still the car enthusiast I remember you as..."
"Hell yeah." Tom replied. "I know about that ZR1. It's faster than any patrol car, faster than any police bike, and faster than any helicopter."
"We kind of knew about that last part." Natsumi commented. "Just this morning, Fujima managed to outrun a pursuing helicopter."
"Good luck keeping up with his dust."
Miyuki resumed speaking. "You're one of the best drivers we have Tom. You could give me a run for my money. And that Camaro out there?" She pointed to Tom's ZL1. "That car's the only one here with enough muscle to stand a chance of keeping up with that Corvette."
"So then?" Natsumi asked. "Are you going to help us catch this guy?"
"Hmm..." Tom looked deep in thought. "I dunno. I left that life behind long ago."
"But... You can still come back!" Natsumi pleaded.
"Everyone in the precinct thinks I'm dead. Let's take it back to two years ago..."
It was June 2010. Tom and the others were gearing up for a raid on the building. "Remember guys, stay sharp." He instructed as he put on his flak jacket. "Fujima's likely to have gang members inside. From what we've been hearing, they're likely to have submachine guns. Move fast, we need to get that hostage back alive."
"Hai!" The other officers replied.
Outside, the team, plus some SAT officers were ready to breach. Someone tapped Tom on the shoulder.
"Yeah?" He whispered.
"Thought you might like this." The SAT operator handed him an M4 Carbine.
"Thanks bud." Tom loaded the M4. "I used to use this all the time in Afghanistan."
"Maybe you'll transfer to the SAT when you're done?" The operator asked.
"I dunno. I might stick with the traffic department."
"Ah well. Hope you still shoot well."
"Better than you think." Tom gave an OK sign. Ken nodded, and both men kicked in the door. Two masked men with MP5s looked up, and got taken out by shots to the legs.
"Two down!" Tom reported.
"Take the left side!" Another SAT operator reported.
Tom, Miyuki, Natsumi and Yoriko advanced up the left side. Going through another door into a bedroom, Tom's flashlight illuminated a young woman panting, her blouse ripped and the sheets wet.
"We found her!" Tom said through his radio, before going to help the woman. "You OK?"
"I... I think so..." The woman replied.
"Good, you're safe now."
The woman was Ami Kasamatsu, one of the new policewomen transferred to the department. She had been kidnapped by masked men similar to the ones who had been shot in the legs. Tom felt responsible for her taking and had been a major figure in the investigation. They had eventually tracked her down to this building in downtown Tokyo.
"Bed sheet's wet and her uniform's ruined." Yoriko pointed out. "You think...?"
Tom looked into Ami's blue eyes. Those eyes looked terrified, seeking protection in the big American. There was no doubt about what had happened.
"Got a note here." Natsumi declared. "This is what happens if you cops poke your nose into private business."
"Hoo-ah." Tom then spoke on the radio. "What about you guys?"
"House is almost clear..." Shouji then yelled. "Wait! I see a man running! He's going for the roof!"
"Got it." Tom picked up his M4 and hurled it to Miyuki. "Fire support. I'm going after the guy. He's mine."
"Roger!" Miyuki yanked the charging handle on the rifle. She couldn't help but wonder though if Tom knew what he was getting into.
Tom wasted no time in running out of the room. A man ran past, no doubt the runner Shouji reported, and Tom took up pursuit. The man ran up some stairs, and Tom followed.
Up on the roof, the man realized that there was nowhere to run, unless he wanted to jump off the roof that was three stories up and try his chances in an extended foot pursuit.
"Give up!" Tom yelled. The masked man replied by turning around and throwing his fist at the American. Tom blocked it, then hurled his own fist into the man's face. Soon, they were locked in a fierce battle. The man swung three left hooks at Tom's face, sending him sprawling, before he recovered and slammed a powerful upper punch into the suspect.
Miyuki dashed onto the roof and looked through the aiming sight of the rifle. The fight was continuing and it was hard to know who had the upper hand.
"I've got them fighting on the roof." She said.
"Confirmed." One of the dispatchers replied. "Can you intervene?"
"I don't know. Tom looks like he can handle it."
The suspect punched Tom hard in the face which knocked the American back, until he ran back and delivered a couple of light punches to the man.
"I don't see an end to this. I've got a rifle, what do I do?" Miyuki asked.
"Can you get a shot on the suspect?"
"Negative, I don't know if I can shoot him without hitting Tom."
The fight was still brutal. Tom was now blocking the suspect's multiple blows, before he replied with a punch of his own to the suspect's chest.
"This fight's been going on for long enough. Intervene if you can."
"Roger." Miyuki put down the M4 and started to move towards the fight to break it up. However, as Tom sent the suspect reeling with a hard punch, the man dragged out a 9mm pistol and fired a single shot without aiming. The shot hit Tom in the chest and he staggered backwards. Miyuki and Tom made eye contact one last time before Tom fell off the side of the three story building and to his supposed death.
"No one in the precinct knows I'm still alive." Tom spoke. "I realized then that I was probably no longer wanted in the police department. I felt it was time to let you guys take the spotlight. Besides, there's a saying in Japan. "The nail that sticks out gets hammered." I was probably going to be fired someday. A passer-by helped me to escape, and helped me to set up a cover identity. Ever since, I've been living life as Wayne Crenshaw, a former Chevrolet engineer who moved to Japan to work for a company importing American cars into the country."
After hearing the truth, Miyuki spoke first. "Why didn't you return to us?"
"I realized that I could turn my life around. Tom Fortnell was supposedly dead. I figured that I could do good in another way. I didn't have to kill anyone or arrest anyone, or make anyone suffer. I could help out by bringing someone's new pride and joy into the country. I couldn't do it as Tom Fortnell, police officer and former soldier, now killed in action. But I could do it as Wayne Crenshaw, import worker and former engineer, and very much alive. And that is why Tom Fortnell has been dead for two years." Tom finished his confession.
"But you were not dead." Natsumi countered. "After hearing your side of the story, we realized that our colleague and best friend had been alive all this time. You have no idea how hard your supposed death hit everyone in the precinct."
"I just can't go back. No-one comes back from a two year death."
"Will you please cut it out with the death crap?" Natsumi said, her usual strong tone starting to creep through. "Fujima's coming through here and his mercenaries are probably going to kill us all. You still care about us, right?"
That hit Tom hard. He exhaled, knowing his defense was starting to fall apart.
"At least think about it?" Miyuki pleaded. "You're one of the only chances we have to catch Fujima. And you were one of our best friends."
The policewoman duo got up to leave. Before they got out the door, they turned around, as if to ask for his final answer.
"We need you Tom. We need you..." With Miyuki's begging words, they were out of the door. Tom sat back down on the chair.
The memories of his time in the police department flooded back. The first time he met Natsumi and Miyuki, the time they caught the red dress slasher, and busting up the car smuggling ring. In that operation, he'd been involved in a wreck, and went off the grid to investigate a lead that suggested a terrorist attack. That meant he was one of the first to know about the attack on the Bokuto Precinct by attackers looking for the Hachi-Ichi-Go plan, and he'd raced back to the station and back into the lives of the police officers as he helped to solve the plan and bring Emoto into custody. The memories kept flooding back, until the man sitting in the room of the house was Tom Fortnell. The few things left of his Wayne Crenshaw identity was his Camaro and his employment at the import company.
There was now an important decision to make. Would Tom go back to the police department, revealing the truth about his supposed death and taking a stand alongside his former colleagues; against Fujima? Or would he return to being Wayne Crenshaw, leaving Tom Fortnell in the grave and leaving the police to fend for themselves? Important decisions would be made that would affect Tom's life, and those of the people who were once his colleagues, his friends. Many things were at stake here: The lives of his former buddies, the life of the hostage in the passenger seat of the Corvette, the freedom of the most wanted fugitive in Japan... But right now, it was six o'clock. Tom decided to make the decision tomorrow. Tonight, he would go out and think the situation over, weigh up his options, and try to rediscover the man who died on that fateful day two years ago.
Oh boy, I know I'm going to get flamed hard for this one...