Haruko caught herself before her face hit the concrete, but just barely. A jolt slammed through her hands and into her wrists as she landed; if she cried out she couldn't hear it over the ringing in her ears.
The weight pressing her down abruptly vanished. Sprawled against the grimy garage floor, she turned her head to see what was happening and was overcome with a wave of nausea. The ground lurched beneath her, then tilted sideways. Earthquake? She tried to twist around again only to see the floor spin dizzily away.
She squeezed her eyes shut. The world was still spinning, but the ground beneath her hands felt solid. What was happening - where was Hei? He'd been right behind her…
Belatedly she realized that the weight that had pushed her to the floor had been him, reacting to the contractor before she'd even - the contractor!
Haruko snapped her eyes open, swallowing the bile that rose up with the vertigo. There was a blue glow to her left, the sound of scuffling footsteps. Another gunshot rang out and she dropped instinctively to the ground again - or had it risen up to meet her?
What was going on? She could hardly tell up from down anymore - it was like being sprawled on the deck of a little boat in a storm-tossed sea.
And was Hei alright? Her stomach tightened in fear; police officers weren't permitted to carry their weapons off-duty. Was he fighting off the contractor barehanded?
A small black object a few feet in front of her caught her eye. Her pepper spray. Haruko stretched out her arm; the ground that the little cannister rested on seemed to bend away from her. Closing her eyes, she tried again.
This time, her fingertips brushed against cool metal. Yes! She gripped the pepper spray and opened her eyes. The world lurched sideways again, but -
The blue glow abruptly disappeared and there was a sound like a sack of rice hitting the ground. Haruko braced her hands against the oily concrete; it didn't move. She pushed herself up into a seated position and another wave of nausea hit her.
"Are you alright?"
Haruko gasped aloud when a pair of hands gripped her upper arms from behind. It was a steadying grip; belated she recognized Hei's voice.
"I think so," she managed; but when she turned to look at him her stomach roiled and she could no longer fight it.
Hei kept his grip on her arms, supporting her as she emptied her stomach onto the concrete.
She wiped her mouth with the back of a shaking hand. "I'm sorry…"
"You should feel better in a minute," Hei said kindly. "That contractor had a nasty power."
"Power?" Surprisingly, she did feel better as Hei helped her to her feet. Her hands were covered in oil and grime; she wiped them self-consciously on her skirt.
Once she was steady, he stooped to collect her purse and her phone from where they'd fallen on the ground. "That disorientation," he explained. "I've seen it before; it would have been better to take him alive," he added, sounding more annoyed than anything else, "but with a power like that I couldn't risk the time. You have to take them out as quickly as possible."
Haruko turned to see the contractor who had attacked them lying prone on the ground a few yards away. Her stomach churned again, but this time it had nothing to do with the lingering vertigo. "He's dead?"
Hei was watching her face carefully, his own expression unreadable. "Yes," he said. "You should…probably sit. Over here."
He led her over the base of one of the concrete pillars; there was a bit of a curb surrounding it that he helped her lower down onto before handing her her things. She stared blankly at her cell phone for a long moment. "Oh, we should call the police…"
"Police?" Hei blinked. "Oh, right." Then his eyes narrowed and he gazed around the empty garage. "I'm pretty sure this guy was working alone; it should be safe to call, and wait here."
Haruko started to hand him her phone, but he shook his head and pulled his own phone from his jacket pocket. "I'll call; this should go straight to Section Four anyway."
As he dialed, he stalked over to the body of the contractor and crouched down to examine something.
Hei must have seen a few bodies since joining the police, Haruko thought, watching him. Still, he was handling the situation exceptionally well, given his sensitive personality - it really ought to be her comforting him, not the other way around. She had to turn her head from the sight with a shiver, and wrapped her coat more tightly around herself.
"They're on their way," Hei said, startling her. She hadn't heard him come up beside her.
"Section Four?" Haruko asked. The department that dealt with contractors had been top secret up until last year. Haruko had heard of them prior to that - she'd worked too closely with trauma victims for too long to not know of their existence - but she'd never actually met any of those elite officers.
Hei nodded, slipping his phone back into his pocket.
"Wait," Haruko said suddenly, "I thought you lost your phone - that's why you stopped by tonight instead of calling?"
A guilty look flashed across his face. "I, um, lied about that."
She blinked in surprise. She was damned good at spotting lies, and thus far in their sessions Hei had been an open book. Reserved, yes, but he hadn't hidden his emotions very well. "Why?"
He exhaled slowly and lowered himself onto the curb next to her. "I -"
"You're hurt!" Haruko exclaimed. Now that he was on the same level as her, she could clearly see a slash of bright red on his neck, beneath his jacket collar.
Hei frowned and reached up to touch the spot; a bit of blood came away on his fingers. "It's not deep."
"Hang on, I have a bandage." Haruko opened her purse and located the plastic baggie that held her small assortment of medical supplies. She fished out a sterile packet with an adhesive gauze bandage and handed it over.
"You keep all those supplies in your purse?" he asked as he took the packet from her.
Haruko smiled sadly. "It's a little excessive, I know; but old habits die hard."
"My mother used to do the same thing," he said, his voice so quiet that she had to strain to hear him.
"You said she was a nurse?" Haruko asked as she helped him position the bandage over his cut.
"Yeah."
"She must have been a very caring woman."
"She was."
He didn't add anything to that, and Haruko didn't ask. She tucked the empty wrapper from the gauze back into her bag, then said, "You were going to tell me why you lied about not having your phone?"
Hei sighed, and turned to look at the still figure on the ground; Haruko still couldn't bring herself to. She watched Hei's face instead.
"I was waiting for you here. I thought there might be trouble, so…" he trailed off with a shrug.
It was the type of vague statement that she might let slide in one of their sessions; as long as he knew what he was talking about, she didn't necessarily need to. But - for some reason she couldn't even begin to fathom - her own safety was wrapped up in this as well now. Now, she needed to know.
"What made you think there would be trouble?" she pressed. "Does this have anything to do with why you left early today?"
He nodded. "In the middle of the session, a specter popped up in the plant on your desk."
"Specter?" Haruko frowned at the familiar-yet-not term. "This is the same thing that you saw when your teammate was injured, that you didn't want to tell anyone about? What is it?"
"It's…still classified."
"But it was on my desk? I didn't see anything out of the ordinary." From the context, it sounded like some sort of harbinger of contractors.
Hei glanced over at her, then nodded once. "Specters are still classified, but basically, they're used for surveillance. Only contractors can see them - and I can, too. Even though I'm not a contractor," he added emphatically. "I mean, mostly not. It's…complicated."
Oh dear. That was a mess of an admission. How could a person be mostly not a contractor? His confusion and lack of confidence regarding his place in the world were starting to become a little more clear. Not much, but a little.
"They live in plants?" she asked, trying to understand the immediate situation. They could talk about his supposed similarities to contractors later.
He shook his head. "The police specters use the power grids; others, the ones owned by spies and criminal organizations use other mediums. This one just happened to be the type with an affinity for growing things. Which meant that it wasn't police." He gazed around the garage once again. "There's nothing here for it to use, so we should be fine. Whoever sent that contractor won't know he's dead yet."
Invisible things, spying on them? Haruko shivered in spite of herself. "Why was it watching us?"
"I assumed it was tracking me, at first," Hei told her. "That's why I left: I didn't want it to hear anything personal that I might tell you. But once I got out of the building, I didn't see it anywhere - and I'm pretty good at spotting specters. The only explanation I could think of was that it was there watching you. I called Misaki; she approved the use of a dedicated police specter in your building, and I waited in the parking garage to watch for trouble."
"You waited all afternoon and evening?" When he nodded, she continued, "But why was it watching me? I don't have anything to do with contractors!"
He only shrugged. "Have you ever seen that man before?" he asked, indicating the contractor that he had killed. There was still no confusion in his voice, no regret or panic at the realization that he had just taken a human life. Even seasoned police officers could take a death hard. Then again, she remembered his well-used method of coping: avoid even thinking about the painful emotion. It would hit him later; she would have to make sure that he knew he could call her to talk through it.
Hei was still waiting for an answer, she realized. "No," she said. "I mean, I didn't get a good look at his face before he attacked - it happened so fast. But nothing about him was familiar. Thank you, by the way - you saved my life tonight."
Her client shrugged again, more uncomfortably this time. "He knew you, though. Is there any -"
The unmistakable sound of an approaching car cut him off. Gesturing for her to stay where she was, Hei stood and took a couple of steps away from the curb. He positioned himself between her and the route that the vehicle would have to take, his posture tense.
Haruko watched with bated breath as a silver sedan turned the corner and pulled into one of the empty parking spaces near the pillar where she sat. There was nothing Hei could possibly do, unarmed, against a moving vehicle. She wished that she hadn't put her pepper spray away.
Hei, however, relaxed once the sedan came into view. He stuffed his hands into his pockets and waited as the car's engine shut off and two men exited. One of the men was tall and broad, and wore an off-the-rack gray suit. The other was shorter and slimmer, fair-haired and dressed more casually in jeans and a leather jacket. Everything about their easy walks and nonchalant glances at the dead contractor suggested police.
"Li!" the taller of the two exclaimed, eying Haruko before turning back to her client. "Everything alright?"
Hei nodded. "No injuries. A tricky power though; I tried to incapacitate him, but my aim was off."
That wasn't quite the same thing that he'd told her, Haruko noticed. Yet as before, he sounded merely annoyed that he had killed rather than captured the man.
The officer nodded gravely. "Protecting civilians comes first. Kouno, check out the body."
"Yeah, yeah, already on it," the other man said, waving in annoyance as he headed over to the fallen contractor.
The first speaker followed Hei back to where Haruko still sat on the curb.
"This is the witness?" he asked Hei, his tone businesslike but not unfriendly.
Hei nodded. "And intended target." He turned to her. "Haruko, this is Detective Saitou. Saitou, Dr. Uchiumi Haruko."
Haruko stood, and attempted to brush the spots of grime off her skirt. The detective nodded in greeting, and Haruko realized that she recognized the name. That, combined with the familiarity with which Hei had greeted the newcomers, connected some unexpected dots. "Section Four?" she asked, then turned to Hei. "You're with Section Four?"
Her client blinked. "Yes. I didn't tell you that?"
I know how to handle contractors, he'd told her. Still, she would never have guessed that he was someone with the skill or ability to take on such dangerous criminals, especially alone.
Though he'd just proved her wrong tonight.
"You two know each other?" Detective Saitou asked, looking between the two of them.
"No visible wounds," the other man interrupted, walking up. "Definitely a zap to the heart; haven't seen a corpse like that in a while. Nostalgic, really. What's up?" he asked, obviously noticing the confused looks.
"Um," Hei said. "Haruko, this is Detective Kouno." He turned to both of his co-workers. "Haruko is, uh, my therapist."
He hadn't needed to admit to that; Haruko certainly would have been willing to cover for him, claim a more general association. Still, she was proud of the way he had opted for the truth. Especially given his worries just a couple of weeks ago.
His co-workers, however, stared at her in disbelief. Then Saitou abruptly laughed. "That was the Chief's idea, wasn't it?"
Kouno shook his head. "You are one brave woman," he told her, then jerked a thumb towards Hei. "I'd hate to be inside this guy's head."
Haruko glanced over at Hei to see how he was taking the ribbing. He didn't seem offended or overly embarrassed; if anything, he looked relieved.
"Yeah," was all he said. "Get anything from Astronomics yet?"
"SF-184, probably," Kouno said. "Time stamp of the fall matches up, anyway. Also synchronous with your activity. Who's after you? Thought you shook off all your old enemies."
Hei shook his head. "He was after Haruko, not me."
"Are you sure?" Saitou asked doubtfully, but Kouno glanced over at Haruko with raised eyebrows.
"Wait, but she's your therapist?"
"It's nothing to do with me!" Hei protested, a hint of exasperation in his voice.
Haruko was at a loss as to why anyone would be after Hei either; she wasn't sure if his co-workers were simply giving him a hard time after his confession that he had a minor criminal history, or if they genuinely thought that he might be involved with contractors.
"According to Interpol files, SF-184 was a Chinese national," Kouno added significantly.
Hei shrugged. "He had a Beijing accent, yeah. But I never operated in China, not since the start of the war anyway. Did you see his tattoo?"
The other man nodded, almost reluctantly. "Yeah. Yakuza, probably."
"Mafia?" Haruko asked. She hadn't been able to follow most of their discussion, full of unfamiliar terms and details as it was, but that caught her attention.
All three looked at her. "Do you know anyone with mafia connections?" Hei asked.
Before Haruko could answer, however, the steady hum of a car engine echoed through the garage. They all turned towards the blind corner; a moment later, a blue sports car - Porsche, Haruko thought, though she'd never been good at recognizing cars, to Michio's vast amusement - pulled into view.
"You called the Chief?" Saitou asked Hei. "I thought it was her night off."
Hei shook his head. "I texted her to let her know everything was fine; she probably got a ping from Kanami."
Kouno laughed. "Nothing like having a government agency keeping tabs on you for your girlfriend."
Hei didn't respond, but there was a faint smile on his face now.
The Porsche had pulled up next to the silver car. The engine had barely died when the driver's side door opened and a young woman climbed out. She was slender, casually dressed in jeans and a cream turtleneck; her long brown hair was pulled back into a ponytail. It looked damp, as if she'd just gotten out of the shower before rushing over.
The woman strode up to them, eyes flashing behind her glasses as she took in the scene. "Is everyone alright?" she asked, real concern in her voice as her gaze landed on Haruko. Then her eyes shifted to Hei, lingering for a moment on the bandage on his neck.
"Fine," Hei said. "Saitou and Kouno just arrived; no sign of any more specters."
The woman nodded. "Unis?" she asked the other two.
"On their way, along with the medical examiner," Kouno replied.
"Right. Saitou, Kouno, start processing the scene. Check out that van, see if it belongs to any of the building's tenants."
"Right, Chief!" Detective Saitou practically saluted. He removed a small notepad from his pocket and headed over to the body while Kouno jogged up to the van in the far corner of the garage.
The woman turned to Haruko, and held out her hand. "Kirihara Misaki," she said. "It's nice to finally meet you, doctor; I just wish it was under different circumstances."
"Uchiumi Haruko." Haruko grasped her hand instinctively before remembering how dirty her own was; but if Kirihara noticed she didn't react.
Kirihara Misaki. Haruko had heard that name a few times before, whenever contractor-related news made headlines. The head of Section Four. This was Hei's girlfriend, she realized in surprise.
Haruko gave herself a mental shake. "It's nice to meet you too, Chief Kirihara. But please, call me Haruko."
Kirihara smiled. "And I think you can call me Misaki, considering," she said with a glance at Hei. Then her expression turned businesslike again. "Do you feel up to giving a statement?"
Hei spoke up before Haruko could answer. "I don't want to keep her out in the open like this for too long. Whoever sent that contractor will probably try again - maybe even tonight."
Kirihara - Misaki - nodded. "But do we have any idea who that is?"
"You started to say something about the mafia?" Hei asked Haruko.
She nodded wearily. Her wrists were hurting from the fall; she was ready to go home, not talk. But that didn't sound like an option at the moment.
"Let's sit," Misaki suggested, watching Haruko's face.
Hei offered his arm for support; Haruko took it and let him lead her back to sit against the concrete pillar. Misaki sat down on her other side.
"I'm not sure," Haruko said, staring out across the garage in thought. "But when you mentioned the yakuza, it made me think. I have a client whose father is a small-time gangster."
"Do you have any reason to think that you might have gotten on his bad side?" Misaki asked in the same sort of tone that Haruko used to help reticent clients feel safe enough to open up about something painful. It shouldn't have surprised her that it was effective, but it was. All she needed was a cup of tea.
Haruko shook her head. "I've never met the man. His daughter - my client - is still in high school but she lives separately from him."
"Ayami?" Hei asked suddenly. "The girl whose appointment is before mine? She wasn't there today."
Haruko turned to him in surprise. "You know Ayami?"
He shrugged. "She usually looks upset when she comes out of your office. So I started talking with her before she leaves, to cheer her up."
"Talking with her?" Ayami was extremely wary of strangers, especially strange men. How had Hei gotten her to stop and chat every week?
Misaki gave a small cough. "So this girl's father is a gangster, and she didn't show up today?"
Haruko refocused. "Right. She texted me tonight to apologize. She didn't sound quite like herself, but it didn't seem as if anything was wrong, exactly. I should have called the police, shouldn't I. If I had, maybe -"
Misaki laid a hand on her arm. "We don't know that there's anything wrong. If there is, we'll figure it out. But I still don't see why this man would target you."
"I don't know that he would," Haruko said. "He and Ayami have been estranged for years; recently he's been contacting her about a reconciliation. I haven't told her not to meet with him - I don't give my clients orders - but I haven't done a good job of hiding the fact that I think it's a terrible idea, for her."
"You think her father would see you as a someone who could influence her against him?" Hei asked quietly.
"It seems extreme," Haruko admitted. But, if she thought about everything Ayami had told her of his treatment of women… "But it's possible, I suppose."
Misaki nodded. "It's a place to start, anyway. I need this man's name - and any information you have on him. We'll coordinate with Criminal Investigations, see if they have any records that will be useful."
"I'll call Lieutenant Hoshi," Hei said.
"Who?" Misaki asked blankly.
"He works in CI records. The officer whose car I jump started outside the ramen stand, remember? He'll be able to get us any relevant files without having to go through official channels; that's too slow."
Misaki shook her head, but she was smiling. "Alright. Send whatever you get straight to the office."
"What about…him?" Haruko asked, angling her head in the direction of the fallen contractor without actually looking at him.
"The ME will pick up the body," Hei said shortly. "It's doubtful he has anything helpful on him. A dead contractor is useless."
Haruko blinked in surprise; she had never heard such recrimination in his voice before.
The look that Misaki cast him was unreadable - at least to Haruko. Hei, however, sighed and added, "SF-184 only moved into the Tokyo area a couple weeks ago. Called in by his Chinese employer's connections here, probably. He would have spilled everything about his employer if I'd had time to subdue him, but," he shrugged, staring down at the ground like he stared at the tissue box in her office, "it's too late for that."
"That specter hasn't shown up again?" Misaki asked.
"It can't, in here. There's only the one from Astronomics." His gaze flicked briefly up to one of the overhead lights. Haruko squinted until her eyes watered, but she didn't see anything other than the light bulb.
"Well," Misaki said, "if it picks us up outside, the Astronomics medium has orders to send out an alert. The safe house isn't that far, we should be fine."
"Safe house?" Haruko asked in sudden alarm.
Misaki nodded. "If they know where you work, they probably know where you live too. Is there anyone at home right now?"
Her heart skipped a beat. "No; my husband is in Hokkaido until Wednesday. You don't think he's in danger too, do you?"
"It's unlikely," Misaki reassured her. "But I'll call our office up there and have them put a protective detail on him until we have this sorted out." She turned to Hei. "I'll have Matsumoto start on the research; you want first shift at the safe house?"
He nodded once. "Give me a few minutes to check it out first."
"Hei, it's a safe house, it's perfectly -"
"I haven't been past there in the last month."
Misaki sighed. "Alright, if it'll make you feel better. We'll follow in the car in fifteen."
"Thirty."
The chief of Section Four raised one eyebrow. "Thirty? You need that much time?"
"I want to swing by home first and pick up my gear bag."
At that, Misaki's lips pressed into a thin line. She and Hei stared at one another for a long moment; at last she nodded. "Fine. Thirty. Call me if you notice anything suspicious."
Hei nodded and stood. Then, as if suddenly remembering that she was there, he turned to Haruko. "I'm sorry about all this," he said. "Misaki will bring you to the safe house; I'll be there ahead of you, and we'll take care of everything."
It wasn't often that Haruko saw her clients outside of their therapy sessions. The Hei that she had gotten to know over the past couple of months was quiet, sweet, and drowning in insecurity. But right now, she felt as if she could be in no better hands than his.
She nodded, wishing only that Michio was there with her as well. "Okay."