CHAPTER 5
"Yeah, Saiko-komon told me to prepare for a race this evening, as well." Kai admitted as the boys regrouped back in their room.
"Do you think he's going to have us race eachother, or someone else?" Takumi asked, peering over at the older teen curiously.
"Why would they have us street-race?" Kai asked no one in particular, sounding frustrated. "It doesn't make any sense! There's no revenue generated from street racing, unless they wager money, but even then- why the hell go to all the trouble of kidnapping us!?" Kai sounded frustrated. "None of this is making any sense."
Takumi was silent, still looking to Kai for guidance.
Kai was on his feet, now pacing the small room agitated. "More importantly- where the hell are the police? Why isn't anyone trying to find us? Are they even trying!?" He ran a hand through his black hair, frustrated.
"They'll find us." Takumi said quietly.
"Yeah, well, they're sure taking their sweet time to do it." Kai mumbled.
"I don't want to race for these guys either- but I don't see what choice we have." Takumi admitted.
Kai sighed. "Yeah, you're right. I need to think rationally about this…."
"I want food." Takumi spoke aloud, and Kai looked up, blinking in surprise. "I'm starving too. You know where the kitchen is…."
"But the place is crawling with gangsters."
Kai pinched the bridge of his nose. "Alright. You know where the kitchen is, I'll go with you to grab something and keep an eye out for others."
Takumi nodded, creeping timidly down the hallway with Kai beside him, both keeping a keen eye out for other yakuza.
As they entered the rather dirty kitchen, Takumi froze for a brief moment, coming face to face with three unfamiliar yakuza.
The three men looked to be in their mid-twenties- one wore a red dew rag and smoked a cigarette, while the others were leaning against the counter with several beer cans scattered around them.
"Huh. Look at that- the brats finally ventured out of their room." Dewrag spoke around his cigarette, chuckling along with his friends.
"What- no greeting? Kumicho wants you boys to leave your room more often, you know. Get to know your fellow family members. Show a little respect, boys."
Kai hurriedly bowed, Takumi hastily following- it was humiliating to have to bow to gangsters, but pride meant nothing compared to survival.
The three burst into laughter. "Man, you three really are thick. Nice show, boys- but you'll address us- and all your superiors besides Kumicho and Saiko-komon as aniki. Now go ahead and grab your snacks." The man smirked at them.
Takumi tossed Kai a roll, grabbing himself a bowl of rice. Both teens were starving, but at the same time, they could grab something later when the kitchen was empty.
One of the gangsters cleared their throats as Kai crept towards the doorway, and Takumi grabbed Kai's wrist, turning around and bowing hurriedly. "Goodbye, aniki." He spoke quietly before he was hurriedly retreating, Kai on his heels. As they retreated, they heard raucous laughter behind them.
As soon as the door to their room was closed, Kai sighed. "Well, that was an experience."
Takumi nodded, before he was sitting down, digging into his bowl of plain rice.
Kai dug into his roll, chewing thoughtfully. "I'm too awake now to sleep." He admitted. They settled into an apprehensive silence, each slightly afraid of what was to come.
Saiko-komon opened the door to their room that evening. "With me." Was all he growled, before he was stalking out of the room.
Both boys trotted after their captor, exchanging nervous glances.
They were escorted into the garage- the air was decidedly more tense. Several gangsters were huddled around the room, leaning on the walls and speaking quietly amongst themselves, eying the two teens critically.
Takumi blinked, stuffing his hands in his pockets and trying not to fidget nervously. An uneasy feeling settled in the pit of his stomach. He was feeling like a piece of meat instead of a person, and Saiko-komon shoved him forward, to where Kumicho was standing seriously, Kai tripping as
he was pushed to stand beside him.
Kumicho smiled at them, placing a hand on Takumi's shoulder, leaning close to speak quietly in Takumi's ear. "you've been given the tougher route- your driving is superior. Perform well and you'll be rewarded."
Takumi's heart leapt in his chest, his lips parting slightly- did Kumicho mean he'd be given his freedom if he won?
Two gang members materialized from the shadows. The man with the red dew rag gave Takumi a yellowed smile, nodding to him, before the keys were handed to him and he was starting up the supra, nodding as red dew rag got into the passenger seat.
Takumi pulled out of the driveway, slightly nervous. He flicked on his headlights, smoothly accelerating and whipping onto the rural, hilly road towards the city.
"So- is this your first race?" dew rag asked, loading his pistol as he spoke.
Takumi swallowed, focusing on the road instead of the hand gun. He was less nervous, and, unnervingly enough, was becoming used to being in the presence of guns. He could see the twinkling of the city lights in the distance.
"No, aniki. I've won some battles before."
"Have you, now. Kumicho says you're quite good- which will be useful tonight. Head straight into the city…."
Takumi nodded obediently, continuing on through the darkness. It was nearly 9:30pm and dark.
Had he really been gone for 2 days already?
He continued on straight- he was in the outskirts of the city, now, the road was lined on either
side by dim houses, the road illuminated by street lights.
"You'll need to be fast tonight." Dew rag confided in him. "And you'll need to be able to perform well under pressure."
Takumi nodded. "I understand, aniki."
"I thought you would. Turn right here."
Takumi obeyed, following the rest of the instructions calmly.
Finally, after they were in the center of the city, dew rag spoke. "Park along the curb here."
The uneasy feeling Takumi had had since entering the garage blossomed into nausea as he realized they were parked in front of a bank.
"Pop the trunk." Dew rag ordered.
Takumi reached over with shaking hands before obeying.
Dew rag had pulled a black mask from the glove box, and he nodded to Takumi. "the race is about to start." He confided in him.
"Look across the street."
Takumi did as he was told. He could hear his heart pounding in his ears.
Dew rag pointed. "That window on the second story- a brother is up there with a rifle. If you try to flee before I've gotten back to the car, he will shoot you. Do you understand me?"
Takumi swallowed heavily. "Yes, aniki."
"Good." The man's smile flashed his cigarette yellowed teeth, before he was pulling on the ski mask, nodding.
"Stay ready- leave the car running. The race is about to begin." With that said, the man threw open the door to the Supra, turning and running into the bank.
Takumi sat, the supra's powerful engine idling. He could feel himself break out in a cold sweat, his knuckles were turning white as he clung to the steering wheel. I should try to drive away. But the yakuza next door- he'll shoot me where I sit...
Against all of his instincts, he sat still, waiting two minutes, three….
Dew rag charged out, trash bag in hand. He threw open the trunk, throwing the bag inside, slamming the trunk shut, and jumping into the passenger seat.
"Drive!" he shouted, and before the man even had his door fully shut, the wheels were spinning as Takumi pulled onto the nearly deserted road, charging into the night.
The ringing of an alarm pierced the night behind them.
"Where do I go!?" Takumi shouted, close to frantic.
"Get out of the goddamn city!" dew rag shouted back. "Remember the route we drove yesterday!"
A police car tore through an intersection after them- Takumi took the next corner at a breakneck speed, drifting slightly before accelerating quickly. A police car bearing sirens and lights drove past them, before performing a rough u-turn and taking the place of the police cruiser Takumi had just lost.
The blaring of a siren filled his mind, and Takumi grit his teeth, forcing himself to ignore it as he took the next four corners at impossible speed. This police cruiser was doing a better job of keeping up than the first one- it was more persistent.
A second cruiser pulled out from within an alley, joining the chase, and at the last second, Takumi wrenched the wheel to the left, jumping the curb onto a deserted sidewalk but completing the sharp turn, heading towards the outskirts of the city.
One of the police cruisers collided with a fire hydrant, and water exploded, but the other remained persistent….
This is insane. Takumi thought to himself, over the screaming of the siren and the roar of the engines. Someone could get killed.
Takumi let up on the gas for a brief second, only pausing when he heard a gun cocking and looked over to see dew-rag had pointed his pistol at Takumi's temple. "Keep going!" he shouted over the engine's rumbling.
"Aniki- please!"
"Drive, or I will fucking shoot you!"
Takumi slammed on the gas, cutting down a small side street into the slums before cornering at an insane speed- the police cruiser messily spun out behind them, and Takumi gunned the engine, heading towards the rural road outside the city.
The roar of the supra's engine was the only thing that kept Takumi grounded as he tore down the rural, hilly road, back towards their secluded house.
Takumi was breathing heavily, and dew rag nodded to him. "Not bad, kid. You nearly lost your nerve."
Takumi was struggling to keep the car going straight- the loss of the adrenaline left him feeling exhausted and drained, and he looked over at his companion tiredly. "Y-you said I was supposed to race…." He spoke softly. His head was beginning to throb.
Dew rag threw his head back and laughed. "We were racing! Except instead of a petty street battle, we were racing for our lives. Much more invigorating, isn't it?" The man asked, grinning like the Cheshire cat as he fumbled for a cigarette.
"N-no…." Takumi managed, blinking furiously. That was terrifying. Somebody could've died…. This guy is insane!
Dew rag laughed. "Whatever you say, kid. But deep down- you know you enjoyed it."
As soon as they pulled into the garage, Takumi threw open the door to the Supra and stumbled out, leaning against the wall and retching. Saliva pooled in his mouth, bile burning his throat, but nothing came up.
He continued to dry heave for another minute or so, shaking badly.
Kai pulled him upright a moment later, allowing the younger boy to lean against him until he regained his balance. He could feel the younger boy trembling. "Takumi- you with me?"
Takumi nodded- he looked absolutely terrible, but he was alright. It was just a reaction to his own fear, he supposed, his own repulsion at what he'd just done….
Kumicho grinned. "I have to say, boys, I'm impressed." He handed each boy a stage of bills, nodding to them. "Don't spend it all in one place, kiddos."
The rest of the gang members who'd gathered around to look at the haul burst into raucous laughter, and Kai looked down at the money in disgust, leaving both his and Takumi's piles on the hood of the Supra and slinging Takumi's arm over his shoulder.
"C'mon Tak- let's get you upstairs."
Takumi nodded slowly, falling into his bed and squeezing his eyes shut as soon as he was laying still.
Her heard the door open a moment later, and Kai entered the room with a cup on water.
"Takumi- c'mon, drink. You look horrible."
Takumi sat up and sipped hesitantly at the water, finding it did help ground him a bit more. "What happened, Takumi?"
"They made me drive while they robbed a bank." Takumi said quietly, looking at the floor, ashamed.
Kai sighed. "They did the same to me. But you look very shaken- did something else happen?"
"Three police cruisers chased me. I lost the first one- the second one hit a fire hydrant, and the last one spun out. We were going to fast, it was reckless- if there had been any civilian cars or pedestrians…. All I kept thinking was that we were going to kill someone. I tried to pull over, but aniki put a gun to my head and made me keep driving…."
Kai let out a long breath, running a hand through his hair. "I didn't see any police. It sounds like you had the worst run…."
"K-Kai… I can't do this again." Takumi admitted, looking at the older boy anxiously. "W-what if these guys kill somebody during a robbery? What if a police car crashes and the officer dies while chasing us? I wouldn't be able to live with myself..."
"I know, Takumi. I know." Kai rested his head in his hands for a moment, letting out an anxious breath. "Just… get some sleep. We'll figure this out in the morning."
Takumi just laid there, looking miserable. Still, there was nothing Kai could do at the moment, and the teen made his way over to his own bed, falling into it heavily. Soon, both teens had fallen into a restless sleep, uncertain as to what new nightmare tomorrow would bring.