Sign of the Dragon (Tatsu Yamada Book 1) Read online

  ‘Back to my place?’ Kobayashi asked as she pulled on her panties.

  ‘I thought we’d find somewhere a little more comfortable,’ Tatsu replied.

  ‘Such as?’

  ‘There’s a love hotel down the street. You can decide the theme and it’s my treat. I may be a machine, but your floor is murder on my back and knees.’

  Kobayashi giggled. ‘Well, yeah, same. It’s not like those apartments were really made for acrobatic sex.’

  ‘They’re barely made for living in.’

  ‘So, why do you live in one? There are better buildings in Chiba, and I bet you could afford one.’

  ‘It does what I need. Mostly. On occasions like this it’s less than perfect, but then we have love hotels.’

  ‘You know they almost regulated those out of existence.’

  Tatsu nodded. ‘But then Izanami came along.’

  ‘Huh, yeah. What would we do without Izanami?’

  Get through a week without a visit from ‘mother?’ That was Tatsu’s first thought, but… ‘We’d all be dead or in a concentration camp.’

  ‘And you fought Rasputin’s robots. That had to be… I don’t know. All I ever got was horror stories in the guise of history lessons.’

  ‘Probably not far from the truth.’ The general dislike of full-body cyborgs stemmed from two causes. While cybernetics were not entirely uncommon, most people had trouble with total-body replacements since it blurred the line between man and machine. Behind it all, however, was the Cyberwar when killer robots had stormed across much of the planet. People still associated robots with death and internment, and full-body cyborgs were too close to being robots for many people’s comfort. ‘He built some very nasty machines. And we built some very nasty machines to counter them, though they were mostly aimed at killing other robots. If something can stop a robot, a human is easy.’

  ‘That’s depressing.’ Kobayashi was fully dressed now, if the relatively minimal, largely translucent outfit she was in could be called dressed. ‘Let’s go find ourselves an interesting room to spend the night.’

  ~~~

  The hotel was called Dream Castle and, externally, it looked like a castle, sort of. It was basically a block of concrete like every other building in the area, but the architects had added a couple of ‘towers’ at the front to give a castle-like impression and the main door had a portcullis-like arrangement mounted above it which could be dropped in case of riot. Safety and aesthetics in one reinforced, metallised plastic bundle.

  Typical of most establishments of its type, it offered hourly room rental as well as overnight rates after ten p.m. The rooms came with numerous themes. You could have decoration from a range of popular anime, and hentai, series. You could spend your night in a room which looked like it belonged in a hospital. In keeping with the castle concept, there were several rooms based around medieval European themes, including one which was almost certainly not authentic and happened to be the one Kobayashi selected: the dungeon. Medieval dungeons had certainly not had the bondage equipment this one had.

  Stretched over something which looked vaguely like a small vaulting horse, Tatsu wondered whether this was a kink Kobayashi was really into, or just something she played at. She was certainly enthusiastic about it. Or about using the strapless strap-on Tatsu had used on her to pound her lover from behind.

  ‘We’ll switch,’ Kobayashi said in a breathless voice, ‘in a bit. You can… tie me up.’

  Tatsu was far from silent, but words were not going to be involved. So, Kobayashi was not wholly solid on the dominatrix thing, but she did seem to like bondage. It was not something Tatsu had been heavily involved in. Right now, however, she could see the attraction. Right up until the point when she could see nothing.

  13th July.

  Tatsu was awoken from five hours of sleep by a message coming through from Sakurada Gate.

  Attend suspected homicide at attached coordinates. Observed similarity with existing case, link attached. Sergeant Kenzo Nakano has been notified.

  She did not really need to check the link to know which case it was. There was only one case she was working with Nakano. She sent an acknowledgement immediately and slipped out from under the red synthetic silk sheet.

  ‘You going?’ Kobayashi said after a second.

  ‘I got a call and, technically, I’m back on duty. The room’s prepaid. Stay as long as you like.’

  ‘Or until nine. I’ve been here before.’

  ‘Right. I’ll call you.’ Tatsu paused halfway through pulling her shorts up her thighs and looked at the dark eyes watching her. ‘I will call you.’

  White teeth showed in the dim light as Kobayashi smiled. ‘Can we come here again?’

  ‘Like the whips and chains?’

  ‘Actually, yes, but we could try some other rooms.’

  ‘As long as it’s not one of the anime ones. Being watched by a few dozen half-naked waifus is not my idea of a good environment for sex.’

  Kobayashi shuddered. ‘No. Same here.’

  ~~~

  There were better apartment blocks in Chiba. Evgeni Nikolaev lived in one of them. He had died there too.

  ‘Okay, so he was asleep, and someone sliced his throat like a slab of beef,’ Tatsu said.

  ‘And then stabbed him through the heart,’ Nakano added. ‘Seems like overkill. Who was he?’

  ‘Evgeni Anatoliy Nikolaev. He headed up the intelligence group within the Funabashi gang. That’s the name of Zima’s organisation, in case you missed it.’ Nikolaev was not a young man, likely over sixty, with grey hair and a few liver spots showing on his face. It was a little hard to tell because of all the blood. He kind of looked like someone’s kindly uncle, not exactly handsome, but comforting, if you ignored the open throat.

  ‘I didn’t. Is the intelligence group important?’

  ‘Nikolaev was kind of the power behind the throne under Zima. He was two decades older, something of a mentor. Much of the gang’s organisational structure was Nikolaev’s idea. He was old school. He had a degree in political history, I think. Admired the old Soviet systems. Vasilev would probably have maintained a good relationship with him, but the old man would have lost some of his power with the change in leadership. Further discussion can wait since I have a question. Nakano, what are you wearing?’

  Nakano looked down at his suit. It was a dark-grey suit over a white shirt with a grey tie. ‘One of my suits.’

  ‘Yeah, well you know how you thought I was inappropriately dressed when I got to Zima’s apartment?’

  ‘I do. And I stand by my comment.’

  ‘The difference here is that I’m not going to get mugged for valuables because of my outfit.’

  Nakano shrugged. ‘I don’t have anything valuable on me.’

  ‘You’ve got a gun.’ A sudden thought struck her. ‘Tell me you haven’t come down here unarmed.’

  He gave her a sour expression. ‘I haven’t come down here unarmed. I’m not a moron. Anyway, this is appropriate for where I’m supposed to be. Are we sure this is the same killer?’

  ‘Huh, no, but it seems likely. We’ve got the same lack of physical evidence. A jammer was used to block detection of the death again. Apartment data is gone. This time the building computer was tampered with. The entire security system was shut down at two thirteen, about ten minutes before he died. Oh, and we have another card, which is very suggestive.’

  ‘What does this one say?’

  ‘“The eyes of the monster have been plucked.”’

  ‘Poetic. So, we’re looking for a hacker?’

  Tatsu shrugged. ‘Or a team with a hacker in it.’ She paused. ‘I think we’re going to have to go see her.’

  ‘Her? Who?’

  ‘Yukiko Shiratori. If anyone has anything to gain from killing off the two most important people in the Funabashi gang, it’s the leader of the Shiratori-rengō. And she’s a master of iaijutsu.’

  14th July.

  It took time to org
anise a meeting with the kaichō of a powerful yakuza organisation. The Shiratori-rengō was not a big group, but it held sway over the Ichikawa area, the region of Tokyo on the western border of the Chiba Refugee Zone, and it had considerable political sway thanks to a relationship with the imperialist faction in the National Diet. Walking in to accuse Yukiko Shiratori of killing her competitors was simply not done and, for once, Tatsu had no intention of doing what should not be done. She was still a little irritated that it took until six p.m. the following day to get an appointment.

  Shiratori had a large house near the Edo River. It had been built after the war but styled after a traditional Japanese home. It had a dojo, a bathhouse, and a teahouse in the beautifully tended garden. Tatsu and Nakano were escorted to the dojo by a gorilla stuffed into a suit. The man was huge, and the suit seemed to have been sized just to show off his muscles. Tatsu had the urge to point out that a good tailor could make it fit better.

  In the dojo, Shiratori was going through sword kata with a younger woman. Both were dressed in the traditional robes used in kenjutsu, iaijutsu, and aikijujutsu. Shiratori was, in fact, a master of aikijutsu too. She looked the part, sort of. She was a little taller than Tatsu and looked fit, even if her body was heavily obscured by her outfit. She had very full lips, a somewhat flat nose, very dark eyes, and jet-black hair wound up into a bun with long bangs framing her face. She was attractive, even beautiful, but Tatsu had never seen her look happy.

  ‘Who’s the girl?’ Nakano whispered as they stood waiting for the session to finish. The girl in question did not look much like Shiratori aside from having black hair and eyes. Her mouth was smaller and followed a cupid’s bow design. Her nose was straighter and more pointed. She kept her hair short, barely reaching her shoulders, and feathered around her neck. She was taller by five centimetres and maybe not quite as fit. Maybe. She seemed to be keeping up with the kata well enough.

  ‘Kaede, her daughter.’

  ‘I didn’t think she was married.’

  Tatsu grinned. ‘Your conservative Japanese is showing. She isn’t and never has been, but Kaede is adopted. She was Kaede Morimoto before she became a Shiratori.’

  ‘Is she… part of the organisation?’ Nakano asked.

  ‘No. Kaede is a bit of a robotics genius. She’s studying engineering with an emphasis on microtechnology.’

  ‘You seem to know a lot about them.’

  ‘Well, this isn’t the first time I’ve had to visit this place.’

  ‘And that will do, Kaede,’ Shiratori said. ‘I must not keep Sergeant Yamada waiting.’

  Kaede bowed, quite deeply, to her adopted mother. ‘Of course. Thank you for the lesson.’ She had a soft, unassuming voice. She appeared to be an unassuming sort of girl.

  Shiratori returned the bow, less deeply. ‘Thank you, Kaede.’ Then, as the younger woman retreated, the yakuza boss turned to the two police officers. ‘Sergeant Yamada, will you introduce me to your friend?’ Her voice was quiet too, soft and just a bit sexy, but there was an undercurrent of authority behind the velvet overtones.

  ‘Of course,’ Tatsu said. ‘This is Sergeant Kenzo Nakano. He’s from Sakurada Gate.’

  Giving a small bow, Shiratori said, ‘It’s a pleasure to meet you, Sergeant Nakano. Might I enquire why I am receiving this pleasure?’

  ‘You’ve heard about Zima and Nikolaev?’ Tatsu asked.

  ‘Obviously. I won’t mourn either of them. Are you here to accuse me–’

  Tatsu waved a hand. ‘Of course not. We’re here because they were your enemies and they were killed with a sword and we would be entirely remiss if we didn’t come to see you.’

  The flare of anger was gone in an instant, and Tatsu noticed Nakano relaxing out of the corner of her eye. ‘I see.’ Shiratori looked Tatsu in the eyes. ‘I did not kill Anastas Zima or Evgeni Nikolaev, nor did I have someone else kill them. Do I need to provide alibis for the times of their death?’

  ‘We both know you could and that I’d never trust them anyway.’

  Even if the smile never reached her eyes, Shiratori smiled. She looked at Nakano. ‘This is what I like about your colleague, Sergeant Nakano, she affords me no more respect than anyone else she may have to deal with.’

  ‘She’s… unique,’ Nakano said.

  ‘Yes. She certainly is. Almost certainly more than you think.’ Shiratori shook her head. ‘I did not eliminate Zima or his mentor. I have no idea who did, but I am quite sure it was not one of my people. We don’t sign our work, for one thing. I would certainly like to meet the person who did this, however. I would shake their hand warmly and congratulate them on a job well done.’

  ~~~

  ‘I didn’t get the impression she was lying,’ Nakano said as they left the house.

  ‘No,’ Tatsu replied. ‘She didn’t do it. I didn’t really think she did, but I had to see it for myself. It will be interesting to see whether she takes advantage of the situation, however.’

  ‘You’re thinking she may butt heads with Vasilev?’

  ‘Maybe. Maybe whoever is doing this is hoping that she will.’

  ‘Right.’ They had reached Nakano’s car and Tatsu’s bike and it was time to split up. ‘Uh, Yamada, could I ask you for a favour?’

  ‘Well, you can ask.’

  ‘Okay. Well. It’s like this…’

  15th July.

  When Nakano had asked Tatsu over to his home, she had initially wondered what he was thinking. Then he had explained. Then she still had no idea what he was thinking, but she went along with it anyway.

  It was a long way from Chiba to the Koshigaya region where Nakano lived. This was effectively the Tokyo suburbs. You lived out that way if you were reasonably well-off, but not rich. Instead of high-rise apartment buildings, Koshigaya had one- and two-storey houses of relatively modern construction. Most of them had, in fact, been rebuilt after the war.

  Nakano’s place was single-storey and you rapidly got the impression that the residents there were a little different. The front door had a ramp leading up to it. Nakano did not need that, but he lived with his younger sister, who did. The door was opened by Nakano to reveal a typical Japanese hallway with a step up before you entered the house proper. This was where you removed your shoes, except that the step had a ramp set against it. Tatsu sat down on the step to unzip and remove her boots anyway.

  ‘Uh, when I asked you to wear a dress…’ Nakano began.

  ‘You were hoping it’d be opaque?’ Tatsu asked. The dress in question was a purple micromesh tank and you could certainly see the shadows of her body through it.

  ‘Oh, uh, it’s almost opaque.’

  ‘Wait until it gets a light shone right on it. You were hoping for something longer?’

  ‘Longer. Definitely. Maybe a little less low-cut.’

  ‘I have a limited supply of dresses. This was the most respectable I could find.’ Which was not entirely true. Teasing Nakano over the dress request just seemed like something she had to do.

  ‘I guess I can’t complain. It was me who asked you to come.’

  ‘Good point.’ Tatsu got to her feet. ‘Now, where’s the person I actually came to see?’

  ‘Mika’s in the lounge. Come on through.’

  Mika Nakano was not exceptionally short; in fact, she was about the same height as Tatsu, but she was stick thin. Her legs especially had absolutely no muscle development. She sat in an electric wheelchair in a T-shirt and shorts, both so baggy against her emaciated form. Her face had somehow managed to retain some weight, though it made her head look too large for her body. She had large, very dark eyes with very long lashes, a small flat nose, and perfectly average lips which looked made for pouting. Her black hair was quite full and curved around her face to end in fronds on her upper chest. When Tatsu checked her MedStat data, she got red and yellow back; the girl was probably terminally ill and stressed about it. She was a beautiful girl badly let down by an emaciated body.

  The smile she gave Tatsu was
bright and warm, however; her spirits seemed good. ‘Hello, I’m Mika Nakano. You must be Tatsu Yamada. Nii-san is always complaining about your outfits.’

  ‘I wouldn’t say always…’ Nakano mumbled.

  Tatsu stepped forward to shake Mika’s hand, noting the shake as Mika raised her arm. ‘It’s nice to meet you, Mika. Call me Tatsu. I got to complain about his outfit last time. He came to Chiba in a suit that screamed “please mug me.”’

  ‘That’s Nii-san. Please, sit down. Can I get you any refreshments? The tea is fresh.’

  Tatsu shook her head. ‘I don’t really need anything.’

  ‘No, because you’re… Uh, but that’s why you’re here, right? To persuade me that becoming a cyborg is a good thing.’

  Tatsu shook her head as she took a seat on the sofa beside Mika’s chair. ‘I’m not here to persuade you of anything. I’ll answer questions and provide information. Going full cyborg is a personal decision and you’re the only one who can make it.’

  ‘Why did you?’

  ‘Ah. Well, I’m a bad example. I was in a coma when they decided to perform the procedure. That being said, I prefer being alive to the alternative, so I can’t say I disagree with the decision.’

  ‘Okay. That actually tells me something… I have a neurological condition. I’ve had it since birth.’

  ‘It wasn’t detected in-vitro?’

  ‘No. It’s an obscure one and they’ve never isolated the genetic causes. It’s got a very long name. It’s slow. I was fine as a kid, but it’s slowly destroying my nervous system. The current estimate is no more than two years before it kills me.’

  ‘So, you have some time to make your decision. That’s why you’re in a wheelchair?’

  ‘No,’ Nakano said. ‘That was the war. It is why she can’t have less extensive cybernetics to let her walk again.’

  ‘And I’d likely have trouble walking by this point anyway,’ Mika added. ‘And it’s starting to affect my work.’ She lifted her right arm. Her palm shook noticeably as she tried to hold it steady. ‘I’m an artist. I do graphics for websites, some manga work, that kind of thing. At this rate, I won’t be able to for much longer. So, I have incentive. I’ve just… I’m not sure…’