The first few rays of light dyed the cobblestone streets in their tender shade on this freezing morning in March as most of the traditional district still laid dormant, except for a few working, law-abiding citizens.
"How dare you show up this early at my home?" Mr. Horimiya hissed in a more or less sleep drunk tone.
"Ginkgo Horimiya, you are under arrest for the murder of your wife Chise Horimiya. You have the right to remain silent. Everything you say, can and will be used against you." Hachirō declared as the familiar metallic noise clicked in Tatsumi's ears.
"Hmm, father… what's going on here?" His son in pajamas yawned, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes as if to make sure he wasn't dreaming.
"Shinji…" Tatsumi exhaled. "Can you bring your sister with you? We need to ask your father a few questions at the department."
The boy glanced once more at the sight of his father in handcuffs and then back at Tatsumi. "Alright, I'll be right back. Will father… you know…"
"Don't you dare tell these dilettantes a word! You know nothing. Am I understood?"
"Yes, father."
He vanished back into the house to do as the officer had asked.
*****
Tatsumi slowly passed through the door leading into that claustrophobic gray box they use for interrogations.
"You have detained my client on- I don't even know what to call this. Flimsy, circumstantial evidence at best. If this goes to court, I will have Mr. Horimiya returned home as a free man and you sued for defamation on the same day." The attorney sternly reprimanded the officer across from him, while Mr. Horimiya was merely casting him a sidelong glance.
Tatsumi gulped as quietly as possible, yet he was certain they both spotted the dead giveaway of his insecurity. "Look, you may be right if you look at the evidence in isolation, but-"
"No 'but'. The evidence is too thin and you have unjustly detained Mr. Horimiya." The lawyer interrupted. His smug expression only widened, now that he caught the scent of a quick and easy victory like a bloodhound his next meal. In that regard lawyers and animals were exactly the same.
"In isolation the evidence doesn't look like much, but-"
"You are wasting our time, officer. This widower placed his trust in you, the police, to apprehend the murderer of his wife for goodness sake! Yet you come up with baseless claims and even have the audacity to drag Mr. Horimiya's reputation through the dirt by making him the prime suspect of this so-called investigation."
Tatsumi brought his fist down on the table. "Let me finish, goddamnit!" Breath exhaled. "All the evidence we have suggests that Mr. Horimiya killed his wife."
"What evidence?" The lawyer demanded rhetorically. "You have a few witness accounts at most. And you based your case on what? My client's tax declaration? Not to mention that it was perfectly legal, supervising my client's economic circumstances is not your responsibility."
"Your client over there is the only one with a motive. He doubled his wife's life insurance, shortly before she was murdered."
The lawyer sighed and rolled his eyes. "If that was true, then every spouse in this country would be under suspicion of having a motive for murder."
"So you mean to tell me that your client over there doubled his wife's life insurance just because he felt like it?"
"My client and his wife only had their children's financial security in mind when doing that. Can you blame the man for that?"
"No, of course not. It just looks awfully suspicious."
"Looks can be deceiving. If that's everything, then-"
"I have a hard time believing the caring parent act, because when I talked to his son he had bruises all over. Your client most likely abused his son and did so too with his wife."
The lawyer scowled. "And where's your proof, officer? He's a child. Children can get rough with each other when they play. He may have sustained them in school for all we know. Now I have a question for you, officer." He paused, staring right back into Tatsumi's eyes with nothing but contempt.
"If it's not for urgent suspicion as to why you pursue my client so incessantly, then what is it? Is it because you want to impress your superiors or with all due respect, is it because your father used to be that kind of despicable man which you are now desperately trying to paint onto Mr. Horimiya and his family to assert your own world view?"
Tatsumi used his right to remain silent for all its worth. For he would have been the first one stupid enough to assault someone in a police department with several witnesses, if he didn't. He watched along as his fist twisted forcefully inside his other hand. Mr. Horimiya was a free man at this point. And once he passed through that door, his lawyer, that self-assured son of a bitch wouldn't even have to go to the trouble of filing a request for Tatsumi's suspension.
If Mr. Horimiya walked out of this room as a free man, Tatsumi might as well hand in his resignation and shovel shite around in some rich nobleman's stables or apply for the meat grinder outright.
Teeth ground against each other. Where had he gone wrong? Before this interrogation of Mr. Horimiya, the evidence seemed more or less sufficient to confirm the abusive bastard as the killer, but now it seemed 'whimsical' at best. Worse yet, the lawyer managed to dismiss all the accusations without even breaking a sweat and even had the nerve to throw shade at his family.
If it went on like this, the lawyer would bullrush his client into freedom and the murderer of Chise Horimiya would go unpunished. An unacceptable outcome. Yet, Tatsumi has already revealed his hand.
No.
There was one card left. He had one last ace up his sleeve that he could play. A play so desperate that it was just as liable to get him kicked off the force and potentially charged with child abuse. Usually, he would have felt terribly guilty about involving Shinji in this mess but Tatsumi had to do it, for if he didn't he was damned for certain. Both of them for that matter.
He tore the door open on his way out, returning only moments later.
Mr. Horimiya glared bloody daggers at Tatsumi and his son beside the officer.
"What is my client's son doing in here? I don't remember giving you Mr. Horimiya's permission to interrogate him."
"Shinji, you can sit here." Dragging his stool across the floor, Tatsumi let the shrill noise grate against his suspect's ears and hammered it down behind Mr. Horimiya with a loud bang. "He's the key witness. Shinji watched as Mr. Horimiya killed his mother. Besides, I'm still interrogating your client. Shinji just happens to be sitting there." He responded. Must have been heartbreaking for the lawyer to see his efforts ruined.
"I will report this to internal affairs and have you suspended, if the boy doesn't leave this instant."
"Good luck with that. He's not leaving."
Mr. Horimiya's murderous glare was now fixated on his son. As if his wife wasn't enough at this point.
"Shinji, you'll just have to answer a few questions. I'm sure you already know that you shouldn't lie to me or else you or your dad might get in trouble with the law." Tatsumi spoke in a considerably softer tone, giving a stark contrast to the coldness that preceded it.
Shinji merely nodded, averting his gaze from his father's deadly stare and the lawyer's stone-faced expression. Tatsumi gently placed his hand on the boy's shoulder. "Where did you get your bruises?"
The boy dared to glance at his father to find that familiar hatred radiating in his black eyes.
"I fell…"
"Really? Where? And how?"
"Officer, if that's his statement, then leave it at that." The lawyer sternly reprimanded him. "You know what I begin to believe, officer? You gave him the bruises to make your story match up with Mr. Horimiya as an abuser and a terrible father in your self-righteous crusade so you could have an easy scapegoat for this case."
"No! Tatsumi didn't do that." Shinji denied immediately.
"Then tell us the truth so we can all go home." The attorney sneered at the boy. But before he could speak, his father did it for him.
Mr. Horimiya attempted to mask his hateful stare behind a rehearsed, blank grimace only for his resurfacing death glare to predetermine his son's response. "I regret not having brought this to your attention sooner, but my son is getting bullied in his school for quite some time now."
"Is that so, Shinji? If I ask the other kids in school, will they confirm this and tell me who did that to you? Because if that's the case, I can help you with that. You're not alone." Tatsumi's offered.
"Yes." He replied with a shake of his head. As expected.
"Could you go into detail, please? Where and how did you get them?" Tatsumi insisted.
Not breaking his uncertain stare towards his father, his eyes desperately pleaded for any sign of approval in a vain attempt as he recounted the details of his injuries. "The ones on my arm are from… Hideo. He and his friends beat me after class."
"Why?"
The lawyer cleared his throat. "Do they need a reason? They did it and that's it. That still doesn't justify the accusation of my client supposedly being an abuser."
"Because if I know the reason, I can better resolve the situation." He turned his attention back to the boy and gently placed his hand on Shinji's. "I know this must be hard on you, but I can't help you, if you don't tell me anything but the whole truth. Do you understand?"
Shinji stared into his lap and nodded. "I understand."
Tatsumi couldn't miss the scornful eye roll from Mr. Horimiya even if he tried his damndest. "So? Why did this Hideo and company gang up on you?"
"He was mad because they lost the football match at the end of sports class. Then… he and his friends shoved me around in the dressing room and started slapping and hitting me everywhere." Shinji glanced down at the blue spots across his arm. "I held my arms up like this but then… They pinned me to the wall and hit me in my chest and all."
"I see. And the black eye you got there?"
The boy's hand slowly trailed over the bruised skin. "I can't remember… Hideo must have hit me there and knocked me out."
"See, officer? On top of his wife's passing, Mr. Horimiya also has to put up with violent, unsocialized children preying on his son. And you have the audacity to-"
"Didn't ask." Tatsumi hissed at the lawyer. "Shinji. I am very sorry to hear that. Because regardless of what happens with your father, this needs to be addressed. I will talk to your teachers and get the parents of the kids who've done this to you involved so this never happens again."
Again, he could feel the officer's hand firmly resting on him, providing him with much appreciated comfort. "No, officer. It's ok. Hideo and I… settled it. I apologized." He gulped.
Tatsumi couldn't miss the scornful eye roll from Mr. Horimiya even if he tried his damndest. Even now, Shinji was not willing to implicate his father. But perhaps… he wouldn't have to. At least not on his own.
Tatsumi sat down behind Mr. Horimiya, eyes still lingering on his son sitting across the table. "There is only one problem with your statement, Shinji. When I talked to you on Saturday, you didn't have that black eye, so something must have happened."
"Well, it happened the day after-"
"That day was a Sunday. You see the problem?" Tatsumi gently reminded him.
Mr. Horimiya let out a strained sigh. "Go on. Tell him the truth. It's gotten so bad that he's started hitting himself."
Shinji hesitated again, carefully considering his next words. The lawyer gave him a slight nod.
"Even now, when your father needs your help the most, he still scorns you. Because he knows he'll get away with it as with everything else. He has no respect for you. Neither for you, nor your mother. Hell, not even for me." Tatsumi kept his voice purposefully low as he spoke straight to the boy facing the source of all his senseless suffering. "I will find out the truth. One way or another. Maybe I'll pay your school a visit today."
Shinji's eyes widened at that offer, loudly swallowing down the lump stuck in his throat that must have built up from all the stress that had been piled onto him until this very moment. The mounting pressure tightened around his neck, patiently waiting to choke. Eyes desperately searched for an escape to somewhere.
His father remained a dead end.
He took one last glance at his father and then back at Tatsumi.
Leaning over the desk, Shinji finally raised his voice and for once emotion resonated in his words. "No, I'm not getting bullied in school! And I'm not hitting myself either! It was father!"
The corners of his eyes turned damp following his confession.
Mr Horimiya slammed his fist into the table. "How dare you?!"
"I think we can all agree on your client's abusive tendencies now."
"Oh, please! This proves nothing! You cooked his son, until he told you the answers you wanted to hear. Let alone the murder of Miss Horimiya. The boy is utterly confused and not suitable as a witness at any capacity. Quit wasting our time, officer." The lawyer scoffed.
"Am I not supposed to trust my lying eyes now? What's next? Is Shinji secretly trying to blackmail your poor client by making it look like he abuses him?"
"Yes, why not? Do you have evidence to the contrary?"
Tatsumi merely gave him a sidelong glance.
"No, sir. I'm not making this up." Shinji insisted. "The black eye is from Saturday. My father hit me there for giving my essay to the officer without his permission. He kept saying I was starting to 'undermine' him like mom and that I should 'know my place'."
The attorney whispered something into his client's ear, to which he nodded. "Even if he allegedly disciplined his son with force, this proves nothing. As per my client's account, his son does like to test his patience past its generous limit."
"Discipline?! Whatever your idea of discipline is, if you have any kids, I hope it doesn't look like this." Pulling out a folded sheet of paper, he continued. "My colleague can also confirm this course of events. Your client was not pleased to put it mildly. Probably for the fear that Shinji might write something he wasn't supposed to."
The lawyer's teeth visibly grated against each other underneath his lips before he reengaged. "Need I remind you that we are here today because of Ms. Horimiya and not the alleged abuse of my client's son? You should have had domestic relations court sort this out and not blow it up into a murder investigation."
"Let's face it. Your client maintains an abusive relationship towards his son. His deceased wife as well. It's in plain sight at this point."
Mr. Horimiya huffed and folded his arms, pouting like a toddler who had his favorite toy taken from him.
"My client will not respond to such tasteless, unsubstantiated accusations."
"Oh, I bet he wants to respond to them. He's itching under his fingers, isn't he?"
His eyes narrowed fatally on his son. "Shinji lacks discipline. It's my responsibility as a father to teach him exactly that. And if you lot were competent enough to keep the streets safe from the criminal scum and their bosses, we wouldn't be here today."
"Oh, it's our fault now? I expected as much from you. What makes you so sure that it was organized crime? You said you had no trouble of the sort."
"Isn't it obvious? They broke into my client's home to send him a message."
"Because he had debts with the local crime lord, I assume."
"Exactly. It's clear that Mr. Horimiya is the victim of the violent mob lording over the streets and the incompetence of the police. With that being said, this interrogation is over. If you still persist on pressing charges, knock yourself out." He sighed already off his seat, briefcase firmly in hand.
"Not so fast." Tatsumi grabbed the older man on his upper arm and dragged him back onto his seat. "Your client steadfastly denied having ANY debt when I talked to him. The idea of being beholden to someone, let alone some random thug is beneath a businessman like him."
"Why does that matter?"
"Don't play dumb. Either your client has a motive or you are a liar." Tatsumi shot back as he positioned himself next to Shinji again.
"So? I raised my wife's life insurance. What's wrong with that? Both of us always thought about my children when doing that."
Tatsumi couldn't help but snicker, earning bewildered gazes from all parties involved. "Nice try, really." His jovial grin faded quickly into a cold stare. "The jig is up. I'm not buying the caring parent act. Especially not from a deadbeat like you."
This time Mr. Horimiya remained unexpectedly quiet, though he was obviously seething underneath that facade forcefully put up. It was written all over his face.
"Believe what you will, officer. You can't open my client's head and know exactly what he thought at that moment." There it was again. That self-assured smugness whenever the bastard felt like he said something remotely smart.
"No, I can't. The fact that he already blew the money on his casino does speak volume though."
Mr. Horimiya's eyes snapped wide open.
"So? Is he supposed to hold onto that money until he dies?"
Tatsumi squatted down beside Shinji. "No, but you'd expect you know… a bit more grief. See, Shinji… The way your father behaves. He can't control it. He is like the people you see in his casino. He needs to gamble until there is nothing left." He attempted to explain in a tone that was almost pitying the potential killer.
"Don't you dare patronize me!" Mr. Horimiya growled. "Just because I invest doesn't mean you can equate me to some gambling addict."
Tatsumi stood tall again. Fortunately, he regained control of this interrogation and all the pieces started falling into place. All that was left was to confront Mr. Horimiya with the evidence and make him lash out for the improbability of a confession. He'd undoubtedly have to assault him on the personal front, so that his lawyer couldn't just make his client stonewall the entire interrogation and stroll out of the department by default.
Only if Horimiya showed his true colors would the district attorney have a waterproof case in court, which she had been very much adamant on going off what the vice-captain had told him on the way to Mr. Horimiya's address. And once she had that, Mr. Horimiya would get what he deserved.
Life behind bars for the abusive scumbag.
"No, you are not just some gambling addict. You sir, are THE gambling addict. Playing with a few chips or coins wasn't enough for you. No… Your stakes are higher." Tatsumi raised his voice as he positioned himself behind Mr. Horimiya once more. "It's the life of you and your family. And no matter how often you lost, you kept coming back for more. As the owner of a casino you should know by now that the house always wins."
Forcing that little smirk on his face just like Leone had told him, he doubled down on his previous statement to confront his suspect with every possible vice Mr. Horimiya's character had to offer.
At this point, he had to pull out all stops.
"Listen up, you little shit! You don't know me or my fa-"
His lawyer pulled his client aside and whispered firmly into his ear. 'Firmly' was putting it mildly though as the 'remain silent' could probably be heard in the next room still. "Your baseless attacks on Mr. Horimiya's character only contribute more proof for me to have you suspended."
"You said they broke into your house to send you a message, yeah?"
Surprisingly, he leaned back to seek the counsel of his lawyer to which he nodded. "Yes. They smashed the glass door to gain access to his home. Then they killed his wife because of the debts he had with Keisuke Shozen."
"There's only a few problems with your theory. Let's put aside that Shozen would rather have your client beat half-dead than kill his wife to and I quote him directly 'not cause unwanted attention'."
"Do you have anything substantial instead of your speculations?"
"Look, we can both agree on the fact that Shozen is not what we would call a law-abiding citizen but this time I'm inclined to believe him. The scene suggested an emotionally charged crime. To these people, it's just business. Not to mention that Shozen would not send someone to kill the woman he is still very much fond of. If anything, she was the reason Shozen didn't harm your client." Tatsumi elaborated.
"Putting that aside, the neighbors never saw or heard anyone break into your house. They only heard some noise around afternoon, which was roughly around the time your wife was killed."
The lawyer's eyes still lingered on the piece of paper goin up and down in Tatsumi's hands. "The neighbors likely missed it. Shozen's henchmen are probably skilled enough to kill someone without rousing too much suspicion."
"Possibly. They smashed in the glass door to get inside so that's why no one saw them. Provided they did and that is questionable, given the mess the living room was in, where have you been around 4pm in the afternoon?"
Mr. Horimiya let out an unnerved sigh. "I already told you. I was working in my office."
"And your employees or anyone else saw you?"
"Yes, probably. One of them came into my office and asked if he could have a vacation next week."
"That's your next lie. Your workers told me that it's an unspoken rule that when you lock yourself into that bunker you call your office that they're supposed to leave you alone." Tatsumi vanished from his sight and returned as a low whisper lingering in his ears, crawling all the way down his spine. "I found the back door. You had a motive and all the time in the world to do it. So I ask again, where were you around 4pm in the afternoon?"
For a few moments, Mr. Horimiya hesitated instead of retaliating with some snide remark, while his attorney formulated his next response. "I came home early to surprise my wife seeing as we wanted to enjoy the weekend, since my children were with her parents and on my way back, I saw two men smash my glass door. By the time I arrived, they had already killed my wife and left. I couldn't protect my wife. I was… deeply ashamed."
"So you admit to not being in your office during the time your wife was killed. And you didn't call for the city guards or police immediately because of your hurt pride but instead waited until late evening when we happened to arrive on the scene?" His emerald green eyes blinked repeatedly. "Sorry, but that's bullshit and you know it."
"There was nothing I could do! They forced-"
"That's funny because there were no traces of forced entry." Tatsumi revealed.
"But the glass door-"
"The killer wasn't smart enough to go outside and smash the door after he killed Ms. Horimiya or put all the shards back into the living room. Judging by her scars, she was shoved through the glass door as her killer was going berserk. Had someone forced his way in, the glass would be all over the living room and not outside so these two men can't have broken in like you said. That's yet another lie."
"They could have just overwhelmed her at the front entrance after she opened the door." The lawyer suggested as his shoulders tensed up slowly.
"Someone would have seen that in broad daylight. But putting all that aside, I have an eye witness that proves your client is the killer." Tatsumi finally unfolded the piece of paper he was holding on to for almost the entire duration of this interrogation. "'In the afternoon I jumped rope in the living room and my mother watched as the door opened. She choked on her tea. It was my father.' Does that sound familiar?"
Shinji turned away from his father committing murder with his eyes again.
"What is this, officer?" The attorney demanded.
"This is Shinji's assignment. The one he gave to me. It doesn't look like much at first, but if you read through it, you'll see that this is a written confession of what happened that day. Isn't it so, Shinji?"
The boy chose to remain silent.
"Even if you're somehow correct, this proves nothing. Do you seriously want to make a minor testify? Against his own father no less?"
Again, he slowly, deliberately paced back and forth between father and son. "It's up to Shinji in the end. I won't force him." Tatsumi returned as he sat back down behind Mr. Horimiya. "Look, we both know your father. He won't stop. Even if you lie for him."
"Stop turning my son against me, you-!" Mr. Horimiya shot up, only for the officer to push him back down onto his seat from which he could merely watch everything unfold.
"I'm sure you already noticed it. Your father… he can't control himself. Whenever things don't go his way, he turns aggressive. Against you, your mother or others below him. Maybe even your sister once she's old enough." Tatsumi began to explain while Shinji swallowed several uneven breaths. He returned to his suspect's side, bending down to stare right into his artificially blank eyes.
"Growing up in the slums must have been hell for you. So you made it your mission to escape your home at any cost. But you quickly realized that wherever you went, it followed you. You couldn't do it yourself. "Tatsumi paused, before he appeared on Mr. Horimiya's other side, obviously startling the man as he quickly forced his head to follow the officer.
His pitying, almost benignant expression shifted into that familiar smirk. "All these rich people probably looked down on you like you were some sort of dirty, rotten peasant. So you ran to the local crime lord, got on your knees and begged him to pay for your little gold mine. And he did. For a second you stand on top of the world, looking down on the poor of the district from your balcony. It was incredible, wasn't it?"
Mr. Horimiya gulped, hurriedly escaping the officer's gaze.
"But eventually, Shozen's debt collectors started showing up at your doorstep. It reminded you of the days back in the slums, looking at those with towers of gold. No, it was power. That's what you always wanted. That's why you despise the poor. Because they have no power. No control."
"Being born poor is not a problem. It only is, if you choose to stay poor."
"Well, that's our problem, isn't it? Like those around you, you were born into poverty. It turned your life into a real slot machine. Stuck with that deadbeat you had to call 'father' and his wife."
Tatsumi raised his voice again. "And then it dawned on you. That thug lord only gave you his gold, not because he thought you were a decent businessman who could be trusted with money. No. He did it over the sentimentality of the past relationship between him and your wife."
By now, Tatsumi fully expected to have the man's hands around his throat for revealing his insecurities in front of his son and assassinating his character like that. Surprisingly, Mr. Horimiya remained paralyzed on his seat. If anything, his murderous glare remained trained on his son for the majority of this interrogation.
Made sense. People like Mr. Horimiya would never dare punch above their weight. Instead they take great joy in trampling on those underneath them.
Tatsumi's smirk faded as quickly as it had appeared, leaving a stone wall in place. "I mean you could have been thankful for all the nice things you already got. A beautiful family, a house many people, myself included, can't even afford to dream about and a relatively stable job. But no…"
He rose from his stool and so did his voice again. "No. You needed more. So you put everything on the line at the altar of your own greed. You just kept aimlessly pouring money into your casino like a hopeless gambling addict desperately waiting for the jackpot. You could have even cut your losses and walked away with dignity. You knew it and your wife knew it."
"You mustn't respond to that. The officer can't-"
"Chise knew nothing! She didn't understand what it takes to lead a successful business like I do." Mr Horimiya hissed back, though his voice audibly lacked the venomous anger it was laced in just prior.
"What do you know about that? You only need eyes to know that your thing isn't doing too well. You'd have preferred if Shozen would have given you the full blown treatment. Because then there would have been someone you could dump all the blame on. But there was only you."
He glanced towards Shinji and pointed at his father. "I'm sure you noticed this too. Your father can't take responsibility for anything. It's always yours or someone else's fault when something doesn't work out."
He took the absence of denial as a confirmation of his statement.
"It takes extraordinarily horrendous leadership to not generate income with a casino. And deep down you must have known this but you were way too proud to admit that to yourself. Your wife figured that out at some point, one way or another." Switching sides again, Tatsumi continued in an intentionally lower tone that feigned understanding, if not compassion.
"Already, you were suffocating under the weight of your mistakes and then this woman had the audacity to suggest selling the casino. Your business. Your life's work. She effectively called you a failure in doing that. She had no right to do that."
Mr. Horimiya clenched his fists on the table until his knuckles turned white as every word started to settle in. "We didn't argue about the casino. As I said, she didn't concern herself too much with that."
"Your son told me the opposite. You were constantly going back and forth over it. To the point that you became physical. And I'm more inclined to believe Shinji on this because he has no reason to lie, whereas you… it wouldn't be your first lie of the day. After all, your wife was out of line."
"My client and his wife may have disagreed on the matter, but that's no reason to suggest he murdered her."
"Usually, it wouldn't." He forced the mocking grin back on his face.
"But your client over there was on the verge of insanity. And his wife only pushed him further. Surely, beating her into submission would shut her up. You must have picked that from your father whenever he came home utterly pissed from whatever low wage job he forced himself through." Tatsumi sat on the table and for the first time when their gazes met again, there was neither that familiar scorn or hatred, but rather… fear.
Move in for the kill.
"When you saw that letter addressed to her, you went berserk in the kitchen because you weren't in control anymore. You were afraid again like all these years ago. You were suffocating. So you threw everything you had at her. From the pan to your fists." The loud bang his fist made against the table briefly halted his reconstruction of the crime.
"Once that didn't work out, you choked her to death so you could finally breathe again. And while you were at it, why not make some profit off the situation so you could keep gambling? That's what smart businessmen like you do, no?"
Mr. Horimiya shot up from his stool. Eyes became daggers.
"Do not respond to these unpro-"
"I will no longer sit here and be ridiculed by some spoiled brat! I've had enough of this runt lying about my person and my family! He's lucky that we're sitting in a police department. Otherwise-"
"We can find out if I'm lying pretty easily." Tatsumi interjected and turned his attention to the boy who has remained silent for several minutes now. "Shinji, did you see what your father did to your mother?"
"Don't you dare lie now or I swear down on your mother's grave-" Mr. Horimiya growled through his teeth, only hindered by his lawyer desperately attempting to shut him up.
"He may take care of you now, but what about in a few years? Even if you lie for him now, your father might place a life insurance on you next just to be extra safe. You saw how that ended with your mother."
Both parties had made their plea. At this very moment, Shinji was sitting behind the table as the judge over his father's and possibly Tatsumi's fate depending on his verdict. All that was absent were the robes and the gavel.
The boy averted his gaze a final time before he spoke. "It was father." His eyes sharpened with focus. "Father was mad again, so when I came home I quickly ran into my room. He kept yelling 'how dare you?!'. Then I heard stuff being thrown around. When I came down, my father-"
Mr. Horimiya lunged over the table. He tackled the boy down, both hands viciously strangling his son's throat. "You should have-"
Tatsumi tore the man off his son and pinned him to the wall. "I will see you rot in jail." He whispered into his ears.
Cuffs closed.
Mr. Horimiya still struggled against the metal that bound his wrists, but to no avail. When that realization settled in, his face twisted furiously, contorted violently against any laws of nature Tatsumi thought were still in effect.
"I should have killed you when I had the chance! You are not my son! You hear me? If I ever get out, I'll make you suffer like your whore of a mother! You deserve to die! All of you! You're a failure to my entire family! My life is over because of you! Kill yourself!"
Dragging Mr. Horimiya away, kicking and screaming, Tatsumi handed him over to the nearest two constables. The man was led away to his cell under his unintelligible, unhinged cries until the metal door to the penitentiary fell closed.
There was a brief silence in the police department. It was almost peaceful. For a moment everything stood still. All the investigative work, all the stress, all the sleepless nights. All of it dragged away in cuffs within a few moments.
Tatsumi sank slowly beside the bench onto the beige vinyl floor, burying his face inside his hands as the adrenaline subsided and with its departure, fatigue began to reemerge.
"My client would be ready to plead guilty if that lowers the sentence."
"Tell the district attorney." Tatsumi replied through his hands.
He forced himself back up and pushed out a deep breath. Right now, there were a thousand more pressing matters. And one of them still stood in the interrogation room. He rushed to Shinji, who still stared distantly in the direction of where his father had been taken to.
"Shinji, are you hurt?"
"No, I'm alright." He looked up to the officer. His gaze was wavering with uncertainty and tears, yet yearning for answers. "How will I explain this to Misaki?"
Tatsumi merely pulled the boy close into a gentle hug for the lack of an answer. "I don't know… Your sister deserves the truth. But not right now."
Dampness began to stain his trousers. Only Shinji himself and god knew how much he had to endure until this moment; months, possibly years of what had just transpired in the interrogation room. And there was no one to make the monster he called 'father' disappear. Truly, the boy had been living in a never-ending nightmare. One from which he feared he would never wake.
"It's over now. He can't hurt you anymore."
Tatsumi noticed the somber gaze from the vice-captain from the other side of the department. He merely shook his head in response and led the boy away to a less crowded part of the place.
Shinji chucked back a sob. "What now?"
"Do you have family to go to?"
"Yeah, grandma and grandpa should be at home."
"Alright, I'll take you home. Don't worry, everything will be alright." He kneeled down, a reassuring smile on his face as he wiped Shinji's tears away. "Let's get your sister before we go."
******
Tatsumi returned to the familiar, gray concrete walls that surrounded him for the entire morning by now. Even if only three hours at most had passed, to him it felt more like three days as he took a moment of respite at his desk.
"I wouldn't have blamed ya, if ya had gone straight back home. I've already done most of the paper stuff for ya." Hachirō sighed as he dumped another stack of warrants on his desk, most of them bound together by a rubber band holding on for dear life.
"I'm awake now and I've still got plenty of work to do." Tatsumi did his best to stifle the yawn escaping his lips. Now that everything settled down, a wave of fatigue attempted to roll over him. "And… I guess, I just wanted to talk."
"I'm sure it's about your little chat with Mr. Horimiya. It turned pretty ugly by the looks of it."
He pinched his temples and let out a weary breath. "He jumped his son as he was about to confess. Tried to choke him to death like his wife. At least the district attorney is going to be happy, right?"
"Oh… yeah, that's pretty much how to confess without confessing. If the judge hears this, he's almost gonna be forced to put him behind bars. Good job. On your first interrogation too. I wish I had such a stellar record."
"You blew your first one? I can hardly imagine that."
"It was a dumpster fire. I'm never gonna forget that day." He snickered. "It was so bad my boss wanted to kick me outta the room so he could still get the suspect to spill the beans. His name was Wataru and he was a walking superiority complex. He apparently owned some sort of law firm too."
"Point is, the midget had five love affairs goin' on next to his wife and rid himself of each one after he had his fun, while using his rich wife's money to bail himself out of trouble or blowing it on said love affairs or booze and drugs."
"How charming." Tatsumi remarked with a raised eyebrow.
"It was obvious that he murdered every single one of 'em so the old man thought: 'Let that green officer handle that so I can see what the next generation got, 'fore I take my leave.'. And it was his last day at the office. So we went there and I kept fumbling the bag at every step possible. I kid ya not, at some point he beat me over the head, while we were supposed to be interrogating the guy."
He took a moment to get his laughter under control, before he set up a grumpy grimace and a gruff tone that aged him by at least 20 years. "He yelled at me 'You stupid mongrel! Don't just stare at the dwarf like he's your husband! Confront him with the evidence! Do something for emperor's sake! And stop stuttering!'. I completely choked. He grabbed my arm and tossed me outta the room."
It surprised Tatsumi how the man could laugh at himself over something so embarrassing. He could never imagine Ogre doing the same. Neither himself in all honesty. Tatsumi would do his best to make himself and those around him forget it ever happened. Or at least make sure it never came up again to avoid turning into a running gag.
But then again, the vice-captain had never taken himself too seriously. To great effect, seeing as Tatsumi was chuckling in his seat.
"And he still got him to confess?"
"Yeah. He made him crack only a few minutes later. Poor midget even smashed in the glass window with his stool because he couldn't take it anymore."
"Damn… Your boss must have gotten under his skin real quick. Did he go into retirement after that?"
"Hell nah. He kept goin' on how he'd even wait out the grim reaper until I could properly interrogate suspects if he had to. Eventually I got the hang of it, but he kept stickin' around. A year later he had a stroke on his way home after work. The old man passed away the same day. God rest his soul." Hachirō stared up at the ceiling for a brief moment when he uttered that last sentence.
"Oh, that's… sad."
"Nah, I don't think he'd have wanted it any other way. Perhaps we were also some sort of family to him, even if the old man would never admit that openly. The force was his life. I think… he wasn't ready to let go." He paused. "But if you'd ask him I'd say… the old man was glad when things came to an end for him. Relieved. Yeah, let's phrase it like that. Sorry, I keep ramblin' lots about the past. I feel kinda old sayin' that."
"I don't mind. Your stories tend to be interesting." After a brief silence, Tatsumi spoke again. "How do you plan to retire?"
"C'mon, I ain't even 40 years old! But… you know me. I'm a lazy sack! I'll retire as soon as possible and spend all day chasing after my girls." Hachirō admitted shamelessly with that big, goofy grin on his face.
"How are you going to chase after them? You can't even catch thieves anymore." Tatsumi questioned as a teasing grin spread across lips.
"When it's for my girls I can run far and fast, don't ya worry. Another one might be waitin' in the wings. Or perhaps my future son."
"That's awesome! I'm so happy for you."
"If it's a boy, I might even let ya name him." He hummed blissfully.
"No, I can't do that. He's your-"
"If Ayano's fine with it, I'm probably gonna be as well."
Tatsumi chuckled nervously. For as long as their cheerful banter lasted, he could cut out today's events, but when they inevitably returned to bother him, it was equal to abruptly being pulled into a free fall only to crashland hard on the ground that was called 'reality'.
And judging by Hachirō's frown, it must have been written all over his face.
"So, how did it go? That's quite a jump you made compared to last time."
"I had some help." Tatsumi revealed as he slogged through another warrant. "The start was terrible. Mr. Horimiya was a free man pretty much. It looked like it was all over. And then that bastard of a lawyer also insulted my family just because he could."
Adjusting his pair of glasses, Hachirō turned his head to look over. "Yeah, I've had the pleasure with him a bunch of times by now. He's got a big mouth when he's in that room but that's just his job I guess. Don't take it to heart. Anyway, how"
"I got Shinji involved and once he was in the room with me, something must have clicked."
"The abuse opened the door for ya again. It was quite the gamble."
"From that point on it felt like I was… acting. Going through a script in my head that someone else wrote for me." He peeked into his various notes concerning Ginkgo Horimiya's personality for reassurance. "In one moment I was confronting him with the facts and in the next I was mocking him. I acted like I pitied him, only to be stone cold to him right after."
"That's how it is at times. Us humans are really something, aren't we? We are one of the few living beings who can unite these contradictions within ourselves and still make sense. Somewhat at least."
"I kind of cycled through these personalities whenever I felt I had to. And none of them felt like they were part of me. If anything, I just tried to sound like you whenever you interrogate suspects."
Hachirō snickered at that. "I'm flattered. But I think you're mistaken. Like the occasional carnival artist ya see on the streets juggling several balls at once, ya did the same with your 'personalities'. Some of 'em may conflict with who you think you are as a person. Ya may not even be completely aware of 'em but they're part of you. Hence the term 'acting' is pretty accurate."
"I guess… It really felt like some other 'me' did this whole thing in my place and stayed behind in the interrogation room."
"That might also stem from the fact that you're not sleepin' properly. People tend to experience 'depersonalization' at some point. It's… You start feelin' like you're detached from your own body. You're just a viewer. That type of stuff. It usually happens when you pull all-nighters."
"Possibly…" Tatsumi leaned back in his chair, letting his eyes fall shut before he forced them back open a few seconds later. "I can't stop thinking about Shinji and his sister… They'll grow up without their parents."
"Oftentimes, it's up to those who are left behind to pick up the pieces. But you gave 'em closure, so at least they can get on with their lives now."
"All I did was put their scumbag father behind bars and bring the kids back to their grandparents. Gave Shinji a pat on the back for his troubles, telling him everything's gonna be fine-."
Hachirō interjected. "Ya saved them from their father. Ya did good."
"It's not enough!"
"It never is. But it'll have to suffice. That's also part of the job." His lips curled down into a frown. "I appreciate what you're tryin' to do, but ya have to try not get too emotionally caught up in your cases."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"If ya don't detach at some point, you'll wind up puttin' yourself under too much stress. The pain of the victim's loved ones… it's gonna weigh on ya for god knows how long. And when you're in that state, you're way more susceptible to tunnel vision. I've seen it happen a bunch of times already."
"Then what am I supposed to do? Act like I don't give a crap?" Tatsumi questioned as he leaned over the desk.
"Nah, not that either. Point is, ya can't keep doing this to yourself for the rest of your time here whenever there's a body. It's gonna destroy ya."
"It's hard for me. I tend to get attached to people quickly." He muttered, averting his confused gaze.
"I get that." Hachirō let out a soft sigh. "You're just gonna have to strike a balance there."
"Alright…"
Wasn't emotional investment supposed to be a good thing?
For all Tatsumi knew, he might have been the first person who'd get 'chided' for being motivated on the job. Of course, he was nowhere near Seryu levels but he took his work seriously and carried it out to the best of his still unpolished abilities unlike some- scratch that. Most of his colleagues.
At the very least, they weren't going around busting random, innocent civilians for life, or worse. In that regard, their lack of interest has turned out to be a blessing in disguise.
But if he wasn't supposed to be invested into the case and the people surrounding it, then how was he going to solve it? Let alone within a reasonable amount of time. All these contradictions again…
It wasn't like Tatsumi was going nuts anyway. He just slept a little less than usual, so what was the fuss about? What harm was there in being concerned for the well-being of a boy who effectively had no parents anymore? Apathy was never an answer. The answer of a coward.
But the vice-captain was also right. Tatsumi did everything he could for the boy and what remained of his family. It was onto Shinji now to look to the future and live his life.
"I need to interview the suspect in the prostitute killer case and-" Tatsumi announced in between his yawns.
"You'll do nothing." Hachirō interrupted, resorting to a firmer tone. "You're gonna get outta here and take the rest of the day off. That's an order."
"But- alright…"
"Don't worry. Work's not gonna run away from ya in this city."
"I'm afraid not." Tatsumi agreed with a sigh while he rearranged all the sheets and warrants in an orderly manner, stacking up several folders next to each other. "See you tomorrow."
"See ya."
Just as he was about to exit the department, Ogre crossed his path in the vestibules separating the outside from the stairs leading upwards to the main section. "Good morning, Captain."
"Morning."
"I detained the killer of Ms. Horimiya. It was her husband."
"Are you expecting a medal or something?" Captain Ogre scoffed, staring down on his subordinate with folded arms. "That one was clear as day. I'd have put that fucker behind bars the same night I found the body."
Tatsumi bit his tongue. "No, sir. I just meant to report today's events."
"Alright. Then get back to your work."
"Actually, I'm not-" He stopped mid-sentence only to realize that the Captain had already turned his back on him. "Of course you'd bust the guy the same night. You bastard." He grunted with a roll of his eyes and headed home in a weary step.
*****
Tatsumi entered his home to find both Sayo and Ieyasu sitting together in the living room with two bowls on the table.
I'll get goin' in a bit." Ieyasu announced before he dumped the bland mix of oatmeal and milk into the bottomless pit he called his stomach. "Oh, Tatsumi. Where are you comin' from?"
"You look terrible. Like you saw a ghost or something." Sayo stated in a concerned tone.
"I need some rest." Tatsumi replied. He didn't bother to elaborate any further and quietly dragged himself into the bedroom, earning bewildered gazes from both of his friends. He stripped down to his boxers, tossed his uniform into the next best corner of the room and collapsed in his futon to doze off almost instantly.
A/N: Next chapter 'Kill the Consumed'
Aaaand done. I cooked! I've been gone for two seconds and by the time I come back, the orange man nearly gets JFKed, Germany has started throwing people in jail for calling a politician 'fat' when said politician, this human mudslide (who has never worked a job in her life and failed to finish university) CLEARLY has the body composition of a wedding cake, the olympics now identify as 'satanic' and by the time I publish this shite, we might all be in a nuclear war with each other.
I know it's been a million years and I said august, but given that this is another double stack that's about 60 pages long, you lot will have something to distract yourselves from whatever miserable fucking hell you people live in.
Also, you deranged lunatics are into reading and writing some disgusting shite. And I thought I was terrible for being an unhinged serial killer, but a peek at the AO3's AgK fanfic list is the equivalent of sticking your head through the window of an insane asylum. Some of this stuff is seriously fucked up. You people make me sick.
Regardless, let me know if you enjoy the current arc and if you want it to be longer or shorter. Next up will be the prostitute killer and other stuff like the extortion plot and more. Depending on how much you all enjoy this arc, we'll have a few more or less murder cases.
And before any of you degenerates keep asking me when there will be a next chapter, let me explain something to you. I have to study day and night for my exams, so don't expect anything until the end of the year. So I will enter witness protection for the time being. Open your eyes and goodbye. Stay comfy :-)
(Jeffrey Epstein did not kill himself.)