The Last Assassin

Chan had been late once before, but Yamaoto had told Big Liu about it and there hadn't been a problem since. He imagined Chan didn't like reporting to a Japanese, but that's what he was getting paid for, and Yamaoto was irritated that the man was being lazy and disrespectful again.

If Big Liu had still been on the phone, Yamaoto would have mentioned it to him. But there had been more pressing things on his mind just then. Well, it wasn't a material thing, just an annoyance. If Chan had anything to report, presumably he would have done so. Yamaoto would mention it to Big Liu when they met on Saturday. They'd straighten it out then.

He heard Kuro saying, 'Kumicho,' and realized the man had been trying to get his attention.

'Yes,' Yamaoto said, looking at him.

'Shall I… shall I have them taken away?'

Kito and Sanada. It was a shame he had needed to dispatch them. Most likely they were guilty only of incompetence, not of betrayal. They had come to him hoping for mercy, and look what he had been forced to do instead.

'Yes, take care of it,' he said to Kuro, with a dismissive wave.

He walked out to the club entrance and signaled to his bodyguard, who was waiting inside. The man went out and checked the street, then returned and escorted Yamaoto to the Mercedes, waiting with its back door open just in front of the entrance.

On the ride home, Yamaoto thought about what he was going to do next. One thing he knew for sure. Whoever was behind what happened in Wajima wasn't going to go quickly, like Kito and Sanada. No. This one would suffer before he died.

25

We met Kanezaki that night at a coffeehouse in Roppongi. We watched from the van to make sure he was alone, then followed him in. Dox carried the duffel bag with the gear Kanezaki had lent us.

Kanezaki had his back to the wall and saw us when we came in. If he was surprised to see us together, he didn't show it. Good for him.

We sat down. Kanezaki smiled and said, 'Yeah, I had a feeling.'

Dox grinned. 'How've you been, Tom?'

'Not bad. You?'

'Ah, you know. Staying busy. Keeping the world safe for democracy, that kind of thing.'

'I'm afraid to ask what that's been entailing.'

'Hell, you know most of it.'

'And what I don't know isn't going to hurt me, is that right?'

'Look,' I said, 'we just wanted to return your toys. Thanks for lending them to us.'

He raised his eyebrows. 'That's it?'

I looked at Dox, then back to Kanezaki. 'Yeah. That's it.'

Dox slid the duffel over to Kanezaki's chair.

We were all quiet for a moment. I knew Kanezaki had been hoping for information, his life's blood, and that he would be frustrated at not getting it. I waited for his next move.

'How do you like Japan?' Kanezaki asked, with a nod at Dox.

'It's all right. I like the ladies a lot. I keep asking my friend here to take me to see some geishas, but he won't do it. You know where I could find some?'

I thought Dox might be laying on the country bumpkin routine just a bit thick, but it seemed to have the desired effect. Probably despairing of getting anything via a more circuitous route, Kanezaki said, 'I hear they have geishas in the countryside. On the Sea of Japan.'

'Sea of Japan?' Dox asked. 'Sounds far just for a little entertainment.'

Kanezaki looked at Dox, then at me. 'All right. Are you guys going to tell me what the hell you pulled in Wajima?'

I looked at Dox. 'Do you know anything about Wajima?'

Dox knitted his brow. 'Wajima, Wajima… you know, it rings a bell, now that you mention it. Yeah, I might know something. Maybe.'

Kanezaki was starting to look decidedly nonplussed. This was the moment I was waiting for.

'Yeah, we might be able to tell you something,' I said. 'But that would be a favor, wouldn't it?'

There was a long silence. Finally, Kanezaki said, 'All right. In return for the favor I did you in getting you the equipment. And then quits.' He smiled a little. 'Until next time, anyway.'

Next time, I thought, is coming sooner than you expect.

'How did you know?' I asked. I was pretty sure I already had the answer, but I wanted confirmation.

Kanezaki shrugged. 'The GPS transmitter. I knew the code, so I just followed it using the mapping software to see where you went. Looks like you spent the night in Wajima. The same night three United Bamboo triad guys were shot to death on the beach there.'

Yeah, that's what I'd been expecting him to say. It was probably true, too.

Dox grinned. 'Hell of a coincidence.'

Kanezaki nodded. 'Yeah, and they were shot with forty-five-caliber rounds. That's a strange coincidence, too. Because those HKs I outfitted you with are forty-fives.'

Dox's grin broadened. 'A drug deal gone bad, would be my guess.'

'Why?' Kanezaki asked. 'Was this just a straight rip-off? Is that what you guys are doing now?'

Dox snorted. 'With the wages you're paying me, son, it's a wonder I don't turn to a life of crime.'

'No, it wasn't a straight rip-off,' I said.

'Then what?' Kanezaki asked. 'You trying to start a war between the yakuza and the triads?'

'What if someone were? Would you object?'

'No. I'd like to see them all snuff each other out, in fact. But I'd want to know about it.'

I thought for a moment. Kanezaki could already place us at Wajima. If he wanted to sell us out to the triads and the yakuza, I supposed he could. I had recognized that potential problem from the moment I first considered going to him for the equipment we needed. It was unfortunate, but unavoidable under the circumstances. You can't get something for nothing. Not anywhere, but especially not in this business.

'I think at this point you can trust me,' Kanezaki added, when I still hadn't responded.

I looked at Dox, who nodded, then back to Kanezaki. 'All right,' I said. 'And you can trust us, too. To hold you responsible if something goes wrong, before or after. After all, no one else could have known. You sure you want that responsibility?'

Kanezaki nodded. 'I'm sure.'

'Then here's the way it'll work. We need a sniper rifle. You provide it. We return it when we're done. At which point we give you a full accounting of what's really going on.'

'And we hold on to the night-vision equipment in the meantime,' Dox added. 'And those HKs, too.' He looked at me. 'Might come in handy.'

A long moment passed. Kanezaki said, 'No.'

Damn, I thought that in the heat of the moment Dox's 'spontaneous' request would slide right past him. Apparently not.

No one said anything for a long time. I waited, thinking Kanezaki might crack.

He didn't. Part of me was impressed. In just a few short years he had really matured. I wondered if it was Tatsu's influence.

Finally I said, 'What do you mean, "no"?' And even as I said it, I knew that in speaking first I had ceded him the advantage.

'I mean, if you want to keep the existing gear and have me outfit you on top of it, you're going to owe me something more than just information in return.'

I looked at him, but he didn't blink. He knew that right now I needed him more than he needed me. It didn't feel good, but there was nothing I could do about it.

I closed my eyes and nodded. 'Deal,' I said.

26

Kanezaki came through with the hardware as promised, handing it off to us in a golf bag the next morning on a moving Yamanote line train. This time I gave him my local mobile number. He already had a decent idea of what we were up to, and, if he learned anything useful, I wanted him to be able to reach us.

Dox and I took the golf bag back to the van. I drove while he sat in back, examining the equipment.

'Hoo-ah, Christmas came early this year,' he said.