Chapter Twenty-Three

Paying the Piper

 

Three factors contributed to Ella passing her first year at the Academy. The first was a trait she possessed in abundance that few of the other students could match. The girl had grit. She was, if anything, extraordinarily resilient. That grit had been forged by her difficult childhood, honed to razor sharpness by years of living on the streets in one of the largest slums in the world. Ella Patel had nothing in abundance if not grit and determination.

The second factor was Nabin.

 

A wave of dread coursed through Ella as she walked into the snake pit that was the World-Famous Bar & Udon. She glanced at the chalkboard out of habit; today’s special was Kitsune Udon. Her favorite.

Io was barking rabidly in her ear, imploring her to change her mind and run.

It is not too late. They cannot catch you. You can still flee and start fresh in Argentina if you turn and leave right now!

Begging turned to derision.

Why are you so stupid? Go ahead and get your throat slit. I was tired of your puny body anyway.

As usual with Io, when that failed, it led back to begging.

Please, Ella. For once. Listen to me. I promise things will work out.

There wasn’t time for Io to move back onto threats again.

“Too late for that, Alien. Stop yelling and help me figure out how to get the Burglar Alarms out of this mess.”

Every single suit at the bar got up and converged on her. Within seconds, she was completely surrounded. Ella chewed on her lip to hide her nervousness. The men clustered around her looked nothing like the ones she had tussled with last week. She didn’t realize how young and juvenile Broken Nose and his friends were until she compared them now with the real deal. These yakuza looked like something straight out of one of those crazy gangster movies: older, scarred, seasoned, downright mean.

They are also armed. Half with clubs. The other half have knives. A couple guns. I also count quite a few pineapples.

“The fruit?”

Grenades. The Japanese government has harsh gun laws. They unfortunately have very few on grenades.

“What? That makes no sense.”

Ella involuntarily backed up as they crowded her. Two of the yakuza cut off her exit. Not like she was really trying to, but whatever escape Io was hoping for was now officially dashed. Those two shoved her deeper into the bar. Lee and Hinata made to move toward her, but they were quickly crowded out by more rough-looking tattooed men.

There are two behind you, two guarding the other Burglar Alarms, and six surrounding you. I also saw one of the yakuza head into the back room.

“That is a lot.”

Yes. You should have listened. Again you did the exact opposite of what you were told. You deserve this.

“Shut it, Alien.”

No you shut it. If you had just listened, just this one damn time, we would have been safe. You could have even saved your friends another time. Instead, you knowingly walk directly into the trap with no plan whatsoever. That is the height of stupidity.

“You’re the one who told me to meet Asshole in the first place!”

And to walk away if the job was bad. What part of walking away do you not understand?

A figure at the bar who had had his back to her turned around. He had to be the boss. It was an older man, mostly bald with an uneven lumpy head and a horseshoe of white hair along the sides and back of his head. Intricate red tattoo flames crawled up his neck from beneath his shirt. He was wearing a pair of sunglasses that at first made Ella wonder if he was blind. Who wore their sunglasses at night? The man’s eyebrows rose and he approached until he towered over her. He lowered his sunglasses and gave her a hard squint.

Ella squinted back, mainly as an act of defiance, but also so she wouldn’t stare at the two missing fingers on his left hand.

The older, balding yakuza with the misshapen head and bad hair summoned Broken Nose with a finger. “Masato, is this the one?”

“Yes, Otousan. That’s her,” said Broken Nose, his head still bowed and his cheeks red. He at least had the decency to look ashamed.

“She’s the one who broke your face?”

“Yes, Otousan.”

“This is the runt you and your stupid friends couldn’t handle on your own?”

“Yes, Otou…”

“Baka!” Lumpy Head slapped his son across the face, sending Broken Nose careening into a booth. For a second, Ella felt sorry for him. Then she remembered him doing the same to his girlfriend, and then she got angry at both of them. With a father like that, no wonder the kid turned out to be such a dirtbag.

Lumpy Head took off his glasses. He wiped them with a handkerchief and slipped them into his breast pocket. He pulled out a cigarette. One of his men lit it, and he took several short drags, his eyes never leaving Ella. “I brought twenty men to deal with one little girl? You don’t seem so dangerous.”

“Apparently neither is your son,” she snapped back, almost reflexively.

Lumpy Head grinned, and then burst into a loud chuckle. His men around him followed suit. It was almost comically villainous for the room to erupt in laughter in such a way. It was also strangely contagious. They weren’t laughing at her, but with her? She wasn’t sure. In any case, Ella caught the bug and began to chuckle as well.

That was when Lumpy Head smacked her. His backhand swept from his far left and crossed the length of his body. Ella saw it coming a mile away. She could have dodged it. She was about to when Io barked in her head.

Do not move!

This time Ella obeyed her alien; she wasn’t sure why. She assumed Io had a good reason to say that, so she stayed still. The back of Lumpy Head’s beefy right hand – also missing a pinky finger – struck across her cheek. She felt her feet leave the ground, and then she crashed down hard on her side. The entire right side of her face felt afire. More laughter followed.

“What the hell, Io? Why did you tell me to stay still?”

You are in no position to do anything right now. You will only anger him if you duck his blow. I can also tell you were about to reach for your dagger. That is a death sentence.

Lumpy Head knelt down in front of her. The jerk could really use a breath mint. “I was enraged when I learned that someone had dared attack my son. An attack on him is an attack on all of the Yoshi yakuza. It is a shame that cannot be overlooked.”

She sneaked a peek over at Broken Nose. To be fair, he looked just as terrified and miserable.

“Now I see a runt has caused this shame,” continued Lumpy Head. “My son’s dishonor cuts far deeper than I imagined.”

Ella was confused. “Wait, is that good or bad?”

Keep your mouth shut. Antagonizing him may not be the best solution. You are in enough trouble already.

That was the most obvious and least useful thing Io had said all day in a long list of obvious and un-useful things.

“You are a peculiar creature.” Lumpy Head ignored her question. “The western half of Shinjuku district is my territory. Nothing happens here without my approval.”

“But I got approval,” muttered Ella under her breath, as if that would make any difference. The approval she got to fence goods probably came from a smaller local boss. Definitely not from someone at Lumpy Head’s level.

“One of my vassals recently began running around with assault rifles,” said Lumpy Head. “Better my people have the weapons than a rival. Still, the Akai Bakus are not the most reliable gang; I prefer those fools not be armed at all, so I questioned how they came across such lethal weaponry. Imagine my surprise when I learn that the same girl who beat up my son also supplied my men with military-grade weapons.”

He is being rhetorical. Do not speak. Do not speak. Do not–

“What a strange coincidence,” said Ella, exaggerating a shrug. She squeezed her eyes shut and waited for the next smack.

What did I tell you? Why do you never listen?

“I don’t know what rhetorical means.”

Then ask next time!

To her surprise, the blow never came.

Lumpy Head stood and turned his back to her. “Do you now see my dilemma?”

Ella shook her head. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Do I have you beaten for injuring my son, or do I hire you to supply my men with guns?”

Ella spoke slowly. “Both options don’t sound that great. How about we just forget all of this and let my friends go?”

Lumpy Head suddenly turned to her rather dramatically. “And then there is one last thing. On top of beating up my son and selling some of my more unreliable men weapons, I receive an order from the head of my family about a certain short dark-skinned girl, who–” he waggled a finger at her “–fits this description.”

Oh no.

The yakuza boss ticked his fingers. “A dangerous girl who not only is unafraid to quarrel with yakuza, but also turns around and sells them weapons. Who is being sought by the head of the Aizukotetsu-kai, with quite a handsome sum on her head.” He tsked. “You are an interesting girl. Especially once I discovered what makes you so very special.”

He signaled to his men. Two picked her up by the arms while a third approached with a Penetra scanner in hand. The stupid thing began to scream beeps at her.

Ella’s stomach sank. This was worse than her worst-case scenario. She was prepared to get beaten up for what she had done to Broken Nose, or have to pay restitution. She was even ready to accept a job from the yakuza. But what she hadn’t considered at all was getting kidnapped and sold to one of the Quasing factions. If this was Nabin’s doing, she was going to kill him.

Ella tried to make a break for it. It was far too late. A smack to the side of the face stunned her, and then a pair of big meaty hands lifted her off the ground. An arm wrapped around her neck like a vice, locking her head in place.

“Let me go,” growled Ella, thrashing futilely. “At least let my friends go.”

Lumpy Head looked over to his side and nodded. “We have no more use for them. Consider their freedom payment for your cooperation.”

I cannot believe you are going to sacrifice me for your stupid friends. The yakuza would have let them go anyway. All you had to do was disappear until this blew over.

“I can’t risk that, Io.”

Lumpy Head turned his back to her. “Take her to the warehouse and put her under guard. Make sure no harm comes to her until that Genjix woman arrives.”

What Genjix woman?

Ella repeated Io’s question.

Lumpy Head smirked. “You are apparently quite popular. Not only is there a price on your head, it appears the fortune of the Aizukotetsu-kai rests upon your capture. Take her away.”

This is worse than I suspected.

Ella began to holler as six burly yakuza picked her up. They disarmed her by unstrapping her harness off her body and carried her to a waiting van. One opened the doors and the others tossed her inside. Ella landed roughly on her side and groaned. The five climbed in while the sixth closed the door.

There was a loud bang, and then the doors swung open violently. A pair of hands reached into the van and yanked one of the yakuza by the collar, sending him flying out into the alley. A large pale woman in a tracksuit jumped inside, her arms swinging. The van became a tornado of bodies and punches and screams. They dropped Ella to focus on the intruder.

Ella caught a glimpse of a familiar face and froze. “Instructor Perkins?”

The Australian was currently tangled up in a weird wrestling match with three of the yakuza in the small enclosure of the van. She yelled at Ella, “Stop standing there and get out of here, you bloody idiot!”

This time, Ella didn’t hesitate.

She grabbed her knife harness that had been haphazardly tossed in the corner. She dove out of the van and took off, straight into the waiting embrace of someone who wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her off the ground. Ella wiggled her arms free and slapped her hands on his ears. The man’s knees buckled, and they both crashed to the hard cement. Ella rolled to her feet first and stomped on the man’s face. She looked back at Perkins, who was still tussling with the three.

“Should I help her?”

Forget her. Just leave.

Another enemy appeared and charged. This time, Ella was ready. She drew one of her throwing knives from the harness and brandished it. Big scary yakuza thugs bleed just the same as their baby versions. The man saw that she was armed and pulled out his pistol.

“Your boss says you can’t hurt me,” she yelled.

The guy hesitated and momentarily lowered his weapon. Ella swung the harness at his head as a diversion and then attacked. A poke to his side made him drop his gun. A slash to the front of his knee sent him falling face first into the ground.

Time to go.

“Right.”

Ella made it halfway down the alley when two more yakuza blocked her escape. She skidded and tried to run back. She had returned to the van when another suited tattooed asshole appeared. Ella juked left. The man mirrored to block her path. She pulled her dagger and aimed straight for his gut.

You are leaning too far forward.

The man stuck a leg out and tripped her, sending Ella flying head-first into the wall. She barely had time to throw her arms up to cushion the impact before she bounced off and fell to the ground. Groaning and groggy, she reached for her blade, but he kicked it away.

He pulled out a baton and was about to crack her skull when all of a sudden he flew out of view. There was Instructor Perkins again, breathing heavily and bleeding from the side of her head. The instructor scowled at Ella. “Seriously, what the bloody hell are you still doing here? I told you to run.” She offered her hand.

Ella hesitated, but allowed Perkins to help her to her feet. When she tried to release her hand, Perkins held on tight.

“You stay with me,” her former instructor growled.

“Let me go.” Ella tried to pull away, but Perkins’s vicelike grip held.

Ella threw a punch. That was a mistake. Instructor Perkins brushed it aside and pushed her hard into the wall. “I am not in the mood for one of your tantrums, Victoria,” she spat. “You’re staying right next to me until we get out of this mess.”

Something hit Instructor Perkins from the back, staggering her. She let go of Ella as more yakuza poured out of the World-Famous. They were joined a second later by two men who rushed to Instructor Perkins’s defense. The alleyway had turned into a full-on battlefield. Ella scrambled to her feet and looked at the alley entrance, where another melee had erupted.

“Who are all these people? Why is everyone fighting? Did a war just break out?”

Sort this out later. You need to not be here. It seems the Prophus and Genjix and yakuza are all after you. This city is too dangerous for you to stay even one more day. You need to be on a plane tonight.

That sounded like awfully good advice. Everyone was too busy fighting everyone else to notice her. Ella crawled under the van and moved to the opposite side. When the coast seemed clear, she scrambled to her feet and took off, running away from the fighting. She reached the end of the alley and glanced back one last time. Perkins was still there, alongside those two men. On the opposite end to the alley, more fighting had spilled into the street.

For a second, she thought she caught a glimpse of Nabin. Part of her wanted to stay and help him, but Io was right. It didn’t matter. They were all after her. She had to get away from everything. Ella sprinted as hard as she could away from the World-Famous.

This time, she didn’t look back.