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At 2am, the city was as peaceful as it was ever going to get. If one knew when to sit out and look up, it was a great time and place to sit and think. Ann was one of those people who knew, and definitely took advantage of it. The young woman sat on her balcony, staring up at the polluted sky. Only a few stars winked through, but the few that did make her a little hopeful.
Tonight should have been like any other - she should be asleep right now. But she wasn’t. She was up thinking, tormenting herself with this idea. How did you right all of the mistakes in your life? How was she supposed to fix the situation she’d gotten herself into?
She knew she couldn’t say it out loud, couldn’t admit it to anyone, but she’d gotten herself in deep into something she shouldn’t have. She was scared. But they needed to get out somehow, needed to leave.
That’s why she was doing this, right? She was making a genuine life for them. For herself. Instead of hiding behind crimes and her fame, they could do things. Be a couple. They could truly live.
She had to do this. A breeze drifted by, forcing her to wrap her arms around herself. She had to do what was right.
Her mind had been stuck on this line of thought, and tonight was evidently going to be no exception.
She only had one option.
Ann pressed the phone to her ear and waited, taking a breath when the person on the other end picked up.
It was too late to go back now.
Akira’s phone didn’t typically ring at 2 in the morning, but when it did, he knew he was going to get into some trouble.
Especially when Ann’s face popped up on the screen.
He sighed, hitting pause on his show and picking up the phone. “This is your man speaking.”
He heard her take a little breath in, but then a giggle came from the end of the line, prompting a smirk to blossom on his face. “ And this is your woman speaking.”
The smirk rooted on his face blossomed into a smile. “What’s up?”
“ Well… what if I told you that I wanted to get a little stupid tonight?”
“How so?” Akira asked, already turning his TV off and getting ready to leave. No matter the circumstance, he couldn’t say no to her. Especially if she needed help.
“ Ah, there’s this shop owner who needs to get what’s coming to him. I don’t think I’ll, y’know, need to take him out this time. Just fuck with his store a little.”
“Sounds good to me. You coming here?”
“Mhm. I figured you could help a little, you know?”
“I sure can. Do I need to bring anything?” He was rifling through his closet, now, looking for a particular outfit.
“ Nah. Don’t wear the normal ‘all black’, though.”
“Why not?” The male asked, a little suspicious.
“ Cause I wanna go out with you afterwards, duh! There’s bound to be at least one food joint still open.”
“True. Alright, I’ll see you then.” It curbed his suspicion, but not fully. Something was bothering him here - as if something was going to go horribly, terribly wrong. But, he continued, ignoring that gut feeling of his.
“Okay, love you!”
“Love you too.”
The store was awfully quiet at this time of night, something that they both liked. Silence was a treasure. At her side, Akira whistled. “This is quite the place.”
Ann smiled at him, red lips matching her shirt. “Yeah, well, it’s a shame that the guy who runs it is an asshole. I’m gonna go take care of security, if you want to go ahead and get started on the interior.”
Her boyfriend rose an eyebrow at her. “Someone’s awfully pushy tonight.”
She stuck her tongue out at him. “Hush. You know I like taking charge.”
He didn’t have a smart comment for that one, and instead just shrugged and began the complicated dance of getting inside undetected. For her part, Ann worked quickly, disabling or destroying cameras where she could. And then it came time for the next phase of her plan.
She dialed 911.
It was an awfully quiet night for the detectives, all things considered. Ryuji sat at his desk, bored out of his mind.
“Hey, Makoto.”
She looked up at him and then looked back down to her work, red eyes seeming to stare into his soul before they disappeared. “For the last time, Sakamoto, you need to focus on your paperwork. It’s piling up.”
“Well maybe you could help me with it?”
“No. You need to do it on your own.”
“Aw, come on, Makoto. Please?”
She leveled a stare at him, and he stopped for a minute, feeling fluttery. The moment was gone as soon as it came, and she was back to doing her work.
Ryuji sighed. Couldn’t something interesting happen tonight?
It took all of 15 minutes for the police to arrive.
In that time, she and Akira had both destroyed the place. Once, it was a nice store with sturdy shelves, and lots of product, but now, everything had been destroyed. A mixed liquid smashed under their feet, mixed with the crunching of glass. Ann stepped back to survey their work, smiling to herself.
Everything was going according to plan.
“Alright, that’s good. We should probably get going….” Ann spoke. Akira nodded at her.
And that’s when it happened.
Red and blue lights flashed over the store, elevating both of their heart rates. “Fuck.” He swore. “How in the hell did they find us?”
“I don’t know! Stay calm. Maybe I shouldn’t have done this.” She said, allowing that little bit of panic to blossom now.
“What else were we supposed to do, Ann!? You know damn well that he would have gotten away with all of it if we hadn’t done anything. That’s why you brought me along.” The man hissed.
“I know.” She’d heard those words before. That was how it began. And now, this was how it was going to end. Her eyes had a faraway look, but she seemed to snap out of it, allowing darkness to flood back in. “But you need to shut up when they come in here. They’ll separate us. Tell them you need an attorney and nothing else.”
“Get us? No, you need to run.” He said, shaking his head. Ann shook hers back. “That won’t do.”
“Why not?”
“You want to run, right? Sure, I can run. So can you. However, that’ll only make you look suspicious. Plus…” Her eyes flickered to the cameras, who should have been watching them. They would have been, too, if not for the fact that the two had taken them out. “This way, we can plead innocence.”
A fuzzy picture had taken shape in his mind, and slowly, she was sharpening the image. He paused. “Ann….you didn’t do something stupid, did you?” He asked suspiciously. His girlfriend shrugged.
“I’m going to save our lives.”
“What?”
“Just trust me, Akira.”
“Ann, I don’t know what you’re on tonight, but -”
“ Freeze!”
They both did as they were ordered, just in time to watch the officers come on the scene.
The two officers, who’s faces she only vaguely remembered, came towards them, and suddenly they were being whisked into a cop car and to the station, and tape was being put up, and there were lights that were bright, too bright, if you asked her, and then everything stopped.
Just like that.
The interrogation room was quiet.
It was something that relaxed Ann, while simultaneously setting her on edge. This was the calm before the storm that was sure to rage through the town. And if she’d played her cards right, she and Akira would be out of it entirely.The woman sighed, waiting on the detectives that would decide her fate. Maybe she’d only get one detective and have to pull and push to get the right one, or the right pair she was looking for. Whichever the case, they were interrogating Akira right now, and she couldn’t do much but wait.
It didn’t take long before the door swung open. She looked over, hoping and praying that she’d done this right.
Please, please just let it be the pair I’m looking for.
There were two. Relief flooded through her veins, coursing at a mile a minute.
Thank god.
One was a blond man with a slight limp and brown eyes, which she’d have recognized from a mile away. The other was one she knew well - too well. The red eyes that the female detective possessed had haunted her. She sighed as they moved in the room, one sitting in front of her and the other on the table.“You know why you’re here, I take it?” The detective that was sitting said. Her name tag read “Niijima”, but Ann knew more. Her name was Makoto.
“No, would you care to educate me?”
“Well, considerin’ you knowingly vandalized property, I don’t think we gotta do much explainin’.” The detective sitting on the table shrugged. His name tag read Sakamoto, but she knew that his first name was Ryuji.“I didn’t do it.” She objected.
“Really?” Makoto asked, leaning forward. “Well, when you want to tell the truth, you let us know and you can write up a confession.”
“Cause, you know, we found the guy dead at home tonight. So ya ain’t a petty thief anymore.” Ryuji was prowling around her, now. She sighed. That, surprisingly, was something she and Akira weren’t guilty of, but there was no harm in playing along.
“We didn’t do that.”
“Sure you didn’t. I bet you killed him and then went to trash his store then, huh? What’s a model like you doing in a store with a guy trashing the place if you ain’t guilty, huh?!”
“That doesn’t prove anything.”
“But it certainly proves motive. And you had an opportunity. All we need to hear about is your alibi, but contacting your friends shouldn’t be an issue, now should it?” The female detective was looking down at her file, but had a victorious and pompous air about her that made Ann want to scream.
Oh, how she couldn't wait for what was coming later.
“Fine.” The model hissed suddenly, seemingly frustrated with the two of them. “I’ll confess. I’ll sell him out.”
A smirk came to the female detective’s face. “Well then, we’ll get you some paper.”
“I need at least two sheets.” Ann said, frustration still ringing in her tone. “It’s a long story.”
“We’ll be back with those shortly, then.”
And just like that, they were gone, and Ann was left alone again.
She smirked.
They didn’t know it, but they had just fallen into her trap.
“You’ve been sold out.”
Akira looked up as the two detectives stormed into the room, face blank. “What does that mean?”
The blonde detective smirked. “It means your little girlfriend is writing a confession as we speak.”
It was like a punch to the gut. Would Ann really have done that to him? After everything they were? Everything they've been through? He didn’t believe it. Couldn’t believe it.
“How do I know you’re telling me the truth?”
“You’ll just have to trust us, Mr. Kurusu. You could break your silence, too, if you wish.” Something about the female detective’s smile read that she fully believed that this was it for them.
He shut his eyes. Ann wasn’t that easy to break. She couldn’t be. Not after everything. She’d have put up a fight.
Unless she planned to take him out for some reason. She had been awfully distant lately.
But what was it she had said?
“I’m going to save our lives.” “Just trust me, Akira.”
If she was telling the truth, then...something more was going on here. Something bigger than him. He shut his eyes tightly.
If he was going down, he was going to go down with faith in someone else until the very end.
Grey met crimson as he opened his eyes once more and shook his head.
“No thank you, officer.”
By the time they’d entered the room again, she was as cool as a cucumber.
“Your confession, please?” Makoto asked. Ryuji felt a little, victorious smirk settle on his face, pride shining through as he watched his partner do what she did best.
If the other blonde seemed phased, she didn’t say anything about it, only sliding a piece of paper across the table. “Here.” She said.
His partner picked up the sheet of paper she’d written on. All at once, the pride on her face was replaced with frustration. “Miss Takamaki.” She said sharply. “This is not a confession.”
“No, it’s not. But I asked for two sheets of paper, you know? I’ve got a deal to make with you.” She was twirling a folded sheet of paper, having been uncuffed some time ago to write said confession. “I’ve got a list of names here. All of them have one thing in common.”
“Which is?”
“All of them are apart of that mafia you’re after.”
Time seemed to screech to a halt. How did she know that? Sure, she was a model, but what kind of friends did she have?
“And I might be willing to give it to you.”
That brought them both back to reality, and they stared at her for a minute, quiet. The room stayed silent, but he looked to his partner for a course of action. She caught his eye, silently communicating her plan.
Ann seemed to be smarter than that, though, and sighed. “Oh come on, do you think I’m that stupid?”
“What do you mean?” The female detective shot back.
Ann rolled her eyes. “You’re going to try and force me into giving it to you, and if not, then you’ll take it from me by force. But there are cameras in here, yeah? They’ll capture you bullying a poor, defenseless model. And even if there aren’t…..well, this poor, defenseless model can still make her one call.”
“The paparazzi has already seen you, though.” Makoto pointed out.
“Please. That means nothing. All they have are theories, and I can still play the victim. Try again.” The model defended.
Ryuji looked down, trying not to grit his teeth. Son of a bitch!
“Okay, then we’ll play along and ask. Can we have it?” Makoto asked, the subtleties in her body language ringing with frustration.
Ann’s pretty red lips pulled into a smirk. “You can have it, but there’s a price.”
“What’s that?”
She leaned her elbows on the table, cradling her chin in her intertwined fingers and leaving the paper pressed between her thighs. If nothing else, she was incredibly devious. “My...hm...associate, and I. I want us out of the country. Maybe into witness protection in the States, yeah?”
“Why would you need to get out of the country?” His partner asked, squinting at her. She gave a practiced shrug of her shoulders.
“I don’t think that’s any of your concern, now is it?”
“I dunno if that’s possible.” Ryuji challenged. She looked at him with measured curiosity.
“Oh? Why not?”
“You’re already in the public’s eye, ain’tcha?” The other blond said, staring at her. She lifted her chin and stared back.
“That may be true over here, but in the States, I’ve only done one or two small shoots. They’ll see me, and if they know my prior identity, then I’ll assure them I’m just another citizen. But I’ll thank the for the compliment. Maybe, in their mind’s eye, they’ll briefly get a flash of my face in a magazine and go home to investigate, but they’ll never know. You’ve got to try harder than that, detective.”
Without him realizing, he’d pressed his tongue against the bottom row of his teeth, setting his face in a sour expression.
“And if we don’t agree?”
Her eyes flickered to Makoto and she smirked. He closed his eyes and leaned against the wall, feeling a little lightheaded. His leg throbbed. “I know things about you, Makoto Niijima.”
Ryuji’s eyes popped open. How in the hell did she…?
Makoto’s stance shifted just slightly. Now they were on the defensive, and she knew it. Ann smirked. “You too, Mr. Ryuji Sakamoto.”
“So you’ve found out our names. That doesn’t mean anything.” Makoto said tightly.
“It doesn’t? So, does the word Shujin mean anything to you? I know all about your exploits there.” Her smile was sharp and wicked. “I also happen to know about Mr. Sakamoto’s leg, and how bitter it made him. I know all about your friends, your families, your dark secrets that you don’t think anyone knows.”
“That’s-!” The brunette looked panicked. Something in his gut shifted, too, and he knew she’d gotten them. They were at a catch 22.
“And I’m sure that would be enough to have your commanding officer reconsider your promotion, no?”
“Enough.” Ryuji’s voice was sharp and rough. “Enough.”
Ann beamed at them. “I’m sure we’re at a mutual understanding. Just secure my end of the deal and I’ll keep mine right here.”
“How do we know that you’ll keep your end of the deal?” Makoto asked.
The model sighed, sitting back and crossing her arms. “You police and your loyalty.” She closed her eyes and then opened them, as if she were deliberating something. “I’ll tell you what. You make arrangements in the next few hours and I’ll give you a name. Then, once you fulfill your end of the deal, I’ll fulfill the rest of mine. I don’t think one out of ninety will be a dealbreaker, yeah?”
Ninety? Ninety names? “What sort of contacts do you have?” He asked, a little dumbfounded.
Ann shrugged, still smiling. “Your name this time is…..Akane Honda.”
Ryuji’s eyebrows furrowed. Honda….that...sounded really familiar, but he wasn’t sure where from.
“That’s impossible. She’s an officer here.” His partner spoke sharply. He looked up at her, just in time to see her reaction to the blonde’s next statement.
“It’s very possible. I never said that all of them were particularly smart people, did I? Just look through her desk and I’m sure you’ll find some breadcrumbs. Oh, and delete this recording from the cameras. I don’t need to be one of the loose ends that’s tied up later.”
“You’re insane.”
“Your time starts now, detectives.”
Makoto opened her mouth once more, but ultimately shook her head, turning to the door. “We’ll get you for this.”
“I’m sure you will. Bye, bye, now.”
Ryuji, with his head still spinning, filed out behind his coworker. Ann watched the door shut and leaned back in her chair, relaxing in the silence of the room.
We’ll be out soon, babe. Just trust me a little longer....
Makoto was quick when she wanted to be, enough so that Ryuji struggled a bit as she raced down the halls. “Makoto, what’re you doin?”
“I have to see if what she’s saying is true.”
“Why?” Ryuji asked. “A murderer is still a murderer.”
Makoto shook her head at him, turning down another hallway. “Even so, there’s more at stake here than a simple murder case.”
“What’s that supposed ta mean?”
“Sakamoto, you know just as well as I do that if she has as many names on that list as she says she does, we stand a good chance of taking down that mafia.”
“Yeah, and?"
“And, that’s more lives saved! We can prevent people being killed. And what’s it going to cost us? A murder going unsolved?” She was becoming more frantic. “We need that list, if it’s true.”
“Makoto, stop!” Ryuji shouted. She paused in her walking and turned her head toward him, eyes widening. “Are you hearing yourself right now? You’re gonna trust a murderer, even though she might be lying?”
“But that’s exactly the point! If I can prove she’s not lying about that list, and we can get our hands on it, then we can finally protect people! Like we’re meant to do!” Makoto's voice had risen now to match his own, and she was visibly upset at him.
He shut his eyes and exhaled. This was a stupid fight, and as much as he hated it, she was right. “Fine. Fine. But you had better be smart about this.”
“I will be.”
The rest of their walk was silent, neither willing to speak after getting a little heated like that for fear of what other fight it might cause.
Eventually, they ended up at Honda’s desk. Makoto sighed and pulled a pair of gloves from her pocket, which she always kept in case she needed them for something. “Alright, if something is here, it’ll be in her desk.”
“Try the drawers. Some of us are stupid, but we ain’t that stupid. I’ll look out for anyone else.”
She nodded. The first drawer yielded nothing but useless papers and receipts, and the second was even more cluttered. And the third….well, it had a lock.
The woman sat back. How was she supposed to get in there? She thought back on their conversation. If, by chance, the suspect had been right, she’d have left a clue.
A lightbulb went off. “I never said that all of them were particularly smart people, did I?”
Had that had a double meaning?
Makoto went back and combed through the papers and wrappers, and sure enough, her keys were in the side of her drawer. Makoto’s hand shook as took them out, quickly opening the bottom drawer with them.
The entire world seemed to fall out from under her all at once as she looked at the contents.
A gun that should have been with the rest of the evidence for the police cases stared up at her.
She stared back.
When the duo finally got down to where Ann was being held, Makoto flung the door open. Ann jumped.
“Wow, we’re awfully aggressive tonight, aren’t we?”
“How did you -?” Makoto seemed to be at a loss for words. The suspect shrugged.
Ann waved off the question. “I know because I know. You’re not going to get that answer out of me.”
“I -”
“Makoto.” Ryuji was quick to grab her elbow, pulling her back to reality.
“So, do we have a deal? You’ll get us the first flight out of here, yeah? And a place with witness protection?”
Ryuji looked down. As much as he wanted to shout at this woman, scream no over, and over, and over, he wasn’t going to get that chance. She had them under her thumb.
“We’ll see that you get transferred to the States for protection, Witness. You and your boyfriend both.”
“Perfect.”
Akira was almost asleep when they entered.
His eyes opened at the sound of the door swinging open, and things felt hazy, like they always did when he had almost fallen asleep.
“Get up. You’re free to go.”
The blond detective was looking down at him, female partner by his side. Akira blinked the sleep from his eyes. “I’m….free? What about Ann?”
“Right here, love.”
Sure enough, she was standing behind the two of them, a little out of order but not much. She smiled at him, leaning over the table to give him a kiss.
“This...isn’t a dream or anything, right?”
“Right.” She assured.
Akira let out a deep breath. So she hadn’t betrayed him, despite everything. He stood.
“Thank you for your time, detectives. We’ll see you again, I’m sure?”
The detectives seemed to nod at her, as if they’d reached some mutual understanding with her that Akira hadn’t.
They escorted the two of them out and the two caught a ride to Ann’s apartment, where they were content to spend the night.
As the door shut behind them, Akira stared at his girlfriend. She’d planned this. She must have. But for what reason? Why would she put them through that? Was it a test? Was she being forced into doing something? “What did you...do?"
Ann smiled. “Don’t worry about it. Just relax and let me take care of you, ok?”
Akira nodded.
There was no reason to stop trusting her now.
At this time of day, the airport was busy, but evidently not busy enough. Ann stood on her toes as she looked out over the crowd, holding on tightly to Akira’s hand. He looked down at her, still a little drained and confused, even though the situation with the police had been a little over two days ago. She’d also thrown away their phones. “Who are you looking for?”
“I’ve got someone to meet before we go.”
“Who?”
She squeezed his hand and stopped in her quest to smile at him. “You’ll see, okay? Just let me do this right now. I’ll explain everything later.”
The crowd continued to move, but as she looked through the little gaps, she began to see more and more, which also meant that she finally caught a glimpse of who she was looking for. “Stay here, I’ll be right back!”
She raced off, walking quickly even in heels. The two officers didn’t seem to see her, but she saw them and smiled brilliantly. “Ah, officers. We meet again.”
The female eyed her, shifting even closer to her partner who stood slightly in front of her, should something happen. “Miss Takamaki. The list, please.”
“Of course, of course."
The model slid the list into Makoto’s breast pocket, winking at her. “I’ll see you later, officers. Have fun with that little list~!”
And then she was walking away with the eyes of the pair pressing to her back, unmoving. She headed towards her boyfriend, who’d been watching the scene through gaps in the crowd with curiosity.
“Ann, what did you-?”
She cut him off, pressing a finger to his lips. “Shh. Just stay along for the ride, okay babe?”
He eyed her, but nodded, still placing his trust in her. “Alright.”
She smiled at him and took his hand, intertwining it with hers. “Come on, we have a plane to catch.”
He followed along as she walked.
And suddenly, the two officers weren’t watching a mastermind and her accomplice.
They were watching a young couple, walking into the light to start a new life.