Wide Awake (2)

"…I'm sorry…" Shouichi voluntarily handed it to his friend. Time and again, his emotions had pushed him to the edge.

It took about three minutes after Shinji examined the clip. He paused at a specific timeframe and showed it to Shouichi.

"Look at the curtain behind them, Shouichi."

"That's… That's… a radio tower!" Shouichi saw the breeze lift the curtain, revealing a red-and-white radio tower in the distance. It had three discs attached to the structure, with the largest disc facing their direction — directly at this window.

Shinji quickly slammed his foot on the brake pedal, bringing the van to a complete stop. Shouichi, in sync, opened the car door and stood on the seat to search for the radio tower.

"There! Judging by the largest disc, they must be somewhere in the northern part of the town," Shouichi pointed, then slid back into his seat. Shinji nodded, acknowledging the observation.

"Based on the background, I think it's probably a small apartment," Shinji began to analyse.

"Right! The wall looked pretty old, off-white," Shouichi added.

"I remember you said he's an ex-con who just got out, right?" Shinji turned to pick their brains as he drove north, towards the radio tower.

"That's right. He must have rented a place, but with his profile, it's unlikely he'd be able to afford a pricey one."

"Exactly what I thought. That narrows it down. What else do you think?" Shinji pressed.

"Judging from the angle of the tower, I don't think his hideout is on the first floor," Shouichi's brain was firing on all cylinders.

"So, a run-down apartment, low income, 3-4 floors, a black van. Alright! Let's get the bastard!" Shinji gritted his teeth and floored the accelerator, while Shouichi reported their speculations to Suzuki, hoping for police support to speed up the search.

***

After inspecting three buildings, the dazzling duo still hadn't pinpointed the exact location of Kasunagi and Yoko. Shouichi was in a complete panic, drenched in sweat.

Just then, his phone rang. "Shouichi-kun! The last unknown location of the van was at 11th Daidai Street," Suzuki shouted into the phone.

"11th Daidai Street, got it!" Shouichi repeated aloud so Shinji could hear, who nodded in acknowledgement.

"We're at 9th Daidai Street, we can make it, Shouichi!" Shinji made a sharp left turn onto 10th Street, and they were nearly there.

"There! That's the van!" Shouichi pointed out a black van, half-covered by a black sheet, parked in front of a three-story rundown apartment with a shared balcony. Shouichi shared his location with Suzuki before leaping out of the van before it had even come to a full stop.

"Please be right. Please be right. Yoko-san, I'm going to save you!" That's all he could think as he rushed toward the short fence. He jumped over it easily, with Shinji following close behind.

Shouichi ran up the metal stairs, their creaking under his weight. He checked the angle of the tower and matched it with the one in the video clip. From his observation, he deduced that the room must be on the third floor, at the end of the balcony.

"It's the last room, number 304! I think." Shouichi turned to inform Shinji. They arrived at the door, everything completely silent. The only sound was the rapid beating of his heart.

"Wait, Shouichi. This room has a name card on it. It can't be!" Shinji examined the name card attached to the door.

"But room 303 doesn't have a name card. Maybe it's this one," Shinji suggested. He had a point — if Kasunagi was renting, he would have removed the name card to keep his identity hidden.

"Something doesn't add up. I'm pretty sure the angle matches better from room 304," Shouichi carefully inspected the name card holder.

"Shinji, someone tampered with it recently, I'm sure! Look at the dust on the ledge. There was no dust on the door itself. Someone must have swapped the name cards, but they didn't do a very good job of hiding it." Shouichi reasoned. He wasn't going to underestimate Nabe, but he wasn't exactly the smartest criminal.

"Jeez! Let's just break the door for room 304!" Shinji agreed with a nod and prepared to ram the door with brute force. It shouldn't be too hard to break open, as the whole apartment was old, including the door and hinges.

"You trust me, right?" Shouichi asked to confirm.

"Always!" Shinji quickly responded.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The rusty hinges snapped off, sending the door flying open, crashing to the ground with a loud thud.

Nabe, who had been assaulting Shouichi's mother, was startled and immediately grabbed his gun, aiming it at the two attackers. His hand trembled in fear, but his twisted finger still clung to the trigger.

The room was exactly as Shouichi had expected — a rundown, small apartment. A bed at the far end of the room with a dirty curtain, a PC and strange equipment scattered to the left. Shouichi's heart sank as he saw his mother, huddled in the corner, her face horrified. He was too late. She had been violated beyond recognition by the vile scum.

"How the hell did you find me so quickly?" Nabe growled, waving the gun at them. It was a strange model that Shouichi didn't recognise.

"YOU BASTARD!" Shouichi screamed, his fists clenched in rage. He was ready to kill the man with his bare hands, but the gun stopped him.

"Hehehe, I guess there's some magic to it," Nabe sneered, talking to his gun. "How about I continue while you boys watch? Wouldn't that be a great lesson, right? Yoko-chan?" The sickening man grinned, exposing his crooked teeth, and reached for Yoko's arm. It was clear she had already lost her will. She was like a doll — emotionless and expressionless.

"Crap! I can't do anything. Yoko is right there, but I can't reach her…" Shouichi thought, despair creeping in.

"You F*cking Scum!"

Shatter!

Without warning, Shinji moved faster than anyone expected, punching Nabe square in the face. The force was so powerful that it sent the man flying, crashing through the window. His upper half was hanging out, while his lower half, along with his exposed genitals, remained inside the room.

"Such an awful sight!" Shinji commented as he walked to pull Nabe back into the room.

"Hehehe… It's too… late… I live-streamed everything…" Nabe muttered his last words, his consciousness slipping away.

Shouichi quickly rushed to the computer, ending the livestream and disconnecting the camera's wire. After making sure everything was settled, he turned to face his petrified mother. Yoko hadn't spoken a word since. She trembled uncontrollably, tears streaming down her face.

"Mom…" Shouichi reached out to her, but she recoiled instinctively, jerking back as though touched by a live wire. Her eyes widened in fear, and in that moment, it was clear that she was terrified of him.

"Damn it! You two!" Suzuki's voice broke through, echoing from the entrance. The female cop had finally arrived, though once again, it was too late. She swept her gaze over the room, landing on the lifeless body of Nabe, his naked backside exposed. Shinji and Shouichi instinctively stepped aside, allowing her space.

Suzuki checked Nabe's pulse. "He's alive," She confirmed, her voice detached.

"This is Officer Akiyama. Requesting backup. We've located Kasunagi Nabe at…" Suzuki reported on her radio. A buzzing sound followed, and a confirmation came through.

She then turned to speak to the boys. "Please leave the room for now. I can take care of Yamamoto-san," She reassured them with a soft, gentle voice.

"But…" Shouichi began to protest, hating the thought of leaving his mother in such a state.

"Please believe me, she doesn't want you to see her like this. I hope you understand," Suzuki said, her eyes full of sincerity. With a heavy heart, Shouichi gave her a respectful nod. Though it tore him to walk away, he trusted her words as he left his mother in her care.