CH 9

The following evening after the bomb incident, Yuto got a call from Neto.

Neto said that he had something to tell him, and wanted to speak in private. Yuto headed downtown after sunset.

The Mexican bar that Neto had chosen was on a relatively safe street. The patrons were not exclusively Chicano; there was a healthy mix of Black and Caucasian people as well. Yuto watched a group enjoy a game of darts as he searched for Neto. He saw Pepe, the man from yesterday, walking toward him from the end of the hallway.

“Neto’s already here. Follow me.”

Pepe showed him to a booth at the very back of the bar that was partitioned with a curtain. When Pepe spoke up, the curtained opened and another man appeared. The man looked at Yuto and jerked his head, gesturing him to come in.

Neto, who was sitting on the sofa, smiled at him.

“Sorry for dragging you out here on short notice. My neighbourhood is rough at night, so I didn’t want you coming out there all by yourself.”

“Thanks for the consideration, but you make me sound like a sheltered teenaged girl,” Yuto said as he sat down across from him.

“Don’t be so hard on me,” said Neto, smiling wryly. “Just yesterday, an officer was shot on the street nearby my house. Anyway, how about something to drink? Tequila?”

“Thanks, but I’ll pass. I need to drive. So, what’s this news you were talking about? Have you found out anything about Ara Roja?”

Neto told his two men to leave, and began to speak once they were alone together.

“Alonso hooked me up, and I was able to speak to his cousin directly. We found out who was supplying Ara Roja during their heyday.”

Yuto’s face shone in expectation.

“Who was it?” he pressed eagerly.

“But before that, take a look at this.”

Neto opened a newspaper that was lying on the table. “Here,” he said, pointing at an article that said a man named Jim Faber had been shot by an unknown assailant on the streets of Compton late yesterday night.

“What about it?”

“This Faber guy was the one supplying wholesale cocaine to Ara Roja.”

Yuto was stunned. Just when he had found someone who might be part of White Heaven – but he had been a second too late.

As Yuto cradled his head in frustration, Neto mentioned something odd.

“I’ve known about Faber for a while. He’s somewhat of a big name drug dealer in the underground world. But I didn’t know he dealt with Ara Roja, too. I was in prison at the time, though, so I wasn’t up to date on the news outside. So I was surprised, to be honest, when I found out that you and Dick were looking for the same guy.”

Yuto was confused by Neto’s words.

“What do you mean? What about Dick?”

“Dick came to me yesterday asking about Faber.”

“Wait a minute. Why would Dick be looking for him…?”

“I don’t know why. But Dick called me when I was still in prison, using a fake name. He said he was looking for a man called Faber, and asked me to look into his whereabouts. By that time I knew when I was getting released, so I told him I would start looking as soon as I was out, and I gave him my contact info.”

Yuto’s mind was thoroughly tangled. He didn’t know what to make of this new information.

“You’re saying that Faber was coincidentally shot the same night that Dick heard his whereabouts from you?”

“You think this is a coincidence?” Neto’s eyes were dark.

“No way…” Yuto shook his head in disbelief. “You think Dick killed Faber?”

“It’s the natural assumption.”

Yuto was shaken. But Neto was right. The timing was too convenient for it to be a coincidence. Dick had killed a man.

But why? Because Faber was a member of White Heaven? Because it was necessary for his revenge? Was Corvus not the only target for Dick?

“I really debated whether I should tell you,” said Neto. “It would mean breaking my promise with Dick. But I’m starting to get worried about him. What’s he trying to accomplish?”

Yuto couldn’t answer Neto’s question.

“Yuto, I don’t know what you and Dick are wrapped up in, but I know that you guys are in similar circumstances. I think you’re the only one who can stop Dick from going off to the deep end.”

Yuto shook his head over and over like a broken doll.

“I can’t. To Dick, I’m just a part of his past that he’s cut away.”

Yuto found himself blurting out what had been bothering him, unable to hold it in any longer.

“Yesterday, when Dick saw my face, he still bolted. He probably didn’t want to see me.”

Yuto glanced down at his hand on the table. There was a small cut on it from yesterday’s explosion. Although he felt a twinge of pain, it would probably go away after two or three days.

But the wound on his heart from seeing Dick and being avoided was probably not going to heal that easily.

“Before Dick broke out of prison, he told me to forget about him – that’s it’s for my own good. But I can’t. I wish I could forget him, but I can’t stop thinking about him. Just the thought of him makes me want to do something, I can’t stay still.”

Neto reached out and cupped his large palm over Yuto’s hand.

“He’s that important to you, huh?”

His question could be interpreted a number of ways, but Neto probably did know the whole story already. It was only natural for a sharp, observant man like him.

“Are my feelings really written all over my face or something? Rob said he could tell, too,” Yuto smiled weakly.

“Rob caught you with your guard down,” said Neto with a smile. “He acts innocent and oblivious, but he’s got a sharp eye. —He’s a good guy, though.”

“I think so, too. I’m glad I met him.”

“You should be thankful for the good people you meet. Be thankful, and fate will put you in touch with more good people down the road. Nothing is worth more than the human connections you make.”

“You know, Neto, you’ve always reminded me of a school teacher.”

“Come on, be straight with me. You’re saying I’m preachy, right?”

“Maybe a bit.”

Yuto paused as he mustered the courage to continue. “—It’s not normal, though, is it? We’re both men.”

“There’s nothing abnormal about loving someone.”

“But Rob says I might be misinterpreting my feelings.”

“Misinterpreting? What does he mean?”

As Yuto explained to Neto what Rob had told him, the man listened with interest.

“The suspension bridge effect, huh. Do professors like him insist on dissecting love, too? Anyway, his explanation makes sense, but it’s not like everything about the human psyche can be determined by data. Love, especially. You can analyze all you want, but once you fall in love with someone, the ‘why’ doesn’t matter anymore. If reason was enough to rein in your feelings, they weren’t real in the first place.”

Yuto couldn’t help but notice Neto’s vehement tone.

“Did you ever fall in love with someone so much you couldn’t help it?”

“Hey, what’s that supposed to mean? I fall in love, too. And I’ve fallen in love with someone and suffered because I knew I had no chance,” the man smiled bitterly.

Yuto looked in bewilderment at him. He couldn’t imagine Neto being so caught up in love enough to lose himself.

“But they were all women, right?”

“Well, mostly. But just once, I was attracted to a man. It was while I was in prison.”

“You, Neto…? Was it because there were no women around?”

Neto silently gazed down at his hand that held Yuto’s. Although he wore a serene expression, Yuto sensed a heaviness in the air.

“It’s fine,” he blurted. “You don’t have to talk about it. I’m not going to force it out of you.”

“No, it’s not that I don’t want to talk about it. I just can’t find a way to explain what it was like back then. I feel like nothing I come up with fits quite right.”

Neto let go to Yuto’s hand and lifted his glass of tequila.

“It happened way back, way before you came in. I got to know a certain young inmate. He already had a lot of problems, but he had a fiery personality and went around picking fights with other people. It was like watching a wounded animal lashing out – I couldn’t bear to see it. I tried to lend him a hand, but he always pushed me away. He had a deep distrust of people, so he disliked me and was apprehensive of me. But I couldn’t leave him alone. I knew I was being stupid, but I kept reaching out to him. A lot happened, but he finally began to open up to me. That was when—“

Neto stopped abruptly and let out a short exhale as he closed his eyes.

“That was when he was stabbed to death with a knife. Right in front of my eyes.”

Yuto gazed at Neto silently as the man appeared to struggle to contain himself. Although in his head, he knew what came with the dangers of prison, he couldn’t find the words to comfort a man whose cherished person had been murdered before his eyes.

“Dick did me a lot of favours when it came to that inmate. He can be an enigma sometimes, but he’s a man you can trust. I’ve always believed it, and I always will. You trust him, too, don’t you?”

Yuto also trusted Dick. In prison, he was the only person Yuto could trust completely. But now, he didn’t know anymore – neither about Dick’s feelings nor what was to come. If Dick was pushing him away, perhaps he ought to forget about him.

“Yuto, the profesor has a point, but you don’t need to rush to come to an answer. The ‘why’ or ‘how’ doesn’t matter – but your feelings do. If you want to see Dick again, you don’t need to force yourself to abandon those feelings. Maybe you’ll finally know what you’re feeling when you meet again. You’re the one who decides if the love that you found on that suspension bridge turns into something real.”

Neto’s words always brought him encouragement. Seeing his unwavering strength inspired Yuto to strive to be stronger, too.

“You really are like my mentor, Neto.”

“I’d rather just be your friend. I’ll leave the role of mentor to the profesor.”

“Sure,” Yuto said quietly with a smile, feeling overcome with emotion.

When Yuto returned, Rob was sitting on the sofa, reading a book as he sipped a glass of wine.

“Welcome back. How was your date with Neto?” he teased the moment he saw Yuto walk through the door.

“Don’t call it that. It sounds like you’re implying something.”

“Pardon my manners. I’m just being jealous, that’s all,” Rob said lightly with a laugh, in a way that Yuto couldn’t tell whether he was being serious or not. “You’ll have a glass, too, won’t you?” Rob said, bringing a new glass for him as Yuto sat down on the sofa.

“So, did you find out any new information after seeing Neto?”

“Yeah,” Yuto replied, but he found it difficult to find his next words.

“Was it bad news? You look anything but happy.”

It was no use clamming up. Yuto reluctantly relayed what he had heard from Neto to Rob. As expected, Rob’s expression hardened.

“I see… if that’s true, then that’s hard news for you to take.”

Yuto drank his wine as he looked at Rob, who was wearing a sombre expression.

“Tell me, Rob. What’s justice?”

“Where did that come from?” Rob blinked at him perplexedly.

“I’ve lived all my life abiding by the law. I’ve caught criminals as part of my job. But I was sent to prison for a crime I didn’t commit. Fortunately the real murderer was caught, so I was freed. But while I was in prison, I remember feeling this despairing sense that maybe there was no such thing as justice in this world. I was angry, and I wondered what was the use of all these laws. —Dick was the same. He was in a specialized military unit. He’s probably killed before for missions. But he’s not going to be punished for that. Is it because it was his job? Because it was for the country? The act of taking someone’s life is still the same, but whether it’s defined a crime or not depends on the time and circumstances. Dick wasn’t punished for the crimes he committed in his past; isn’t it contradictory to go after him for what he’s doing now?”

Yuto didn’t think that what Dick was doing was right, but at the same time, he couldn’t bring himself to judge Dick for his crime. He didn’t want to.

“That’s a dangerous way to think,” Rob murmured, almost as if to himself.

“What?” Yuto said.

“Nothing,” Rob said, shaking his head. “What is justice? I don’t have an answer for you. But one thing that’s clear is that there is no such thing as absolute justice or an absolute crime. That’s why we have laws. We decide what rules we need, and abide by them. Laws are imperfect in any era, but every society needs them order to function. Better than no order at all, right? Imagine a world without law and punishment. It would immediately fall into chaos.”

“…You’re right.”

He reckoned that Rob simply didn’t understand. Yuto had been betrayed by the very laws made to protect him, and had been unjustly robbed of his freedom. He had almost lost his life for a crime he didn’t commit. Only someone who had been through the same experience could understand how he felt.

But it couldn’t be helped. Yuto couldn’t bring himself to blame Rob for that.

“They’re showing yesterday’s bomb attack,” Rob said, turning to look at the TV. The news had been running constant coverage on the bombing at Gabriela Cemetery and the unsuccessful attempt at the Japanese American National Museum since yesterday.

After a while, the news switched to politics. The screen showed the Democrat presidential candidate campaigning in San Francisco.

“Looks like campaign season is heating up.”

The presidential election was taking place this year. The primary elections and national conventions had already concluded, and both Republican and Democratic parties had nominated their candidate. Right now, both parties were in the midst of a fierce election battle, holding national campaigns and televised debates ahead of the general election in November.

“So the Republican party’s chosen Bill Manning as the vice-presidential candidate, huh. Interesting choice.”

The vice-presidential candidate was usually chosen by the presidential candidate during the party’s national convention. If the presidential candidate won the election, the vice president would automatically be appointed as well.

“Manning is an aide for the current president, right?”

“Yeah. He definitely knows his way around. The president trusts him fully, and people say he even had sway over policy. He’s stayed mostly out of the spotlight until now. I guess he’s changing tactics.”

The news switched to a segment on an international conference of world leaders scheduled to happen at the end of the next month in New York. Rob turned off the TV.

“Yuto, I’ve been thinking about Dick’s last words to you. —Look beyond the dark underbelly of the prison industry, and you’ll find Corvus there.”

“Uh-huh. Have you found anything?”

“It’s just a hypothesis, but hear me out. Corvus told former warden Corning that Neto’s release would bring good results in the long-term for the prison, right? But on the contrary, it resulted in a riot and massive damage to the prison. Sounds contradictory, doesn’t it? But think of it this way: if a large-scale riot happens in a maximum-security prison, they’re going to be looking at bolstering their security. Most likely, that’ll result in them overhauling their security system – setting up a more stringent surveillance system, remote-operated tear gas, things like that. And when we actually went to Schelger Prison, I saw it – a whole slew of surveillance cameras and metal detectors, presumably installed after the riots.”

Yuto leaned forward. “Wait, so what you’re saying is Corvus intended for the riots to happen because it would profit the prison?”

“Yeah. Schelger Prison wouldn’t be the only place beefing up their security; many other prisons will follow suit as well. And if that happens, a company like Smith-Backs Company that dominates the security equipment business as well as prison management is going to see enormous profits. Their stock value will probably shoot up well.”

“Which means that Corvus wasn’t connected to Corning, but to Smith-Backs Company itself…? That’s it. That has to be it, Rob! That’s gotta be why Corvus was able to call me, and why he knew that I was FBI!” Yuto exclaimed.

Rob widened his eyes in surprise.

“Call you? Like the phone calls yesterday?”

“Yeah. I bought my cell phone recently, and only a few people know my number. I was baffled as to how Corvus had gotten it, but now I finally know. He must have gotten it from Carter.”

“You mean the new warden of Schelger Prison, Carter? Ah, I get it now. Carter must have called the company right away once he found out the FBI was coming to ask about Nathan. And that’s how the news got to Corvus.”

“It’s likely that Nathan is being sheltered by Smith-Backs Company. It’s a huge discovery. I need to call Heiden right away,” Yuto said, whipping out his cell phone is excitement.

“But a terrorist and a corporation working  hand-in-hand? What in the world is going on?” Rob muttered, looking perplexed.

“I don’t know, but we’re starting to zero in on our target. We might find some clues if we look into Smith-Backs Company. You’ve gotten us one step closer to Corvus, Rob.”

Yuto pressed the buttons on his cell phone, calling up Heiden’s number.