The Way It Should Be
Prologue
It wasn’t exactly a warm night for a stakeout but that didn’t really bother him. It was no less than what he expected when he decided to go into the Private Investigator business almost a year ago. So much had happened during that time. His wife didn't taken the news well that he’d quit his desk job to enter a business venture that was not only physically but financially risky as well. That spelled the beginning of the end of his short marriage. Not that Ryo was particularly upset. He’d married the woman more out of affection rather than love.
Ryo woke up almost three years ago with amnesia. Asuka was one of his nurses at the time and, after his discharge, had offered him a place to stay when he left the hospital with no money, no home and no memories. Grateful for that, he let himself believe he was in love with her in order to have a place in this world.
That he wasn’t exactly husband material soon became apparent. He hated his desk job and his elusive memories caused him to be dissatisfied with his current life. His subconscious teased him with flashes of memory that rarely followed him into wakefulness. Although lately, he’d been having brief flashbacks as he roamed the streets of Tokyo while working. It seemed that certain places he’d been before would trigger a recollection from his past. He was hoping to find the one thing that would break the dam holding his memories back someday. The images he’d seen so far were confusing, but reinforced his suspicion that he’d had a very dangerous or illegal… job… possibly both.
He was distracted from his thoughts by his target’s movement as he greeted another man. Ryo’s client was an elderly woman who was suspicious that her husband was cheating on her and it was Ryo’s job to provide the proof. He got his listening device ready along with the camera but, before he could aim either one, he saw something out of his peripheral vision. A blond male was stealthily making his way toward the man he’d been tailing. Ryo was about to aim the camera when yet another man caught his eye. He froze when he recognized him. His name was Ken something-or-other and he’d come by to retrieve the sword that was found with Ryo when he was rescued from the destroyed building three years ago.
Why was he here? Ryo barely had time to ask himself that question when he saw his client's husband and associate killed by the two men. Ryo watched as they turned to leave and, without any hesitation, followed them. Ryo tailed the pair for a while but knew he gave himself away when Ken suddenly turned and looked around. Ken's eyes widened when he spotted Ryo. Ken said something to his partner and the two men immediately split up.
The other man, with his blond hair and height, was much easier to follow and Ryo had no problem keeping him in sight. This time, when his quarry turned to see if anyone was following him, Ryo did a better job of hiding. He followed the blond to a house in a quiet, residential neighborhood where he met Ken. After one more glance down the street, they quickly slipped through the front door.
Ryo turned his surveillance equipment toward the house and immediately heard the ongoing conversation inside:
“…ji spotted us on the mission tonight.”
“How in the hells did that happen?”
“I don’t know, it looked like he was on a stakeout. He was on foot, dressed in black and had a pack over his shoulder that was probably equipment. Mamoru said he’d gone back into the PI business,” said the first voice.
“He was tailing us, too. He's very good if neither Ken nor I were able to spot him for the first ten minutes,” said another voice.
This confirmed Ryo’s suspicions that he was the subject of their discussion.
“Are you sure you lost him? He was always the best of us at tailing a target,” said the second voice.
“Of course, we wouldn’t have come here otherwise,” the first voice said.
“I no longer saw him after Ken and I split up,” said the third voice.
“Are you going to go see him?” The first voice asked.
“What’s the use? He doesn’t remember me… us, anymore.” The second voice spoke in a soft tone.
“Aya, you don’t…”
“No! This discussion's over.”
“Whatever.” A second later, a door slammed.
“Aya, maybe you should reconsider. Your protests would indicate that you still need some closure in order to move on.”
“I have moved on.” The conversation ended and only the muffled noise of movement could be heard through the surveillance equipment, followed a moment later by the faint sound of heavy breathing. “You know first hand I’ve put my past behind me, yet somehow you don’t seem to be convinced.” The silence continued until Ryo was about to pack it in and then he heard, “Maybe you need me to remind you again how well I’ve moved on.”
Ryo heard the click of a latch as a door closed.
*****
The next morning found Ryo walking down a busy sidewalk on his way to the office when he noticed a gorgeous man with red hair at the traffic signal waiting to cross. A few blocks later, he stepped into his favorite coffee shop and ordered a double espresso. He left the coffee shop and, as he continued his walk, habit had him using a large picture window as a mirror to look behind him; he noticed the same redhead following.
Ryo quickly finished his coffee and stopped at a trash can to throw it away while he kept an eye on the person tailing him. The man stopped every time Ryo did. Ryo started walking then quickly reversed direction to head back the way he came. As expected, the stranger stopped and pretended to look at merchandise through a window. Ryo shook his head and acted as if he forgot something, then quickened his pace and retraced his earlier steps.
Ryo quickly rounded a corner into an alley and stopped, waiting for the redhead to rush headlong into him. He wasn't disappointed as he grabbed a hold of his prey and slammed him against the wall. Ryo then pushed the dazed individual face down onto the ground and pulled his arms back in order to use the cuffs he always kept handy. It was a good thing he did because, as soon as the restraints were fastened, the man started struggling.
Now to get some answers.