Lonely Thieves

Act IV, Part VI

Kolya and Ingrid's Side (April 13, 11:00 pm)

Two Twilight police officers stood at one of the main gates to the Morning Star district. The clearance bar had been down all day, and the officers only job was to keep any wayward drivers from trying to enter the district. By now, news of the lockdown had spread out to the entire city, and by this point nobody was coming around anymore.

The guard sighed as his partner let out a tired yawn. Still two more hours until his shift was over. As he was wondering if he could get away with clocking out early, headlights in the distance signaled a car coming up the road.

The car turned out to be a jeep owned by Hayasaka Security. The officer snapped himself out of his lethargy and tried to look authoritative as he walked up to the driver's seat window. Before he could start up his usual monologue, the window rolled down, revealing the stern face of Ingrid Hayasaka, captain of Hayasaka Security.

"Captain Hayasaka," the officer stuttered, completely taken aback. "What in the world are you doing here?"

"What does it look like?" Ingrid replied, her brow furrowed in annoyance. "I'm here to take part in the hunt for the original Night Hunter. Let me in."

"Ma'am, I'm sorry, but I can't do that. The district is supposed to be under lockdown."

"And how well has that been going for you? You know that things would be easier if Hayasaka Security were involved."

"Even if you say that, you need to talk to the Chief..."

"Then I will, as soon as I'm let inside."

The officer grunted in frustration. He knew the Hayasaka Security officers looked down on the normal police, but it irritated him to see how much they didn't care about their positions. He decided it wasn't worth it to get in trouble right now. He'd let the chief deal with this hassle instead.

"Go on and open the door," the officer called out to his partner, raising his hand to signal the raising of the gate. His partner looked confused, but ultimately acquiesced, and the clearance bar blocking the road into the district soon rose up. Ingrid pulled up the window and drove right into the district without another word to the officer.

Inside of the jeep, Kolya emerged from the back seat and glanced out at the district as Ingrid drove through the streets.

"Get back in your seat. What are you, a child?"

"I can't see anything from the back. All of the windows are tinted."

"What are you looking for that requires to bend your neck out like that? Just sit down before you get seen by someone."

Kolya chuckled. "Not like anyone would recognize me like this," he said as he gestured to the Hayasaka Security uniform he was currently wearing. Ingrid sighed and turned her attention back to driving.

"I hope you know what you're doing. If I get in trouble, I'm going to make sure to report you first thing."

"Don't worry. You haven't lied. You're here to help me find the original Night Hunter."

"What's your motive? Surely you're not actually interested in helping the police catch this criminal, right?"

"Who knows? I'm ex-mafia, after all. It might be good to curry favor with the authorities."

Ingrid furrowed her brow. He was being cryptic as usual. He'd promised to tell her why her grandfather was so obsessed about the emerald necklace, but if he was planning to make good on that promise, it certainly wasn't going to be any time soon.

She glared at him from the rearview mirror. "You're sure you know the reason behind my grandfather's desperation?"

"Of course."

"And you have evidence of that?"

"Not physically on me... but I know it exists."

"What's with that? You think you can convince me with such a flimsy argument?"

"Even if you say that, the fact that you're cooperating means you have suspicions of your own, right?"

Ingrid couldn't deny that. There really was no other reason to be cooperating with a known criminal, after all.

"Well, don't worry. If we catch up with Raven, I'm sure he'll have something to say as well."

"Raven? Is that the original Night Hunter's name?"