That evening, when we returned to the hotel, everyone went to sleep again except Akio and I. We stood guard outside of Jia's room again, listening out and looking around for anything. We knew we had crossed into the Teo Chiu's bad graces so we were more paranoid then anything else. Around two in the morning, we heard Jia and Toki going at it again... and I would roll my eyes and watched my watch again seeing the hour tick by. After it got quiet again, I dozed off for a few minutes at a time until Akio finally nudged me awake and I stood up. I thought Jun and Mikkie were coming to take over but Akio was just moving me out of the way as the door to Jia's room opened. I saw Toki standing there as he was tying a bandanna around his head as a cigarette hung from his mouth. It wasn't lit yet and his sweats hung down off his hips as he had a wife beater over his shoulder. He finished tying his bandanna as he whispered,

"Sh..Li's still sleepin. Akio can you do me a favor?"

He put his arm around Akio as he closed the door behind him and they walked down the hall. Akio sighed as he nodded and Toki hugged him quickly before they came back to where I was. I saw Jun and Mikkie approaching and as I passed them, I said good evening to the both of them and I thought Akio was behind me instead Toki was. I heard Mikkie give a small sound of surprise as Toki said,

"Gotta talk to you."

"I can't I have to stand guard.."

"Taken care of. You can talk for a few minutes."

Jun turned around as he said,

"Toki fuck off, Mikkie's got a job to do."

"No one's talkin to you Jun so fuck you."

"Fuck you Toki if he doesn't wanna talk to you then for once in your fuckin life listen!"

"Stay the fuck out of it Jun!"

The argument was slowly escalating and Mikkie put a stop to it as he stood between them and said,

"Be quiet! It isn't four in the afternoon it's four in the morning now shut up both of you!"

He sighed as he tucked his bang behind his ear and said,

"Jun I'll be there in a few minutes..."

"Akio's got his post."

Toki smirked as Jun narrowed his eyes at him and then he turned to me. Toki looked at me as his amusement faded and he took Mikkie's wrist and started walking back to the room Mikkie and Jun were sharing. As they passed me by Toki looked at me and said,

"What are you still doing up, what you wanna watch again?"

I felt repulsed he said that and my skin crawled. I shook my head as I turned and kept going to my room as I then closed the door behind me and went to bed.

The next morning I got up to Akio shaking me awake. When I sat up and noticed it wasn't even completely light outside. I rubbed my eyes as I said,

"What's going on?"

"We gotta get going."

"Why?"

"We got a job."

"But I just fell asleep."

Akio knelt down as he kissed me, my mouth parting to his will as his tongue wandered inside, coaxing me back. He pulled away just as suddenly as he started as he said,

"Awake now?"

I nodded, my face getting warm and I slowly got out of bed and went to get ready.

I had the hardest time keeping a straight face that whole morning. We had to take in meetings all morning since Jia was trying to find connections. Any kind of help against the Teo Chiu were good and he needed someone that wouldn't sell him out. Toki was sitting with us this time, so it was Akio, me, Toki, Aoki and Aya. Jia sent us to find connections and we all have good sense of character. We judge by our instincts so we traveled through Bangkok for most of the morning. Toki was half asleep, walking like a zombie, sunglasses covering his blood shot eyes as he smoked a cigarette nearly to the end. Aoki with his cigarette in his mouth as Akio and I had one. Aya didn't smoke for a while but eventually he did. Through the morning, we met up with different connections trying and judging everyone. Aoki could usually tell what someone's character was like right away. So could I. Something about everyone's eyes always made me think. So I trusted someone by the look in their eye. A stupid thing to do but it worked for the most part. We sat outside a park during one of the meetings since most of these were about meeting everyone. Aoki and Aya were conversing with one of the connections there as we talked to three of the other guys. Most of them were parts of smaller gangs through Bangkok and some were hard to trust. The leader of the group that Toki was talking to said,

"What do you guys do?"

Toki smirked as he said,

"I don't know...what's it look like we do?"

The leader laughed as he said,

"You look like us."

"Then maybe we do that."

"So why do you guys wanna team up with us?"

"Need connections. We're from Japan."

"Yeah that I see. It's in your eyes. Plus you're too white."

Toki looked down at his arms as he smirked and said,

"That I am. So...what you know about the Teo Chiu?"

"The Teo Chiu owns Bangkok. If anyone could take them on it would have to be someone with strength."

"You know someone like that?"

"I might."

"You got a price don't you?"

"Everyone does."

"What you want?"

The guy pointed at Aya as he said,

"That one."

Toki smirked as he said,

"Mmm...nice huh?"

"Yeah. Him for the deal."

Toki rubbed his chin as if he was considering it and said,

"What can yo hook us up with?"

"Some information and all the back we got."

"Which is?"

"Some local gangs."

"That's it?"

"Yup."

"Okay I have no problem wit that arrangement...but you see that guy?"

He pointed to Aoki. The leader nodded.

"That's his property. And if you want that, ask him. He'll tell you. He'll probably agree. This is a good deal."

The leader looked nervous for a moment before he said,

"All right."

He walked over to Aya, Aoki and the two others that were talking as the others followed the leaders over. Akio said to Toki,

"I didn't trust that guy."

Toki lit another cigarette as he nodded and said,

"Me either. It's why I sent him to Aoki. Watch his reaction."

We all turned and watched as the leader and Aoki talked. The leader said everything that he said to Toki. Aoki looked at him as Aya seemed shocked as well as disgusted as Aoki nodded and then turned slightly and then suddenly pulled back his arm and punched the shit out of the leader. A stream of blood shot out from his mouth as he fell to the ground and the others around him looked at Aoki like they were gonna do something. Aoki pulled his gun as he pointed at them and they turned and picked up their leader. Aoki walked back to us with Aya as he said,

"Not them."

I saw Aya looking at Aoki as he smoothed his hair back from his pretty face as he put his clear, tan tinted sunglasses on and we went on.

Connections that were to be trusted where hard to do. We sat down and had lunch mid afternoon as Toki had a drink. He didn't eat at all. I don't remember seeing him eat at all actually...ever. Aoki offered him something to eat and he refused.

"You gotta eat something man."

"Not hungry."

Aoki shook his head as Aya ate and said,

"Toki why won't you eat?"

"Not hungry."

Akio waved it off as he said,

"He's never hungry you know that."

Aya placed a forkful of brown rice on his fork as he puckered his lips and gently blew on the rice. He then leaned across the table towards Toki as he said,

"Have a bite."

Toki smirked as he said,

"Only you would make that sound like more then what it really was."

He ate the forkful of rice as Aya sat back down normally and Toki ate. Akio shook his head as he said,

"Only Aya could get Toki to eat."

They laughed as Toki finished his drink and the lit a cigarette. He brushed back his bangs from the side of his face and that's when I noticed light pink markings on the side of his arm. They looked like they were done by fingernail marks. Aya noticed them as I did.

"What happened to you?"

He gestured to the marks on Toki's pale arm. Toki shrugged as he said,

"I think I got scraped by something."

I didn't say anything knowing fully well they were probably made by Mikkie. We kept trying to make connections through the early afternoon until the early evening, only succeeding in making one. By the time we went back to the hotel, Jia was already there waiting for us. We made a solid connection that offered back and wanted to meet with Jia to make sure that we could be trusted. Jia agreed, knowing what that was like. We regrouped and finally set out to meet the one connection we made in Bangkok. The leader was from a gang that called themselves the 24K. They said they were called the 24K because of the news. A twenty-four body count was found there during a drug war. The bodies were found amongst ruined kelio packages of cocaine. Mostly prostitutes but some of the most feared and respected leaders from other gangs where among the body count. The 24K got their name from that. It was runned by a Japanese guy named Soryo Ryutaro. He had married a Thai woman and her father ran the original 24K. So now...he was in charge since her father passed away. Jia was surprised to know another Japanese man ran a gang here. By Soryo was surprised to see Jia, a Chinese man running a Japanese syndicate. The 24K were offered us a place to sit as Jia and Soryo spoke.

"I'm surprised that you run the 36 Moons Jia. And going against the Teo Chiu."

"I know what I'm facing."

"I hope you do. The Teo Chiu is not something to be taken lightly."

"I'll tell you what, if you join with me, the victory will be more guaranteed. I have no notions to take Bangkok, this city has nothing for me but whores and drugs. I'm not a pimp and I'm not a drug pusher. I just want the Teo Chiu to stay here and that means keeping Sugihara on a chain."

"Sugihara is someone that works with the Teo Chiu. He's hoping to make you go down and take your place. The Teo Chiu won't battle you outside of Bangkok."

"Then the answer is simple. Sugihara must be killed outside of Bangkok."

Soryo nodded as he said,

"He's a pain in everyone's side but to the Teo Chiu. He makes good money here. And the Teo Chiu love money. They own everything in that way."

"I will not loose to someone like Sugihara."

"He'll challenge you constantly if you leave him alive. But killing him in Bangkok will only rise anger within the Teo Chiu."

"Then I will leave and make him come to my land. I'll kill him there."

"You have our support Jia. I see you are a man that means to spare a war."

"I'm not for bloodshed unless it must be done."

Soryo and Jia shook hands, the connection made. Jia then said,

"We will leave Bangkok tonight. Send word so Sugihara reaches it that I have left to go back to Japan."

"He will pursue."

"Let him. That is my whole intention."

"We will do this. Consider it done."

That night we began to leave for Japan. But as we packed and got ready to go to the airport, the helicopter that provided that service waiting for us on the roof, Jia received word that Sugihara was no longer in Bangkok himself. A sick feeling ran through me at the moment but I hid it. We took the helicopter to the airport and then got on our plane once it was boarded. I couldn't stop the feeling running through me. I felt sick like I was going to throw up at any moment. I couldn't wait to get back home. Once our plane landed less then two hours later, I checked my cell phone seeing I had a message. I answered it only to tell me it was the hospital. I left my luggage there as I ran off, everyone wondering what was wrong as Akio called my name. I took a cab and told it to speed, wishing I was driving as I kept fearing the worse. Twenty minutes later I rushed to the front desk as I tried to calmly explain that someone called me to tell me something was wrong. They led me upstairs as the doctor explained it was Miya.

"He was hurt pretty badly. Nothing life threatening. A few bruises, a few scrapes and a sprained wrist."

"What happened to him?"

"I'm not sure. His friends that brought him in said that he was jumped. The worse of his condition is his mouth, however."

"His mouth?"

The doctor nodded with seriousness as he said,

"The people who hurt him cut his tongue with a razor blade. He's okay but he's in shock and he's in a great deal of pain."

I walked away and went to Miya's room where I sat down and took his hand in mine, looking at him, thinking it was all my fault.