"Did she have a Japanese boyfriend?" "I told you, I never mixed in her personal business." "What'd you have against her?" "Who said I had anything against her?" "She was shifty as smoke, but I liked her." "Then why didn't you try and stop him when he went for her with a gun?" "I didn't like her that much." "But you got a good look at him, didn't you?" "Not good enough to recognize him." "You're worried already, eh?" "Well, sure." "Who wants to stick his neck out identifying somebody?" "This Romeo she's been seeing on the QT, why the big secret?" "I told you." "I was her manager, not her wet nurse." "We all knew she was making time with some guy." "Why she wanted to keep him under wraps, who knows?" "Who cares?" "This Oriental artwork belonged to her or to the house?" "It's all Sugar's, all of it." "Or was." "Research for the Crimson Kimono, the new act she was working on." "Will you fill us in?" " You want the routine?" " Yup." "It was just an act she was going to crack Vegas with, that's all." " You really want to hear it?" " That's right." "Sure, sure." "It'll be a pleasure, gentlemen." "Picture this geisha house setting, and the curtain slowly going up on this guy cracking a real brick in half with his bare hands." " Just like that." " Karate?" "Yeah, that's what they call it." "This guy could bust anything in half with the palm of his hand." "You saw him break a brick in half?" "I never laid eyes on him." "Sugar filled me in on the whole routine." " What's his name?" " You got me." "I don't know where he lives or hangs out." " How come?" " Well, they never ran through the routine here." "Only in her apartment." " Did she always make the deals?" " Never before." "That's what's so screwy about this." "But she did let you in on the routine, eh?" "That, she couldn't hold back, because it was such a great idea." " Well, let's get back to the act." " Sure." "Just use your imagination now." "This...this gorgeous geisha makes her entrance in a crimson kimono, the same one she posed in for that painting." "It's Sugar Torch, but a brand new Sugar." "Not an inch of flesh exposed, only her face." "She begins dancing to Japanese music, and then she starts a real slow peel with this karate brick-smasher watching her." "Suddenly, her jealous boyfriend barges in, a samurai warrior with a sword." " Hidaka, she called him." " Willy Hidaka?" "Yeah, yeah." "You know him?" "You're doing fine, Mr. Casale." "Go on." "Well...well, the two guys begin battling over her, bare hands versus sword." "The brick-crusher kills Hidaka with one blow, turns to collect Sugar, but she tosses herself on the dead warrior and begins to bawl." "The brick-crusher blows his top, kills her and exits as the curtain slowly comes down on the two dead lovers." "Sort of a Romeo and Juliet touch." "How do you like that for a striptease act?" "Sergeant Bancroft." " Mr. Casale, where can I find this Chris?" " Who?" "Chris, the artist who made this painting of Sugar?" " Never heard of him." " Where'd she have it made?" "Who knows?" "Maybe McAllister knows." "Mac?" "I'll have a talk with her." "You got enough loot on you to play Santa Claus?" "I'll manage." "It's more than just strength in this karate business, Willy." "It's a combination of coordination and concentration." "Let me try it." " How you doing, champ?" " Hi, Joe." "What are you trying to prove?" "I have to qualify for something, Joe." "I even goofed at kendo." "You can fill in for me." "I don't think Charlie and I can make it this time." " You kidding?" "You guys can't back out now." " We're on a case." " Dough was spent advertising that contest." " That's right, Joe." "You guys haven't missed a match in five years." "Anyway, my money says that Charlie is going to pound you into a fish cake this year." "Willy Hidaka, the samurai warrior." "Now you got it made, boy." "Hey, how'd you find out about that?" "You didn't tell those jokers down at the pool hall about it, did you?" "I figured you had a reason for playing it close to the vest." "How'd you land the job?" " You want to get in the act, too?" " Could be." "You won't believe this, Joe, but one day I get a call from a girl asking me up to her apartment." "Sugar Torch, the stripper." "How come she called you?" "She said a friend of hers spotted me in Little Tokyo and recommended me for the part, because I'm built like a samurai." "Who was the talent scout?" "Never got a chance to meet him." "Joe, if my father knew I was going to work with a stripper, he'd chop me like a ripe banana." "Me, Hidaka, doing an act with Sugar Torch." "Have an apple." "There's not going to be any act." "She didn't replace me with another guy, did she?" "Somebody shot her dead." "That poor little muffin." " Hello, Mac." " Charles, dear boy." "Have a beer." "Rumor has reached Skid Row that Sugar Torch went out in a blaze of glory." "In front of a free audience." "Whom are you hunting, Charles?" "How did you like that kimono painting of her?" "A work filled with total youthful vibration." "Countless little strokes of pure crimson, rather than mixing colors on the palette." " You like Chris' work?" " It shows promise." "Well, where can I find this promising Rembrandt?" "Nude Ascending Celestial Bodies." "Where can I find Chris, the artist who painted her in that kimono?" " What painting?" " Who was the karate hired for the act?" "Shuto." "He's a Korean." "He once killed a bull with one blow." "Do you know where he lives?" "No." "He's new in town and doesn't speak a word of English." " How's his Japanese?" " Almost as bad as mine." "Aha!" "You think the jealous artist turned on his model?" "Could be." "I think I see the bulge of a fragile friend in your pocket, dear boy." "Bourbon." "It's Latin, Charles, and it means, "Put up or shut up."" "Ha!" " I love you, Charles." " You're a pearl, Mac." "Love does much, but bourbon does everything." "Now, where's this Chris?" "Dear boy, I shall have to get blotto to remember." "Homicide." "Bancroft." "McAllister reporting, front and center." " Who?" " There's nothing like 100-proof heaven to make the mind clear and the..." "And the memory sharp." "Mmm-hmm." "Thanks, Mac." "I do love you." "Yeah, I love you, too." "Room service." "610." "Coffee tout de suite." " Good morning, Sergeant." " Good morning, Nat." "That striptease murder is all over the paper." "Sausage?" "It gave me a heartburn last time." "Say, I saw that Sugar Torch." "It's too bad." "Hey, hey." "Sausages?" " Two on a raft." " Two on a raft." "Poached eggs, juice, the works." "Double it." "Got that, Nat?" "Righto, Sergeant." "Room service?" "Hey, who's paying for this?" " Is this on the house?" " We're living it up this morning, Joe." "Living it up?" "You got rocks in your head or something?" "What did you do, inherit a lot of loot?" "No." "Mac came through with a lead." "Great." "Great." "The bourbon paid out." " Uh-huh." " Let's have it." "Well, that painter, Chris." "He's at the University of Southern California." "Well, I'll see what I can draw up on Shuto." "Hey, take it easy, will you?" "Come on." "We'll have this thing wrapped up before Sunday, anyway." "What's Sunday got to do with it?" "That's action day for you and that babe from Gardena." " What?" " That babe from Gardena." "Remember?" "Holy smoke, I forgot." "I'll have to tap her for a rain-check." "Don't be a meathead, Joe." "You've got that day off coming to you." "I'll get Ed Jokish to fill in for you." " You'll what?" " I'll get Ed Jokish to fill in for you." "Listen, Charlie, I'm hanging on 'till we wrap it up." "Sister Gertrude." "Well, Charlie, that puts us both in business." " I think I know where Shuto is." " Joe, will you take it easy?" " Nobody cares who killed that tramp." " Well, I do." "Will you quit pushing so hard, Joe?" "You've got half that handbook memorized already." "You can say that again." "You'll make sergeant without busting a date over a burlesque queen." "Anyway, the grapevine has it that that Gardena beauty's planning to have you meet her family." "That's another reason why I want a bypass." "She's a Kibei, you know." "Born here, but raised in Japan." "So?" "So?" "So we never agree on anything." "All we do is get into beefs about the old country." " Are you kidding?" " Pretty corny, huh?" "Man, you're really slipping if that's all you beef about with that babe." "Listen, Don Juan, you tackle Rembrandt at the school, and I'll shortstop Shuto." "You knucklehead." "Yes?" "Did you want me for something?" "Well, I'd like to take that matter up with you another time." "I asked for the artist who made this painting." "It reproduced surprisingly well, didn't it?" " You're Chris?" " Mmm-hmm." " Christine?" " Christine Downs." "Are you interested in sitting for me?" "Why, you look disappointed." "Well, not in you, Miss Downs, but I was hoping Chris would be a man." "Are you allergic to women artists?" "Well, I'm not here to sit for a portrait." "Not right now, anyway." " Then you'll excuse me." " I'm here on police business." "Detective Sergeant Bancroft." "What kind of business?" " Sugar Torch." " What's that?" "Why, haven't you seen today's headlines?" "This one, either?" "I didn't pay particular attention." "Why?" "Well, the woman you painted was Sugar, the stripper." "She was shot and killed last night on Main Street." "You see, someone put a bullet through your painting and another one through her neck." "Hey, are you all right?" "Can I get you some water?" " No, thank you." " Well, you see, Miss Downs, your painting was hanging in her dressing room in a burlesque house." "So far, it's the only lead we have to go on." "That poor woman." "How horrible." " Then you liked her?" " Why, yes." "Where did you meet her?" "Right here." "A few weeks ago we held a Japanese art exhibit." "Miss Trent liked my work and Mr. Hansel commissioned me..." " Do you know Hansel's first name?" " No." "He paid me $75." "It's the very first time I'd ever been paid." "Do you know where he lives or what kind of work he does?" "No." "He impressed me with his knowledge of Oriental customs." "How old is he?" "Can you describe him for me?" "Well, he's in his mid-30s." "Brown hair and brown..." "Yes, brown eyes." " Now, where did you paint her?" " In her apartment." " Why, he was there every time." " Hansel, you mean?" "He arranged the kimono, the obi, the wig." "Why would anyone want to kill her?" "She was always so kind, so cooperative." "Well, once we find this Hansel character, maybe all the pieces will fit." "I wonder if you'd do a big favor for me?" "Do you think you could make a sketch of him?" " You mean Hansel?" " Yeah, Hansel." " Right now?" " I sure do." "All right." "Miss Downs." "Did either of them mention a man called Shuto?" "No." "Do I get you nervous, watching?" "Well, it's just that I..." " Well, I..." " Look." "A lot of citizens cave in at the last minute when they think their identification might send somebody to the gas chamber." "That's what's bothering me." "You know, you used a lot of little strokes on that kimono painting instead of mixing them up on the palette." " An art critic?" " No." "I'm just repeating what a friend told me." "She called your work "total youthful vibration"." " She an artist?" " Yeah." "Mac's an artist." "You know, I..." "I like the way you look in that smock." "I wish I could have heard that under different circumstances." "You suppose when you're finished with that sketch that I could have a little more of your time?" "You don't look like a cop." "Well, now, that word doesn't fit those full lips of yours." "Well, you see, we don't like being called cops like girls don't like being called broads." " I'm sorry." " It's all right." "May I ask what you want of me?" "Strictly police business." "On the level." "This Mr. Shuto you saw last night..." " Mr. Shuto?" " I don't recall anyone by that name." "He's Korean, big man, built like a mountain." "He must be that unfortunate man who was so terribly frightened." " And so sick." " Drunk?" " I'm afraid he was intoxicated." " Do you know where he lives or hangs out?" "I'm sorry, Joe, but we know nothing about him." " Have you tried the Korean consul?" " I've tried everywhere." "Gyms, judo schools, wrestling hangouts, arenas." "You said he was frightened." "Did he say of what or whom?" "He was pitifully inarticulate, Joe." "But did he say anything at all?" "He did ask for George Yoshinaga." " Uh-huh." " Yes, and he was kind enough to come right over and help the poor man." "Yoshinaga took him away?" " Yes." " I see." "Thank you, sisters, thank you." " And how is Sergeant Bancroft?" " Give him our regards." "I sure will, sisters." "Thanks again." "Hey, look at the banners and lanterns." "What's the big celebration?" "Well, day after tomorrow, Nisei Week Festival opens with a bang." "You ever been down here in Little Tokyo?" "No." "I never knew that police headquarters was right across the street from the Japanese section." "What do they do for Nisei Week?" "They have doll exhibits, judo, kendo matches." "Well, that street'll explode with parades, bands, gorgeous girls in kimonos." "It should give you a lot of ideas for paintings." " How'd you like to see it with me?" " I'd love to." "Fine." "Let's get back to work." "Now the first thing we'll do is narrow down our suspects to Sugar's former acquaintances." " Hello, Mr. Yoshinaga." " Hello, Joe." " How are you?" " Just fine, thank you." "Mr. Yoshinaga, I understand you're a friend of Mr. Shuto's." "Yes." "I hope he feels better today." " You know where I can find him?" " I know a few places." " Why don't you try..." " I'd appreciate it if you'd come with me." " You see, I don't know him." " Is he in police trouble?" "No, but he can help us on a case." "Well, I made an appointment for my son's memorial service." "I've never missed one in nine years." "I'm sure we'll find Mr. Shuto right after the service." " Koyasan Temple?" " Yes." " Fine, come on." " This news broadcast is interrupted for public service." "The Los Angeles police are looking for this man." " Let's try the rice-cake factory." " Okay." " Spot him?" " Yes." "He's not going to get hurt, is he?" "No, I'm just going to ask him a few questions, that's all." "He's the one in the gray suit." "Big man." "...you know, a few questions about the stripper, Sugar Torch." " How are we doing?" " No luck yet." "Oh, no." "We've got a whole library of these mug books." "Give you a chance to study portraits." "I'll take landscapes from now on." "Is something wrong?" "No." "I'm just trying to figure out something." "What?" "Well, what have we got to lose?" "Do you think they'll worry about you tonight if you don't turn up at your sorority?" "Straighten up." "Put your hat on." "Return." "Come back again." "Excuse me." "This is Miss Downs." "How do you do, Chris?" "Just call me Mac." "Sit here, my dear." "I've been so anxious to meet you." "I asked to meet you." "Why all the urgency?" "You want to join her art class?" "Did you have good hunting at the show-up tonight?" " Blank." " I made an awful blunder." "I thought Number 5 suspect was Hansel." "Wouldn't you know, he turned out to be a police officer." "I saw your sketch on TV, Chris." " How did you know I made it?" " It's your style." "Thank you." "I wonder what Hansel's name really is?" "Why, how do you know it's not his name?" "You bloodhounds would have had him stretched and quartered by this time if you knew his identity." "I've heard so many colorful stories about your work." "You'll find my murals in Skid Row's finest bars and brothels." "Do you have a lover?" "Why do you ask?" "Because there's just one more item to add to your work before we settle down to why I wanted to see if you were worth the trouble." " What trouble?" " Do you mind if I offer my critique on her work before we start to fence?" " Did you score?" " Nope." "That Shuto gets around for a big guy." " Did you order yet?" " Not yet." "Well, Mac, what was the big deal you had to talk about with Chris?" "Chris is dead." "You are dead, Chris, if Hansel sees that sketch you made of him." "Why are you getting her all worked up with that kind of talk?" "Mac, this is none of your business." "We know what we're doing." "I know what you'd do if anything happened to her." "You'd feel terrible about it." "Let's get out of here, Chris." "Come on, Joe." "You're very kind, Mac." "And you, my dear, are very young to have your neck smashed by a bullet." "Nobody's forcing you." " Nobody." " I know." "I'll be all right, Mac." "Good night." ""The third bullet struck Sugar in her flight on Main Street," ""killing her instantly."" " Want to hear more?" " Not particularly." "Have you seen the sketch of the killer?" "Does it say he's the killer?" "No, but he looks like one." "I don't like it." " What do you mean?" " They should've had a real artist like you draw it." "I mean, this is strictly amateurish." "Hello." "Yes, just a minute." "Chris, it's for you." " Hello?" " This is Mr. Hansel, Chris." "That sketch you made of me for the police was your last work of art." " Are you sure you've had your coffee?" " No." "No, thanks, Mac." "What makes it rough now is we've got two jokers to find." "Mmm-hmm." "And I suppose Chris is in the hospital." "No." "She wasn't hit." "What about her family?" "Have you notified them?" "She's afraid they'd haul her back home by jet." "And why not?" "It seems like good sense to me." "Not to her." "No, she's just as anxious to nail Hansel as we are." "Here, go on, have some." "It's good for you." "Go on." "It's on the house." "Why don't you hole her up out of town?" "Here." "Come on." "I'll fix that one up for you." "Well, now, why don't you hole her up out of town?" "She won't buy that." "Even turned down a hotel room with a 24-hour guard." "Well, she's not being stupid enough to stay in that sorority den?" "She moved in with us." " She did, did she?" " Come off it, Mac." "Our place is jumping with plainclothes men." "Our set-up's healthy, except for one thing." "Aha." "You want me to act as wet nurse." "Well, you speak her language." "When a woman is drafted as chaperone, that is not complimentary." "Charlie figured bird-dogging wouldn't appeal to you." "However, I'd do anything for dear Charles." "And free bourbon." "All you have to do is ring for it." "Are you feeling better now?" "I try not to jump at every sound." "Well, it's only natural." "Right after the war, I nearly fell apart every time I heard a cup rattle a dish." "Do you mind if I talk to you while I look at these?" "It seems to make the time go faster." "Fire away, but just concentrate on those beauty winners." "The sooner we find Hansel, the quicker we'll score." " Who plays the piano?" " Joe." "I can't even carry a tune." "You know, this is a pretty fancy apartment for two policemen." "Don't let it throw you." "Some guys spend all their loot on clothes or horses or women." "We put every buck we got into this palace, and by the time the 6% pension takes a bite into our pay and the deducts take over, we're busted." "As soon as Joe makes sergeant it'll make this set-up a little easier to handle." "You've known him a long time?" "Yeah, we met in a foxhole." "I was a CO." "He was a rifleman." " He got the Silver Star." " Were all the Nisei so heroic?" "Only one ever went AWOL." "He deserted a hospital bed to rejoin my outfit when we went back into action." "It's all right, Chris." "Thanks." "Here's some more pictures of suspects for you, Chris." "Chris, are you all right?" "Chris?" "Hey, are you okay?" "I feel so silly, breaking up like this." "Let it pour out." "It'll do you good." "I just don't seem to be able to control myself." "You've got the best reason in the world to cry." "I've seen great big guys break down like kids." "And that lower lip of yours." "What's the matter with it?" "The way you wet it makes me think of those movie stars, the way they wet theirs to make them look more sexy." "Do you come from a big family?" "Everybody in your family have a nose like that?" "You know, I like an upturned nose." "I guess when you lift your head, the girls call you "snobhead", right?" "Say, that school's co-ed, isn't it?" "Do you..." "Do you have a..." "I'm just curious, that's all." "You know, Chris," "I've knocked around an awful lot." "Do you suppose after we wrap this case up, that you'd go out with a cop?" "Yeah, you would?" "Hello." "Well, did you send for help?" "Well, don't do anything foolish, Joe." "I'll be right there." "I don't want to shoot you." "I don't want to hurt you." "I don't want to shoot you, Shuto." "Shuto!" "Take it easy, Shuto." "I don't want to hurt you." "There's no one by the name of Hansel working here, but you know, it's a strange thing." "When I saw the sketch in the newspaper, I showed it to Paul." "I even kidded him about the amazing resemblance." " Who's Paul?" " Paul Sand." "He specializes in Asia." "We'd like to have a talk with him." "You mean, you suspect Paul?" "Believe me, Officers, when you meet him, you'll see why it's ridiculous." "I mean, I'm not running him down, but Paul Sand involved with a burlesque dancer?" "Would you ask Mr. Sand to come to my office?" "He what?" "When?" "Yes, yes, send him up." "This is a fantastic coincidence." "Paul Sand just resigned without explanation." "Anything?" "Well, there's a Caucasian wigmaker due here any minute." "They think maybe she'd know since she gets around a lot." "Joe, do you remember back in Korea how I used to laugh at a guy getting tied down to one woman for life?" "Korea?" "What took you back that far?" " Do you remember?" " Sure, I remember." "You made a big deal about how only Babbitts get married." "I'm a Babbitt." " What are you talking about?" " Chris." " You're batting 100% there." " Yup." "How about Chris?" "She pulling for you?" "Sure." "She knows how I feel, and I think the door's open for me." "Well, Charlie, I think it's great." "Kind of sudden-like, but great." "Me, I believe in taking a second look." "You know, just to make sure." "Yeah." "Well, I've wasted an awful lot of years," "Joe, but it was sure worth it." " How do you do?" " Hi." "I have nine of them in the exhibit." "For the Festival?" "Did you exhibit last year?" "No." "I've lived in San Francisco all my life." "Are you in the wig business?" " No, we're police." " Have you ever seen this man?" " Who hasn't?" "That's Hansel." " Do you know him?" "Who doesn't?" "He's on every newspaper and every TV broadcast." "I mean, have you ever seen him in the flesh?" "No, I haven't." "Isn't this a strange place for you to be looking for him?" "I mean, does he have a wig business?" "Well, he has a friend who's in it." "She specializes in Oriental hairstyles." " Caucasian?" " We don't know." "Well, there aren't very many of us in this business." " There might be a few I don't know." " Now, what's your name?" "Roma Wilson." "Miss Wilson." "Well, thank you for your time, Miss Wilson." "Will you be coming to the exhibit?" "You might want to buy a doll for your girl." "Well, I may drop around to pick out a wedding gift for a friend of mine." "We'll have just the gift for you." "The phone call Charlie got, was it about the murder?" "Mmm-hmm." " Why the big secret?" " It's no secret." "Sometimes we have to depend on informers, and Ziggy's one of Charlie's boys." " Ziggy?" "Is that a name?" " It's his." "Well, did he know Sugar?" "Those characters down there know everybody." "Normally, I'd have gone out with Charlie, you know, a team sticks together on a night job, but Ziggy made a big deal about wanting to see Charlie alone." "You'd better not have me down here on a phony, Ziggy." "I'm not going to like it." "I'm sweating behind the eyeballs, 'cause I don't want no goofball pusher" " to know I'm fingering for you." " Give out." "Well, I..." "I seen a character with Sugar a couple, three times." "I seen him with him again tonight." "That's why I rung you up." "Sugar knows lots of characters." "Yeah, but this one's got his picture in all the papers." "You're doing great." "Where'd you see him?" "You won't forget it was Ziggy who was your big thumb?" "Where is he?" "Charlie tells me you're quite an expert at this kendo." "He's my best press agent until we start belting eachother with those bamboo bats." "He explained it was some kind of fencing." "I still don't understand it." "Actually, it's just to make the annual Nisei get-together a more colorful shindig." "It's good showmanship." "We wear robes and gauntlets and chest guards and masks." "You know, a kendo fighter looks like a monk in a catcher's outfit." "How about some after-dinner music?" "I'd rather hear it live." "Hey, Charlie didn't pass me off as a Mozart, did he?" " Please?" " Okay." " What was it?" " Akatonbo means "Red Dragonfly"." "It's an old children's song." " It's beautiful." "Would you play it again?" " Sure." "What made you become a policeman, Joe?" "I like the job." " Just curious." " Why?" "I noticed the signature on this a little while ago." "You should be carrying a brush instead of a gun." "That's by Kojaku, all right, but not by this one." "My father made it." "It's exquisite." "He was a pure artist." "He could imitate the effect of worn leather saddles." "He could get a delicate imprint of a cobweb." "He built landscapes against a floating sunset of scarlet dust." "That was the last lacquer he made." "He called it Gold in Ice." "Yeah, my father found his utopia." "And you found yours in the Detective Division?" "It's Detective Bureau, Homicide Division." "I'm sorry." "Forgive me?" "To a lot of people, we're a strange breed, Chris, and maybe we are, but the work's steady." "You can't get fired unless you foul up, and there's the pension." " That's not really why I wear a badge." " I know." " How do you know?" " A hunch." "The house with the stairs." "Behind me." "The room on the top with the light." "No, no, over there." "He's up there." "You won't forget it was Ziggy who found him for you?" " I won't forget, Ziggy." " You won't forget, now, Sergeant?" "Police!" "Police!" "Lady, take it easy, I'm a police officer." "I'm a..." "Take it easy!" "Sit down over there." "Now just take it easy, will you?" "Now, you see, that's me." "Okay?" " Yeah." " Okay." "Now, where's the man who lives here?" "What are you talking about?" " This man?" "Recognize him?" " He's upside down." "Do you know him?" "Yeah, yeah, yeah, he's gone." " Where?" " I don't know or care." " How long ago?" " Not 10 minutes." "And he ain't coming back." "Well, did he go down by those stairs?" "No." "The front way." "How do you know he's not coming back?" "Katie, he's asking me how do I know." "He took his bag." "That's why I'm cleaning up." " How do I know?" " What kind of a bag did he have?" "Katie, what kind of a bag?" "I don't know or care." "What's going on in there?" "Who in the hell is beating up who?" "Any of you people know where Mr. Hansel went?" "The guy that lived in here?" " You a cop?" " Yeah." " I know nothing." " How about you people?" "Look, lady, mother..." "And that's a beautiful child you have, a beautiful child." " Did you ever see him with anyone?" " No." " You got a phone here?" " No." "Well, look, if you should see him, would you please call the police and ask for me, ask for Sergeant Bancroft?" "Not me, mister." "And you know why?" "'Cause I keep my nose out of police business." "And you know why?" "'Cause that's how I keep my looks." "For a moment, I thought you were going to start comparing me with Rembrandt or da Vinci." "I don't mean to run your talent down, but when I look at anything by those guys, I'm floored for weeks." "Well, I'm sorry I don't floor you." "Don't get me wrong, Chris." "I like that kimono painting you made." " Why?" " Why?" "It's hard for me to explain why I like your work, just as hard as it is to explain why it's kind of unfinished." " Mac been talking to you?" " What do you mean?" " About my painting?" " No, why?" "I think it's very strange that you..." "I'm really interested in finding out what you mean by "unfinished"." "It's kind of hard to put a feeling like that into words." "But it's as if you were hunting for something and never got to find it." "What am I hunting?" "I don't know, Chris." "I'm no longhair, but I'll try to explain it." "From the minute I saw your painting, I felt you were looking for something that just never happened." "Kind of, as if you were sitting on the edge of a volcano." "I don't know, Chris." "I don't even know how I got started on this gibble-gabble." "I'm no art critic." "You're a much more sensitive critic than you realize." "I guess I got the knack from my father." "He could always read an artist's heartbeat just by looking at his work." " Do you have a girl, Joe?" " You mean, hooked?" " Yes." " Uh-uh." "One day the right girl'll come along, and you'll both know at first glance." "You believe in that eyewash?" "No." "Neither do I." " Joe?" " Yeah?" "Do you believe there are people who'd never fall in love if they'd never heard of love?" "You can't fight a natural feeling." "Then why are you?" "Chris." "Let's not trigger off a bomb." "Get back to work." "What's the matter, Joseph?" "What's wrong?" "Please speak in English." "You know how it's helped me with my language." "I've got a problem, a girl." " I love her." " Who is she?" " Chris Downs." " What is her Japanese name?" " Is she Caucasian?" " Yes." "Now I can see what is the problem." "That's not what is wrong." "I keep asking myself, how do I rate a girl like Chris?" "Me, Joe Kojaku." "How do I rate her?" "I don't understand." " Because it would be wrong." " For whom?" "It's been filling up inside me all night, sensei." "I'm all mixed up." "I don't know what to do, or how to do it." "You came to me for help?" "I've got to talk to somebody about it." "How can I help you when I do not know what your trouble is?" "I didn't look to fall in love with her." "It happened." "Well, he's not in there." "Come on, let's go." "Well, I don't know where he could be holed up." "What do you think?" "Look, I don't mind doing a monologue, Joe, but something's bothering you." "What's the matter, didn't that chow settle right?" "That bullet kicking up inside you again?" "Huh?" "What's the matter with you?" "I feel like I'm with a zombie." "Come on." "I'll check in here." "You keep your eyes open in case he tries busting out the front way." "What's the matter with you?" "Smoking a cigarette is like drinking beer out of a thimble." "A man is only a man, my dear, but a good cigar is a smoke." "Were you ever in love with a man from a different world?" "Many, many times." "Well, was he someone of a different race?" "There was a Hindu in Bombay." "Was he sensitive about the difference between you?" "He wasn't, but his father looked down his imperious nose at me." "Why?" "I love Joe Kojaku." "He's thrown a wall up between us, because he's Japanese." "Did you tell him that you loved him?" " He knows." " And what did he say?" "What could he say?" "He froze." " Because he's Japanese." " What else?" "I knew it from the way he talked, from plain, down-to-earth talk." "I could sense his embarrassment." "The whole room filled with it." "You don't know Joe Kojaku." " He won't let me." " He's not fighting anything racial." " Then what else could there be?" " There could be Charlie." "Mac, what does Charlie have to do with it?" "He's in love with you, Chris." "That's what he has to do with it." "He told me, he told Joe, and by tomorrow, every badge down at Headquarters will know that Charlie has finally fallen." " I see." " I don't think you do." "Chris, to understand Joe, you have to understand what Charlie means to him." "I do understand." "Mac, things like this have happened before." "Perhaps." "But what those two had together in the war, no one can touch." "It was Joe's blood that kept Charlie alive in Korea, and now it's Charlie's friendship that's keeping Joe alive." "It's like..." "Well, it's like mixing two dabs of paint together." "You can never separate them." "Look, Mac, I've never encouraged Charlie." "I've never..." "You make it all sound so heavy-handed." "Now that I know what's behind Joe's uneasiness, I'll..." " But it makes sense." " It does, does it?" "Look, Mac, I can straighten this out without any melodrama at all." " I'll simply tell Charlie how I feel." " You do that." " Hello, Charlie." " Hello, Chris." " Mac." " Blind alley?" "Yeah, we got enough stakeouts to form a battalion." " Where's Joe?" " Who cares?" " Well, what happened?" " He's got rocks in his head." "Something's eating him, the way he's clammed up." "I've never seen him mope like that." "Excuse me while I go powder my abstract." "Well, didn't he even hint why he acted so strangely?" "Nope." "Chris, did anything happen tonight?" "Between you and Joe?" "Did anything happen here tonight that could have thrown him?" "What do you mean?" "Well, sometimes people drop a remark." "Harmless one, you know." "No, I don't know." "Well, sometimes people forget, the word slips." "You mean a word about the Japanese?" "Is that what you mean, Charlie?" "Charlie, you think that I'd say..." "You think that I'd embarrass him?" "Charlie, how could you?" "I'm sorry, Chris." "I'm sorry I hurt you." "Good night, Chris." "Good night." "Love is like a battle, Chris." "Somebody has to get a bloody nose." "For the benefit of those not acquainted with kendo, it can best be described as an art of disciplined assault." "It can be dangerous if not executed according to the rules." "When a protagonist aims for the head, the torso, or the wrist, the targets will be called out." "When a contestant is hit in one of the three targets which has been called out, he loses the bout." "Ladies and gentlemen, we begin our kendo tournament of the Nisei Week Festival with last year's champions." "And representing the Caucasian yudansha is Detective Sergeant Charles Bancroft of the Los Angeles Police Department." "And representing the Nisei yudansha is Detective Joe Kojaku, also..." "What's the matter with Kojaku?" "He's breaking all the rules." "It's been eating inside me, and when you clobbered me, I blew my stack." " I'm sorry." " What's been eating inside of you?" "Chris." "Right." "Chris." "I'm in love with her." "She's in love with me." "That's how it is, Charlie." "On account of you, I never even touched her." "I wanted to hold her in my arms, but I couldn't." "I didn't want to hit you that way, Charlie." "But it's not normal to keep my feelings bottled up." "That's it." "It's out." "It hurts, and there's nothing I can do about it." "Say something." "Blow your top." "Belt me." "You've got the right to belt me." "You mean, you want to marry her?" "You wouldn't have said it that way if I were white." " What are you talking about?" " Look at you." "It's all over your face." " Have you gone crazy?" " What burns you is that you lost her to me." " Is that what you think?" " It's not what I think." "It's what I know." "The thought's made you sick to your stomach." "Look at your face." "It wasn't just plain normal jealousy." "That's why those words poured out of me." "When I saw his face, I knew." " You only saw what you wanted to see." " You weren't there." "I know how he feels about those things." "I saw that look, Chris." "It's a look I've never seen before, on his face or anybody else's." "I'm no wet nose." "Nothing like that should hit me below the belt, but it did." "He didn't mean it that way." "You don't have to mean it or say it." "It's there all the time." "It's what you think is behind every word and every look." "You've got to wear my shoes to know what I'm talking about." " But I do know." " How could you know?" "Honey." "How could you know?" "You can't feel for me unless you are me." "Take a good look, Chris." "Do I look different to you than I did yesterday?" " Joe." " Did my face change?" " Don't say that." " I've got to say it." "I never felt this in the army, in the police." "Maybe it's 5,000 years of blood behind me busting to the front." "For the first time, I feel different." "I taste it right through every bone inside me." "For the first time, I catch myself trying to figure out who I am." "I was born here." "I'm American." "I feel it and live it and love it, but down deep, what am I?" "Japanese-American?" "American-Japanese?" "Nisei?" "What label do I live under, Chris?" "You tell me." "I'm sorry, honey." "Why am I taking it out on you?" "Because you're hurt, and it's the kind of pain I can't wipe out." "Joe." "If you had said you wanted no part of me, it'd have hurt, but I'd have understood." "I'd have bought it." "But, Charlie," "I'm wondering now, what was in his mind all these years?" "What kind of cracks he made when I wasn't there?" "It'll never work out, Chris." "If he feels like that, what can I expect from you?" "Everything." "Because I love you." "You'll only see in my face what you want to see." "Goodbye, Chris." "Will it do any good if I talk?" "Nope." "Not even if you went off half-cocked?" " I'm not scouting for an apology." " Apologize for what?" "I apologize when I'm wrong, not when you put words in my mouth." "You're wasting your time." "Joe, you threw me off guard when you told me about Chris." "Maybe there was a look on my face." "It was a look of hate." "Normal, healthy, jealous hate." "Look at me, Joe." "You know me better than anybody else." "I'm even carrying a pint of your blood inside me, remember?" "I never missed it." "I'm glad it's not a piece of your brain muscle." "When are you turning your badge in?" "As soon as the Chief gets to his office." "Joe, the case isn't closed yet." "Mine is." "Well, I tried, Chris." "Believe me, I tried." "What are you doing here?" "Anything." "Anything I can to convince you how wrong you are." "Joe, don't run." "Don't quit." "It's not the job." "It's what it represented to you all of your life." "If you run out now, it'll be the hardest, most painful thing in the..." "To what?" "To try to remember something I don't want to remember?" "Joe." "What's the matter?" "Chris?" "I'm sure I just saw Hansel." "Charlie." "He's clean." "Paul Sand, all right." "Is that your real name?" " Yes, sir." " Why did you keep your romance with Sugar such a big secret?" " There was no romance." " Okay, your friendship." "I couldn't risk my position at the library." "My relationship with her was strictly business." "No one would believe that." "So I concealed my activities." "She understood and cooperated." "How did you meet her?" "She came in for a book on Japan." "She had an idea about performing in a kimono, and I gave her a few suggestions." "So the act was your idea?" "Yes, sir." "I suggested that she stage it in a geisha house and incorporate the karate and samurai characters." "I offered to find these types for her, and she paid me for my services." "So why did you kill her?" "Look, Mr. Sand." "Why don't you make things easier on yourself and tell us what happened?" "Now, she was a gorgeous woman." "Anybody'd understand why you'd make a play for her." "Now, what happened?" "Did she laugh in your face?" "Is that what made you shoot her?" "Because you couldn't touch her?" "What was the name of that wigmaker that gave an assist on this kimono act?" " No one helped me." " Mr. Sand, when you warned this young lady on the phone, who took a shot at her?" "Paul, come with me." "Get an ambulance, will you?" "Paul was mine before she came into his life." "I was sure she took him from me." "That's why I went to see her act." "Saw her take her clothes off in front of all those people." "I died when I saw her figure." "That's why I killed her." "But I was wrong." "I was so wrong." "He never looked at her." "He'd never even laid a finger on her." "It was all in my mind." "I thought I repulsed him." "You know what I mean." "The way she looked, me." "I was so ashamed, so jealous." "Please, dear God, forgive me." "Forgive me, I..." "No, no." "I didn't..." "I didn't..." " Charlie." "Did you get her?" " Yup." " Dead?" " Nope." " She killed Sugar." " Why?" "The poor kid." "She thought Hansel dumped her for Sugar." "That's why she killed her." "It was all in her mind." "She thought she made him sick..." "She only saw in his face what she wanted to." "I don't know how to tell you now how I feel." "You don't have to." "It's all over your face." "How could I have jumped the gun like that?" "How?" "Because you're a meathead, that's how." "Charlie." " Are we still partners?" " Nope." "It's gonna be rough." "As far as Chris is concerned, it'll always be rough for me." "But as for you and me, Joe, you know, I'm just as glad as you are that you finally wrapped up your own case." "Joe!" "Joe!" "Hey, Sergeant." " Rough." " Uh-huh." "Come on, Charles, let's belt a few." "Mac, you're a pearl." "Thank you, dear boy, but I prefer something made by man to something made by an oyster."