"Be careful driving out there, folks." "We got fog all over off of the bay area clear down the peninsula, but we're getting hit with the worst of it in San Marco, Cali." "So, let's stay safe out there." "This in local news:" "Steven Luft will not step down from his post at The Luft Foundation despite the relapse of..." "Dispatch, is anybody there?" "Dispatch, can you pick up?" " Hey, sheriff." "Do you copy?" " Yes, I copy." "About to sleep over there?" "Heh, sorry." "I just..." "uh, I just stepped out." "Got an abandoned car out on Anzar Road, by..." "Sheriff?" "Sheriff, do you copy?" "Sheriff, I lost you there." "Hey!" " How's he doing?" " Well, he's got a concussion and some really nasty cuts and bruises," " but he'll be okay." "What happened out there?" " Can I talk to him?" " Well, no." "He's still asleep." " Call me when he wakes up?" " Yeah." "Sure, sheriff." "Yeah." " Thanks." "Checking in?" "Do you have a reservation?" "No." "Hello." " Whiskey sour." " Whiskey sour." "Cure for the common jet lag." " Looks like you made a friend." " What?" "You'll find out in five, our, three, two..." "I saw you looking at me or looking..." "Tokyo." "Find it?" "Think so." "There's some blood." "How far am I, 30 yards?" "Closer to 50." "Don't step on anything." "I've got to take pictures." "Teresa!" "It's the hospital." "Who was the last person that talked to him?" "Well, nobody." "As you saw, he didn't have any I.D. on him." " So, is he in some kind of trouble then?" " Maybe." " Any patients missing their clothes?" " I can check." "You know, Dad, checking out" " of the hospital is not a crime." " Yeah, I know." " Then what will you do if you find him?" " Ask him a couple of questions," " find out what happened to him." " I can tell you what happened to him." "No, no, no." "Somebody beat that guy up and left him for dead long before I came along." " What are you talking about?" " You see those clothes in there, all shredded to hell?" "I didn't do that." " Oh, so you don't feel bad about hitting him." " Of course, I do, but what do you want me to do, arrest myself?" "No." "I just don't think you should be the one running the investigation." " So, you want it?" " Sheriff?" "It's your show, deputy." " Did you find anything here?" " The drawer's empty." " What if it was a getaway vehicle?" " The town car?" " Yeah." "What do you think?" " Getaway from what?" "I don't know." "The running man and a buddy, they're on their way somewhere." "There's an argument, things get physical, boom!" " The running man is found on the side of the road." " It doesn't work." " Why not?" " His buddy went out on foot?" " Check on the registration?" " It belongs to The Luft Foundation." "I talked to their security guard, and he said the car was stolen right off the property." " They didn't report it?" " They never realized it was gone until I called." " Did you show him the whatnot?" " Yeah." "He has an alibi." "Sorry to keep you waiting, Paul." " I had to make a long-distance call, very long distance." " Oh, yeah?" "Made in Japan, as it turns out." "Never sold in the U.S. 25 years old." " Worth any money?" " Sure, 15 bucks." "As long as I've got you here, have you seen this man?" " So?" " So, what?" "So, what should I do next?" "Take this and put it up everywhere you can." " Done." "What else?" " There's nothing else to do, really." " Wait and see what turns up." " That's it?" "That's it!" "I bet you speak perfect english, too, right?" "Huh?" " Yes?" " I have your dry cleaning." "Wrong room." "Is it too late" "For me to say" "That I love you" "And wish I could stay" "So I will kiss you, and I'll miss you" "And then it's time to say goodbye" "Can I help you?" "Um, yes." "Uh, can you connect me to Mr. Suzuki's room, please?" "Mr. Suzuki checked out yesterday." " He was just here." "You didn't see him?" " I came on a half-hour ago." " Hello." " I think we may have found your running man." "Oh." "Did you call Teresa?" "I told her she could have this one." "I think you're going to want to take this one yourself." "Right over here, sheriff." "Is that your guy, sheriff?" "Well, whoever he was, he was dead before he went in the water." "We'll run the fingerprints and let you know." "All right." "Thanks." "Okay, you all know what to do." " Let's get at it." " How it going?" "It's okay." "Theoretically, it's the perfect place to dump a body." "Especially if you're going to meet the running man." " Here." "It's right on the way." " Let's not get ahead of ourselves." "You think it's a coincidence?" "No, I just think I'm going to keep you on the run with that case." " Why?" " 'Cause it feels not cold yet." "Dig a little deeper, will you?" "Besides, there is a connection." "It's all the same case anyway." "Hello." "Who is it?" "What?" "I'm sorry, ma'am." "I must have knocked on the wrong door." "Which room are you looking for?" "I'm not quite sure." "An associate of mine was checked into this hotel." "He's a japanese man about six feet tall, very... easy on the eyes?" " Suzuki Akira." " Suzuki Akira." "Lettuce." "Hello?" " Hello?" " Give me the fucking phone." "Hello." "It's you, isn't it?" " Hey!" " Hey!" "What's up?" "I took your advice." "I looked a little closer at that registration." "The Luft Foundation security guard said they weren't interested?" " Yeah, you told me." " Well, check this out." "Three years ago, some kids got drunk and stole a tractor at some Luft property in Santa Clara County." "Nothing really happened." "They just rode around on it till they got bored." "Not only did The Luft Foundation press charges, but someone from the company appeared personally in court just to ask for the strongest possible sentence, and all this over an old tractor that nobody was using anyway, yet now when a very expensive car goes missing," "they just want to sweep it under the rug?" " You know Steven Luft, right?" " I should." "He funded my reelection." " Really?" " Don't get too excited." "He funded the other guy, too." "Well, you think you can talk to him about it?" "I can try, but I know what he's going to say, though." " What?" " That since he got sick, he didn't feel like being a hard-ass anymore." "But I'll talk to him." "Thanks, Dad." "First time at Mr. Luft's ranch?" "First time at this one." " Hello, Paul!" " Mr. Luft." "How you doing?" "Depends who you ask." "The doctor says I should stay in bed." "I say I'm fine." "What do you want to drink?" " Whatever you're having." " Oh, no." "You don't want any of that stuff." " Get him a scotch and soda, will you?" " Uh, no, thanks." "I'm on duty." "Oh, iced tea." "So." "Time to support my local sheriff, is it?" "Election's not till next year, you know." "It's actually about my daughter." "Adorable girl, adorable girl." "From what I hear, she's not going to be with us much longer, is that right?" "FBI Academy or something?" " Yeah." " Yeah." "Poor old dad left all alone, eh?" "Right." "She actually talked to your head of security not too long ago, about that town car that was stolen from the estate." "Didn't say anything about that." " About the car being stolen?" " No, about your daughter calling." "Oh, well, the thing is, we've been looking for the man who was seen with the car." "Asian man, mid-40s." "Ring any bells?" "No." "Who is he?" "The running man." "That's just the nickname that's been floating around the office." "Teresa told me you're not interested in pursuing the matter." " That's right." "I'm not." " Any reason why?" " Do I need one?" "No, not really." "It's just in the past you've always been so vigorous about it." "Well, look." "Things have changed over the last few years." "I made three major decisions." "What little time I've got left" "I'm not going to spend rotting away in a hospital bed." "And number two, I'm not going to spend any more time or resources on being a vindictive son of a bitch." " What was the third?" " Spend more time with my kids." "Oh, no, I remembered, I don't have any." "Well, Paul, I don't think there's any point in pressing these charges any further... unless you have another reason for looking for this man." "Not unless you've got one." " No, nothing for..." " Excuse me, sir." "They're here to see you." "Sorry about this, Paul." "I'm going to have to cut it short." "I'm sorry we couldn't be more help." " Yahwe, cut the sheriff a check for his campaign." " Oh, no, it's all right." "Ah, whatever he needs, whatever ne needs." " Yeah?" " The coroner got prints off the body," " and guess what?" "He's got a record." " What's his name?" "Oh, yeah." "It's, um..." "Akira Suzuki." "He lives, or he lived in San Francisco." "You got an address for me?" "Lettuce?" "Are you looking for Akira?" "Oh, he has been at home." "I just never see him." "I can hear him all the time, yes." "You know, the walls here are very thin, and then you put your ear up to it, you can hear absolute everything." "Okay." "When was the last time you heard him?" "Last week." "He had a friend over, and they were arguing late at night." "Any idea what they were talking about?" "I don't speak Japanese." "I speak English," "I speak German, Italian, uh, French," " but no Japanese." " Oh." "Okay." " Oh!" "I heard him say "Kami."" " Commie?" "Over and over and over again." "He said kami, kami, kami." " Like communist?" " I don't know why." "I mean, the wall came down" " over 20 years ago." " And does he live alone?" "Uh, sometimes the girl's there every few months, you know?" "She comes for a few days and goes away," " comes again, goes away." " Do you know her name?" "I've never seen her." "Only hearing the noise." " Any idea what line of work he's in?" " Fish." " Fish?" " Fish." "Hello?" "Hey!" "And, um, give me a pack of camel, too." " Excuse me, Miss Akahori?" " Yes?" "I'm detective Jason Hoffman, SFPD." "You filed a report earlier today" " about a break-in at your hotel room." " Yes." "Well, I've got good news." "We got him." "I just need you to come with me for a formal identification." "You'll have to put that out first." "Um..." "let me put these away." "This will only take a few minutes." " Let me go get my jacket." " Here you go." "I'm sorry to rush you, but we really want to get this guy..." "Miss Akahori?" "Miss Akahori." "Miss Akahori." "We're not here to hurt you." "All you have to do is tell me where it is." " You took it!" " I don't know what Hitoshi has been telling you, but go ahead and shop him around, Miss Akahori." "No one else is going to be interested." "You get my drift?" "No." " You think she understood that?" " Oh, I think she got it." "San Marco County investigators are looking for answers after the discovery of a body in a local pond." "Local officials have not released the identity of the victim but have confirmed they are investigating the incident as a homicide, their first in over a decade." "Uh, at this time we are pursuing all available leads." " Anzar Lake is a secluded..." " Well, thanks for your help." "If you think of anything else, please call." "Thank you." " Smells good!" " Okay, are you going to fill me in?" " On what?" " Who was that on the phone?" "Uh, Mrs. Ming Yung Kim, the owner of the pet store." " And?" " Akira Suzuki was a part-time employee." "Showed up on time, never caused any trouble." "His extra-curricular activities came as a total surprise." " No background check, huh?" " She did an inventory after that break-in." "Not even a single seahorse out of place." "Her words, not mine." "Well, what do you make of it?" "Think our burglar was doing the same thing I was, retracing Akira Suzuki's steps, looking for something." " But I've been wrong before." " I know." "Police are asking for the public's assistance in solving this crime." "If you have any information, please call San Marco Coun..." " Hello." " Thank you, sheriff." " Who is this?" " Thank you for taking me to the hospital, and I'm sorry I didn't stop to thank you today." "That's okay." "How about we meet up and talk about it?" " No, I can't." "I'm in trouble." " I can help." "It will be over soon, now that it's in the newspaper." "I only wish to thank you" " and to say good job on the TV." " Wait, which paper?" "Hello." " Hi." "I'd like to check back in, please." " Okay." "And I'd like the same room as before." " Hey, Stef." "Cup of coffee." " Sure thing, sheriff." "Oh, shit!" " Hey, you're not picking up." " Oh, sorry." "A missing person's report just popped into the database for an Akira Suzuki." "Some tourist filed it, but no one from SFPD has checked into it yet." "Thank you, sir." "Hi." "I'm sheriff Del Moral of the San Marco County Police Department." " Yes?" " Aki Akahori?" " Yes?" " I'm with the police." "Can you open up for a second?" "Hi." "Oh, I'm sheriff Del Moral of the San Marco County Police Department." "Were..." " Can I see some identification, please?" " Uh... sure." "I need a few minutes of your time." "It's about your friend Akira Suzuki." "May I come in, please?" "I'll meet you in the lobby." "Did your friend ever say something about a pet store?" " Pet store?" " Or anything about going to San Marco County?" "No." "I mean, as I said in the report," " I barely know him." " It also says he left a suitcase behind." "Yes." "May I take a look at it?" "It was stolen." "Is there anything else you can tell me about him?" "Any... any kind of information would be helpful." "As I said, I don't really know him." "Everything I know is in the report." "All the clues were in that suitcase." "Clues?" "Oh, I'm sorry." "I just like that you call them clues." " It's habit, I guess." "I write mystery novels." " Oh!" "Anything I might have read?" "I don't know." "Um, only one of my books has been published in English." ""Inspector Takabe Investigates."" " You wrote this?" " Keep it." "As evidence?" "Thanks." "I appreciate it." " Look, mister..." " Del Moral." "Mr. Del Moral." "Why are you here?" "Well, you filed a missing persons report." "With the San Francisco Police." "Can you please tell me what's going on?" "I'm investigating a homicide down in San Marco County," " and the victim..." " You think it's Akira." "Well, yes, I do." "I'm very sorry." " I may need you to, at some point..." " Identify the body." "We already did that." "Fingerprints." " How..." " Looks like he was beaten to death." "I may need to talk to you again at some point, but in the meantime, just give me a call if you can remember anything else, anything at all." "You take care now and have a better day." "Oh, Miss Akahori, this may sound a little odd," " but do you have any idea what commie means?" " Commie?" " Yeah, in Japanese." " Oh, kami." " It means God." " God?" "Yes, or it could mean paper or hair." "Well, it's probably nothing." "Thanks anyway." "I don't see any down here." "He could've left." "I think we should talk." "This is the passport your friend used to check into the hotel." "It's not him, is it?" "Here's a face." "Now all we need is a name to go with it." "I know this guy." "He came to my hotel room." " So, you talked to him?" " Yeah." "His name is Hitoshi." "He left me a business card." "I tried that number, but it's disconnected." " Do you think he's behind this whole thing?" " No, no." "Hitoshi seems even more scared than you do." "Besides, he pointed me to this." "Down at the bottom." "I didn't know which article he was talking about until now." ""Customs officials at SFO have intercepted a suspected smuggler carrying $500,000 worth of rare turtles." "The animals were identified as indian flat-head turtles and are worth up to $50,000 each on the black market." "Once highly valued for use in traditional medicine, the turtles are on the verge of extinction and are protected by international law."" "If they arrested someone at the airport, how did those turtles end up in my hotel room?" " There must have been a second smuggler." " The real Akira Suzuki." " May he rest in peace." " My Akira killed him." "Killed him for a half million dollars' worth of turtles, which he then leaves behind in a toilet?" "Maybe he didn't know he was going anywhere." "Maybe, but that still doesn't answer my biggest question." "What did he want from you?" " Besides the obvious." " I don't know." "Are you sure you don't mind?" "Oh, don't worry about me." "I'll just set up my little pup tent out in the back, and..." "There's a new toothbrush inside the bathroom cupboard, and you're welcome to use some of Teresa's," " that's my daughter's clothes." " Is this her?" "Yeah, when she was about three." " So, this must be your wife." " Yeah." "It was a long..." "uh, long time ago." " Are you married?" " No." "Well, almost." "Once." "But he's dead." "Oh, I'm sorry to hear." "A long time ago also." " I started reading your book." " Yeah?" "Yeah. it's good." "I like it." "Police work in Japan." "And inspector Takabe, he takes one look at a guy and knows his whole life story." "Yeah, I know." "It must seem ridiculous." " No, I just wish I could be like him." " Yeah." "Oh, Teresa!" "This is Miss Akahori." " Hi." " Hi!" "Uh, excuse us for just a minute." "Did you get the phone records for our pay phone yet?" "Yes, and Oakland PD's looking into it." "In the meantime, this is from when the running man called you, the one before..." "Yeah." "Oh, that's our tip line, right?" "Yeah, but I think he made another call earlier that day." " That's the Japanese Consulate." " Hmm." "You want to tell me what's going on?" "I think our running man probably thinks he can avoid arrest if the consulate gets involved." "No, I mean what's going on with..." "She's assisting in the investigation." "Assisting how?" "I don't speak Japanese." "Over this?" "Over turtles?" "Federal crime, federal time." "Excuse me." "Miss Yamagata." "I'm sheriff Del Moral of the San Marco County Police Department." "Tell her we're looking for information about a man." "Mind filling me in?" "Osamu?" "We got a name:" "Osamu Masumura." "Osamu Masumura." "I'm losing track of all the names here." "How positive is she?" "She's asking what happened to Akira." "Did a hell of a job back there." "No idea what you said, but a hell of a job." "Hey, it's never easy." "Can't let it get to you." "No." "No, it's not that." "I'm just confused." " Why?" "We got a name." " Yeah, but the turtles are fake." "They're not worth anything." " Nothing ever surprises you, huh?" " Think about it from the beginning." "Akira and his girlfriend arrive in San Francisco." "He makes it through customs, she doesn't, so what does he do?" "He panics and calls his buddy just four hours away in Reno." "Osamu Masumura." "Osamu smells money." "All he has to do is kill Akira and take his place at the drop," " but he's short half his product." " So he buys cheap chinatown turtles" " to make up for the lost ones." " And then he drives out" " to meet the running man for the exchange." " And then what?" "Hitoshi's in luck because then I show up" " and save his life by hitting him with my car." " What?" "Osamu goes to plan "B." Find a new buyer, and that's where you come in." "You're the decoy." "He left behind the fake turtles as a distraction, while he's long gone and trying to get rid of the real turtles." "How the buyer found you in the hotel, though, that, I don't know." "He read my books." "He read my books, so he knew" "I'd love a shitty clue like a phone number in a matchbook." "As soon as I called that number, they came after me." "Excuse me." " Yeah." " We got him, Dad." "Oakland PD canvassed a guy renting his back room to someone" " fitting the running man's description." " Okay." "Where are you?" "I'm on my way." "Can you meet me there?" "Oh, that might not be..." " Okay." "I'll be..." "I'll be right there." " I'll text you the address." " You sure you're going to be okay?" " Sure." "I'll cab it." "Remember you're a witness now." "No more playing 'Nancy Drew'." "Hey, sheriff!" "Tell me how it ends." "Bedroom on the right." " That's funny." " What?" "Well, just a few days ago, he had stuff taped up all over the walls." "Yeah, what kind of stuff?" "Well, newspaper articles, pieces of paper." " These yours?" " No." "Guess wherever he went he wasn't driving." "And no house key." "Must be a spare." "There's something else." "Mm-hmm." "So, what do we do next?" "Follow the sound." "Call the paramedics." "Get me The Japanese Consulate." " Are you the guy I talked to?" " What kind of poison was it?" "Hydrogen sulfide." "That's very common in Japan." "Was there a note?" "Yeah, a print ad on the car door, but he didn't have a printer in the apartment." "Mr. Yamamoto called here last Thursday." " Was he looking for legal protection?" " No." " Then what did he want?" " Information about Japanese citizen." " Did he give you a name?" " Yes, he did." "Masumura." "Osamu Masumura." "Five years ago, Osamu Masumura went hiking on Mount Shasta, but never returned." "The search was called off after 18 days, and he was presumed dead." " And?" " And that's it." "Okay, why is Hitoshi so interested in this case?" "He said someone beat him up and stole his phone, and that someone was pretending to be Osamu Masumura." "What gave him that idea?" "It was the car:" "Nevada plates registered to Osamu Masumura, and he tracked the man to his hotel, but he was already gone." " And what did you say?" " He should call the police, but he didn't listen." "He didn't sound like himself." "He sounded like..." "Wait." "You knew him before this?" " Hitoshi?" " Yeah." " I've known him for many years." " How?" " Steven Luft." "We've done many programs for the Luft Foundation, all thanks to Hitoshi." "He was Mr. Luft's driver." "Who are you?" "Why are you following me?" "Excuse me, sir." "May I help you?" "Hey!" "I'm sorry, sir." "He just barged in." "That's all right, Pedro." "You can go now." "I'd ask you why you're here, but I think I have a good idea." "Quite a mess you've made." "Yes, yes, quite a mess." "Two men dead in the space of a week all because of turtles?" "Did you know that in the 15th century" "Carthusian monks used to heal their infected wounds with moldy bread?" "Which was 500 years before penicillin." "A lot of hassle for a folk remedy and a lot of money." "A lot of money?" "I've got money." "Can't take it with you." "And unless you've suddenly become official wildlife ranger," "I think this is a little bit outside of your jurisdiction, you know what I'm saying?" "Maybe, but I've got you for obstruction of justice." "Do you really expect me to believe you didn't recognize your own chauffeur?" "All right, you got Hitoshi." "So what's he been telling you?" "Not much." "He's dead." "Dead?" "How'd it happen?" "It looks like a suicide, but I don't buy it." "Why do you think I had something to do with it?" "Oh, no." "You thought he ripped you off, which gives you a damn good motive, but no." "I don't think your boys here would be up to the task." "The chains on the door, that means somebody's in there." "The man who showed up at the drop was an impostor, an impostor who thought he was gonna walk away with a fortune in cash, but instead Hitoshi offered him these." "The real courier didn't want money, just a new life for himself and his girlfriend." "Worthless paper to our impostor." " So, who's this impostor?" " I don't know." "That's why I'm here." "Well, I certainly don't know." "But I think you might be able to help me find him." " Pull over here, please?" " All right, so what do you want me to do?" "Did you receive a phone call on the night of the exchange?" "Yes." " From Hitoshi?" " Yes." " What did he say?" " That the price had doubled." "He had a gun to his head." "What did you say?" "Well, I told him to fuck off." "I thought he'd shit himself and come running home." "He deserved more credit than that." "Hitoshi turned out to be a damn fine detective, laying low tracking down your cargo, but in the process he stumbled on something" " bigger than all this." " Which is?" "The impostor." "He's done it before." "Kills someone, steals their life." "All right." "What do you want me to do?" "Call Hitoshi's phone." "Tell the man you'll pay." " We tried that this morning." " What did he say?" " He let them go." " Let them go?" "Yeah." "He let them go." "There's a half a million dollars' worth of turtle swimming around in San Francisco Bay at this very moment." " That doesn't make any sense." " No, it doesn't make any sense, right?" "You know what he said to me?" "He said he'd found a more interesting way to make his fortune." "That make any sense?" "What the fuck's all this about, Paul?" "Sheriff, I know something." "Meet me at my hotel as soon as you can." "Os..." "Osamu." "Aki..." "Akira." "Akira?" "Ah..." "Oh... ah!" "In her native Japan, Aki Akahori has evolved from popular writer to bona fide legend since she retired from the public eye early last year." "Miss Akahori earned the nickname the J.D. Salinger of Japan and is currently enjoying a critical reappraisal of her work." " You order a book, sheriff?" " Yeah." "Thanks." "Sheriff." "Tell me how it ends." "Alleged sightings of Miss Akahori are hotly debated on the internet." "Speculation on her whereabouts has since become a fixture of japanese tabloids." "Paparazzi photos like these seem to indicate that she now lives a quiet life somewhere in Northern California." "Hello!" "I'm looking for a photographer." "Kaisuji Ono." "Yeah." "That's me." "You take this picture?" "You like mystery books, right?" "Excuse me?" "Sorry, man." "Don't know where she is." " Is she in some trouble?" " A lot of people are looking for her." "How is it you're the only one who seems to be able to find her?" "Just luck, I guess." " My only talent." " Mind coming down here for a second?" " Sure." " Wait." "Just stay right there." "Can you take off your sunglasses, please?" "Why?" "I'd just like to see you with your sunglasses off." " I'll come down." " Wait!" "Wait!" "I shot my dearest friend in his back" "And I watched him die upon the railroad track" "And still I feel no shame" "For taking up his claim" "Because his soul" "Is with the angels tonight" "His angel follows me wherever I go" "His angel watches me" "This I know" "And when they lay me in the ground" "It will be shown that I go down" "Because his soul" "Flies with the angels tonight" "Oh yes, the angels" "Watch over me" "Waiting for the day" "When they will see" "My body stretched out" "Upon the ground" "And my soul" "Forever devil-bound"