Red West III.

Chapter twenty eight - Constraint

Cameron Henderson approached the tall window leading to the back yard of his newly rebuilt residence and opened the curtains. The usual view was drowning in thick fog. It was a damp, cold November morning, but it would take a lot more to spoil his mood.

He had already overcome the bitter disappointment from not being able to deal with Kazuya Kamenashi himself, but truth was that with the persistent Indian Agent gone, he could fully focus on Akanishi. And so far, everything was proceeding well.

In fact, he had quite a good idea about the identity of that mad assailant who had blown up his mine. He remembered a skillful Irishman corresponding with Tanaka's description, who repeatedly refused Cameron's offer to work for him. Nevertheless, he had an older brother who accepted it, got sick soon after and died. Therefore, that man had a motive and abilities to carry out such a deed. None of it mattered though, since it was a perfect opportunity to deal with Jin Akanishi.

It was a real effort to persuade Alexander Botkin that Black Riders were in all probability responsible for the attack. Marshal was experienced and sharp, not easy to manipulate. However, the seed of suspicion had been sown and it was only a matter of time, before the proper results would grow out of it.

Cameron was already certain that Koki Tanaka belonged to the Riders' gang. He had changed his style and appearance a lot ever since he saw the formerly blonde brat in the Laporte quarry, but seeing his panicky expression at the clinic confirmed his assumption right away.

Then there was the other youngster with stupid and certainly fake name Kiddo, who defended him so actively. Both of them were – quite apparently – acquainted with Akanishi and Kamenashi considering they were willing to risk their lives so frivolously. It was simple to figure out how they all got to know each other. He was only unsure about the fact whether the rest of the gang was currently in the city as well or not. In any case, it could not affect his plan to rob Akanishi of all his friends, hopefully also of his younger brother. Then it would be finally that cheeky bastard's turn.

With a thick glass in hand, Cameron walked into the middle of his workroom and looked up. The expressive painting on the wall did not seem to care for his mood, but his master was never one to show all he was thinking. Would he be satisfied or upset that this whole payback for his premature passing took so long to carry out? Not that it would matter much...

The sharp knock interrupted his thoughts. Cameron finished his drink and turned to the door.

"Ahem, sir?" the head of his assistant peeked inside. "Sorry for disturbing you..."

"It's all right," he gestured him to enter. "What is it, Danny?"

"One of our men just arrived from the city, sir, and... I thought you'd want to know right away."

He raised his eyebrows over McFly's hesitating tone. "To know what?"

"Akanishi was arrested, sir," Danny announced tensely.

For the first time in a very long while, Cameron remained speechless.

"Say it again?" he asked then quietly.

"More precisely, they say the Marshals arrested the leader of Black Riders and are about to transfer him to Billings for the trial," Danny provided some additional, even more surprising details.

The whiskey glass ended up on the spacious table with an audible thud, as Cameron rather put it aside and took a deep breath.

This was against his expectations. Was it possible that Botkin acted so damn fast?

"How in the hell did that happen?" he turned to the youngster again sharply. "Leo Akanishi would have never exposed himself like this. How did they find him?"