“Mr. Takagi, I do not care about the data from your headquarters. I only need the code,” the unknown man said in his mellow voice.
“What do you want, exactly?” said the old man named Takagi.
“Nakatomi Corporation made a fortune in the past two years. We know that there’s a secret vault underneath your tower, with 640 million dollars in bearer bonds,” said the man.
Luke now realized why the forty criminals were attracted to this place: They were going after 640 million dollars!
Bearer bonds sounded like a sophisticated product, but there weren’t as many of them nowadays, since it was the best means by which criminals could transfer money.
They were no longer released in most countries, and bearer bonds redeemed by the government were then destroyed.
The old man named Takagi was angry. “What kind of terrorists are you? You just want money?”
“Yes, Mr. Takagi. We just want money. It doesn’t matter how other people view us. So, tell me the code,” said the unknown man.
Takagi was silent.
The man sighed. “Alright, do you see this? I’ll kill you on the count of three if you don’t talk.”
Luke craned his head slightly, only to discover that it was a middle-aged white man with a mustache. He had the vibe of a villain, and was pointing a gun at Takagi’s head.
What do I do? Luke thought quickly, and soon made a decision: he couldn’t allow Takagi to die here.
If this place turned into a murder scene, the forensics department would turn it upside down, and Luke and Jimena’s little secret would be exposed.
He didn’t want his personal life exposed to the public.
“Do you know what happened on Christmas Eve? A detective had sex right above some terrorists, and after he was done, he pulled up his pants and killed all the terrorists” – it certainly wouldn’t be a case that Luke could be proud of if that sort of gossip went around the police.
Our detective fired at terrorists without pants on!
Imagining how Dustin might tell new detectives about Luke’s “feat” in the future, Luke quickly decided to take action.
He walked softly into the conference room through the other door at the end.
The conference room and office were separated by a glass wall.
Luke moved into the shadows across from the criminals. He put on his gloves and threw out two iron balls.
Bam! Bam!
After the two odd pops of noise, the mustached man and another man holding a gun next to him passed out before they saw anyone.
Luke took out another ball from his pocket and knocked out the last criminal, who had been sitting down.
Finally, he grabbed Takagi and quickly withdrew.
He couldn’t kill the criminals, at least not for now.
The mustached man was clearly the leader. If he died, there was no telling how the criminals who were holding fifty people hostage would react. So, Luke had to rescue Takagi and get the details from him first.
Luke moved so fast that Detective John only saw the two criminals suddenly collapse, followed by the third one, before a dark shadow lunged out and hauled Takagi away.
“What the hell?” John muttered.
But he perked up a moment later and approached the criminals, taking the two weapons off them. When he was taking off their shoes, two criminals barged in from the elevator with guns.
Shocked, John snuck away via the emergency exit on the other side, carrying the guns and shoes that he had taken.
Luke carried Takagi all the way to the 23rd floor, which was currently under renovation.
He put the old man down and showed him his badge. “LAPD, Detective Luke from the Major Crimes Division. What’s going on here?”
The old man tried to calm his pounding heart and queasy stomach. He bowed solemnly to Luke. “Thank you for saving me, sir.”
Luke waved his hand. “I’m a police officer, it’s my job. Enough of the formalities. What do you know about the robbers?”
Takagi shook his head. “I don’t know much. Their leader seems to be a German named Hans. They’re here for the money in the underground vault. Have you called the police, Mr. Luke?”
Luke shook his head. This Takagi didn’t seem to know much. He asked, “What about their numbers and their weapons? Are they trained? How many people are being held hostage? I need that information before I can call for reinforcements.”
Takagi hurried to tell him what he had seen. Luke frowned.
Takagi wasn’t familiar with weapons, but as a businessman, he had a keen eye.
He could easily tell that these people weren’t poor, based on their clothes and equipment.
They were also well-organized, unlike some gangs, and from their manner of speech, some of the intruders were clearly well-educated.
Everything indicated that they were a team of professional criminals with one objective.
Luke frowned. “Can they open the vault under the building?”
Takagi shook his head. “They can destroy the doors at the front, but as long as force is used, the innermost alloy door will lock automatically. It can’t be opened without a code.”
Luke said, “Is that why they grabbed you?”
Takagi nodded. “Most likely.”
Luke, however, shook his head. “I think Hans meant it when he threatened to kill you just now. Your code might not be indispensable to them.”
Takagi also frowned. “The alloy door is made with the latest technology. I don’t think it can be destroyed.”
Seeing that Takagi had no more useful information, Luke told him to hide.
Takagi asked, “Aren’t you going to call the police department?”
Luke nodded. “The signal is bad here. I need to find a different place to make the call. Mr. Takagi, stay safe.”
Luke left the 23rd floor and returned to the 30th floor.
This time, the criminal that had been guarding the emergency exit was gone.
In the meantime, Luke heard gunshots from the 34th floor.
Only someone whose ears were as good as his could’ve caught them.
Luke was stunned for a moment. Who was fighting the criminals?
He thought for a moment, then climbed the stairs to the 34th floor. Confirming that nobody was at the door, Luke opened it slightly and took a peek.