7 Chapter Seven: Good Cop, Bad Cop

[Eight Years Later]

It was a quiet Tuesday night in the bar, no one usually came around this time. The place looked quite old-fashioned, decorated with wood and drinks that lined up neatly on the shelves behind the counter. It was a heavy downpour as rain pelted against the windows. Soon, thunder began to roll in.

The young bartender wiped the cups clean to pass time. It was half past eleven, and he wouldn't be closing up shop in another three hours. He had this job for a few days now, and he was starting to like it; the owner needed someone quickly - he was just at the right place at the right time.

The little bells chimed as a tall man walked through the door. He wore a heavy jacket that outlined his muscles. The young bartender assumed that this guy was a bodybuilder; looked a bit intimidating, too.

The man took his hat off, revealing sharp, obsidian eyes, tapered, clean cut black hair and a strong jawline. He slowly made his way towards the counter.

"Whiskey," Tannen said in a low, commanding voice, sitting hunched over on the high bar stool. "On the rocks."

The bartender nodded and grabbed a small glass with ice and slowly poured the whiskey in. He then handed the drink to him. Tannen grabbed the glass and stirred it with one hand. As the bartender was about to put the bottle away, Tannen stopped him.

"Put the bottle back," Tannen demanded.

"I'm sorry?"

"The bottle. Put it back on the counter," he said firmly, tapping the wooden surface next to his glass. The bartender nodded and put the whiskey bottle right next to Tannen, afraid that he will make him angry.

"You're not planning to get drunk, are you?"

"You could never have too much Whiskey," he simply answered.

Soon, a couple minutes fly by, and the bar grew quiet again. The young bartender wiped off the counter with a white towel while taking small glances at Tannen who chugged down his drink.

"Did you just get off from work?" the young bartender tried to make small talk with the man since he looked around his age.

Tannen frowned, taking his eyes off his drink, "What makes you think that?"

"Your eyes. They look pretty tired. Besides, everyone usually gets off around this time around."

"Well, maybe I was just born that way," Tannen said. "Does it matter to you?"

"No, not all, sir," the bartender shook his head.

"Then, what business do you have whether I got off from work or not?"

"I was wondering, that's all," he answered, trying not to sound intimidated. "I didn't mean much by it."

"You didn't mean much by it," Tannen repeated, almost in mockery.

"Well, if you have a problem with it, I don't know what else I could do for you."

Tannen glanced around the bar for a moment then stared back at the bartender, "I haven't seen your face before, you new?" Tannen took a small sip from his glass.

"Yeah, just started working a few days ago," he nodded, fiddling with his fingers. "The owner needed someone fast. I happened to be nearby, so I got the job."

"Got a name?"

"Huh?"

"You're a little deaf," he spoke much louder. "Your name. What's your god damn name."

"Oh- It's, uh, Jin Kai," the bartender felt nervous at this point.

"You go to school?"

"Hong Kong University," he quickly answered.

"And your major?" Tannen took another sip from his glass.

"I-I'm majoring in business, sir."

"Any friends? A girlfriend?" Tannen had just finished his drink and began to pour in more whiskey.

"I have a girlfriend," Jin Kai rubbed the back of his head. "We lived together in her house for more than a year now. She works as a radiologist."

Tannen coughed, nearly spitting out his drink. He cleared his throat, "So she's the breadwinner?"

"Well, I plan to hopefully open a coffee shop at the main road," he explained a bit further.

"So, she's the breadwinner."

"If you want to put it that way, then I guess so."

"That's just the way it is," Tannen set his glass aside. "Is she someone that you are willing to do everything for?"

"Well, yes. I care for her very much."

Tannen suddenly pulled out a pair of dice from his brown jacket and set them on the countertop. At this point, the bartender was a bit confused what he was trying to do.

"High or low?" Tannen asked.

"I'm sorry?" Jin Kai looked down at the dice.

"You ever played High-Low before?"

"A few times back in middle school," Jin Kai said.

"Then high or low. Pick one."

"I don't know what we're betting against."

"You call it."

"Oh... I can't decide that."

"You made your own decisions up to this point in your life. Don't tell me that you suddenly can't."

Jin Kai stayed silent. He was too afraid to say anything at the moment. Tannen sighed through his nose and swiped the dice. "I'll call it then; all or nothing, and I want everything from you."

"Everything?" Jin Kai couldn't help but gulp.

"Your shirt, your shoes, your life - everything. Now pick one; I'm not going to say it again."

A trickle of sweat trailed down his cheek as Jin Kai looked at Tannen's hand slowly shaking the dice. "Then," he paused for a brief moment. "High."

Tannen finally rolled the dice onto the counter. They both stared at them until they finally stopped rolling. It was an eight.

"Good job," Tannen stood back up, tossing Jin Kai his dice. "Keep it. That's your good luck charm."

Jin Kai sighed in relief; he didn't know what would happen if he had lost the bet. He took the pair of dice and shoved them into his pocket.

"Is the owner here?" Tannen suddenly asked as he grabbed his bottle of whiskey.

"Sir?"

"The owner. Where is he?" He spoke slower. Tannen was getting tired of repeating himself.

"He's down in the basement."

Tannen walked towards the door that led downstairs and opened it.

"Wait," Jin Kai quickly stopped him. "He said that no one's allowed to see him at this time."

"Don't worry. I'm a friend," Tannen assured him. As he was about to close the door, he suddenly said. "Make sure you cherish that girlfriend of yours. You'll never know when you'll lose someone close to you."

"I- I will," he nodded.

Tannen closed the door behind him and quietly walked down the steps that led to the basement. From there, he had entered an illegal gambling den. There were men, young and old, some with tattoos and others simply ordinary folks that sat in round tables, gambling with cards and dice.

"Who the hell are you?" A bald, muscular man stood in Tannen's way.

"I wasn't sure if this was the right place but seeing so many rats in one area, I think I made the right choice," Tannen said. He suddenly smashed the whiskey bottle onto the man's bald head and kicked him away, instantly knocking him out. The room suddenly grew dead silent as everyone turned their attention to him.

"I'll give you all five seconds to tell me who is in charge here," Tannen demanded.

"You don't know who you're fuckin' with," a man next to him answered. Tannen grabbed the man by the collar and stabbed him in the shoulder with the broken bottle.

"AGHH!" The man roared in pain as he crashed into the table, spilling beer, food and wads of money. Soon, criminal bodyguards quickly surrounded Tannen, carrying knives and crowbars.

A minute later, they were all on the ground, broken limbs, smashed noses and several concussions. It was brutal.

"Let me repeat myself one more time: who is in charge of this place?" his voice grew cold, almost suffocating the entire room.

Soon, everyone's heads slowly turned to the man at the far end of the room. Suddenly, a man in a white business suit hastily stood up and quickly tried to escape through another exit.

"Found you," red ki wrapped around Tannen's finger tips as he aimed towards the man like a gun. One shot right into his leg.

"ARRGH!" The owner collapsed to the ground as his bled out. Tannen sauntered towards the man as he tried to crawl away, screaming.

"Mr. Fu, right?" Tannen knelt down, his black eyes peered into his. "You're one hell of a hide-and-seek player."

"Please, you don't have to do this," he spoke through stutters. The pain on his leg was unbearable. "I have a safe; twenty grand inside. You can keep it if you let me go."

"I don't need paper," he said curtly.

"What do you want then?"

Tannen looked behind his back. Many of the gamblers that were still here were too afraid to move, "Let's go somewhere private; I don't like people snooping in my business."

"T-there's my office room down the hall if we go straight, b-but my leg - fuck, I can't move."

Tannen lifted Mr. Fu by the collar and dragged him down the hall and into the office room. He then threw Mr. Fu to the ground and locked the door behind him.

"You're a wanted man, you know that?" Tannen pulled a chair out and sat down, crossing his legs. "Thirty thousand if someone has any info on you; worth more than what's inside that safe."

"Just tell me what you want."

Tannen smirked. Straight to the point - he liked that, "What I want is what you have: info."

"Shit-" Mr. Fu couldn't hold out from the pain much longer. "I don't know anything."

"I haven't even said anything yet," Tannen frowned. "I hate liars, you know that?" Tannen stomped on Mr. Fu's injured leg.

"Arrgh!" Mr. Fu screamed. "Stop, stop, please! Okay, what do you want to know!"

"Tell me, did you buy any drugs from Ashura?" He asked.

Mr. Fu gritted his teeth, "Are you a cop?"

Tannen shoved his foot down harder on Mr. Fu's injured leg, making him scream again, "Just answer me, I don't have all day."

"Yes, not a lot, though! Only when my customers wanted some," he groaned out.

"Where did you buy them?"

"They come to us; we call them up and tell em' what we want, and they'll send it - y'know, like delivery service."

Tannen digested the info and began to formulate a plan, "Alright, here's the deal. You can keep your life; you won't even have to go to jail, either, but you have to follow what I say, understood?"

"Yes, of course," he quickly nodded in fear.

"I want you to order some more drugs from them and get them to come over. Same place here. Remember, I have eyes on you, so don't try to do anything funny, am I clear?"

"Clear as day."

"Here's my phone number. Call me and let me know when they're coming," Tannen gave him a card and stood up. Now that he had everything he needed, he exited the office, leaving Mr. Fu frightened and relieved at the same time. He needed to get his leg treated fast.

Jin Kai heard the door open and saw Tannen walked out with a bit of blood stained on his shoes. He suddenly had a cold chill ran down his spine, but he quickly remained composed.

"Your boss," Tannen pointed to the door behind him with his thumb. "What a nice guy."

He left the bar, putting his hat back on. Tannen quickly entered his car to escape the rain. It was a black lexus. He then pulled out his phone and called Chun Li, "It's done."

"Great, meet me at the noodle joint. We'll talk there."

"Roger," Tannen hung up the phone and drove off into the streets. Ten minutes later, he arrived at a small noodle shop. Barely anybody was inside. He spotted Chun Li right away who sat at the corner of the restaurant.

She wore a blue police uniform that fitted well with her gorgeous, athletic body and had that same hairstyle ever since she was a kid. Chun Li had grown into a beautiful woman and just became a detective not too long ago.

"Hey," Tannen sat down in a seat next to her.

Her brown eyes glanced down and instantly noticed blood stain on his shoe. A frown made its way to her lips, "Please don't tell me you killed someone again."

"He didn't give me a reason not to," he answered, adjusting his hat.

"What did you do?" She crossed her arms. "Torture him?"

"I only did what I needed to do."

"You can't keep doing things your way, Tannen," Chun Li reprimanded. She was one with the law and had a great sense of justice like her father, believing that law was always right.

"Look, do you want the info or not? I can just leave right now," Tannen said.

"I do."

"Then keep it within business. I don't have time for nonsense," Tannen demanded. "Alright, so look, I made contact with Mr.Fu. He owns a bar, but It's just a front to conduct his illegal gambling joint. It's also been confirmed that he does business with Ashura."

"So, does that mean he knows where they are?" Chun Li asked.

"No, they come to him," he answered. "So, I told him to call them, tell them to bring more drugs; once the transaction is completed, we can use the opportunity to follow where they've been hiding."

Chun Li nodded in understanding, "So, when are they coming?"

"He still has to call me. Once he does, I'll contact you," Tannen stood up again. He already said what he needed to say so there was no reason to stay here any longer. "I'll see you later."

"Wait," Chun Li suddenly grabbed his arm.

"What is it?"

"I just want to let you know that I'm here for you," she said. "I know how much you want to find what happen to dad - I do to. But, your way of doing things is not right. I know dad wouldn't want you to do this. We can work together properly, Tannen - you don't have to try and do everything by yourself."

Tannen nudged his hand away and walked out of the door. She didn't need to remind him. However, he still preferred it his way. After all, it was quicker and more effective. He would only kill if it was necessary.

"At least visit mom!" She shouted before the door closed. "She misses you!"