Man from Reno Page #3

- 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.

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