Kowalski is the name. My friends call me Joe, my enemies.. well they don’t call much, it’s hard to use the phone when your teeth have all been knocked out. 

Coffee. Cigarette. Steam dancing with smoke under pale shafts cast by the morning sun. The early day delivers a knock at the door. It’s forceful but restrained. I’m intrigued. I’m not stupid though, settling back in the leather chair, shifting the holster and releasing the safety, “Yeah come on in.”

A man enters. There’s a sense of adventure about him. His clothing is functional but comfortable, earthy colors, well tailored. Not lacking for money. Looks and moves like someone who’s comfortable outdoors as well. He approaches the desk and takes a seat, take charge, knows what he wants and has a plan. Here began one of the strangest tales I’ve ever been part of.

He tells me his name is Patrick Hildreth, he’s the manager of the Edo Battousai. I already know this of course, the Shimbun News is a daily staple in the office. 

He fills in the details. “Something funny is going on. We reassigned Shimpei Adachi to the AAA club, the Sayga Shinobi. Adachi’s gone wrong, after years of being a club fixture, suddenly he can’t buy a hit. It’s mysterious but that’s another issue. Anyway, I call down to Sayga and get Hiroshige Miura on the horn, he’s the club manager, to make sure he’s ok. Dead silence. Then he asks me to repeat it, thinks he didn’t hear me right. He says Shimpei never arrived.”

“So I call the league office and get Otto P (the 12^th)on the phone. I ask him to verify the team order and he says he’s got no record of any transactions sending Adachi to AAA. Otto’s a pretty sharp character and if he doesn’t have it then it didn’t happen. So where’s Shimpei?”

“I need this answered. The bloggers are all over this thing and it looks bad for the club. They’re dragging us down in the dirt and the fans are in no mood with the club in last place. Get me the facts Joe.”

I took the case. There was never any doubt I would. Who knew a simple missing persons case would become what every one would later call the ‘Gemini Files’?