Tag
Copyright© 2025 by A Well Traveled Man
Chapter 4
Tag awoke at 3 a.m. on Saturday and did his forms and stretches. Then, take a hot shower and head downstairs for breakfast. After breakfast, he read the last computer book of the legal kind and finished it just before noon. Then Tag ran to the stop and rob for a deli sandwich, chips, and a sports drink, and headed home. After eating, he practiced placing his plastic knives to be ready quickly. Once the placement was finalized, Tag ate an early dinner. These rubber chicken dinners are a real bummer. His note says to be ready at 6 p.m. So here he waits, and no one shows up until 6:45.
On time as usual for a loving family. Not a word is said on the way. Tag wondered where they lived when not home. He first scans his loving Mother, and she has an apartment near work. Tag gets her access codes for the bank accounts and entry codes to the apartment. Now for his loving Father. He is living with his assistant in a company condo. He has two overseas accounts that I now have access to. He could give a flying shit about his bimbo. We arrive, and the fun begins. We enter, and Tag finds it at the Japanese Embassy. My day just turned from upside down back to right side up.
Tag waits for his parents to go through the reception line and drift off. When Tag approaches the ambassador, he bows and introduces himself in Japanese. He thanks the ambassador and his wife for inviting him. He looks shocked and responds in Japanese, he’s glad I came. He requested that Tag sit with his daughter, who speaks little English. Tag agrees, and he introduces him to Mi. We start a conversation and drift around the party. The ambassador proposes a toast, and then dinner is served. The food was great, and he complimented the ambassador for his choices, as we both know, rubber chicken is the standard fare.
That caused quite a bit of laughter from the guests at the table. Tag looked behind the ambassador and saw an Asian man with a machine pistol and heavy tattoos coming in close. As he raises the gun, a plastic knife enters through his right eye. Tag pointed this out and told the ambassador that more were here and coming. Another man comes running in but doesn’t make it far. There were two down and probably a few more. Security has arrived, and they have removed the two hoods. Tag, keep sweeping the crowd. Something isn’t right. Then, two waiters approached, and both received his knives as a welcome, ending the threat.
The ambassador thanked him, and Tag bowed and thanked him for the excellent meal. Tag did ask one favor to keep him out of the spotlight if possible. He said no problem, as we are on Japanese soil and the American government can’t enter without permission. Tag asked the ambassador if it was the yakuza because he saw the tattoos. He acknowledged that there is a war going on now in Japan. Tag looked around, but his parents disappeared and left him alone. He asked Mi if she could arrange for me to get home. His parents left me here alone. A security guard came to the table and returned his knives, which were cleaned and looked as good as new.
Mi’s dad called Tag into the private residence and asked about his training. Tag told him his nanny is Japanese and her uncle owns a dojo. He has been his Sensi for almost a year. He has learned at an accelerated rate due to his teachings. Kim also taught him Japanese over the past several months. The ambassador asked about the knives, and Tag told him he found them at True Value Hardware in the bargain bin for .50 cents each. He took them home and sharpened and balanced them. He’s been practicing with them for two weeks or so.
He just shook his head and said Unbelievable. On a gut feeling, he asked the ambassador to check the security tapes because his parents had left early and didn’t leave by the front door. Tag told him he had a bad feeling that they went through the kitchen and could have let someone in. He just gave me a nod. He told Tag the embassy would supply a car to take him home. Tag gave him his cell number if he needed him for anything and left the embassy by the side door. The driver dropped him off at the house, and he thanked him for the ride. Tag headed upstairs, undressed, climbed into bed, and crashed.
Sunday was the same: up at 3 a.m., forms, stretching, hot shower, get breakfast, and he decided to take one of the underground computer books for a spin. The book was very interesting and had great ideas. The network and server sections captured my interest. Moving around without anyone knowing was exciting and dangerous at the same time. He finished the book and practiced TK’s quick draw, but Tag saw that he was missing defensive movements. Sitting and thinking of ways to disrupt, delay, or cause retreat occupied the rest of the morning.
He didn’t realize how late it was until his stomach protested loudly. Tag ran to the stop and rob for food. He ate there and continued to the hardware store. After Saturday night, some protection was needed. Advanced warning, traps, and escape were his focus. He found a great wireless infrared detector that hooked up to a small receiver. It would start beeping when the detector was tripped. He picked up some clear 30lb test fishing line, a door bar that braces between the door and floor, and a fire escape ladder.
Walking around thinking what else he needed, he returned and picked up a second infrared and long-lasting batteries. Tag stopped by the bargain bin, grabbed another dozen plastic knives, and saw air horns on sale. He picked up three and checked out. Arriving home, he installed a door brace and surveyed for the best placement on infrareds. He put one pointing away from the garage down the driveway. The second one he placed covered the stairway hall and den. The stairway was the major concern. He added one air horn to his go bag and put another by his bed.
The last one in his stash. Tag checked the go bag and added cash for $10,000. He left the fishing line out for the time being. It was getting late, so he had a Maria-frozen dinner and retired. Tag called Grampa and told him what happened, along with his parents’ disappearance, and he said he would check it out. Tag did his forms and stretching and went to sleep.
3 a.m. dam! Upwards and getting onto his program. Nothing changed for the two weeks. His schedule was set and went like clockwork. The only major thing to note was that his parents had disappeared. Grampa found they were missing from work and had not visited the condo or apartment. Tag went into his Father’s safe and repeated the process he had done with his Mom. The only difference was that he left the top layer whole. Tag also went into his loving parents’ accounts online, withdrew all but 10K, and transferred the balance to his account but routed through 6 other banks. Those underground books had great ideas for hiding funds.
Let me see what else. Oh, we progressed to martial arts weapons re: bos, swords, nunchaku, staffs, and a few he forgot. Let’s not forget throwing stars. He had a lot of learning and a great deal of pain. Tutoring remained on schedule with Pam and Tina. Saving the best for last, he was invited to a black-tie affair at the Japanese Embassy on Saturday at 6 p.m. Tag called and ordered a town car for the night. Since this was Monday, we had plenty of time to get ready. After clearing it with the embassy, he invited Kim and Sensi, and they accepted. The excitement screwed up our schedule for training, but tutoring went on as scheduled. We had dinner, and he offered to take Kim shopping for a new outfit (my treat), and she accepted. What a mistake! We closed the mall, and they were pushing us out. At least she had what she wanted, which only cost his parents $1800. We somehow managed to get my tux to the cleaners on the way to the mall. So, we were all set and dead tired. Sleep
3 a.m. Tuesday? Was it really? Forms, stretching, hot shower, dress, and check the parents’ bank accounts. He found no activity and wondered if or who was paying the bills. Something to talk to Grampa about. Tag practiced connecting to several overseas servers before checking the bank accounts. He was looking for a payment history, which gave him experience routing through multiple servers and hiding his identity. The book said never, and they were extremely clear that you should never try to hack from your home computer. You will be caught no matter how good you are, so don’t do it.
Tag followed their wise counsel and just practiced hiding his trail without hacking. So, looking through the banking payment history, he noticed some really weird transactions. Money came in from several companies on both parents’ accounts; the only payment was to ABC, Inc. The payment was the same from both accounts. He could only figure out that ABC paid the bills, and each loving parent paid half. It looked like we were living the high life. 30k per month spit in half, but still a lot of money. Tag guessed that maintaining three residences can be expensive. That’s Tough Shit.
Speaking of maintaining multiple residences, he wondered what happened to Smith’s house. He’ll run by there tomorrow and check it out. That reminded him to search the internet for lock pics and instructions. He should look around the neighborhood for vacant houses for deliveries (dark web) and safe houses. Oh well, it’s time to head downstairs and start the day. Kim arrived and started our routine.
After breakfast, we headed to the dojo, and Sensi wanted to know about the attack. Tag hadn’t discussed it with him before because his parents were possible accessories, but now he’ll get them. He explained how he found hard plastic knives and true value hardware and sharpened/balanced them, and Sensi was busting up and laughing. He asked to see one, so Tag pulled one from his sleeve. Sensi looked at it with a critical eye and buried it in the stomach of a dummy he had not seen before with a flick of the wrist. Sensi asked how many Tag had, and he told him he had about 40. He said at 50 cents each, he couldn’t pass on a deal like that. Sensi said he would go and purchase some at lunch, and we will work on some together tomorrow. He requested Tag bring 10 unchanged with me. We spared for the rest of the session.
Kim and Tag returned home, ate lunch, tutored, and had dinner. After dinner, Tag went to his bedroom, activated the sensors, and did forms and stretching. Then, he practiced overseas routing and checked a local realtor’s website for listings in his area. Anyone trying to get an internet ID for ads or trace would find him in mainland China. Anyway, he located 10 homes in the area for sale to check out. On a hunch, Tag requested Smith’s area, found nothing, shut everything down, and fell asleep.
At 3 a.m. Wednesday, Tag was awake and doing form and stretching. He showered and dressed in black for the Smith house visit. After stopping and checking the area out, all surveillance was gone, and a for-sale sign by a local realtor listed the home. On the sign was a plastic tube with copies of what the property had and what it included. He grabbed one and checked several for-sale homes around his home. Two were vacant, so he had a drop address.
When he got home and changed, Tag logged in to the dark web and found a treasure. It looked like a small craftsman’s toolbox with all the required picks. It also included five small pouches with Velcro and an encyclopedia for lock picking. It looked like it was made for a professional locksmith. Tag ordered it to be delivered to his drop house. He specified where to be left. Checking the time, Tag headed to his stash, grabbed ten unfinished knives, and went downstairs. We did our routine, ate breakfast, and headed to the dojo.
Sensei showed us to the backroom, and we stretched and sparred for an hour. Sensi showed me an area he had never seen before. It was a small workshop with various swords, staffs, and many things he couldn’t identify. Sensi showed Tag one of the knives he had altered; it was much better than mine. It had a perfect balance and a coating that added to the overall feel and protection of the plastic after sanding and shaping.
Sensi showed him how he had made the unfinished knife alterations and asked Tag to do them. Sensei would stop at certain points and show how to make certain adjustments, and when Tag finished, Sensi sprayed the knife and suspended it with a hook to dry. Tag spent the rest of the training time finishing a pile of knives. Yes, Sensi made a bulk purchase of 250 for .30 each. When it was time to go, Sensi gave him the first ten dry knives and showed Tag a nylon vest and wrist and ankle bands. He purchased 2 of each, and we headed home.
Tutoring was tutoring, and dinner was fine. Retreating to his room, Tag set the sensors, did his forms, stretched, and practiced TK. Before going to bed, he thought of ideas to delay, prevent, or cause the retreat of multiple attackers. Some were quite funny, like losing bladder control or having the runs, but some ideas had promise, like tripping and causing a gun to discharge when pulling it out or losing sight of him. Yes, that was something he needed to research. Sleep
Thursday started with forms, stretching, and a hot shower. Tag was dressed in dark clothing, turned off the alarms, and checked his drop house. Erika, it was there, and he took it home. Tag returned and checked out the rest of the homes in his area for sale. He now has five to use. He pulled out the flyer on Smith’s house, for sale for 120k, furnished. It was not a bad price, but he wanted to check it out. Tag pulled out the book on lock picking and was about ¼ through when he noticed it was late. Putting everything in his stash, he changed clothes and headed downstairs. We exercised, ate breakfast, and headed to the dojo when Kim arrived.
Sensei took us to the workshop and said Tag would make his own weapons. So, with directions, Tag worked for an hour. Then we sparred, and he did his forms at ½ speed for Sensi to check for proper form. We stopped by the dry cleaner and headed home. Tutoring was done, and dinner. Retiring to his room, Tag picked up the lock pick book and read through the end. He looked at the toolbox and small pouches for the first time. Tag noticed the pouches were filled with the most common picks for most locks. He put one in my go bag, set the alarm, and put the bar on the door.
Sleep came, but another dream. This time, Tag was an observer watching men in black come through his house’s back door and climb the stairs. They searched the bedrooms, stopped at each of his parents’ safes, removed only the cash, and left. Tag noticed the clock in my parents’ bedroom said Monday at 2 a.m.
3 a.m., he’s wide awake and doing forms and stretching. Then, Tag took a hot shower, dressed, and thought about what to do. He can’t let them take the cash and find just paper with a few bills. How many entered? Tag thought and counted three with at least one in the car. That’s it, defensive, and while they are all in the car. He’d make a plan later, and Tag needed to check Smith’s house. Running three miles and entering the alleyway, he approached the kitchen door.