‘Maybe you should go to bed then. Don’t worry, I won’t use the phone again tonight.’
Mikami imagined them in five or ten years, having the same conversation as today. It had become routine for them to worry about each other while pretending everything was normal.
He took a long bath. After this he sat in the living room having a drink, then went into the bedroom. Minako was already lying on her futon, the cordless phone in its usual place next to her pillow. The slender nape of her neck appeared orange under the glow of the lamp.
Still awake. That was the impression Mikami got.
Make sure to enjoy yourself tonight . . .
Urushibara’s heartless jab had haunted him during his bath and while he’d been having his drink in the living room. He hadn’t made love to Minako for a long time. Together, they had brought Ayumi into the world. Together, they had watched her tear herself apart. They hadn’t been able to make love since, either from desire or from a will to create new life.
Mikami breathed silently as he slipped into his futon.
They would have two children. Although they’d never discussed it officially, they had shared the same unspoken understanding. But the desire for a second child had fizzled out after Ayumi, while she was still growing up. It had become clear, even though she had never said anything, that Minako no longer wanted another child. Ayumi had taken after her father. Had Minako been secretly afraid that their next child might be another girl, but take after her?
Mikami closed his eyes.
He’d been young. Working theft in Special Investigations, First Division. Minako had been based in the annexe, doing an office job for Transport Regulation. A number of cars had been broken into at the station’s riverside car park and, with the reputation of the force on the line, Special Investigations had been deployed to look into the matter. One of the cars had been Minako’s, and Mikami had been tasked with interviewing her. He only remembered her voice. He hadn’t been able to look her properly in the face. The next year, they ended up working in the same district station. They would swap greetings whenever they saw each other. That was the extent of their relationship. She dazzled him, and he’d already decided he was unworthy of a woman like her. One day, without any forewarning, she presented him with a road-safety charm. It’s a bit silly, but here you go. She’d looked embarrassed. He had been so amazed he hadn’t been able even to thank her.
He could make out her gentle breathing. She was so close.
Do you regret all this?
Again he found himself silently voicing the question, unable to bring himself to say it.
30
Mikami drove his car from the house before nine o’clock the next morning. It was Sunday.
Kakinuma had just got married around the time of the Six Four kidnapping and had been living in a police dorm in Chuomachi which had family-sized apartments. He’d entered Amamiya’s home as part of the Home Unit and had afterwards remained on the case as a member of the Investigative HQ. He’d been there ever since, so it seemed safe to assume he would still be in the same apartment.
From the outside, the dorm was easily mistaken for a medium-sized municipal apartment building. Generally referred to as the Chuo Standby Hall, the complex consisted of six individual blocks, and Mikami’s memory from the one time he’d visited before told him Kakinuma lived somewhere on the ground floor of the right-hand-side building. Mikami eased on a baseball cap and a pair of glasses before stepping out of his car. The communal letterboxes were gone, no doubt a precaution against the nefarious activities of the various cult religions.
His memory had been shaky at best. After wandering, lost, for a while, Mikami finally found the nameplate with ‘Kakinuma’ on it on the first floor of the building second from the right. It also displayed the name of Kakinuma’s wife, Meiko, together with those of their three children.
Mikami presumed that Urushibara would have called the night before to make sure Kakinuma kept quiet. It was with this in mind that he pushed the buzzer. Almost immediately afterwards, a high-pitched female voice shouted, ‘Coming!’ and the door slipped open on the chain.
‘Yes, how can I help?’
Meiko peered out from inside. Mikami could hardly believe his eyes. She looked as young as the day he’d first met her, all those years ago.
‘My name is Mikami. I was with Special Investigations, back when—’
Meiko piped up before he could finish his sentence. ‘Oh, of course! I remember. You were working with my husband.’
She kicked on a pair of sandals and stepped out.
Something about her reminded him of Mizuki Murakushi. She wasn’t particularly good-looking, but had an easy-going smile that could disarm anyone. Her wedding to Kakinuma had coincided with Mikami’s mother’s passing away, so he’d been unable to attend their reception; because of this, he had only met Meiko twice, the first time at a party First Division threw in Kakinuma’s honour, the second when he visited the married couple’s new home with a few colleagues from work. Almost fifteen years had passed since then. And yet Meiko was so full of energy it was no exaggeration to say she looked like a woman in her twenties; she certainly didn’t look like a mother of three.
‘My husband always talks about you. I wouldn’t be surprised if you found your ears burning every now and then?’
Mikami answered with an awkward smile. The stories were probably of the Beauty and the Beast variety.
‘He says it every time he’s had a couple of drinks. “That Mikami, he’s the real thing. Guy’s a real detective.”’
Mikami tried to dismiss her words as flattery, but Meiko was adamant.
‘No, he really means it. He says you’re the only detective he knows who made a name for himself in both First and Second Division. He sounds really proud when he talks about what you’ve achieved.’
‘He’s exaggerating.’
Conscious of eyes and ears around them, Mikami stepped into the entranceway. He heard the pattering of footsteps and a young girl of early primary-school age appeared with a younger child, possibly already in nursery, whose features made it hard to tell what gender he or she was. Another boy was at the end of the hallway, probably secondary-school age, leaning slightly to one side as he looked on.
‘Is Kakinuma in?’ Mikami asked, already sensing that he wasn’t.
Meiko pursed her lips as she scooped up the youngest of her children. ‘You’ve just missed him. He left about ten minutes ago.’
‘For Central?’
While it had suffered a downgrade in both size and status, the Six Four Investigative HQ was still based in Central Station.
‘I don’t think so. It was definitely work, though.’
‘I hear he gets his weekends off these days?’
‘He does. Although I’m not so sure that’s a good thing. Oh, I really hope the kidnapper’s caught. He did such horrible things to that poor little girl.’
Meiko peered into the face of the kid in her arms. The child shrieked with laughter, finally revealing to Mikami that she was a girl.
‘It’s been non-stop since the marriage. Sometimes I wonder if I actually married the case. I know Kakinuma will suffer if the kidnapper isn’t caught. I doubt he’ll ever get over it, you know, if the statute of limitations kicks in and he’s transferred out.’
Mikami made a deep nod.
‘He says he wishes you were back on the case. That he’s sure you’d be able to crack it.’
Mikami felt a sharpness in his chest. A part of him seemed to be watching the scene from above.
‘Your husband will apprehend the kidnapper, I’m sure of it. Nobody knows the case better.’
‘I do hope you’re right. Then, if he gets three straight promotions, I’ll have nothing else to say on the matter.’
She broke into laughter, giving Mikami an opportunity to move in.
‘Am I right to assume you had a call from Urushibara last night?’
‘Oh! Yes, that’s right. And anot
her, from someone called Futawatari.’
This time Mikami managed to keep his expression from changing. He’d been wondering if Futawatari might ring, too.
‘Was that the first time he’s called?’
‘Oh no, he calls every now and then. Although it’s sometimes Kakinuma who phones him.’
‘Sorry, I meant Futawatari.’
‘Ah. Yes, first time. And it wasn’t just the call; he came over, late last night.’
Mikami couldn’t help but feel impressed by the man’s legwork. Yet again, Futawatari had beaten him to it.
Meiko’s smile clouded a little. ‘All Kakinuma said was that he was someone important from Admin. What’s he like?’
‘What do you mean?’
‘I didn’t get to see him. We pretended I was out when he came over.’
‘Ah, right.’
‘Is he Internal Affairs, that kind of thing?’
Mikami smiled instinctively. ‘No, nothing like that. He’s in Personnel, joined the force the same year as me. I’m sure it was something to do with that. Kakinuma hasn’t changed jobs for fourteen years now; it’s possible Futawatari was checking in to see if he wanted to try something else.’
Meiko seemed to accept this. ‘I see. How silly of me, I should have introduced myself.’
‘Is your husband . . . looking to move somewhere else?’
‘Yes, I think so. But whenever he’s had a few drinks he always complains that his hands are tied until the statute kicks in.’
His hands . . . tied. It sounded as though someone was holding him back.
The girl in Meiko’s arms began to tug at her hair. Mikami took advantage of the distraction.
‘Kakinuma has a mobile number?’
‘Oh, I’m sorry.’ She looked up and clasped her hands in apology. ‘I’m under strict orders not to give the number to anyone.’
‘I understand.’
Don’t tell anyone, even if they’re police. It was something all detectives told their families. Mikami resolved to try again later. He was just about to bow and leave when Meiko spoke again.
‘Although, I wonder if he might have gone there?’
‘I’m sorry?’
‘There’s a supermarket, in Matsukawa-machi. Tokumatsu. Do you know it?’
‘I think so. Next to the pachinko parlour?’
‘That’s the one. You know, there’s a chance he might be there, parked near the entrance to the car park. I go there to shop every couple of days; I’ve seen his car a few times now.’
Surveillance?
‘Parked on the street?’
‘That’s right. He’s using one of the side streets, off the main road. Wide enough so his car’s not in the way, of course,’ Meiko said, defending her husband, having misunderstood the question.
‘And he’s in the car, alone?’
‘Yes. I wonder if he’s found someone he’s staking out? I tried calling out to him one time, but he got really angry. Even told me I had to stay away.’
He’d be angry with her again. She’d refused to give out her husband’s mobile number, but that meant nothing now she’d told Mikami where he might be. Although she had volunteered the information herself, Mikami felt awkward, as though he’d taken advantage of her good nature.
‘I’ll try him there, thanks.’
‘Yes, please do. Sorry you had to come all this way.’
‘It’s no problem. I should be the one apologizing, for barging in on you like this. When I see your husband, I’ll tell him I just happened to be passing by.’
Meiko let out a happy shriek. ‘If you wouldn’t mind. He’d probably be angry with me otherwise.’
She didn’t seem overly concerned, even as she said this. A good family. He turned to leave but looked back almost immediately.
‘His car . . .’
‘It’s a dark-green Skyline. A real old banger.’
‘Thanks. Next time I’ll make sure I’m not in such a rush.’
Mikami looked back a final time as he heard a little voice.
‘Bye-bye.’
The little girl shyly hid her face in her mother’s chest, her features an attractive mix of both parents’.
31
Mikami turned right when the lights at the intersection turned amber.
He hadn’t taken everything Meiko had said as fact. If Kakinuma was by himself, he wouldn’t be on official surveillance duty. What was he up to? Mikami mulled over the question as he sped down the bypass.
He crossed into Matsukawa-machi. The area was full of large, out-of-town superstores. As it was December, the streets were bustling. Cars and consumers zipped back and forth with concentrated purpose. Mikami couldn’t miss the gigantic sign announcing the Tokumatsu supermarket. He took a left and made his way down the side of the store before taking a right at the next junction to circle around the back.
His foot came down hard on the brakes.
I’ll be damned . . .
On the left side of the road, parked ahead of five or six cars lined up against one wall of a consumer electronics store, was Kakinuma’s dark-green Skyline. Mikami pressed on the accelerator to approach from behind. He made a quick check of the exhaust. There was a faint trail of white smoke. He edged a little closer. The inside of the vehicle came into view through the rear window. A head, the hair short, sat in the tipped-back driver’s seat. Mikami drove straight on, glancing to the side as he passed by. The profile of a man. Kakinuma. He was looking directly ahead. Less than ten metres away in that direction was the entrance leading into the Tokumatsu car park. A couple of uniformed guards were busy directing the heavy traffic, guiding customers in and out with red batons. Kakinuma’s watching the cars, or the customers. But Mikami dismissed the idea almost as soon as it came. The Skyline was parked too close to the entrance. He was also at the front of the row of other cars, meaning he was in plain sight of anyone driving out. The rules of surveillance suggested his target would be fifteen metres further on – the back entrance to the pachinko parlour. Either that, or the main entrance to the multipurpose building across the road.
Mikami made a left, then another, navigating his way through the side streets until he was behind the line of parked cars. He pulled up behind the last vehicle and cut the engine; he got out of his car and into the street. Guy’s a real detective. The words Meiko had told him sat heavily in the pit of his stomach. He approached the Skyline as though it were an interrogation room. When he reached it, he lightly rapped his knuckles against the driver-side window. He sensed Kakinuma jump. His eyes opened wide when he turned to see Mikami standing there. Open up. Mikami formed the words with his mouth. Kakinuma stumbled over himself, unlocking the door. The car was parked flat against the wall, so the passenger side was off limits. Mikami pulled open the rear door and climbed into the back of the car. He grabbed the fabric of the passenger seat and pulled himself forwards so he could see Kakinuma from the side. The man had gone completely pale.
‘What are you doing here?’
Mikami didn’t give him any time to think up an excuse. Kakinuma managed little more than a grunt in response.
‘Are you waiting for someone? Or keeping your eye on someone?’
Surveillance. Routine mapping. Mikami was sure Kakinuma was engaged in one or the other, but the view through the windscreen didn’t seem to fit now he was inside the car. The car park was, as he’d thought, too close. The interior of the car was in plain sight, almost inviting people to look in. At the same time, the two entrances – those of the pachinko parlour and the multi purpose building – seemed too far away, making it a stretch to keep tabs on someone with the naked eye.
‘We’re moving,’ Kakinuma blurted, letting off the handbrake. He put the car into drive and started to press down on the accelerator. Mikami reached out, pulling the handbrake back up in almost perfect unison, making the car jerking forwards before coming again to an abrupt stop, sending the two of them pitching forwards. One of the men directing the traffic turned a
round in surprise, having no doubt registered the screech of the tyres.
Mikami sat back in the seat and said, ‘I’m not here to get in the way. Just carry on like I’m not here.’
‘I’m done for the day.’
Done for the day? What did he mean, done for the day?
‘It’s fine, just carry on as you were. I want the kidnapper to see justice, too; no less than you do.’ Mikami heard Kakinuma swallow. ‘I’m here for something else. You can keep looking ahead, that’s fine. Just hear me out.’
‘What do you want?’
Mikami looked into the rear-view mirror. He could see Kakinuma’s eyes. They shied away from meeting his.
‘I went to see Hiyoshi yesterday, the one who used to be in Forensics.’ Mikami held back from saying he’d met him, intimating only that he’d been to his house. Kakinuma was blinking more rapidly now. He would have had warning of Mikami’s attempted ambush from Urushibara’s call, but physical reactions weren’t something you could fully suppress. ‘His mother told me all about what happened. That her son had made a fatal error at Amamiya’s. That the captain – that Urushibara – had yelled at him for being incompetent. This is all correct, I take it?’
‘I don’t . . . I don’t know.’
His voice broke into a falsetto as he replied.
‘That Hiyoshi left the force, that he spent the next fourteen years refusing to leave the house. Did you know about that?’
‘No . . .’
‘He’d been crying, hadn’t he? The second day you were with the Amamiyas.’
Kakinuma’s eyes were restless, moving in the rear-view mirror.
‘I didn’t know.’
‘Somebody saw it. Koda was trying to comfort him. What were you doing?’
‘I can’t remember. I . . . was probably busy talking with HQ.’
Mikami leaned forwards again, bringing his face right up to Kakinuma’s. The man’s ears had gone bright red.
‘Do you know about the Koda memo?’
‘No.’
The answer had come too quickly. Kakinuma’s half-open mouth was trembling slightly.
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