by Soji Shimada
“Oh?”
Kumi’s responses were so brief that even Kikuoka noticed the change in his lover.
“What’s the matter with you?”
“Nothing.”
“Obviously, it’s not nothing. You’re in a really crabby mood.”
“Am I?”
“Yes, you are.”
Anyone observing this exchange would realize that Kikuoka was capable of speaking in a low voice after all.
“Let’s go and talk in my room. I was just about to go to bed anyway. Look, I’ll say goodnight and head downstairs. You wait a bit and then casually follow. We’d better look over my schedule.”
Kikuoka got up. From the far corner of the table, Okuma spotted his move and came over to speak to him.
“Ah, excuse me, Mr Kikuoka, if you’re off to bed, please make sure you lock up your room properly. Don’t forget the door. After all that’s happened, you can’t be too careful.”
SCENE 2
Room 14, Eikichi Kikuoka’s Bedroom
“I can’t take it any more! I want to go home. I told you I didn’t want to come. I can’t put up with it a moment longer.”
Kumi Aikura was sitting on Kikuoka’s lap, pouting.
“What are you talking about? You know that nobody can leave right now. After what happened we’re under house arrest. What on earth is wrong?”
Right now Kikuoka was displaying an expression of utter Zen Buddhist calm, one that none of his employees had ever even glimpsed (except once in 1975 when the company’s gross income had suddenly doubled).
“You know how I feel, don’t you? You’re so mean!”
This scene had repeated itself over the decades and not once had the women’s lines changed. Why did this never go out of fashion?
Kumi lightly punched Kikuoka right where he sported what he believed to be a fine crop of chest hair. This required some level of skill. The punch shouldn’t be too hard or too gentle. Kumi didn’t realize there were genuine tears in her eyes. Tonight had been so incredibly mortifying. Heaven had happened to send her the most effective tool to get what she wanted.
“You are awful!”
She buried her face in her hands.
“I can’t understand what you’re saying if you cry like that. Come on, love, what’s made you so unhappy? Huh? Was it Eiko?”
Kumi nodded, her face dripping tears.
“Poor thing. You’re such a sensitive soul, Kumi. I’m afraid if you’re going to survive in this world, you just have to get used to stuff like that.”
Believe it or not, his words came from the heart.
Kumi nodded again charmingly.
“But you know I really love that about you—you’re so sensitive, it’s cute how naïve you are.”
Kikuoka put his arms around Kumi and hugged her tight—a gesture that he hoped made him seem like her dashing protector—and brought his lips to hers. But if anyone had happened to be watching, the view would have seemed more like a massive bear devouring its prey from the head down.
“Stop it!” said Kumi, pushing his chin away. “I am so not in the mood for that!”
There was an uncomfortable silence.
“I told you I didn’t want to come, and now Ueda’s been killed! And I never imagined there could be such a bitch as that woman. That’s why I wanted you to go alone, Daddy—”
“I told you not to call me Daddy!”
Daddy was angry. If he didn’t put a stop to it right away, one day she might say it in front of an employee.
“I’m sorry.”
Kumi looked crestfallen.
“It’s not that I don’t want to take a lovely trip with you to a snowy place. I was looking forward to going away together so much. But I never imagined I’d meet such a horrible woman. It was such a shock.”
“Ah, that one—she’s not like a woman at all.”
“Right? I’ve never met anyone like her before.”
“But what do you expect? She’s the daughter of the kind of nutty old man who would build a weird place like this just for fun. You know she’s got to be a bit touched in the head. The crazy daughter. If you take everything she says seriously, then you’re going to end up driving yourself mad.”
“But I—”
“Society has rules. They say we’re all equal but there’s still social status. You can fight against it all you like, there’s nothing you can do to change it. And so when somebody bullies you, you can always turn and look over your shoulder, and there’ll be someone standing right behind you, ready to be bullied too, so you just start beating on them. This world is the domain of the powerful. Just keep on bullying those weaker than yourself. That’s why I have my minions, so I can treat them however I want. In this life there’s no pleasure without pain. You can’t let yourself be the loser.”
From Kikuoka’s mouth these words were very convincing.
“It’s common sense.”
“Yes, but—”
“What is it with young people these days? Always questioning everything. It’s all ‘But… But… But…’ They’re all wishy-washy, can’t make a decision. I just don’t get what they’re thinking, all these airhead types. Just be a man! Go for it! God put sheep on this earth to feed the wolves. Unwind, relax, enjoy life by bullying your minions; it builds up your strength. That’s what we pay them for!”
“Be a man? But what about me? Who am I supposed to bully?”
“Well, you could start with that brown-noser, Kanai.”
“He’s got that wife. I’d be too afraid.”
“Afraid? Of Kanai’s wife? What are you on about? If she says anything to you, I’ll get her husband to start drafting his letter of resignation.”
“But when I think that I’ll have to come face to face with Eiko again tomorrow…”
“You can ignore her. Just nod your head and pretend she’s a turnip or something. You’ve seen me. I bow and scrape to Hamamoto, but while I’m doing it I’m thinking ‘What a moron’. He’s valuable to me in my business, so I kowtow to him. That’s the way of the world.”
“I understand. So then, when we leave this place, how about taking a little trip to Sapporo City? If you buy me something nice, I’m sure it’ll put me in a better mood.”
This was rather a leap of logic, but President Kikuoka nodded effusively.
“Let’s do it. Visit Sapporo and get something for my Kumi. Anything you like!”
“Really? Wonderful!”
Kumi put one arm around Kikuoka’s thick neck and gently pressed her lips to his. It seemed she was in the mood after all.
“Well now, Kumi, you are adorable. You and that crazy Eiko are like chalk and cheese.”
“Hey! Don’t compare me to her.”
“You’re right,” he chuckled. “Probably best not to.”
Right then there was a knock at the door. Kumi leapt from Kikuoka’s lap with lightning speed, and Kikuoka grabbed for a patently dull-looking business magazine. Both displayed impressive speed and agility. Right on the third knock, the door burst open with such force that the visitor must have put all their weight behind it.
The door of Room 14 had been fitted with a much more elaborate lock than most of the other rooms in the main building, but despite his being there with his secretary, it wasn’t Kikuoka’s company office, and accordingly he hadn’t locked the door behind him.
Eiko had realized quite a while earlier that Kumi wasn’t in the salon or up in Room 1, and had a very good idea where she might find her. Ms Hamamoto had the strict idea in her head that no one should behave in a morally corrupt manner in her house (she never stopped to consider that technically this was her father’s house).
Therefore as she opened the door, her eyes went straight to the bed. However, its sole occupant was Kikuoka, sitting upright, deeply absorbed in a business magazine. Kumi was standing by the wall, apparently fascinated by a painting of a yacht.
The magazine wasn’t upside-down as such, but Kikuoka couldn’t be finding it easy to re
ad. He’d previously let slip that he couldn’t see any letters close up without his reading glasses, and he didn’t appear to be wearing them right now.
Kikuoka looked up from his magazine as if he had just now noticed Eiko (although it made no sense that he wouldn’t have looked up the moment the door opened).
“Oh, Ms Hamamoto!” he said cordially, giving himself away by being anxious to speak before she did. “We’ve just been sorting out my schedule. Lots of things to do.”
There wasn’t a single document or appointment diary on the table, the company president was busy reading a magazine and his secretary was staring at a painting on the wall. There was no indication that anyone was doing any scheduling.
“I was just stopping by to see if you needed anything,” said Eiko.
“Need anything? Oh, no. How could anyone be dissatisfied with a wonderful room like this? And it’s my second time here.”
“Yes, but some of our guests are here for the first time.”
“What? Oh, I see! This young lady. Oh, don’t worry. I’ve explained everything she needs to know.”
“Have you plenty of hot water?” Eiko asked.
“Hot water? Yes, I believe so.”
“And how was it in Room 1?” she said, turning to Kumi.
“What? Oh, me?”
“There’s no one else here from Room 1.”
“There was hot water.”
“Good. So is your meeting done?”
“It’s over.”
“Then please don’t let me stop you from getting to bed. You can go to sleep anytime—in Room 1.”
Kumi was speechless.
“Kumi, I was just saying, wasn’t I, that you ought to go to bed early… I’m sorry, Ms Hamamoto, she’s afraid of sleeping alone now after that incident. You know how she saw a strange man at her window last night, you can imagine how scared she must be. She’s still so young, so very childlike.”
Kikuoka laughed.
Eiko didn’t appreciate this explanation at all. However young Kumi might be, she was only about the same age as Eiko herself—maybe there was a year between them at most.
“So you needed your father to read you a bedtime story?”
Kumi turned and glared at Eiko. But she was only able to hold it for a few moments before suddenly dashing for the doorway, slipping past the mistress of the house and scurrying off down the corridor, footsteps echoing behind her. Eiko smiled sweetly.
“If she’s got that much energy, then she’ll be fine sleeping alone.”
She left the room, closing the door behind her.
SCENE 3
Room 9, Mr and Mrs Kanai’s Bedroom
“Hey, Hatsue, come and see! The blizzard’s getting heavier, and I think I can just about make out something that looks like an ice floe.”
They’d left behind the busy salon and come up to their quiet room on the north side of the house, but now the sound of the wind and the rattling of the window frame seemed much louder than before. It was a full-on blizzard. And all of a sudden, Michio Kanai’s usual demeanour had changed. He seemed to have developed a backbone.
“Now this is what you call a snowstorm! It’s really desolate. We’ve come all the way to the farthest north point—the Okhotsk Sea. How about that? Face to face with the wildest that Mother Nature can bring. This is awesome. Makes you feel like a real man.”
He continued to peer out of the window.
“The view from this room is great. Doesn’t matter if it’s clear or snowing. I think it’ll be even better tomorrow morning. Can’t wait… Hey, aren’t you going to look?”
His wife had flopped down on the bed and just answered in a tone that said she couldn’t be bothered,
“I don’t want to see.”
“Are you sleepy already?”
Hatsue didn’t reply. It wasn’t that she was especially sleepy.
“I don’t know—that Ueda,” he went on. “Somehow now that he’s been killed I can’t help feeling that he was a decent bloke—you know. When he was alive, I always found him kind of awkward—a bit slow on the uptake…”
Kanai had completely misunderstood the reason for his wife’s depressed mood.
“I’m going to make sure the room’s tightly closed, because there could be a stone-cold killer in this house right now, hiding there in the midst of everyone. This has turned into a right dangerous mess. We wouldn’t have come if we’d known all this was going to happen. But I do think we need to take care. Those detectives kept repeating ‘lock up’ and ‘secure your room’. We should be careful too. Did you lock the door?”
“I just can’t stand that woman. She gets worse every time I see her.”
Hatsue’s comment took her husband completely by surprise. He was struck dumb for a moment, but his expression quickly became irritated. If Eiko had been there in the room, in one evening alone she would have seen a whole variety of faces of Michio Kanai she’d never seen before.
“What now? You’re not starting that again, are you?… Oh! You mean the director’s new squeeze? No one can ever stand his secretaries.”
Hatsue looked amazed.
“I’m not talking about his little piece of arm candy. I’m talking about that bitch, Eiko!”
“Huh?”
“Who does she think she is, calling me fat? She doesn’t have all that great a figure herself. What the hell is her problem?”
“Are you talking about what she said yesterday? Don’t be stupid, that wasn’t what she said at all.”
“That’s exactly what she meant! Didn’t you get it? That’s why everyone calls you a fool. Stand up for yourself. Can’t you see everyone’s laughing at you? They call you the limp celery.”
“What are you talking about?”
“How can you not see it? Acting all moonstruck, going around simpering, Ms Hamamoto, your skill on the piano is superb! I would love to hear some more! Why are you trying to worm your way into the affections of such a child? You’re an executive. Top management. Behave like it! You’re making me ashamed.”
“I am behaving like it.”
“You’re not! The only time you’re not smiling like a fool is when you’re with me. And then you do nothing but find fault. At home you’re always in a foul mood but when you’re out in public, you’re always sucking up to people. Try putting yourself in my shoes. She sees me as the wife of a man like that and that’s why she treats me that way. That’s what’s really happening, isn’t it?”
“That’s just the salaryman’s lot. Sometimes that stuff is unavoidable.”
“It’s not just sometimes. That’s why I’m bringing it up!”
“And who do you think you owe it all to—that you even have the opportunity to complain like this? There are wives all over Japan stuck in public housing, never able to go out anywhere, go travelling. But you can call yourself an executive’s wife now, you’ve got your own house, and a car to drive yourself wherever you want. Who do you owe all that to?”
“Am I supposed to say that I owe it all to your bowing and scraping and fawning over everybody?”
“Exactly!”
“Really, now?”
“Well, how else do you expect me to have got where I am?”
“Have you heard what that old lech, Kikuoka, and his slut secretary call you? It’ll open your eyes.”
“What does the wilting old chrysanthemum call me?”
“He calls you ‘that brown-noser, Kanai’.”
“Everybody says that kind of thing behind people’s backs. It’s not a bad price to pay for a generous annual bonus.”
“But people are bothered by the way you suck up to the old walrus. There’s no way I’d be caught doing that.”
“You think it’s fun for me? The only way I’ve ever been able to stand it is by thinking of my wife and children. I’m doing it with clenched teeth. You should be thanking me. You’ve no right to complain at all. Or perhaps I shouldn’t have brought you? Eh?”
“Oh, no, I wanted to come.
I think that I’ve earned the right to visit nice places with you from time to time, to eat good food. Usually you’re the only one who gets to do this fun stuff.”
“Now you think I’m having fun? Don’t contradict yourself! You just said that I’m humouring the old pervert. You can’t just turn it around and say whatever you like. You’ve got a nerve, woman!”
“It’s that Eiko and Kumi who are ruining the whole thing for us. Why did I come? I don’t understand it. Kumi’s a complete airhead. And she treats you like her own employee.”
“Are you kidding? You’re really imagining things now.”
“I’m not imagining anything!”
“She actually has her good points. She has quite a good heart.”
Hatsue’s mouth fell open.
“What did you say?”
“What now?”
“You are absolutely beyond hope. You have no idea how she sees you, do you?”
“And you really do overthink things.”
“Are you saying that I think too much?”
“Yes. You’re too suspicious. You can’t go through life being that way. You’ve got to toughen up.”
“You call sucking up to Kikuoka, and being bossed around by his mistress being tough?”
“I sure do. A weaker man would never be able to kowtow to someone all day long. I’m tough enough to do it.”
“Ugh. I’ve heard enough.”
“I don’t have any respect for the Chrysanthemum. He’s just got a good head on him for making money, and so I’ve plenty to gain by sticking by him. Most of the time I feel like killing him; in fact last night I had a dream where I split his bald head open and a bunch of petals came showering down. It felt really good.”
“What about Kumi?”
“Kumi? She wasn’t in the dream. Only Kikuoka. I told him to get down on his knees and beg for mercy. I laughed as I picked up an axe and cracked his—”
The story was interrupted by a knock at the door.
“Yes?” called Hatsue automatically. Her husband was still lost in the pleasant memories of his dream. But when he pulled himself together and went to open the door, there stood the object of his tale, the man whose head he had cracked open with an axe just the previous night.