Summertime of the Dead (16 page)

‘Hungry,' said the Lump.

I looked down at her. ‘When aren't you hungry?'

‘Always hungry,' said the Lump.

‘Come on. Here's our stop.'

It was hot and sunny when we came out of the station, and I wanted to get home. But I'd bought the Lump an ice cream and so she was in no rush. At least three times I had to tell her to catch up, but she kept stopping to stare at things. And it didn't have to be anything special. A tree or a plant or a tin can. One time I turned around and she was staring at a common daisy that had grown between the cracks in the pavement.

‘Will you hurry up?'

But as we turned into our street I saw a man outside the house. He was wearing a suit and he had something in his hand. He could be a yakuza hit man! But they couldn't know who I was or where I lived. Don't get paranoid, I thought. But just because you're paranoid that doesn't mean that they're not after you.

‘Listen – you go straight into the house, OK?'

‘OK,' said the Lump, and pushing open the steel door she ran into the garden.

The man was short and slim and the thing in his hand was a notebook. His face was glum and his greying black hair was combed back tight, making
a perfect rectangle of his forehead. ‘Yukio Takeda?' he asked.

The fact that he knew my name was enough to start my heart pounding. ‘Yes.'

‘My name is Detective Maki. I'd like to ask you a few questions. Is there somewhere we can talk?'

My mind ran into a frenzy and my stomach turned, but I tried to stay calm. ‘Sure,' I said, and held open the steel door. But as soon as I did I realized my mistake. The bike was in the garden and the sword was under the seat! He'll see it! We passed a spade. For an insane second it crossed my mind to kill him.

He took off his suit jacket and put it over one of the iron chairs. Then taking a seat he put his notebook on the iron table. ‘Such a beautiful garden,' he said. ‘And so much space.'

I looked at the bike and froze. The sword had gone.

‘Do you mind?' When I turned to him he was showing me a pack of cigarettes.

‘No,' I said, and took a seat. I was panicking inside but I tried to relax.

He lit up a cigarette and sat back. ‘You were friends with the Kobayashi twins, yes?'

‘Yes.'

He checked his notebook. ‘And you also knew Goro Kakomo, known to all as Kako?'

I decided not to lie. ‘Yes.'

‘We've discovered two things that connect Miko Kobayashi and Kako. One we are not going to divulge. The other is you.'

I watched a wasp crawling around the table. I had a sudden urge to crush it.

‘Tell me something.'

‘What?' I asked.

‘Tell me anything.'

‘We don't know why the twins … did what they did. And all I know about Kako is what I read in the paper.'

‘When was the last time you saw him?'

‘In a club called Paradise, a few weeks back.'

He pointed at our small pond. ‘What sort of flowers are they?'

The question threw me. ‘I don't know.'

‘Of course you do. They're lotus blossoms.' He stood up and examined them more closely.

‘You know what they say about lotus blossoms? They grow at the bottom of the pond in complete darkness. Their darkness reflects man's ignorance because he can't see the truth. The seed grows
towards the sunlight, just as man grows towards the light of the truth … Miko was your girlfriend, was she not?'

I could tell by the way his back stiffened that he was no longer concerned with the lotus blossoms. ‘No,' I said.

‘Funny, because I hear she was.' He sat down and took a long drag on his cigarette. And as he did he glared at me. ‘Of course she wasn't. She was a Buraku after all. A young man from a good family, like yourself, would never get involved with that sort. Am I right?'

I could have killed him! Right there and then! But I knew he was baiting me.

‘Miko was not my girlfriend, but she was a friend. And a finer person you'll never meet. If you're going to insult her, you'll have to leave.'

‘Sorry, kid. Just doing my job.' He made a note in his notebook. ‘On the night Kako was killed, where were you?'

‘Here probably.'

‘What about last night?'

‘With me.'

I turned to see the Lump, who bowed to the detective.

He chuckled when he saw her. ‘What? All night?'

‘Tummy trouble,' said the Lump, who'd never had tummy trouble in her life.

‘Yes,' said the detective in a weary way. ‘There's a lot of that going around.'

Yoshe came out. ‘Oh, I didn't know you had company, Yukio.'

The detective stood up and gave a short bow. ‘Mrs Takeda?'

‘No, she's inside. Would you like to see her?'

‘If I may.'

‘One moment,' said Yoshe, and went inside to ask. Then she came back. ‘If you'd like to follow me …'

The detective stepped on his cigarette and went inside. It was quiet then, and the silence was worse than having him sitting in front of me. I had a sickening feeling in my stomach and I was finding it hard not to fidget. But when I heard voices coming from Grandmother's room I had to stand up. The Lump didn't look happy either. She stood with her back to the wall and bit her lip. And she stayed that way until she heard the detective say goodbye. He came out and picked up his jacket.

‘Thank you for your time, Yukio.' He looked at the Lump. ‘And I hope your tummy gets better.'

‘Would you like tea, detective, before you leave?' asked Yoshe.

‘I would, but I have a dozen people to interview today and it's already noon.'

Yoshe bowed and went back in the kitchen.

I opened the steel door for him and he stepped through. ‘I don't think I'll be bothering you again, Yukio. But let me ask you one last question: did you like Kako?'

‘No,' I said.

He looked satisfied. ‘No, nobody did.' He put on his jacket and looked down the street. ‘What about Louise Tanaka?'

‘I never knew her,' I said. ‘Is this to do with the—'

‘Sorry, I'm not allowed to discuss an ongoing case. Enjoy the rest of your day.'

I watched him walk away and then I closed the steel door. ‘Where is it?'

‘No!' said the Lump.

She tried to run but I grabbed her. ‘Where?'

‘Not telling!'

But then I saw the sword hidden in the plants. ‘You dummy!' I pushed her away and grabbing it I
went inside. I made sure Yoshe wasn't there before running upstairs.

But she came out of the kitchen. ‘Yukio …?' She cringed a little, as if she didn't like to ask. ‘Was that about the twins?'

I kept the sword hidden. ‘Yes.'

‘I'm glad they're looking into it. There was something not quite right about the whole business.'

‘Does Grandmother want to see me?'

Yoshe looked puzzled. ‘She never said anything.'

I went to my room and hid the sword in the cupboard. Then I went out on the balcony to make sure the detective had gone. But I saw him peering through the window of the twins' apartment. I didn't think he suspected me of the killings. I mean, he'd left after talking to Grandmother. But I didn't think I'd seen the last of him either.

I heard the Lump going to her room. I had to think about what to say to her. She was as devious as that detective when she wanted to be. I mean, I knew she knew nothing, but she sensed things, which was even worse. When I looked in her room she was sitting on her bedroll pretending to read, but she wasn't. Her eyes were fixed on one spot and her facial expression was blank, except that she
looked a little upset. I felt bad then. Somehow she'd sensed I was in trouble and tried to help.

‘You hungry?'

The Lump ignored me.

‘Listen, a terrible thing happened to the twins. And the people responsible—'

The Lump gave me the stop sign. ‘Do no harm!' she said.

‘Hey, you're my cousin! You're supposed to be on my side!'

The Lump looked down at her comic and sulked. ‘Do no harm.'

‘You dummy. I don't know why I bother with you!'

I went back to my room and out on the balcony. I was relieved when I saw the detective walking down the street. He'd given me quite a scare. But there's no way he was going to stop me from carrying out my duty! And neither was the Lump. She came out in the garden and sat in a chair with her arms folded. She wasn't speaking to me and she wanted me to know. Then she started mumbling like a real grouch.

‘First sign of madness,' I called. But she stuck her nose in the air and looked away. ‘You won't ignore
me when you're hungry.' And she wouldn't either. A bowl of beef fried rice would put things right. She was easily bought.

I stood in the doorway, which stunk of pee, and watched the Korean trying to entice people into his massage parlour, which stood at the end of a brightly lit road. Most people turned back before they reached the Korean's place, because it was on the outskirts of the Kabukicho and all the streets after it were dark. But some didn't – they came all the way to the end, and when they did the Korean would approach them. He'd hold out his hand to foreign tourists, and if they took it he'd hold on to it. Or if they were Japanese he'd bow and follow them for a bit. No one was interested, but he didn't care; he was a real creep.

I liked it that the Korean was connected to the yakuza. I mean, assaulting my mother was a good enough reason to kill him, but working for the yakuza made him more of a legitimate target. But the question now was how to get away once it was done. If I attacked him in the street it would be a quick bolt back to the bike, which was parked down a side street. But that meant that people would see,
and some might give chase. If I waited for him to go inside, which he did from time to time, I could follow him in. But just like with the Tanakas' place, I didn't know who else was in there.

I scanned the outside of the massage parlour. It looked like a small shop except that there was a curtain drawn across the window. I figured there wouldn't be much room inside to swing the sword, and so I thought about a kendo term called
ma-ai
. In general it refers to the distance between the tips of the opponents' shinais when held in the
chudan
stance, but it also refers to space. The swordsman needs to assess his surroundings and place himself in a position where he has the advantage. If I followed the Korean inside, the first thing I'd have to do was check the height of the ceiling. If it was too low, I wouldn't be able to raise the sword. And I'd have to look out for things like posts and lamps and anything else that could get in the way.

He spat and went inside. I pulled my hood over my head, and keeping the sword close I crossed the street. Before I knew it I was opening the door and stepping inside. It felt strange, like being in a dream, but the first thing I noticed was that the place was
empty. I drew the sword and held both pieces behind my right leg. Then I went down three steps and stood there with my heart banging. It was like a basement inside and the ceiling was low, but there was plenty of space otherwise.

There were racks of smutty DVDs and magazines against the wall, and there was a counter by the window. And there were partitioned cubicles with beds in them and curtains at the side. When I heard someone coming down a flight of stairs my stomach turned. A bookcase moved and the Korean came from behind it. ‘Welcome, welcome. Take a seat and let's see what we can do for you!'

I should have killed him then, but I hesitated and he moved behind the counter. He looked more creepy close up. He had a bit of a beard, because he couldn't be bothered to shave, and his skin was as greasy as his hair.

‘You're a bit young, aren't you? Is that why you have your hood up, trying to hide your age? Don't worry, everyone has to start somewhere.' He peered under my hood. ‘I know you from somewhere, right?' The smile left his face. ‘What's that you've got behind your back?'

I felt dizzy. For a second I thought I was going to faint. He came out from behind the counter.

‘Who are you? What is that?'

‘A sword,' I said.

His face froze into a puzzled look. ‘Is this a joke?'

Suddenly I dropped the mounting and took the sword in both hands. He turned to run, but I jumped forward and slashed down. The blade hacked into his back and cracked his ribs. He dropped on to one knee. I heard someone scream behind me. I swung the sword as I turned. A woman raised her hand and her fingers fell to the floor. Her eyes widened as she looked in horror at her missing digits. She collapsed and clutched her bleeding hand. Then a guy came through the front door. I hit him with the back of the sword and he cried out and cowered. Then another guy came in. How many perverts does Tokyo have? I beat him with the sword and he roared and ran out. Then the woman without the fingers started to scream. I heard an almighty crash and the Korean jumped through the window. I grabbed the mounting and ran outside. The Korean had collapsed on the pavement. People were running to his rescue. Then that yakuza biker pulled up on his chopper. A woman screamed and
a man tried to grab me. I pushed him away and ran.

I sprinted down the street, and taking a right I ran down a darkened road. But then I heard the chopper coming after me. I put the mounting on a bonnet, and standing between two parked cars I got ready. And then, just as he passed, I swung the sword. I spun around and landed on the bonnet of the car. But the rider was still going down the street. The blade hadn't made contact! But then I noticed blood, as fine as mist, spraying from his neck.

The sirens were far away at first and then they were close. I grabbed the mounting and ran for the bike. I pushed the sword under the seat, jammed on my helmet and rode away. Then I heard a crash, and reaching the lights I saw what it was. The biker's mangled body was crushed between a car and his chopper. The shocked driver held his head in his hands, while a woman threw up at the side of the road.