Newcomer, page 15
“How about you helping me out?” Tamiko had proposed spontaneously. She needed someone to help out after her excellent assistant quit.
Mineko lacked self-confidence but acquitted herself well on the translations that Tamiko gave her as a test.
Armed with a newfound belief in her ability to earn a living, Mineko made up her mind and asked her husband for a divorce. Somewhat to her surprise, he readily agreed. The settlement he offered Mineko was very modest, in light of his high net worth. Tamiko told her to stick to her guns and demand more, but Mineko only laughed. “I don’t care,” she said. “Getting my freedom is way more important than getting his money.”
Tamiko started sending translation jobs to Mineko almost as soon as she moved out. Tamiko planned to keep an eye on her friend until she was capable of standing on her own two feet as a translator, something that would take some time. For her part, Tamiko was very happy to be working with a friend.
After the divorce went through, Mineko lived in the apartment of another friend of hers in Kamata, until a couple of months ago when she moved to Kodenmacho near Nihonbashi. Tamiko still had no idea why she was so set on that particular neighborhood. Although Mineko claimed it was for “inspiration,” Tamiko felt certain that there was something else behind her choice. Mineko’s face always glowed when the move came up in conversation. There was obviously something about the area that excited her. Sure that Mineko would eventually confide in her, Tamiko never pressed for an answer.
Everything was going well until something unexpected occurred, something that threatened to undermine their friendship. This time it came not from Mineko’s side but Tamiko’s.
Tamiko had first met Koji Tachibana about a year ago. Along with some publishing friends of hers, she’d gone to look at the nighttime cherry blossoms near the Imperial Palace. An editor she knew had brought Koji along. He was single and three years younger than Tamiko. A videographer, he’d moved to Japan a couple of years ago.
The two of them had soon begun seeing a lot of each other, getting closer and closer. Neither of them had said anything about living together or getting married. They both enjoyed a similar lifestyle—working hard at home and only getting together when they wanted to relax.
Koji, though, had recently come out with an unexpected proposal: He planned to move back to London—and wanted Tamiko to come with him as his wife.
Puzzlement, dismay, and confusion characterized Tamiko’s initial response, but as this welter of emotions receded, excitement and joy remained.
She had neither aging parents to care for nor long-term contracts to fulfill. She was free to drop everything and take off with Koji. Just one thing weighed on her mind: Mineko.
Mineko had embarked on her new life because of Tamiko’s promise to take care of her until she was established as a translator. She couldn’t not feel guilty about letting her friend down.
Still, it never occurred to Tamiko to turn Koji down. She couldn’t imagine life without him.
After considerable soul-searching, Tamiko made up her mind to talk things through with her friend. She was certain that Mineko would see things from her point of view.
No such luck. The more Tamiko spoke, the tenser the expression on Mineko’s face became.
“I can’t believe it. I only got divorced because you said you’d help me out.…,” she said bitterly.
Tamiko sympathized. If someone had done the same thing to her, she’d have been indignant, too. Though perhaps insecurity was the problem, more than indignation.
The two women went their separate ways after this uncomfortable exchange. That was three weeks ago. And they were due to meet again for the first time on that day—June 10.
Tamiko had changed the original seven o’clock appointment after Koji had called her and insisted on seeing her right away. He was waiting in Ginza, he said.
When Tamiko got there, Koji had taken her straight to a jewelry shop. She was led to a seating area at the back, and a ring with the most brilliant diamond was produced for her inspection.
“Say you like it, and I’ll sign for it,” Koji said. Despite her age, Tamiko had burst into tears. She would have hugged Koji then and there, if there hadn’t been other people around.
After they left the store, she had given the ring to Koji to take care of and had caught a taxi to Kodenmacho. This would be only her second visit to Mineko’s apartment. Probably better if I don’t mention the ring, she was thinking as she sat in the back of the taxi.
She had arrived at Mineko’s apartment building at four or five minutes to eight. She took the elevator to the fourth floor and rang the doorbell. There had been no response. She pressed it a second time. Again, nothing. Thinking that was odd, she reached for the doorknob. The door had been unlocked.
The first thing she had seen in the apartment was Mineko sprawled on the floor. Was it a heart attack or a hemorrhage of some kind? As soon as she crouched down for a better look at Mineko’s face, she spotted the livid marks around the neck.
With trembling fingers Tamiko had called the police on her cell phone. She couldn’t remember what she’d said. After hanging up, she went and waited for the police in the hallway outside the apartment. The police must have told her to do so, she later thought.
The police came in no time. They led Tamiko out to a patrol car. She was expecting to be driven off somewhere, but instead a detective climbed in with her and asked her some questions. Initially, Tamiko couldn’t string together an answer. The detective betrayed no signs of impatience, and she gradually started to calm down. The detective was him—Kaga.
Ironically, it was only after she had recovered her composure that she realized the awful thing she’d done: Mineko wouldn’t have been murdered if she hadn’t postponed their appointment.
She recalled the scene from earlier that evening: she’d been in heaven when Koji presented her with the ring. Completely swept up in her own happiness, she hadn’t a thought to spare for anyone else. And at that very moment, the murderer was strangling Mineko, putting her through hell.
Sadness, regret, and self-reproach welled up inside her. With Detective Kaga looking on in amazement, she burst out: “The whole thing’s my fault. If I hadn’t rescheduled … It’s because of me. If I hadn’t been so self-absorbed. It’s me. I … I’m the reason Mineko was murdered. It’s all my fault.”
3.
That night Koji phoned Tamiko to see if she felt like going out for dinner.
“I’m sorry. I don’t feel up to it yet.”
“Okay then, I’ll pop around to your place. I’ll pick up something en route. What do you feel like eating?”
Tamiko shook her head into the receiver.
“Let me take a rain check. My place is a mess, and I haven’t done my makeup.”
“So what? I’m worried about you. Are you eating properly?”
“Yes, I’m eating. You don’t need to worry. I just need to be alone. That’s all.”
Noticing the edge in her voice, Koji went quiet.
“I’m sorry,” Tamiko apologized. “I want to see you too, you know. There’s nothing I’d like more than a nice little cuddle. Being with you would help I forget about this whole horrid business.”
“Why not let me come around, then?”
“It doesn’t feel right. Just think of what poor Mineko went through. It’s not fair for me to run away from reality. No, spending time with you, feeling even a smidgen of happiness, forgetting about Mineko even for a very short time—that’s the coward’s choice.”
Koji went quiet again. Tamiko guessed he was trying to process what she had said.
Although Tamiko meant every word that she said, she wasn’t being completely candid. In her heart of hearts, she was convinced that if she and Koji hadn’t met up that evening, Mineko wouldn’t have been killed. She felt that if she saw him with that guilt stewing inside her, things between them would never be the same again, and all their lovely shared memories would become something painful.
She couldn’t bring herself to tell Koji what was eating at her. If she did, she knew that he would start blaming himself. After all, he was the one who pressured Tamiko to change her schedule that day.
“Is there really nothing I can do?”
“I appreciate your being there for me.”
At the other end of the line, Koji sighed.
“I hate the person who did this; hate them from the bottom of my heart. Murdering your friend is heinous enough, but the psychological pain they inflicted on you—that’s unforgivable. I’d like to kill the person responsible.”
Tamiko pressed her free hand to her temples.
“For God’s sake, Koji, don’t talk about killing people.”
“I’m sorry.”
“My pain is neither here nor there. What I want to know is why this happened. Mineko was such a lovely person.… The police asked me all sorts of questions, but I don’t have any worthwhile information at all. I feel so useless.”
“Don’t torment yourself. No one can know what they don’t know, right?”
“I was one of her best friends.”
“Listen, I don’t know everything about my close friends. That’s just how life is.”
Now it was Tamiko’s turn to lapse into silence. She knew what Koji was trying to say, but the crisp certainty of his tone only saddened her.
“A detective came to see me today,” said Koji. “A different one from last time. This one’s name was Kaga.”
“I know him. We’ve met a couple of times.”
“Bit of an oddball. God knows why, but he gave me a present: rolled omelet.”
“Rolled omelet?”
“‘Because it’s a traditional dish,’ he said. Anyway, he hands me this thing then asks if I’m more of a knife-and-fork or chopstick kind of guy. Nuts! I told him that I was better than average at plying the old chopsticks.”
“What did he say about the murder?”
“He started out by asking me if Mineko and I had met. I said yes, that the three of us had gone out for dinner a couple of times. Next it was, did I remember what we’d talked about? I told him I couldn’t remember all the details, but that it was probably stuff like how you and I met. He’s like, ‘Why don’t you tell me about that?’”
“About how we met? Why should he care?”
“Search me. He wouldn’t give me a straight answer when I asked the same thing. Like I said, he’s a funny one. Next thing it’s do I have a cell phone? When I say I do, he asks me to show it to him.”
Tamiko remembered what Kaga had told her when he had dropped in on her earlier.
“And did you?”
“Sure. Then he’s like, ‘How long have you had this phone?’ What on earth was all that about?”
“Goodness only knows,” said Tamiko, though she knew perfectly well what Kaga was after. Believing that it was the murderer who had called Mineko from a pay phone, he wanted to check whether or not Koji had lost his cell phone. Kaga, in other words, regarded Koji as a suspect.
What an idiot! Tamiko thought. She’d been with Koji right up until she had gone over to Mineko’s apartment and found her dead. His alibi was rock solid. The police shouldn’t have any trouble figuring that out.
Unless—
Unless Kaga didn’t believe her. Or did he think that Koji somehow arrived at the apartment just before her and murdered her friend?
She’d told Kaga that her plan to move to London had sparked some friction between her and Mineko. Surely no sane person could see something that trivial as a motive for murder? Or did Kaga think Koji had some other motive?
Kaga had made a good first impression on Tamiko. He seemed sensitive, someone it was safe to trust. That’s why she had been so frank and open with him right from the start. The trouble was that she had no way of knowing if he was being straight with her. Perhaps he was just pretending to be sympathetic.
“Hey, Tamiko, are you still there?” Koji said.
“Oh … uh, yeah. Go on, what else did Kaga ask you?”
“That’s everything. He sort of popped up, asked a few questions, and then vanished in a puff of smoke. It was kind of creepy.”
“There’s no need to worry. He was probably just double-checking something.”
“I thought so, too,” said Koji breezily.
“Listen, I’m kind of tired. I think I’m going to call it a night.”
“Right. Sorry to keep you on the phone. Sleep well, okay?”
“I’ll try. Thanks. ’Night.”
“Good night,” said Koji.
Tamiko hung up and collapsed into bed.
She wondered what the future held for her. Would the sorrow gradually fade away so she could enjoy being with Koji again? How was she supposed to process what had happened to Mineko? Would she just forget about Mineko in the natural course of things?
Tamiko closed her eyes. She’d hoped to fall asleep right away, but it wasn’t happening. Instead, her head felt thick and heavy.
“Is that your final decision?”
Suddenly, Tamiko heard Mineko’s voice and, in her mind’s eye, saw her face. There was a sharp furrow of anxiety between her eyebrows.
It was when Tamiko had told her about her plan to relocate to London with Koji.
“Yes. I think it’s what I want to do,” Tamiko had shyly replied.
“What about your work? What are you going to do with your translation business?”
“I … I’m going to finish off all the projects I’m currently working on and then get out of the business. Chances are that my work will dry up anyway after I move to London.”
Mineko’s eyes flitted restlessly about. Noticing her bewilderment, Tamiko had quickly added more.
“Of course, I’ll do what I can for you. I can introduce you to a number of translation agencies, plus there are some people I know in publishing who can probably send some work your way, too. There’s no need for you to worry.”
Mineko had avoided looking her in the eye.
“I can’t believe it. I only got divorced because you promised to help me.…”
Tamiko had been at a loss for words.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “I never saw this coming, either.”
Mineko had pressed a hand to her temple.
“I’m screwed,” she had muttered, half to herself. “If I’d known things were going to turn out like this, I’d have held out for more money.”
She was referring to her divorce settlement.
“Don’t worry. You’re an excellent translator. You’ll get more than enough work to make a living.”
Mineko had glared at her coldly.
“How do you know that? It won’t be that easy.”
“I meant what I said.”
“I don’t want to talk about it anymore. I’m not blaming you. Hey, the man you love asks you to marry him, and any promises you made to your friends go out the window. That’s normal enough.”
“It’s not like that. I feel awful. Can’t you at least believe that?”
“Well, if you really felt guilty about what you’re doing…” Mineko had shaken her head. “Oh, what’s the point? I should never have trusted anyone else. When it comes down to it, I’m the one who has to take care of myself.”
“But Mineko…,” protested Tamiko.
Mineko had put the money for her drink on the table, stood up, and stalked out of the café.
Her back as she walked away—that was the last time Tamiko had seen Mineko alive.
She was tormented by remorse. I shouldn’t have let things end like that. I should have run after her and hashed things out. We could have reached an understanding.
Instead, Tamiko had left things hanging for nearly two weeks. Mineko had every reason to see her as selfish and irresponsible. And when they were finally going to get together again, she’d called at the last minute to push the appointment back an hour. On the phone, Mineko had just said, “Okay, eight o’clock it is. See you later.” Inside, though, she was probably seething. And that hour’s delay had ended up costing Mineko her life.
“Forgive me, Mineko,” murmured Tamiko. God only knows how many times she’d said those words since the murder. But in her heart, she knew that no matter how many times she said she was sorry, her friend would never hear.
4.
The humid air clung to her the moment she stepped through the sliding glass door. In an instant every single pore on her body seemed to ooze sweat. Ignoring the discomfort, Tamiko thrust her feet into her sandals. She was not yet ready to leave the building, but she was sick and tired of being stuck in her apartment. She needed to get some air in her lungs.
When had she last been out on the balcony? She’d actually rented this particular apartment because it overlooked a small park, but since moving in, she’d barely ventured outside to enjoy the view.
She was about to lean on the balcony railing when she suddenly noticed that it was black with grime.
She had gone back inside to fetch a rag when her cell phone pinged to indicate an incoming text. It was from Koji.
I want to firm up our plans for moving back to the UK. What are your feelings about the move? Let me know.
Tamiko clapped the phone shut with a sigh. Koji was getting jittery. He couldn’t plan his work without a clear date for his return to London. Tamiko guessed that he was probably more anxious than the text implied. It was typical of his good nature to be so tactful and avoid any high-pressure language.
Tamiko found a cloth and went back out onto the balcony. As she wiped the railing, she thought about Koji. It wasn’t fair of her to take advantage of his kindness. Nothing was going to bring the dead back to life; at some point she would have to let go of Mineko. But could she really just pull up stakes and go to London? Wouldn’t she hate herself for it?
The handrail now looked as bright and shiny as new. She let the air out of her lungs and looked at the street below. A figure was approaching. It was Detective Kaga, this time carrying a white plastic bag.
Abruptly, he raised his head and looked right up at her. Surely he hadn’t sensed that she was staring at him? Kaga grinned cheerfully. She responded with a curt nod.
