“No, but I’m still in bed.” I imagined him warm in his apartment, tucked into bed, maybe reading something on his phone when I called. I wondered what he wore to sleep in. “Mei-chan?”
“Sorry. I was just, uh, cleaning my room.” Nope. I was daydreaming about being in bed with him and what that would be like. My brain was all over the place. “And I found these old newspaper clippings about Tama-chan.”
“What were they about?” he asked, yawning again.
“He’s the head of a survival skills club at his school.”
“Oh, I did that for a year. I was a pro at the wild vegetables. I’ve been picking those things since I was a kid.”
“I’m not surprised, considering.”
He laughed. “I still go out and pick them in the summer. I miss that. Winter is not my favorite season.”
“Me neither.” Despite the fact I was going to go out for a run, I lied down in bed and pretended I was next to him. “I wanted to ask you about something. Because I called Akiko-chan and Goro-chan, and they both think I’m nuts.”
“I doubt that, though I think you’re crazy to always be running away from me. Come on. I’m not that scary.”
I couldn’t believe he could make me blush over the phone. “Sorry.”
“Anyway, what’s up?”
I told him my theory about Tama and the poison, and he hummed on the other end.
“Maybe the problem here is that you’re all too close to him to see him for who he is now.” I sat up in bed and stared out the window. Huh? “You’ve known him his whole life, so your vision is colored by what you already know.”
“Hmmm, maybe so.”
“I barely know Tama-san. I’ve seen him around town a lot, heard about him through Chiyo-san or Haruka-san, and then I’ve talked to him a few times at Izakaya Jūshi. If you told me he was arrested because he poisoned his father to death, I’d believe it.”
“Really?”
“Absolutely. You know what I don’t like about him? He looks straight through you. When he talks to me, it’s like he isn’t looking at me, he’s looking at someone right behind me. He’s distant, like he’s here but not. It’s hard to explain. It reminds me of some of the books I read. He’s out of phase with reality, living in an alternate universe.”
I imagined Tama, fading out from the world, slowly, his form becoming indistinct and hazy.
“It’s the look of a psychopath, I swear,” he said, yawning.
“Why didn’t you say anything before?”
“Before? When?”
“Before we went to Izakaya Jūshi.” It was Yasahiro’s idea to go and find Tama there, to hopefully ask him questions and find out more about what he was up to.
“Ah. Well, I wanted to go on a date with you. It didn’t turn out the way I planned. I thought he wouldn’t show up and we’d spend the evening talking and drinking, and I’d take you home and kiss you.”
I laughed at the sincerity of his confession. “You got the ending you wanted.”
“I hope to get the whole package next time. Remember, I said I’d woo you. Speaking of which, any chance you’re available on Thursday night? We could go to the city for the evening. I know a great rooftop place to have drinks and then we can head to my friend’s restaurant. I’d take you on a Friday or Saturday, but Sawayaka is booked solid for Friday and Saturday night through the end of January, and I have to be there.”
“I understand. I’m fine with Thursday night. It’s not like I have to be at work the next day.”
“Exactly. And I’ll see you tomorrow night. I’m catering so I have to be there early with the van and everything.”
“Okay. I’ll see you then. Have a good day, Yasa-kun.”
“You too, Mei-chan.”
I hung up and stared out the window. I hadn’t been seeing my world with fresh eyes. All of my daydreams and thoughts were based on two decades of seeing the same faces, the same buildings, the same relationships.
Yasahiro had seen everyone here for the first time in the last year, and if he thought Tama had the look of a psychopath, then I had no reason to doubt him.
I had every reason to doubt everything else.
Chapter Thirty
Chiyo’s bathhouse, Kutsuro Matsu, was bright and cheery when Mom and I entered the following evening. Mom decided to wear a kimono, but I knew the inside would be hot, so I opted for one of my lighter black dresses under a wool coat. Most of the town would be in and out all evening, and the place was prepped and ready to go. Kumi smiled and bowed when we slid open the front door.
“Welcome, welcome!” She launched towards me with a big hug and I squeezed her back. “I’ve missed you this last week! I wish you had come by for a visit, but I know how hard it is to plan anything without a phone.”
That, and I tried to save money on gas and not drive everywhere, plus the weather had been very spotty for October so walking had been out of the question.
“I promise to come often and use the bath now that it’s open, as long as there’s a family discount.” I winked at her and she nodded eagerly.
“Chiyo says you’re on the VIP list, which means you pay nothing, of course.”
I pumped my fist and Mom laughed. “It’s good to know people in high places. Between free hot baths here and free food at Sawayaka, I’ll be clean and fed through the winter.”
“Speaking of which,” Kumi said, taking my arm and leading me to Chiyo’s office. “Your man is in there.”
“Stop,” I hissed at her, smacking her arm. “He’s not ‘my man.’”
“Oh yes he is. Supposedly, he can’t stop talking about you. All the kitchen staff at Sawayaka know you’re dating.” She lowered her voice. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I… I didn’t believe it was true.” Honesty was my policy tonight, especially if I’d be drinking.
“Of course it’s true! I could tell right away you’d be a good couple.”
Inside the office, coats hung on temporary coat racks, and Chiyo gathered leaflets designed for the new customers.
“Are we talking about Mei-chan and Yasahiro-san?” Chiyo asked, her face lighting up like Akihabara at night.
My jaw tightened in response. Everyone always in my business!
“We are indeed. Aren’t we happy, Mom?”
“Ecstatic. What a catch for our Mei-chan.”
I cleared my throat. “Yasa-kun is not a dog or a bear you catch. He’s a man with his own ideas.” I lifted my chin, trying to be haughty and possibly diffuse some of this embarrassment, but both women laughed and clutched each other’s arms.
“Did you hear that? She called him ‘Yasa-kun!’” Kumi melted into a puddle. I backed away slowly. “No one calls him that around here.”
“I’ve gotta go.” I turned on my eight centimeter heels and sprinted from the office before they could grill me anymore.
The front entryway was packed with people, my mom nowhere in sight. Both doors to the men’s and women’s side of the bathhouse were open and people came and went from each. I was closer to the women’s side, and people left there with glasses of champagne and small plates of food, so I chose that direction.
I should have prepared myself ahead of time. Standing inside the room, several groups of people I knew turned to watch me enter. It was a good thing I worked hard all afternoon on my appearance. I tamed my hair and found my favorite red lipstick to go with the black dress and high heels. I painted my stubby nails with dark gray nail polish and buffed every bit of skin I could reach. But even though I stood tall, clean and presentable, the dirt of the farm weighed heavily on my shoulders.
Music played in the room, soft enough to be heard but not too loud because the tiled room bounced noise everywhere. In a corner, Haruka, Tama, and their friends whispered and jerked their heads in my direction, then looked at my painting on the wall. My stomach sank as I focused on Yasahiro standing and staring at it. Great. I thought he would never see it because it was on the women’s side of the bat
hhouse. I didn’t think about today.
I wanted to walk out of the room and never go back. I’d learned a lot about myself these past few weeks, especially that I would avoid conflict at all costs. Go, Mei!
“Hey, Mei-chan,” Haruka called to me, my cover blown. “That’s an… interesting painting.”
“It was never my favorite,” Tama said to her. “But then, I didn’t like anything she painted.” Tama stared in my direction, but his gaze was as Yasahiro described, cold and vacant. I tried to glance at Yasahiro to see if he was witnessing this. “Did Chiyo-san really pay you for this?”
My entire body grew hot with rage. I wanted to yell at him that, of course, I was paid for that painting. The supplies alone cost 10,000 yen! Not to mention the hours that went into it. But Haruka and her friends snickered, and I lost my confidence.
A glass of champagne and a plate of food slid in front of my face along with the smile of Yasahiro.
“There you are. I was wondering when you’d get here. For you.” He handed me the glass and plate, and then leaned forward and kissed my cheek, a slow press of his lips to my jaw line near my ear, my skin burning on contact.
“You look lovely.” He rested his hand on my back between my shoulder blades, and his face changed to shock as his fingers dipped into the ripples of my burn scars down the entirety of my rib cage to my waist. I knew this black dress was light, but I didn’t think he’d touch me. Why don’t I ever think? I should have worn a sweater.
“I… I…” His voice tapered off, his skin whitening. His lips tightened in a line as he dropped his hand away. I felt as if my soul was trying to crawl out of my mouth and limp away. I couldn’t fix this so I leaned into his ear.
“It’s okay if you’re disgusted. I totally understand.” And I did. I expected it. No one wanted to date someone physically damaged. I was lucky I could keep the mottled and snarled skin covered most of the time. I didn’t go to beaches or bathe in pools with strangers. When I went to the onsen, I went with my family or close friends who wouldn’t be freaked out because I had been kicked out of an onsen when I was a teen. The owner thought I had a disease and made a huge deal out of it. I was happy Chiyo owned this bathhouse because I’d be welcomed here.
Yasahiro did his best to pretend like nothing happened. He stood next to me, silent, his eyes searching the room. A distance widened between us, from a fissure to a canyon. I had to give myself credit for being as positive as I had been about our relationship. If he had been any other guy, I probably would’ve ignored him and pushed him far away at first flirt. But I let it get to this point, and it was good while it lasted.
I resigned myself and kissed him in the exact same place he kissed me, feeling like it might be a good moment to savor his closeness before he bolted. If his skin were any colder, he’d be dead.
I kept my eyes on the floor as I made my way from the room with my alcohol and food, but as I reached the door, Yasahiro’s voice rose above everyone else’s. “It’s the most beautiful painting I’ve ever seen, Mei-chan. I’m lucky to be dating such a talented woman.”
My knees weakened, but I managed to look over my shoulder to him and nod with a smile.
“I’m the lucky one.”
I sat in a corner of the men’s washroom, surrounded by Mom’s friends, and drank until my face flushed and the world around me turned fuzzy. If only Kumi hadn’t been busy. I would’ve much rather chatted with her, but she was floating around, her head in the clouds and a giant smile on her face. I wished I had something awesome to be happy about like her. This bathhouse was the perfect opportunity, to work with her family and run a real establishment. She deserved all this happiness.
I texted Akiko an hour ago, asking where she was, and she wrote back that she got held up with a patient she had to escort to the hospital. I hoped that wasn’t too stressful for her. She’d just gotten back to work. I doubted she’d be able to handle another death right now.
Yasahiro came by a few times, mostly working the crowd, talking about business or the food or the drinks, and conferring with Chiyo about what she wanted or needed. His work would be done soon and then maybe we could sit and talk, try to overcome what happened earlier. I didn’t know if that was possible, but I had to reach him, make him understand that my scars didn’t, shouldn’t, matter. That was never an easy conversation to have, and I’d had it with previous boyfriends, all of which left me because of it. I didn’t expect this to be any different, but I would try, nonetheless. I remembered how he recovered from the shock gracefully. Perhaps with time, he would accept all of my flaws.
I gulped down the last of my champagne as another glass was handed to me.
“That Yasahiro is a fine looking young man,” one of Mom’s friends crooned at me.
I couldn’t tell any of them how sick I was of hearing this. I betted no one complimented him on dating me.
I raised my glass to her. “He has a nice ass, for sure.”
“Mei-chan,” Mom admonished me. She turned and Yasahiro stood right behind her. He laughed at me, raising his eyebrows.
“It’s true,” I said, shrugging my shoulders. The truth in champagne form was very flattering.
My phone buzzed in my bag as the women pursed their lips and returned to gossiping. It was Akiko. “I’ll be there in five minutes tops. I’m walking up the street now. Going to talk to Tama first and then I’ll find you.”
“Great!” I texted back. I’d have someone I could talk to until Yasahiro was free, and it’d been ages since Akiko and I drank together. I missed hanging out with her.
“Mei-chan.” Goro appeared at the door and headed straight for me. He was still dressed in his uniform and seemed too serious to be at this fine party. “Can I speak with you for a moment?” He jerked his head in the direction of the front entry.
“Sure,” I said, excusing myself from the circle of ladies. I caught Yasahiro’s eye, and we smiled and waved to each other. Goro glanced between Yasahiro and me, his keen eyes detecting everything in our little gestures.
Activity had died down in the front entry, the open space vacant since the party moved into the two main rooms. Funny that tomorrow, the baths would be filled and each room would be populated with naked people.
“Hey, so, Kumi tells me you and Yasahiro-san are dating. She’s just joking around, right?”
I glanced around the room a few times and sighed. “Is that really what you called me out here for?”
“No. Sorry. I was just surprised, that’s all.”
I threw my hands up. “Why? Why is that surprising? Of all the things lately to be surprising, you think Yasahiro dating me is worth lumping into that group?”
His face grew pale. “Kumi is going to kill me. Sorry, Mei-chan. That’s not why I pulled you out here. We got a call at the station an hour ago and I went to follow up on it, which is why I wasn’t here. That second patient of Akiko’s that we tried to interview confessed. She said Akiko did come to examine her that day, but she had taken money from a young man the day after to report to the nursing agency that Akiko was missing from her duties.”
“What?” I grabbed his arms and shook my head.
“That’s why she didn’t want to speak with us. She was lying about Akiko. Akiko had been there but someone paid this woman to say she hadn’t.”
“Who?” My ears rang. I already knew the answer.
“It had to have been Tama. I have her waiting down at the station now, and I’m going to bring him in for a line-up. I thought I would show her a picture of him, but that would have tainted the whole case. She described him pretty perfectly though.”
I made sure no one was listening and turned back to Goro. “You’re way out of place in your uniform. You should take off your coat, at least. Look like you’re here to stay. Tama is in the women’s area with Haruka and their friends. Do you have backup coming?”
He shook his head. “They’re at least fifteen minutes from coming. There was a meeting in the next town over, and I wanted to
make this as low profile as possible.”
Right. Because if the woman didn’t identify Tama, then we’d have to let him go, and we didn’t want everyone in town to think he was a suspect. We headed into the office, and he left his coat while I grabbed mine. “Akiko-chan is on her way here. I’m going outside and I’ll meet her so she doesn’t get in the middle of this.”
Throwing on my coat and leaving Goro in the office, I slid open the front door and headed out into the cold. If she parked in the town lot, she’d be coming from the left, so I started to walk in that direction, reaching into my coat for my phone and finding nothing. Damn. My phone was in my purse in the bathhouse where I just left it.
I didn’t walk farther than the side alley when her voice came from the area at the back of the bathhouse.
“But you didn’t do anything! Why is it all taken care of?… Hey, don’t. Stop!” Her voice echoed off the brick pavers and hardened clay walls. I froze, terrified, my skin prickling all over. She sounded scared right before she stopped talking. The click of a car door opening and shuffling of metal objects bounced towards me. Someone was still out in the back of the bathhouse. I unstuck my feet and started a slow creep down the alley, hastening my steps since I didn’t hear anything anymore. Maybe she went inside through the back door?
A van came into view, its back doors both open and no one around. As I got closer, I found a pair of high heeled shoes discarded on the ground outside the van.
“Hello? Akiko?” My heart pumped so hard I could hear my own heartbeat in my ears. It was deafening, and I couldn’t breathe. I nudged open the van’s doors further and Akiko was passed out inside next to aluminum chafer pans, food trays, and serving utensils.
A strong arm wrapped around me from behind, clasping my arms down. “Hey!” I screamed, but the sound cut off as I was hit upside my head. I struggled to free myself as another hand came to my face, smothering me in a sickly sweet scent, before a wall of black descended upon me.
Chapter Thirty-One
The Daydreamer Detective Page 23
