Journey Under the Midnight Sun

by Keigo Higashino

  ‘I don’t think so. If he had anything like that, he didn’t leave it.’

  ‘I see,’ Sasagaki said, taking another look around the room. Then he smiled at Noriko. ‘Right. Sorry to bother you.’

  ‘I’m sorry I couldn’t be of more help.’

  As Sasagaki was putting his shoes on, Noriko stood, torn by indecision. The detective knew something about Akiyoshi and she wanted to know what it was. But if she told him who it really was in that photo he’d shown her, she worried she might be signing Akiyoshi’s ticket to prison herself. Even if she never saw him again, she didn’t want that for him.

  Sasagaki finished putting on his shoes and looked up at her. ‘Thank you for your time,’ he said.

  ‘Not at all,’ Noriko said, her throat a little choked.

  Just then Sasagaki’s eyes looked back out at the room behind her, fixing on something. ‘What’s that?’ He was pointing at a small shelf beside the refrigerator. ‘Is that a photo album there?’ he asked.

  ‘Oh, that?’ She looked back at the small plastic album sitting on the shelf. It was a cheap thing they had given her at the camera shop, free with her developed pictures.

  ‘There’s nothing in there,’ she said. ‘It’s from when I went to Osaka last year.’

  ‘Osaka?’ Sasagaki said, his expression perking up. ‘You mind if I take a look?’

  ‘Oh, go right ahead, but there aren’t any pictures of people,’ she added, handing him the album.

  All of the photos were ones Noriko had taken by herself on her trip to Osaka: strange buildings and houses, nothing interesting. She’d felt mischievous taking them and had never shown them to anyone, not even Akiyoshi.

  The photos got a clear reaction from Sasagaki. His eyes went wide and his mouth hung halfway open.

  ‘Is there something there?’ Noriko asked, half afraid there might have been a photo of Akiyoshi in there that she’d somehow missed.

  Sasagaki didn’t answer right away but continued looking at the photos. Then he turned the album towards her, opened to a certain page.

  ‘Why did you take a picture of this pawnshop?’

  ‘Oh, I don’t know. No particular reason.’

  ‘And this building here. Any reason you thought to take a picture of that?’

  ‘Why do you ask?’ she asked, her voice trembling.

  Sasagaki reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out the photograph from before, the one of Akiyoshi. ‘Let me tell you something. The sign on your photo here reads “Kirihara Pawnshop”, right? Well, that’s this man’s real name: Ryo Kirihara.’

  Mika’s toes and fingertips felt as cold as ice, and they weren’t getting any warmer, no matter how long she stayed in bed. Mika buried her head under the pillows and curled up like a cat. Her teeth were chattering; her whole body was trembling.

  She closed her eyes and tried to sleep. But as soon as she began slipping away there he was, the man without a face, attacking her. Her eyes shot open in fright. A cold sweat drenched her body and her heart beat so fast she was afraid it would burst.

  She wondered how many hours she’d been lying here. She wondered if she would ever sleep again. She didn’t want to believe that what had happened that day was real. She wanted it to be a normal day like the day before, or the day before that. But it wasn’t a dream. And the pain in her lower abdomen was proof of that.

  Leave everything to me. You don’t have to think about anything, Mika. She could still hear Yukiho’s voice ringing in her ear.

  Mika couldn’t remember where Yukiho had appeared from. She didn’t even remember what she had told her. She probably hadn’t said anything. But somehow Yukiho had understood and known exactly what to do. She had Mika dressed in moments and then they were riding in the BMW. Yukiho was making a phone call while she drove but Mika couldn’t understand what she was saying, either because she was speaking too fast or Mika’s brain was moving too slowly. The only thing she remembered was Yukiho repeatedly demanding that this ‘be kept an absolute secret’.

  Yukiho took her inside the hospital, not through the front door, but in through the back. Mika didn’t think to wonder why at the time. Mika didn’t think about much of anything.

  She wasn’t sure afterwards if they had examined her, or done anything to her. She just lay on her side, her eyes tightly closed.

  An hour later they were driving home.

  ‘The doctor says you’re fine. You don’t have to worry about anything,’ Yukiho said gently as she drove. Mika couldn’t remember how she had replied, or even if she had replied at all.

  Yukiho never mentioned telling the police. She didn’t even ask Mika for any details. The details weren’t important to her, it seemed. Mika was grateful for that. She didn’t feel as if she could talk about it and she was terrified that other people might find out.

  At home, she saw her father’s car in the car park and her heart stopped. What would she tell him?

  ‘Tell your father you felt like you were coming down with a cold so I took you to the doctor,’ Yukiho told her, as though lying to her father was no big deal. Maybe, given the previous events of the day, it really wasn’t. ‘I’ll have Taeko bring you your dinner in bed.’

  That was when Mika realised that what had happened could be – no, would be – their secret. A secret she’d share with the woman she hated most in the entire world.

  Yukiho’s performance in front of her father was brilliant. No sooner did she mention the hospital trip than she defused Yasuharu’s worried look by telling him, ‘Don’t worry, we got some medicine.’ He didn’t seem suspicious about Mika’s unusual gloom either. On the contrary, he seemed almost pleased that she had relented enough to permit her arch-enemy take care of her.

  That night, Mika stayed in her room. Taeko brought her dinner as promised and Mika feigned sleep while she laid the food out on the side table. After Taeko left, she tried a little bit of the soup and the casserole, but it only nauseated her. After that, she just lay in bed, curled into a ball.

  As the night grew deeper, her fear grew worse. All the lights in the room were out. She was scared to be in the darkness, but she was more scared for her body to be revealed by the light. She felt like someone was watching her. She wanted to live under a little rock, like a minnow in the sea.

  She wondered what time it was and how much pain she would have to endure until the sun rose. She wondered if every night would be like this, and the anxiety pressed down on her like a weight. She bit her thumb.

  Just then, she heard the click of the doorknob turn.

  Mika froze, looking out at the door from under her covers. Through the darkness she saw it swing slowly open. Someone was coming into the room. She saw the hem of a silvery gown drift across the floor.

  ‘Who is it?’ Mika asked in a hushed, hoarse voice.

  ‘I thought you might be up,’ Yukiho replied.

  Mika turned away. She didn’t know how to act towards this person, the only other person who knew her secret.

  She heard Yukiho step closer. Mika glanced at her out of the corner of her eye. She was standing by the foot of her bed.

  ‘Get out,’ Mika said. ‘Leave me alone.’

  Yukiho didn’t answer. Wordlessly, she undid the cords on her gown. The silvery fabric dropped to the ground, revealing her white, naked body.

  Before Mika could say anything, Yukiho crawled under the covers with her. Mika tried to escape, but Yukiho pressed her down. She was far stronger than she looked.

  On top of the bed, she pushed Mika’s legs apart and pressed down on her. Her large breasts swayed over Mika’s chest.

  ‘Stop,’ Mika croaked.

  ‘Did he do this to you?’ Yukiho asked. ‘Did he push down on you like this?’

  Mika looked away. She felt Yukiho’s fingers pressing into her cheeks, twisting her head back.

  ‘Don’t look away. Look here, into my face.’

  Her mind screaming with fear, Mika looked at Yukiho. The large eyes staring down at her. Th
e face was so close she could feel the warmth of her breath.

  ‘You remember what he did when you try to sleep, don’t you.’ Yukiho said. ‘You’re scared to close your eyes, scared to dream. Aren’t you.’

  Mika nodded.

  ‘I want you to look at my face. If you ever feel like you might remember the man, I want you to think of me instead. I want you to remember me doing this.’ Yukiho straddled Mika’s body, pressing her shoulders down into the bed until Mika couldn’t budge an inch. ‘Or would you rather see his face than mine?’

  Mika shook her head.

  Yukiho smiled. ‘I thought not. It’s OK. You’ll be fine before you know it. I’ll protect you.’ Yukiho cupped her hands around Mika’s cheeks. She moved her palms, rubbing, as if she enjoyed the feel of her skin. ‘It happened to me too, you know. Only worse.’

  Mika was so surprised she almost shouted. Yukiho put a finger to her lips. ‘I was younger than you are now. Still just a child. But sometimes, demons come for children too. Many, many demons.’

  ‘No…’ Mika whispered.

  ‘When I look at you now, I see me then.’ Yukiho lowered herself until she was lying on top of Mika, her warmth pressed against her, her hands cradling Mika’s head. ‘And it’s sad. So sad.’

  Then, Mika felt something twitch deep inside her, as though a nerve that had lain severed until now had suddenly been reconnected. Through that nerve, sadness came welling up from her heart like a flood. She began to cry like a baby in Yukiho’s embrace.

  It was on a Sunday midway through December when Sasagaki got in a car with Kazunari to pay a visit to his cousin Yasuharu. Sasagaki had come back up to Tokyo from Osaka for the occasion.

  ‘Are you sure he’ll see us?’ Sasagaki asked in the car.

  ‘I don’t think he’ll kick us out on the street, if that’s what you’re asking.’

  ‘If he’s even home.’

  ‘No worries on that count. I get good intel from my informant.’

  ‘Your informant?’

  ‘The maid.’

  It was a little after two in the afternoon when Kazunari’s Mercedes pulled into the parking spot to the side of the guest gate.

  ‘It’s hard to tell exactly how big the house is from the outside of these places,’ Sasagaki said, peering over the gate. Beyond the high walls, all he could see were trees.

  Kazunari pressed the intercom button next to the gate. The answer came immediately.

  ‘Hello, Kazunari. Good to see you,’ said the voice of a middle-aged woman. She must be looking at them over a security camera.

  ‘Hello, Taeko. Is Yasuharu in?’

  ‘He’s here. Just a moment.’

  A couple of minutes later, her voice crackled over the speaker again. ‘He says go around to the garden.’

  ‘Right.’

  There was a clicking sound from the gate as the lock opened.

  Sasagaki followed Kazunari through. The long approach to the house was lined with cobblestones. Sasagaki felt as though he had stepped into an old Hollywood movie.

  Two women were just walking out of the front of the house. Sasagaki knew who they were without Kazunari having to tell him: Yasuharu Shinozuka’s daughter, Mika, and next to her, Yukiho.

  ‘How do you want to play this?’ Kazunari asked quietly.

  ‘Just tell them anything you need to about me,’ Sasagaki said.

  They walked up the path slowly. The four of them stopped where they met on the path halfway to the house. Yukiho smiled and nodded to them.

  ‘Hello,’ Kazunari spoke first.

  ‘Long time no see, Kazunari. How have you been?’ Yukiho asked.

  ‘Can’t complain. You look well.’

  She smiled and nodded again.

  ‘Your shop in Osaka’s opening soon, right? How’s that going?’

  ‘Not very well, but these things never do. I only wish there were a few more of me to go around. I’m heading to a meeting about that right now, in fact.’

  ‘Well, I wish you the best of luck,’ Kazunari said, turning to the girl. ‘How have you been, Mika?’

  The girl smiled and nodded. She seemed a bit withdrawn to Sasagaki. He’d heard from Kazunari that she didn’t get along with Yukiho, but from what he could see there was no sign of that here.

  ‘And I thought it might be a good chance to pick up something for Mika for Christmas,’ Yukiho said.

  ‘An excellent idea,’ Kazunari agreed.

  ‘Is this your friend?’ Yukiho asked, her eyes turning to Sasagaki.

  ‘Oh, sorry, this is Mr Sasaki. He’s been helping us at the company for years,’ Kazunari said without hesitation.

  Sasagaki bowed and said, ‘Hello.’ When he looked back up, his eyes met with Yukiho’s.

  Sasagaki had seen her as an adult several times, but never face-to-face like this, not since that run-down apartment in Osaka. He could still see that little girl in the woman before him. She had the same eyes.

  Remember me, Yukiho Nishimoto? I’ve been following you for nineteen years, so much that I see you in my dreams. But I doubt you remember an old man like me. Just another one of your many, many fools.

  Yukiho smiled. ‘Are you from Osaka?’

  ‘Indeed,’ he said, a little flustered.

  ‘I thought so. My new shop is opening in Shinsaibashi. You have to come visit.’

  She pulled a postcard out of her bag, an invitation to the opening.

  ‘Oh, thanks,’ Sasagaki said. ‘I’ll make sure one of my relatives down there gets this.’

  ‘It was your accent,’ Yukiho explained, looking the old detective in the eyes. ‘It’s funny how little things can bring back so many memories.’ Her lips parted in a smile. ‘If you’re looking for Yasuharu, he’s in the garden,’ she said to Kazunari. ‘He wasn’t satisfied with his scores on the course today, so practise, practise.’

  ‘We’ll try not to take up too much of his time.’

  ‘Please make yourself at home,’ Yukiho said, and with a nod to Mika the two set off. Sasagaki and Kazunari stood off to the side of the path until they had passed. Sasagaki watched her go, thinking maybe she did remember him after all.

  They found Yasuharu in the garden hitting golf balls. When Kazunari walked over he put down his club and smiled – no trace of any guilt on his face over having sent his cousin to languish at a subsidiary.

  But when Kazunari introduced Sasagaki, a wary look came into Yasuharu’s eyes. ‘A former detective from Osaka? OK,’ he said, staring at the new arrival.

  ‘He has something I need you to hear,’ Kazunari said.

  The smile faded entirely from Yasuharu’s face. ‘Let’s talk inside.’

  ‘No, here is fine. It’s warm today, and we’ll be leaving soon.’

  ‘Really?’ Yasuharu looked between their faces. ‘Fine. I’ll have Taeko bring us something.’

  A white table with four chairs was in the garden, a place for the family to enjoy afternoon tea in the British style on the warmer days. The maid brought milk tea, and they sat to drink.