Occupied City
Page 6
1948/8/17; 08.00: Hot / Gather at Inspector Iki-i’s residence in Ōmori / Collate all evidence and information on Hirasawa / Prepare request for arrest warrant for Hirasawa Sadamichi / Prepare requests for search warrants for houses of Hirasawa’s family and relatives in Tokyo / No sleep.
1948/8/18; 13.00: Hot / Robbery Room Name-card Team HQ / Receive telephone call from Hirasawa’s eldest daughter / Frantic, desperate / Asks for meeting / Claim to be too busy / Desperate, persists / Daughter says family worried / Her mother’s younger brother, her uncle, accusing her of selling her own father to the cops for a box of fruit / Speak to Inspector Iki-i / Agree to meeting / 16.00: Meet Hirasawa’s eldest daughter with Iki-i on second floor of Marufuku coffee shop / Daughter requests we visit her mother at family home to ease her fears and worries / Promise to visit in next few days / Daughter persists / Asks exactly which day at exactly what time / Promise to visit her mother in three days / 17.00: Meeting with daughter ends / Return to Iki-i residence in Ōmori / Detective [NAME DELETED] of First Investigative Division waiting / States that imminent arrest of Hirasawa now common knowledge / Newspapers already sniffing around / Requests that he arrest Hirasawa on our behalf / Argument, fight / Table upturned, punches thrown / Detective [NAME DELETED] says, ‘You Name-card guys are all crazy.’ / Detective [NAME DELETED] leaves / 20.00: Telephone call from Investigation HQ / All expenses and funding for Name-card Team suspended until further notice / Obvious attempt to stop Name-card Team travelling to Hokkaido to arrest Hirasawa / 21.00: Inspector Iki-i calls his bank manager at home / Arranges mortgage of Ōmori house and telephone line to cover cost of travel to Hokkaido if arrest warrant granted / All anxious, all nervous / No sleep.
1948/8/19; 17.00: Very hot, very humid / Meeting of Robbery Room Name-card Team at HQ / Police Chief Kita present / Arrest warrant for Hirasawa Sadamichi granted / Elation / Chief Kita cautions that news of arrest warrant has already been leaked to newspapers / Suspects detectives from First Investigative Division / Anger / Kita states that Chief Inspector Suzuki has requested presence of First Investigative Division Detective Tomitsuka at arrest of Hirasawa / Fury / Kita notes Detective Tomitsuka has already left Tokyo for Otaru / Resignation / No sleep.
1948/8/20; 06.00: Hot / Leave Tokyo for Otaru, Hokkaido via Niigata and Akita / Travelling with Inspector Iki-i, and Detectives liga and Fukushi / Very slow train, very hot train / No conversation, no sleep / Very anxious, very nervous.
1948/8/21; 10.00: Arrive in Otaru, Hokkaido / Meet First Investigative Division Detective Tomitsuka / Go to Hirasawa’s father’s residence / Hirasawa’s father and younger brother greet us formally / Shown upstairs / Hirasawa dressed and waiting, seated before same canvas / Arrest Hirasawa on suspicion of the murder by poison of the twelve employees of the Shiinamachi branch of the Teikoku Bank on 26 January this year, and the attempted murder of four other employees at the same place on the same day / 11.00: Take Hirasawa to Otaru Police Station / Telephone calls to Tokyo HQ / Warned of press reports / Make necessary travel arrangements / Spend rest of day and night at Otaru Police Station / No sleep.
1948/8/22; 06.00: Hot / Return to Tokyo on Tōhoku Honsen Line / News of arrest leaked to press / Crowds at every station en route to see Hirasawa / Newspapermen and cameramen board the train at Morioka, Sendai and Taira / Train repeatedly delayed by crowds / Spend journey keeping press at bay / Hirasawa crouched on floor / Blanket over his head / Does not speak, sleep, eat or drink.
1948/8/23; 05.45: Hot, humid / Arrive Ueno Station / Chaos, crowds / Time of arrival leaked to press / Members of First Investigative Division and Officials of Tokyo Prosecutor’s Office waiting / Hand Hirasawa over to members of First Investigative Division and officials of Tokyo Prosecutor’s Office / Lose sight of Hirasawa Sadamichi in the chaos and the crowds –
[THE NOTEBOOK ENDS HERE]
Beneath the Black Gate, in its upper chamber, in the occult circle, the detective now says, ‘That was me finished. And the rest you know. The interrogation and the confession. The recantation and the trial. The conviction and the sentence. The appeals and the campaigns.
‘But I cannot die,’ the detective continues. ‘I cannot die until I see Hirasawa executed. For I know he did that crime. I know he killed those people. So no more tears. No more tears for him.
‘For this city is a notebook. In blunt pencil and on coarse paper. A notebook now closed. A case now closed …’
A second candle now out.
But in his city of conviction, you say, you laugh, you scream, ‘I will give you tears, you dog! You deceitful, lying dog!’
Because you hate detectives, and you hate dogs, and all detectives are dogs, all dogs detectives, and so you push this detective, this dog, to the ground and you kick him in his gut and you kick him in his head, in his deceits and in his lies, and then you tip open his boxes and you rip up his notebooks, and now you take out your matches and you start a fire, a fire of his boxes and his notebooks, shouting, ‘Liar! Liar! Liar-Dog! Dog-Liar! You lie! Lie!’
But the detective is laughing at you, laughing and barking, ‘He did it! He did it! And you, you should thank me!’
Among the smoke and among the flames, his fingers and his paws, still laughing and still barking, as you shout –
‘It wasn’t him! I know it wasn’t him!’
But now the pasts and the futures, their memories and their dreams, their deceits and their lies, their voices and their words, are all gone again; the Black Gate, the occult circle spinning again, spinning and spinning, and you are spinning, spinning and spinning,
through the laden wind, through the haunted air,
spinning and spinning, the detective gone –
Only his notes, his words remain –
Taunting you, mocking you –
You and your book, your book that is no book, as you pick up your pen and then drop your pen, drop and pick up, start and then stop, stop and then –
Here beneath the Black Gate, in the occult circle of its ten candles, a voice whispers, whispers from the shadows, ‘I am a Survivor. And I have the same dream, night after night…’
And from out of those shadows, a woman crawls towards you, on her hands and on her knees, and she says again, ‘The same dream.
‘Night after night, the same dream …
The Third Candle –
The Testimony of a Survivor
The city is a purgatory. Night after night, the same dream, IN THE OCCUPIED CITY, night after night, the same dream:
I AM THE SURVIVOR
But of course I know: only through luck
Have I survived so many friends.
But night after night
In dream after
Dream
I hear these friends saying of me: ‘Those who survive are stronger.’ And I hate myself
I hate myself
IN THE OCCUPIED CITY, I wake up. It is cold, in the Occupied City. It is Monday and I do not want to get up. I do not want to get dressed. I do not want to go to work. Something is wrong. I want to lie all day beneath this quilt. To sleep and to dream, of food and warmth, of the man who will come and take me away from the cold and the hunger, of the man on a white horse who will save me from the Occupied City. But I must get up. I must get dressed. I must eat breakfast and leave for work. For it is Monday.
Monday 26 January 1948.
In the Occupied City, I walk through the mud and the sleet, the mud on my shoes and the sleet in my hair. Something is wrong. Maybe today the bank will close early. Maybe today we can leave early. Maybe today I can go back home early. Maybe I can lie again beneath my quilt. Because something is wrong. But I walk through the mud and the sleet, past the shrine and up the hill.
The road is busy and crowded, people coming to Shiinamachi to work, people leaving Shiinamachi to work. An American jeep sounds its horn and makes us all jump to the side. The wheels of the American jeep turn and splatter us with mud.
I know something is wrong.
I slide o
pen the wooden door. I step inside the genkan to the bank. I take off my dirty shoes. I put on my freezing slippers. I go down the corridor into the bank. I say good morning to Miss Akuzawa and Miss Akiyama. We talk about the weekend and we talk about the weather as we change into our blue uniforms. We wonder if today the bank will close early. We wonder if today we will be able to leave early. To go back to our homes, back to our quilts. Then we go down the corridor into the main room of the bank.
In the warmth of the heater, in the light from the lamps, I take my seat at the counter and I wait for the bank to open, for the working day to begin, the working week.
Just before half past nine, Mr Ushiyama makes his usual speech which starts every week and we all bow and the clock chimes half past nine and the bank opens and the working day begins, another working week.
The customers come, from out of the mud and out of the sleet, and I greet them and I serve them and I think about my lunch and I listen to the sleet turn to rain as it falls on the roof of the bank. And just after half past twelve, Mr Yoshida tells me I can take my lunch. I change places with Miss Akiyama. I go down the corridor. I sit in the changing room. I take out my bento. I open the lunch box. I eat my cold rice and sour pickle. I drink hot tea from my teacup. I listen to the rain as it falls on the roof of the bank and I know I won’t be able to leave early today. And just before one, I go back to my seat at the counter and I greet the customers and I serve the customers.
Then, just before two, Mr Ushiyama tells us that he is not feeling well, not feeling well at all. He tells us he must leave early. He apologizes to us and he bows and he leaves.
‘Poor Mr Ushiyama,’ whispers Miss Akiyama. ‘He’s been sick since last week. It must be serious. He should go to the doctor. It could be, it could be …’
I stare at the counter and I nod my head. Something is wrong.
‘And then what if it’s contagious?’ says Miss Akiyama. ‘We might all have caught it. We might all become sick. We might all…’
I stare at the counter and I nod my head. Very wrong.
But I go back to my work. I go back to my thoughts:
Will no one save me from the Occupied City?
Just before quarter past three and the bank has closed for the day, and now I have only thirty deposits left to check. I will be able to do them in ten minutes. In ten minutes, I will be able to leave.
In ten minutes, I will be able to go back to my home, back to my quilt and back to my dreams. But something is wrong, very wrong. Something is not right today …
And then I hear the knock upon the side door. I have only twenty-five deposits left to check. I see Miss Akuzawa get up to open the side door. I have only twenty deposits left to check. I see Miss Akuzawa go into the back of the bank. Fifteen deposits. I see Miss Akuzawa go to the front door of the bank. Fourteen deposits. I see the front door open and a man step inside. Is this the man? Thirteen deposits. I see the man take off his boots and put on the pair of slippers Miss Akuzawa offers him. The man who will save me? The man is in his forties but he has a handsome, oval face. Save me from the Occupied City? I hear Miss Akuzawa tell the man that the manager has already left, but that our assistant manager will see him.
I hope this does not mean extra work. I hope this does not mean I cannot leave soon. I see Miss Akuzawa lead the man past my counter and into the back of the bank. Now Miss Akiyama gets up from her seat next to mine and I turn back to the deposits:
Twelve, eleven, ten, nine, eight, seven, six deposits. Five, four, three, two, one deposit, none. I have finished now.
But something is wrong, very wrong…
Miss Akiyama comes back to her seat at the counter. She nudges me and she whispers, ‘Did you see that man? That man is a doctor from the Ministry of Health and Welfare. I just heard him tell Mr Yoshida that the Ministry of Health and Welfare have discovered an outbreak of dysentery in Shiinamachi. The Ministry of Health and Welfare have traced the outbreak to that well in front of Mr Aida’s house. You know Mr Aida?’
I look up from my pile of deposits. I nod my head.
‘That doctor from the Ministry of Health and Welfare just told Mr Yoshida that one of Mr Aida’s tenants has been diagnosed with dysentery. That doctor said that this tenant came into the bank today and he made a deposit…’
‘What was his name?’ I ask her.
Miss Akiyama is shaking her head, flicking through her pile of deposits on the counter. ‘I didn’t catch it but if it’s that well, this will be why Mr Ushiyama’s been so sick. This will mean we could all be infected. This could mean …’
I look back down at my pile of deposits, all checked and all finished. I start to flick through them, looking for the Aida address.
‘The doctor will have to inoculate everyone against dysentery,’ whispers Miss Akiyama. ‘And he’ll have to disinfect everything that may have been infected. All the rooms, all the money. No one will be allowed to leave until he’s finished …’
I stare at the deposits and I nod again. Now I know I won’t be able to leave soon. Now I know something is very wrong. Now I know I won’t be able to go back to my home, not back to my quilt, not back to my dreams, for now I know those dreams are all gone.
Mr Takeuchi comes over to the counter. Mr Takeuchi sighs and he says, ‘We all have to assemble at Mr Yoshida’s desk. We all have to take some medicine …’
‘I told you, I told you,’ whispers Miss Akiyama as we get up from our seats at the counter and go over to Mr Yoshida’s desk at the back of the bank.
Miss Akuzawa has brought all our teacups on a tray to Mr Yoshida’s desk. The doctor from the Health and Welfare Ministry is opening a small bottle. This doctor is in his forties.
And now I look him in his face.
It is round, very round.
Like an egg. And I know, I know I will never forget this face.
Now I look at the bottle in his hand. I read FIRST DRUG written in English on its label.
‘Is everybody here?’ asks the doctor.
Mr Yoshida quickly looks at each of us, counting our heads. Even Mr Takizawa’s two children are here. Mr Yoshida nods.
‘Good,’ says the doctor and picks up a pipette. The doctor drips some clear liquid into each of our cups. The doctor tells us to each pick up our own teacup. I reach for my teacup.
I lift it up to my mouth but I stop.
The doctor has his hand raised in warning. The doctor says, ‘This serum is very strong and if it touches your teeth or gums it can cause great damage. So please listen and watch carefully as I demonstrate how to swallow the serum safely.’
Now the doctor takes out a syringe. The doctor dips the syringe into the liquid. The doctor draws up a measure of the liquid into the syringe. The doctor opens his mouth. The doctor places his tongue over his bottom front teeth and tucks it under his lower lip. The doctor drips the liquid onto his tongue. The doctor tilts back his head and lets the medicine roll back into his throat.
Now the doctor looks at his wristwatch, his right hand raised, poised in the air. Suddenly, the doctor’s hand falls and he says, ‘Because this medicine may damage your gums and your teeth, you must all be sure to swallow it quickly. Exactly one minute after you have taken the first medicine, I will administer a second medicine …’
I look down at Mr Yoshida’s desk again. I see another bottle, a bottle marked SECOND DRUG in English letters.
‘After you have taken the second medicine, you will be able to drink water and rinse out your mouths.’
We all nod. I nod.
‘Now lift up your cups,’ says the doctor.
I pick up my teacup.
‘Now drip the liquid onto your tongues.’
I put my teacup to my lips and I drink the liquid. It is horrible. It tastes so bitter, so very, very bitter.
‘Tilt back your heads.’
I tilt back my head.
‘Now swallow.’
I swallow.
‘I will administer the second drug in precisely
sixty seconds, so please put your teacups back on the table.’
I put my teacup back down on Mr Yoshida’s desk. I look up at the doctor. The doctor is staring at his wristwatch. I can still taste the liquid in my mouth.
‘It tastes a bit like gin,’ laughs Mr Yoshida.
‘I don’t think I’ve swallowed any,’ says Mr Tanaka. ‘Perhaps I should have another measure. Just to be sure …
‘Just to be safe.’
But the doctor shakes his head, still staring at his wristwatch.
‘It tastes disgusting,’ says Miss Akiyama. ‘May I please gargle with some water?’
But again the doctor shakes his head, still staring at his wristwatch.
‘But it’s so very vile,’ says Miss Akiyama again.
Now the doctor begins to pour the second drug into each of our teacups. Then the doctor looks up at us all. And the doctor says, ‘Please pick up your teacups again.’
I pick up my teacup again.
Now the doctor checks his wristwatch again. Now the doctor gestures for us each to drink.
And now I put my teacup to my lips again and now I drink the second liquid and now I can taste the second liquid in my mouth, in my throat, and it is horrible too, and now I need to drink some water, some water, some water, and now I can hear people complaining and people coughing, and now I hear the doctor saying –
‘You can rinse out your mouths now …’
– and now I see everyone rushing for the sink, for the tap, for the water, and now I am rushing for the sink, for the tap, for the water, and now I see people falling to the floor, and now I see Miss Akiyama lying on the floor, and now I am trying to reach her but I need the sink, the tap, the water, and now I am thinking I’ll get to the sink, to the tap, to the water, then I’ll come back to Miss Akiyama, people coughing, people retching, people vomiting, and now I can feel people pushing past me, people clambering over me to get to the sink, to the tap, to the water and now I am drinking and drinking and drinking, but now the light is fading and fading and fading, now the light is leaving us, leaving us here, here in the Occupied City, and now I feel a grey-ness coming and into the grey-ness,