by Sarah Lotz
I’d just hung up when I heard a thump coming from upstairs. It wasn’t me who made my body move. I know that doesn’t make sense. It was like I was being pushed forward. For all I knew, whoever had attacked Jess could still be in the house.
I walked up those stairs like I was some kind of robot, stubbed my toe on the top step, but hardly felt it.
He was lying on the bed, white as a sheet. Empty booze bottles scattered all over the carpet.
I thought he was dead at first. Then he groaned, making me jump, and I saw the packet of sleeping pills clutched in his hand; the empty bottle of Bells next to him.
He’d left a message on the side table, written in large angry letters. I’ll never be able to get those words out of my head: ‘I had to do it. It is the ONLY WAY. I had to cut the chip out of her so that she would be FREE.’
I didn’t pass out, but the time until the police arrived is a blank. That neighbour, the snobbish one, she took me straight inside her house. You could tell she was also beside herself with shock. She was kind to me that day. Made a cup of tea, helped me get cleaned up, called Geoff for me.
They said that it must have taken a long time for Jessie to bleed out on that floor. It goes through your head, all the time. If only I’d visited Paul earlier. If only, if only, if only.
And now… it’s not anger I feel towards Paul, but pity. Father Jeremy says that forgiveness is the only way forward. But I can’t help thinking that it might have been better if he’d died. Locked up like that, in one of those places, what sort of future is he going to face?
The following article, written by journalist Daniel Mimura, was published in the Tokyo Herald Online on 7 July 2012
Western Tourists targeted by Orz Movement
Yesterday afternoon, a tour bus packed full of American tourists was pelted with buckets of red paint and eggs when it pulled into the parking lot of the Meiji Shrine in Shibuya. The perpetrators fled before police arrived, but were heard shouting, ‘This is for Orz,’ as they left the scene. No one was injured in the attack, although several of the elderly tourists were reportedly deeply shaken.
There are also unconfirmed reports of several American language students being harassed in an electronics store yesterday evening in Akihabara and another unconfirmed verbal assault on a British tourist in Inokashira Park.
It is believed that these incidents were perpetrated by the Orz Movement, a group protesting the murder of Hiro Yanagida, which is responsible for defacing several Western outlets and religious institutions with graffiti. On 24 June, two days after the murder of Hiro Yanagida, cleaning staff arrived at the Tokyo Union Church in Ometsando, located next to the iconic Louis Vuitton store, to discover a painting of a blood-soaked handbag daubed next to the entrance. That evening, a stencil of a man spewing vomit appeared on the walls of Toyko’s two Wendy’s outlets and a McDonald’s in Shinjuku, causing both disgust and hilarity. A week later, a masked man was caught on CCTV de facing the sign outside the American Embassy.
The tag signature ORZ is left at every scene. ORZ–an emoticon or emoji–which resembles a figure bashing its head on the ground, signifies depression or despair and was popularised on chat-forums such as 2-channel.
So far, police have been frustrated in their efforts to curb the increasingly radical behaviour, and with copycat ORZ stencils beginning to pop up in cities all over Japan–including as far away as Osaka–all indications are that it spreading fast.
A spokesperson from the Japanese National Tourism Organisation has stressed that Japan is not a nation known for ‘violent protests’, and that it should not be judged on the actions of a ‘misguided minority’.
The Orz Movement has now attracted a vocal and high-profile supporter. Aikao Uri, the head of the rapidly growing and controversial Cult of Hiro, issued the following statement: ‘Hiro’s unforgivable murder, and the fact that the US government is unconcerned about bringing those behind it to justice, is a clear sign that we need to break ties immediately. Japan is not a child who needs its American nanny watching over it. I applaud what the Orz Movement is doing. It is a shame that our government is too afraid to follow their example.’ Unlike many hardline Nationalists, Aikao Uri has called for ties to be strengthened with Korea and the People’s Republic of China, going so far as to insist that reparations be made for Japanese World War II war crimes against these nations. She is at the forefront of the campaign for the historic Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security between the United States and Japan to be overthrown, and all US troops based on Okinawa Island to be removed. She is married to politician Masamara Uri, who is widely tipped to be the next prime minister.
AFTERWORD TO THE FIRST EDITION
The following article was published in the Tokyo Herald on 28 July 2012.
‘Orz Man’s’ Remains Found in Jukei
Every year, volunteers from the Yamanashi Prefecture police and the Fujisan Rangers undertake a thorough sweep of the notorious Aokigahara forest, searching for the bodies of those who have chosen to end their lives in this ‘sea of trees’. This year, over forty bodies were discovered, including the remains of a man who police suspect could be Ryu Takami (22), who achieved notoriety after his story of heartbreak captured the imagination of the 2-chan message board. Takami, who used the avatar Orz Man, was believed to be in a relationship with Chiyoko Kamamoto (18), the cousin of Sun Air Flight 678 survivor, Hiro Yanagida. Chiyoko and Ryu disappeared on 22 June 2012, the same day that Hiro and Chiyoko’s parents were shot to death by Private Jake Wallace, an American soldier based at Camp Courtney on Okinawa Island. Private Wallace shot himself at the scene. Shoes, mobile phone and wallet belonging to Chiyoko Kamamoto were found next to the decomposed body. Chiyoko Kamamoto is also believed to have ended her life in the forest, although her body has not yet been discovered.
In a strange twist of fate, the remains were discovered by Yomijuri Miyajima (68), the volunteer suicide monitor who rescued Hiro Yanagida from the scene of the crash on 12 January 2012. Miyajima, who says he was devastated when he heard about Hiro’s untimely death, came across the partially decomposed body during a search of the area near to the ice cave.
Takami’s disappearance sparked off the ongoing and increasingly violent anti-US protests spear-headed by the Orz Movement and the Cult of Hiro, and authorities are worried that the discovery of his remains could inflame an already volatile situation.
Journalist Vuyo Molefe attended the press conference called by the South African branch of the Rationalist League on 30 July 2012 in Johannesburg. Follow him at @VMtruthhurts.
Vuyo Molefe @VMtruthhurts
Credentials checked again at joburg convention centre entrance. 3rd time now. #chilloutwerenotterrorists
Vuyo Molefe @VMtruthhurts
Lots of speculation going on. Rumours flying that Veronica Oduah is going to pitch.
Vuyo Molefe @VMtruthhurts
@melanichampa Don’t know. Been here for an hour. If yr coming bring coffee and doughnuts plis sisi
Vuyo Molefe @VMtruthhurts
FINALLY. SA Rational League spokesperson Kelly Engels appears. Goes on about upcoming US election
Vuyo Molefe @VMtruthhurts
KE: worried bout growing int. support for religious right–could have global implications
Vuyo Molefe @VMtruthhurts
Rumours on point. Veronica Oduah is here! Looks older than 57. Has to be helped to front of room
Vuyo Molefe @VMtruthhurts
VO v nervous. Voice wobbles. Says shes here to come clean. Room gasps. Only one meaning to this
Vuyo Molefe @VMtruthhurts
VO: ‘he is not my nephew. They’ve been keeping him a safehouse away from me for weeks. I told them that when i 1st saw him.’
Vuyo Molefe @VMtruthhurts
VO: ‘They offered me money to keep quiet but i did not want to take it.’ Says K’s dad’s cousin did take cash tho
Vuyo Molefe @VMtruthhurts
BBC journo: ‘who offered money?’ VO: ‘Th
e Americans. I don’t know their names.’
Vuyo Molefe @VMtruthhurts
Room seriously buzzing. Kelly Engels: ‘also have proof from Jozi lab whistleblower that Ken’s mitrochondrial DNA not a match.’
Vuyo Molefe @VMtruthhurts
Whistleblower also bribed to keep quiet. Says SA g’ment and religious right faction in cahoots
#surprisesurprisecorruptionagain
Vuyo Molefe @VMtruthhurts
And another surprise guest! Zimbo journo next to me says this is better than Transport Minister Mzobe’s corruption trial.
Vuyo Molefe @VMtruthhurts
New person woman from eastern cape–Lucy Inkatha. Says ‘Kenneth’ is her grandson Mandla
Vuyo Molefe @VMtruthhurts
LI: ‘Mandla ran away from home to find father in cape town. 8-yrs-old has severe learning difficulties’
Vuyo Molefe @VMtruthhurts
Kelly Engels: ‘we’re all working to get Mandla home asap.’
Vuyo Molefe @VMtruthhurts
Veronica Oduah: ‘It is hard, but I have to accept that Kenneth is dead.’ Some reporters getting upset.
Vuyo Molefe @VMtruthhurts
KE: ‘Now that the truth is out there, people will see exactly how self-serving politicians can be.’
Vuyo Molefe @VMtruthhurts
KE: ‘Would like to thank everyone who has been brave enough to come forward and speak up for the truth.’
Vuyo Molefe @VMtruthhurts
RT @kellytankgrl FINALLY some sanity in this mess
#dontletthebastardswin
Vuyo Molefe @VMtruthhurts
RT@brodiemermaid Rel.R PR team gonna need another miracle to get out of this #dontletthebastardswin
Vuyo Molefe @VMtruthhurts
Place now in uproar. Waitin for reaction from end timers. Could this influence their majority? #dontletthebastardswin
EDITOR’S NOTE:
AFTERWORD TO THE SPECIAL ANNIVERSARY EDITION
When Elspeth Martins’ agent first sent me the proposal for From Crash to Conspiracy in early 2012, I was immediately intrigued. I had read and admired Elspeth’s first book Snapped, and I knew that if anyone could come up with a fresh perspective on the events surrounding Black Thursday and The Three, it was Elspeth. As the book started taking shape, it was clear we had something very special on our hands. We decided to rush it into production, choosing to publish in early October before the landmark 2012 election.
Within a week it went into a second, then a third printing. To date, despite the worldwide recession and a massive drop in book sales overall, more than 15 million print and digital editions have been sold. And no one–least of all Elspeth herself–could have foreseen the furore the book would cause.
So why an anniversary edition? Why republish the book that the Rationalist League has dubbed ‘inflammatory and dangerous’ in these deeply troubled times?
Apart from the most obvious reason–that the book itself has cultural and historical significance as it undoubtedly influenced the 2012 US presidential election–we were granted the rights to some exciting new material that forms the appendix to this edition. Many readers will be aware that on the second anniversary of Black Thursday, Elspeth Martins disappeared. The facts are these: after travelling to Japan, Elspeth left her hotel in Roppongi, Tokyo on the morning of 12 January 2014. We can only speculate what transpired afterwards, as later attempts to trace her last movements have been hampered by the escalating tension in the area. It does not appear that her credit cards or phone were used after this date, although a self-published book, Untold Stories from Black Thursday and Beyond, by ‘E. Martins’, appeared on Amazon in October 2014. Speculation is rife as to whether the author is actually Elspeth herself or an impostor eager to cash in on FCTC’s notoriety.
For this anniversary edition, we have permission from Elspeth’s former partner, Samantha Himmelman, to publish her last known correspondence, which is included below.
Elspeth, if you are reading this, please get in touch.
Jared Arthur
Editorial Director
Jameson & White
New York
(January 2015)
TO:
FROM:
SUBJECT: Please read
12 January 2014, 7.14 a.m.
Sam,
I know you asked me not to contact you again, but it seems fitting to send this to you on the second anniversary of Black Thursday, especially as tomorrow I’m going to the Aokigahara Forest. Daniel–my contact in Tokyo–is desperately trying to dissuade me, but I’ve come this far, may as well go all the way. I don’t want to sound melodramatic, but people do have a habit of going into that forest and not coming out again, don’t they? Don’t worry–this isn’t a suicide note. Not sure what it is. Guess I thought I deserved a chance to make things right, and someone needs to know why I’m here.
No doubt you think I’m crazy travelling to Japan right now, specially with the spectre of the tri-Asian alliance on the horizon, but the situation here isn’t as dire as you might have heard. I didn’t pick up any hostility from the customs officials or from the people milling around the airport Arrivals area; if anything, they were indifferent. That said, my hotel in the ‘Westerners’ Sector’, which used to be a mega-star Hyatt–gargantuan marble lobby, designer staircases–has seriously gone to seed. According to a Danish guy I spoke to in the immigration queue, the hotels assigned to Westerners are now being run by Brazilian immigrants on limited visas and minimum wage–i.e., zero initiative to give a crap about standards. Only one of the elevators is working, several of the light bulbs in the corridors are dead (I was seriously spooked walking to my room) and I don’t think anyone’s bothered to vacuum the carpets for months. My room stinks of stale cigarette smoke and there’s black mould on the shower tiles. On the upside, the toilet–a sci-fi style thing with a heated seat–works like a dream (thank you, Japanese engineering).
Anyway–I’m not writing to you to whine about my hotel room–see attached. I can’t make you read it, for all I know you’ll scan the subject line and delete it. I know you won’t believe me, but despite all the cut n pasted stuff and transcripts in it (you know me, old habits die hard), I swear I’m not planning on using the content in another book–or at least I’m not now. I’m done with all that.
xx
Letter to Sam
11 January. 6 p.m. Roppongi Hills, Tokyo
Sam–I have so much to tell you, I’m not sure where to start. But seeing as there’s no way I’m getting any sleep tonight, I guess I’ll take it from the top, see how far I get before I flag.
Look, I know you think I ‘ran away’ to London last year to escape the flak I was getting after the book was published, and that was part of it, sure. The Haters and Rationalists still send emails accusing me of being solely responsible for putting a Dominionist in the White House, and no doubt you still think I’m getting everything I deserve. Don’t worry–I’m not going to try to defend myself or trot out my tired justification that there was nothing in From Crash to Conspiracy (or, as you insisted on calling it, From Crap to Conservatism) that wasn’t a matter of public record. Just so you know, I still feel guilty for not showing you the final manuscript; the fact that it was rushed into production as soon as I’d signed off on the final interviews with Kendra Vorhees and Geoffrey and Mel Moran is no excuse.
Incidentally, in August there was a new flurry of one-star reviews on Amazon. You should check them out–I know how much of a kick you get out of them. This one caught my eye, probably because it’s unusually restrained and grammatically correct:
Customer Review
44 of 65 people found the following review helpful
1.0 out of 5 stars Who does Elspeth Martins think she is???
22 August 2013
By zizekstears (London, UK)–See all my reviews
This review is from: From Crash to Conspiracy (
Kindle Edition)
I’d heard about the controversy that this so-called ‘non-fiction’ book caused last year but assumed it was exaggerated. Apparently the Religious Right quoted parts of it in their campaign during the run-up to the election as ‘proof’ that The Three were not just normal children suffering from PTSD.
I am not surprised the US Rationalist League came down so hard on the author. Ms Martins has framed and edited each interview or extract in a deliberately manipulative and sensationalist manner (‘eye-bleeding’?????? and that awful mawkish stuff about the old man with dementia). She shows no respect for the families of the children or the passengers who died so tragically on Black Thursday.
IMHO Ms Martins is nothing but a lame Studs Terkel wannabe. She should be ashamed for publishing such trash. I will not be buying any more of her work.
Ouch.
But the backlash from the book wasn’t the only reason I left. I made the actual decision to get the hell out of the States on the day of the Sannah County Massacre–two days after you’d kicked me out and told me never to contact you again. I first saw those aerial shots of the ranch–the bodies strewn everywhere, black with flies, the gore in the dust–in the anonymity of a Comfort Inn, which seemed as good a place as any to hole up and lick my wounds. I’d been working my way through the bar fridge miniatures and channel surfing when the news broke. I was drunk, couldn’t quite make sense of what I was seeing on CNN at first. I actually threw up when I read the strap line: ‘Mass suicide in Sannah County. Thirty-three dead, including five children.’
I sat frozen for hours, watching as reporters jostled for position outside the compound gate, spouting variations on the theme: ‘Out on bail while he awaited trial for incitement to induce violence, Pastor Len Vorhees and his followers turned their stockpiled weapons on themselves…’ Did you see the interview with Reba, Pamela May Donald’s frenemy? As you know, we’d never met in person, and from her voice, I’d always pictured her as overweight and permed (felt a weird disconnect when I realised she was actually skinny with a grey braid snaking over her shoulder). Reba had been a nightmare to interview–always off on a tangent about the ‘Islamofascists’ and her prepping activities–but I felt sorry for her then. Like most of Pastor Len’s ex Inner Circle, she was of the opinion that Pastor Len and his Pamelists thought that by following in Jim Donald’s footsteps they’d be martyred: ‘I pray for their souls every day.’ You could see in her eyes that she’d be haunted by their deaths for the rest of her life.
