We were walking back to the house along the property edge, Mom and I helping Aya and Ichiro to carry their suitcases, when my phone buzzed in my pocket. I fell behind for a moment as I let go of the suitcase handle and answered a call from Akiko.
“Hey, you! How’s —”
“Mei-chan, what the hell is going on there?” Akiko yelled at me, and I had to pull the phone away from my ear to avoid becoming deaf.
“What do you mean?” I laughed, but I heard her growl in anger.
“Why, why, why didn’t you call me when Amanda showed up there?”
Oh, this. I started walking again, dragging the suitcase behind me.
“I didn’t want to bother you. You were in sessions all day every day, and the situation got complicated really fast.”
“You could say that again. Mei-chan, she’s dead.”
“Yes, I know.” It was something I was painfully aware of. “Are you watching the news?”
“I’m watching Yasahiro-san, your boyfriend, give a press briefing in which he is saying he didn’t kill her, and he’s prepared to go into police custody until he’s cleared of all charges.”
I froze on the spot, and Mom and our new house guests blurred in front of me as I tried to wrap my brain around what she just said.
“What?”
“Mei-chan!” she screamed at me again, and I jumped. “I’m packing up, and I’m coming home right now. Why are you not by Yasahiro-san’s side?”
I dropped the suitcase and ran. Pumping my legs hard, I called on all the hours I’d run as I built up strength and body mass to recover from the months of low-calorie diets.
Mom called after me, yelling at me about Aya’s suitcase, but I kept going. I rounded the corner of the barn, and the workers’ eyes followed me to the house where I ripped open the door and sprinted to the living room. Trying to locate the remote for the TV, I threw blankets and magazines around until I found it on the floor next to a houseplant. Damned cats. They play with everything.
I switched on the TV and flipped through the channels, trying to find something, anything, that looked like Yasahiro or Chikata, until I landed on his face.
“… Regret that this incident has tarnished the good name of this wonderful town I’ve called home for so long. I love living here and servicing the people of Chikata. I can only hope I’m cleared of this charge as soon as possible. Thank you.” He bowed, and the camera pulled out from him, standing in front of his apartment building, Oshabe-cha’s shuttered window in the background and his lawyer and the police chief next to him.
“I told you not to talk to anybody!” I screamed at the TV. I reeled back my arm with the remote in my hand, ready to chuck it straight at the TV, when Mom’s sharp voice called my name.
“Mei-chan! Are you insane? What are you doing?”
My face heated with blinding rage, vision swimming as I turned to her, the remote clutched in my hand. “I told him not to talk to anybody! No one! Is he stupid?” My voice cracked, my throat already sore from screaming. Aya and Ichiro huddled together by the door.
“Mei-chan,” Mom admonished me, hitting me upside the head. I cried out and rubbed the spot but was surprised to find her turning to watch the TV, her mouth slack in horror.
Amanda’s parents were addressing a crowd of reporters in front of the police station, their names printed along the bottom of the screen. Amanda’s father cried, but her mother was as strong as a samurai.
“Amanda had no reason to be in Chikata except to see her ex-fiancé, Yasahiro. He was enraged when she broke off their engagement and had even threatened to come after her when she left him. I see no need to bother anyone else in this matter. He has obviously sought his revenge for being dumped two years ago. My baby…” Her voice broke off and her eyes watered. I ground my teeth, stopping a string of swear words before they left my lips. “My baby only wanted to make things right by seeing him again. She came to make peace, and he took her life. I will not leave Japan until he’s in jail.”
No. This couldn’t be happening.
“Is everything okay?” Aya asked.
Anger grew swiftly, but when I turned to her, the scream died in my throat. These people had suffered enough, and I needed to control my temper.
“Please excuse me,” I said, bowing, turning on my heel, grabbing my computer, and stalking to my bedroom. I closed the door without slamming it, something I felt good about the moment I was done. But that dissolved quickly as I opened my computer and hunted for the original statement from Yasahiro. While I did that, I swiped on my phone and dialed Goro.
He didn’t answer. “You’ve reached Goro Hokichi. Please leave a message.” I hung up and texted instead. “Why why why did you let Yasahiro speak to the press? Are you crazy?”
I watched the screen for a full minute before turning off my phone and throwing it on the bed.
Surfing through various news sites and looking at the time and date stamps, Amanda’s parents had given their statement to the press late in the morning, and Yasahiro gave his about an hour later. I was in Nikko with Kayo, and no one called me to let me know. I didn’t remember Kayo taking any phone calls either. Maybe the police had kept us both in the dark.
I watched Yasahiro’s statement, growing nauseated by the second. I hadn’t missed much. He started by looking at the cameras and stating his innocence, then explained Amanda had been buying up his properties and threatening him before she was killed. He gave no alternative suspects to the media, just proclaimed his innocence.
I was relieved he didn’t mention me at all, but then again, he wouldn’t. My heart clenched knowing he would keep me out of all of this to protect me.
“I told you not to talk to anyone,” I whispered at the screen. I wanted to wrap my arms around him and hold him, let him know he could count on me to help.
A tear rolled down my nose and plopped onto the computer. I trusted Yasahiro. In the beginning, it was hard to know what he wanted and what I could rely on, but now I trusted him. I wanted to trust him implicitly, forever.
“He was enraged when she broke off their engagement and had even threatened to come after her when she left him.” There was just no way that was true. He was happy to be rid of her, and she came after him! Amanda’s parents were blinded by their love for their dead daughter. Her mother was grasping at whatever she could find. She wanted revenge, not justice.
But she was looking in the wrong place.
I sat up straighter on the bed. There were other suspects. He didn’t kill her, and I had plenty of evidence to point to a few other people. Besides, his attorney vouched for his whereabouts and the taxi cameras captured his journey to and from the attorney’s office. There was no way they could pin the murder on him.
My phone rang, and I lunged for it. Was it Yasahiro? Goro? But I didn’t recognize the number. Should I answer the call? It could be the media, and I didn’t want to talk to them.
“Hello?” I asked, cringing and hoping for the best.
“Your boyfriend appears to be in a lot of trouble.” It was Akai, my brand-new hacker friend.
“Akai-san, I didn’t think I’d hear from you today.”
She sighed on the other end, and I heard a bubble pop. “Well, seeing as you paid me so swiftly and Hokichi-san said to let you have whatever I found, I got to work last night.”
“And?” I sniffed up and reached for a box of tissues at the end of the bed.
“Her phone and computer are unlocked and heading back to the police now.”
“That’s good,” I said, perking up.
“And I have a whole thumb drive worth of information for you to look at. When can you come get it?”
Yay! I pumped my fist in the air. This was good news!
“I can come now. It’s better that I don’t sit at home and watch the news.”
“It’s always better to not watch the news,” she replied, popping a gum bubble again. “Any chance you can pick up something for me on the way here?”
; “Like what?” I glanced around the room, locating my purse. I would ask Mom to borrow the car.
“I’m hungry. I’ve been working ten hours straight. Curry?”
I laughed into the phone.
“I swear it’s not a date or anything. Just bring me some curry, and I’ll pay you back. I can’t go anywhere right now.” She laughed, too, and I felt bad for her because she sounded tired. “I have at least five hours of work to do on my other project, and I’m fading fast.”
“Sure. I’ll pick it up on my way. Pork or beef?”
“Pork, please.” She dragged out the “please” like a little kid, and I laughed again. Wow, I needed that laugh. Nothing today had gone well.
“Okay. So, did you look at the data?” I closed my computer and set it aside as I picked up the photo of Yasahiro and me and kissed it.
“I did a little, but I think you’ll be pleased. Very pleased.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
I returned to the house an hour later to find Mom pulling out the summer futons and setting them up in the dining room for our guests. Ichiro was outside kicking his soccer ball around, and Aya was trying to help Mom without being in the way. She bowed to me as I entered the house and tossed my shoes to the side. It was another day that felt like a year long, and I still had plenty to do.
“I’m going to boil water for tea. Would you like some?” I figured tea was a good way to mend the fences from my earlier outburst.
“Yes, thank you,” she said, bowing again. “Is everything okay?”
“Not really.” My voice was dry and sarcastic, and Mom rolled her eyes at me. “I’m sure someday everything will be fine again. Don’t worry about it.”
In the kitchen, I filled up the electric kettle and set it to boil. Leaning against the kitchen counter, I pulled the thumb drive from my pocket. On this little piece of plastic laid clues to how I could get Yasahiro out of this mess. I flipped it back and forth between my fingers, a blur of gray. Would I regret what I saw here? Setting it down on the island, I imagined myself taking a knife to it, chopping it into little pieces, destroying the evidence that could either save us or rip us apart. Akai said I would be pleased with what she found, but she didn’t know me. She didn’t know my greatest fears.
And my greatest fear was contingent on whatever happened next. I feared I’d never catch another break like this — a successful guy who I loved and loved me back, a new career I thought would carry me into retirement, and helping Mom with the house and family farm, both of which I stood to inherit someday. All of that could be taken away from me if this scandal pulled me under too. I was in danger of losing everything.
I brought my tea to my room and took a long sip before plugging the thumb drive into my computer. Akai had organized the data into a dozen or more folders, texts, email, chats, photos, and documents amidst several others including her voicemail. Amanda’s digital life was laid bare in front of me.
Where to start?
Perhaps with the folder that was labeled START HERE. I chuckled as I opened it and found a note from Akai.
“Open the other file in this folder labeled ‘Contacts.’ This is her entire address book and will help you match up names to numbers. If a file is nothing but gibberish, let me know. Sometimes my program messes up and processes binary files as text files.”
Opening the Contacts file, a stream of names and numbers cascaded before me, a few hundred lines long. I kept it open and to the side so I could search it when I needed to.
I clicked on the documents folder, hoping to find drafts of her book there, and I did. I supposed I could download it in Japanese from Amazon Japan, but why should I when I had her original words right here? I set that aside and would skim it before bed later.
Her texts were next. Akai had put all the texts into separate text documents labeled by phone number. I didn’t recognize any of them besides Yasahiro’s so I opened that first.
“I’m waiting for you.”
“You’re late. You know how annoying that is for me.”
“Fine. You didn’t show so I’m coming to you.”
Three texts, all from Amanda to Yasahiro, and no return texts from him. Surely the police would see that was good? He hadn’t returned her texts. He hadn’t called her either, I didn’t think. I clicked out of the folder and found her call log. No. She’d called him once or twice, but he hadn’t picked up, and he’d never called her.
Oh! What about those calls when she only heard birds? I pinpointed the time she was at Mom’s house on Saturday and the incoming phone logs were no help. “Private caller.” Great. But birds? Maybe the person calling had called from the woods.
Regardless of that dead end, I was feeling confident about having this data. I returned to the texts folder and opened file after file. I found texts between her and her agent, her parents, and services that were texting her with things like flight itineraries, salon appointments, and doctor checkups. Then I found the file of texts with Shōta Kimura. I scrolled backward through time till I came upon…
Shōta, “I don’t think we’re the right fit. Your book was very explicit about our love life, and my family finds the whole thing distasteful.”
Amanda, “Well, I won’t allow you to just walk away from me.”
Him, “You don’t really have a choice.”
Amanda, “Are you telling me you’re going to fight me on this? I could ruin you if you don’t keep up appearances.”
Him, “I’m prepared for the worst. It would be hard on my family, but I see there’s no stopping you.”
Amanda, “At least you understand who’s in charge. Or maybe you don’t.”
My eyes were wide as I scrolled back to figure out what they were fighting about. But they hadn’t messaged anything before that conversation besides confirming meetings with him like, “Meet you at 17:00.”
After that threatening message, Amanda had texted him three more times on Friday, not long after she ambushed Yasahiro at Sawayaka. She had checked in with Shōta to see where he was and what he was doing, but he didn’t respond.
My brain swirled with ideas. Maybe she had exacted some kind of revenge on him and he lashed back by killing her. But he had been at the retreat all weekend, so he had no opportunity even if he had a cryptic motive I didn’t understand yet.
I clicked through another few text files before I came upon Giselle.
Amanda, “I’m in Tokyo! Was going to hit up Robert for a good time. Lol.”
Giselle, “I hate you.”
Amanda, “No you don’t. You love me.”
Her, “Go to hell.”
Amanda, “Only if you’re going with me.” She added on a kissing smiley face to that one. “See you at drinks later.”
Giselle never responded after that. Damn. Amanda was fierce with her attitude. I checked the calendar again and her “drinks later” must have been after her book launch party on Friday night. Did she fit in drinks with Giselle and Robert after her party and before she came to Chikata and was attacked?
Then I found texts with Robert.
Robert, “Of course I want to see you. It’s been ages.”
Amanda, “You’ll have to find some way to get away from Giselle. Maybe meet up at the Hilton?”
Him, “I’ll handle it. We’ll have drinks together and then I’ll leave Giselle at our hotel then meet you.”
Amanda, “I love it. I can’t wait for you to…”
And I averted my eyes from the screen as Amanda described graphic sexual content that made me blush. Wow. People actually wrote that stuff to each other? I fanned my face and scanned the page to the end. They went back and forth a few times before she signed off, and they didn’t text again.
I combed through the rest of the texts and found nothing else worth noting. I had two solid suspects now between Shōta and Giselle, neither of which I had precise evidence on. With Shōta, I would have to figure out why they fought and if that was worth killing Amanda over. With Giselle, I would have to find
out if Amanda and Robert ever met up alone in Tokyo, if Giselle knew about it, and if Giselle loved Robert enough to kill Amanda to keep her away. All of which meant I was betting on the fact that Robert was above board with Amanda, really wanted to get back together with her, and wasn’t just playing her.
Because I didn’t know these people at all. I had a grand total of one hour talking to them, not years of being their friend like Yasahiro had. And I couldn’t ask Yasahiro. Or could I?
I picked up the phone and debated either calling him or texting him. But I wanted to hear his voice. We hadn’t spoken at all since I ran out with the money and the stun gun. I dialed, and the line rang and rang, but he didn’t pick up.
I held the phone in my hand, my chest hurting with the sting of rejection. I needed to know we could be together if I solved the murder, or anyone solved it really. Goro and Kayo were still on the case as far as I knew, and I believed they would still fight for Yasahiro.
“Are you there? I need to talk to you,” I texted and then waited, my eyes glued on the screen.
“I’m here. But I think I may have to go through with our plans to separate. I’m sick about it. Really.”
I sighed, more weary than upset. “Please pick up your phone. I have to ask you about Giselle and Robert.”
My phone rang in my hand, his name blinking on the screen. “Mei?”
“I’m here. Thanks for picking up.” My voice was bitter, and I hated myself for it. This wasn’t his fault. “Sorry.”
“Don’t say sorry to me. I should be apologizing to you. I’ve totally ruined your life and —”
“Shhh.” I interrupted him. “It’ll be okay. I’m working on figuring everything out.”
“No. You should stay far away from me before I drag you down into this too,” he whispered into the phone, and I wondered who was there watching after him. Probably a police officer.
My face blushed with anger. “Listen here, Yasahiro. We are not breaking up over this nonsense, and I won’t hear that from you again!” My voice rose to a shout I was sure people in town could hear. “You said you loved me. Were you lying?”
The Daydreamer Detective Opens a Tea Shop Page 16
