‘…exquisite…’
As he watched, her face gradually flushed with excitement… the rare stone had a mysterious fascination capable of reddening the cheeks of thousands of woman thieves.
‘Flames of five colours… it truly does look like it’s burning in five colours, doesn’t it? How I’ve longed for this! Compared to this Star of Egypt, even the hundred or so diamonds I’ve collected through long years of work appear mere stones. Thank you ever so much!’
And she gave a long, eminently polite bow.
Although he had resigned himself to this, the more she enthused over the jewel, the more Iwase felt an indescribable hatred bubbling up inside as he thought of this woman robbing him of what he had treasured as the most important thing after his life. The woman in front of his eyes filled him with loathing and anger. And, as was this elderly merchant’s wont, he gave in to the urge to express his feelings in words.
‘The payment’s done. All I have to do now is wait for you to deliver the goods, and I wonder if I can trust you to keep your half of the bargain. After all, I’m dealing with a thief. And there is certainly nothing more dangerous than dealing with a thief on payment-in-advance terms.’
‘Oh, I will certainly keep my promise,’ she laughed. ‘Please, take the elevator down first. I’ll be down in a bit.’
Seemingly not even noticing his insults, she announced an end to the bizarre meeting.
‘Hmph. Hand over the goods and I’m no use to you anymore, I see… but wouldn’t it be better if you came with me? Are you unwilling to ride the elevator with me?’
‘I would so very much like to ride with you, but so many people are searching for me, and I really must watch to see that you return home safely…’
‘You mean it’s not safe. You think I’d follow you? Hah! That’s downright silly. Are you afraid of me? If so you picked a pretty solitary spot to meet with me, alone. I’m a man. If I decided to, if, mind you, I decided to sacrifice the life of my daughter and capture this woman thief who befouls God’s earth, I certainly could.’
Unable to withstand his hatred for her, he finally spoke his mind.
‘Yes, I know. That’s why I’m prepared for such a thing.’
Thinking she would take out a pistol, he watched as she strode sharply over to the shop, and brought back a pair of rental binoculars.
Thinking she would take out a pistol,
he watched as she strode sharply over to the shop,
and brought back a pair of rental binoculars.
‘You see that smokestack there for the public bath? Please examine the rooftop just behind it,’ she said calmly, holding out the binoculars to Iwase and pointing.
‘And there’s something on the roof?’ asked Iwase, unaccountably captured by his curiosity, putting the binoculars to his eyes.
About three blocks from the tower stood a large building. Just behind the smokestack was a wooden deck, and he could clearly see a man, a labourer by his clothes, huddled on top.
‘There is a man in Western-style clothing sitting on the deck, right?’
‘Yes, he’s there. What of it?’
‘Look more closely. What is he doing?’
‘Well, how strange! He’s got a pair of binoculars, and he’s looking this way!’
‘And doesn’t he have something in his other hand?’
‘Yes, he does! It looks like a red cloth. I think he’s looking at us!’
‘You’re quite right. That’s one of my men. He watching every move we make, and if anything dangerous should happen to me he will wave that red cloth to signal another of my men… who is watching that rooftop from a different place entirely. When that happens, the second man will telephone the house where your daughter is, and your daughter will die.’
She chuckled.
‘You may call me a thief, but even thievery is a profession demanding careful preparation.’
And it was indeed a clever plan. There was a reason why she had chosen this inconvenient tower top for the meeting. On the ground, it would have been impossible to observe the encounter from a safe distance.
‘Hah! My sympathy for your troubles.’
While he coldly cut her off, inside he could not but admire the foolproof planning of the Black Lizard.
Even though Mr Iwase finally did ride down by himself before her, and left in a car waiting some distance away, the Black Lizard could not relax.
Behind him stood the detested Akechi Kogorō. She could not imagine what ideas he might come up with, or what plots he might hatch.
She picked up the binoculars again, and carefully examined the throngs of people milling about at the base of the tower. She checked carefully to see if anyone was acting strangely, and while she was observing the dizzying swirls of the crowd below, she gave sway to her own inner fears.
Perhaps that man over there in the suit, looking up at the tower, was a detective? That beggar who had been sleeping there all day looked suspicious, too. Akechi’s men could have disguised themselves.
With so many people, it would be easy enough for Akechi himself to adopt a disguise and walk the streets below!
Growing increasingly irritated, she walked the periphery of the observation platform, binoculars to her eyes.
She had no fear of being captured. Her enemy must surely know that the precious Sanae would lose her life if that happened. She was worried about being followed. If she was tailed by a professional, no matter how smartly she rode about, she would be unable to shake him. And Akechi was exactly such a professional at following people. If Akechi Kogorō was hiding in that crowd, and followed her to where Sanae was without being noticed… even the Black Lizard, hardened criminal that she was, shuddered at the thought.
‘I guess I’ll have to do it after all,’ she said to herself. ‘It always pays to play it safe.’
She strode back to the shop, and called to the counterwoman.
‘I would like to ask a favour of you… would you be willing to help me out a bit?’
The couple, a man and a woman huddled around a charcoal fire warming their hands, lifted their faces in surprise.
‘May I help you with something?’ asked the gentle-looking woman, smiling pleasantly.
‘No, I don’t want to buy anything. But I do have a request to make of you, if I may. You saw the gentleman I was speaking to a few minutes ago? He is a devil! I have been blackmailed by that criminal and something terrible could happen! Please, won’t you help me? I managed to convince him to leave, but I’m sure he’s still waiting for me at the foot of the tower! Please, I beg you! Would you pretend to be me for just a little while, and stand at the railing there? Thanks to that tarpaulin, we can exchange clothing, with you becoming me and me, you. Fortunately we are of the same age and even the same hairstyle, so I’m sure it will all go well.
‘And, kind sir, if I may beg your assistance, could you possibly escort me a little distance as though I was your wife? I would be more than happy to repay you for your time, of course! Here, you can have all the money I have! Please, I beg of you!’
She entreated them as she pulled out her wallet, extracted seven one-thousand yen notes, and pressed them into the woman’s hand in spite of her protestations.
The couple exchanged a few words with each other, but were astonished by the unexpected profit they had just gained, and readily acceded to her request without doubting her tale.
The canvas windbreaks covered the entire area, so it was a simple matter to exchange clothing in the store, totally hidden from the outside world. The pale-faced shopkeeper donned the soft kimono worn by the Black Lizard, straightened her hair, and put on the gold-rimmed spectacles, metamorphosing into a refined lady of the upper class.
And the transformation of the Black Lizard was a sight to behold. She undid her hair, then smeared dirt over her palms to smudge he
r entire face, turning into the perfect image of a lower-class shopkeeper’s wife. The striped kimono and stained apron went well with the dark blue tabi socks, which had been darned.
She gave a delighted laugh.
‘Oh, it’s wonderful! How do I look?’
‘Incredible!’ the man praised her. ‘The little woman looks like a high-class lady, and yourself, Ma’am, you are all dirty! A wonderful job! Even your own husband wouldn’t know you!’
He stood comparing them with each other, flabbergasted.
‘Ah, you were wearing a gauze mask, weren’t you?’ asked the Black Lizard. ‘That would be perfect. May I borrow it?’
The white gauze mask, commonly used to prevent colds from spreading, hid her mouth entirely.
‘Would you be so kind as to stand at the railing there, and look around through the binoculars, my dear?’
Then the kidnapper, disguised as a lowly shopkeeper, rode the elevator down with her ‘husband’ to the bustling street.
‘Please hurry! It would be terrible if he found me again!’
They pushed their way through the crowd and away from the street of movie theatres, through the clumps of trees in the park toward the quiet, less crowded regions.
‘Thank you so much… I think everything’s all right now. Oh, my goodness! We’re acting like lovers hiding from someone!’
And indeed that is exactly what they appeared to be. The man, perhaps because of a pain in his ear, had a bandage wrapped around his head and jaw, with a deerstalker cap on top, and he was wearing a striped cotton kimono with a black shirt over it. He wore board-soled zōri, bound with leather straps to his bare feet. She was dressed as his wife, as mentioned before, and both wore bizarre white masks. The man took the woman’s hand and they wove between the trees, trying to keep out of sight as they trotted down the road together.
‘Ah! Sorry, forgive me,’ apologized the man, suddenly noticing that he had been holding her hand and letting go bashfully.
‘Oh, please, don’t worry about it… What happened to your head?’ asked the Black Lizard, appreciative of his help in escaping her predicament.
‘Just an inner ear infection,’ he replied. ‘It’s just about healed now.’
‘My goodness! You have to be careful with an ear infection,’ she advised him. ‘You must be happy to have such a wonderful wife. How enjoyable to be able to work together like that.’
‘Her!? Nah, she’s not much to talk about,’ he shrugged.
‘A bit soft, this chap,’ she chuckled to herself.
‘Well, I guess I’ll be off now. Please thank your wife for me; I’ll not forget your help today! Oh, and please tell your wife it’s just an old kimono, and I’d be delighted if she kept it.’
A taxi was waiting on the avenue cutting through the park, just next to the trees. After she left the shopkeeper, she ran for the car.
The driver hurriedly opened the door, as if he had been waiting just for her. She vanished inside and uttered a short signal, and the taxi immediately began to drive on. Surely it was driven by one of her men, who had been waiting for her there by plan.
After the shopkeeper saw the car begin to move, instead of returning to the tower he ran into the street, inexplicably, and spun about searching for something. He shot up a hand to hail a passing taxi and leaped into the empty car. He called to the driver crisply, his voice totally different from the drawl of only moments ago.
‘Follow that car! Police! I promise you a healthy tip, just do a good job of it!’
The taxi immediately moved off in pursuit, keeping a healthy distance behind.
‘Make sure they don’t notice us following them,’ the man warned the taxi driver every so often, leaning forward and staring eagerly ahead like a jockey on a racehorse.
He had identified himself as a policeman, but was he really? He certainly did not appear to be an officer of the law. His voice sounded so familiar… no, not just his voice. Those sharp eyes staring forward from under the bandage around his head certainly seemed familiar!
Through the grim winter dusk, the two automobiles played their bizarre game of follow-the-leader, threading their way between the host of taxis on Sakai-suji Avenue, a major north-south artery piercing Osaka, with the second car always maintaining a careful distance behind the first vehicle.
In the lead car, a beautiful young woman, dressed in the kimono and apron of a lower-class worker, sat by herself squeezed into the cushions as if hiding.
At first glance, she appeared far too poor to be using a taxi. In fact, though, this was the woman thief, the Black Lizard, in disguise!
But even this thief did not notice that just behind her another car was hot on her trail, chasing her like a wolf. In it sat a strange man dressed like a lower-class worker, head heavily bandaged, gaze locked fiercely on her car as he uttered short commands like ‘Speed up!’ or ‘Slow down a bit!’
Who was this strange man?
Eyes fixed on the lead car, he quickly stripped off his woollen overcoat and striped kimono. From beneath, a lightly soiled khaki uniform appeared, transforming him in an instant from a shopkeeper to a factory worker.
Once he had completed his metamorphosis into a labourer, he began to tear off the bandages which had covered half his face. His face gradually emerged into view. He had not had an ear problem at all! He had merely used that as a convenient excuse to hide his face!
The line of his thick eyebrows above his piercing eyes revealed the identity of the mysterious man: it was Akechi Kogorō.
He had seen through the Black Lizard’s scheme, disguising himself as the shopkeeper, waiting with determination to penetrate her secret and finally discover the whereabouts of her headquarters.
She had fallen into his trap unaware, and had even unwittingly asked him to assist in her escape! If he had wanted to apprehend her he could have done so at any time, but until they knew where the kidnapped girl was, until they discovered the Black Lizard’s secret base, they could take no overt action. He quieted his racing heart, forced to suffer this prolonged pursuit. His plan was to recover both the girl and the jewel at once, and at the same time hand over the Black Lizard, the infamous woman thief, to the hands of the law.
It was dark outside now, and the cars careened past streetlamp after streetlamp, winding their tortuous way in a bizarre race through the streets of Osaka.
The cabin light was off in her car, so his only glimpse of her was a blurry image of her head through the rear window when a chance light struck. Naturally, Akechi had closed the gap between their cars as much as he thought safe.
The cars turned a corner, and there was one of the famous canals of Osaka. The shutters of a wholesalers district lined one side of the canal, while the other gently sloped upward, scattered with freight-handling machinery. The night was black, and the district surprisingly deserted for a site in huge Osaka.
The lead car slowly nosed into the darkness, and when it reached the foot of a bridge it suddenly halted under a bright streetlamp.
‘Stop! Quickly!’
While Akechi was ordering the driver of his own car to stop, the other taxi had already turned around and was coming their way.
The red ‘Available’ light was on, visible through the windshield. The rear seat, inexplicably, was suddenly empty. Before he had a chance to even think about what had happened, the suspicious taxi had reached them. Honking rather obviously, it drove slowly past.
Akechi was able to see every part of the other taxi, only a foot away. There was no doubt that it was empty. There was no trace of the woman who had been visible until only moments ago.
Clearly, the driver was one of her men and the taxi belonged to her, but to avoid attracting the attention of the police it was camouflaged as an empty taxi, driven by a blandly smiling driver.
He debated arresting the driver, but quickly abandoned the
idea because it would destroy the plan entirely. He had to find the Black Lizard! And he had to discover her hiding place!
But where in the world had that woman hidden herself? No-one had alighted from the taxi when it stopped at the foot of the bridge. Under the bright streetlamp, he could not have missed it. But only moments ago, when the car had turned onto the riverbank, she had clearly been sitting inside.
Could it be that in the half a block or so between the corner and the bridge, the kidnapper had taken advantage of the darkness to leap out of the moving taxi and hide herself? But where? Along one side was a line of commercial buildings, their giant doors shuttered for the night, and on the other side there was only the black water of the canal. Akechi stepped out of his car, and walked down and back along that half-block, checking carefully. There was nobody – not even a dog – anywhere along it.
‘Weird, huh?’ said the driver jokingly when Akechi returned, ‘Surely she didn’t jump into the canal…’
‘The river. Perhaps she did,’ responded Akechi as he looked down from the wharf to see a large, old-style wooden boat.
There was no sign of anyone on deck, but he could see the red glare of a lantern through the oilpaper shōji windows in the stern. The family owning and running the boat would be living in the cabin, and when he checked he noted that the gangplank was still in place. Possibly, just possibly, the Black Lizard was hiding in the shadow of that reddish light, quieting her every breath.
It was terribly unlikely, but there was no other place she could have fled to. When it came to the Black Lizard, common sense had to be thrown out the window. Think of the unreasonable, the unlikely, and you stood a better chance of guessing correctly.
‘Can you help me out here?’ asked Akechi, handing over a bill while whispering into the driver’s ear. ‘See that window where the light’s on there? I want you to turn your lights off for a moment, and move the car so that when you turn them back on you light up that door. First though, and this is a slightly taller order, I want you to scream. Scream out for someone to help you in as loud a voice as you can, then suddenly switch on the lights. Can you do that?’
The Black Lizard and Beast In the Shadows Page 10
