by Chris Ward
Naotoshi despised puppets, because he had once let himself be one, and it had ruined his career.
‘Let’s all get on to the bus,’ Ludvic said, waving them towards the open door. His hands were shaking, Naotoshi noticed. Typical that the clown would be a useless alcoholic. It would be a miracle if they got back before the bus slammed into a tree somewhere.
Naotoshi was the last to get on, letting the other members of his tour group and a couple of other independent tourists get on first. Ludvic had already got back into the driver’s seat, and a young police officer was sitting opposite him. Naotoshi glared at him as the man tipped his cap. He was no doubt taking a little cut out of the profits.
As Naotoshi got on, he noticed a strange smell coming from the back. The other passengers had also noticed it, as they were crowded into the seats at the front instead of spreading out and taking double seats for themselves.
There were two pairs of double seats and then the back row free. The curtains had been drawn across the back window of the bus, and the side curtains pulled out so that the whole area was shrouded in shadow. Naotoshi felt a little knot of fear in his stomach, but never one to give in to it, he marched to the back of the bus and took the seat in the middle.
Only as the bus started off did he realise there was someone sitting in the corner, leaning against the window, his head turned to look down at the road outside. Naotoshi figured it was a man from the thickness of the thighs, but he was wearing black trousers and a kind of sweatshirt with a hood pulled over his face. His upper back seemed larger than it should be, so Naotoshi wondered if the man was a hunchback. It was obvious where the smell was coming from now, so perhaps the guy had social issues.
‘Are you looking forward to the tour?’ Naotoshi said, trying make conversation.
Without looking around, the man nodded.
22
A fine morning for a stroll
Circling in the air above the battlements on the castle’s upper balustrade, the Romanian Black Eagle let out one long, lingering call then swooped in and landed on the windowsill of the uppermost tower.
Kurou smiled. The bird had built its nest on the ledge just outside the window, and was currently nursing two beautiful chicks. Nature’s perfection was so sublime, it was just a shame that an ugly lump of man-hewed rock had to provide its shelter, and that a degenerate of a human being had the best view in the house.
Crina had been given a little reminder of her vanity, and in turn it would soon provide a little reminder to Grigore of his greed. Perhaps then the stupid fool would sign. Only when Kurou was finally assured that his beautiful eagles were safe for evermore would he ship out of this forsaken little town. He had more pressing matters to deal with, but one thing at a time.
An organized mind is a powerful one….
He turned back to the view of the town below. From here, it looked like a tourist map, the town’s lesser attractions—the ruined church to the north and the newer, wooden one in the village centre, sticking up out of the clusters of grey houses like spiny beetles. It wasn’t an unattractive town as towns went, except for that nasty hotel on the south side, squatting on the rise like a giant concrete sore.
Kurou knew all about that place. Some rich bastard property developer had paid off the local mayor, as well as the previous owners of Heigel Castle—who also owned the leasehold on all land within a five-mile radius—to allow the hotel to be built. The man had also pressured the government to remove the protective status on the black eagles, in order to indulge his little hobby—hunting.
Of course, he had failed. He hadn’t possessed the same financial clout as Grigore Albescu, so out of spite and hatred towards the poor things, he had paid local kids to steal their eggs.
He was dead now, of course, gutted like a worthless pig and locked inside a hotel room in Bucharest that was no doubt beginning to smell. Kurou had bought the eagles a little peace, but then Albescu had come along with his money, bought up the castle and stood for mayor.
Everything had reverted to type.
Kurou squinted down at the town. In exchange for his grotesque face, God had provided him with a mind as powerful as a computer and eyes as sharp as a telescope. As the streets and houses came into focus, he thought he spotted a lonely figure stumbling along one of the side streets, carefully out of sight of the main road. About half a kilometre distant, on the main road running parallel, a minibus was trundling towards the east side of the town.
Kurou smiled. Poor Ludvic had taken such a fright. What a terrible thing to do to such an honest, law-abiding man! Kurou pulled his computer tablet out of a bag and made a couple of adjustments to Gretel’s commands.
It would probably be best to remind Ludvic of what he was dealing with.
An old woman had just stepped out of an alleyway and was ambling towards the curb. Ludvic started to accelerate, sure he could get past her before she stepped out into the road, but Igor, the young police officer who had accompanied them in Slav’s absence, shook his head.
‘Let her cross. It’ll give me a moment to have a word with these tourists about the current situation.’
As Igor stood up, Ludvic brought the minibus to a stop. He waited as the woman stepped out into the road.
Even though her head was bowed there was something familiar about her. The stoop of her body and the colour of her hair reminded him of old Gretel.
She was halfway across the road when she turned to look up at him, her decomposing, dead lips widening in a smile that caused a lump of gristle to drop off her face and land on the road.
Ludvic stared as she stumbled up on to the curb on the other side of the street. For a second he thought she would fall flat on her face, then she turned and began to shuffle up the road, back in the direction they had come.
‘Well come on, let’s get moving,’ Igor said as he sat back down, unaware of what Ludvic had just seen. ‘It’ll be lunchtime before we get there at this rate. Where’d that old woman go?’
Ludvic gulped as his shaking hands pushed the minibus into gear and released the handbrake. As the vehicle started moving again, he made a conscious effort to avoid looking in either the side or rear-view mirrors, just in case she was standing back there, watching him, her dead hand lifting in a mocking wave.
The town was emptying fast. As the minibus moved on down the street, it seemed they went no more than a few metres before they had to stop to let some car pull out of a driveway, pulling a trailer or with a roof-rack laden with suitcases.
The poor naïve fools, Naotoshi thought. They’re running away from being part of history. When whatever dark presence that had a hold over this vile little place was revealed, they would all be quick to say they were there, even when most of them had run away like cowards with shit dribbling down their legs.
The bus stopped and the scrawny little police officer got up to address them. Due to unforeseen circumstances, this will be the last trip of the tour because a full evacuation will be taking place this evening, blah de fucking blah, I hope you’ve enjoyed your stay in Heigel, blah de blah blah fuck blah….
‘Idiot kid doesn’t know who he’s talking to,’ Naotoshi said, turning to the man leaning against the window. He was pretty sure the stranger wasn’t Japanese, but it didn’t matter. He just needed an outlet for his frustrations. ‘Look at him, what a clown. Thinks there’s some guy sitting in a hut in the woods sharpening his knives. This is way deeper than that, my friend, way deeper.’
The man gave a slight nod. Perhaps he does speak Japanese, Naotoshi thought. Perhaps he’s just some eccentric local mute who spends his time in a darkened room watching anime porn. It wouldn’t be like he was the only one to learn Japanese that way.
The police officer sat back down and the minibus began to move again. As it pulled off down the street, Naotoshi caught a glimpse through the gap in the seats in front of an old lady hobbling up the street, her arms hung loosely at her sides.
‘Huh,’ Naotoshi said, turning back t
o the guy by the window. ‘The locals won’t be moved, I see. That old dear probably doesn’t understand what the fuss is all about.’
The guy by the window gave another slight nod.
From the battlements of Heigel Castle, Kurou watched the little dot that was Gretel slowly stomp up the hill towards the hotel. After her meeting with the bus he ordered her off the main road and back on to the mostly deserted backstreets. There was no point risking someone interrupting her. Most of the older residents had so far refused to leave, and there was a chance someone might recognise their recently murdered neighbour. That would certainly create a few interesting games, but Gretel had work to do before she could go out and play … forever.
He was about to head back down to the lower levels to continue with his tasks for the day when he noticed two figures walking briskly through the fields to the south of the town in the direction of the hotel. They were just too far away for him to be able to make out their features, but they were definitely young, dark haired, and slightly built. One wore a business suit that even at this distance Kurou could tell was dirty and damaged, while the other wore trousers and a sweater.
‘Is that you, boy?’ Kurou muttered. ‘Is that you, Jun Matsumoto, slayer of my beloved bears? Oh, how immaculate your timing is, my never-forgotten friend. What a wonderful morning for a stroll.’
They were heading straight for the hotel. Things couldn’t be going more smoothly.
Kurou looked up at the clouds beginning to roll in to obscure the sun, and gave the best smile his mutated face could give. Then he leaned his head back and let out the loudest screech that his lungs could muster.
Far above, a circling eagle cried in response.
‘Soon, my friends,’ Kurou said, ‘soon you’ll be safe from all these dirty, spiteful little people.’
He turned and headed back down through the castle, towards the rooms far underground where most of his equipment was set up. He had a very busy day ahead of him, and his legs were already aching from the climb back up through the tunnels after his early morning visit to the forest ranger.
He wondered if he had time for a quick nap, especially since he had been such a productive little boy these last few days.
His mother would have been so proud.
23
Jun and Jennie return to the hotel
‘There it is,’ Jennie said. ‘I need to make sure my guests are all right. I shouldn’t have run out on them like I did yesterday.’
Jun shrugged. ‘You were clearly upset. You haven’t even told me why yet.’
Jennie’s eyes flickered, and Jun immediately felt guilty for bringing the subject up. He didn’t really want to know; getting close to a woman wasn’t a priority right now. Getting into that castle and finding Crow was the only thing that mattered. Still, when he looked at her, behind the mask of vulnerability, there was something that reminded him of Akane.
‘My ex-husband killed my dog,’ she said, her voice as bleak as the wind blowing down from the bluff looming over the town. ‘With a hammer.’
Jun’s eyes widened. ‘Oh.’
‘Although I say he’s my ex, he’s still my husband. Officially. He’s a hotshot Manhattan lawyer with a ton of money and a taste for … well, anything he can get. I’d really appreciate it if you didn’t search for my name on the Internet. We don’t know each other well enough for me to want you to see me like that.’
Jun smiled. ‘Not a nice guy, I take it?’
She shrugged. ‘I thought he was, at first. I was thought I was in heaven.’ She kicked at a tuft of grass by the side of the road. ‘It was anything but.’
‘Did he … beat you?’
‘Only really that last time, after I confronted him with what I knew. It had always been there, but it had come out in … other ways.’
Jun nodded. He could tell from the way she turned her body away, as if she was trying to shield it from him, that the abuse had been sexual. Probably in that subtle way where she had thought her husband just wanted a little more than she did, his abuse growing one small piece at a time, creeping up on her until suddenly it was everywhere.
‘Where is he now?’
‘Back at our house in New York. He’s been taunting me off and on for months via email. When I ran I forgot to take my dog, and he tortured me with it. Eventually he must have got bored with poor Pogo, because he … because….’
Jun grabbed her just before she fell, pulling her into his arms. She felt light and frail, her strength gone. Her eyes rolled in her head, and he patted her cheek until she came round.
‘I’m sorry,’ she gasped as he lowered her to the ground and squatted beside her. ‘I loved Pogo so much. When everything in my life was going to shit that little dog was always by my side. And I left him. I left him with Brian, that evil bastard.’
‘You know,’ Jun said, stroking her hair as he held her against him, ‘I’d like to cut Brian’s throat with a rusty knife. However, that kind of thing doesn’t tend to go down well. Have you kept all of the emails?’
‘Yeah, I think they’re on my computer. I try to forget about them.’
‘You know you could use them against him. Those and whatever … other stuff … is online.’
Jennie shook her head. ‘He’s a hugely successful lawyer. He’s worth millions of dollars. I wouldn’t stand a chance.’
Jun nodded slowly. ‘He works for a big law firm, right?’
‘Yes. One of the biggest in New York.’
‘Well, they tend to be rivals, don’t they? Those big firms? Have you thought about taking all this stuff to one of the other big ones? They’d probably be delighted to get one over on a rival.’
‘I don’t know.’
Jun smiled. ‘It’s just something to think about. I think the rusty knife would be way more satisfying, though. At least I hope so. That’s what I’ve got planned for Professor Crow.’
‘Professor Crow, he’s the man you’re looking for?’
‘He’s responsible for the death of the only girl I’ve ever loved.’
Jennie’s eyelids flickered and she looked away. ‘Oh.’
‘She died to save me and my friends from this monster he had created. I held her in my arms as she died, and she didn’t regret it for a moment.’ He gritted his teeth, as his own painful memories came rushing back. ‘But she should have done. She should never have had to die. That … bastard.’
‘What are you going to do when you find him?’
Jun gritted his teeth. ‘I’ll kill him if I can. Lawyers are no use with someone like him. He’s barely human.’
Jennie gulped. ‘Have you ever … killed anyone before?’
Jun shook his head. ‘But I kill him in my mind every time I close my eyes.’
Jennie climbed back to her feet. She tidied her hair with one hand and picked at a spot on her chin with the other.
‘We’d better hurry up,’ she said, forcing a resolute smile. ‘Some of the guests were going on a forest tour. I want to stop them.’
‘Let’s go,’ Jun said. ‘I’ll come with you to the hotel, but after that I want you to get out of Heigel. It’s too dangerous for you to come up to the castle with me.’
She stared at him a moment and he thought she was going to argue. ‘Okay,’ she said at last. ‘I just want to make sure my guests are safe. Miserable old sods they might be, but I want them to get home safe and sound.’
They stepped out of a farm lane on to the main road heading into Heigel, with the hotel looming up on their left. A couple of cars passed them, heading south, but otherwise the town looked deserted, the streets empty.
‘Do you want to wait outside?’ Jennie asked as they reached the near-empty hotel car park.
Jun shook his head. ‘I could do with a drink or something. It’s been a long night. I’d also like to charge my phone and computer, see if I can call my friend in Bucharest, let him know I’m okay.’
As they walked in through the entrance, the receptionist came out to meet them
. ‘Ms. Nakajima?’ the young man said in Romanian. ‘Thank goodness you’re okay. Several of your guests were asking for you, but the security cameras showed you leaving the premises late last night and not returning.’
‘I got … sidetracked,’ she said. ‘Do the police know?’
The young man looked guilty. ‘I’m afraid we didn’t call them,’ he said. ‘We were busy, and you’re a young lady who speaks our language fluently. We were expecting you to know your own business. Some of your guests were very worried, though.’
‘Where are they?’
‘The minibus just picked them up for the forest tour. It left about fifteen minutes ago.’
Jennie cursed. She turned to Jun. ‘Jun, we have to go after them.’
Jun opened his mouth to answer, but the receptionist held up a hand. ‘You wouldn’t be Jun Matsumoto by any chance?’
When Jun looked confused Jennie translated for him.
Jun nodded.
‘Tell him we had a phone call this morning from a woman called Karin Kobayashi,’ the receptionist asked Jennie. ‘She wanted to know if he was staying here. Him or someone called Ken Okamoto.’
When Jennie translated, Jun’s face dropped.
‘Ken? Ken’s come here?’
‘Do you know this Karin?’
Jun stared at the ground. ‘She was there. They were both there.’ He looked up. ‘The last time we ran into Crow. He must have come after me.’
‘Are you sure? Maybe there’s some mistake.’
Jun shook his head. ‘Damn it, I never should have told him. I should have known he’d follow me. Shit, he has a daughter….’
‘What can you do? Maybe he’s not here yet.’
