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Story I – Part 04

“That’s all the information I got,” I said.

“Thanks. Things are getting more and more interesting. So, Odagiri-kun. Can you open your mouth for a second?”

Mayuzumi beckoned me as if she were calling a dog. Frowning, I did what she said, and she tossed a pill into my mouth. I bit it down. The sugar coating cracked and the contents spilled onto my tongue.

Sweet.

“This chocolate is fascinating. It melts in your mouth but not on your hand,” she said. “The coating indicates it’s for children, but I applaud the idea. I don’t like things that only adults can consume, like alcohol, but especially cigarettes. Not only is it unhealthy, but it smells awful.”

Mayuzumi fixed her gaze on me. I chewed on the piece of chocolate, and the sweet aroma neutralized the remaining smell of nicotine. Quite some time had passed since I smoked. It was unnoticeable outside. She’s sensitive, all right.

“How did you know?”

“It would be hard not to know. If you really want to smoke, then I won’t stop you. However, there are some things that people can and can’t stand, so I would like to ask you to be more considerate.”

I would never have expected the word “considerate” to be in her dictionary.

She drank a cup of hot chocolate. Her legs, peeking out from under her lab coat, were wrapped in over-the-knee socks. She was wearing incredibly short clothes today.

“That’s an unusual outfit,” I remarked.

“Hmm? Oh, an employee from the store I frequent recommended it. I couldn’t be bothered to listen to them, so I just bought it.”

Normally, you would do the opposite of that. It looked like a very expensive outfit, but Mayuzumi didn’t seem to mind. She pulled a white box toward her and munched on a chocolate truffle that cost over 400 yen each. She wasn’t comparing it to the cheap one she bought at the convenience store. To her, money was probably like water. Yet for some reason, she paid me poorly. Maybe she was tormenting me on purpose.

“Now, then. Let’s see what we can learn from your investigation. I actually went out as well. Only for a bit, though. Just long enough to finish about five chocolate bars.

It was unusual for Mayuzumi to go out on her own. Come to think of it, I heard that her family had some influence in the insurance company that Yukiko worked for. With a smile on her lips, she continued.

“Apparently, Yamashita Yukiko had a lot of problems at work. She had offended an important client, and, being the type to get hung up on things, she kept making subsequent mistakes. She had no choice but to resign, but it didn’t end there. Her mistakes blew a huge hole in the company’s bottom line. Her coworkers told me that anyone in her situation would have wanted to die.”

“Is that why the cops ruled it a suicide?”

“That’s not all. She would sometimes voice out suicidal thoughts. At first, it was something lighthearted, like, ‘Maybe I should just die.’ But gradually her statements became more and more grim. What’s more, a week before she committed suicide, she broke up with her boyfriend, whom she had promised to marry. She sorted out her personal affairs, and there was an unsent message on her cell phone that seemed to be a suicide note. It wasn’t ruled a suicide without any proof. Circumstances pointed to a clear suicide. Her death was waiting to happen. All’s well that ends well.”

She picked up another chocolate truffle with her slender fingers. “Her coworkers seemed relieved when she died. I could glimpse the actual meaning behind their words. Although she disappeared right before she died, they’re treating her as if she had died a long time ago.”

The chocolate truffle was crushed in her mouth. Her moist lips curved into a smile. “‘I’d understand if she wanted to kill herself. Maybe she wanted to die? No one would be surprised if she killed herself. If I were her, I would rather die.’ Now imagine if she kept hearing such things when she was still alive. What do you suppose is the real message behind their words, Odagiri-kun?”

It was an extremely easy riddle.

“They wanted her to die,” I said, mildly disappointed at myself for coming upon the answer immediately.

“Exactly. The fact that you arrived at that conclusion means you’re a normal human being. A big relief for me.”

Sarcasm? But it didn’t seem like she meant anything bad by it. Thinking about the environment that Yukiko was in made my chest tighten. Every single ill feeling towards her turned into transparent hands that pushed her from behind.

Pushed her off the roof of the building.

Nevertheless, people call such an incident suicide.

“I understand,” I said. “My feelings about the matter aside, it’s fortunate that Yamashita Yukiko’s case turned out to be an actual suicide. She couldn’t bear the stress and the expectations of those around her, so she attempted to kill herself. That clears up the suspicion on our client. I don’t want to take a murderer’s case, after all.” I felt relieved as I pictured Kazue in my mind.

I picked up my own mug. The coffee I had prepared before submitting my report had cooled.

“No. Yamashita Yukiko was murdered,” Mayuzumi said flatly the moment I took a sip. “There’s no doubt about that.”

The coffee turned increasingly bitter in my mouth. I looked at Mayuzumi to see her grinning like a cat. Suddenly, she picked up a piece of chocolate and tossed it into my coffee. With a clink, the sweet aroma sank deeper. A drop of coffee had landed on my nose, which she brushed off with her finger. She pressed her white fingertip to her lips and licked it.

“We’re going out tomorrow morning,” she said. “Although caffeine is essential for waking up the brain, I would go for chocolate over coffee any day. Not consuming sugar is bad for your health. Oh, and Odagiri-kun.”

After rambling on, she added, “What’s wrong with accepting a murderer’s case?”

---

A warm breeze caressed my cheeks. There was no one on the road in the early hours of the morning. The red of the parasol clashed against the clear, blue sky. I wasn’t sure why I had to go out with Mayuzumi so early.

And right at the site of the fallen organs, at that.

Mayuzumi and I were at the street we visited the other day. The police tapes had already been removed. The area where the womb fell had become a famous haunted spot, but luckily no one was around at the moment. Weekly magazines had been covering the incident in a humurous manner. The festive atmosphere was pissing me off. I wanted to throw fresh lungs onto the heads of the onlookers. If an organ fell on someone’s head, they would surely regret treating the situation so casually.

When I turned around, I saw Mayuzumi squatting in front of the same vending machine from the other day. She shoved her hand between the machine and the pavement as if searching for something. She didn’t care about her dress getting dirty. What in the world was she so obsessed about? I felt like smoking a cigarette. A bad sign, considering I had not felt stressed just yet. Butterflies fluttered in my stomach. I had no idea what’s going to happen next. I wondered when I’d be able to return to my cheap apartment.

“I found it.” When she stood up, Mayuzumi had a hundred yen coin in her hand. “I’m really glad. I thought I’d find one. It feels nice when your guess is right. Although, people say it’s hard to lose something like this. Take a look.” She presented the coin to me.

At first glance, it looked like a nondescript 100-yen coin. But upon closer inspection, there was some dried bloodstains on the back.

“Please hold it so I can see it better,” I said.

“You need to work on your observational skills. If you neglect to do so, it will only grow dull.”

She flicked the coin with her finger, sending it flying in the wrong direction, and it ended up back under the vending machine.

“I failed,” Mayuzumi mumbled. I thought for sure she didn’t need it anymore.

“What?”

“Sorry, Odagiri-kun. I made a mistake. I sincerely apologize, so could you please pick it up for me?”

Sincere, my foot.

If I could voice my thoughts, I would not be stressed out. I ended up having to crawl on the ground. It felt like I would dislocate my shoulder, but I managed to retrieve the coin. I handed it to Mayuzumi, and she nodded.

“Ah, thanks. The manual labor you provide is very valuable to me. I’m sure the police didn’t check this vending machine.”

Mayuzumi pushed the coin into the slot of the vending machine. I was about to ask her what she was doing after spending all that effort of finding it when the coin returned with a clank.

“And there it is,” she said.

“Uhm, what?”

“This helpless hundred-yen coin keeps coming back.”

It must have suffered some kind of defect in the manufacturing process. Sometimes there are coins that vending machines can’t recognize.

But how did that matter in this case?