The sun shone brightly over a summer afternoon in Kasukabe. The air was warm, the skies were clear, and the cicadas were singing as people bustled about the streets of the shopping district. The air was alive with the sounds of hearty conversation and boisterous street vendors, and passersby were teased by the delicious smells of takoyaki and soba. It was a picturesque day, to be sure.
The doors of a nearby food market dinged and opened, permitting Miki Hiiragi to step out onto the sidewalk. Smiling at the idyllic scene before her, she turned and started carrying her shopping towards the train station. Several heads turned to glance at her as she passed, and the reason for this was fairly evident; Miki had managed to retain a slim, graceful figure even after giving birth to four children; clad in a simple blue shirt with a white skirt that fell to just above her knees, and with her waist-length lilac hair tied back with a white ribbon, she looked like she might have just walked straight out of the pages of a magazine.
Miki arrived at the train station just as her train home pulled up to the platform. Pausing to let a small crowd of people off, she stepped through the doors and took a seat in the middle of the car. A few more people stepped onto the train before the doors closed and it slowly rumbled off down the tracks.
Miki closed her eyes and leaned back in her seat, reflecting on the reason for her recent cheerfulness. Just two days before, her daughters Kagami and Tsukasa had received letters stating they had both passed the entrance exam into Todai University for law and culinary arts, respectively. She had been so proud of her daughters when she'd heard the news, particularly of Tsukasa, who had pushed herself especially hard in studying for her exams. She had been out today buying ingredients for sushi so her family could celebrate.
The train pull into the next station on its route, only one stop away from Miki's. The passengers were briefly hit by a wave of noise as the doors slid open to allow a few people off. Seconds later, the noise receded as the doors slid shut, but the train did not resume its motion. After a few brief moments, a conductor came over the intercom, explaining that the train would be delayed by a few minutes; a tree had fallen across the tracks ahead. He apologized for the setback on the behalf of the train service before the intercom cut out with a blast of static and a series of clicks.
Miki gazed out the train window; the sun was beginning to sink lower and lower in the western sky. She frowned; she hoped she would get home in time to prepare dinner. True, she could have gone to one of the markets closer to her home, but that had seemed like a waste of such a beautiful day. She paused for a moment before smiling once more. Ah, well. It was out of her hands. There was no sense fussing over something beyond her control. She leaned back in her seat, humming a tune that had wandered into her head. About two minutes later, the train lurched forward, bound for Miki's destination once more.
Before long, the train decelerated as it pulled into the station near Miki's home. Standing from her seat, Miki stretched and looked around at the other passengers. There was a group of teenage girls chattering away animatedly at one end of the car. Across from her, an elderly man was energetically telling stories to two young children who listened on with stars in their eyes. At the far end of the car sat a single occupant dressed in, oddly enough, a brown trenchcoat and a fedora. The wide brim of the hat shadowed the wearer's face; the trenchcoat obscured the rest of their body so well it was hard to tell if they were even male or female. Goodness, they must be quite hot in such an outfit, Miki thought. Nestled under the seat at the figure's feet was a silver attaché briefcase. Miki was startled from her observations by the ding of the intercom and the doors of the train sliding open. Lifting her bags, she quickly skipped out the door before a large crowd could press in and set off towards her home.
Miki strode along the sidewalk as the sun grazed the horizon; night would fall before long, but she was, fortunately, a mere five-minute walk from her home. Stopping at the corner of her street, she lowered her bags to the ground and rotated her shoulders in their sockets to ease some of the ache in her muscles. A long shadow fell over her and she casually cast a glance over her shoulder, pausing at what she saw.
It was the figure from the back of the train. It froze abruptly and stooped to re-lace one of its boots. Something about the way the figure had stopped suggested to Miki it had done so because it realized it had her attention. It now seemed quite intent on its current task, but Miki swore she saw it cast a few rapid looks in her direction. Facing forward, she picked up her bags and continued walking.
Behind her, Miki could hear the figure resume walking, as well. The sounds it made did not grow any louder of softer, and its footsteps were difficult to discern over her own. It was matching its pace to hers. Miki was starting to feel nervous. Who was this figure? Was it following her? What did it want? Her house was approaching on the left. She quickened her pace and heard the figure behind her speed up as well. Only three houses to go. Miki began breathing heavier and could feel her heart starting to race. Reaching her own driveway, she turned and marched up to her door, quickly turned the handle, and ducked inside. She closed the door until only a thin crack remained and peeked back out. The figure did not change its pace as it strode straight past the house and, before long, disappeared around the corner at the end of the street.
Miki closed the door, leaned against it, and sighed heavily. The figure had simply been walking in the same direction she had. She took a few calming breaths and chuckled softly. She felt rather silly for allowing her imagination to run wild like that. The figure had just been someone in a bit of a rush, just like her, and nothing more. Smiling softly, she stepped out of her shoes and carried her bags into the kitchen.
As she set about preparing the kitchen implements necessary to make sushi, her eldest daughter Inori walked in from the living room. "Hello, mother. How was your trip to the…" she paused midsentence and cocked her head slightly to the side. "Mother, are you alright? You look pale."
Miki smiled and nodded. "It's nothing, Inori. Do you think you could start making the rice? It would help me out quite a bit."
"Of course, mother." Inori walked past Miki and lifted the rice cooker down from the cabinet. She set about filling it with water as Miki began cleaning the fish.
Around the corner from the Hiiragi home, a figure in a brown trenchcoat was leaning against a fence, just beyond the cone of space illuminated by an overhead streetlight just beginning to flicker to life. Setting down its briefcase, the figure reached into its pockets, producing a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. It held one between its teeth and lit it, taking a puff as it returned the lighter and pack to its pockets.
The figure took a few deep drags on its cigarette as it studied the falling darkness around it. Satisfied no one was nearby, the figure loosened its trenchcoat before reaching up and plucking off its fedora. It's too damn hot out here to be wearing such a ridiculous getup. Now visible was the figure of a man in his late fifties. He had a large, sharp face on top of a built, muscular body. His eyes were a pair of deep blue orbs set over a thin nose. His mouth was like a narrow gash running horizontally across his face, through which his cigarette still protruded, clenched between slightly yellowing teeth. His greying hair was trimmed in a very short buzz-cut, and a hint of five-o' clock shadow was discernible under his chin. A long, narrow scar ran up his left cheek, jumping over his left eye socket, and ending just under his hairline. Under his trenchcoat, he could be seen wearing a black suit with no tie.
The man took one last drag on his cigarette before flicking it to the sidewalk at his feet. Reaching into his pockets once more, he pulled out a small black cellphone. The man flipped it open and dialled a long, complex series of digits before holding the receiver to his ear. The phone rang twice at the other end, followed quickly by a deep voice: "It's a treacherous night out."
The man rolled his eyes before rendering his expected response: "Those with nothing to hide would have nothing to fear."
There was silence on the other end of the line, and then: "Make your report."
"I found her."
"Where?"
"At her home. Right where we were informed it was."
The voice on the other end of the line grunted in affirmation. "Don't make any movements just yet. Keep watch; I'll contact you again soon."
"Of course." The man paused. "Were the code phrases truly necessary? I sincerely doubt anyone knows about this..."
A distinct click could be heard from the receiver, followed by silence. The man sighed as he returned the cellular to his pocket. He already knew the answer to that question, but also knew the voice did love his secrecy. Replacing his fedora atop his head and drawing his coat tighter around him, the man lifted his briefcase and began walking back in the direction of the Hiiragi home.
"Itadakimasu!" sounded the general chant from around the table as the Hiiragi family tucked into their meal. For a few seconds, nothing save the general sounds of chopsticks and bowls could be heard, and then the Hiiragi family's patron figure, Tadao, spoke: "This is delicious, Miki."
Miki beamed at her husband's praise. "Thank you, dear, but I can't take all the credit. Inori was a big help."
Inori waved her hand at hearing this. "All I did was prepare the rice and seaweed. You did most of the real work."
"I never could have finished in time without you, Inori." A slight lapse in conversation occurred, and then Miki turned to her youngest daughters. "Kagami, Tsukasa, your father and I want you to know we're very proud of you for being accepted to Todai. We know how hard you both worked for this."
Matsuri added, "Yeah, you two are gonna go really far there. I can totally see you acing culinary arts, Tsukasa." Tsukasa smiled and blushed at hearing her older onee-chan's praise. Matsuri continued, "And… really, Kagami? You, a lawyer? Well, I suppose you've got the temperament for it."
"And what is that supposed to mean?" Kagami demanded, narrowing her eyes at her older sister. Her building ire quickly shifted to confusion when she saw how serious Matsuri's face had suddenly become. "What?"
Matsuri stared at her a moment longer, her face sombre, then slowly clasped her hands in front of her and bowed her head. "When the time comes, please do well by me."
Laughter erupted from around the table, and Matsuri raised her head, grinning. She glanced back at Kagami, who was staring at her with a deadpan expression. "What, not funny?"
In a flat voice, Kagami replied, "That's almost exactly what Konata said to me when I told her."
"Well then, between us, just think of what a brisk business you're going to turn."
The conversation turned to other topics as the meal progressed, and before long Miki found herself helping her husband clear the dishes. Side by side at the sink, she would scrub the various pots and plates as Tadao dried them and returned them to the various cupboards around the room.
"How was your day at the shrine, dear?" Miki asked as she attempted to scrub the last plate of a particularly stubborn morsel of fish.
"The same as usual," came Tadao's simple reply. He reached up to place a stack of bowls on their appropriate shelf. "How was your walk into town?"
"The weather out was perfect. I'm so glad I decided to go." Miki held up the final dish for inspection, nodding at its cleanliness, and passed it to Tadao before beginning to wipe down the countertop.
Tadao dried the last dish and placed it in the cupboard, closing it with a soft thump. He turned around to find Miki staring up at the moon out the kitchen window with a faraway look in her eyes.
Instinctively, Tadao walked across the room and took his wife into his arms, hugging her softly to his chest. "Something wrong, my love?"
Miki closed her eyes and leaned back into her husband. "No. I was just thinking… we really did it, didn't we? All four of our girls are going to make something of themselves. Soon, they'll be away from here and on their way…"
Tadao smiled softly and leaned sideways a bit so he could kiss Miki's cheek. "We did a fine job with them, Miki. They'll do just fine out there. He released his embrace and turned to move out of the kitchen, disappearing around the corner a moment later.
Miki turned back to the window and gazed up at the stars, leaning on the sill. She closed her eyes and smiled. She felt at peace. A long time ago, she would have had a difficult time envisioning this moment in her life, but here she was. At this particular moment, given all she had, she was sure her life couldn't possibly get any better than this. Opening her eyes, she turned and strode softly out of the kitchen, flipping the light switch as she passed.
Across the street from the Hiiragi home, a man in a brown trenchcoat and a fedora was leaning on a low fence at the front of someone's lawn, stationed in the space directly between the two adjacent streetlamps. Given his placement and the brightness contained in the houses around him, he was sure anyone glancing out their window would have a very difficult time noticing him.
He was like a statue in the night, motionless against the fence, eyes trained on the house directly in front of him. He could discern movements through the kitchen window, but given the strong backlight of the room, it was difficult to tell exactly who was moving around. The unfortunate thing about contrasting brightness, he reminded himself, was that it usually worked both ways. I knew I should have brought binoculars.
He was briefly distracted by a tickling sensation on his chin caused by a light breeze that had stirred around him. The man irritably scratched at the shadow of stubble growing out of his face. He felt sloppy. If he hadn't been required to be up so damn early for this surveillance, he would have mercilessly hounded out every strand of stubble this morning. He reached up to scratch his head under the fedora and felt that his hair was beginning to grow close to a half-inch long. He thought he should see about getting that taken care of, as well.
The man began feeling a familiar itching sensation in his lungs. He moved to reach into his pockets for his cigarettes and lighter, but paused when he felt a light buzzing sensation emanating from within his jacket. The small black cellphone was vibrating from its resting place. So much for a quick break. The man retrieved the cellphone and flipped it open, placing the receiver against his ear. "Yes?"
The voice wasted no time. "Status report."
"Nothing special. I can see some movement within the house, but it's hard to make out anything distinct without equipment."
"Is there any possibility she'll be alone?"
"From what I can tell, that's not likely. It looks like they're all starting to settle in for the night."
The voice on the other end of the line fell silent. There was a pause in the conversation, and then: "We don't have time to be subtle. Move in."
The man nodded, a gesture unseen by the voice. "Understood." He snapped the cellphone shut and dropped it back into his pocket. Retrieving his briefcase from its position at his feet, the man pushed off the fence and, bent slightly low, began hustling across the street.
Back in the Hiiragi home, the family was gathering in the living room to watch game shows on TV, an event which had become something of a custom in their home. Most of the family was already seated at the low table; Miki was the only person not present.
"Mom, are you coming?" Matsuri yelled over her shoulder. "The show is about to start!"
"I'll be there in just a minute, dear," Miki called back from the kitchen. Retrieving a glass from the cabinet near the sink, she filled it with water and walked out into the hall. She began moving toward the living room but quickly paused; from where she was standing, she could see down the hall to the front door of the house. It had looked like a shadow had passed under the door, temporarily obscuring the crack of light that shone underneath. Miki stared at the door for a moment longer, shrugged, and stepped forward to enter the living room.
Ding-dong.
Miki blinked in surprise as she stopped in the living room doorway. Someone had been outside after all? "I'll get it" she told her family as she turned back and walked to the front door. Pausing to flip the latch above the handle, she turned the knob and swung the door inward. "Can I help…" Miki's words trailed off into silence as she stood, petrified, at the sight before her, nearly dropping her glass in her fright.
It was the figure from earlier in the afternoon. He loomed large in the doorway, casting a long shadow over Miki, who had shrunken slightly standing before him. Miki's mind began to bulge with questions. Did this mean he had been following her? Who was he? What did he want? The figure raised one of its hands in Miki's direction. She prepared herself to fight off an assault…
…only to pause when the hand lifted further to lift the fedora off the figure's head. Now Miki could make out the figure's features: it was a large man, one who appeared to be slightly older than she was. He had a pair of deep blue eyes set over a thin nose. A long, narrow scar ran down the left side of his face…
A surge of shock ran through Miki's entire body. She knew this man. She hadn't seen him in over twenty years. She was too stunned to move or speak; new questions had begun forming in her mind just as quickly as the first ones had. What was he doing here? How had he found her? If he had gone to the trouble of finding her, it must mean he wanted… no, that wasn't it. That couldn't be it.
The man lowered his hand to hold his hat loosely at his side. Both Miki and the man simply stood motionless, staring at each other. The seconds ticked by. The man was first to break the pressing silence: "Hello, Miki."
Miki immediately became very conscious of her entire family sitting in the next room watching television. She took a step closer and lowered her voice to a near-silent hiss: "What the hell are you doing here?"
The man seemed indifferent to her attempts at remaining unnoticed. "You're a very difficult woman to find, Miki, you know that? It took us a fair amount of resources to track you down. A lot more than most other people we need to find."
The man moved to step into the house. Miki remained still, blocking his path. He checked the motion and paused in the doorway. "Aren't you going to invite me in?"
Miki narrowed her eyes at the man. "Answer my question."
The man sighed. "Look, I know we weren't on the best of terms when we last saw each other, but is the hostility really necessary?
Miki grit her teeth and spoke slowly. "No, I am not going to invite you in," she growled, attempting to control her anger and keep her voice from rising. "I don't know what you're doing here, but I want you away from me, away from this house and far away from my family. And you can pass that along to the old man, who I have no doubt sent you here, because I'm sure as hell you did not go to all the trouble of finding me just so you could make a personal call.
The scene was briefly interrupted by Tadao's head poking around the corner from the living room. "Who was at the door, dear?" He paused, seeing the large, heavily-clothed man standing in the doorway, and the rather irritated look on his wife's face. "Is something wrong?"
Miki answered in a low voice: "Yes, something is wrong. I have informed our visitor he is not welcome here, but he has so far refused to leave."
Tadao stepped out into the hallway, expecting more of an explanation. When he saw none was forthcoming, combined with the dark look on Miki's face, he walked to her side and placed a hand on her shoulder. Turning to face the stranger in his home, he said "Sir, I don't know who you are, but I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask that you leave now. You've clearly upset my wife very much and I think it would be best if you didn't remain any longer."
The man in question remained still in the doorway. His eyes did not shift from Miki the entire time Tadao addressed him. Miki could feel his eyes boring into her; she shut her eyes and spun away from the door, fleeing deeper into the house. She could see her daughters had begun assembling in the living room doorway, slightly bewildered at the scene playing out before them. She kept moving; Tadao would get rid of the man, and then there would doubtlessly be questions to follow. Tadao would want to know who he was. What would she tell him? She could hear him speaking to the man once more: "Sir, please. I'm only going to ask you once more. Leave our home or I'll be forced to contact the authorities." He might listen for now… maybe… but what if he came back? Miki doubted he would just give up and go home; he'd never said why he was here in the first place.
Miki paused at the foot of the stairs to the second floor to look back at the man. He was in the same place he had been before she'd moved, standing in the doorway. His eyes still had not moved from her. She glared back at him angrily, trying to channel all her anger at him for coming here into her gaze. She turned and moved to travel up the stairs and away from everyone.
As she set her foot on the first stair, she heard the man's voice call out to her from behind: "Mikhail Korshunov is alive."
The world seemed to tilt around Miki at that moment, and she had to grab the banister of the stairs to hold herself up. She was certain she hadn't heard that correctly. With deliberate slowness, she turned back to face the man, her eyes wide. In a voice that was near a whisper, she asked: "…What did you just say?"
"You heard me." The man finally took a step forward into the house. Tadao took a step towards him to block his path, but he held up a hand to still him and paused just inside the door. "Mikhail. Korshunov. Is. Alive."
Disbelief exploded in Miki's mind. That wasn't possible. She had been there when… there was a… her mind simply couldn't process the words the man had spoken.
Tadao looked at his wife in concern, his face growing increasingly worried. Her eyes looked like they were going to bulge out of their sockets; she was gripping the banister so hard her hand had turned white nearly up to her wrist. The hand still holding the water glass had tightened its grip so much small cracks had begin to spread across its surface. She was completely paralyzed. Wishing to understand, Tadao asked, "Miki, what is this man talking about? Who is Mikhail Korshunov?"
Miki's eyes slowly shifted to stare at her husband, then to her daughters, who had now all gathered at the door to the living room and were staring at her with as much concern as Tadao, and then to the man, who was still staring at her with his unflinching gaze. There was no escape from this. Even if he left that very second, he was sure to come back. Even if he didn't, her family would want answers; answers she'd never wanted to give to questions they'd never known to ask. And if Mikhail Korshunov was alive…
Tsukasa gasped as Miki seemed to deflate before them. Her shoulders slumped, and her head drooped forward so far it seemed like she was going to pass out. Her long hair, which she had released just after dinner, hung forward, hiding her face. Several tense seconds passed in silence. Finally, Miki said in a dull, quiet voice: "Come in." She turned and shuffled off towards the kitchen. "I'll put on some tea.
Tadao sat warily in his seat at the kitchen table. Across from him, the man rested his forearms on the table, studying Miki intensely from his position. He had laid his fedora on the table at his side and loosened his trenchcoat, revealing the plain black suit he was wearing underneath. His briefcase was leaning on the table leg at his feet. At the counter, Miki went through the motions of preparing tea with a mechanical slowness. She lifted a tray from the counter and moved it back to them, placing a cup of steaming brew before both men before slumping into her own seat between them.
On the other side of the now-closed kitchen door, the Hiiragi sisters were gathered closely. Matsuri had her ear pressed low to the kitchen door, with Kagami right above her, and Inori over both of them, though without her head physically touching the wood. Behind the three of them, Tsukasa was hovering nervously, a disquieted expression on her face. With a bit of effort, all four of them were able to hear the muted clinking of glasses on the other side of the door.
The man took a sip of his tea and set the cup back on the saucer before him, his gaze flicking between Miki and Tadao every few seconds. Tadao's eyes were glued to his wife, who had not moved since she had taken her place at the table. She sat in nearly the same position she had assumed in the hallway: her hands folded in her lap, with her shoulders slumped forward and her eyes fixed on the table.
Tadao glanced backwards at the closed kitchen door; he'd closed it in attempt to get some privacy from his daughters, whom he had no desire to worry. Turning back to Miki, he reached slowly over to lay a hand on her shoulder and said "Miki, I don't know what's going on here, but I want you to know I'm here for you… I don't like seeing you this upset." Miki did not react to her husband's touch or words. Withdrawing slowly back to his own seat, unsure of what else to do, Tadao turned to the stranger at the table and attempted to put some steel into his voice. "I think you need to explain who you are and what you're doing here. I've never seen anything affect my wife this way…"
The man held up a hand for silence. He too was now staring at the closed kitchen door. Pushing up from his seat, he slowly circled around the table and stepped towards it, his size preventing him from being very silent or unobtrusive.
Back on the other side of the door, the Hiiragi sisters could hear someone approaching. Tsukasa squeaked in fright and bolted off, quickly darting across the hallway and up the stairs. The other three scrambled away into the living room as quickly as they could.
The man listened to the cavalcade of noise emanating from the other side of the door, nodded, and returned to his seat at the table, satisfied the intrusion had been dealt with. Tadao simply stared at the man, slightly bewildered. He wasn't sure how he had known someone was on the other side of the door. He wasn't sure he wanted to know, either.
The man took notice of Tadao staring at him. "My apologies. I wished to be sure there were no intrusions on our conversation."
Tadao did not respond to this. "I'll try again: who are you, and what are you doing here?"
The man took another sip of his tea before responding. "I am an old acquaintance of your wife's. We go back a long time, she and I. We worked together once upon a time."
Tadao frowned. "Worked together?"
As silently as they could, Kagami, Inori, and Matsuri crept out of the living room and back to the sealed kitchen door. Motioning each other for silence, they resumed their previous positions and strained to make out any noise from within. They thought they could make out their father's muffled voice: "Worked together?"
The man frowned at this inquiry; clearly, he had not expected this question. He turned to Miki. "I can understand him not knowing about Korshunov, but I thought you at least planned to tell him that."
Miki made no indication she had heard this comment directed at her. Her focus remained locked on the table before her, as if her interest had been totally absorbed by the patterns in the wood.
Tadao was now beginning to grow afraid. Doing his level best to keep an edge of nervousness out of his voice, he asked "...Told me what?"
The man sighed. "Perhaps proper introductions are in order." He reached into the pocket of his coat and removed what appeared to be a small, black leather wallet. Flipping it open, he laid it flat on the table and slid it towards Tadao. Tadao gripped it with the tips of his fingers and pulled it towards him, flipping it so it was facing the right direction.
Inside the top half of the wallet was a laminated card; it was written in English, which had never been Tadao's strong suit, but he did his best to make sense of it. The left side of the card held an upper-body shot of the man wearing a fine blue jacket. On the right was a list of basic information, at the top of which was his name. James Fower. In the bottom of the wallet was placed a gold emblem. It resembled an eagle with its wings outstretched, standing on a miniature globe with an anchor through it. Inscribed beneath the globe was a title. United States Marine Corps.
Tadao frowned up at the man "James" seated before him. "I don't understand."
"No doubt you'll hear the whole story, but I'll begin with the important bits," James responded, taking another sip of his tea. "This will come as a shock to you, but subtlety and tact are, regretfully, not my strong points. So, I'll throw it right out there. Miki used to serve with me in the Corps. And now that we know Korshunov is alive, the Corps needs her back."