Splintered Mirror
Chapter 10
Atobe tried Shiroi's mobile phone again, to no avail. Asakura said the phone was either broken or dead. There was not GPS or phone signal that could be picked up by a telecommunications tower. The bank showed a large withdrawal on the day he ran out on Fuji 20 kilometres away from home. He was relieved that Shiroi at least had some common sense to take all the money that Atobe had given him for his spending. It meant he would not be completely helpless and he had more options.
However, there were no more progress after that. Not from the hospitals or the morgue, which at least was good news. In the week following Shiroi's disappearance, Atobe started going around the neighbourhood and dodgy places to look for Shiroi. However, after a week of frustration and no progress, he could not justify slacking from work and inviting danger to his person. Asakura had been giving him hard looks lately for making his life difficult. Narrow back alleys and crowded clubs were a security nightmare.
Atobe threw the latest financial report from Taiwan down. The words and numbers swam unhelpfully before his eyes while all he could think of a helpless frightened Shiroi. He had been debating with Asakura about alerting the police. The fact that Shiroi did not have any legal identity or document made his circumstances difficult to explain to the law. That was when he remembered someone who has family connections with the police force that could possibly be of help.
At Atobe Mansion, Atobe Keigo sat on the plush armchair, cross-armed and tapping his foot impatiently. Servants streamed into the room one by one, carrying boxes labelled 'Hyoutei Junior High Tennis Club'. He could see the plumes of dust as Michael opened each box one by one.
Each shake of Michael's head, a manservant would close the box and take it away from the room. A slight nod would set it aside by the corner of the room, where another group would take every item out to be cleaned and arranged neatly on a pushcart. Files and notebooks piled up. Two hundred members for three years each generated quite a large pile of paper work. His secretary went through these one by one, picking an item or two from the piles and waving the rest off. The selected items were finally presented to Atobe who would flip through the pages and sent back to the rest of the pile to be packed and sent back to storage.
Finally, she brought him a thin yellow file. He scanned the list within. With an imperious wave, he told the room that he had found the object he was looking for and they may clean everything up now. In ten seconds, Atobe had secluded himself in his home office.
The first number he tried was no longer in-service. He was not surprised. He hoped the second number still worked. It gave a promising ring.
"Hello?" a pleasant female voice answered.
"Good evening. Is this Sanada residence?"
Yes, it was. No, Genichirou was not in. He lived in Yokohama now. Yes, she had his new address and contact number.
The next two numbers were utter failures. One went to a random house in Tokyo, the other to someone in Kobe. After what Fuji told him, he had not expected any positive results from Tezuka's old home and mobile numbers. But he certainly would not trust Fuji's words completely. He shrugged it off and called the number Sanada's mother gave him.
"Sanada speaking," a deep male voice answered at precisely three rings.
"Atobe here."
"Atobe? From Saitama Bureau?"
"What? There is one and only ore-sama!"
"Oh ... that Atobe. Why are you calling me?"
"I need a favour."
It took some persuasion but Sanada finally agreed to meet him. Atobe refused to talk over the phone about it. He knew it would only pique Sanada's curiosity and forced Sanada to meet face to face.
Sanada found Atobe was all ready waiting for him in a private room at a well-appointed tea house. He looked out of place, with his smart Armani suit and blinding metallic silver silk tie, sitting on flat cushion with folded limbs and a delicate teacup.
"I took the liberty of ordering something appropriate," Atobe said by way of greeting, taking a sip of gyokuro tea.
Sanada winced. He did not patronise that tea house often, only with his grandfather and in company of his superiors. He tried not to look too closely at the bill each time. By the fragrance wafting from the pot, Atobe's bill would be enormous.
Sanada scowled at him. "You haven't changed. I thought you went to US or was it UK?"
"Eton, UK. Then US. Harvard."
"Why are you back in Japan?"
"I am a Japanese citizen, you know."
"Why do you want to meet up, Atobe?"
"Straight to the point, I see. I remembered you had a grandfather in the police force."
"What about it?"
"Does he know a Tezuka in Tokyo Metropolitan police force?"
"Tezuka? There was a Tezuka. I used to watch them play shogi. It not an uncommon surname. There's an Atobe or two in Tokyo Met too."
"Completely unrelated, I'm sure," Atobe huffed. "I'm looking for Tezuka Kunimitsu's grandfather. Teaches judo, likes fishing. Don't know what's his full name." Atobe hoped he could get somewhere with Tezuka's grandfather. It was at least a known organisation. Tezuka's father was a salary man and he did not know which company or even what industry Tezuka's father worked in.
"Tezuka Kunimitsu? Seishun Gakuen's Tezuka Kunimitsu?" Sanada gave Atobe a hard look. "Atobe, isn't it about time you get over your obsession with Tezuka?"
"It's not what you think. I just want to get in touch with his family."
Sanada gave him a disbelieving snort. "Sorry, I can't help you."
"I know you can find out. Just ask your grandfather."
"No. I refuse to help you stalk Tezuka. Really, after 8 years, you need a shrink." Sanada rose to leave when Atobe childishly pinched him on the arm. "Ow!"
"Sit down. I'm not done yet." Atobe's voice was sharp with indignation. "I am not stalking him. Tezuka is missing. Before you accuse me of being some sick pervert, I'm trying to find a missing person."
"What do you mean missing? Tell me everything you know. Don't leave anything out, Atobe, or I'll know about it."
"Tezuka ran away ..." Atobe found himself telling Sanada about everything that happened since he found Shiroi. Sanada listened intently to the whole story, making small notes. When he finished, Sanada started questioning him about certain points, casting doubts on the accuracy of his memory. He also focused quite a bit on his conversation with Fuji Syuusuke.
At the end of the hour, Atobe felt it was rather unfair. He was supposed to get information from Sanada, not spill everything to him. Somehow, in the intervening years, Sanada's training in the police academy had turned him into a formidable interrogator. And it felt good to finally tell someone of his suspicions and worries. Even someone like Sanada Genichirou.
"Sanada, can you check it out? An address or phone number ..."
Sanada turned his cooling teacup slowly. "There's no need to. Tezuka Kunikazu passed away some time ago. My grandfather knew him quite well. They used to meet twice a year. I think I was still in senior high school when he died in a car accident, along with his son and daughter-in-law. The police Family Welfare took care of their funeral arrangements."
"What about Tezuka Kunimitsu? Those has to be his parents. His father was an only child and his grandfather lived with them."
"I don't know. Didn't he go to Germany on JTA scholarship? Renji mentioned Tezuka got in. I heard he had recommendations from all 3 Junior Senbatsu coaches. He wasn't at the funeral. Grandfather would have mentioned it if he was at the funeral. It was a bad tragedy. Drunk driver in a loaded truck hit their car. Most of the people at the memorial were from police force - colleagues, students, people from his old cases. Some neighbours and a few men from the son's company showed up. There were no other children or teenagers at that funeral. None of Tezuka's friends went, as far as I know."
"I've never heard of it. Surely Tezuka would have mentioned something. Or one of his friends. Did anyone report a missing person on Tezuka at that time?" Atobe said thoughtfully.
"Atobe, what are you saying? Why would anyone report Tezuka as missing? I thought you said Tezuka is missing now."
"He is. I wondered if he was, back then. Now that I think about it ... the last time I saw him was before I left for London. I offered to fly him with me on private jet to London. But he had all ready booked to fly Narita-Frankfurt."
"There was no missing person report on Tezuka. Grandfather would have said something if there was a police investigation. He knew I knew the grandson."
"That's too bad."
"Sorry, I can't help much. You should report missing person to Tokyo Met." Atobe was silent. Seeing Atobe's reluctance, Sanada relented. "Look, I'll keep an eye out for reports on anyone resembling Tezuka. Let me know if there's anything new. Do you have a recent photo?"
Atobe shook his head. "He is ... rather camera shy. Actually, he was strangely upset over the most trivial things. "
"Atobe, you don't have room to talk about strange tastes." Sanada remembered Atobe's more western affections. Strange tastes indeed to someone like Sanada and Tezuka's more traditional upbringing.
"I didn't ask unreasonable things," Atobe said rather defensively. "Just a simple photo for his phone wallpaper. Or cut that ridiculously long hair. He went into hysterics. He ... Sanada, you won't believe it till you see him. He's changed. He's not like the Tezuka we knew."
"When you find him, I'll see for myself." Both of them lapsed into thoughtful silence. After a moment, Sanada said, "You've changed too, Atobe. For the better, I think."
Atobe snorted delicately and dropped his card into Sanada's lap. "Call me!" he demanded.
On the trip back from Kanagawa to Tokyo, Atobe remained thoughtful. Sanada had just reminded him that Tezuka had a JTA scholarship. Sakaki-sensei had been disappointed when Atobe had declined the offer, saying that his father had enrolled him in a high school in UK. Surely they had some sort of records of which academy Tezuka had enrolled in. Perhaps he could pick up the trail from there.
Three days later, his head of security, Asakura, returned with a slim folder. "JTA did list Tezuka Kunimitsu as recipient of JTA scholarship. He was earmarked as one of the young talents with potential to represent Japan in the next Olympics. He was enrolled in Manneheim Pro Tennis Academy and Arisada Japanese International School for three-year study. He did not register in both schools and was reported as 'no show'. I've also checked JAL's flights on the date you have specified. There was a ticket booked under his name on 6:15 am flight from Narita to Frankfurt. He was not on the passenger list of the flight. Again, 'no show'. That's all the official records we have."
He pause a moment as Atobe fingered the photocopied lists, official letters and forms.
"I took the liberty of checking the news around these dates. It was a long shot. There's a newspaper report of a car accident involving a Tezuka family. Tezuka Kunikazu, Tezuka Ayana and Tezuka Kuniharu were killed in a car accident in Edogawa prefecture in the early morning. The timing and the location fit."
Asakura paused for a moment. His boss's knuckles were white as he clenched the arms of his swivel chair. "Tezuka Kunikazu. Sanada said his grandfather's name was Tezuka Kunikazu! Why is Tezuka's name not on the news? Was he in the accident or was it after his family left him at the airport?"
"He was in the accident. As a minor, his name and identity was withheld from the press. It was not easy to get hospital records dated that far back. He was admitted into Edogawa Hospital ER at 3:59 am on April 2nd. He was in ICU for 17 days, then transferred to trauma ward. He was transferred 32 days later to Edokita Nursing Home. On 8th November, he was discharged from Edokita."
"He was in Tokyo all this time! When I thought he was in Germany... Damned it, Tezuka! Why didn't you call me? I could have helped."
"Master Keigo, would you like me to get the medical charts from Edogawa Hospital? It will take time to hunt down the actual paperworks. And it would be better to hire a private detective if you want to dig for more information about this person." Asakura could not help the disapproving tone in his voice. He was hired to ensure Atobe Keigo's safety. He did not see how running around digging into Tezuka's past would help him do that. It would make sense if this Tezuka was sending threatening letters or stalking Atobe, but that was not the case. He was also not too thrilled to find Atobe's sudden shift of interest from the missing Shiroi to the mysterious Tezuka.
"No, that won't be necessary. Send someone to find the medical records from the hospital. You could speak to someone from Edokita and find out why he was in a nursing home. See if anyone remembered him and what happened after he was discharged."
"Master Keigo ..."
"I can't to hire an investigator. Father will find out and ask unnecessary questions. You and your men will have to do."
"Sir ..."
Atobe's mobile phone rang from an unknown caller id. It was 12:01 pm, Atobe's usual lunch-break. Asakura suppressed the urge to sigh as Atobe waved him out imperiously.
"Hello, Keigo-sama," Shiroi's voice drifted softly through the speaker.
"Shiroi!" Atobe was stunned. "Where are you?"
"... Osaka, Keigo-sama. Sorry. Shiroi is sorry, Keigo-sama. Sorry for leaving suddenly. Sorry for calling Keigo-sama at work."
"Shiroi! Ore-sama want you to come back immediately. What are you doing in Osaka?"
"Shiroi doesn't know. Shiroi woke up here and there was a note. He tears Shiroi's notebook! The nice notebook Ayako-san gave Shiroi."
Who was 'he'? Atobe puzzled. But more importantly, "What note?"
"It says 'Last station on Tokaido Shinkansen is Osaka. This address is XX, Higashi jima, Higashi dougawa-ku, Osaka city. Stay away from Tokyo.' Keigo-sama, Shiroi sorry, Keigo-sama. Shiroi can't go back to Tokyo. He said so. Please, don't be angry with Shiroi."
Atobe could hear the little sobs on the other side. He gentled his tone. "I'm not angry, Shiroi. I am worried. Now, why don't you come home. We can talk about this."
"No! Please, Keigo-sama. Shiroi promise to be good. Please, Keigo-sama. Please don't make Shiroi to go back. He will find Shiroi again. And then the other one will wake up and ... and ..."
"Who?"
"Fu ... Fuji-san. He won't leave Shiroi alone, Keigo-sama. And he's waking the Other. He's sleeping now. But he was awake and he took Shiroi away. And now Shiroi is lost and Shiroi can't go back to Tokyo. And if Fuji-san ... if Fuji-san finds Shiroi, he will wake up again. He will wake up and hurt Fuji-san."
Atobe winced. That last part was practically a panicked wail. "All right, all right, Shiroi. Don't cry. Calm down. Whatever the problem, I'll take care of it. Don't worry. Just ..."
"No ... please, Keigo-sama. Please, please, please ..." There was genuine fear in Shiroi's voice.
Atobe could feel an impending headache. "All right. All right. You don't have to come back to Tokyo. Where are you staying?" Shiroi gave him the address again. "Stay where you are and don't move. I'll come and get you, understand? Stay there."
"Yes, Keigo-sama. Shiroi is going back to the room right now. Shiroi will wait there for Keigo-sama. Shiroi will be good and wait quietly."
After Shiroi hung up, Atobe called Ayako in. "Prepare my car and private jet. I'm going to Osaka. Have a car ready to pick me up at Osaka airport. And cancel all my appointments for today."
Note:
* Gyokuro (Jewel/Jade Dew) - fine and expensive green tea, different from normal green tea (sencha) because it is grown under the shade rather than the full sun. Infusion is pale green colour. Properly prepared with warm (40°C) water and long steeping time.
* Toukaidou Shinkansen - bullet train from Tokyo to Shin Osaka, travelling 515 km in 3 hours.
Responses to Reviewers
See! I'm not so evil to poor Shiroi.
Aan: Thank you for your wonderful feedback. It helps to know I'm on the right track in developing Shiroi's character, and figuring out the dilemma that I was setting up. Funny you should mention Sanada/Tezuka … Please tune in next week for the next major arc! ^.^ OK, OK, the naughty Sanada/Tezuka fic is in the mixing tank and getting blended. It will take a while before it it's ready to be baked. :D
jadeskye79 : Thank you! Writing Inui is strangely easy for me, though I had to pick up a few Japanese grammar terminology.
Kamu : Gracias (that's the limit of my Spanish). I have to depend on Google to Translate the review. Glad you enjoyed the story so far.
geecee: Phew! Thanks. Here is the promised chapter on Atobe's side. Bleach - glad to know I'm not the only one that finds it boring till my favourites show up. Favourites being Byakuya, Grimmjow, Ishida father (Narita Ken!) and son, etc. It's bad when the omake/end-mini-story is more interesting than the main body. Tenipuri – It's lame and I wouldn't put it past him recycling plot devices as usual. Yeah, poor Tez wins are too easy and his losses are just Konomi-Ryoma's inferiority complex to prove Ryoma is better than Tez indirectly. Evidence: new Court 2 members. I guess I'd still look fwd to Atobe and Yukimura. I hope he doesn't short change Yukimura too. Tez vs Yukimura is too much to hope for, which is too bad. Since Tezuka overcame yips, he is the only one capable of countering Yukimura's tennis without ultra-sparkly Teni'muhou.