Chapter Two: A Little Bottle
"Drink up, boy." Sato Sensei handed Sendoh a glass of brandy.
Sendoh obeyed, feeling much better at once when the brandy touched his lips. Sato Sensei gave him an assuring pat on the shoulder, and left the room.
A thousand wild thoughts had been running through Sendoh's mind, almost driving him mad. The thought of Uozumi being poisoned… being murdered…
He shook his head furiously. They must have made a mistake, them goddamn police!
It just can't be…A sudden shiver ran down his spine, and he hurriedly took another sip of brandy to steady his nerves.
It was horrible.
Uozumi, poor Uozumi…He downed the whole glass of brandy.
** **
"Out of bounds, boy! Out of bounds!" A police officer shooed Mitsui and Miyagi away from Uozumi's room.
"Drats!" Mitsui cursed. Miyagi muttered something of the like. The duo left the area resignedly.
"Who d'you think did him in, Mitsui?" Miyagi asked.
"I don't know, Miyagi. It seems like an inside job…" Mitsui's voice trailed off.
"I can't believe it! One of us here! A murderer!" Miyagi's voice trembled with a sort of ghoulish excitement.
"But there it is," Mitsui said, his voice hard. "A murderer is among our midst."
"Do'ahou." That cold, familiar voice floated to them. They turned around.
"Why, Rukawa? Have a theory of your own?" Mitsui sneered.
"It may've been suicide or a fit," Rukawa said coolly.
"Nonsense." Mitsui retorted, and left with Miyagi.
** **
"Inspector," Sato Sensei began. "Will a post-mortem be necessary?"
Inspector Tatsuya nodded gravely in response.
Sato shook his head and sighed a little.
"A bad business, this is," he said.
"Since you're here, Mr. Sato, could we start with you? The questioning, I mean."
"Yes, yes of course."
The two men settled down in one of the vacant rooms, and were shortly joined by Inspector Takeshi.
"I suppose it's the routine stuff, eh? Well, my name is Kenji Sato, 43 this year, a basketball coach by profession. I live in Kanagawa."
"You arrived here – when?"
"Two days ago, Sir," Sato replied. "I should say a little over 6pm. They were having dinner when I arrived."
"I understand there was a chartered bus that ferried everyone here."
"Yes, there was."
The ensuing pause made Sato feel rather uncomfortable. Inspector Tatsuya looked at him, clearly expectant of an explanation of sorts.
"I – I have a car, Sir."
"Where were you before you came here?"
Sato replied that he had been in his home at Kanagawa. Nothing else of use was elicited from him. He was dismissed.
The inspectors' next interview was with Miyagi.
"How well did you know Jun Uozumi?"
"Not very well. I knew him by sight, of course, and that he held the position of captain in Ryonan. We've met on court twice. Other than that, this camp is the first time I've encountered him."
"When was the last time you saw him?"
Miyagi reflected.
"Last night, I believe."
"What time?"
"I really can't say I noticed – oh! 10pm. No, 10.30pm. I just remembered. NBA Inside Stuff was showing on TV then, and I hollered from downstairs for all of them to come down. That was 10pm. The show ended at 10.30pm and all of them went back up to resume their game of cards, or whatever. So 10.30pm would be the last time I saw the poor guy."
Inspector Tatsuya nodded. Beside him, Inspector Rei Takeshi was furiously scribbling away in her notebook.
"Who was watching television with you? Or rather, who had been playing cards upstairs?"
"Let me see now," Miyagi paused, reflecting. "Maki and Jin and Fukuda – they were watching TV with me. I'm pretty sure the rest of them were upstairs – playing cards or not I don't know. They may've been in their rooms. You'll have to check with the others on that point."
"We will. Well, where were you between 2-3am?"
"I was watching TV with Sendoh, the cook – Annie, was it? – and the cleaner, Rika. Late night horror movie."
After a few more questions, Miyagi was dismissed. Next was Mitsui. The earlier part of his evidence was basically a repetition of Miyagi's.
"I heard you were playing cards last night."
"Yes, we were playing Bridge."
"Who?"
"Sakuragi, Uozumi, Sendoh, Kiyota, Akina and I."
Inspector Tatsuya was just about to open his mouth when Rei interpolated.
"Where was Rukawa?" She asked.
"He was… I don't know, Inspector. He wasn't with us. I think he was back in his room. He'd been browsing through the books in the bookcase, and when we came he just left rather sulkily."
Suddenly, a thought struck Mitsui. His face became alighted with excitement.
"Inspector, we had coffee last night. The coffee was left unattended for half an hour at least when we went down for TV."
"Coffee!" Rei cried eagerly. "Why didn't anybody tell us? Who brought the coffee up?"
"Sendoh did." Mitsui replied.
"What time was that?"
"Just before we went down for TV."
"You were watching an NBA show?"
Mitsui nodded.
"What about this… Akina? Did she go down with you all?"
"No, I rather think she stayed behind. Oh, inspector! You don't think…!"
So! In the space of half an hour, both Akina and Rukawa could've administered the strychnine. Why hadn't he thought of it before?
"I think nothing." Rei replied, a little smile playing on her lips.
"Am I allowed to resume my questioning, Inspector Takeshi?" Inspector Tatsuya said, a faint annoyance in his voice.
"Of course, of course."
Mitsui had no alibi. He had been up sleeping in his room between 2-3am. Nobody could verify that.
"Inspector, could I say something?" Mitsui asked before he was dismissed. "Something struck me was very odd, Inspector. Rukawa is a very quiet and indifferent person, you see. And yet today he spontaneously put forward his own theory as to the tragedy."
"And what was his theory?"
"That Uozumi committed suicide, or died from natural causes."
"Ah, that is very suggestive. We are much obliged to you."
Mitsui left the room, and Sakuragi entered.
"I didn't do it, I tell you!" He exclaimed, before any question had been asked.
Inspector Tatsuya sighed. He had come across many Sakuragis before. No new facts were elicited from him. He had no alibi.
Inspector Tatsuya thought: "He is very vehement, this one. I wonder why…?"
Jin was next. His evidence was a repetition of everyone's. It was a horrible thing to happen. Why should anyone want Uozumi dead? He didn't understand. No, he didn't know Uozumi well at all. When was the last time he had seen Uozumi alive? About 1am.
"1am, you say?" Inspector Tatsuya leaned forward, interested.
"Y-Yes. He was talking to Sakuragi outside his room."
"Aha!"
Jin was dismissed, and Sakuragi was called in again. What had they been talking about? Basketball tactics.
Inspector Tatsuya thought: "A likely story!"
After Sakuragi had been dismissed again, an excited police officer came rushing into the room.
"Ma'am! We searched the area like you told us to" – Inspector Tatsuya frowned at Rei, obviously unhappy about not being informed about this action – "and we found it!"
"Fantastic!" Rei said happily. The police officer handed her a little bottle sealed in transparent plastic.
"Outside which room window was it found?" Rei asked.
"Room 6, Ma'am. Akina Shidou's room."
** **
Akina Shidou was cool and wary.
"Akina Shidou, 26. I'm a fashion consultant."
Inspector Tatsuya observed her. She seemed vaguely familiar to him…
He was sure he'd seen her before. No, not on the job. Just somewhere…
He couldn't remember.
"Did you know Jun Uozumi well?"
"No, not at all. I only arrived yesterday."
"When did you last see him?"
"About 12am, I suppose. I really cannot be sure."
"I heard you stayed behind instead of going down with the boys to watch TV."
Akina shrugged her elegant shoulders.
"Is that important?" She asked.
"You had half an hour to yourself. You could easily have administered the strychnine, Miss Shidou."
Again she shrugged.
"So the stuff really was in the coffee, then?"
"You should know best, Miss Shidou." Inspector Tatsuya looked her in the eye.
She returned his gaze steadily.
"That was a horribly suggestive thing to say," Akina said finally. "And anyway, you've got it wrong. I didn't have half an hour to myself."
"What's that?"
"The boy – Lukawa, was it? He was browsing through the books for half an hour."
"And what about yourself? What did you do?"
"I?" She said, a faint insolence in her voice. "I minded my own business, Inspector."
"So if Rukawa had introduced the strychnine, you would've seen?
"I had my back turned."
"Did Jun Uozumi disapprove of you in any way? Or vice versa?"
She smiled a weary smile.
"Why hardly, my dear man. We'd exchanged less than 20 sentences."
After a few more questions, she got up and left.
"She is very beautiful," Inspector Tatsuya pointed out suddenly.
"And very tired." Rei said flatly.
Surely a woman as beautiful as Akina Shidou could be no murderess! But yet the most beautiful women had been known to poison…
** **
The next person they interviewed was Kaede Rukawa. He showed no signs of anxiety, distress, or nervousness. Most unusual, perhaps, too unusual…
"Where were you between 2-3am?"
"Sleeping in my room."
"Have you any information you think might be relevant?"
"No."
"Were you drinking coffee and playing cards with the rest?"
"No."
"I heard the coffee was left untouched on the bookcase table for about half an hour."
"I'm not sure."
"Could you have – "
"I didn't, whatever you say."
"Now, come on. Let's just say nobody was around. It'd be easy, wouldn't it? To just go to the area and introduce the strychnine?"
"I didn't go near the area." He said firmly.
"Funny. Miss Shidou said she saw you. I suppose she was hallucinating?"
There was a slight pause before Rukawa finally spoke.
"Perhaps."
"I heard you had a very interesting theory as to how Uozumi died."
"No comments."
Nothing more could be drawn out of him.
** **
Next, the inspectors interviewed Annie the cook and Rika the cleaner, a pretty young girl with a gipsy-type face, Fukuda, Sendoh and Maki. They could tell little. Mrs. Mizuno, however, had something to say.
"Is it true that it was strychnine?" She asked.
Inspector Takeshi nodded.
"So it is true…" She paused. "Look, Inspector, I'm not sure if this is of use, but a bottle of strychnine is missing from the kitchen. I took it out yesterday to poison a dog – laid it on the table, I think, and then went off to do something else – and it's been missing ever since. Of course I could've misplaced it – "
Inspector Takeshi held up the little bottle for Mrs. Mizuno to see.
"Is this the missing bottle, Mrs. Mizuno?"
Mrs. Mizuno drew in a sharp breath.
"My lord, it is!"
** **
After the questioning was over, the two Inspectors discussed.
"By the way, Takeshi, where was the bottle found?"
"Below Shidou's room – it was in the bushes. It was thrown out of the window, I think. It may've been planted there, of course."
Inspector Tatsuya shook his head.
"You think too complicated, Takeshi. My bet's on Shidou. She poisoned the boy, and then threw the bottle out of the window. Thought that that was that, but of course we found it."
"Akina Shidou is intelligent. Don't ask me to believe that she would just chuck the bottle out of the window like that!" Rei retorted.
"Well," Inspector Tatsuya shrugged. "What do you think, then?"
Rei scribbled on her notebook for about 10 minutes, then showed it to Inspector Tatsuya.
Strychnine bottle found outside Room 6 – why?
Explanation 1: Akina Shidou had it in her possession, and disposed of it by throwing it out of her window.
For: Lack of time for proper disposal.
Against: She had been to town in the morning. What could be easier than to bring the bottle with her and dispose of it somewhere far away from Quinn's hostel?
-
Explanation 2: Somebody else (X, for example) had it in their possession, and threw it out of their window, as far away as possible. Without deliberate purpose, it had landed below the window of Room 6.
For: This theory is perfectly plausible.
Conclusion: X is someone whose room is on the same side as Akina's (i.e. Room 1 to 7)
-
Explanation 3: X had it in his/her possession and manually placed the bottle in the bushes outside the hostel. Intention not known.
For: Plausible.
Conclusion: X is probably someone whose room is NOT on the same side as Akina's (i.e. Room 8 to 14, Mrs. Mizuno's and the servants' rooms, and therefore had no means of making it land below the window of Room 6).
But WHY? If above conclusion is correct, that means X planted it below Room 6 with the deliberate intent of letting the police find it THERE.
-
Inspector Tatsuya re-read the page.
"You are quite right," he finally admitted. "Akina Shidou is not brainless."
** **
Mitsui recounted to Miyagi all that had passed in his interview with the inspectors with much excitement.
"Rukawa!" Miyagi exclaimed. "It's very suspicious, ain't it? The way he keeps stressing that Uozumi died of natural causes," – Miyagi made a face – "Ridiculous theory, if you ask me."
"But the bottle was found outside Akina's room!" Mitsui said, vexed. "This is all so confusing."
Mitsui and Miyagi had been snooping around, and through a piece of sheer luck, managed to witness the police extracting a little bottle from the bushes. After some investigation, they found that it was below Akina's window. The fact that the bottle had contained strychnine was just pure guesswork on their part.
"Akina and Rukawa – our two greatest suspects. I can imagine Rukawa as a murderer, but Akina?" Miyagi wondered aloud.
"Looks can be deceiving," Mitsui warned. "And we mustn't forget Sendoh. He was the one who poured out the coffee, remember."
Miyagi waved away this suggestion airily.
"Nah, the stuff wasn't in the coffee. Uozumi took it at around 2-3am!"
"Oh yeah…"
Mitsui shook his head, frustrated.
"I don't understand, Miyagi. We could look all we want for clues and stuff, but always it's back to the same question. WHY on earth would anyone want Uozumi dead?"
Miyagi shrugged.
"For that we'll just have to snoop around some more, I guess."
Author's note:
Yay! Chapter 2 completed. Please R&R =D
To anyone that reads "The Detention Diaries" (my first fic that's still on-going. If you haven't read it, go! =P), I won't be updating for a while because I've run out of ideas. My brain's burned out! Hehe =X