Chapter 2
It was a decent block of accommodations, although dimly lit and poorly designed in such a way that the courtyard itself was a wind tunnel that she struggled to navigate at the risk of either being plastered against the buildings or lifted by an icy gust rushing beneath her oversized jumper. At one in the morning, curtains were drawn and the occasional window glowed with the flicker of a night light. Not a soul wandered the block, which meant that it was clear for Yuya to mosey around and locate a way into Apartment 18, Block D without getting blown off a rainwater downpipe trying to reach the fourth floor.
Her fantasy of re-enacting master thieves as they slinked between shadows was short-lived and quickly replaced by pragmatism. She buzzed Apartment 17, lied effortlessly about a pizza delivery for Apartment 14, humoured the old lady over the entry phone about how inconsiderate the neighbours were, and within minutes she stood in front of a wooden door with two potted cacti on each side.
Breaking and entering was the absolute last resort. But having exhausted all her leads as to Kumiko's whereabouts, Yuya was no longer above trespassing. And therefore, reluctantly looked upon the key that she'd discovered taped to the bottom of the welcome mat, now glinting accusingly in the palm of her hand.
"Sorry Kumiko-san. Ojama shimasu." Yuya muttered as the lock clicked open.
Thankfully it was a small studio. Switching on her small headlamp, Yuya went to work..
The flat itself was undisturbed, completely ordinary and minimalist, much like the young missing woman herself. Kumiko had been described as a soft-spoken, easily effaced woman by a number of concerned colleagues. She kept her head down, ruffled no feathers, Kumiko was your ordinary office woman among an ocean of other faceless ordinary office women who came to the city for a better living. No apparent friends at work or known next-of-kin, it had taken three days of absence without leave before the police was alerted. And even then, it seemed that they had not seen fit to prioritise her disappearance given that the flat remained entirely untouched a week since the reporting.
Kumiko lived alone, by the tell-tale row of office shoes, and the lone set of tableware that were propped up on the drying rack. As far as contacts would go, it seemed that angle was a dead end.
No signs of struggle, furniture seemed in place. The wardrobe had not been emptied although some unused hangers could have been an indication that she had selected a couple of outfits to take away. Judging by the number of black pencil skirts, formal blouses and blazers, they could have just been other business attire.
Huffing in frustration at the lack of any clues so far, Yuya turned her head to the far corner where a small desk was set up.
Leaving the best for last.
Atop Kumiko's desk were neatly lined stationery, some make up and a few novels. Still nothing amiss until Yuya started opening drawers and thought she'd hit jackpot. Within them were business cards for loan services, snippets of job vacancies, a few distasteful brochures with scantily clad women in suggestive positions.
And then Yuya found the final pieces.
Stacked in the lowest drawer under neat files of household bills and shopping expenses was an old-school bank account booklet. And within it were entries after entries of transactions. The last page had had some sort of drink spilled over blurring at least half of its contents. Judging by the overall figures the sums were significant and certainly not consistent with what an entry-level admin assistant would be earning or spending. Was Kumiko an heiress?
Separately, Yuya found a diary of names, dates and more numbers. Were these debts? Was Kumiko having financial troubles? Was she desperately looking for another job?
It was hard to tell in the dark, and... Drats! She had twenty minutes to get back to the bus stop... At least for tonight a lead had been found. Given how slowly the police were dealing with this, surely no one would miss the booklets for a few days. She would put them return them once she had a chance to review them and none would be the wiser. Convinced by her plan, Yuya pocketed them and started to make her way out.
One last thing. Reaching over to the landline, she hit 'Redial'.
Please Kumiko, please tell me you called your father. Or for a male companion…
"Hello! Thank you for calling High Heavens – "
Turning abruptly to shuffle through the pamphlets that were scattered in the drawer, she found one that matched.
Damn it.
High Heavens. Come Meet Angels on Earth.
Yuya cringed as the slogan came back to her mind as she opened the door to her flat. God, who came up with these things. There had to be a convention where the gaudy met to decide marketing strategies for debauchery. High Heaven had chosen orange, hot pink and gold. Nice and subtle. Just in case that wasn't kitsch enough, the flyer featured a pair of legs, spread immodestly - she supposed they were meant to be like wings - with 'HH' nestled between them because god forbid if anyone misunderstood what High Heaven offered. Why did they ask the model to wear these particular strappy heels, the ones that were tied a little too tightly and bit into flesh? Was there a meaning behind it? They looked terribly painful. Come meet uncomfortable Angels?
High Heaven was rescued from Yuya's full judgment when a haggard Nozomu came into her view. He was sat on her couch, in brace position, head cradled between his hands and groaning miserably.
"Oh my god, Nozomu, are you alright?". Yuya rushed towards him only to wrinkle her nose in amusement as a whiff of old alcohol mixed with stagnant tobacco assaulted her nostrils "Oh, wow." It was potent. "Was this my kind of party?"
"Don't." her elder brother waved feeble hand in protest. "Just...sit down, Yuya."
"Let me get you some water or something."
"No need. He's already getting it."
He?
"Who's 'He'?" Yuya's head snapped towards the sound of distant clinking.
"Yuya, wait," Nozomu pleaded weakly as she took off in the direction of her kitchen.
Going through other people's belongings wasn't exactly a hobby, but Kyo had done it enough to know that the majority of people organised their homes in the exact same way and stored things in the same places. The youngest Shiina's profession spilled through into every little part of her flat: all the rustic furniture, a ton of plants, random decorative items strewn around that were entirely disconnected to each other and yet seemed deliberately placed. So, when he opened the kitchen cabinet, he found a collection of crockery of different sizes shapes, patterns, some of which he wasn't sure whether they were mugs or bowls, or cups or what their function was. Kyo picked the only one that his artistically-challenged mind would accept as a mug. Because it looked like one.
Turning to towards the tap, Kyo was confronted by small-ish woman, bundled up in layers of clothing. She wore an oversized beanie that stopped just above annoyed forest green eyes. Not a smidge of makeup adorned her fair face although the icy wind had given colour to her slim nose and cheekbones. The rest of her face was hidden by a woolly scarf snaked around her.
"Well, hello" she bit out. Who was this guy who had the gall to walk into her house touching her belongings as if he owned the place? The uninvited guest took his time facing her, which irked her even further. But when he eventually did, Yuya was presented with a ridiculously fine specimen of a man. Rugged good looks, with fascinating ruby red eyes. Not even the ugly duckling-yellow mug he held in his hand could dampen the charismatic power that exuded from his tall frame. "Bit rude not to introduce yourself before rummaging around someone's house wouldn't you say?"
Steady ruby eyes met hers coolly, "I'll leave that to your brother."
"You found the mug awfully quickly. Make it a habit to trespass in people's homes and make yourself comfortable?"
"Yes." He dipped his head towards her allowing his breath to brush her cheeks as he spoke in a low mocking rumble, "Although, you should sort out your sink cabinet. I suggest separating your birth control pills from your paracetamols. Quite risky to confuse the two, I think."
She gasped, outraged. Kyo congratulated himself as the visible parts of her face flushed and she turned and marched out to take it out on the man at the centre of it all. "Nozomu! Who the hell is this? You let him just go through my things!?"
Nozomu looked up, deathly pale and looking like he just wanted to crawl into a hole and sleep for a century. In different circumstances, Yuya would have enjoyed poking fun at her precious, always perfect, elder brother, but right now she was not happy that the privacy of her home had been invaded. By a stranger, no less.
Thanking Kyo, Nozomu gulped down the aspirin and started introductions. "This is Kyo Mibu. Kyo, this is my sister, Yuya"
She stared daggers at him and as she unravelled the knitted scarf around her neck and shoulders with pointed abruptness to express her discontent, Kyo was introduced to the youngest of the Shiina clan who was in complete opposition to the image he'd painted of her in his mind. He had expected an introverted little bookworm with a hero-complex. Instead, the rebel of the Shiina clan was a spritely woman, with a striking complexion. She didn't look anything like Nozomu with her mass of dishevelled golden blond hair that fell past her shoulders, creamy skin and bright green eyes currently flashing with irritation. A fiery one.
"A pleasure," he said, with laughter reflecting in his eyes.
"I can't say the same.", she crossed her arms. Her glaring at Kyo continued as she addressed her brother, though Kyo remained unperturbed half perched on the commode, ankles crossed lazily in front of him. "You have five minutes to tell me what you're doing here and why you've let some unknown into my flat."
"Can you just sit down a minute."
"No. Talk."
Nozomu exhaled loudly. Why did Yuya always have to be so belligerent. "I'm going to ask you this straight – are you currently working a case? Oh, spare me that blank look.", Nozomu said as he watched her school her expression, "Sakuya and I have known for years that you do these little odd-jobs."
"Why are you asking then?". Indignance had set in and Kyo was quickly learning that Yuya had absolutely no skill at keeping a poker face.
"I know you're looking into Kumiko Watanabe and that you were given her home address. I just... please tell me you haven't..."
Her chin only lifted higher, and Nozomu felt dread fill the pit of his stomach. It seemed that he would need Kyo's services in the end.
"Did anyone see you. Did you take anything. Did you touch anything." before Yuya could open her mouth Nozomu held up his hand "Never mind. This ends now."
"Wh-"
"He is going to take over your matter.".
Kyo didn't think that he'd ever seen a person so visibly refrain from exploding.
Retrospectively, Yuya afforded the man who had been introduced to her as Kyo some credit. He walked out. But not after tossing an opened pack of cigarettes on the coffee table to indicate that she was only rid of him temporarily until the siblings sorted their drama out.
"I need you to mind your own business, Nozomu" Yuya said after a while through gritted teeth. "and tell your hired hand to back off".
"He knows what he's doing."
"Because I don't? I'm sorry but if he's so good why haven't you put him on the other cases."
"He used to work for the Tokyo Policy, Yuya."
"Used to?"
He didn't elaborate further, knowing full well that Yuya understood the implications of the fact that he wasn't using official routes "What you did was dangerous".
"I only went there to make sure she wasn't home."
"So, you did break in."
"I-" she protested, but the reality remained that even if she didn't like the way it was put, the act remained the same. "Yes."
"I'm going to be honest here, Yuya. There have been a string of these disappearances going on all over Tokyo in the past month. We've reported one to the police last two weeks ago, Jukon Inc reported one the other day. Of some of the disappearances, some have been found. Dead. I don't know if the cases are linked I...I just have a really bad feeling about this. I don't like it. I'd like to ask that you stay out of this, please."
There were many things he didn't like, he forbade, he restricted...but Nozomu had an almost sixth sense that served him well in his rocketing success so there was something to be said about his feeling uncomfortable. Yuya remained silent as she considered the additional fact that Nozomu had never begged her for anything.
It didn't take long before Kyo heard the door handle shift behind him. It seemed the two had reached a conclusion. He took a moment before pushing the door fully open – was he really sure he wanted a part of this mess? He could do with the pay. And as far as Nozomu instructions were concerned, he just wanted Kyo to steer Yuya off the case.
Clearly reluctant and disgruntled, Yuya stated: "I'll come by your office tomorrow evening and hand things over."
Kyo nodded and sighed inwardly. He could already tell he was going to have his work cut out for him.
