A/N: Been listening to a lot of jazz records in my room on my dad's old gramophone. Yes, an actual gramophone. Still works like a charm surprisingly.
Chapter 3: Maritime Inquiries
When the four investigators met with Captain Itogawa on the top deck, it was impossible to not like him immediately. He was a man of about fifty years of age with dark curly hair and a neatly-trimmed beard. To crown the whole, the captain was very agreeable, his manners pleasing. Everything he said and did was done with the utmost courtesy. It was understood within a few minutes that extracting information from the captain was no difficult task. Captain Itogawa showed no sign of having anything to hide, as Inspector Etou noticed.
"I remained on the bridge the whole time, manning the vessel, sir," the captain said. "I never once left my post."
Inspector Etou scratched his head thoughtfully. "Is there anyone who can account for this?"
Captain Itogawa gave a charming smile. "CCTV can. There is one on the bridge. If you review the footage, you will find my statement to be true."
He pointed to the corner of the room and everyone's eyes shifted towards the security camera. Judging by its position, it clearly covered every area in the room.
"Are there any other video surveillance cameras around the superyacht?" Sergeant Tanaka asked.
"Only one other, sir," was the reply. "At the entrance at the stern."
Sergeant Tanaka frowned. An expensive vessel such as this, with people on board of the utmost importance and prestige—and only two CCTV cameras for security monitoring.
'You would think that on a big boat like this, they would have a camera in every room,' the sergeant thought.
Although equally disappointed, Kanami and Hiyori did not let this unfortunate circumstance dampen their determination. Having been out in the water, The Royal Diana was basically a closed room. Their number of suspects was limited. Of which of them was the perpetrator...that was the real concern.
Checking his brass pocket-watch for the time, Inspector Etou said, "I would like a copy, please, of the CCTV recordings from last night."
"Yes, sir," Captain Itogawa said with a bow.
A knock on the bridge door announced the entrance of a new arrival, Coast Guard Natsuyoshi. Taking off his peaked cap, he bowed respectfully to the others, making sure to incline his head deeper towards Hiyori. Excitement at seeing the Origami Head in the face bubbled within the coast guard that it threatened to put him in an awkward position. And to also meet Etou Kanami, the so-proclaimed great Toji detective! If the deficiency of nature in Coast Guard Natsuyoshi had not already embarrassed him with his fair share of mishaps, he might have behaved differently. Yet, he had enough sense to keep his professional display on and address Inspector Etou.
"Sir."
"Thank you for coming, Coast Guard Natsuyoshi, and during such circumstances as these," Inspector Etou said.
"When I heard the news, I came as straight as I could. Terrible for something like this to have happened to that poor girl," the coast guard sighed, shaking his head. "At first, I thought it was just some accident until your boss told me."
He added, "Drowning is quite common, but normally doesn't happen around this area—the Sagami Bay, that is."
"Is that so?" Inspector Etou exclaimed.
"Well, not that many happened since I came into employment," the coast guard admitted, sheepishly.
"Is there any potential place where the victim could have gone in?" asked the inspector.
Captain Itogawa piped up. "Well, we departed from the Yokohama Bayside Marina and I steered The Royal Diana along the coast. It wasn't until the news of Chisaki-sama's disappearance had been told to me that I was forced to stop the vessel. And when her body was brought back on board, I docked here at the nearest port."
"Who pulled Chisaki-sama's body out of the water?" Kanami asked, abruptly.
Hiyori noted with surprise at how the Minoseki Toji's eyes showed a faint sign of hostile suspicion.
"That would have been Kentaro-sama, the father. And Takanori-sama assisted as well," Captain Itogawa replied.
"Well, the deceased probably would not have wound up here if she was thrown out in the Tokyo Bay," Coast Guard Natsuyoshi said.
"Her dress was caught under the keel," Hiyori mentioned.
The coast guard said, "Even so, Hiyori-sama, the current of the Tokyo Bay is strong. She would have been swept far out to sea."
"So how did Chisaki-sama end up here then?" Sergeant Tanaka mused.
"My safest bet is that when the superyacht was close to shore around this area, she was thrown in," Coast Guard Natsuyoshi answered.
There was a pause of silence before Inspector Etou left the bridge, the others following close behind him. Squinting his eyes, the inspector gazed out towards the sea, which was now glittering under the sun. In the bright daylight, the water looked nothing like the dark ominous portal it appeared to be at night. Even so, there was an atmosphere of eeriness surrounding The Royal Diana. It was as though the ghost of Chisaki now haunted her decks, having been wrongly killed and now seeking revenge.
Not turning around to look at the others, Inspector Etou asked, "And was the vessel indeed in this area between half past midnight and one o'clock?"
"Yes, sir," Captain Itogawa affirmed.
"I see. Right then. I would like a deck plan of this vessel along with its exact route last night on a map. And those CCTV recordings I told you about earlier."
"Right away, sir."
After Captain Itogawa and Coast Guard Natsuyoshi went their separate ways, the four investigators were left alone. For a minute, they all just leaned against the deck railing in silence, none of them saying a word but simply absorbed in their own thoughts. Sergeant Tanaka took the opportunity of open-air to light one of his favourite cigars.
"What will we do now, Father?" Kanami eventually asked.
Inspector Etou looked at his daughter with a shrewd eye. "I say we first talk to that Yanase Kentaro."
A/N: In the next chapter, our four favourite investigators will question the first suspect. Until then, see ya!