Memories of Murder:
Chapter 4:
It didn't fit in with being one of his parents. Who could it be?
"How exactly does that person get turned away?"
Tanaka drew out a chair and gestured for him to sit down. He cleared away the stacks of forms.
"I will make some tea. This will be quite a conversation."
It was strange. The man seemed to be more like a butler than a caretaker. He also feared that the tea would be green tea from what he could smell. His guess was confirmed when Tanaka returned with two ceramic cups of green tea.
"Two years ago I was repairing the door lock on the office door in the reception area when a young lady arrived," Tanaka began and stopped when he saw Sebastian wasn't drinking. "I do not offer tea to just anyone. Drink up."
Hastily Sebastian swallowed some. This green tea was less flavourless than others he had tried.
"She asked the receptionist on duty if anyone would be able to tell her about a student named Ciel Phantomhive that attended the school four years before and was a member of the mystery club. She also mentioned coming to ask several times a year before."
So it was definitely connected to Ciel. Perhaps she was Ciel's girlfriend. He wasn't sure how he felt about that.
"What did she get told?"
"At first she was told she could not have any information because she was not related. When she proved that she was his cousin, the receptionist changed tack and said someone with that name had never been a student."
That fitted in with the school covering up Ciel's attendance.
"She gave the receptionist her card and left. I saw that card get thrown in the bin immediately after by the head receptionist. Then the following year I was passing through and saw her again."
"Was she told the same thing?"
"The receptionist on duty this time was the head receptionist and she was told outright that Ciel Phantomhive had never been a student. The young lady asked in return how the receptionist has known that without needing to look it up."
That sounded like it would go down well at a school determined to cover up a murder.
"Funnily enough she ended up with a ban. She cannot even step onto school premises. I have never seen her since then so I assume that ban is still in effect."
"Is that so?" Sebastian said thoughtfully. She sounded lucky to end with a ban and not something more severe.
Tanaka tilted his head on one side.
"What do you think it means?" he asked suddenly.
Sebastian tried to not sound like he knew anything about Ciel being dead.
"It sounds like he really was a student here once and the school do not want anyone to know."
The caretaker nodded in agreement. "That's what I think too. I also think it is related to the old school building and all the older staff members are in on it."
Ciel was right about talking to Tanaka. The old man had the same suspicions as him.
"Have you been in the old school building?"
"I do have the key," Tanaka said. "I did not get it by honest means though. The building needs to be surveyed for structural damage after any large earthquake as it is a very old building. I managed to pickpocket the key from the surveyor for a short time and make a copy. I had thought looking around the building would uncover something."
The key being a copy explained how Tanaka had possession of one if he was not part of the suspicions circle of staff members.
"Did you find anything in the building that seemed to be suspicious?" the teenager enquired.
"I did, but I could not seem to find anything that looked out of place and suspicious. The interior of the building appears to be untouched. It's like it was just suddenly closed down and everything was left as it was. Perhaps you could do a better job than me."
Sebastian's eyes widened as he caught onto what Tanaka was saying. The caretaker walked off into the connecting room and returned with a key. He handed it to Sebastian.
"If you find anything, please inform me."
It seemed exceedingly weird that Tanaka had told him everything and had even given him the key. He hadn't even needed to ask for the key. Ciel seemed to be good at reading people and predicting their actions despite that fact he showed no consideration for others by constantly insulting them.
"Why do you trust me?"
Tanaka's eyes twinkled as he pointed to the items he had dropped.
"Because you showed me proof that Ciel Phantomhive existed at this school."
Tanaka bowed and Sebastian returned it.
"I will also give you the contact information of that young lady. I picked it out the rubbish you see. Hopefully she will still be in Japan."
Tanaka pulled out a small card from one of his desk drawers and held it out to him. The girl's surname did not match Ciel's, but that did not have to be the case. It was worth a try to contact her.
When he arrived back at the apartment and found it empty he breathed a sigh of relief. That last thing he needed was his mother to ask why he had a girl's number. He laid the card down on his desk and read the name again.
Elizabeth Midford
The number listed was Japanese landline which made him hopeful that she was still in Japan if she had gone to the trouble to get a Japanese landline. Below it was a Japanese mobile phone number. His new Japanese mobile phone had arrived the previous day which was good as his phone bill on his English phone had been rapidly rising.
He dialled the landline number first to check it still worked and to see if she picked up. The phone was picked up after three rings.
"Hello?" a female with a very evident English accent said. She sounded upper class too which fitted with her being related to Ciel.
"Are you Elizabeth Midford?"
"I am. May I enquire who is speaking?"
He had the right person. Now he had to explain everything without referencing Ciel's lack of corporal state.
"I am a student at Weston International School and I am a member of the mystery club. I am aware that your cousin Ciel Phantomhive was a member."
There was a sharp intake of breath and he knew he had her attention.
"Why have you called me?" she sounded understandably suspicious.
"Because we want to know the same thing. I would be beneficial to share information."
When she answered her voice had lost some of its formal tone.
"You're right. Do you want to meet?"
"That would be good. The earliest I can do is Saturday."
"Of course it is- you're a student. I have an appointment in Harajuku in the morning. Would you like to meet there at midday? It will not be in the busiest area. Not that it won't be busy."
Sebastian was very sure that Harajuku was the eccentric fashion capital of Japan. It would also be very crowned. On the positive side, he did need some new hoodies. Harajuku sounded like the perfect place.
"That sounds fine with me. Just let me know the location."
She gave him a location that made no sense and warned him to stay away from Takeshita street unless he wanted to get squashed because it was a weekend. That sounded like legitimate advice to him.
The fact that she wanted to meet him in a public place strongly hinted that she did not trust him yet. He could not really blame her.
"Don't think I didn't notice you didn't give me your name," she said.
"It's Sebastian Michaelis."
"I will see you outside Omotesando Hills then. It's a shopping centre," she said and ended the call.
Sebastian stared at his phone. When he arrived in Japan he never expected to be embroiled in a probably murder case. He also had not been expecting to meet a girl willingly outside a shopping centre in Harajuku. Ciel was getting him into some strange situations.
At the mystery club meeting the following afternoon Sebastian tried his best not to look smug. He waited patiently for the topic of the old school building to come up for discussion.
"It's a shame it's the old school building that needs investigation," Finny sighed. "We might have to give up on the Seven Mysteries."
Now was the time. Sebastian cleared his throat.
"If I remember correctly, the agreement was the old school building could be investigated if we had the key."
"Well we don't," Bardroy said testily.
Sebastian held out the key. "I have it."
The reaction was immediate. William's mouth dropped open. Mey-Rin squealed. Finny's eyes expanded widely.
"How on earth did you get that?" William questioned once he had recovered from the surprise. Sebastian was disappointed with his quick recovery.
"I sweet talked the caretaker."
Tanaka had given it to him very willingly, but they didn't need to know that.
"Don't you mean the janitor?" Bardroy asked.
"He meant what he said," William answered for Sebastian.
Finny was still staring wide eyed at Sebastian.
"You didn't seduce him, did you?"
Sebastian cringed at the mental image and in the corner Ciel burst out laughing. He had no idea how old Tanaka was, but the thought of seducing him was a little vomit inducing.
"No, I was just very persuasive."
He regretted saying that once it was out his mouth. It sounded like an innuendo. Ciel's laughter became even louder. Finny didn't seem to care though.
"I knew getting you to join was a good idea," he beamed and looked happy with himself.
"Is it agreed that we can investigated the old school building now?" Sebastian asked before he could accidently add anymore innuendos and cause Ciel to choke with laughter.
"I don't see why not," William said.
"I should be able to sneak out," Mey-Rin agreed. "It's clear we are going to have to do this at night."
"I can go," Bardroy added.
"Then it's agreed. We are going to investigate the old school building at night."
They agreed to meet outside the school gates the following night at midnight. Sebastian hoped Ciel was satisfied with the amount of people going now. He was also somewhat glad too. He didn't want to get murdered too and end up haunting the school.
Sebastian had the unfortunate luck to have to walk past his mother before he left for Harajuku. She always asked him questions about what he was going and where he was going. Usually he didn't mind, but he did not appreciate the interrogation right now. He had been counting on her having a lie in at this time in the morning
"Where are you going?" she asked.
"Harajuku," he answered reluctantly. She was sure to take an interest in that.
He had never seen her move so fast. She was off the sofa one moment and blocking his way the next.
"Are you finally taking an interest in dressing fashionably? Are you going to ditch those hoodies?"
Sebastian pointedly glanced down at his hoodie. "No, in fact I am going to buy more."
She shook her head. "Such a wasted opportunity. Are you taking the Yamanote line?"
According to most of the guidebooks about Japan working out how to use ticket machines was difficult and should be avoided by using a rail pass. Sebastian simply found the Yamanote line map and counted the stops and input the appropriate fare on the machine. Guidebooks must take tourists to have no common sense.
The train was not overly crowded by some standards. He felt awkward squeezed in between two middle aged ladies though, but it could be worse. Elizabeth Midford had to be testing his determination to get through obstacles.
He was thankful when Harajuku was announced at the approaching stop. He emerged out that station and immediately saw Takeshita Street which was an enticing sight although crowded. He walked past it in the direction of Omotesando.
Once he was outside the giant shopping centre he looked around for a female that could be Elizabeth Midford. There were plenty of young females around but they were in groups and some were in school uniform. There were some obvious overseas tourists too. He should have asked her what she looked like.
A blonde curly haired women dressed in a pink frilly dress carrying several bags approached him. Her straw hat covered half her face so he could not see her properly.
"Are you Sebastian Michaelis?" she asked.
He stared at her as she looked up at him. He could see her eyes now and was able to confirm there was absolutely no resemblance to Ciel. She had blonde hair and green eyes instead of blue eyes and blue hair.
"I am. Are you Elizabeth Midford?"
"Naturally. We had better hurry up before the queue gets too long," she said and led him into the busy shopping centre.
"Where?" he asked and tried not to lose her in the steady stream of people leaving. She walked fast for someone wearing heels. Her hat made her easier to keep track of.
"There is a nice patisserie on the third floor. I will buy you something," she said once he had caught up with her.
"It's all right, you don't have to," he said.
"In return you have to tell me what you know."
The offer didn't sound like a favour now she had added that. After three escalators where everyone stood on the left and a short wait outside the café they were seated at a table for two and had two glasses of water.
"How much Japanese can you speak?" she asked suddenly. "I know you have only been here for a week."
That also reminded him that she had known what he looked like. If they were on equal footing she should have had the same problem trying to find him outside as he had looking for her. Instead she had walked straight up to him.
"I will have to order for you," she said and passed him the menu. "The tea here is good."
The mention of tea temporarily kept him from noticing she did not answer the question. Fortunately the menu had English translations although by now he knew what the characters for red tea looked like.
"I will choose the Darjeeling."
"This place does good cakes too," she said and turned to the relevant pages of his menu.
"I don't like cake," Sebastian replied.
"That's unusual," she commented and looked wistful for a moment. "Ciel would not like you then."
Sebastian nearly spat out a mouthful of water when he heard that. His relationship with Ciel was tenuous enough without cake preferences coming into play. He would receive even more insults if he ever confessed to not liking cake. It had never come up in conversation so maybe Ciel had simply forgotten his own preferences.
"Ciel loved sweet things. Cake was his favourite," she said with a faint smile. "He always looked so content when he ate cake."
Her use of past tense did not go unnoticed by him. Elizabeth fell silent for a moment before remembering he was there.
"It was Darjeeling you wanted? I will order it for you."
He watched as she conversed with the waiter. Her Japanese was fluent; clearly she had practised a lot. She had spent a few years in Japan though. Her English accent when speaking her native language was unusually strong despite that.
"You wanted to know how I knew about you," she said. "It is simple; I asked the Phantomhives."
She pulled her phone out from her bag. Her phone case was one of the pinkest things he had ever witnessed. It matched well with her outfit which he assumed was the purpose. She showed him a photo of him at the party he had been to a few days ago.
"Whilst Vincent is not overly active in Funtom, he does keep up with potential business rivals or partners. You and your family here arrived here a week ago and you started school whilst your parents started sniffing out investors."
"Did you find out anything else?"
"You are barely noveau riche. Vincent would say that though- Funtom had been going for over a century."
"Are you like that too?" he asked curiously. She had enough money to match her phone case with her outfit.
"I am Lady Elizabeth Midford," she replied. "That says it all."
His tea arrived just then along her order. He had a look at hers. He was sure it was a strawberry shortcake. His mother had gone on about how she wanted to try one when they got to Japan. It was confusingly named for someone from England as it was more like a Genoise than a scone.
She waited until he had poured his tea out and added milk before going straight in.
"What do you know about Ciel?"
He knew he was short and bratty, however that was hardly going to help.
"He disappeared six years ago and Weston International School deny he ever went there. What can you tell me?"
"My cousin was 16 when he went missing. I am one year older than him so I have known him since he was born. He was adorable and if he was ever annoying, he did not do it in front of me."
Elizabeth Midford was lucky then. He occasionally saw the adorable part and mostly saw the annoying.
"How long did he attend the school for before his disappearance?"
"About a month and a half. He was doing relatively fine there- he made one friend."
Her comment confirmed a few things Sebastian had been able to guess about Ciel. If it was surprising he had made a friend, he must have been very unsociable.
She saw the look on his face. "That was good for Ciel. It always seemed to be that he did not take to idiots. He was overly clever for his age. I sometimes wonder if it was that which caused his death."
Elizabeth had a good point. There was a high chance he had found something out about the school and had been killed for it.
"Did he discuss his work with the mystery club?"
"He did," her eyes narrowed. "But first, I would like some information from you. How do you know about Ciel?"
Her question had come later than he had though. It seemed that she had been observing his reactions first before asking. It was evident that behind the blonde pink loving façade she was smart.
"I joined the mystery club this week and noticed something strange."
He drew out the yearbook and the minutes of the meeting. If it led to being given the old school building key, it would be sure to produce a reaction from Elizabeth.
"The member list and photo has been torn out," he showed her by opening it to the relevant page. "The club doesn't appear to have done any mystery solving until three quarters of the way through the academic year. At the party I found out about the missing Ciel Phantomhive. Then I noticed the C.P initials on this sheet."
She looked over them thoroughly for a few minutes and appeared to be satisfied.
"How did you get my contact details?"
"The caretaker saw your card get thrown away. He thought the reaction was suspicious and kept the card. When I asked about Ciel Phantomhive, he gave it to me."
She took a delicate sip of her tea. "I understand. I think I can tell you everything again. At the time of his disappearance, the club was investigating the mysteries of the school which is apparently quite a tradition in Japanese schools."
"I know. The club is investigating them again."
"Interesting. Ciel was not fond of the head of the club and was determined to get one up on him so he put a lot of effort into investigating the clubhouse."
Her description matched with what he had found out so far. However she was not telling him much that he did not already know.
"One day, he did not return home from school," she sighed. "I don't know much else. I was not here at the time and I assumed Vincent would take care of it- that he would investigate and find out what happened. I came here because he didn't."
Vincent Phantomhive's lack of action was highly abnormal. He had given up too quickly. Almost too quickly. Wasn't Ciel his only heir? Clearly he knew something they did not.
"Why do you say he went missing yet refer to him in the past tense?" he enquired.
"Because his parents do and I know they know something I don't."
It appeared that the Phantomhives were sure their son was dead. Whilst it was obvious they were right as Ciel was a ghost, they should not have known. If they knew he was dead, that should mean they knew who killed him. So why were they staying silent?
