Chapter 15: Someone Will Die When the Curse is Solved (1):
Hiroshi's POV:
I asked Mayako to show me what she knows. "Don't worry," I said, "I'll just use it for reference. For all you know, we might find a way to save other people as well as myself." She then handed me a piece of paper. "What's this?"
"To save other people, this is what we must do," says Mayako, "it's the way to save mankind."
"Can you elaborate," I asked.
"There were some characters in the background," says Mayako, "that's the curse. You'll die in an accident 13 days from now. There's only one way out. That is, to pass the tape to other people. That way, the people who viewed the tape previously will be saved. One person will pass it to two other people, and so on and so forth. The number of people who view the tape will increase. Eventually, everybody will have watched it. And the last batch of people will die as they can no longer pass the tape on to other people. Everybody will have watched the tape. These people will be the ones to die. I've calculated. They make up a quarter of the population. It's just a video tape, yet it can kill a quarter of the population. And there's only one solution. This is what Sadako wants. What exactly does she want me to do?"
"Your analysis is wrong," I said, "you should calculate it the other way. One of them showed the tape to the three of us. How do you explain that? That's not all. I'm not sure whether it was Sadako who said one of us among the four will die. I don't know what Takayama told you. In any case, I've seen Sadako, but I've never heard her say those words. No matter what, there are still many doubts which we need to clarify. We know far too little." Mayako agreed.
Ryūji's POV:
"Don't worry, we'll never be separated," I told Mai. We then hugged, but Mai started forcing me to back into the nail, but she stabbed her own hand. "Mai..."
Dr. Domyoji's POV:
We were still trying to help the director. "How is he," I asked.
"His pulse has stopped beating. We've given him 90% of oxygen. Do you think he'll pull through?"
"Can he hear us," I asked.
"A little."
"Operate on him at once!"
"There are many factors which we need to consider," I said.
"Many factors?"
"Considering what he's suffering from, we can't just operate on him like that," I said.
"Don't believe the other heads. They're just"
"Though I don't agree with them," I said, "it's a fact that the cells may grow again."
"According to Dr. Aoyama, the patient needs lots of oxygen."
"Yes, I've been studying his condition," I said, "a week ago, I also tried to analyze his cells."
"Was it Aoyama who gave you the permission?"
"It was Dr. Okido," I said.
"Dr. Okido?"
Hiroshi's POV:
I returned home. Everyone was asleep. It was time for me to turn in too. If Mayako's right, within another 8 days, I'll have to pass the tape to other people to save Chisuzu. But can Chisuzu really be saved by doing that? Just what is it that Sadako wants?
...
The next day, I was on my way back to the theater troupe. "Is Mr. Arima in," I asked.
"He hasn't come yet. And nobody answered the phone. We're looking for him too."
"May I know where he lives," I asked.
...
I arrived at his home. "Mr. Arima," I said, "I'm Hiroshi Tôyama." No answer. I then walked away.
...
I called Dr. Domyoji. "Pass the tape to two other people," asks Dr. Domyoji.
"If Sadako only wants one of the four people to die, this might be a solution."
"But you never actually heard her say that," says Dr. Domyoji.
"She told me yesterday what happened 32 years ago," I said, "I'm surprised she remembered what happened so long ago."
"Hiroshi, please believe me once more," says Dr. Domyoji, "it's probably all in your head! We can't be sure whether you actually met Sadako or if you just imagined it."
"A man from the theater troupe and I both saw her in our second meeting," I said.
"Look... I didn't want to say this... but I think I saw her," says Dr. Domyoji, "but I believe you got me so spooked; I'm imagining her! I didn't even see the tape!"
I then started driving.
Sadako's POV:
I was standing on the ocean. "Hey, Sadako!" It was Hermes, messenger of the Gods.
"What do you want," I asked.
"Just wanted to see how you were," says Hermes.
"Hermes, a mortal told me... he loved me," I said, "is that possible?"
"Well... there are plenty of movies were a living person falls in love with a ghost," says Hermes, "like this one movie, 'Just Like Heaven'. Elizabeth Masterson got into a car crash, so she was in a coma, but her spirit came out and only this one guy can see her, and they ended up hitting it off! Then there's Ghost, a movie where a banker named Sam Wheat dies and tries to talk to his living girlfriend. And the Forgotten One, a writer named Bob Anderson gets seduced by the spirit of a woman who died 100 years ago." I looked at him. "What? I like movies."
"It doesn't matter," I said, "they must all suffer my curse!"
"Just one question," says Hermes, "how do you feel about him?"
Hiroshi's POV:
I was driving my car, but then I realized Sadako was in the back seat. I looked, but she wasn't there. I then almost crashed, but I stopped.
...
Now I'm lost! Somehow, I ended up in the woods. I then saw Sadako was in the car, and she attacks me. I then pushed her off and stopped the car. The car's out of gas. "This is not good," I said.
"Makes it easier for me," says Sadako.
"Wait, I should still have 8 days," I said.
"Very well," says Sadako. She was about to leave...
"Hold on," I said, "maybe we can talk?"
Sadako looks at me. "Listen carefully, I don't love anything," says Sadako, "your feelings are just your own little delusion! They're not real! I'm not your love interest! I am the villain of your story! We can never work! I died long before you were even born! If you want something to hold, buy yourself a cat!" She's about to leave again...
"You had plenty of chances to kill me, but you didn't," I said.
"You're the one who pointed out how long you have to live," says Sadako, "I'm just trying to follow rules! Now, I'd like to go. Oh, and if you start writing me love poems, making me shrines, or taking pictures of me during my privacy, I'll forget about that rule!" She then leaves.
...
Dr. Domyoji was checking on me. "You're lucky to be alive," says Dr. Domyoji.
"It was Sadako," I said, "I think-I think she might feel the same way!"
"I still think she doesn't exist," says Dr. Domyoji, "but if she does, the fact that she's tried to kill you should imply she's not into you!"
"But maybe it's why she showed herself to you," I said, "she could be jealous!"
"Well, you are cute, but a little too young for me," says Dr. Domyoji, "I put my days of chasing younger men behind me!" I look at her. "I don't want to talk about it!" She was clearly ashamed.
Mayako's POV:
Hiroshi, Chizusu, and me... "What should I do?"
"What are you up to," asks Norihiko.
"It's nothing," I said.
Ryūji's POV:
"We haven't found the murderer who killed Nonomura-Sensei. It's quite a tough case."
"Have you got any lead," I asked.
"Not yet. But I was told we need your help eventually to crack the case. Let me ask you - Did Shizuko die from poisoning or did she die of a curse someone put on him?"
"You should know the answer very well," I said, "if I did, I'd have become a psychic."
"True, but there's something I haven't figured out. There were marks on her neck, like someone was strangling her!"
"Those were results of a reflex action," I said, "when a person recalls something under some kind of stimulation, marks will appear as one's psychological and physiological states are linked."
"I don't think so. Those marks weren't like what you said at all. Fingerprints were clearly visible. If it was just a reflex action, there wouldn't be any fingerprint."
"It couldn't possibly be my fingerprints," I said.
"I never said those were your fingerprints. From what we found out, they belong to your girlfriend. Her name is Mai Takano, am I right?"
Hiroshi's POV:
I was still at the hospital when Sadako showed up. "Sadako, please, I want to talk..." She then left.
"Was that her," asks Dr. Domyoji.
"It was," I said.
...
I walked out and saw the man from the theater troupe was in the hall. "You," I said, "what happened 32 years ago?"
"Sadako has special powers. She didn't want anybody to know. But I stumbled upon the secret by accident. On a day 32 years ago, I left something behind at the theatre. So, I went back to get it. Sadako was watching TV by herself. Just when I was about to leave, I noticed something strange."
"Let me guess," I said, "the TV had no antenna and wasn't plugged in?"
"That's right, but the TV was on. That's when I discovered she had special powers. At that time, all of us were leading a hard life. We were living in poverty. Everybody had used up their savings. Perhaps it was all predestined. I had news that an employee from some company was going to a bank to deposit a big sum. For money's sake, I planned to kill that employee. So, I asked Sadako to use her powers in exchange for my keeping her secret. I didn't tell her about my plan, of course. We learned about the employee's death from the following day's paper. After Sadako heard about it, she became a reticent person."
"Was that why she left without a word," I asked.
"Yes."
"Who else knew about this," I asked.
"Just the two of us. Nobody else was around then. That was Sadako all right. She was here for revenge."
...
"Well, she's gone," says Dr. Domyoji.
"You have to believe by now," I said.
"I don't want to say anything further," says Dr. Domyoji.
"Sadako's suffered a lot," I said.
"I have other things," says Dr. Domyoji, "I think Hydra has stolen all the cells! I have to go!"
I had a thought! Maybe it wasn't Hydra! Maybe it was Sadako!
To Be Continued
In the next chapter, Hiroshi has another talk with Ryūji.
