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  Points And Lines

  Seichō Matsumoto

  The suicide of a young couple on a secluded and historically famous Japanese beach uncovers a nation-wide crime network.

  Seichō Matsumoto

  Points And Lines

  © 1970

  Translated by Makiko Yamamoto and Paul C. Blum

  ***

  1 The Asakaze Express

  ON THE evening of January 13, Tatsuo Yasuda had a guest to dinner at the Koyuki, a Japanese-style restaurant in the Aka-saka quarter of Tokyo. The guest was a division chief in one of the government ministries.

  Tatsuo Yasuda was president of the Yasuda Co., a precision tool and machinery firm that had grown considerably in recent years and seemed to be prospering. It did a great deal of business with certain government agencies, and there were those who said that this was the reason for the rapid expansion. It was these government contacts that Yasuda often entertained at the Koyuki.

  This restaurant was by no means one of the best in the Akasaka district. Perhaps, for this very reason, guests found the atmosphere friendly and informal. Moreover, the waitresses who served in the private rooms were exceptionally competent. Yasuda was looked upon as one of their good customers. He was, of course, a liberal spender; money was his stock-in-trade, he was quick to admit. And the men he entertained were the sort that could be influenced by money. However, no matter how friendly he was with the waitresses, he never told them more than was necessary about his guests.

  The previous fall a scandal had come to light, centering in a certain ministry. Several companies doing business with this government department were said to be involved. Although suspicion had not spread beyond a few minor officials, the press predicted that by spring it would reach into the higher ranks.

  As a consequence, Yasuda was more discreet than usual when introducing his guests at the Koyuki. Still, there were some he invited as many as seven or eight times, and these the waitresses came to address familiarly by the first syllable of their names. It was always "Mr. Ko," or "Mr. Yu," although they never got to know anything personal about them. They were aware, however, that most of Yasuda's guests were government officials.

  But never mind about the other guests. Yasuda was the guest who spent the money. He was the one who mattered at the Koyuki.

  Tatsuo Yasuda was in his midthirties. Of slightly dark complexion, he had a broad forehead, a fleshy well-rounded face and a rather pointed nose. His eyes were bright and looked at one kindly from under brows so thick they appeared to be drawn in ink. Although he had the self-assured manner of the successful businessman and the waitresses liked him, he never seemed to take advantage of his popularity; he was friendly to all.

  Since she happened to be assigned to the first party he gave, Otoki was always the one to wait on him when he came to the Koyuki. But their relations, while very friendly, were not known to extend beyond the restaurant.

  Otoki was twenty-six but her clear white skin and pretty features made her look at least four years younger. Her customers would often comment on her big black eyes. They found her very becoming when she would look up at them quickly, a smile in her glance. She was well aware of the effect this had on men. She had an oval face, and the line between lips and chin gave her a delicate profile.

  Little wonder some customers had tried to seduce her. All the waitresses lived at home and came daily to work. They arrived at four in the afternoon and left a little after eleven at night. There were guests who would wait for them sometimes as they came out of the restaurant and who would ask them to meet them later under the railway bridge near Shimbashi Station. The girls could not curtly refuse since these were good customers; they usually consented and then would stand them up, three or four times in a row. By then a man should have understood, the girls would say.

  "Some men are stupid and get angry. The other evening one of them pinched me hard." Otoki opened the folds of her kimono and bared her knee. The skin was marked by a dark bruise.

  "You're a foolish girl. You encourage them," said Yasuda, smiling over his cup of sake. It was evident he was on very friendly terms with the girls.

  "Come to think of it, Mr. Ya has never tried to seduce us," said Yaeko, one of the waitresses.

  "No use trying. I'm on to you girls."

  "Just listen to him. I know his type," said Kaneko playfully.

  "Don't say that."

  "It's no use, Kaneko," Otoki interjected. "Everyone here is in love with Mr. Ya and he doesn't so much as look at us. You had better give him up, and quickly."

  Kaneko laughed. "Maybe you're right," she said.

  It was a fact, as Otoki had stated, that the waitresses at the Koyuki were interested in Yasuda. Had he tried to become intimate with any one of them he would have been taken seriously. His appearance and personality were attractive to women.

  That evening, after bidding good night to the government official at the door of the restaurant, Yasuda returned to his private dining room to drink and relax. Otoki had left the room; Yaeko and Tomiko were still clearing the table. "How about letting me treat you girls to an early dinner tomorrow?" he asked.

  They accepted at once, with obvious delight. "Where is Otoki? She doesn't seem to be around. Please include her," Tokiko suggested.

  "No, just the two of you will be fine. I'll invite Otoki some other time. It won't do to have so many of you late for work."

  It was true. The waitresses were required to be at the restaurant by four in the afternoon. If they had dinner out, they would not be on time. It would not be right to have three of them report late to work.

  "Be at the Levante in Yūraku-chō at 3:30 tomorrow afternoon," Yasuda said, smiling at the girls.

  At 3:30 the following afternoon when Tomiko arrived at the Levante, Yasuda was already seated at a table in the rear, drinking coffee.

  "Hello!" Yasuda greeted her and pointed to the seat facing him.

  It was exciting to meet a customer outside one's place of work. Tomiko's face was slightly flushed as she sat down. "Hasn't Yaeko come yet?"

  "She'll be here soon." Yasuda ordered a cup of coffee for her. A few minutes later Yaeko appeared, looking a little shy. The other guests in the coffee shop were all young couples and the two girls looked conspicuous, their profession obvious from the kimono they were wearing.

  "What would you girls like this evening? Western food? Chinese? How about tempura or eels?"

  "Western food," the girls answered simultaneously. A change was welcome from the Japanese dishes they had to serve every day at the Koyuki.

  They left the Levante and walked in the direction of the Ginza. The streets were not crowded at this hour of the day, and though a cold wind was blowing, the weather was fine. They walked slowly, crossing from the corner of Owari-chō to the Matsuzakaya Department Store. The Ginza was quite deserted, so different from the year-end scenes two weeks before.

  "Wasn't it a sight on Christmas Eve!" one of the girls commented as they strolled directly behind Yasuda.

  Yasuda mounted the steps of the Coq d'Or Restaurant. It, too, was quite empty.

  "Please order whatever you like," he said as they sat down at a table.

  "Just anything will do," Yaeko and Tomiko replied at first, but presently they studied the menu and consulted each other. It took them a while to decide.

  Yasuda was looking stealthily at his watch. Yaeko was quick to notice and asked, "Are you busy, Mr. Ya?"

  "No, not busy, but I have to go to Kamakura later this afternoon." He crossed his hands on the table.

  "Oh, I'm sorry; let's decide quickly, Tomiko." They finally gave their orders. The dinner started with soup and it took a long time to complete the full course. The conversation was desultory. Yasuda seeme
d to be enjoying himself. When the fruit was brought to the table he looked again at his watch.

  "Hadn't we better hurry?"

  "No, there's still time," he assured them. But when the coffee was served he again pushed back his cuff.

  "It must be time. Let's go," said Yaeko, rising from her seat.

  "Well…" Yasuda, smoking a cigarette, narrowed his eyes as if in thought. "To tell the truth, I'm feeling a bit lonely. Why don't you both come to Tokyo Station and see me off." It was hard to tell from his expression whether he was speaking seriously or in jest.

  The girls exchanged glances. They were already late for work. To go to Tokyo Station would make them even later. Of course, it was a pleasant custom, and at the Koyuki they often accompanied departing guests to the railway station. Moreover, Yasuda's manner had suddenly grown serious and it made them believe that perhaps he really was lonely. In any case, after being treated so handsomely to dinner they found it difficult to refuse.

  Tomiko was the first to answer. "Let me telephone the Koyuki. I'll tell them we'll be a little late." She returned from the phone booth, smiling. "It's all right; I let them know. Let's go to the station."

  Yasuda said he was sorry to give them so much trouble. He again checked the time. The girls noticed the way he kept looking at his watch.

  "What train are you taking?" Yaeko asked.

  "The 6:12, or the one after that. It's now 5:30. We'll be in good time if we leave right away." Yasuda hurried off to pay the bill.

  A taxi took them to the station in five minutes. In the cab, Yasuda apologized once again. "I'm making you late for work," he said. The girls told him not to worry. "We'd feel badly if we couldn't do this for you. It's such a small thing."

  At the station, Yasuda bought his ticket and handed the girls their platform tickets. The Yokosuka Line, which serves Kama-kura, leaves from platform 13. The station clock showed a few minutes before six o'clock.

  "Good. I'm in plenty of time for the 6:12," he remarked.

  His train had not yet pulled in to platform 13. While they waited, Yasuda kept watching the platforms immediately to the east. These were alongside tracks 14 and 15, used for the arrival and departure of long-distance trains. At the moment, there was a train waiting at platform 15. Since there was nothing on the intervening tracks, the three had a clear view of the train at platform 15.

  "That train over there is the super-express to Hakata in Kyushu. It's called the Asakaze," Yasuda remarked to the girls.

  There were many passengers, accompanied by friends and relatives, milling about the train. The platform had the air of excitement that prevails when a train is about to start on a long journey.

  Suddenly, Yasuda said, "Say, isn't that Otoki?"

  "What?" The two girls, their eyes round with astonishment, looked to where Yasuda was pointing.

  "Well, I never… It is Otoki." Yaeko's voice betrayed her surprise. Otoki it was, walking through the crowd on platform 15. From the way she was dressed and from the suitcase she carried, it was evident that she was a passenger. Tomiko also spotted her at last and cried, "Why, of course! It's Otoki!"

  What surprised them most was that Otoki was talking intimately to the young man who was walking beside her. His face, seen in profile, was not familiar to them. He was wearing a dark overcoat and carrying a small suitcase. The two were weaving their way through the crowd and making for the rear end of the train.

  "Where do you suppose they're going?" Yaeko asked, catching her breath.

  "I wonder who he is!" Tomiko exclaimed.

  Unaware that she was being observed, Otoki continued to walk along the platform with her companion. They finally stopped in front of a coach, checked the number, then entered, the young man leading the way.

  "She is a sly one! Do you think she's going all the way to Kyushu with him?"

  Yasuda repressed a smile.

  The two girls stood rooted to the platform. They looked astonished. They stared at the car into which Otoki had disappeared, unable to say a word more. People kept passing in front of them. Finally, Yaeko said, "They can't be going just a short distance; they're on a super-express."

  "Did you know Otoki had a boy friend?" Tomiko asked.

  "I had no idea! I'm very surprised."

  The two girls exchanged excited comments in a rapid undertone, as if they had uncovered something of extraordinary interest.

  Yaeko and Tomiko knew really nothing of Otoki's private life. She was not one to talk about herself. She did not appear to be married. She did not seem even to have a lover. Her reputation was very good. Girls working in restaurants belong generally to one of two types: the sort who like to confide in their co-workers, often asking their advice, and the other kind that keep their mouths shut like clams. Otoki was one of the clams. The two girls, therefore, felt they had accidentally uncovered a secret corner of Otoki's life and were thrilled.

  "Let's go over and look through the window. I want to see what he's like," Yaeko said excitedly.

  "Don't! Leave them alone," Yasuda interposed.

  "Aren't you jealous, Mr. Ya?"

  Yasuda laughed. "Why should I be? I'm going to Kamakura to see my wife."

  The train for Yokosuka drew in to platform 13, blocking any further view of platform 15.

  Yasuda boarded the train. Since it would not be leaving for another eleven minutes he put his head out of the window and called to the girls. "Please don't wait. You girls are busy; you mustn't stay any longer. Thank you for coming with me."

  "Perhaps you're right," said Yaeko. She wanted very much to rush over and get a good look at Otoki's companion. "Goodbye, Mr. Ya. Have a good trip and come again soon." The girls shook hands with Yasuda through the window and left.

  As they walked down the steps Yaeko said, "Tomiko, let's take a look at Otoki."

  Although she answered, "I wonder if we should," Tomiko was not at all unwilling. The two girls ran over to platform 15.

  They approached the coach they had seen the couple enter and looked through the windows, over the shoulders of the crowd standing close by. The car was brilliantly lighted. They soon spied Otoki and the young man, sitting side by side.

  "I say, she's chattering away at a great rate, isn't she?" Yaeko observed.

  "Why, he's quite good-looking! I wonder how old he is." Tomiko was more interested in the young man.

  Yaeko was gazing intently at him. "Twenty-seven or twenty-eight. No, maybe twenty-five."

  "That makes him a year older or a year younger than Otoki."

  "Shall we go in and surprise her?"

  "Don't, Yaeko." Tomiko stopped her from entering the coach.

  They stood for a while, staring at the couple. Finally, Tomiko said, "Let's go. We'll be late." She prodded Yaeko who was still staring and seemed reluctant to leave.

  When the girls arrived at the Koyuki Restaurant they immediately reported the incident to the proprietress. She too seemed very surprised.

  "Really? Is that so? Just yesterday Otoki asked me for five or six days' leave; she said she wanted to go home. But fancy that-with a man!" Her eyes widened in astonishment.

  "That was only an excuse. Otoki's home is up north, in Akita."

  "She's such a quiet girl. It just goes to show you; one never knows. They'll probably get off the train at Kyoto and have a good tune." The three women exchanged glances.

  The following night Yasuda came again to the Koyuki with a guest. At the end of the evening, after the latter had departed, he said to Yaeko, "I suppose Otoki is off duty today."

  "Not just today. She'll probably be away the whole week," Yaeko informed him, raising her eyebrows.

  "Is she on a honeymoon with that man we saw?" Yasuda asked, setting his sake cup on the table. "That's what it looks like. Isn't it startling?" "Why should it shock you? You girls should do the same." "No such luck. Not unless you take me, Mr. Ya." "Me? Leave me out of it. Anyway, I couldn't take so many of you." Yasuda left, but, probably for business reasons, returned the fo
llowing evening with two guests. On this occasion, both Tomiko and Yaeko waited on him and they talked about Otoki.

  He returned again the following week, but by this time, as it happened, Otoki and her male companion had already been found dead, in a most unlikely place.

  2 The Love Suicide

  On the main railway line to Kagoshima there is a small station called Kashii, three stops before the city of Hakata. From the station, the road inland, in the direction of the mountains, leads to Kashii Shrine; in the opposite direction, it goes down to the seashore from where Hakata harbor can be seen.

  Directly in front of the beach a narrow strip of land called Umi no Nakamichi extends into the sea like a sash, and at the end of it the island of Shika appears to float on the water. Off to the left lies the island of Noko, barely visible in the misty distance. It is an exceptionally beautiful spot.

  This stretch of seashore is called Kashii Bay. In olden times it was known as Kashii Inlet. In those days, Otomo no Tabito, a government official, was inspired by this same scene to compose the poem that appears in the Manyōshū, a famous eighth century anthology:

  At low tide though our sleeves may

  get wet, let us hunt

  After sea herbs for breakfast in

  Kashii Bay.

  However, the sentiments of a court noble of long ago are scarcely relevant in the matter-of-fact world of today. On the very cold, early morning of January 21, at about 6:30, a workman was walking along this beach. Instead of looking for herbs for his morning meal, as in the poem, he was on his way to work at a factory in Najima. It was shortly after dawn. A thick mist was still gathered in the distance; Shika Island and Umi no Nakamichi were only dimly visible. The wind, which tasted of the sea, was penetrating and cold. The man was walking rapidly, his coat collar turned up. The beach, strewn with rocks, provided a short cut to his job; he passed here every day. But there was something this morning that was out of the ordinary. His eyes first took note of it. Among the jagged black rocks that stood in his path he spied two objects. Incongruous, irrelevant, they were conspicuous in that familiar scene. In the pale light of early morning, as yet unwarmed by the rays of the sun, the objects looked very forlorn. The loose ends of the wrappings that covered them fluttered in the wind; they were the only things that moved-they, and the long hair. The black shoes and white socks were very still.