59
He gave her an odd look. “Police uniforms and guns both underwent a change, but
that was some years back. The jackets went from a stiff, formal style to something
more casual, almost like a windbreaker. And they started carrying those new-model
automatic pistols. I don’t think there have been any changes since then.”
“Japanese policemen always carried old-fashioned revolvers, I’m sure. Right up to
last week.”
The man shook his head. “Now there, you’re wrong. They all started carrying
automatics quite some time ago.”
“Can you say that with absolute certainty?”
Her tone gave him pause. He wrinkled his brow and searched his memory. “Well,
if you put it that way, I can’t be one hundred percent sure, but I know I saw
something in the papers about the switch to new pistols. It caused quite a stir. The
usual citizens’ groups were complaining to the government that the pistols were too
high-powered.”
“And this was a while ago?” Aomame asked.
The man called over the middle-aged bartender and asked him when the police
changed their uniforms and pistols.
“In the spring two years ago,” the bartender replied, without hesitation.
“See?” the man said with a laugh. “Bartenders in first-class hotels know
everything!”
The bartender laughed as well. “No, not really,” he said. “It just so happens my
younger brother is a cop, so I clearly remember that stuff. My brother couldn’t stand
the new uniforms and was always complaining about them. And he thought the new
pistols were too heavy. He’s still complaining about those. They’re 9mm Beretta
automatics. One click and you can switch them to semiautomatic. I’m pretty sure
Mitsubishi’s making them domestically under license now. We almost never have any
out-and-out gun battles in Japan; there’s just no need for such a high-powered gun. If
anything, the cops have to worry now about having their guns stolen from them. But it
was government policy back then to upgrade the force.”
“What happened to the old revolvers?” Aomame asked, keeping her voice as calm
as she could.
“I’m pretty sure they were all recalled and dismantled,” the bartender said. “I
remember seeing it on television. It was a huge job dismantling that many pistols and
scrapping all that ammunition.”
“They should have just sold everything abroad,” said the thinning-haired company
man.
“The constitution forbids the export of weapons,” the bartender pointed out
modestly.
“See? Bartenders in first-class hotels—”
Aomame cut the man off and asked, “You’re telling me that Japanese police
haven’t used revolvers
Do'stlaringiz bilan baham: