|
I have to keep my emotions in check
, Aomame told herself.
Even if I were to punish
Ayumi’s uncle or brother, they wouldn’t know what they were being punished for. And
nothing I could do to them now would bring Ayumi back. Poor kid, something like this
had to happen sooner or later. Ayumi was on a slow but unavoidable approach
toward the center of a deadly whirlpool. And even if I had been warmer to her, there
were probably limits to how much that could have accomplished. It’s time for me to
325
stop crying. I’ll have to change my attitude again. I’ll have to put the rules ahead of
my self. That’s the important thing, as Tamaru said
.
On the morning of the fifth day after Ayumi died, the pager finally rang. At the time,
she was in the kitchen, boiling water to make coffee and listening to the news on the
radio. The pager was sitting on the kitchen table. She read the telephone number
displayed on the small screen. It was not one she knew. But it had to be a message
from Tamaru. She went to a nearby pay phone and dialed the number. Tamaru
answered after the third ring.
“All set to go?” Tamaru asked.
“Of course,” Aomame answered.
“Here is Madame’s message: seven o’clock tonight in the lobby of the Hotel
Okura’s main building. Dress for work as usual. Sorry for the short notice, but this
could only be arranged at the last minute.”
“Seven o’clock tonight in the lobby of the Hotel Okura’s main building,” Aomame
repeated mechanically.
“I’d like to wish you luck, but I’m afraid a good luck wish from me won’t do any
good,” Tamaru said.
“Because you don’t believe in luck.”
“Even if I wanted to, I don’t know what it’s like,” Tamaru said. “I’ve never seen
it.”
“That’s okay, I don’t need good wishes. There’s something I’d like you to do for
me instead. I have a potted rubber plant in my apartment. I’d like you to take care of
it. I couldn’t bring myself to throw it out.”
“I’ll take care of it.”
“Thanks.”
“A rubber plant’s a lot easier to take care of than a cat or a tropical fish. Anything
else?”
“Not a thing. Just throw out everything I leave behind.”
“When you’ve finished the job, go to Shinjuku Station and call this number again.
I’ll give you your next instructions then.”
“When I finish the job, I go to Shinjuku Station and call this number again,”
Aomame repeated.
“I think you know not to write down the telephone number. When you leave home,
break the pager and get rid of it somewhere.”
“I see. Okay.”
“We’ve lined up everything to the last detail. You don’t have to worry about a
thing. Just leave the rest to us.”
“I won’t worry,” Aomame said.
Tamaru kept silent for a moment. “Do you want my honest opinion?”
“Sure.”
“I don’t mean to say that what you two are doing is useless, I really don’t. It’s your
problem, not mine. But I do think that, at the very least, it’s reckless. And there’s no
end to it.”
“You may be right,” Aomame said. “But it’s beyond changing now.”
326
“Like avalanches in the spring.”
“Probably.”
“But sensible people don’t go into avalanche country in avalanche season.”
“A sensible person wouldn’t be having this conversation with you.”
“You may be right,” Tamaru had to admit. “Anyhow, are there any relatives we
should be contacting in case an avalanche does occur?”
“None at all.”
“You mean there aren’t any, or they’re there but they’re not.”
“They’re there but they’re not.”
“That’s fine,” Tamaru said. “It’s best to travel light. A rubber plant is just about the
ideal family.”
“Seeing those goldfish in Madame’s house suddenly made me want to have some
of my own. They’d be nice to have around. They’re little and quiet and probably don’t
make too many demands. So I went to a shop by my station the next day thinking I
was going to buy some, but when I actually saw them in the tank I didn’t want them
anymore. Instead, I bought this sad little rubber plant, one of the last ones they had.”
“I’d say you made the right choice.”
“I might never be able to buy goldfish—ever.”
“Maybe not,” Tamaru said. “You could buy another rubber plant.”
A short silence ensued.
“Seven o’clock tonight in the lobby of the Hotel Okura’s main building,” Aomame
said again to reconfirm.
“You just have to sit there. They’ll find you.”
“They’ll find me.”
Tamaru cleared his throat. “By the way, do you know the story about the
vegetarian cat who met up with the rat?”
“Never heard that one.”
“Would you like to?”
“Very much.”
“A cat met up with a big male rat in the attic and chased him into a corner. The rat,
trembling, said, ‘Please don’t eat me, Mr. Cat. I have to go back to my family. I have
hungry children waiting for me. Please let me go.’ The cat said, ‘Don’t worry, I won’t
eat you. To tell you the truth, I can’t say this too loudly, but I’m a vegetarian. I don’t
eat any meat. You were lucky to run into me.’ The rat said, ‘Oh, what a wonderful
day! What a lucky rat I am to meet up with a vegetarian cat!’ But the very next
second, the cat pounced on the rat, held him down with his claws, and sank his sharp
teeth into the rat’s throat. With his last, painful breath, the rat asked him, ‘But Mr.
Cat, didn’t you say you’re a vegetarian and don’t eat any meat? Were you lying to
me?’ The cat licked his chops and said, ‘True, I don’t eat meat. That was no lie. I’m
going to take you home in my mouth and trade you for lettuce.’ ”
Aomame thought about this for a moment. “What’s the point?”
“No point, really. I suddenly remembered the story when we were talking about
luck before. That’s all. You can take whatever you like from it, of course.”
“What a heartwarming story.”
“Oh, and another thing. I’m pretty sure they’re going to pat you down and search
your bag before they let you in. They’re a careful bunch. Better keep that in mind.”
327
“I’ll keep it in mind.”
“All right, then,” Tamaru said, “let’s meet again somewhere.”
“Again somewhere,” Aomame repeated by reflex.
Tamaru cut the connection. Aomame looked at the receiver for a moment,
grimaced slightly, and put it down. Then, after committing the telephone number
displayed on the pager to memory, she deleted it.
Do'stlaringiz bilan baham: |
