Laboratory 13 was right where Utsumi had left it. A familiar whiteboard hung on the door, showing the whereabouts of everyone associated with the lab. Next to the space marked ‘Yukawa’, a red magnet had been stuck in the ‘IN’ column. She breathed a light sigh of relief. At least he didn’t skip out on me.
The board seemed to indicate that all the assistants and students were out at classes. This was another relief. She’d rather that no one listened in on their conversation.
She knocked on the door and a voice inside said, ‘Yes.’ She waited.
‘Sorry, it’s not automatic,’ the voice said after a few moments had passed.
Utsumi pushed open the door. Straight ahead a man was sitting with his back to her, wearing a black T-shirt. He was staring at a large monitor on which a structure composed of large and small spheres was displayed.
‘Think you could press the switch on the coffeemaker next to the sink?’ the man asked without turning. ‘It’s all ready to go.’
The sink was directly to her right. She spotted the coffee-maker. It looked brand-new. Utsumi pressed the switch and heard the sound of steam being generated.
‘I’d heard you like instant coffee,’ she said.
‘They gave me that coffeemaker as a prize for winning the badminton tournament. Thought I’d give it a spin. It’s quite convenient, you know. And the price per cup is very reasonable.’
‘Bet you wish you’d had one before.’
‘Not really. It has one major flaw.’
‘What’s that?’
‘It doesn’t taste like instant coffee,’ Manabu Yukawa said, banging out something on the keyboard before swivelling around in his chair. He looked up at Utsumi. ‘Getting used to Division yet?’
‘A little.’
‘Ah, a “little”. That’s good to hear. I have a theory that getting used to detective work is essentially the same thing as losing your humanity.’
‘Have you told Detective Kusanagi this theory?’
‘Several times. Not that he ever listened.’ Yukawa looked back at the monitor, hand reaching for the mouse.
‘What’s that?’
‘A model of a ferrite crystalline structure.’
‘Ferrite … Like in a magnet?’
The physicist’s eyes widened slightly behind his glasses. ‘Ferromagnetic material, more properly … but still, you know your stuff.’
‘I think I read about it once. They use that to make magnetic heads, right?’
‘Kusanagi doesn’t know what he’s got, does he,’ Yukawa muttered, flicking off the monitor and looking back up at Utsumi. ‘So, question time. Me first. Why am I supposed to keep your coming here a secret from Kusanagi?’
‘In order for me to explain that, I’ll have to tell you about the case first.’
Yukawa slowly shook his head. ‘When you called me, I initially refused because I’m really not that interested in working on police cases. What made me change my mind was when you said you weren’t telling Kusanagi you were coming. That was intriguing, which is why I’ve set aside time out of my busy schedule. So, explain that to me first. And be aware I’ll only decide whether or not I’ll listen to whatever else you have to say afterwards.’
Utsumi watched the professor’s face while he talked. Kusanagi had said that the man they called ‘Detective Galileo’ had always been very helpful when it came to working on a case. But something to do with one particular investigation had caused a rift between the detective and the physicist. Since then, the two had grown apart, though no one had told her any of the details.
‘It would be difficult to explain the need for secrecy without describing the case.’
‘Unlikely. Tell me, when you go out questioning people, do you describe the whole case to everyone you question? Just use whatever streamlining techniques you would use then. And please be quick about it. The more time we waste, the more likely it is that one of my students will return.’
Utsumi didn’t like the professor’s acerbic tone, and it almost showed on her face. She was struck with an irrational desire to ruffle the cool physicist’s feathers.
‘Something wrong?’ He narrowed his eyes. ‘Don’t feel like talking?’
‘That’s not it.’
‘Then, swiftness is your ally. I’m really short on time here.’
‘Right,’ Utsumi said, gathering herself. ‘Detective Kus -anagi …’ she began, staring Yukawa in the eye, ‘… is in love.’
‘Huh?’ The cool light in Yukawa’s eyes faded and his focus softened, so that he looked like a little lost boy for a brief moment until he looked back up at Utsumi. ‘Did you just say “love”?’
‘Yes,’ she said. ‘Detective Kusanagi is in it.’
Yukawa leaned back, straightening his glasses. When he again returned his gaze to Utsumi, there was wariness in his eyes. ‘With whom?’
‘Our suspect,’ Utsumi replied. ‘He’s in love with the suspect in our current case, which is affecting his view of certain details. That’s why I didn’t want him to know I was coming here.’
‘So he’s not expecting me to offer you any advice about the case?’
‘Not in the least.’ Utsumi nodded.
Yukawa crossed his arms and let his eyelids fall shut. He leaned back in his chair, breathing out a long breath. ‘I think I underestimated you. In fact, I was ready to refuse as soon as you’d said whatever it was you were going to say, but this … was unexpected. Love, is it? You sure we’re talking about the same Detective Kusanagi?’
‘Can I tell you about the case?’ Utsumi said, tasting victory.
‘First, we drink coffee. I need to let things settle a bit before I can focus.’
Yukawa stood and poured coffee into two mugs.
‘This is perfect, actually,’ Utsumi said as he handed her one of the mugs.
‘What is?’
‘This coffee. You see, the case begins with a cup of coffee.’
‘“From a cup of coffee what dreams may bloom …” There was a song about that once. So, what’s your story?’ Yukawa sat back in his chair, sipping from his mug.
Utsumi proceeded to tell him everything she knew about the Yoshitaka Mashiba murder, in chronological order. Officially they weren’t permitted to divulge the details of the case outside of Division, but Kusanagi once told her it was the only way to get Yukawa’s assistance. More importantly, Utsumi trusted him.
Yukawa drank his coffee and stared down into the empty mug while she finished talking.
‘So your point is: you suspect the wife, and Kusanagi doesn’t, but since he’s in love with her, his judgment is flawed.’
‘I might’ve been overstating it when I said “love”. I was just trying to get your attention. However, it’s true that Detective Kusanagi holds a special affection for the wife. He acts strangely when he’s around her, or talking about her.’
‘I won’t ask how it is that you’re so certain. I’m a great believer in female intuition about such things.’
‘I’ll take that as a compliment.’
Yukawa furrowed his brow and placed his coffee mug on the desk. ‘Still, just listening to your story, it doesn’t sound as though Kusanagi’s thinking about the case is all that off the mark. Ayane Mashiba, was it? Her alibi sounds perfect.’
‘If the murder weapon were something direct, like a knife or a gun, I would agree. But this is a poisoning, and it’s possible to commit the act before the actual murder happens.’
‘So you want me to figure out how she did it?’
Utsumi waited in silence.
A knowing smile spread on the physicist’s lips. ‘Perhaps you’ve got the wrong impression somewhere along the line, but physics is not magic.’
‘But you’ve solved plenty of cases before now involving tricks that seemed like magic.’