I kissed Juri on her lips and promptly took off.
I went back to the office, and with an innocent face, sat at my desk. No one seemed to care. It seemed the guys at Nissei Automobile hadn’t returned yet.
I booted my computer and, after thinking for a while, started writing.
Mr. Katsutoshi Katsuragi,
We certainly received the cargo. We have not verified the contents yet. As soon as that work is done, we will return Juri Katsuragi. However, if we perceive any police action, that will not be possible. We will contact you again regarding our method of returning her to you.
I checked that there were no typos and, using an account with a fictitious identity, sent the email. I checked that it was sent safely and deleted the text from my computer. I would probably never use the account again.
A little past closing time, Kozuka and the others came back. Seeing my face, he approached my seat.
“Sorry about today.”
“Not at all. Actually, how did the meeting go?”
“Well, we somehow decided on the direction. Starting tomorrow, we’ll be busy with a lot of things.”
“But don’t you have to wait for Mr. Katsuragi’s input? Because he left in the middle.”
“No, he was able to return.”
“Uh, he was?” I said in a falsetto.
“Yeah. He finished whatever he needed to do, so he was able to come back near the end of the meeting. So then, well, at that point we got their approval. It’s good we didn’t go there for nothing.”
“I see…”
I couldn’t believe it. That meant after handing over the ransom, Katsutoshi Katsuragi had gone straight back to work. How? Normally, having to talk to the police and dealing with the aftermath would have prevented him.
“Is something wrong?” Kozuka peered at my face curiously.
“No, nothing. I’m glad it went well,” I said with a fake smile.
I left the office and headed home, but doubts were swirling in my head. I just couldn’t find a satisfying explanation.
Katsutoshi Katsuragi’s voice from that afternoon kept sounding in my ears.
There’s no point in any of this. There were never any police with me to begin with.
As long as Juri comes home, fine. I’m ready to pay the ransom.
You don’t have to do this, I won’t contact the police.
Katsuragi had asserted multiple times that the police weren’t involved. I hadn’t believed those words and didn’t believe them now. However, there were too many inconsistencies. When I had tried to use Hakozaki Junction to read my opponents’ movements, it had been the same.
When I got home, Juri was sitting on the sofa watching TV. The banknotes were neatly piled on top of the center table. Three hundred million yen really was a spectacular sight.
“You didn’t touch it with your bare hands, did you?”
“I put these on.” Juri picked up rubber gloves. “But why can’t I touch it with my bare hands?”
“Because we don’t know what trick there might be. For instance, there might be stuff on it that changes color when you touch it with your hands. And then, that won’t come off unless you use special solvents.”
“Is there such a thing?” Juri looked at the notes with a spooked look.
“I’ve heard rumors. Other tricks are to use chemicals that change color after some time has passed. If we use this money without knowing about it, after some time, the party who took the money would find it suspicious and contact the police.”
“There’s a lot, isn’t there.”
“So it’s best not to touch it for two or three days. If we wait just that long and nothing strange happens, then we can assume it’s okay.”
“You’re really amazing,” Juri said.
She actually sounded impressed, rather than teasing, so, feeling surprised, I looked at her face. “Why, that’s sudden.”
“You know everything and you’re always two steps ahead. Even picking up the ransom money went that well. We have three hundred million yen in our hands almost without doing anything, using just cellphones.”
“You don’t need to flatter me to keep me from lowering your cut,” I said laughing. “Two hundred seventy million yen. Suddenly you’re rich.”
“Are you sure I can take that much?”
“Compared to what you’d actually inherit, it’s probably a paltry sum. I’m fine with thirty million yen. It’s a good earning on top of playing a fun game.”
“And you got Katsutoshi Katsuragi by his nose, too?”
“That’s right.” Even as I laughed, apprehension wafted through my heart. Was that right? Had I really won against Katsutoshi Katsuragi?
“Is something wrong?” Juri asked. She seemed to have noticed the change in my expression.
“I remembered that the game still isn’t over. There’s one last important part left.” I put up my index finger. “Returning the hostage. We have to set you up as the pitiful victim. She was not only confined by heartless kidnappers but also coerced into helping extort the ransom. We need to get you back to the papa you love so dearly.”
“I’ll have to stay an actress for just a while longer, then.” Juri puffed out her chest.
“This next act will be tough. I won’t be by your side. No matter what happens, you’ll have to get through it yourself. This act won’t be for just a short time, either. Your whole life, you’ll have to play the part of a kidnapping victim.” I sat next to her, put my arm around her back, and pulled her towards me. “Are you ready for it?”
Juri blinked twice and stared at me. “Who do you think I am? I’m Katsutoshi Katsuragi’s daughter.”
“Right, of course,” I nodded.
Returning Juri home wasn’t hard. After putting her to sleep in a secluded place, I’d simply contact her father. Of course, I didn’t really have to put her to sleep. If she just pretended, that would be enough.
The issue was after that. A rigorous performance would be required of her.
“First the police will ask you about the conditions under which you were abducted.” I looked at her. “We went over those circumstances. Do you remember them? They’ll ask why you snuck out of the house so late at night. Well, how will you respond?”
“That night…” As though she were remembering, she continued, “Chiharu and I had a little argument over cosmetic cream. I felt irritated, so I thought of going to this bar where I’m a regular. I snuck away because I didn’t want my parents to get on my case.”
Okay, she remembered it well. As expected.
“Please tell us in detail what happened when you were kidnapped,” I said, shoving an imaginary mic in her face.
“Just a little while after I left home, a car stopped next to me. When I wondered why and looked over, someone grabbed me from behind. I tried to scream, but something like a handkerchief had been placed over my mouth. I don’t really remember what happened next.” After thinking and speaking up to that point, she made a face as though to say, How’s that?
“What’s next is key, though. When you came to, you were at the culprits’ hideout. They’ll probably ask you what kind of place it was. How will you respond then?”
This bit was worth thinking out carefully. If it seemed unnatural, the police would start to have doubts. Those guys were at least aware that a kidnapping might have been staged. If we did the production on the fly, some contradiction might emerge.
“A blindfold,” I said.
“What?”
“When you came to, you were blindfolded and couldn’t see anything. That’s how you’ll answer. What’s more, your hands are tied behind your back. In that state, you’ve been laid atop something like a bed.”