couldn’t it be possible that one or two of the family members could already have been missing at that point?” Hashiba pressed.
“It’s possible. But it’s hard to imagine that anything abnormal was going on at that point based on the impression Haruko’s friend had when she called.”
“What did they talk about?” Oki asked.
“Haruko and her friend, you mean?”
“Yes.”
“The two of them were friends from high school, and a mutual friend was returning to Japan from the U.S., so they discussed the three of them getting together for a drink.”
“When was their friend going to return to Japan?”
“January 24th.”
“Two days after the family’s disappearance. It’s hard to imagine someone disappearing of their own volition the same night she’d made plans to go drinking with friends two days later,” Hashiba murmured, seemingly to himself. He had a habit of tapping the tip of his ballpoint pen against his notepad while he thought.
“That’s right. At least, I couldn’t uncover a single reason why Haruko would want to disappear,” Saeko confirmed.
“All right. Now, can you tell us how you know the family had gone missing by 7 a.m. the next morning?” Oki prompted, bringing them backto the timeframe issue.
“Another phone call. Haruko’s older sister Junko called at that hour, and there was no answer. Normally, someone would definitely have been home to answer the phone on a weekday morning at seven. Kota left for work at nine-thirty, the children left for school just a little before eight, and Haruko left for work earliest, at seven-thirty.”
“Who was the first person to notice that something unusual was going on with the Fujimuras?”
“Keisuke’s homeroom teacher at Takato Junior High.”
“Because he didn’t show up at school?”
“Right. The teacher called the Fujimuras immediately, but there was no answer. Given that Haruko was a fellow teacher, Keisuke’s teacher obtained her contact details through a mutual friend and tried her workplace, but her coworkers informed him that she hadn’t shown up. That afternoon, the teacher called a relative of the Fujimuras and explained the circumstances.”
“And who was the first person to check their home?”
“Junko, Haruko’s older sister.”
“The woman who had phoned that morning.”
“Yes.”
“And what did Junko find?”
“Basically, the house looked as if the Fujimuras had just popped out momentarily and then never returned.” Saeko stopped here, and she somehow felt compelled to look each of the six men in the face.
But how could that be?
their eyes seemed to say.
“Specifically, what did she find?” Kagayama asked, speaking up for the first time. The whole group was listening intently, but Kagayama alone betrayed a hint of fear in his expression.
“It was like any other day at the Fujimura house. The bathtub was full of water … Of course, it was cold by the time they found it. But there were signs that the children had already bathed; they may have been in their pajamas when they disappeared. In the kitchen, the dishes had been washed, and on the living room table there were two tea cups with tea still in them, plus an empty beer can next to a glass still half-full of beer. There were a few tissues and a banana peel in the wastebasket, and the radio was on in one of the children’s rooms.”
“And the lights?”
“They were on.”
“Did Junko go in through the front door?”
“No. It was locked, so she went around the back and came in through the kitchen.”
“I see. And she discovered the house looking as if everything was wrapped up for the day and the family was ready for bed, hmm? Yet, for some reason, the family was gone. Tell me, Ms. Kuriyama, what was the first explanation that came to mind? Did you have any theories as to how the Fujimuras vanished?”
“I went through the standard scenarios and ruled them out one by one. As I noted in my report, the majority of missing persons
“It’s possible. But it’s hard to imagine that anything abnormal was going on at that point based on the impression Haruko’s friend had when she called.”
“What did they talk about?” Oki asked.
“Haruko and her friend, you mean?”
“Yes.”
“The two of them were friends from high school, and a mutual friend was returning to Japan from the U.S., so they discussed the three of them getting together for a drink.”
“When was their friend going to return to Japan?”
“January 24th.”
“Two days after the family’s disappearance. It’s hard to imagine someone disappearing of their own volition the same night she’d made plans to go drinking with friends two days later,” Hashiba murmured, seemingly to himself. He had a habit of tapping the tip of his ballpoint pen against his notepad while he thought.
“That’s right. At least, I couldn’t uncover a single reason why Haruko would want to disappear,” Saeko confirmed.
“All right. Now, can you tell us how you know the family had gone missing by 7 a.m. the next morning?” Oki prompted, bringing them backto the timeframe issue.
“Another phone call. Haruko’s older sister Junko called at that hour, and there was no answer. Normally, someone would definitely have been home to answer the phone on a weekday morning at seven. Kota left for work at nine-thirty, the children left for school just a little before eight, and Haruko left for work earliest, at seven-thirty.”
“Who was the first person to notice that something unusual was going on with the Fujimuras?”
“Keisuke’s homeroom teacher at Takato Junior High.”
“Because he didn’t show up at school?”
“Right. The teacher called the Fujimuras immediately, but there was no answer. Given that Haruko was a fellow teacher, Keisuke’s teacher obtained her contact details through a mutual friend and tried her workplace, but her coworkers informed him that she hadn’t shown up. That afternoon, the teacher called a relative of the Fujimuras and explained the circumstances.”
“And who was the first person to check their home?”
“Junko, Haruko’s older sister.”
“The woman who had phoned that morning.”
“Yes.”
“And what did Junko find?”
“Basically, the house looked as if the Fujimuras had just popped out momentarily and then never returned.” Saeko stopped here, and she somehow felt compelled to look each of the six men in the face.
But how could that be?
their eyes seemed to say.
“Specifically, what did she find?” Kagayama asked, speaking up for the first time. The whole group was listening intently, but Kagayama alone betrayed a hint of fear in his expression.
“It was like any other day at the Fujimura house. The bathtub was full of water … Of course, it was cold by the time they found it. But there were signs that the children had already bathed; they may have been in their pajamas when they disappeared. In the kitchen, the dishes had been washed, and on the living room table there were two tea cups with tea still in them, plus an empty beer can next to a glass still half-full of beer. There were a few tissues and a banana peel in the wastebasket, and the radio was on in one of the children’s rooms.”
“And the lights?”
“They were on.”
“Did Junko go in through the front door?”
“No. It was locked, so she went around the back and came in through the kitchen.”
“I see. And she discovered the house looking as if everything was wrapped up for the day and the family was ready for bed, hmm? Yet, for some reason, the family was gone. Tell me, Ms. Kuriyama, what was the first explanation that came to mind? Did you have any theories as to how the Fujimuras vanished?”
“I went through the standard scenarios and ruled them out one by one. As I noted in my report, the majority of missing persons
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