Obviously, Dr. Higano didn’t actually believe people could come back to life. He’d said that to show exactly how little he knew about Reina Myoko.
We took the three men to Interrogation Room Six. Yamaji took into account that it was already well past 8:00 P.M. and set a 30-minute time limit for the questioning. In exchange, we had all three agree to additional questioning for the next day if we determined their testimony wasn’t enough. We’d already made reservations at a business hotel that worked with Tokyo Bay Station. This was also so we wouldn’t lose track of someone if we found them suspicious.
At any rate, I wanted to run the interrogation as efficiently as possible, because we just didn’t have any time. Even if Masquerade wasn’t involved, we were still looking at a brutal murder, and the National Police Agency would soon be calling for an investigative task force. Yamaji and I had jurisdiction, but if a task force was opened we—and Tokyo Bay Station as a whole—would lose our ability to operate as freely. Having Dr. Higano join us in the interrogation room, for instance, would be totally out of the question.
In order to expedite the process, we had them write down critical information and decided what we would ask them beforehand.
We were going to ask about these five topics during that half hour:
1. Personality profile
2. Alibi
3. Relationship with the victim (Reina Myoko)
4. Their impression of the victim
5. Whether they had any idea who the killer was
We used Interrogation Room Six when we wanted to proceed with extreme caution and not put pressure on suspects. It was a room with a large window looking out over the water and the gaudy Odaiba hotels. Inside, house plants were positioned next to the curtains, and there was a white, single-seat sofa with cushions.
I took a position at the desk near the entrance and listened to the questioning. Yamaji sat directly in front of the witness, and Dr. Higano stood next to him with his arms crossed. At the doctor’s request, we received permission from the three witnesses to record the conversations on video.
First up was Ken Nakahigashi.
✦ ✦ ✦
My name is Ken Nakahigashi. I’m 27 years old. I work at a construction company.
Hmm, my alibi from 7:11 to 7:48 P.M….I heard from another officer that that’s the window when Shota got a call from Reina, went into her apartment, and then called the police. That’s fine and all, but do you really believe everything he said? Oh, I shouldn’t be worrying about that? I guess you’re right.
I was in my office in Yokohama. Ask the other employees, they’ll back me up.
What was I doing after eight? You’re Mr. Higano, right? Reina’s foot was in her place at that point, so wasn’t she already dead? Why are you asking what I was doing then? Fine…I was working at the office until 12:30 that night. It should be printed on my time card, but from 10:30 onward I was by myself. I don’t know what we have in the office, but I think I should be on security cameras leaving the office. If not, my alibi from 10:30 on may not be airtight.
I was Reina’s fiancé. We were planning to get married in August. A marriage of convenience…I guess it’s inevitable someone would say that. After all, my father is her father’s benefactor. Koichiro is a politician, and when he failed at his business, he took out loans. My dad provided financial assistance in the form of large, unsecured loans. He wasn’t stingy with his support when Koichiro was running for Metropolitan Assembly either.
But I don’t want you to get the wrong idea: Reina wasn’t a hostage or anything. I’m going to be head of my company, and she was looking forward to marrying me. She wanted to be back in a family that was well off, like they’d been before.
Reina wasn’t some delicate flower who hated marriages of convenience. I never even saw her express any emotions per se. She struck me as someone who lived her life based solely on a set of ethics. I never sensed any compassion from her either. I don’t mean that out of any sense of animosity. I don’t usually like emotional women. I was actually attracted to her logical side, which is one of the reasons I decided to marry her. My ideal marriage was one where we’d enjoy each other’s strengths without interfering with each other.
Yeah…So it’s a total surprise that she would date someone like Akiyama. He didn’t really have anything going for him. He doesn’t seem to have any money, and he’s only average looking. Ha…Maybe the sex was really good. I’m not joking. Aside from pure physical pleasure, I can’t think of a single reason she was spending time with him.
How would I describe Reina in a single word? Hmm…When I looked at Reina, I had the impression of a simple, unembellished work of art.
Yes…Reina was beautiful.
So maybe I’d say “ice sculpture”? Is that too poetic?
And the last question—do I have any idea who the killer is? None. None at all. Do I think it’s Akiyama? I can’t stand people who jump to conclusions. If I arbitrarily decided who the killer was based on just my emotions, I’d drop to his level.
I can imagine his motive. Reina broke up with him, and he was overcome with passion and killed her. However, although I can imagine that, I don’t think he’d have the courage to do everything else, cutting off her foot and her face. So it’s probably not him.
Ah, yes. I did see Reina that day…Yes, I told my coworkers that I’d be meeting with her, so you should be able to confirm it pretty easily…No, I wasn’t hiding it. I was just waiting to tell you.
I met with Reina to talk at a hotel café on Odaiba from 3:00 to 4:00. The name of the café is Sea’s Ale…You think I didn’t mention it because I didn’t want to bring it up? Definitely not. It’s just that we ended up getting into a fight at the café over something trivial. To be honest, I thought you might misinterpret things.
Marriage is a crossroads, and sometimes people might bump into each other. Don’t you think?
What was that? Officer, did you say something? Could you repeat that?
“Did Reina limp or favor one of her legs?”
Not that I can remember. Why do you ask?
Hmm. I guess I remember that she had blisters on her heels and the skin would peel off.
Does that have something to do with her case?
Maybe or maybe not? No way, that’s got nothing to do with this.