Nocturne of Remembrance (14 page)

“Prosecutor, do you know how many auto accidents occurred the year before last?”

“… What’s your point?”

“Nationwide, there were 725,773 auto accidents that year. In other words, they occurred at the rate of once every forty-three seconds. But have you, prosecutor, ever witnessed an auto accident as it occurred?”

“Now that is what I’d call a play on words. The auto accidents rates vary considerably depending on the prefecture. And to begin with—”

“Defense and prosecution, is this subject relevant to the case?” interrupted Sanjo, a little appalled, from up on the bench. “If you are going to talk about probability theory, I want you to do it outside of
court.”

“Excuse me, your honor,” Mikoshiba complied.

“Remove the prosecution’s last question from the court record.”

Having apologized in form only, Mikoshiba sat back down. He was well aware that it had been a farce. It was worth it if he could deflect Misaki’s questioning and give Yozo some time. And indeed, he seemed to have regained his composure.

Misaki cleared his throat and continued. “Well then, witness. When the crime occurred, you came across the accused in the midst of disposing the body. At that time did you confirm any new wounds caused by violence on either the accused or your two grandchildren?”

“At that time?”

“Yes. Not in the past. Exactly then.”

Oops
. Mikoshiba bit his lip.

“No, I don’t think that there were any new bruises on them at that time.”

“That is what I thought. Neither the inspectors nor the forensics team that rushed to the scene reported any fresh bruises on the accused or the children. In other words, the accused’s actions were not, as the defense has claimed, an instance of legitimate self-defense. The fact is that there was no violence towards them just prior to the incident.”

“I object, your honor. The prosecution is clearly interpreting legitimate self-defense in a very narrow sense. Besides a reflex action at the moment of violence, it also includes protection from chronic violence.”

“Defense. In order to claim that the crime was committed in legitimate self-defense, it will be necessary for you to demonstrate that there was imminent danger. Can you do so?”

Mikoshiba hesitated momentarily, recalling the requirements for legitimate self-defense:

The imminence in these conditions required confirmation of whether some violation had been impending. Of course, this didn’t concern the subjective judgment of the violated, namely Akiko, but had to be objectively true, and the possibility of excessive self-defense arose if the violation was used as an opportunity to aggressively harm the other party. Akiko’s assault had been with a sharp tool, whereas Shingo’s violence had been unarmed; moreover, the supposed self-defense had taken place in the bathroom when he had been helpless. Sticking blindly to legitimate self-defense as the point at issue might not be so advantageous.

Backing up seemed like the best option.

“Right now I do not have anything to substantiate that, and I would appreciate some time until the next session.”

“That is acceptable. Does the prosecution have any other cross-examination items for the witness?”

“One more. Witness, when you arrived at the scene of the crime, the accused was in the process of disposing the body. Is that correct?”

“Yes. However, as soon as I saw it, Akiko immediately seemed resigned …”

“Just what are you saying she was resigned over?”

“That …”

“You mean not being able to dispose of the body and cover up the crime, yes?”

“Well …”

“Please answer clearly, not with ‘That …’ or ‘Well …’ ”

“Your honor. The prosecution’s comment just now is coercive.”

“I only wish to confirm, not coerce. At the time, the accused had
gone so far as to spread a blue tarp on the dressing-room floor and was washing off the blood in the bathroom. Witness, if you had not coincidentally visited the house, do you think the accused would have continued her efforts to conceal the crime?”

No way, don’t you dare say it
.

“The prosecution is posing a hypothetical to the witness!”

“Well, witness?”

“She probably would have continued. But covering up a crime is something that anybody—”

“I have nothing more to ask the witness,” Misaki cut Yozo off and ended the cross-examination.

Mikoshiba cursed silently again. He’d put Yozo on the witness stand this time to lower the court’s opinion of Shingo and to raise Akiko’s by as much. It was precisely why he was focusing on the abuse, which hadn’t been pursued at the first trial. People’s impressions were affected by third parties. Mikoshiba had assumed that the victim’s father, Yozo, testifying sympathetically about Akiko would appeal to the judge’s emotions.

Misaki, however, had caught on and canceled any sympathy points by making Yozo himself discuss Akiko’s attempts to conceal the crime.

Damn it. Prosecution, one
.

“Your honor. I would like to call the next witness.”

Yoshiwaki came to the witness stand next. He, too, was tensed up by his unfamiliar surroundings, and it showed on his face—not that there were many ordinary citizens who were accustomed to them.

“Witness, please state your name and occupation.”

“Kenichi Yoshiwaki, CPA at the Midorikawa Accounting Firm.”

“You were a coworker of the accused.”

“Yes, I was.”

“Have you read the judgment from the first trial?”

“No. I have heard about it, but the actual text …”

“That document purports that the accused’s intimate feelings for you, a coworker, were part of her motive. Did the accused ever reveal
anything along those lines to you?”

“Absolutely not,” replied Yoshiwaki, shaking his head. “The only thing that Ms. Tsuda ever discussed in private was her daughters. There was never a mention of anything romantic. We did go to an eatery together a few times, but it was only during lunch break, and we never did more than gripe about work.”

“So there were no such signs. But perhaps you just didn’t notice?”

“I’m not some middle schooler. If a woman gave you looks with a mind to even kill her husband over you, most people would notice.”

“Did the accused ever make any reference to her husband?”

“That … doesn’t ring any bells.”

“Do you consider your memory to be better than average?”

Yoshiwaki replied with a sarcastic smile, “To say the least, I think that being a CPA would be tough with a bad memory.”

“In other words, can we assume that the accused said absolutely nothing about her husband to you?”

“Yes. If she did, I’d remember, but, really, I never heard a thing even about his age or occupation.”

“Then, in fact, didn’t you think it was odd that this co-worker with whom you’d barely chatted in private had killed her husband out of a desire to be with you?”

“Yes, of course I did. It was something out of the blue. It was totally unexpected.”

“Do you feel like the motive was fabricated?”

“Your honor! That is a leading question,” Misaki immediately objected, but that was as expected.

“Objection sustained. Defense, please phrase your questions more carefully.”

Apparently, Akiko’s questioning had been recorded in its entirety. Knowing from the outset that everything would be recorded naturally made the suspect tense, but the same went for the interrogator. Coerced confessions and leading questions would also be recorded as is, so you had to proceed with caution.

In the end, all of the measures implemented under the banner of preventing false accusations owed to a backdrop of dishonorable conduct by the prosecution and the police. Any suggestion that a deposition they’d written up a little shamefacedly might still contain fabrications frayed their nerves. Unsettling the prosecution led to the defense scoring points.

“In that case, I will reformulate the question. Does the witness find it hard to believe that he was the accused’s motive for murdering Shingo?”

“Yes, exactly as you stated.”

“Your honor. Here the defense would like to use Evidence A-7, provided earlier by the prosecution.”

Murmurs rippled in the visitors’ gallery, and Misaki looked nonplussed.

“Evidence A-7 is a summary of forensic materials collected at the scene of the crime by the Setagaya Police after Yozo Tsuda summoned them. The main part concerns the bathroom that was the scene of the crime, but naturally it also considers all the items that would have been touched by the suspect and the victim. The investigation went into minute detail and was extremely careful. They did not miss one strand of hair or a speck of insect feces. The commendable tenacity with which they approach criminal investigation is apparent in between the lines.”

The over-the-top praise instantly put a frown on Misaki’s face. Though not something that Mikoshiba did often, it was provocations like these that worked best on guys like Misaki.

“Of particular interest is the third page: the contents of the kitchen garbage basket. No, more correctly, inside the kitchen was a 45-liter plastic bag where trash from the other rooms was deposited once those baskets became full. Used tissues, rubber bands, packaging from instant noodles and frozen food, four days’ worth of ad inserts including from the day of the crime, a milk carton, hair, bread crumbs, eraser scraps, lettuce cores, onion skins, a banana peel, a plastic food container, dead
bugs, and … the wrapping from a contraceptive device.”

Mikoshiba waved the sheet at Misaki.

“We can conclude, from the wrapping’s presence in the same garbage basket as four days’ worth of ad inserts, that the accused and Shingo’s conjugal relationship continued until just before the incident. And combined with Kenichi Yoshiwaki’s testimony, it seems most unnatural to conclude that she carried out a premeditated plan to get rid of her husband despite an ongoing conjugal relationship and her lack of a single notable move on her coworker. Accordingly, the defense reiterates that her action against Shingo was an instance of impulsive, legitimate self-defense.”

An uppercut from a blind spot, it seemed to have hit the mark. Sanjo looked troubled, and as for Misaki, he was glowering at Mikoshiba. But the counterattack came immediately.

“Your honor, I have an opposing opinion.”

“The prosecution may proceed.”

Misaki stood up and stared directly at Mikoshiba. The man looked like a boxer who was looking forward to trading blows to the bitter end.

“I’m taken aback by the defense’s arbitrary argument … I must wonder, is the attorney single? He seems not to understand what a couple actually is like.”

Ah ha
, thought Mikoshiba, impressed. He had expected Misaki to counter-punch right away, but the veteran prosecutor knew how to have fun with light jabs.

“I hesitate to discuss vulgar matters in this sacred courtroom … but the quality of a couple’s relationship does not correlate with their evening life together. In fact, as the phrase ‘nighttime duty’ implies, there are couples that no doubt continue with it as a sort of obligation, while others are fulfilled and happy with each other just to hold hands.”

Someone in the visitors’ gallery burst with laughter.

“Moreover, from the viewpoint of premeditated murder, the accused’s having consented to sexual relations can be interpreted as a way
to lower the victim’s guard. If she attacked him right after having sexual intercourse, that does remind me of the female praying mantis … No, my words are getting the better of me. I beg your pardon.”

Crap
. Mikoshiba bit his lip. Misaki was taking that route.

“Also, about the romantic feelings stated by the defendant in her testimony not being real—it makes me shake my head, too. Somehow I get the feeling that the defense is not well versed in the workings between men and women. Love is not always shown in words and conduct. While it is not so common nowadays, there is also the concept of platonic relations. And indeed, the accused may have gotten the wrong impression all on her own. In other words, there is a possibility that she made too much of his casual gestures. That, actually, is typical of the stalker incidents becoming common nowadays.”

Misaki took a quick glance at Akiko, but she simply sat there with her head drooping.

“Be it an erroneous impression or a delusion, it is reality for the person who feels it. The point is whether it was sufficient motivation to murder Shingo. Listening to the defense’s argument, it seems that he wants to prove that the accused had no intent to kill, but he does so on weak grounds.”

The prosecutor’s style of rebuttal floored Mikoshiba. He knew very well that his assertions were farfetched, but the prosecution was meticulously swatting each one with stinging counterarguments. Misaki was not only taking guerilla tactics in stride but also managing to blunt every arrow tip. Based on his hard-won lesson from their first round, he had replaced his whole strategy. Even though he was an old hand at this, he was still learning and diversifying his weapons and tactics and further polishing his veteran smarts, which made him the most formidable kind of enemy.

Indeed, the judges’ and gallery’s reactions indicated that they were buying Misaki’s point. Their facial expressions were those of people listening to music rather than to someone’s reasoning; his words were reaching not just their ears but their hearts, too.

“As the accused’s father-in-law testified earlier, she entered the bathroom with a knife in hand in order to kill the victim. In the bathroom, the victim was totally unarmed and had no means of putting up any resistance. She had him turn the other way and then stabbed him in the neck three times from the rear. Mind you, not once but three times. It is hard to believe that such careful calculation and persistence was impulsive. Moreover, the accused bothered to go to the shed to get a blue tarp. When the father-in-law witnessed the scene, the body had already been placed on it, and its purpose is obvious. It would have been one thing if she had reported the murder right after the crime, but given that she was seen trying to dispose of the body, we cannot help but infer that she committed a willful murder. Treating a spouse, her companion of many years, as garbage once he became a hindrance is a selfish, unforgivable act. Frankly speaking, the prosecution is not satisfied with the sixteen-year sentence she received in the first trial. Honorable presiding judge, I ask you to please conduct a strictly impartial trial that is impervious to the defense’s chicanery.”