Rashomon Gate (23 page)

Akitada shook his head. "The killer tied the body to the statue, and Oe was not only tall; he was a big man. As a dead weight he would have been too heavy for Nagai."

Hirata looked shocked. "What an extraordinary thing to do! It is like an insult to the whole university! A student once tied a hat on the sage for a prank; he was dismissed instantly. Who would think of such a thing? And why? It seems inconceivable."

"I know, but it may help us find the killer. Certainly a number of people were openly hostile to Oe, and some of them may have had strong enough reasons for murder, but not all of them could have killed Oe. Takahashi certainly hated Oe and is unpleasant enough to be capable of anything. However, he is past middle-age and lacks the muscle to lift Oe. Ono, on the other hand, is still young and, as Oe's assistant, has suffered continuous abuse from his superior. He seems meek, but sometimes grudges fester until only violence can even the score. But here again, he is too short, unused to exercise, and thus clearly not up to it physically." Akitada sipped more wine and continued. "Now Sato, Fujiwara and Ishikawa are all strong enough and all have reasons to hate Oe. Sato, however, does not have a very strong motive to kill Oe, who merely disapproved publicly of him. And that leaves Ishikawa and Fujiwara, both of whom had a violent physical altercation with Oe shortly before the murder. It won't be long before Kobe arrives at the same conclusion. Takahashi has already accused Fujiwara."

"Oh!" cried Hirata in a frustrated tone. "I almost wish it were Takahashi. He is the unkindest man I know. And Fujiwara is one of the best. Heaven forbid that Kobe should make such a mistake! We must hope that the murder was committed by an outsider."

Akitada raised his brows in disbelief. "It is difficult to see how an outsider would have known where to find Oe on that particular night, or why he would choose to display the corpse in this particular fashion."

"But Kobe could have a point about this murder being connected with the girl's death," Hirata said stubbornly. "And the girl was from the city, from the common people."

Akitada sighed. Hirata was not without the snobbery of his class. Under normal circumstances a kind and gentle man, he nevertheless held on to the belief that the "good people" were incapable of committing a crime, while, regrettably and understandably, the poor citizens often got involved in violence. Akitada said, "I do not know what to think at this point, but you will have to tell Kobe about the blackmail note. In a case of murder you cannot hope to cover up an incident which may point to a motive. No doubt Kobe will appear shortly to ask his questions. Be prepared."

Hirata stared at him. His breathing became agitated. "Oh, good heaven! I had not thought of that." He held his head, moaning softly, "What a misfortune."

The door opened a crack and Nishioka stuck his head in. He looked better, having regained color and some of his normal spirits. "May I come in?" he asked. They nodded, and Nishioka entered, seated himself, and accepted a cup of wine. "Thank you. I'm afraid I have had a terrible shock, Doctor Hirata. I suppose you have heard that I was the one who discovered the unfortunate victim."

Hirata, still looking quite ill, made a sympathetic comment.

"Thank you. I will get over it, no doubt. I came along to warn you both about that police captain. The man is clearly lacking in the most basic understanding of human behavior. In fact, he even brags about it. Since he was quite rude to me, I have decided not to share my ideas with him. Apparently, and quite perversely, he has already made up his mind that it must have been poor Rabbit."

Akitada nodded. "I am afraid Kobe's attitude is not exactly promising at the moment."

Nishioka brightened. "I see you have formed the same impression. Let's put our heads together and find the killer ourselves! Don't you feel that there was something very nasty about the way the murderer tied Oe up on that statue of our honorable Master Confucius?"

Akitada and Hirata both nodded, and Nishioka continued eagerly, "That is exactly the sort of thing the captain is too dull to notice. Now I, for one, wonder what went through the killer's mind to cause him to do such a thing. Clearly he must be a man without respect for the scholarly tradition the great sage represents. On the other hand, he does appreciate symbolic gestures. Do you agree?"

Again Akitada nodded. Nishioka smiled. "There! I can think of only two people who have the right mentality. And perhaps a third, though I don't know him well enough to be certain." He paused, looking at his companions expectantly.

Hirata cried, "Who are they?"

Nishioka shook his head. "It would be premature to make accusations, Doctor Hirata. At this point, one waits and watches." He looked at Akitada. "I wonder. Are we thinking along the same lines?"

Akitada said, "I have not formed an opinion yet. If you have strong suspicions, you had better mention them to Kobe. As long as the killer is free, he is a dangerous man."

"I refuse to speak to that man. He is rude and ignorant. And I assure you that I am a very careful person. I merely observe quietly, perhaps ask some harmless questions. Believe me, I am so subtle that the object of my interest is never aware of my motives." Nishioka smiled, nodded once or twice, and went on, "Take for instance the evening of the contest. Why, I could have predicted Oe's murder. The evidence was all there for anyone to see— and hear." He asked Akitada, "You noticed, didn't you?"

"If you refer to the incident with Fujiwara," said Akitada, "you have heard me say that I don't think the man capable of this murder."

Nishioka's eyes sparkled. He said, "Fujiwara? Ah, perhaps not. Though you never know with phlegmatic characters like him, or even volatile ones like Sato. But then, any man is capable of murder if provoked sufficiently. All men have at least one sensitive area in their lives which they will not allow to be tampered with."

Akitada regarded Nishioka suspiciously. "What about Sato?" he asked, before Nishioka could go off on another tangent again.

There was something slightly superior about Nishioka's smile. "So you missed that one too, eh? Oe's been talking about petitioning the president of the university for Sato's dismissal. I overheard him telling Ono that he finally had proof of Sato's depravity and planned to write to Sesshin. I expect he found out that Sato has been entertaining prostitutes in his room here."

"Who is Sesshin?" Akitada asked.

Nishioka's eyes widened. "He is the president of the university. I thought you knew."

Hirata interrupted, "I am sure that charge is malicious slander! I am surprised at you, Nishioka, for passing such rumors about. Poor Sato is guilty of no more than giving a few private lessons to earn some additional income." His face had an unhealthy flush, and he gasped a little after speaking.

"Oh, no, Doctor Hirata. It must be more than that, for Oe has known about the 'lessons' for quite a long time." Nishioka emptied his cup and got up. "But I must run along. I want to catch Fujiwara before Kobe gets to him. Thank you for the wine."

When Nishioka was gone, Hirata said irritably, "How can he talk that way about Sato? He is getting almost as bad as Takahashi."

Akitada looked at the door through which Nishioka had left and frowned. "I confess he makes me very nervous. If he really noticed something that points to the murderer, he is being very foolish. But about Sato he may well be right. I have found the man with two women. The first was the murdered girl. The other one was a very handsome woman his own age. To be sure, both women were playing the lute at the time, but clearly they also were on very familiar terms with him."

"I cannot believe it of him. He is a married man with children."

Akitada gave the older man a pitying look and watched him redden. He said, "Remember that Sato is quite strong, especially his hands."

Hirata poured down the rest of his wine before asking, "You really think he strangled the girl and then killed Oe to protect his position here?"

Akitada did not reply right away. He could imagine Sato committing Oe's murder. The music master was unconventional and, in anger at his treatment by Oe, might have decided to mock the institution's sacred canon by leaving its most famous representative tied around the neck of the patron sage. And removing Oe's trousers might be the gesture of a man who had been accused of sexual impropriety himself. But he was still not convinced the murders were connected. Finally, he said, "I do not know what to think."

Hirata twisted his hands. His fingers trembled. "I hope it had nothing to do with the note."

"Yes. Ishikawa's continued absence is worrisome," agreed Akitada. "Are you feeling quite well?"

"Yes, yes. Just some indigestion," said Hirata. "Ishikawa is a big, strong fellow all right. I am ashamed to admit that I never liked him very much. I had much rather he were the killer than Fujiwara, or even poor Sato. But why would Ishikawa kill Oe? It was Oe who had reason to kill Ishikawa."

"I am afraid we won't know that until we speak to him. He must have at least part of the answer about Oe."

"Who does?" asked a sharp voice. Kobe pushed the door back on its tracks and strode in unceremoniously, followed by a clerk carrying writing utensils.

Ignoring Hirata's greetings and offer of wine, Kobe sat down with a grunt and gestured to his clerk to do likewise.

"Well?" he persisted, looking from Akitada to Hirata and back.

Akitada answered. "Professor Hirata and I were concerned about the disappearance of one of the students. His name is Ishikawa. He is a graduate student who used to read Oe's papers for him. He should be in his dormitory, but seems to have left very early this morning. Since he is one of the last people seen with Oe, I thought that he must have valuable information."

Kobe's eyes went to his clerk who had set up a small portable desk and was rubbing a worn block of ink across a wetted stone. The sound was irritating in the quiet room. When the man finished and reached for his brush, Kobe turned back to them. "This Ishikawa. Full name, place of birth, name and hometown of parents, profession of father and appearance of suspect!"

"Suspect?" stammered Hirata, but he supplied the information. When the clerk had written it down, Kobe asked, "Is this Ishikawa likely to have gone off with the fellow Ono?"

Akitada stared at Kobe. "Why Ono? Is he gone too?"

Hirata said, "Nonsense. Ono must be at home with his mother. She is crippled. They live on Takatsukasa Street west of the palace."

Kobe shook his head. "One of my men checked. He is not at home, and his mother does not know where he went. She is not even sure he came home last night."

Hirata and Akitada looked at each other in dismay.

Kobe said impatiently, "Well? Is this Ishikawa all you have thought of? He's the right size for it apparently. But so is Fujiwara."

"I see you have had second thoughts about poor Nagai being guilty," said Akitada with a grimace. "He simply is not strong enough. But it is only fair to add that neither Professor Hirata nor I think Fujiwara a likely suspect either."

Kobe snapped, "I have not eliminated anyone. The killer may have had an accomplice." He paused to let this sink in, then continued, "As to Fujiwara, he had a motive and is strong enough to haul the body about. Perhaps you should know that your colleagues have been quite forthcoming about each other and the late Oe. It appears that just about everybody here hated the man. To save you the trouble of protecting your colleagues, let me fill you in. Ono hated Oe because he was an abusive tyrant; Sato was about to be dismissed on charges brought by Oe; Tanabe was being forced into retirement, because Oe thought he was senile; both Fujiwara and Takahashi had been publicly shamed by him. Takahashi, by the way, is a positive waterfall of information about the faculty's various and varied offenses." Kobe grinned unpleasantly. "Do either of you have anything to add to the list of motives for murder?"

Akitada avoided looking at Hirata, who had started breathing hard again. He shook his head. "I see you have not wasted any time."

"In that case," said Kobe, "I will now hear your stories. Names, ranks, places of residence and relationship to the murdered man first. You start, Hirata."

Hirata gasped his way through the information, and Akitada followed suit. When the preliminaries were out of the way, Kobe asked, "When did you last see Oe alive?"

Akitada repeated what he had told Kobe earlier. Hirata confirmed it and added that he had accompanied the group that had removed Oe from the gathering as far as the gate to the park and then returned to his seat in the pavilion.

"Where were Ono and Ishikawa taking him?" Kobe asked Hirata.

"I assumed to his home. It is in the western part of the city." Kobe grunted and sat lost in thought. Then he asked, "Can anyone confirm the time when you returned home?"

"What?" cried Hirata, flushing. "Surely you cannot think either of us—"

"You had better tell the captain what he wants to know," said Akitada soothingly. "I expect he asks everybody. As for me, I left before the last segment of the contest, but spent the rest of the evening reading in my room at home. I had no cause to speak either to my family or any servants."

Hirata stammered, "I went home after it was all over. It was late. But my daughter may have heard me come in."

The clerk was writing busily while Kobe sat, staring at the ceiling with pursed lips.

"Er," said Hirata awkwardly, "perhaps now that we are done, you will take a cup of wine, Captain?"

"I do not drink during an investigation," said Kobe coldly. Then he looked at Akitada and remarked, "It occurs to me that you are tall and strong enough for the job yourself, Sugawara."

Akitada's jaw dropped.

Kobe let his narrowed eyes move from Akitada to Hirata and back again.

He said, "I am told that you two are very close. You, Sugawara, owe Hirata a lot. In fact, you are like a son to him, because he raised you."

Akitada flushed with anger. "Not precisely. What is your point, Captain?"

Kobe did not answer. His eyes went back to Hirata, and he said, "Takahashi says that you have been on bad terms with Oe since the last examination."