Shinji rolled his eyes, knowing that supernaturals who could truly bring back spirits were under the direct supervision of the Onmyoryo—contracted or not. The organization was lenient about what passed through the gates toward the afterlife, but strict about the sorts of ghosts brought among the living again. Sending them away a second time was difficult, so such rituals were used only in emergency circumstances.
Given these facts, the spiritual mediums Yamato contacted were shams as no supernatural would risk the wrath of the Onmyoryo for some cash.
“Shinji, check this out,” Teruo said.
He rolled over with his chair and Teruo pressed play. Two cameras were active at the same time, one showing further back into the restaurant where Shinji recognized Ozawa Fumiko, closest to the camera, and Miura Eisuke, at a table behind her.
“Yamato and Ishida aren’t here,” Shinji said. “But we saw Ishida in a picture.”
“Look at this camera.” Teruo pointed to the other one.
It showed the entrance from far up above the bar, encompassing some of the sidewalk outside visible through the glass doors. Yamato arrived, went to his former classmates and greeted them, but didn’t stay long. He returned to the bar and ordered a drink then rested his head in his palms as he waited for the beverage to be prepared.
“Why’s he sitting by himself?” Shinji wondered out loud.
“Not sure, but he seems under the weather. From what I’m seeing here—” Teruo gestured to a file containing an interview with the funeral house Yamato contacted. “—this is close to the time his brother died. He must’ve still been grieving.”
Ishida walked inside going straight to Yamato and exchanged a few words. He pointed to someone outside and Yamato bowed his head in greeting, but whoever it was didn’t go in. They both exited and a man approached them. He wore black jeans, a dark green jacket and a hoodie underneath, covering his head.
As they spoke, Shinji paused the video at an angle that better showed the man’s face, but it was still not good enough.
“Does the restaurant have a camera outside?” Shinji asked.
“No, this is the best we have. I’ll print it anyway and have the officers show it around the restaurant’s neighborhood, perhaps someone remembers him.”
Teruo saved the image then printed it and both took a closer look. The guy had a sharp jaw and thin lips, but nothing distinctive that could make him easily recognizable, though there was a slouch in his shoulders that looked somewhat familiar but Shinji couldn’t place it. He shook his head and hit play on the video.
Yamato spoke, his arms flailing, and the man turned to him. They seemed to be arguing while Ishida simply stood a step away from them, looking uncomfortable.
Teruo rested his elbows on the desk and clasped his fingers. “I think this might be our killer.”
“Well, the profile matches,” Shinji said. “He’s shorter and thinner than Yamato. He’s also not coming inside where there are cameras. On the other hand, it completely eliminates my theory that it’s Kojima.”
“Kojima was never an option for me. The only thing that links her to the murders is the energy you felt at the medical center. That’s not nearly enough, so she’s at the bottom of the suspects list.” Teruo tapped his fingertip on the printed picture. “Obviously, this isn’t too helpful either since he’ll be difficult to identify. It’s likely he’s among the classmates who didn’t attend the reunion.”
Shinji sat on the edge of the desk. “How do we proceed?”
“We have no actual evidence from the crime scenes for an arrest.” Teruo grabbed a cigarette and lit it before taking a long drag. “Our criminal has three distinct features: knows the victims very well, has powers like you and is great at wiping all useful evidence—besides whatever the medical examiner will find under Miura’s nails. I’m counting on Miura to give us substantial evidence. He’s fought the killer unlike the others.”
“Do you think we might be looking at a copy-cat?”
“Nah.” Teruo waved a hand. “I’ve seen copy-cats. They struggle to imitate the original so much they make silly mistakes. This isn’t a copy-cat, this is our killer’s desperation to murder as many as possible before we catch up.” He ran a hand over his face. Tension and annoyance oozed out of him. “Let’s get back to the laptop. The perpetrator’s special ability is our strongest lead right now. How can I help with it?”
Shinji picked up half the documents on his desk and passed them to Teruo along with a spreadsheet of the spiritual mediums he’d found. “We need to see if any of the classmates’ home address or work address matches with the spiritual mediums’ addresses. We also have to check where our entire team of forensics and uniforms went to high school, so we can eliminate them from the equation. I’ve already made a request for their files.”
“You really think their home address might match?”
“A lot of these ‘freelancers’ use their homes as their base of operation for their business. Renting or buying another apartment can be an expensive endeavor, especially here in Tokyo, so they just bring the clients to their home.”
“Dangerous, but makes sense,” Teruo said. “What I’m skeptical about is the suspicion you’re placing on the forensics and uniforms.”
“I don’t want to point fingers either, but the truth is, the killer was at Miura’s house—or nearby. We have to check. I have a feeling we’ve accidentally narrowed our search field too much. We assumed the killer is from the same class because of the restaurant reunion. But the homeroom teacher said Yamato’s gang bullied all throughout the high school. The victims are in the same class, but the perpetrator doesn’t necessarily have to be.”
“Shit.” Teruo gritted his teeth. “That’s a lot of students, man.” He picked up the files and the spreadsheet, smoke blowing out of his nose and mouth. “That new M.E. better move their damn ass with the autopsy.”
Then the office’s door opened and Shinji turned to see no other than Superintendent Yoshida, his mere presence throwing Teruo into a coughing fit.
CHAPTER 27