Japanese Tales of Mystery & Imagination (12 page)

M
AN
: But where was Saito supposed to draw the line? What was the actual purpose of his disguise as the man in the blue overcoat?

G
IRL
: I think he really intended to steal into my bedroom in his disguise and frighten me out of my wits. Then, after enjoying my hysterics, he would burst out laughing.

M
AN
: But that isn't the way it turned out, is it?

G
IRL
: It certainly wasn't! Until then, everything had been more or less a joke. But what happened next nearly froze the blood in my veins. I shudder even to think about it.

M
AN
: No more than
I
do. But go on—get it off your chest now that there's nobody to hear us.

G
IRL
: All right. . . . Several more times he went into weeping hysterics in bed, and gradually I began to realize that I couldn't fathom the look in his eyes any longer. In fact, I no longer knew if he was playing a game, or. . .

M
AN
: You—you began to suspect that he was really planning to kill you, didn't you?

G
IRL
: Yes. Now his glassy, staring eyes seemed to be saying: "At first, I created an imaginary character to give you a wonderful thrill. But now, having played the game this far, I'm becoming confused. How simple it would be really to kill you, and yet remain utterly unsuspected. Besides, you have a large fortune . . . which would become mine. What a temptation! For really, you know, I love someone else far more than you. But I do pity you, really I do." In those tormenting nights my fears grew stronger and stronger. And it was about this time, with my thoughts in a turmoil as we grappled and tangled in the dark of the bedroom, that I began again to taste his salty tears trickling into my mouth.

M
AN
: That's when you came to talk to me.

G
IRL
: Yes, but you said
I
was hysterical and tried to laugh my fears away. But, in spite of your laughter, I saw a hidden shadow in your eyes, and I began to suspect that you had the same fears as I.

M
AN
: You may have thought so, but that wasn't the case at all. You've always had the piercing eyes of a mind reader, haven't you? Not many people have your power of reading even the subconscious mind.

G
IRL
: After that I was always afraid to look into his eyes. And even more I feared that he might be able to read
my
eyes. Gradually the thought of his pistol began to prey on my mind. . . . One evening I saw the man in the blue overcoat outside the gate again. It was almost dark, but I thought I could see him leering at me. A cold shiver ran down my spine. And that instant I again remembered the pistol—the one hidden in the drawer of Saito's desk.

M
AN
: I also knew about that pistol. He knew it was against the law to keep firearms, but he kept it anyway, fully loaded, and hid it in one of his desk drawers— merely for the sake of having it, I thought.

G
IRL
: It suddenly struck me that the man in the blue overcoat might have that pistol in his pocket. I went immediately to Saito's desk and examined the drawer. But the pistol was there, and I felt immensely relieved. Then I had another thought. I said to myself: "Surely if the man is Saito in disguise, he wouldn't be such a fool as to use his own pistol. This means he must be planning to use a different weapon." And thus my fears kept growing all the more.

M
AN
: So you decided to take that pistol for your own protection.

G
IRL
: Yes,
I
took it out of the desk and kept it with me all the time. At night I even slept with it.

M
AN
: The existence of that pistol was unfortunate. Because if it had not existed. . .

G
IRL
: That's when
I
asked you what would happen to me if a man stole into my bedroom at night and I shot him, even if he hadn't been planning any crime. Remember?

M
AN
: Yes, and if
I
remember correctly
I
told you this would constitute self-defense and would not be considered a crime. Later on I was sorry I'd told you this.

G
IRL
: And then, sure enough, he finally came. It was past midnight. He climbed over the fence and stole into the house through the kitchen window. The first thing I knew, I saw my bedroom door opening slowly, and then I saw him. It was him, all right. He wore the same blue overcoat. His felt hat was pulled low, and his dark glasses covered his eyes—and that awful mustache! Now was the time! I pretended to be asleep, but stole a glance at him—and gripped the pistol. . . .

M
AN
: And then?

G
IRL
: I could almost hear my heart beating.
I
wanted —oh, how I wanted—to pull the trigger, but I waited. He was standing there in the doorway, both hands in his pockets. Somehow I felt that he knew I was only pretending to be asleep. For what seemed like an hour we both watched each other. I wanted to scream, to leap out of bed and flee, but I gritted my teeth and held myself in check.

M
AN
: And then?

G
IRL
: Suddenly he began to move toward my bed.
I
peeped out from under the bedclothes and saw his face looming beside the night lamp. He was cleverly disguised, but I could see that he was definitely Saito. His eyes behind the dark glasses seemed to be smiling. Gradually, his face came closer and closer. . . . I couldn't see the knife in his hand, but there was no mistaking that he meant to kill me. I turned the pistol slowly under the covers and aimed at his heart. Then I pulled the trigger. . . . That's what brought you and the maid running in, but by that time I had fainted.

M
AN
: As soon as
I
saw the dead man,
I
knew what had happened. The knife was lying beside him.

G
IRL
: So the police came, and a few days later you and I were summoned to the procurators office. I told the whole story from beginning to end, with you as a witness, and they soon released me. It was the knife you'd found on the floor that proved I had killed Saito in self-defense. . . . After that I had a nervous breakdown and spent a month in bed. How I appreciated the way you came to see me every day, taking the place of the friends and relatives I didn't have. . . . You even took care of that matter of Saito's mistress for me. . . .

M
AN
: And now, just imagine, a year has already passed. And we've already been married for over five months. . . . Well, let's get back to the inn.

G
IRL
: No. There's more to talk about.

M
AN
: Really? What else is there to say? Haven't we already covered the ground completely?

G
IRL
: Yes, but so far we've only touched the surface of things.

M
AN
: The surface of things? It seems to me that we've analyzed the matter quite thoroughly.

G
IRL
: But you forget, my dear, that behind one curtain there's always another. . . .

M
AN
: For the life of me
I
don't know what you mean. You're acting strangely today.

G
IRL
: You're afraid, aren't you?

The man's face twitches, but his eyes remain expressionless. As for the girl, her eyes gleam, and her lips stretch into a malicious smile.

G
IRL
: If it were possible for a man to force another to commit a serious crime merely by the power of suggestion, what great satisfaction he must derive. . . . Using an unsuspecting puppet to carry out his designs, he would be utterly safe from discovery. This, I think, is the perfect crime we never discussed.

M
AN
: What—what the devil do you mean?

G
IRL
: I'm only trying to tell you what kind of a man you really are!. . . But don't be alarmed. I have no intention of going screaming to the police. I'm quite an understanding woman, you know. Come now, let's not mince words.

M
AN
: Listen, it's getting late—

G
IRL
: See?
I
told you—you're afraid of me! But
I
simply hate to leave a story unfinished. . .so please let me continue. . . . To you, Saito was an ideal puppet. First, you awakened his interest in detective stories. Then you convinced him that the trick of the dual personality was foolproof. And, bit by bit, by the power of suggestion, you led him deeper and deeper into the pit of crime. . . . The fact that Saito had a mistress was a mere accident, but you used this too.

M
AN
: You're crazy ... It's easy to put two and two together to fit any pattern. . . .

G
IRL
: But think back. You know only too well that it was always you—and you alone—who made one event lead to the next—until I finally killed Saito. It was all your doing—by the sheer power of your suggestions— and you know it!

M
AN
: But you've forgotten one thing. You might not have killed Saito!

G
IRL
: In that case you would quickly have adopted some other strategy. Of all the kinds of criminals, you're the most cunning, for your strategy was based on probabilities. If one plan went wrong, you would quickly have thought up another. . .and another. . . . One of them was sure to succeed—and without your ever being suspected. Yes, you did indeed commit the perfect crime.

M
AN
: You're beginning to annoy me. You've made up your story out of whole cloth, and it's sheer nonsense. I'm going back to the inn.

G
IRL
: Look at you! Your face is covered with sweat. Don't tell me you're not feeling sick! But you'll have to hear me out. When I pulled the trigger of that pistol, I didn't see Saito holding any knife. I was only guessing that he was trying to kill me—so I killed him. . . . But I had another reason too. I loved you, and you knew it. . . . I didn't see the knife until after I'd recovered from the fainting spell—and there it lay beside Saito's body. Now, you were the first one to arrive on the scene after I killed Saito, and how utterly simple it would have been for you to put Saito's fingerprints on the knife and plant it beside his body. You thus not only got rid of Saito, but also provided evidence for my plea of self-defense.

M
AN
: Your powers of imagination are truly amusing. Ha, ha.

G
IRL
: You can't fool me with your laughter. Look, you're trembling! You needn't, you know. I'm not going to tell anyone. How could I betray you after you've gone to such great pains to get me? I only wanted to talk this over with you—just once. . . . I won't tell anyone, never fear.

The man rises silently from the bench, and the look he gives the girl eloquently states that he will have nothing more to do with a lunatic. The girl also gets to her feet, and ignoring the man, who stands still, she begins to walk slowly away toward the edge of the precipice. A moment later the man follows her.

Reaching a point only two feet away from the edge of the cliff, she stops. Far. far below, the faint sound of the flowing river rises above the mist that covers the chasm.

Without even turning her head, the girl continues to speak to the man behind her.

G
IRL
: We've certainly bared our innermost thoughts today, haven't we? But there's one more thing I must tell you. I loved you only for yourself, but you loved my money as well as myself. And now, it's only my money you want. I know this. And you know I know it. Isn't it so? That's why you brought me to this lonely spot today. . . . Just like Saito, you can't live without my money, so you've begun to wish I'd have an accident. If something happened to me, of course, you would inherit all my money, because you are my husband. . . . I even happen to know that you too have a mistress— and that you hate me for being in the way.