The Name of the Game Is a Kidnapping Read online

  I was cemented in place still holding my glass. It was as though rage and humiliation were filling my entire body. I felt as though if I said anything, I’d yell, and if I moved, I’d throw my glass.

  “Did you miss that?” Kozuka asked.

  I shook my head. “Basically, he said Sakuma from Cyberplan is incompetent…”

  “He didn’t go that far. He’s just saying that you don’t match up with his policies.”

  “Isn’t that the same thing? It’s because Mr. Katsuragi thinks of himself as the best.” I gulped down my brandy. I felt the sensation of it moving down from my throat to my stomach.

  “Anyway, all our firm can do is accept the conditions. Tomorrow, I’m talking to Sugimoto.”

  “Is Sugimoto my replacement?”

  “That’s how it’s going to be.”

  “Sugimoto the concert guy, huh?” I laughed. Out of sarcasm, and as a bluff.

  “That’ll be all.”

  “I understand.” I stood up.

  “Why don’t you stay and drink for a bit. My policy is to keep company with a guy who needs to get wasted.”

  “Please don’t be unreasonable.” I raised both my hands slightly to beg mercy.

  Kozuka nodded, muttering that it might well have been unreasonable as he lowered his glass.

  When I left Sabine, I didn’t feel like going straight home, so I stopped by a bar I’d been to several times before. I swigged bourbon on the rocks in a seat at the end of the counter, but I couldn’t shake off the feeling I’d just swallowed lead. He is unable to tune into people’s hearts; the superficiality of his way of thinking is evident; I want to entrust this next opportunity to someone who is able to figure out everything two steps ahead—all of the words I’d just heard were managing to wreck my inner balance.

  Give me a break, I thought. It had been four years since I was headhunted from a major ad agency, and since then there hadn’t been a single product I’d worked on that I hadn’t been able to sell. Whether it was a thing or a person, treasure or garbage, I had pride that I’d sold it. There was no way someone who couldn’t tune into people’s hearts could do that.

  I was still in the worst of moods, but my head started feeling a little foggy, so I decided to leave that establishment, too. I went out to the street and hailed a cab.

  “Where to?” the driver asked me.

  Kayabacho, I was supposed to answer. Because my condo was there. But I was unexpectedly hit by a strange urge. A whim, you might call it. I heard myself respond, “Go to Denenchofu.” I added, “You know that mansion of Nissei Automobile’s chairman, Shotaro Katsuragi? It’s near there.”

  “Yes, that big mansion.” The driver knew the address.

  2

  It was a stupidly huge Western-style house. If it weren’t for the nameplate, it could’ve easily been mistaken for some institution. The gate that seemed big enough for a semi to pass through had doors that were decorated with intricate patterns. Garage shutters flanked the gate. It seemed like four cars could easily fit in there, even Mercedes-Benzes or Rolls-Royces. Just over the wall were all kinds of trees planted like a jungle so that you really had to struggle to glimpse the roof of the main building, which seemed awfully far away, too. It looked like you could get tired just walking from the gate to the front door.

  I wasn’t so careless as to approach the residence. I’d noticed the security camera mounted on a gatepost. Naturally, there had to be other cameras. That was why I’d gotten out of the taxi well short of the place. Even now, I was still sixty feet or so away from the premises. There happened to be a van parked on the street, so I was hiding in its shadow.

  Let me meet Katsutoshi Katsuragi, I thought. I’d see him in person and interrogate him. What is it that you have against Shunsuke Sakuma? Exactly what part of my way of thinking is “superficial”? I didn’t understand with just Kozuka’s explanation. I can’t begin to comprehend it.

  But looking at the giant, fort-like estate, I hesitated. If I visited at this time, there was no way Katsutoshi Katsuragi would even meet with me. I’d more likely be turned away at the gate. Announcing myself might be fruitless. They’d simply laugh that an unpleasantly stubborn ad man had come to complain. Even if I did meet him, right now my breath stunk of alcohol. If Katsuragi thought I’d merely been driven by the momentum of being drunk, he’d no doubt immediately get up and walk away.

  But it was true that I’d been driven by my inebriated state. When I told the taxi driver my destination, my head had been boiling over like a kettle on a stove.

  There was nothing to it. In the end, when I was right in front of my enemy, I was chickening out. I was going wobbly. It was just that I was so scared of the humiliation of scramming and doing nothing that I couldn’t leave it at that. Even listing all the reasons for not charging in was me making excuses to myself.

  I grew more and more furious. My rage was directed at myself. Shunsuke Sakuma, how could you be acting so small?

  I’d make a fresh start, I decided, my mind sobering. I wasn’t running away. Without fail, I’d confront Katsutoshi Katsuragi. But the way I’d do it would have to be meticulous, just like me.

  I pointed at the estate. Then I swore by my heart. Just wait, Mr. Katsuragi. You’ll learn my true strength, for sure.

  It happened then. Something in my peripheral vision moved. I looked toward the edge of the wall.

  Someone was trying to scale it. Not trying to get in, but out. A human form stepped over the iron railing on the top and, after a reluctant pause, jumped down to the street. The figure fell on its backside but didn’t seem hurt.

  I thought it was a burglar for an instant, but that thought soon vanished. It was because I realized the person was a young woman. I’d never heard of a beskirted burglar.

  The woman looked to be in her late teens, or in her early twenties at most. She was fairly beautiful, and her proportions weren’t bad, either. She swiveled her head to examine her surroundings, so I hid in the van’s shadow.

  She started walking fast. After hesitating for a moment, I followed suit. When I passed by the front of the Katsuragi estate, I turned my head to the other side of the street to avoid the security camera.

  It was on a hunch that I became interested in following her. I didn’t think she’d broken into the Katsuragi residence. I thought it was more reasonable that she’d slipped out of the estate for some reason. So then what would that reason be? That was what I was interested in.

  I saw no hint of her worrying about being shadowed. It was likely because I was keeping a good distance. When she got to a large road, she raised her hand and tried to hail a taxi. That was when I fretted. If she got in a cab, it’d be over.

  I hurried out to the road. The taxi she had gotten in was leaving. Drilling the license-plate number into my brain, I waited for the next taxi to come. Luckily, a free car came by.

  “Just head straight for now, as fast as possible,” I said as I got in.

  The driver didn’t seem thrilled with the instructions and pulled out with a disgruntled look. I fluttered a ten-thousand-yen bill next to his face.

  “There’s a yellow taxi right in front of us. I want you to follow it.”

  “I don’t want any trouble, mister.”

  “It’s all right. There’s a girl in that taxi, and I was asked by her parents to follow her.”

  “Huh.”

  The driver stepped on the accelerator. It seemed that was the conclusion of our negotiation. I placed the ten-thousand-yen bill on the small money tray.

  I thought it’d be bad if we didn’t catch up before we got to Kanpachi Street, but luckily, her taxi was stopped in front of a traffic light beforehand. I rechecked the number and told the driver, “It’s that car.”

  “Why follow her? Are you trying to catch her?” the driver asked.

  “No, I just need to figure out her destination.”

  “Ah, and you’re reporting it to her parents?”

  “Well, something like that.�
�

  “I see. She must be very precious.”

  I wasn’t sure what his interpretation was, but it seemed the driver had drawn his own conclusion.

  The taxi the girl was riding went south down Kanpachi Street. Mine did, too. Hers was not going particularly fast, so it wasn’t especially hard to follow.

  “I thought a young woman would head to Shibuya, but that doesn’t seem to be the case, does it?” the driver said. Probably because we were heading in the exact opposite direction of Shibuya.

  At that point, the taxi in front of us turned left. It was Nakahara Road.

  “If we go straight, this takes us to Gotanda, right?” I asked.

  “That’s right. Recently, they say there are a lot of places to go out around Gotanda too.”

  Had she bothered to sneak out over their wall just to hit some bar? If she said she was going out at this hour, her parents certainly wouldn’t take it with a smile. But her own face when she’d made her escape didn’t seem like that of a young woman looking forward to a night out. There was something more urgent in her expression. I was following her like this because of that.

  Gotanda station came into view. The taxi ahead of us showed no sign at all that it was stopping. It passed the station and this time turned right.

  “Whoa, now it’s Shinagawa,” the driver said.

  “That’s what it seems like.”

  The girl’s taxi entered Route One between Tokyo and Yokohama. We, too, continued on it. After a minute, I caught sight of the Japan Railways Shinagawa Station on the right side. The left side was lined with famous hotels.

  “Ah, they’re going to the left,” the driver said. Certainly, the car in front of us had its blinker on.

  “Follow them please.”

  “But we’ll go into the hotel.”

  “I don’t mind.”

  The hotel entrance was at the top of a gentle slope. The car in front of us stopped there. I also instructed the driver to stop, just below.

  “I wonder if she might be meeting with some guy,” the driver said as he issued the receipt.

  That might be it, I humored him with a reply.

  The girl went through the revolving doors and headed inside. After waiting a bit, I continued after her.

  The driver’s speculation might have been right. I could understand why she would sneak out of the estate in that manner if she were meeting a man secretly. But in that case, was I an awful clown to have tracked her all the way to this place? No, no, whatever it was, I would be at no disadvantage knowing the Katsuragis’ secrets. My interest revived.

  Going in, the front desk was to the left. No one was at the long counter now. The girl was ringing the call bell on top of the counter. Before long, a hotelkeeper wearing a gray uniform came from the back.

  I pulled a ten-thousand-yen bill from my wallet and approached the girl from behind.

  “I sincerely apologize, but tonight we’re completely full,” the hotelkeeper was telling the girl. It seemed she was trying to get a last-minute room.

  “It doesn’t matter what kind,” the girl said. Her tone was listless. She had the type of voice that you’d want to sing R&B.

  “I’m sorry, but they’re all occupied.” The middle-aged hotelkeeper lowered his head respectfully, even to such a young lady. Then he turned his eyes towards me. “How may I help you?”

  “I want 2000-yen bills. Could you break this for me? I just need five.”

  “For ten thousand yen? Please wait a moment.”

  The hotelkeeper momentarily withdrew to the back.

  Without taking notice of me and with an aimless gait, the girl headed to the front entrance. I couldn’t lose sight of her here. I left the counter. At that moment, a voice called from behind me, “Oh, sir.”

  “Thank you, it’s okay.”

  I left the dumbfounded hotelkeeper behind and also headed outside.

  The girl was just about to enter a pathway that crossed the hotel garden. Fearing that I would be suspected, I put some distance between us and tailed her. There were no signs she’d noticed me.

  The pathway ended at the edge of the hotel’s premises. Across the street was another hotel. I inferred what she intended to do.

  Just as I thought, the girl went into the neighboring hotel. This one’s front desk was on the first floor; it was always manned even in the middle of the night because businesspeople favored the place. I found a spot where I could observe the front desk and from there watched her actions.

  The girl, who had been speaking with the hotelkeeper, abruptly pivoted and started walking. The result of their exchange was obvious from her sulking visage.

  She went into a room with public phones. I see, I thought, and moved closer.

  There she was in the middle of frantically flipping through the phone book. I knew which section she had turned to without even looking.

  “At this time and with that appearance, it’s impossible no matter which hotel you go to.”

  She jumped at my voice and looked at me with a surprised expression.

  “A lone young woman with no reservation asking for a room just makes them suspicious. From the hotel’s perspective, taking on a guest who isn’t even paying them that much isn’t worth the trouble they might get into.”

  It seemed she thought a creepy man had approached her with clear ulterior motives. She closed the phone book and tried to leave.

  “You’re trying to find lodgings for tonight, aren’t you, Miss Katsuragi?”

  Her feet stopped flat. Her neck turned around like a mechanized doll with noisy gears. “Who are you?”

  I pulled a business card from my pocket. She alternated between looking at me and the printed characters.

  “Cyberplan…”

  “Advertising, producing, brokering, we do anything. Handymen for our corporate partners, as it were. Your company, Miss Katsuragi, is our greatest client. Well, since that’s it for my self-introduction, I’d be pleased to get yours.”

  “I’m under no obligation.” She flicked the business card with her fingertips. It fluttered to the floor.

  “Then I’ll have to fulfill mine.” I picked up the card. “I can’t overlook a thief who snuck into an important client’s home.”

  The girl opened wide her slightly slanted eyes. She looked rather strong-headed, but also prettier that way. I continued looking into those eyes.

  “Or else, it wasn’t that you were sneaking in, but that you snuck out. Either way, I can’t overlook it. I better contact Mr. Katsuragi.” I pulled my cellphone out of my pocket.

  “Stop.”

  “Then introduce yourself.” I flashed her a smile. “Tell me what’s going on, because I can be a fairly understanding guy. Depending on the situation, I might even be of assistance in getting you lodging for tonight.”

  A hesitant look appeared on her face. No, perhaps it was a calculating look. She was making a guess as to my identity and wondering whether I could be trusted, whether she should get some use out of me.

  She brought out her right hand. “That business card, please.”

  “As you wish.”

  Taking the card, she stuck out her left hand next. “Your license.”

  “My license?”

  “Because this card might not be yours.”

  “Ah, I see.”

  Seeing her up close, she was younger than I’d thought. She might have been around high school age but was levelheaded. I pulled my license from my wallet. She used the ballpoint pen and memo pad set out next to the phone to take down my address.

  “You’re very careful,” I said, putting away my license after she’d given it back to me.

  “Papa says to always introduce myself at the very last moment.”

  “Papa?”

  “Katsutoshi Katsuragi.”

  “Ah,” I nodded. “Of course. But why in the world would the daughter of Nissei Automobile’s executive vice president scale their wall and break out?”

  “That doesn’t have
anything to do with you, does it?”

  “Well, it’s true I have nothing to do with it, but the reality is that I’ve met you. If something happened to you afterwards, I’d be brought to account. My company might not survive that.”

  “Why should I care?”

  She tried to leave, so I pulled out my cellphone again. “I’m going to call. Right now.”

  She turned around with a fed-up face. “I’m saying you can leave me alone, isn’t that good enough for you? Can’t you listen to the orders of the executive vice president’s daughter?”

  “Unfortunately, it’s the EVP who’s important to me, not his daughter per se.” I pretended to press the buttons on my cellphone.

  “Stop it.”

  She tried to snatch it. I evaded her.

  Right then, a middle-aged guy who looked to be a businessman came by. He watched us dubiously.

  “You don’t want to draw people’s attention in this place, right?” I said. “Would you talk with me somewhere else?”

  She thought it over again. I should say she started calculating again. After a while she nodded.

  We went to a café next to the hotel. That’s to say, a self-service venue where you had to bring your drink to your own seat. We headed over to a counter facing the street and sat side by side.

  I had thought of two ways I could make use of her. One was that I could somehow take her back to the Katsuragi estate tonight. It would mean I’d have a huge advantage over Katsutoshi Katsuragi. If I became the guy who protected his precious daughter, any man would have to change his tune.

  The other way was by listening to her story. There was no mistaking that since she had snuck out of the estate, she held some sort of secret. It would also be the Katsuragi family’s secret. When I confronted Katsutoshi Katsuragi after this, that would also probably serve as a great weapon.

  After taking a sip of her coffee, she broke the silence. “How long have you been watching me?”