Текст книги "Rashomon Gate "

Автор книги: Ingrid J. Parker

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Текущая страница: 11 (всего у книги 25 страниц)

Eleven

The Sacrilege

Akitada returned to the university in a somber mood. Ishikawa was not back yet, and so he went to his room again and settled down to reading his students' papers. But his mind was not on his work. He pushed the essays away and stared at the wall. The problem of clearing Nagai of the murder charge was not all that troubled him. There was also the continued absence of both Ishikawa and Oe.

It was not, of course, unusual for either to absent himself from the university. Ishikawa might well have decided to spend his holiday visiting friends, and Oe was probably too embarrassed to show his face. Still Akitada felt vaguely uneasy.

Since he could not concentrate on his work, he decided to look in on Seimei at the ministry, but just as he was leaving, Hirata arrived.

"I was coming to see you," he said. "How are things with young Hiroshi?"

Akitada gave a brief summary of his talk with Nagai.

"Poor foolish boy," sighed Hirata. "By the way, I cannot find Oe anywhere. Knowing how anxious you are to settle this matter, I went to his home, but his servants say that he has not been seen there since yesterday. I asked them if he might have gone out of town to his summer place, but it seems he would not do that without taking them. I must say, it is most unlikely. Oe is much too lazy to live there like a hermit and do for himself. What do you suppose he is up to?"

"You know the man better than I. Could he be hiding with friends until the talk dies down?"

Hirata raised his brows. "What friends?" he asked.

"Well," said Akitada, "there is nothing to be done until he reappears. I am on my way to check on Seimei at the ministry, but will return later to finish some student papers."

• • •

Seimei was bent over Akitada's desk copying manuscripts. Neat stacks of document boxes stood next to him, and his brush flew across the paper. He greeted his master with an expression which managed to be both pleased and sympathetic. Laying down his brush in its wooden rest, he rose to bow to his master.

"It is kind of you to think of me when you have so much on your mind," he said with an earnest look. For a moment Akitada wondered how he had heard about Nagai's arrest already, but Seimei continued, "You must feel the disappointment deeply. I need hardly say how glad I was when I heard that you had chosen your wife. And such a very suitable match! I well remember meeting Miss Hirata when I used to carry messages between the two houses. You were both still children, but even then I used to think how perfectly matched you were." He sighed. "Ah, fortune and misfortune are truly like the twisted strands of a rope."

Akitada turned away. The old man meant well, but sometimes he wished for a little less garrulousness. "Thank you, Seimei," he said, staring at the shelves as if he were checking on their caseload. "You are right. It was . . . is a great disappointment to me." For a moment a powerful sense of loss gripped him and something in his chest contracted painfully. He cleared his throat, covering an involuntary gasp, turned back and said briskly, "Well, I shall soon join you here again. Hirata's problem at the university is just about resolved. Have you made any progress about Prince Yoakira?"

Seimei looked smug. "I am afraid it has been more difficult then I thought. After all even a thief takes ten years to learn his skill, and he is only stealing property. I am looking for plots and stratagems."

Akitada raised his eyebrows. "Where did you pick up such high-flown language?"

"The recording clerk of the Bureau of Records is a very interesting man: a man of letters, as it were. We have much in common." Seimei smiled complacently.

"I am happy to hear it. What does he have to say about the prince's will?"

The old man looked shocked. "Sir, I could not ask him such a blunt question!"

"Oh. Was there some other reason you mentioned him?"

"We have fallen into the habit of meeting after work. He is a widower and lives by himself. It appears we share a passion for chess."

"Really? I had no idea you were such an avid chess player," Akitada said with a smile.

"I find it exercises the mind. One sits and thinks about the next move. Sometimes both players pause and empty their minds by speaking of trivial matters."

"Trivial matters?" Fascinated, Akitada waited.

"Matters such as the recent gossip about the prince's peculiar disappearance might easily be mentioned in passing." Seimei cast a sly glance at his master. "It is natural to theorize about heirs and successors when great men die. It is also natural to express disbelief at the extraordinary wealth of some people."

"Most natural."

"I am to see the documents in question tonight. My chess partner expects to win a small wager."

Akitada made a face. "I see you are a master at the game. How much?"

"One piece of silver."

Fishing around in his sash, Akitada produced the coin. "Go on."

"He did imply that most of the property is settled on the grandson, with a large dowry for his granddaughter."

"Aha! What about appointments? Are there any rumors about who will take his position?"

"That is common knowledge by now. The crown prince's younger brother will succeed to Prince Yoakira's post. But the position he vacates is mentioned for Lord Sakanoue, since he is the late prince's grandson-in-law."

"Better and better! Enough to tempt even that proud gentleman!"

Seimei cleared his throat. "By the sage Master Kung's definition, such a one is no gentleman," he said primly. "Besides the master taught that men should beware of coveting riches lest heaven send calamities to them."

"The sage Confucius has been wrong in this instance," Akitada remarked bitterly. "So far the calamities seem to have befallen the innocent."

Seimei ignored this criticism of his favorite idol. "You also asked about Secretary Okura. People positively enjoy talking about him. It turns out that he is a low class individual, being merely the only son of a wealthy land speculator, a tradesman."

Akitada suppressed a smile. Seimei had the typical snobbery of the hereditary retainer. "What do they say?"

"They make jokes behind his back about his common background. It seems he is spending money lavishly on entertainments to impress the 'good people' while they amuse themselves behind his back at his lack of refinement. There is a particularly shocking rumor that he is so desperate to be accepted that he has been spending nights with the daughter of a high-ranking nobleman in his mansion in the Sanjo ward. A marriage announcement is imminent. The lady is no longer young and said to be extremely unattractive." Seimei paused to let this sink in, then continued, "You will be particularly interested in some talk that he has bought his first place in the examination. People like to embarrass him by asking him to explain Chinese verses."

Akitada sighed. "So much for protecting the reputation of the university. But I must say, I am relieved that he has not been able to fool anyone. It means that he has gone as far as he can in the government."

"A tadpole can only turn into a frog," Seimei pointed out with great satisfaction.

"Yes." Akitada glanced at the document boxes. "How are the case reviews going?"

"All is well. No new business has come in since you left, and I can keep up easily with the ongoing work."

Akitada touched the old man's shoulder. "Well done, old friend! I don't know what I would do without you. I especially admire your handling of the clerk from records. I'm afraid I have to go back now. Professor Hirata and I are hoping to confront the culprits in the blackmail scheme." He walked to the door, then added, "By the way, one of the students has been arrested for the murder of the girl in the park. I believe he is innocent and have promised him some help."

He left before Seimei could ask questions.

• • •

Akitada's optimistic expectation of a rapid disengagement from Hirata's problems and the Hirata family was doomed to failure. When he passed the gate leading into the courtyard of the Temple of Confucius, he became aware that something was wrong.

It was a flash of red that caught his eye first. He stopped to look and saw a group of red-coated policemen guarding the temple steps against a handful of curious spectators.

With a strange sense of being about to confirm a nagging fear, Akitada joined the onlookers just as a glowering Captain Kobe emerged onto the veranda. He saw Akitada immediately and his expression turned even grimmer.

"I knew you would show up sooner or later," he growled. "Come up here!"

Akitada thought Kobe's manner more than usually rude, but complied. When he reached the top of the steps, he asked, "What has happened here?"

Kobe did not answer. Instead he walked to the open door of the temple hall, where he looked back and said, "I was told that you came to the jail to see the student who killed the pregnant girl."

Akitada was beginning to lose his temper. "You have the wrong man again," he snapped. "Nagai is as innocent as the beggar."

Kobe drawled, "Of course! Like a newborn babe! Follow me!"

The temple hall was plunged into a general gloom. The corners were in deep shadow, and the red-lacquered columns looked black. A strange smell hung in the musty air. Akitada wrinkled his nose, wondering if a dog had got in and relieved himself. On the raised platform against the far wall loomed the life-sized statues of the sages, looking more massive and ghostly in the murk.

In front of the central figure of Confucius stood two people. Akitada recognized the frail Tanabe, who was leaning on Nishioka's arm.

"What is going on?" he asked Kobe again as they approached the group. The smell was strong and repulsive. There was something horribly familiar about it.

Nishioka turned and said in a tight voice, "It's Oe! What a dreadful thing!"

"Oe?" Akitada followed Nishioka's glance to the statue of the sage and saw for the first time that it seemed to be draped in a voluminous, bulging blue robe. It also seemed to have grown a second head, drooping forward across its chest, and another set of arms, hanging limply. Then he saw the blood. Of course! He had smelled it, and excrement. The blood had streamed down from beneath the second head, a broad band of dark brown across the front of Oe's elegant blue robe. Blood and excrement mixed in a large puddle on the floor between Oe's neatly shod feet, and blood had run to the edge of the platform and dripped down, forming a second, smaller puddle on the polished floorboards. Shockingly, Oe's robe had fallen open. Apart from his white silk socks and black slippers, the dead man was completely nude underneath.

Kobe's sharp voice cut across Akitada's shock. "Two murders in two days," he said. "Within steps of each other. This one happened last night. I believe we have the killer already in custody. Not even you could believe that there are two separate homicidal maniacs loose in the university, Sugawara."

Akitada did not reply. His mind was reeling. Stepping up to the monstrous statue, he lifted the drooping head by its white topknot. Oe's sightless, bloodshot eyes stared back at him, his features distorted in death. The blood had poured from a deep gash nearly severing the head from the body. It was also apparent now what held the body upright. The killer had passed Oe's sash under his victim's armpits and slung it around the neck of the wooden figure of the sage. In death the body had slumped forward and the knees had buckled, but to a casual passerby its presence might not have been immediately noticeable in the dim hall.

As Akitada glanced down, he was struck again by the incongruity between the fine robe and neatly shod feet and the indecently exposed bulging stomach, the sagging folds of skin and the thin soiled legs with their varicose veins and age spots. Nudity, especially that of the elderly, negated the image of power and rank. Behind the pomp and circumstance was the reality of human frailty and imperfection. Someone had been at pains to reveal the real Oe to the eyes of the world.

Turning to his colleagues, Akitada asked, "Who found him?"

Tanabe was very pale and trembled. His lips moved but produced no sound. After a moment, Nishioka said, in an unnaturally subdued tone, "I did. It was a shock. Since there are no classes today, Professor Tanabe and I planned to spend the morning working on a new glossary for the Analects. I passed through the hall twice without noticing anything amiss. Then, the third time– I was returning a document to the library– I saw an odd reflection in a spot of sunlight." He looked at the shadowy dais. "It was midday then and the sun was just right. It came in through the open door. Anyway, something glistened. When I came closer, I noticed the smell, and then I found the blood on the dais. And . . . and then I looked up to see . . ." He broke off with a shudder. Tanabe patted Nishioka's hand with his own trembling fingers.

Akitada moved the body's arms and hands. They felt quite cold, and the stiffness which follows death had passed away already. The blood on the floor had congealed and no longer reflected light, and that on the robe was quite dry. Kobe was right. Oe had died during the night. Akitada turned to the captain. "I don't suppose you have had time to question people," he said briskly. "We must find out who was the last to see Oe alive."

Kobe, arms folded across his chest, looked grimly amused. "Since I am a mere police officer, I have been waiting for you. No doubt you will tell me how to proceed," he said, "whenever you are quite finished with your own investigation."

Akitada flushed. "I beg your pardon," he said stiffly. "I realize this is your case, but there are some things . . . ."He stopped. Perhaps it was better not to mention the details of Oe's involvement in the examination fraud or the blackmail letter at this time and in front of witnesses, so he continued, "Well, I have taken an interest in the student Nagai whom you seem to hold responsible for this murder also. Oe attended the poetry contest yesterday and became quite drunk and quarrelsome. He was led away early by his assistant Ono and a graduate student called Ishikawa. My colleague Professor Hirata was with them before they left the pavilion."

Kobe regarded him fixedly. "Your two colleagues here have already informed me of those facts. As you maintain your conviction that Nagai is innocent, can you provide a motive for the murder of this man?"

Akitada forced himself to meet Kobe's hostile eyes calmly. "I cannot suggest anything at this time. But your theory that Nagai has somehow run mad and killed the girl one day and his professor the next does not make sense. For one thing, the young man was quite lucid when I talked to him this morning. For another, the girl was strangled, while Oe's throat was slashed. That suggests two different killers, particularly since a sash was available in this instance also. Look." Akitada pointed to the brocade belt which held the body up. "This sash was used in order to create a macabre and shameful public display. The other sash was removed from the scene, and the girl was hidden in the reeds. Surely that suggests two very different mentalities."

Kobe was unimpressed. "Not necessarily. The first crime may have made the killer feel so powerful that he decided to show off a little the second time. As to the slashed throat, Oe is much bigger and stronger than the girl. A knife or sword was a safer way of killing him than strangulation."

Akitada saw the reasonableness of the argument. Pulling his earlobe, he nodded slowly. "I still don't see Nagai acting in this fashion, but I suppose you are right about Oe's size," he said grudgingly. "Even drunk he would not stand still for a strangler. But why would the killer remove the man's trousers and string him up like this?" Akitada wandered to the back of the statue to look at the knot in the sash.

"Exactly!" Nishioka cried.

Kobe scowled at him, and Nishioka's mouth snapped shut. Kobe remarked, "A perverted sense of juvenile humor, I would say."

Tanabe spoke up for the first time. "It is a frightful sacrilege to the temple." His voice quavered. "Who would dare dishonor our patron saint in this fashion? It must have been the act of a madman or a depraved person."

Akitada nodded. "It is quite extraordinary behavior. I wonder what happened to Oe's trouser skirt . . . and his loincloth. He was in formal court dress last night." He glanced around the hall, then said to Kobe, "No doubt you will order a search, and you had better speak immediately to Ono and Ishikawa. They were closer to him than any of the rest of us, apart from being the last to see him alive. Incidentally, I have promised Nagai that I will help him, so I expect we will meet in the future."

Kobe's face was flushed with anger. "Are you finished?" he asked in a tight voice. "Or are there more instructions?" He stepped up closely to Akitada and glared into his face. "You have no authority here, and I will see you when you are needed in the investigation, not otherwise. Is that clear? I don't need your advice, now or in the future, and you are wasting your time on Nagai. I've got him for the murder of the girl, whatever turns up on this case. And if you think he's clear because the beggar Umakai didn't recognize him, don't be too sure. The old man is senile. He probably just dreamed the whole Jizo thing."

However much he resented the dressing-down, Akitada was most troubled by the news that Umakai was free. "I shall refrain from making any more suggestions," he said stiffly, "but I am concerned about the old man's safety. You yourself pointed out that the killer may find him. Can your men keep an eye on him for a few days more?"

Kobe threw back his head and laughed aloud– the sound echoed in the silent hall, and Tanabe jumped a little. "You forget. There's no need: we've got the girl's killer in jail. Besides, the police have better things to do than follow every beggar around."

Akitada was about to respond sharply, when a new voice interrupted.

"August heaven! What an abomination!" Wrinkle-faced and skeletal, Takahashi inserted himself into the group and stared up at the bloody body suspended from the neck of the sage. "It is absolutely grotesque! But how typical. Even in death Oe had to make a spectacle of himself."

"Who are you? " growled Kobe, glaring at Takahashi.

"Oh, I'm Takahashi. Mathematics. I suppose you have taken Fujiwara into custody for the murder?"

"What?" roared Kobe. "Who the devil is Fujiwara?"

"Oh, you mean they haven't told you?" Takahashi looked from Nishioka and Tanabe to Akitada, shook his head and tsked. "That was not very forthcoming of you, gentlemen," he said. "After all, in a case of murder one has a duty . . . however, I digress. Fujiwara is another of our little group of academicians. Professor of history with a flair for poetry, drinking and brawls. The latter hobby is what will interest you, Captain. He and Oe slugged it out last night. Or rather, Oe slugged Fujiwara. In public." Takahashi nodded towards the body. "One assumes Fujiwara settled the score later."

Kobe looked at Akitada. "Is that true?"

"There was a minor incident," Akitada said, "but Fujiwara made it quite clear to everyone that he did not consider Oe accountable. Oe was too drunk to know what he was doing. You can ask others." Akitada shot Takahashi a disapproving look, and added firmly, "In my view the incident was too minor to be a motive for murder, and Fujiwara is hardly the type to commit this kind of assault."

"Is he another one of your protégés? That certainly tells me something. And I don't bother with what 'type' a man is," snapped Kobe. "A simple person like myself is quite satisfied with motive, opportunity and perhaps a few pieces of hard evidence."

Nishioka bristled. "But you cannot simply ignore—"

"Hush!" Professor Tanabe squeezed his arm, and then told Kobe politely, "Captain, we have notes to put in order before tomorrow. May we be excused?"

Kobe hesitated. He looked at all of them suspiciously, then said, "Very well. You can all go for the time being, but no one is to leave the university without my permission. I'll get to the bottom of this in spite of all of your interference."

Back at the law school, Akitada found Hirata waiting for him. He was pacing back and forth, looking anxious. Akitada suppressed his distaste when he saw the older man's strained face. Hirata asked, "Have you heard the rumor? Oe has been murdered."

"It is no rumor. I am just coming from the Temple of Confucius. Someone slashed his throat and tied his body to the statue of Confucius. It must have happened last night, after he left the competition. Captain Kobe is in a filthy mood. I suppose he thinks there is some sort of conspiracy brewing here, and that I am in the middle of it. He did not take kindly to my visit to the jail and I managed to irritate him more."

"Oh, dear! Tied to the statue of Confucius, you say? It is incredible!" Hirata wrung his hands. "Does he suspect anyone in particular?"

"Poor Nagai is still his prime suspect– on the theory that both murders must have been committed by the same person. I tried to change his mind, but I am afraid that my attempt merely made him suspicious and added all of us to his list of possible assassins."

"Well, it certainly cannot be Hiroshi. Oe never paid the least attention to the poor fellow. He thought him too ugly and ill-born to be of any consequence or promise. And what motive could Hiroshi possibly have? There are other people who had much better cause to kill Oe."

"Precisely. And it won't take Kobe long to work that out. Do you have some wine or tea? I am parched."

Hirata led the way to his office. It was one of the small rooms under the sloping eaves, between the classroom and the veranda overlooking the gravelled courtyard. Here Hirata had gathered all his teaching tools: law books, rolled up maps and diagrams, the Chinese classics, the Analects, Prince Shotoku's legal reforms and innumerable stacks of student essays. These were labelled by year, and Akitada could only guess at the devotion of a man who preserved the efforts of generations of students.

Hirata pointed to the cushion lying near his low desk, and brought a small pitcher of wine and two cups. On the desk stood a pale porcelain vase with a single pink peony blossom. Its scent filled the small room.

Akitada held his cup, staring at the flower, its ruffled petals perfectly shaped, its color deepening to rose near the center. Tamako must have selected and cut this flower for her father only this very morning. A lump formed in his throat. Resentful that everything seemed to conspire to remind him of her, he drank deeply and then said, "In any case, the student could not have killed Oe. He is not strong enough."

Hirata looked surprised. "Not strong enough to slash a man's throat? I grant you he is thin, but young and sinewy."

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."