What they would never understand, however, was why the man had died with the womans cadaver locked in his embrace. He certainly didnt look like hed clutched at a straw in panic-stricken desperation. Far from anguished, the mans expression was serene. Something else that troubled the rescue team was that the womans right thumb was plunged down to its base in the mans mouth. How on earth could the dead woman insert her thumb into the mans mouth? Nonetheless, that was how it looked to those who saw the corpses.
The man must have bitten down hard on the thumb, for his jaws refused to unclamp even after the recovered bodies had been laid on the deck of the patrol boat. When they pried his mouth open and removed the thumb, they found that itd nearly come off. They tried giving the man artificial respiration to see if he could be revived. It was useless. He showed no signs of returning to life. He was dead. They could have saved him if theyd reached him just a few minutes earlier.
The mans serene expression, however, soothed the rescuers feelings. It wasnt easy to bite down so fiercely and at the same time wear such a serene expression. But this man had accomplished the contradiction.
IV DREAM CRUISE
Masayuki Enoyoshi sat against the mast with his feet stretched out on the bow hatch. In this sloppiest of postures, he seemed to be deliberately facing away from the cockpit. It was not possible to sit on the bow hatch when the main and jib sails were set; anyone sitting there would obstruct the sail whenever the boat changed direction. At that particular moment, however, the small yacht, twenty-five feet long, was motoring out into Tokyo Bay along a sea-lane. Bordered on both sides by landfills, the sea-lane was like a little bay within a larger one. All the yachts sails were down. Yachts were prohibited from crossing this patch of sea with their sails set. Any yacht being powered by its sails was likely to obstruct the heavy maritime traffic that plied this part of the bay.
Enoyoshi guessed what the Ushijimas, the couple who owned the boat, were up to. They were going to use this time with the sails down to talk to him. Still inexperienced, Ushijima was far from proficient at using the sails to steer the yacht. Itd been annoying just to watch. Apparently unable to gauge the direction of the wind, Ushijima kept fussing about in the cockpit working the sails in and out with an uncertain look on his face. The way he glanced windward and shook his head, it was obvious the yacht wasnt sailing how he wanted it to. Enoyoshi had felt more uneasy watching Ushijimas expression than from the lurching of the boat and had wondered whether theyd make it safely back to the marina.
Yet Ushijima it was who had his hand on the tiller now in the cockpit just behind Enoyoshi. When it came to steering with the nine horsepower outboard motor, the helmsman was finding it easy enough to manoeuvre the yacht. Leaving a trail of white foam in its wake, the yacht silently made its way between the landfill that served as the central breakwater and the pier of the Ariake Ferry. A trip around the tip of Wakasu Marine Park and slightly up the Ara River brought you back to the Dream Island Marina. With renewed confidence in his ability to handle the boat, Ushijima self-consciously placed a foot up on the bench and struck a pose at the tiller. Ushijimas wife Minako did not appear on deck. She was probably in the cabin down below looking for something to drink. Enoyoshi did not miss her talkative presence. He was only too grateful for the peaceful interlude.
Enoyoshi glanced at his watch. It was a little before six in the evening. This mini-cruise was only intended to provide a superficial sampling of the crannies of Tokyo Bay and was due to return to the Dream Island Marina by evening.
The sun was setting on the western horizon. If this were the open sea, they would have beheld the majestic sight of an evening sun quenching itself on an unobstructed horizon. Here the view was not all that different from what you could get from the pier, but the inexperienced skipper had neither the skill nor the courage to get the boat out into the open sea. A cluster of super-high-rises under construction in the secondary coastal development area rose in the western sky like a clump of bamboo shoots springing from the buried nutrients of the landfill.
A thin evening mist began to envelop the black, steel framed skeletons of the unfinished skyscrapers silhouetted against a crimson background. Although one would not have expected construction to be in progress on a Sunday, thunderous booms could be heard. It was difficult to determine exactly where these sounds were coming from, but each massive reverberation only served to exacerbate Enoyoshis feelings of unease. Though he could not pinpoint the source of his anxiety, it was there all the same. The booms echoing up from the seabed to the bottom of the boat reached Enoyoshis very guts.
Emerging from the cabin, Minako pointed excitedly in the direction opposite the sunset. Say, look over there! she chirped with affected youthful gaiety.
At that moment, the yacht, named MINAKO after the woman, was about to pass the tip of Wakasu Marine Park. The instant the boat shifted course, Disneyland immediately came into view. It was just that time of evening and lights were beginning to come on in the distance. What Minako was urging the men to look at with her Betty Boop squeak was Disneyland and the lights from the hotels that lined the nearby coast. The girlish tone had little childish innocence about it, conveying more of a selfish insistence that the others get involved. Enoyoshi reacted with nothing more than a quick glance and otherwise resolved to ignore her.
But she called over to him, What are you doing musing over there, come get some beer!
Clasping the mast, Enoyoshi turned to look at her. She stood holding up a can of beer.
Enoyoshi made a noncommittal grunt and wondered what to do. He felt pathetic that he couldnt just say no. So, should he refuse to have anything to do with her inane chatter by staying put in his sanctuary, or should he get his hands on a beer and pay the price of enduring her sales talk? There was no denying his thirst, and beer was appealing.
With one hand still on the mast and the other on the boom, he crawled towards the cockpit to take the beer offered by Minako.
Thank you. Its just what I needed.
He bobbed his head in appreciation, roughly popped the pull tab open, then gulped down the beer. It was chilled and tasted delicious. Detecting contentment on Enoyoshis face, Minako ventured, Well? Dont you think its just marvellous?
The moment he heard her start, the beer seemed to lose some of its savour. How many times had he had to endure this spiel that day? Her tone suggested that she was not so much asking for an opinion as forcing him to accept her own. He made another noncommittal grunt in response.
In an attempt to change the subject, he vainly wracked his brain for another topic. The three of them on the yacht had precious little in common to talk about. This was the third time that Enoyoshi had met Ushijima. As for Minako, he had only met her that morning.
Ushijima, whod been quiet, chimed in, You can do it. Its all yours for the taking.
Enoyoshi didnt reply. If only they set the sails again. That would shut them up. They wouldnt have the leisure to harass him if they had to trim the jib sail and main sail. Theyd be flailing about in utter confusion. But while they cruised the calm waters of the evening sea using the outboard motor, it was all too easy for Ushijima to stand there beer in hand minding just the tiller.
Enoyoshi had met Ushijima at a high-school reunion in July, two months ago. It hadnt been a class reunion but rather a grand reunion of all the old boys. Hundreds of them attended the annual event. In the ten years since Enoyoshi graduated hed never once attended a reunion. That year, he happened to have the weekend free and decided to go for a change. Disappointed not to find as many old classmates as hed expected, Enoyoshi milled around the room searching for familiar faces. In the process he made small talk with Ushijima and they ended up exchanging business cards. Ushijima had graduated seven years before Enoyoshi and his card said Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries. A month later, Ushijima asked Enoyoshi out for a drink and proposed the current outing.
Now that he thought about it, Enoyoshi should have suspected Ushijimas motives and been altogether more circumspect. In the past, thered been acquaintances whod contacted him out of the blue, asking to meet up for old times sake, only to approach him then with some dubious scheme. It now seemed only natural that, graduates of the same school or not, the act of inviting a stranger involved an ulterior motive. If they were still fellow students, that would have been one thing. In the adult world, however, any relationship usually revolved around an eye to some sort of gain.
First picture whatever it is that you desire, that you want to have.
Ushijimas face was close by and the voice came from right behind Enoyoshis ears. The dim light of dusk revealed the lines of age etched on Ushijimas brow. Whenever Ushijima looked down, his thinning hair also became apparent. Enoyoshi felt that the man, whod initially appeared young for his age, had suddenly gained many years.
What is it that you want in life?
It was clear that the answer Ushijima was seeking was something that required a fortune to buy, like a yacht or a Mercedes. Enoyoshi chose a different sort of thing. He could have picked anything, so long as it couldnt be bought.
Now that you mention it, I suppose Id like a child.
Enoyoshi wasnt married, nor was he even remotely engaged. He was single and had told Ushijima so.
The couple exchanged surprised glances.
Are you married? asked Minako in wide-eyed puzzlement. As she turned toward her husband, her look turned fierce, conveying annoyance at having been misinformed.
Ushijima, nettled, peered at Enoyoshi. I thought you said you were single?
Sure, Im single. But Im living with this girl, and if I could get her in the family way, thats all itd take to get her to marry me.