Read Online A Dog in Water by Kazuhiro Kiuchi - Free Book Online

p.m. when I reached the address Afro gave me. I was able to locate the building in question right away. It had four stories and a narrow frontage. It was too nice to be called an apartment building yet too cheap for a condo complex. I parked in a nearby alley and approached the building on foot.
    The entrance was along a small private pathway. There was no foyer. Upon entering I immediately came face to face with the door to #101. To the right was #102, and #103 was across the hall. That was it. Mailboxes were lined up next to the #101 door. Each floor had just three apartments. None of the mailboxes listed Katsuya Yamamoto.
    I exited the building and walked farther down the private path towards the back of the building. There was a small parking lot with four cars that included Katsuya Yamamoto’s Renault. The ruined headlight had been neatly repaired. When I got closer, I saw that the pavement under the car was painted with the number 402. I returned to my own car.
    It was possible he’d left without taking his car, but I chose to believe he was in his apartment. Since Junko Tajima was seriously considering killing him, I didn’t have much time. She had contacted the informant late last night and bought access to a forger and a gun dealer. I didn’t know which she’d do first—hire a new P.I. agency with her fake ID or buy a gun from a dealer—but either way she’d want to dealwith both issues before taking action against Katsuya.
    She might answer his call, or she might call him and ask to meet somewhere. Then she’d aim the gun at him and pull the trigger. Quite possibly tonight.
    I had to settle it before then. I had some proving to do. To Junko, that I was still able to meaningfully contribute to her chance at happiness. To Katsuya, that there were consequences to pissing me off. To myself, that I wasn’t a disappointment, in my own eyes.
    But I didn’t think Katsuya would open the door for me if he heard my voice through the intercom. I couldn’t even let him see my face through the peephole. If he caught on, I’d never get another chance. I was painfully aware of how formidable he was, whereas I was an invalid who couldn’t even wash his own hair. I had to get him with his guard down.
    I decided to wait until he left his apartment. I’d attack him in the parking lot. When he was just about to get into his car would offer me a chance. If I hung around the lot, however, I might mistime it. I wouldn’t be able to get close enough without him noticing.
    I drove around looking for a spot that would allow me to stake out the outdoor stairwell. Since the building lacked an elevator, residents above the second floor had to use the exposed stairway for egress.
    I found a perfect spot—partway down an alley that lay just past the right side of the building. I could see clear up to the top of the stairway from between a narrow gap between the apartments and an adjacent building. Parked at this vantage point, I could see him leave the apartment and still make it back to the lot and hide before he got there. There was still some time before sunset. I decided to pass the time in leisure. I took a small hit of morphine.
    Just under an hour had passed since I started my lookout when I spotted a woman climbing the stairs. It was Junko Tajima.
    I grabbed my coat from the passenger’s seat and jumped out of the car.
    I caught up to her on the landing between the third and fourthfloors. Hearing my footsteps, she halted and turned to face me.
    “Why are you here?” she asked with a suspicious look.
    “Don’t go to his place,” I gasped, speaking before I’d caught my breath.
    Silently, she shook her head.
    “I know … what you’re … trying to do. But you mustn’t.”
    I was feeling impatient. Whether that was because I didn’t want her to commit murder or because I didn’t want my prey snatched away, I couldn’t tell.
    She turned her back on my words and started to climb the stairs. My only choice was