Read Online Missing in Tokyo by Graham Marks - Free Book Online Page A

window seats.’ The woman checked the screen in front of her. ‘They’re near the back, or I have a few of aisle seats further towards the wing. Otherwise it’s going to be a middle seat in the centre section – do you have a preference?’
    Adam hadn’t flown that much, but whenever he’d had a window seat he’d always felt hemmed in, any advantage gained by having a view lost because you had no freedom of movement.
    â€˜An aisle seat, please.’
    The woman tapped a few keys on a keyboard he couldn’t see, waited a moment or two and then, smiling, handed Adam his passport, e-documentation and a card folder with his outbound docket and seat number.
    â€˜Have a good flight, and enjoy your stay in Japan, sir.’
    Five minutes later he was sitting down at a café in the departure lounge with a hot panini and another coffee. While he waited for the toasted sandwich to cool down Adam texted Suzy that he was at the airport and to text him when she got out of her Spanish tutorial. Then he sat back, relaxed for the first time since he’d woken up that morning.Now he was on the move, now the only way he could go was forward and, one way or another, he would find out what had happened to Charlie. He would do that.
    He didn’t care how much trouble he was going to be in, and he knew, no matter what happened, he was going to be in some deep, deep shit when he got home. The feeling that he was doing something, that he was the one who’d got up off his arse and gone for it, was worth whatever they might throw at him. Adam picked up the panini, blew on it and took a bite. Which was when his phone started to ring.
    He checked the screen: Suzy. He flipped the phone open. ‘Hi.’
    â€˜Where are you?’
    â€˜Departure lounge.’
    â€˜What’re you doing?’
    â€˜Lounging.’
    â€˜Ha-ha … has your gate come up yet?’
    Adam looked over at the nearest screen. ‘Nope, still “Wait in lounge”.’
    â€˜Why d’you sound odd?’
    â€˜Mouthful of food, I was starving … couldn’t eat breakfast this morning, my mum didn’t leave the house till twenty past nine.’
    â€˜Are you OK?’
    â€˜As good as it gets.’
    â€˜Promise you’ll email when you get there … they have to have Internet cafés there, right?’
    â€˜You’d think … I’ll check in the guidebook, I’ve got plenty of time to read it.’ Out of the corner of his eye Adam saw the lines of text on the screen hanging down from the ceiling flicker and change; he focused on the display. ‘Got a gate number, Suze.’
    â€˜Be careful, Ad,
please
be careful …’
    â€˜I’m not going to be acting like some stupid superhero or anything …’
    â€˜Be back soon …’
    Adam could hear Suzy’s voice breaking. ‘Don’t cry, Suze …’
    â€˜I love you.’ Click. Silence.
    Adam sat, phone still open, connected to nothing. She’d never said she loved him before. Not like that. Weird thing was, he realised he had no idea what he would have replied if she hadn’t cut the call.

13
I may be passed if you are speednuts
    Adam was surprised to find that a lot of the Virgin cabin crew were Japanese, not English. As he walked through the plane to his seat he found himself being politely welcomed, smiled at and bowed to, and by the time he’d sat down he felt he was already in a foreign country.
    He had certainly never flown in this kind of plane before. Even back in cattle class each seat had its own TV screen and hand-held remote/games handset – what the hell did you get up in first class? – and like the check-in lady had said, almost every seat was taken. It seemed as if the majority of passengers were Japanese tourists on their way home; Adam watched smartly dressed middle-aged Japanese ladies, all cream silk, pearls and cashmere, hurrying up