(Shintani Kenkichi)
I arrived early Friday after an overnight train journey. Surprised the boss is splashing out on this, but, he said it was urgent and to keep his name out of it, and avoid the Takagi sphere if possible.
My cover is that I’m here from Yokohama, researching many family law cases on behalf of a wife of a wealthy industrialist. As they’re the only ones who can afford to keep a stable of mistresses, concubine and bastards anymore, it’s a decent story. Since I grew up in Yokohama, I can still affect the accent…
I start with the newspapers, where I’m kindly granted access to the stacks. It takes a while to find the case, but I figured it would have had some local notoriety. Indeed, attorney Takagi did win his case, but the judgement was unpopular – the mistress was the daughter of a well-regarded merchant family and the wife was former samurai; this was seen by some as a sign of the old rotten system still supporting those in power. The filing clerk is a chatty type, and provides some additional information…
The tip takes me to a nice household, where, for a little cash, a housemaid confirms that the oldest daughter of the mistress is living as an unpaid servant – a “companion” – to an elderly relative of the wife’s who needs constant care and attention. I saw the girl – not even ten years old, head down, shoulders bowed, and I could hear someone yelling at her. The housemaid said that after this one dies, the wife has a series of aunts who also want such care…
The middle child, a boy, seems to have disappeared, but the youngest, another boy, has been absorbed into the wife’s household. He’s said to only be two or three.
The boss is generally too cheap to drink out, but I know that generally, lawyers are lawyers and they like to sit around and swap stories. There’s always a favored drinking spot near the court… and I find it. It’s a favorite of cops, too, so I keep my head down.
“Did you hear Nakae Aimi is missing?” My ears perk up. The mistress’s name was kept out of the law journal, and the newspaper, but the housemaid let it slip…
The men at the table laugh. “Probably went to find someone else to warm her up – you know her type!”
One objects, “you know that her family raised her well. Furui-san chased after -her-.”
There’s more laughter. “You’ll have to forgive my young colleague. He comes from merchant stock and takes their side too often. But if she were so well-raised, why was she so unprotected? No, no, they were looking to ensnare Furui-san. He came out from the war pretty well off, and it’s an old name – one of his brothers was killed defending the castle, after all.”
“But still, to be stripped of her children?” The younger man won’t stop…
“Young man, you’ll need to learn to be quiet and listen to your elders if you want to keep moving up in this profession… Takagi-san is a cunning lawyer, and he said that it’s a very important case to him…”
The noise of the bar picks up and the topic seems to shift, but I keep an eye on the younger man of the group. Waiting for him to separate from the larger group….
(Later)
I give the younger man my cover story. He’s a little buzzed so he just nods.
“Is it true that the case set off some outrage locally?” I ask.
“Oh yes. I’m not sure he’ll get away with it again… and not just among the merchant classes Nakae-san comes from, but artesans, and even some of us professionals… it’s not a good look for lawyers. Nakae-san was well-regarded, despite her life…” He sighs. “My oldest sister was a friend of hers, before.”
“And now she’s missing?”
Another sigh. “It’s been said… well, understandably – she lost her lover and protector, and now the three children they shared?” He fumbles with a cigarette and lights it up. “I just hope… they don’t find her in the river.”
I try not to shudder at the image. I’ve seen a lot in my life, but this unknown woman… “At the trial, did she have a lawyer?”
He shakes his head. “Nobody would touch it. Takagi-san is extremely well-connected, but it was thought unlikely that it would be successful… that it was just to -shame- Nakae-san.”
“Was the judge… ah… influenced?” I raise my eyebrows. Now that’s a delicate topic, but he’s been open about the other questions.
“Oh, no no… he’s very morally upright and his wife is a Christian. He’s not, it’s said, but he agrees with the new morality rules from the West.” He looks away. “That may be so, but did poor Nakae-san have to suffer for it? And with one case this way, what about the next one? Even if it upset people… that’s not what the law is supposed to care about.”
(Even Later)
I take down everything I’ve learned in my first day in Aizu. I’m in a room at the one sizable ryokan here in Aizuwakamatsu where it’s hoped I can be a little more anonymous…
The boss said no telegrams – he’s strangely paranoid about it. Well, at first he wanted to devise some code – based on some communication system he has with that weird brother of his… but that’s ridiculous. Aren’t they a bit old to be believing in ninja?
I have a copyist working tomorrow on the court records. Should have those Sunday.
I need to find out more about attorney Takagi. Is he planning other actions? Is it the one the boss fears?
I need to see what I can find out about the wife (now widow) and see what drove her beyond the fury of a woman who was humiliated by her husband.
I need to… I want to find out more about the woman. After all… what she’s going through is what the boss fears for his sister. And… well, I guess I think of Ma, too.
And I have to keep a distance from it all, and these old samurai families can be very closed off – I got -lucky- with that housemaid earlier. These old families can be stingy with the help, though, so -maybe-… Ma was a servant so it’s a world I know. There’s always grievances…
With a belly full of the delights of wappameshi, I settle in for a good night of sleep. It wasn’t that long ago that either of those was a distant dream, after all…
(OOC – Shintani will be out and about gathering information and is making an effort to be discrete and blend in. He’s a former street kid so he’s able to take care of himself. However, the Furui home is near the Kurasawa residence. As Tamesaburou is unaware of the Tokio-Kurosawa connection, this guy is as well.)