All She Was Worth by Miyuki Miyabe

Author:Miyuki Miyabe [Miyabe, Miyuki]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Company
Published: 1999-04-03T17:00:00+00:00

“Tamotsu, you’ve got a customer!” a middle-aged mechanic in greasy overalls shouted into the garage. A young man stood up way in the back and came forward. He was short and solidly built, with a thick neck and strong jaw that gave him an obstinate look. He wore his hair in a crewcut. As he got closer, Honma could see he was sweating at the temples.

A ten-minute walk from the L’Oréal Salon, the repair shop was on a main thoroughfare leading from the station. A quick look around showed about twenty cars and a few motorcycles. There was even a small truck parked over to one side. Five mechanics—that he could see—were working here and there. A boy of high school age huddled over a 50cc bike. Everybody wore white overalls with Honda Motors embroidered on the breast pocket.

“Tamotsu Honda, is it?”

He nodded his head quickly, without looking away.

“Sorry for dropping in like this.”

As Honma explained the reasons for his visit, Tamotsu’s eyes widened. “Shoko’s okay, right? Whereabouts in Tokyo is she?”

“You mean …?”

“I lost track of her after she left that place in Kawaguchi. I’ve been worried about her.”

“You visited her at the Kawaguchi apartment?”

“Sure, I tried. But they said she wasn’t there any more.”

“Did you see the landlady?”

“Yeah, and was she pissed off. Said Shoko had left without a word, that same week.”

“So you must have gone there at the end of March, the year before last, is that right?”

Tamotsu wiped his hands on his overalls and thought. “Yeah, I guess.”

“Were you and her close?”

“Well, sure, but …” Tamotsu’s eyes narrowed in a look of growing distrust. “Hey, I don’t like this. You want to poke around in Shoko’s private life, go ahead, but don’t ask me for help.” He squared his shoulders. “I don’t like gossiping about my friends.”

“Listen, it’s not like that. I don’t mean her any harm.” This was the first breakthrough Honma had had. No way was he going to let Tamotsu go. “Why don’t you let me explain. Could you spare me a little time? I could come back later, if you want. Shoko is missing, actually, and I’m looking for her.”

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