minutes between the two trains. Yasuda would have a leisurely wait at Otaru Station before boarding the Marimo and heading back to Sapporo. He must have met Inamura shortly after boarding the train.
Why Yasuda had met Inamura for the first time after passing Otaru now became clear. Yasuda hadn't waited at Sapporo for three hours. Upon reaching the airport bus terminal, he hurried over to the Sapporo railway station and caught the local train for Otaru that left ten minutes later. At Sapporo he had had only ten minutes; at Otaru, a little over one hour. Yasuda had taken the greatest advantage of the least amount of time.
Mihara was reminded of the use the man had made of the four minutes between trains at Tokyo Station. He was impressed. Yasuda, he decided, was extraordinarily skillful in his employment of time.
He reported at once to Inspector Kasai. He went into detail, showing him the timetables. His voice betrayed his excitement.
'You've got it, I believe!' Kasai looked keenly at Mihara. His eyes seemed almost angry, reflecting his own excitement. 'A fine job! This breaks Yasuda's alibi, although it seems odd to call it an alibi.'
'I don't find it strange,' Mihara insisted. 'Up to now we believed that Yasuda could not have been at the scene of the suicides at the time they were committed. That is no longer true.'
'You say it's no longer true that Yasuda could not have been there,' the chief said, tapping the edge of his desk with his fingers. 'Then do you believe it possible that he could have been there?'
'Certainly,' Mihara replied, a note of triumph in his voice.
'You'll have to prove it,' the chief said, again looking straight at Mihara.
'I can't do it right away. Give me time.' He looked a little hurt.
'What you want to say is that there are still many points that are unclear. Isn't that it?'
'I'm afraid so.'
'For instance, that Yasuda's alibi has been broken, but not completely.'
The chief's face wore a curious expression. Mihara understood at once. 'You are referring to Ishida's statements.'
'Hmm!' Their eyes met and held for a few seconds. It was Kasai who looked away first. 'Don't worry about Ishida. I'll take care of that.' His voice was firm. The words were cryptic but Mihara knew what they meant. There was no need to explain; that could come later. They understood each other well.
'There is another problem that looks more difficult. What about the passenger list on the ferry? That's not personal evidence, it's written proof.'
That was true, of course. When he had found Yasuda's signature in the passenger register at Hakodate, Mihara had sensed defeat. But now, strangely enough, he was not disheartened. True, the wall was still standing, but he no longer had a feeling of helplessness.
'I'll get past that one, too.'
For the first time the chief laughed. 'You seem in good spirits. Very different from the way you looked when you returned from Hokkaido. All right, do what you can.'
Mihara was about to leave when Kasai put out his hand and stopped him. 'You know, by trying to cover Yasuda, Ishida let the cat out of the bag, didn't he?'
Mihara was certain he had uncovered Yasuda's plan to use the Marimo as an alibi. But he still had to prove it. He put his thoughts down on paper: From Japan Airlines get name of person who made reservation on flight leaving Fukuoka 8 A.M. January 21 and reservation on connecting flight Tokyo to Sapporo 3:00 P.M. same day.
But wait! Yasuda said he had left Tokyo by the Towada Express from Ueno Station at 7:15 on the twentieth. Therefore he must still have been in Tokyo the afternoon of the twentieth. Knowing that he might be checked later, he wouldn't be so careless as to be away from Tokyo that whole day. He would put in an appearance at his office, or show up elsewhere, just to be noticed. Had he left for Hakata by train the afternoon of the twentieth he wouldn't arrive at Kashii Beach in time. So here also he must have used a plane.
Mihara again checked the airline schedule. There was a plane leaving Tokyo at 3:00, arriving at Fukuoka at 7:20. To reach the Tokyo airport by car takes thirty minutes. It would not look strange if he left the office about two in the afternoon, explaining that he had errands to do before catching the train at Ueno Station.
Next, Mihara listed the planes and trains which Yasuda might have used:
Jan. 20: 3:00 P.M. left Haneda (Tokyo) 7:20 P.M. arrived Itazuke (Fukuoka) (Probably he went to Kashu then spent the night at Fukuoka)
Jan. 21: 8:00 A.M. left Itazuke (Fukuoka) 12:00 P.M. arrived Haneda (Tokyo)
1:00 P.M. left Haneda (Tokyo) 4:00 P.M. arrived Chitose (Sapporo)
5:40 P.M. left Sapporo (local train) 6:44 P.M. arrived Otaru
7:57 P.M. left Otaru (Marimo Express) 8:34 P.M. arrived Sapporo (Met Kawanishi in the Sapporo Station waiting room)
21st, 22nd, 23rd: stayed at the Maruso Inn. Returned to Tokyo 25th.
That's it, he concluded, looking at the memo. But one doubtful point came to his mind. Why did Yasuda wire Kawanishi to meet him in the Sapporo Station waiting room? Since Yasuda got aboard the Marimo at Otaru, wouldn't it have been more convincing if they had met on the platform instead of the waiting room and Kawanishi had seen him actually getting off the train? Was there some deliberate purpose in designating the waiting room? There must be, for Yasuda was exceptionally cautious. What was it? Mihara could find no ready answer.
Well, I'll think about that later, he decided. First, let me try to account for his movements:
1. Check the Japan Airlines' passenger lists for that day. Also, the taxi that took Yasuda to Haneda Airport, the taxi or bus he used from Itazuke Airport into Fukuoka, and from Chitose Airport into Sapporo. Since all this took place some time ago it might be difficult to get the information.
2. Check the inn at Fukuoka where Yasuda stayed.
3. Look for someone who remembers seeing Yasuda on the local train from Sapporo to Otaru. At Otaru, where he had an hour to spare before the Marimo arrived, find out if anyone saw him at the station.
This was the evidence he needed. He didn't expect much from item three. The first two were important.
Mihara left the Metropolitan Police Board. It was a bright day. The Ginza was crowded. The sun was so strong the faces of people he passed looked strangely pale, as if bleached.
He entered the offices of Japan Airlines and went to the domestic lines counter.
'Do you still have the passenger lists for the month of January?' he asked the clerk.
'If you mean January of this year, we do. We keep the files for one year.'
'I'd like the name of the passenger who made a reservation on flight No. 305 to Fukuoka on January 20, on flight No. 302 to Tokyo on the twenty-first, and from Tokyo to Sapporo on flight No. 503 the same day.'
'Would these reservations be for the same person?'
'Yes.'
'He must be a busy man. It's rather unusual so it shouldn't be hard to find.'
The clerk brought out the passenger records and referred to the lists for January 20. Flight No. 305 made a stop at Osaka: forty-three passengers had continued on to Fukuoka. On the following day, there were forty-one passengers on the plane from Fukuoka to Tokyo and fifty-nine on the flight to Sapporo. Tatsuo Yasuda's name was not in the lists, nor did any one name appear on all three.
Mihara was not surprised. He would expect Yasuda to travel under an assumed name, but he had hoped to find at least one name repeated in the lists. In the total of 143 passengers, each name was different. How was this possible?
'Can one get a seat without making a reservation?' he inquired.
'Unless you reserve three or four days in advance you are not likely to get on the flight you ask for,' the clerk explained.
To Yasuda, it would be of paramount importance to have a seat on each of these three planes. For if any one had failed him, he would not have been able to connect with the Marimo in Hokkaido on January 21. He must have made the reservations personally, and some days ahead. And even if he had used a false name, it should appear on the three lists. Yet however carefully Mihara checked, it was not there.
'I'm sorry to have troubled you. Please let me keep these for a few days.' Mihara gave the clerk his card on which he wrote a receipt for the passenger lists.
He was depressed. The excitement with which he had started out the day had vanished. He walked as far as
