lightning. He didn't tell me himself-I'd read about it in an interview in a magazine. When he was a student in art college, he had a part-time job as a caddy at a golf course. One day he was following his golfer around the course when the sky suddenly changed color and a huge thunderstorm crashed down on them. They took refuge under a tree when it was hit by a bolt of lightning. This huge tree was split right in two. The golfer he was caddying for was killed, but my father, sensing something, leaped away from the tree in time. He got some light burns, his hair was singed, and the shock of the lightning threw him against a rock. He struck his head and lost consciousness, but survived the ordeal with only a small scar on his forehead. That's what I was trying to remember this afternoon, standing there in Miss Saeki's doorway listening to the roar of the thunder. It was after he recovered from his injuries that my father got serious about his career as a sculptor.
As Miss Saeki went around interviewing people for her book, maybe she met my father. It's entirely possible. There can't be that many people around who've been struck by lightning and lived, can there?
I breathe very quietly, waiting for the dawn. A cloud parts, and moonlight shines down on the trees in the garden. There are just too many coincidences. Everything seems to be speeding up, rushing toward one destination.
Chapter 26
It was already pretty late in the afternoon, and they had to find a place to stay for the night. Hoshino went to the tourist information booth at Takamatsu Station and had them make a reservation at an inn. It was within walking distance of the station, which was nice, but otherwise was typical and somewhat dumpy. Neither Hoshino nor Nakata minded much, though. As long as there were futons to sleep on, they were fine. As before, breakfast was provided but they were on their own for dinner. This particularly suited Nakata, who was likely to drop off to sleep any time.
Once they were in their room, Nakata had Hoshino lie facedown on the futon, got on top of him again, and pressed down with both thumbs up and down his lower back, carefully checking out the condition of his joints and muscles. This time he was much more gentle, just tracing the spine and checking out how tense the muscles were.
'Something wrong?' Hoshino asked anxiously.
'No, everything's fine. Nakata doesn't find anything wrong with you now. Your spine's in good shape.'
'That's a relief,' Hoshino said. 'I wasn't looking forward to another torture session.'
'I know. Nakata's really sorry. But you did tell me you didn't mind pain, so I went ahead and did it as hard as I could.'
'Yeah, I know that's what I said. But listen, Gramps, there are limits. Sometimes you've gotta use common sense. But I guess I shouldn't be complaining-you did fix my back. But man alive, I never felt anything like that in my life. The pain was unimaginable! It felt like you were ripping me apart. Like I died and came back to life or something.'
'Nakata was dead for three weeks once.'
'No kidding,' Hoshino said. Still facedown, he took a gulp of tea and munched on some crunchy snacks he'd picked up at a convenience store. 'So you really were dead?'
'I was.'
'Where were you all that time?'
'Nakata doesn't remember. It felt like I was somewhere far away, doing something else. But my head was floating and I can't remember anything. Then I came back to this world and found out I was dumb. I couldn't read or write anymore.'
'You must've left your ability to read and write over on the other side.'
'Maybe so.'
The two of them were silent for a time. Hoshino decided it was best to believe whatever the old man told him, no matter how eccentric it sounded. At the same time he felt uneasy, as if pursuing this dead-for-three-weeks idea any further would lead him into some chaotic, out-of-control situation. Better to turn the conversation back to more practical matters. 'So, now that we're in Takamatsu, Mr. Nakata, where are you planning to go?'
'I have no idea,' Nakata replied. 'I don't know what I'm supposed to do.'
'What about that entrance stone?'
'That's right! Nakata completely forgot about it. We have to find the stone. But I don't have a clue where to look. My mind's floating and won't clear up. I wasn't too bright to begin with, and this kind of thing only makes it worse.'
'We're in a bit of a fix, then, aren't we?'
'Yes, I'd say we are.'
'Not that sitting here staring at each other's all that much fun. This won't get us anywhere.'
'You're right.'
'I think we should go around asking people, you know, if that stone's somewhere around here.'
'If you say so, then that's what Nakata wants to do. I'm pretty dumb, so I'm used to asking people questions.'
'My grandpa always said asking a question is embarrassing for a moment, but not asking is embarrassing for a lifetime.'
'I agree. When you die, everything you know disappears.'
'Well, that's not what he meant, exactly,' Hoshino said, scratching his head. 'Anyway, do you have a mental image of the stone? What kind of stone it is, how big it is, its shape or color? What it's used for? If we don't have some details, it's hard to ask. Nobody's going to know what the heck we're talking about if we just say, Is there an entrance stone anywhere around here? They'll think we're nuts. You see what I mean?'
'Yes, I do. I might be dumb, but I'm not nuts.'
'Okay.'
'The stone Nakata's looking for is very special. It's not so big. It's white, and doesn't have any smell. I don't know what it's used for. It's round, sort of like a rice cake.' He held up his hands to indicate something the size of an LP record.
'Hmm. So if you spotted it, do you think you'd recognize it? You know, like-Hey, here it is.'
'Nakata would know it right away.'
'There must be some kind of story or legend behind it. Maybe it's famous and on display at a shrine or someplace.'
'It could be, I suppose.'
'Or maybe it's just in some house, and people use it as a weight when they make pickles.'
'No, that's not possible.'
'Why not?'
'Because nobody can move the stone.'
'Nobody except you, you mean.'
'Yes, I think Nakata probably can.'
'After you move it, then what?'
Nakata did an uncharacteristic thing-he pondered this for a good long time. At least he looked like he was, briskly rubbing his short, salt-and-pepper hair. 'I don't really know about that,' he finally said. 'All I know is it's about time somebody moved it.'
Hoshino did some pondering himself. 'And that somebody's you, right? At least for now.'
'Yes,' Nakata replied, 'that's correct.'
'Is the stone found only in Takamatsu?'
'No, it isn't. It doesn't really matter where it is. It just happens to be here right now. It would be much easier if it was in Nakano Ward.'
'But moving that kind of stone must be risky.'
'That's right. Maybe Nakata shouldn't bring this up, but it is very dangerous.'
'Damn,' Hoshino said, slowly shaking his head. He put on his Chunichi Dragons cap and pulled his ponytail out
