Chapter 4

It was early afternoon by the time all the office regulars met at the house in question on the border between Fushimi Ward's Yodo district and Yawata city. Between Hirota's immediately disappearing with Mai to get her some things in Kyoto's Kawaramachi shopping district, to when they subsequently met up with Yasuhara once he arrived, Nakai hadn't had a chance to drag them off to the house in question the previous day.

Naru had a displeased look on his face as he got out of the passenger's seat of the company van.

"Idiot," he said as Mai came running up to meet him.

Mai was stopped in her tracks by that one word. However, before she could say anything, Naru continued to delineate exactly what he thought of her for being fooled by Hirota. "Klutz, dunce, simpleton, unthinking gullible fool..."

"I got it already!" Mai snapped annoyed. "I'm sorry to have caused you so much trouble, Shochou-sama."

Naru sighed. "Cell phone."

Mai looked at him confused. "Huh? 'Cell phone'?" she repeated.

Naru's expression showed a hint of impatience at her lack of understanding. "Cell phone – do you have one? Why didn't you phone as soon as you realised what was happening rather than waiting until you almost reached Kyoto. It would've given us an extra 2.5 hours to prepare while you sat twiddling your thumbs on the train."

Mai had an odd expression on her face as she looked at Naru. 'Who would've thought that's what he was asking about just from his saying 'cell phone'?!' she wondered to herself. She shook her head, "I don't have one. It's too expensive," she said.

Naru sighed again before gesturing to the van. "Get started carrying the equipment into the house," he said. "I assume a room's been set aside for us to use as a base?" he asked glancing inquiringly at Hirota. Both Hirota and Yasuhara stood several paces behind Mai.

Hirota nodded, "The first room on your right. It's a Japanese-style room but fairly sizeable and should be large enough. There are some bedrooms upstairs where people can sleep while you're here."

Naru shook his head slightly, "I'd rather we didn't stay the first night, just in case something is here. Is there a hotel nearby?"

Mai blushed slightly and looked away in embarrassment at Naru's question. She'd asked a similar question yesterday when they first met up with Yasuhara.

"Th-there're a couple of hotels, yeah... but you don't want to stay there," Hirota stammered.

Naru looked at them oddly before glancing at Yasuhara for an explanation.

"Ah, we stayed at a hotel near Kyoto station yesterday," Yasuhara said. "While there are two hotels in this area, they're both love hotels."

Naru blinked uncomprehendingly at Yasuhara's explanation.

"For some reason Taniyama-san was completely against staying there with me..." Yasuhara said amused.

"Y-yasuhara-san!" Mai stammered blushing furiously.

"And even if you don't mind that sort of place, they often won't let two men rent a room together, and they certainly won't let a single person get a room either." Yasuhara continued. "And while they might let two men get a room if Taniyama-san were with them, I don't think she'd be too happy with that. Not to mention, there'll only be the one bed..."

Naru's eyes widened slightly as he realised what Yasuhara was hinting at. "...Is there nothing else nearby?" he asked finally.

"Nothing suitable, no," Yasuhara replied.

Naru sighed. "Alright. Do you have the blueprints for the house?"

"Ah, yes sir. Here are the plans as well as a bit more information about the history of this house," Yasuhara said as he handed a sheaf of papers and a roll of building plans to Naru. "I'll help Taniyama-san and Lin-san carry things in to the base and set up the equipment."

Naru barely nodded as he wandered into the house reading through the information Yasuhara had gathered. Behind him, he could hear the sounds of the others as they began unloading the van.

It took almost two hours for the SPR regulars to set up the base. The room was fairly sizeable and had been set up as a formal living room area. Fusuma separated the base from the smaller piano room next door, while the kitchen sat on the other side of the hall. In total, there were three bedrooms upstairs, a half bath on each floor, a laundry room/change area next to the traditional bath, a kitchen, a formal dining area, a living room, and a piano room.

After setting up the base, Lin ensured the equipment was set up and recording properly, while Mai and Yasuhara went off together to check the temperature readings throughout the house, outside, as well as that of a small garage that doubled as a storage shed. They also double-checked room measurements and compared them to the original building plans. Yasuhara then went to report to Naru while Mai went to the kitchen to make tea for everyone. By the time Mai returned with tea, Naru had already started going over the case details with Hirota.

"As far as we've been able to determine, there've been two murder incidents in this house," Hirota said as Mai entered. "The most recent being the case with Katou Hiroshi. He killed three people in this house with an axe from the garage. In his statement, he said he couldn't remember anything between going out looking for his daughter and picking up the murder weapon. He also mentioned hearing a voice in his head constantly telling him to 'do it'. It was this statement that caught the attention of one of the investigating officers. Detective Konishi's a veteran of the force and has been working in this area for many years. It's he who noticed the similarity between the two cases at that house and contacted Zero Squad for help." Hirota paused as Mai handed him a cup of tea.

"In the previous case, as I'd mentioned at your office, the husband stabbed his wife to death. According to Yoshimura Hideki's confession, he'd been out looking for his dog when he suddenly found himself picking up a large kitchen and stabbed his wife," Hirota continued. "Those are all the murders that happened in this house."

"I gave you what information I was able to gather on the internet about those cases yesterday," Yasuhara said. "This morning Taniyama-san and I checked with the ward office about the history of this house and the various people who lived here. It appears the original house here was built in 1927."

Naru looked at Yasuhara at that statement. From the outside, he thought the house looked like it was built in the 70's. It certainly hadn't looked like it was built over 70 years ago. He glanced around the room. It too didn't look to be so old.

Yasuhara nodded. "The original house was built in 1927 by the Kuribayashi family. They lived here for 26 years, until 1953. The house was then sold to the Yamagishi family who lived here for the next 21 years, until 1974. They then sold the house, and the Yoshimuras moved in next. They lived here until the murder two years later. Yoshimura's brother then took possession of the house. According to the newspapers, the brother was extremely superstitious and had the house burned to the ground. He even had a priest bless the land before having the current house built. It was completed in 1978. He then sold the house to the Kishimoto family who lived here for four years. After they left, the house sat empty for about half a year before the Sawada family moved in. The family consisted of the husband, wife, and their seven-year-old son. They lived here for two years before moving out in 1985. The Takeda family then moved here in 1986. This family – consisting of husband, wife, and two teenage sons – lived here for 1.5 years before moving. The timing of the move seems to be a bit strange."

Naru looked at Yasuhara at that comment. "Why is it strange?" he asked.

"Ah, it's not like a reason was given for moving or anything like that," Yasuhara began, "But they moved out not even two months before the end of the school year. If the move was work related, most likely one parent would've stayed here with the sons until after the school year was over and then moved, rather than have their sons change schools at that time of year."

Yasuhara paused to take a sip of tea as he glanced at his notes. "Um, that brings us up to 1988 when the Fujii family moved here. They lived here for three years. The house then stood empty for another year before the Nishimuras - Katou Hiroshi's wife's parents - moved here," Yasuhara concluded.

Naru frowned slightly. "So, two families lived here between 1927 and 1974. In 1974 the Yoshimuras moved here until Yoshimura Hideki killed his wife in 1976. The house was then burned down and rebuilt in 1978, and between 1978 and 1992 four families lived here and the Nishimuras moved here in 1992 and stayed here for... 15 years when their son-in-law murdered them and their daughter," he said summarising Yasuhara's findings.

"That's right," Yasuhara agreed.

Naru frowned as he considered the house's history. "Anything else?"

"Umm... nothing else regarding the house itself, no." Yasuhara said. "Tomorrow, I'm going to try looking more into the families who lived here between 1978 and 1991 and why they moved away, as well as a little more about this area in general."

Naru nodded. "I would've expected Hirota-san to have already done this since he and Nakai-san have been here for some time before he called us in," he said looking at Hirota expectantly.

Hirota looked away. "Um, Nakai's supposed to be looking for any other information involving the people who lived here, but I haven't heard from her regarding the results yet," he said looking a little uncomfortable.

Naru sighed, "Yasuhara-san, see what you can dig up. I'm sure you'll be more successful and faster than the people who have access to much more complete records than we seem to be doing."

"Yes sir."

Naru turned to look at Mai. "What about you? Have you sensed anything or felt anything since coming here?" he asked.

Mai looked surprised at his question. "Umm, nothing really. But I'm awake right now, so I wouldn't be able to see much," she said.

"You really are useless," Naru said with a sigh.

"Wha-!" Mai exclaimed.

However, before she could continue, Naru looked at her in exasperation. "You're supposed to be a sensitive, are you not, Taniyama-san? I thought the test we ran on you some time ago illustrated that quite clearly," he said annoyed.

"Ah..." Mai hesitated then looked away shaking her head. "I didn't feel anything about this house when we got here," she said in a small voice.

Naru nodded. "Alright. From the temperature readings you and Yasuhara-san took earlier, there are no areas or rooms that are significantly colder than any others, and the temperatures are within the expected range compared to outside temperatures. Likewise, the garage area seems pretty normal," he said as he flipped through the numbers on the clipboard Yasuhara had handed him after finishing measuring the temperature throughout the property.

Naru glanced at Hirota. "Hirota-san, I'm assuming it is permissible for us to stay here in this house like this? After all, you're the one who came to us to investigate this place. But as far as I'm aware, the police don't own this property."

Hirota nodded. "Nakai spoke to the people at the real-estate agency in charge of the property now. Apparently, they're happy and relieved to have someone checking out the house before they sell it again, and we're free to stay as long as we want. They're even going so far as keeping all the basic utilities including the phone line connected."

Naru nodded. "In that case, we'll stay here. We'll use the adjoining room to sleep in tonight."

Hirota's eyes widened. "You can't be serious. What about Taniyama-san?" he asked. "She needs more privacy than that!"

Naru looked at him annoyed. "Hirota-san, we're here to work. You're the one who insisted on dragging us out here like this," he said impatiently. "Or would you rather I have you, Yasuhara-san, and Mai stay at one of the "love hotels" while Lin and I stay here and keep an eye on the monitors tonight?"

Hirota's eyes widened in shock at Naru's question while Mai turned bright red.

Yasuhara looked amused. "I'd much rather have Takigawa-san with us, but I suppose having Hirota-san with us might be interesting~," he said agreeably.

"Wha-! You... That's not... Uh..." Hirota spluttered unable to get a coherent sentence together.

Hirota massaged his temples as he struggled to keep from saying anything. He remembered his conversation with Mai at the end of the Agawa case and how he didn't think it was a good idea for a young girl like her to stay overnight, sometimes staying for days, in abandoned houses with a bunch of men and no other women. Mai had laughed at him at the time telling him that it was for work, and given how Lin and Naru were, she was in absolutely no danger. She'd also wondered if, given his concerns, Hirota might be a wolf in disguise therefore. Hirota shook his head slightly. Right now, he wished he was with Nakai going through police records and staying in Kyoto rather than staying with the members of this office.

"Naru, wouldn't it be better for you and Lin-san to take turns watching the monitors?" Mai asked hesitantly.

"Is that an invitation, Taniyama-san?" Naru asked with a cold, cynical smile. "As I told Hirota-san, we're here to work."

Mai's blush deepened at Naru's words. "That's not..."

"Yasuhara-san will have an early start tomorrow, so he'll need to get some sleep tonight. You're pretty much useless unless you're asleep, so you might as well get some sleep too," Naru continued. His eyes narrowed slightly, "In any case, I am not my brother," he said icily.

Mai's breath caught at those words as she instantly paled. Naru caught a brief glimpse of the shock and hurt look in her wide eyes before she turned away.

Yasuhara was instantly beside Mai. He wrapped his arm firmly around her shoulders and guided her towards the exit. "Taniyama-san, let's see about getting something together for dinner," Yasuhara said gently. He gave Naru a long hard look before leaving the base, but Naru refused to meet his gaze.

After Yasuhara's and Mai's footsteps died away, Lin turned to Naru. "Naru..." he said reprovingly.

Naru refused to look at him and just shook his head slightly. Lin sighed quietly before turning back to face the monitors.

In the kitchen, Yasuhara got Mai busy putting together some simple sandwiches for dinner while he set about making a light salad.

"Hmm... it's too bad we can't make something like bread or biscuits," he said.

Mai glanced at Yasuhara confused. Much to his relief, he saw that, while slightly teary, she wasn't crying.

"Well, bread's great for taking your frustrations out on. After all you have to punch down the dough, right?" he asked with a slight grin. "And you're supposed to beat the hell out of biscuits, so all you'd have to do is picture a certain someone's face..."

Mai managed a slightly wobbly smile at Yasuhara's suggestion.

"But I'm glad we won't be spending the night with the boss. Five-year-old boys aren't high on my list of preferences," Yasuhara said thinking seriously.

"Y-yasu... hara... -san?" Mai asked hesitantly.

"What's this? Don't you think he acts like the little boy in kindergarten who tries getting a girl's attention by being mean to her or teasing her?" he asked mildly.

Mai blinked in surprise and giggled at the image his words brought to mind.

"You mean you don't agree?" he asked innocently.

Mai laughed. "Yasuhara-san, Lin-san's listening, and Naru might hear this if he goes through the tapes later!"

"Hmm... I wonder if Shibuya-san hasn't noticed his own behaviour yet," Yasuhara wondered out loud. "My... he's usually so observant, too..."

"If it's about the occult, yes." Mai agreed readily. "But I think he's pretty dense when it comes to anything else."

"True," Yasuhara agreed. He paused slightly before grinning slyly at Mai. "...And here I was worried that if Shibuya-san was spending the night with us, I'd get lost in his good looks and not pay as much attention to you as you deserved."

"Y-yasuhara-san!" Mai exclaimed blushing slightly.

"What's this? Don't tell me you'd be embarrassed about spending another night with me. Not after last night~." Yasuhara teased gently.

"Y-yasuhara-san, stop that!" Mai couldn't help laughing at Yasuhara's words. "Lin-san's listening! You'll give him the wrong impression!"

Yasuhara gave Mai a look of wide-eyed innocence. "But Taniyama-san, how could he possibly get the wrong impression from our spending the night together in the same hotel room? Besides, I was discrete. After all, we spent the night at a regular hotel rather than staying at one of the love hotels nearby." His expression turned mischievous. "Maybe next time we shouldn't be so discrete. I'd love to try out one of those themed love hotels..."

Mai struggled to contain her laughter. "Yasuhara-san~!" She barely managed to choke out his name.

"In any case, I'll finish the sandwiches, Taniyama-san. So, if you could make some new tea..." he suggested.

"Okay~." Mai said as she went to fill the kettle with fresh water.

After having a light dinner of sandwiches and tea, Yasuhara helped Mai with what homework she'd received in her morning classes before Hirota whisked her away from school. Since there was no cell phone signal in the area, he couldn't do much more research that night.

Nakai called the house close to 10 P.M. briefing Hirota on her progress. She suggested that Hirota come down and help her read through the records as there was a lot more extraneous material to sift through than she'd expected. However, Hirota refused to leave as he didn't feel comfortable leaving the SPR regulars on their own in the house quite yet. He didn't care what the property management company thought about having people investigate for paranormal activity. He still didn't like the idea of one teenage girl spending the night alone in an empty house with so many other men.

"By the way, Taniyama-san," Yasuhara said suddenly glancing at her. He was currently sitting leaning against the wall opposite her reading through his case notes.

Mai looked at him.

"Did you finish the homework you were working on yesterday? I think it was for English, wasn't it?" he asked looking amused.

"Y-y-y-yasuhara-san!" Mai exclaimed flushing.

Naru and Lin both turned to look at her.

"Ah, sorry." Mai muttered. She glared at Yasuhara.

"We didn't work on it tonight, and from what I saw yesterday, it didn't look like it was due yet. I'll be more than happy to help you with it..." Yasuhara said.

Mai had a bad feeling she knew what he was going to say.

"...although I really think the boss would be able to help you more," he finished.

"No, thank you!" Mai snapped as she glared at him. "No one is going to help me with that assignment."

Yasuhara just laughed.