Murder in a Japanese house. Alla KrasnovaЧитать онлайн книгу.
from Japanese realities. It contained all the stamps, and it barely reflected the reality of Japanese life for those who really wanted to get acquainted with its traditions.
In the pile of papers that lay on the floor, there were more than a hundred sheets of A4 format, among these sheets were photos of the main defendants in this case. Barbara first noticed three women who were related to Mikhail Barkov: Olga S., Audrey S., and Iris F. Audrey S. was Olga’s daughter. It was Olga’s photograph that caught Barbara’s attention the most; there was something deliberately Japanese and European about it. Her forty-year-old face was mesmerizing, as faces often are when they are a mixture of different cultures.
Olga’s gaze in the photo was heavy and steady, like a deep cave, attracting mysterious depths. Barbara almost immediately decided to meet Olga. Her contacts were written on the photo, and Barbara decided to call to make an appointment. Barbara’s phone was still in the pocket of her light jacket, which was where she often carried it. But just as Barbara reached for her jacket, which was hanging on a hanger in the hallway, her phone rang in long, drawn-out tones. Barbara was slightly startled to find herself wearing a mini skirt and high heels, as if the world around her could see her.
It was Philip. It was her lover, who was 25 years younger. He called her «hare, ««baby,» and sometimes «honey,» but it seemed to pass her by. She met him on a dating site two years ago, and he still hasn’t left her life. It seemed to her that their meetings had dragged on, but he didn’t want to break up, and he wasn’t so intrusive that she blocked him. He sensed this and acted as she was comfortable with. Barbara rarely, almost never, addressed him by his first name; she simply said «you» to him, as if denying the presence of his personality in her life. He was impersonal in her life, and when he called, it wasn’t Philip who called her, it was sex.
– How’s it going?» Philip said softly.
«I’m fine,» Barbara sighed, because she wasn’t thinking about him at all.
«We’ve got an emergency at work, it’s a hot season,» he said, not knowing what to say.
«Poor thing,» Barbara said, ready to say good-bye.
«Can we meet again?»
«Not now,» Barbara said blankly, like a robot talking.
Barbara often used single words or general phrases to communicate with people. She didn’t like words at all unless they were about something important to her. And it was almost impossible to maintain a dialogue with her if she didn’t want to. All sorts of refined expressions annoyed her, and compliments baffled her, she did not understand what they were for, so she ignored them as if she did not hear. She didn’t have a relationship with Philip that couldn’t be replaced by another man, so she didn’t value it. And he was drawn to it, he felt that there was some kind of life bubbling up in her that was not available to him.
When the conversation with Philip was over, Barbara hurried to dial Olga’s number, but without success, there she was met only by long beeps. Then Barbara sent a message: «Olga, good evening! This is Detective Barbara Ryzhkova. I need to talk to you about the murder of Mikhail Barkov. When will it be convenient for you?»
Olga read the message about half an hour later and replied almost immediately afterwards: «I will be waiting for you tomorrow at any time convenient for you.»
The third chapter
Barbara and Olga agreed to meet not in the detective’s office, but in a neutral place.
Olga chose her mother’s house, which was located outside the city.
She said there were plenty of spare rooms in the house and no one would be in the way.
Before meeting Olga, Barbara had a good night’s sleep. She knew that such meetings needed careful preparation, and the best way to prepare was to have a good night’s sleep. After all, the meeting could not go according to plan, and you had to be mentally prepared for this, which means you need to gain strength. Barbara had to be rested so that she could ask the right questions intuitively and keep the conversation under control.
The meeting with Olga was scheduled for the second half of the day, at 16: 00. Barbara loved this part of the day, when the bustle had not yet reached its peak, but it was already clear that there would soon be an active movement. People were still in no hurry to get home from work, but it was already clear that they would soon fill up buses and cars, creating traffic jams on the roads.
Big-city life kept Barbara moving in her own rhythm, but it was only during this «dead» time between afternoon and evening that she fell into that rhythm. Barbara clearly felt this when she was walking through the park to get ready to meet Olga. She walked with her usual gait, hands in the pockets of her jacket, walking slowly in white sneakers.
Most of all, Barbara did not like it when she heard loud voices during a walk or when random passers-by suddenly asked her. It pulled her out of her world. She especially disliked being addressed from behind: «Girl, can you tell me where…?» and then there was a pause, because they were not addressing the girl. Although until the age of fifty, Barbara managed to hide her age: at thirty, she looked twenty, at forty-twenty-five, and only by the age of fifty, age finally caught up with her, and she began to look her age, if you do not pay attention to her «dried» figure.
As Barbara strolled along, she wondered where Olga got the money to live comfortably, since she didn’t work anywhere.
Olga’s mother owned a country house with many rooms, which was given to her by Olga. This information was contained in the case file. Olga never experienced financial problems, she had a spacious apartment in the city center, and she did not stay anywhere for more than six months. And lately, it hasn’t worked at all.
Barbara wanted to ask Olga the question: «Where did you get the money?» She felt that such questions should be asked directly, because the answer could be interesting, especially if Olga decided to evade the answer or cheat.
Barbara never showed that she understood when someone lied to her, but listened calmly to the answers and continued the conversation with the same intonation.
***
Barbara didn’t own a car and preferred to use car-sharing services. She didn’t want to be tied to anything, not even a car. Perhaps that was why she didn’t have a permanent relationship other than her relationship with Gregory, but that was a separate topic in her life.
When Barbara pulled up to the house in a silver Audi, she realized that her white sneakers would get dirty. It was raining heavily outside the city, and the road near the house was covered with puddles that were impossible to avoid. Barbara frowned in displeasure, as she didn’t like it when her clothes and shoes got dirty. She was careful to keep them clean – which was another of her tricks.
The house was an impressive two-story structure. When Barbara arrived, she did not call Olga, although it was not necessary. She saw Olga in the window on the first floor. When she came out to meet her, she didn’t try to show her joy. Her unusual beauty for a Russian person in the Japanese style contrasted with her manner of communication.
Olga went out on the porch, opened the gate with the remote control, and motioned Barbara in. Barbara’s face broke into a brief, polite smile.
When she entered the house, Olga immediately invited her to the table. Olga was a statuesque and proud woman. She carried herself with dignity, her black hair pulled back in a tight ponytail. She looked modern, but her clothes were casual, although all the details were tasteful: a coffee-colored sweatshirt with ragged edges, wide brick-colored trousers, and a white shirt that was hanging loose.
They weren’t alone in the hall. Olga had barely offered Barbara a seat when her mother arrived in a wheelchair. Olga wanted to introduce her to Barbara, but her mother beat her to it and did it herself.
– We have guests!» she said cheerfully. – My name is Camilla Yakovlevna.
Barbara