The San Francisco Cookie Mystery (Part 3) | Contents | The San Francisco Cookie Mystery (Part 5)
It was a bit of a shame that we had to cut our meeting at the family restaurant short. We agreed that it was probably not a good idea to be out past ten o’clock, even if we joked about a little night wandering being the charm of a petit bourgeois. The cold on the way back was unbearable. Osanai-san, who was sensitive to the cold, rode her bike home in full winter gear, but I couldn’t stand the headwind in only my windbreaker and ended up pushing my bike home.
After taking a bath to warm up, I lay down on my bed in my room just before midnight. In the dark room, relying on the moonlight, I studied a sheet of paper. It was a photocopy of the page where I had written my questions.
Calling someone at this hour would be rude. The saying “Even among close friends, there are manners to observe” should be respected. But after a moment’s thought, I concluded that it would be fine if it were Kengo, and I picked up the phone. Since we weren’t close friends, that idiom probably wouldn’t apply.
After dialing his mobile phone number, the call connected immediately. Considering the time, Kengo’s voice was suspicious and distrusting.
“…What is it?”
That made me want to ask what he meant by “What is it?”
“About this afternoon’s matter…”
“Ah… Sorry for asking too much.”
It wasn’t that unreasonable of a request. I just had to ask Osanai-san to look at the painting and give her opinion.
“I talked to Osanai-san. She said that since she’s not an appraiser, she can’t understand the painting’s meaning. But even if she might not be able to do anything, she’ll try her best to look at it.”
“Is that so?”
From the mobile phone, I could hear a sigh.
“That’s helpful. I’ll be a bother to Osanai too.”
“She seemed troubled by the sudden request, but didn’t say it would be a bother.”
This was a lie. Osanai-san did look bothered. But there was no need to convey that to Kengo.
“I hope so.”
Kengo’s words were few, and his voice lacked strength. He’d seemed troubled this afternoon, but hadn’t looked weak. As I was waiting for the right moment to ask the thirteen questions I’d discussed with Osanai-san, Kengo spoke up first.
“Jougorou. I want to ask you something in general.”
“In general, to me?”
“Yeah. You think it’s ridiculous?”
I didn’t think so.
“…When I found Shima Taiga’s painting, I thought it was a great discovery. Honestly, I didn’t think of anything else. Even when I noticed the similarity to de Staël, I was just proud that I was the first to notice something no one else did.”
So Kengo had found the painting himself. This afternoon, he only mentioned that the newspaper club was looking for it, so I assumed that someone else had found it. At that time, he probably didn’t want to say he was the one who found it.
I lay on my back and looked up at the dark ceiling.
“Well… I guess that’s usually how it goes.”
“Would you too?”
“If it were me…”
I thought for a moment and decided to speak my mind.
“I think I would have been even prouder.”
I felt Kengo laughing on the other end of the phone.
“I’m not sure about that. You hide your pride.”
I paused for a moment. I thought I heard the sound of wind on the phone.
“The TV station wants to feature ‘the up-and-coming artist who won an award at the San Francisco Biennale’. Even if they find out that a thirty-year-old forgery was found in the corner of the school where this artist came from, they probably won’t broadcast it. But the truth will leak out and spread. That painting will become Shima Taiga’s Achilles’ heel. One day, at the right moment, that painting might trip Shima Taiga.”
I remained silent. I had nothing to say other than “I guess so.”
“You said that the one who painted that picture is Shima Taiga, so it’s also Shima Taiga’s responsibility. I want to ask you in general.”
Kengo repeated the same words.
“Does that mean I’m the one who made him take responsibility?”
“…I’m not sure.”
I had no intention of encouraging or comforting Kengo. I was just stating what I thought was true.
“All you did was find the painting.”
“And I told the TV station about it… I was happy that a school senior was recognized worldwide. I was supposed to write an article saying, ‘Look at this amazing senior!’ and that was it. I never intended to trip Shima Taiga.”
“To me, it seems like you just drew the short straw. If you hadn’t found it, another club member would have. And that person would have probably told the TV station.”
“That might be true, but…”
“Kengo, the way I see it, you don’t regret bothering Shima Taiga. What you really regret is…”
“…What is it?”
I barely swallowed my words.
“Never mind. I’m sorry, I don’t know. I just had a feeling.”
What I was going to say was that Kengo regretted being happy about being the first to notice the possibility of forgery, after finding Shima Taiga’s painting and then realizing that it was the same as de Staël’s painting. That probably hit the mark, but a little citizen should not hit the mark in people’s hearts.
I passed the phone to my other hand.
“Kengo. Osanai-san wants to know the situation in which the painting was found. I just heard that you found the painting. So, where did you find it? Did you know it was there?”
Kengo must have realized that the conversation had shifted. But he seemed relieved and answered in a slightly more composed voice.
“It was in the Art Preparation room. I heard that Koumura-sensei said he thought he saw Shima Taiga’s painting when he did a big cleanup of the Art Preparation room before, so we searched it as a club.”
“Was there any special reason for displaying the found painting in an empty classroom?”
“No. I thought it would be better to display it like that for multiple people to see, so I consulted with Koumura-sensei, and we, the newspaper club, moved it. The Art Preparation room is small, after all.”
I didn’t take art as an elective subject, so I didn’t know Koumura-sensei’s face, and I didn’t know that the Art Preparation room was small.
“And, were you the only one who noticed that it was a copy of de Staël?”
“That’s right.”
“Amazing.”
“…Do you want to ask anything else?”
“Actually, I do.”
I checked my notes.
“You said that the painting was exhibited. I want to know how you know that and what the name of that exhibition was.”
“Is that related to the identity of the painting…?”
Kengo’s suspicious tone was audible, but he quickly dismissed it himself.
“Well, I shouldn’t have doubted your question when I’m relying on you. Sorry about that. I think you can guess, but Koumura-sensei knew about it. Koumura-sensei and Shima Taiga were in the same year and both were in the Art Club. It seems that when they were in their second year, Shima Taiga submitted that painting to the prefectural exhibition.”
I’d never heard of a “prefectural exhibition,” but I suppose such an event would exist.
“I wonder why it was in the second year. I thought it would be submitted in the third year as a culmination of three years.”
I said it without thinking, and Kengo’s voice was tinged with disbelief.
“That’s up to the person. If I had to guess, the prefectural exhibition is held in fall. I think it would be difficult to devote the summer vacation of the third year to producing an art piece.”
Ah, because of entrance exams. That made sense.
“Also, you said that the painting was kept for thirty years because it was an exhibition piece, right?”
“Did I say that?”
“I think the exact wording was different, but you said something like that.”
From the other end of the phone, I heard Kengo muttering something regretfully.
“That’s not accurate. To explain in order, when Koumura-sensei and the others were in their second year, Shima Taiga submitted that painting to the prefectural exhibition, and it was displayed. Koumura-sensei graduated from university, became a teacher, and has been at this high school ever since. After he started working here for a while, he found that painting while cleaning the Art Preparation room. It seems to be treated as a forgotten item of a graduate. Normally, he would contact the owner to retrieve it or dispose of it with the owner’s permission, but he had already lost contact with Shima Taiga at that point. It’s a painting with memories, so he couldn’t bring himself to dispose of it until now.”
I’d found it strange that a graduate’s work was kept for thirty years just because it was displayed in an exhibition, but now I could understand the circumstances after hearing the explanation.
“One last thing, then. Does Shima Taiga know that the painting still exists?”
“I don’t know.”
Kengo answered in an uncertain tone.
“I don’t know if the TV station told Shima Taiga’s agent.”
“That’s true. I understand.”
Glancing at the clock, it was close to one o’clock.
“It’s getting pretty late.”
“Still, I’m glad you contacted me early.”
“You’re welcome. Since it’s a matter of discussion, I don’t know if this can be a help… for Osanai-san.”
“Like I said at school, I’m not expecting much. Sorry for being rude. See you.”
Right before hanging up, I noticed that there was one more item left on my notes.
“Ah, wait! I wanted to ask one more thing.”
Kengo seemed to have already moved the phone away from his ear, so his reaction was slow.
“…What is it? Is it important?”
“I don’t know, but Osanai-san wants to know.”
“Ask me anything. It’ll be perfect if even a small thing can be a hint.”
“You’re right, so I’ll ask.”
“Go ahead.”
“Are fortune cookies delicious?”
It took a while for his answer to be transmitted over. I think Kengo was probably wondering whether to be angry, laugh, or take it seriously. But his voice was serious to the point of austerity.
“I’m sorry, but I don’t have any information on that.”
The San Francisco Cookie Mystery (Part 3) | Contents | The San Francisco Cookie Mystery (Part 5)