Chapter 44 The Toy Key
#21MotoKanojoThe Toy Key
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Two hours had passed since Hatsune and Detective Takahashi entered the interrogation room. Finally, the door opened.
“Hatsune… good work.”
“Ahaha… thank you…”
Hatsune managed a small smile, but her face looked utterly drained.
She must have heard some deeply upsetting things in there…
“Regarding your father’s body, I’ll contact you as soon as the judicial autopsy is complete. However… I strongly advise against viewing it.”
Detective Takahashi, who stepped out a moment later, said this with a conflicted expression.
“Why not?”
“…As I explained earlier, quite some time has passed since his death, and the body has suffered significant decomposition…”
“Ah… I see…”
I nodded at Detective Takahashi’s explanation.
Still, the decision to view the body ultimately rested with Hatsune.
I glanced at her cautiously.
“…I… want to see him…”
“…Understood. I’ll make the arrangements.”
Detective Takahashi exhaled deeply, nodding.
“With this, the questioning is complete. You’re free to go now.”
“Yes… Thank you…”
“Thank you for your time.”
Supporting Hatsune, whose steps faltered, I led her out of the police station.
“Hatsune…”
“Ahaha… I-I’m okay… But, um… when we’re back home, could I… talk to you about something?”
“Of course.”
Hatsune looked up at me with eyes full of fragile hope. I nodded firmly.
I have to be there for her… no matter what.
We hailed a taxi and headed back to our apartment.
The whole ride back… we held hands in silence.
“Hatsune… do you want some coffee?”
“Mm…”
I took out two mugs, added instant coffee, and poured in hot water and milk.
Ever since we started living together, making coffee had become my job.
“Here you go.”
“Mm… thanks…”
Blowing gently to cool it, Hatsune took a sip of her coffee.
“…The police said there’s a strong chance Father committed s🬀🬀cide.”
After a long silence, Hatsune finally broke it.
“…I see.”
“Yeah… and then, you know?”
Hatsune started recounting what had been discussed during the interrogation.
Her father, Kakizaki Hodaka, had been discovered deep in the mountains of XX Prefecture by a local resident out gathering wild plants.
He had been found hanging from a noose, his body already decomposing after being exposed for so long.
The local police had inspected the scene. While no will or similar documents were found, his clothing and physical features strongly suggested he was Kakizaki Hodaka, the fugitive.
As a result, the Metropolitan Police Department, handling the massive fraud case, had taken custody of the body and initiated a judicial autopsy.
“…So, the police sent Detective Takahashi to confirm his identity and check for any additional information.”
Hatsune finished her explanation in one breath, then took another sip of her now lukewarm coffee.
“Ahaha… Of course, I haven’t seen or spoken to Father in ages… not even through letters. There was nothing… nothing at all…”
“…”
“But… but why? Why would Father, who’s been running for two whole years, suddenly decide to commit s🬀🬀cide now? And why wouldn’t he leave me even a single word? Why… why…?”
“Hatsune…”
Hatsune couldn’t hold back anymore—tears began streaming down her cheeks.
…Ever since we moved into this apartment, she’d stopped crying. Why does she have to endure this again? Why her, of all people?
“Sniff… And… there’s something I didn’t tell Detective Takahashi… You know, that toy key Father had…”
Hatsune spoke haltingly, her voice muffled by her hands as she covered her face.
Seeing her in such pain was almost too much to bear.
“…It’s the key to the time capsule we buried as a family… back when Mother was still alive…”
“A… time capsule…”
I echoed the words “time capsule” as they left her trembling lips.
Could it be…?
“Hey, Hatsune… This is just a thought, but…”
“Ahaha… Yeah, I know what you’re going to say, Yuuta. That Father might have hidden something inside the time capsule, right?”
…Of course, Hatsune had already thought of that possibility.
“…Then, we should dig up that time capsule.”
“Yeah…”
“Where is it?”
“Under the tree in the park where we used to play as kids… with the family…”
Could it be that Kakizaki Hodaka left behind a message or note there…?
“…Either way, let’s wait until you feel ready to dig it up.”
“Ahaha… Even now, Yuuta, you still put me first…”
“Of course. You’re what matters most to me—not the time capsule, Hatsune.”
That’s the truth.
I don’t care about the massive fraud case or what Kakizaki Hodaka was thinking.
To me, all that matters is Hatsune… only her. Wait—!?
“Whoa!?”
Suddenly, Hatsune pulled me down, leaving my head resting on her lap.
“H-Hatsune!?”
“Mm… Yuuta, you haven’t slept since yesterday because you’ve been watching over me, right? So, please, rest a little, okay?”
“N-no, really, I’m fine…”
For some reason, Hatsune puffed her cheeks out at my response.
“…I’m not fine. If something happened to you, Yuuta… if you disappeared, I wouldn’t be able to handle it…”
“Hatsune…”
Looking up at her tear-streaked face, I reached out and gently stroked her hair.
“Haha… I’ll never leave your side, Hatsune. Without you, I’d probably disappear myself.”
“Ahaha… really…”
Finally, seeing Hatsune’s lips curl into a small, delicate smile, I felt my own lips soften into one too.