Case File N°1: Of Misplaced Obsessions - Plan.

She was going to solve the case? How? What did she meant by that? I knew that was a detective's job. Don't think I'm a bigger fool than I am.

But... So fast?

Had she really found out who the stalker was, in just one day?

Releasing Ms. Munehara's hands, and turning to me, she smiled sympathetically. Before asking me to go and get her backpack that she had left in the entrance.

Then, once the bag in her hands, she had dragged with her the woman in the bathroom, leaving me alone in the common part of the small apartment.

I didn't understand what she was getting at, but I hoped she would eventually explain.

Shouldn't we call the police, anyway?

It was their job to catch criminals. So why go to all that trouble?

A few minutes later, the two women came out of the bathroom, and I thought I was seeing doubles.

They both had the same clothes as before, but their hairstyles were absolutely identical. To be more exact, Ms. Munehara's hair was now as long as the detective's. And brown, instead of black.

Had she put on a wig? And what for?

"She looks like my spitting image, doesn't she?" Said the detective as she walked toward me.

"Not really..." I said in return.

You could really see that it was a wig... Because of this, only the general silhouette was changing.

"Come one, at least try to have a bit of imagination, won't you?" She replied.

No really, even with all the world's good will...

"We don't want it to be obvious, when seen from afar," she said.

Ah. Yes, maybe from a distance, they could be mistaken for each other.

But already she was no longer paying attention to me, turning to the client.

"Before I officially solve this case, I want you to leave the premises," the detective said. "Things could quickly become dangerous for you."

"I... I understand..." said mrs. Munehara, a little unsettled. "But, where should I go?"

And to tell the truth, she was not the only one who found all of this strange. I really didn't see what all the fuss was about.

"Don't worry about it. One of my associates will send you a cab, and Nijima-kun here will accompany you," she said, pointing at me. "I've booked a hotel room for you in another part of town to spend the night."

Was I to accompany her? But in that case, what was the detective going to do, in the meantime?

"But, what about you?" Mrs. Munehara asked, having the same questions as me.

The detective shook her head.

"I'm sorry, but this question is one that you shouldn't ask me, and for which I can't answer." she explained. "Remember our agreement..."

An agreement? What was she talking about?

And... If she wouldn't tell the client anything, did that mean she wouldn't tell me anything either?

But the client did not question the detective's words, and did not say another word about it. She was advised to pack some things for the night, as it was not sure that she would be able to return in the next morning.

Ms. Munehara then took a travel bag from the closet near the bathroom, and carefully placed a framed photo near the entrance; quickly wrapping it in a towel. Then she began to look in another cabinet that served as a storage space for clothes, before disappearing into the bathroom.

Now we were both alone.

"Is it really necessary to take such measures?" I asked doubtfully, in a low voice so that the client wouldn't hear me.

She seemed to be doing a lot, for a mere client of her detective agency. But asking the owner of the premises to leave her own home? It was a bit too much...

"I'm convinced something bad is going to happen tonight," she explained as she went to make sure the curtains were properly closed. "So the priority is to get the client to safety."

She seemed both calm and absolutely confident as she said these words. As if she knew something I didn't. Yet we had had access to the same information... Well, almost, now that I think about it. There were, after all, all those messages she had exchanged with a third person during the whole evening.

Could it be that the key to the case was in this information that only she had?

Satisfied with the state of the window's occultation, she turned to me.

"And besides, she has no one to watch over her," said the detective. "So it's up to people like us to take care of her, since her husband can't do it anymore."

It took a while for her words to make sense, before I finally understood what she meant by that.

I didn't even realize that Mrs. Munehara was a widow... Or that she had even been married, to tell the truth.

Yet, everything had been in front of me from the start.

The plants carefully placed by the window, perfectly maintained; as if she devoted most of her time to them.

Magazines that talked about particular subjects like travel or gastronomy, but absolutely not about fashion or cultural news; subjects that single women loved to read.

Books that hadn't been opened in a while.

And a leather jacket that was a bit too big for a woman with thin features like Ms. Munehara.

I hadn't even paid attention to the photo placed near the entrance, and only noticed it when it was removed by its owner.

"Say, Nijima-kun, can you do me a favor?" Said suddenly the young woman with a serious air.

The tone she had used, completed by an inexpressive look aimed at me, contrasted sharply with her almost carefree attitude of the previous hours. So much so that a shiver ran down my spine.

It was as if the air in the room had suddenly changed.

Over the next few minutes, she explained to me what she wanted from me. She explained her plan to catch the stalker in the act. It was quite effective, actually. Because by catching him red-handed, he could be arrested on the spot, even if there was no real evidence.

However, because the plan was so meticulously prepared, I had no idea that this night's events would take such a dark turn.