Tokyo Twins A serialized online story
Introduction
Tokyo Twins looks at two issues -
what the roots of terrorism are, and what the end of terrorism might be.
One new chapter, in both text and audio, will be posted each week to Pakistan Times.
Tokyo Twins-Chapter 3-mp3 audio
Chapter 3 - Unseeing a gathering storm.
Katie and Susan O’Brien negotiated their bodies and school backpacks and Shintaiso gear through the maze of commuters on the train at Chofu Station and stepped onto the station platform and into a lesser maze and put their footsteps on autopilot for the twenty-minute walk home.
“Mom and Dad will be …” said Susan, half wondering…
“…back tomorrow night,” Katie said.
“Been a long three weeks without them.” said Susan.
“Yeah… hope they weren’t kidding when they promised this would be their last long trip together.” said Katie.
“Better be.” Susan said.
“What is it in Kashmir anyway?”
“Sweaters.” Susan chuckled.
“Yeah, it’s like: ‘my Mom and Dad spent three weeks in Kashmir and all I got was this cashmere t-shirt’,” Katie joked and gave a twin’s nudge with her shoulder into the shoulder of her sister.
“Hey, don’t start.” said Susan.
“I thought we were doing the local train tonight,” said Katie, “ya know, get off at Fuda Station so we wouldn’t have to walk past Hebiyama…”
“I know. I forgot.” said Susan.
“Me too… ‘til now.” Katie said.
“Well, we’ll walk fast, and hey, the full moon’s out tonight. I love seeing how the moon reflects off the water in the rice paddies.” said Susan.
“Me too. Not something we get to see very often…” Katie said.
“Yep, only now… late spring…” said Susan.
“Just when the bull frogs are mating.” Katie said.
“Guess they like this time of year as much as we do.” said Susan.
“I’m hearing them already.” Katie said.
“Yeah me too - half mile away.” Susan said. “Noisy little things.”
“Just one singing bullfrog close to your bedroom window…” Katie said.
“They have us outnumbered a million to one, Katie chan.” Susan interrupted. “Don’t encourage ‘em.”
“We should ‘a got off at Fuda Station.” Katie said.
“Let’s not think about it.” Said Susan.
“Think about what?” Katie said pushing her shoulder into her sister’s again.
“I can’t remember.” said Susan.
“Then why are you walking so fast.” Katie said. “Hey, whatever the rumors are about Hebiyama… who cares?”
Susan was silent for a bit. “Me. I care.”
Katie released a quick sigh. “Yeah me too. Well, there it is… coming up… a hundred meters ahead… our wonderful and mysterious bamboo forest, Hebiyama.”
“Oh stop it. You’re scaring both of us.” Susan said.
The girls became quiet now, vigilant, absorbing the blackness of the bamboo forest of Hebiyama now spreading out beside them for hundreds of meters to the left and to the very edge of the road they walked.
Whatever or whoever was in there would only have to reach a single length of an arm to snatch them into the dark.
The more they tried to see and to listen at the total blackness, the more blinded and deafened they felt.
The rice paddies were carved flat into the earth ten meters below on the other side of the road and the racket coming up out of there from the bullfrogs didn’t help.
“This was a bad thing to forget about.” Susan said measuring out the words in monotone.
Katie countered to hold back her own accelerating pulse. “Not if you’re admiring the reflection of moonlight off the water to our right!”
“Maybe I’ll just keep walking.” said Susan.
“Wait.” Katie said.
“I’m walking; you wait.” Susan said.
“No wait. shhh.” Katie grabbed Susan’s forearm and lifted her index finger to her lips.
Now Katie was talking with her eyes wide open, darting glances between her sister and into the forest.
Seconds ticked by, then more seconds, and froze the young sisters into fear.
Katie’s index finger was still at her lips.
“Daijoubu?” suddenly came a man’s voice from the blackness. “Are you all right?”
“No!” the girls screamed and took off at a sprint.
“Run!” said Susan.
“I’m running!” Katie said.
They were two hundred meters from home, school backpacks and Shintaiso gear nearly flying off their shoulders. Katie and Susan spotted two men in suits getting into a car in front of their house. And the car drove away in the other direction.
“Who’s that?” Susan gasped.
“Keep running!” yelled Katie.
The girls threw up their arms to slow themselves down, landing out of breath and making loud thuds against their front door.
Katie groped for her house key and the two stood panting and the front door itself slowly opened.
The lights were off inside the house and they couldn’t see their grandmother’s face.
“Obá-chan? Obá-chan!” the girls chanted and stumbled into the house.
No response.
The girls stood at the entrance, their mouths still open, and stared at their grandmother who walked soundlessly down the hall toward a bedroom and clicked on a light and turned around.
Katie and Susan O’Brien were seeing a blank and distant look on their grandmother’s face.
“Obá-chan! There’s a man…” Susan started.
And Katie grabbed Susan’s arm again sensing trouble with their grandmother.
“Obá-chan, are you all right?” Katie said, and lay a hand on her shoulder.
“Are you sick?” Susan asked.
“Huh?” said their grandmother. “Oh. I’m fine.” Her eyes floating back toward the present now. Her voice still in another place.
“You don’t look so fine,” said Susan.
“Who was that? Those men who just drove off?”
“Oh, that was nothing… that was… um… they were lost… stopped for directions.”
“Why are all the lights off?” Katie asked.
Katie and Susan O’Brien stood looking at their grandmother. They had never seen anxiety in her normally calm eyes, never seen worry – or was it fear – tighten the muscles in her face.
“You’re out of breath.” said grandmother.
The girls grabbed each other’s hand.
“We were racing.” said Susan.
Katie nodded her head rapidly.
“Go and start your bath. Dinner’ll be ready soon.”
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