Page 58 of Sixty Meters Under

Hugo stood up in front of the crowd, with a grave expression on his face, drawing their attention. “Good morning, my fellow residents. Today I have to share with you some sad news.”

Murmurs and gasps spread through the canteen making it impossible for Hugo to continue with his speech. When their voices subsided, he cleared his throat, looked at the floor before looking up again. “During the night, one of our residents left us at the age of thirty-two. Her name was Scarlett Dover. She died in her private room.”

Shock and silence filled the room.

Ayame’s eyes widened.Is she who I think she is?She didn’t know the woman’s full name, but how many Scarletts could they have in the bunker?

“Today we have a mourning day,” Hugo proceeded. “An investigation into the cause of death is underway, and we hope to find out what happened soon. A funeral will be held once the autopsy is complete.”

Ayame felt nauseous. It was true she disliked the woman, but she hadn’t hoped for her demise.

Chapter 17

Detectives and police officers gathered and gave their reports in the investigating room. Once they were released and sent back to their posts, Lennart addressed Isamu Kato.

“Mister Kato?”

“Yes. What can I do for you, Lennart?”

“I need to talk to you.”

“About what?”

“About your son. I thought I should talk to you first.”

“Why? Did something happen?” Isamu asked, his tension growing. He knew there was no reason to feel that way, but the serious expression on the younger man’s face concerned him.

“What about him?”

“I need to question him as well.”

Isamu froze, and his eyes went wide. “O-okay. I think the more people we ask what happened, the more clues we collect, right?” He tried to make a reasonable approach to the situation.

“The thing is, this will not be just about collecting clues. Your son was one of the last people who talked to Scarlett before she died. I still did not mention this to others.”

“What?”

“Also, the wound on Scarlett’s head, there’s a good chance it happened in his presence,” Lennart explained, and Isamu suddenly understood.

“I see. So, you suspect that my son–?”

“I just want to hear what he has to say. But I wanted you to know about it as well… so you’re prepared.”

Isamu bit the inside of his cheek, and his shoulders dropped. “I understand,” he said, but he was worried. If one of the best detectives in the world had a suspicion about his son being responsible for a murder, things didn’t look good.

“One more thing,” Lennart added. “I want you to be the one who calls him to come for questioning.”

?

When Ryosuke heard the sound of his phone, he grabbed it from his bedside table and answered, “Yes, Dad?”

“Ryosuke, I need you to come to the investigating room. It’s located on the fourteenth level on the opposite side of the cinema.”

Ryosuke tensed and sat up. “Are you going to question me about Scarlett’s death?”

“Yes. You will be questioned related to her death, but Detective Landberg will question you, not me.”

“Oh–” Ryosuke was surprised to hear this. He expected his father to be the one to interrogate him. Now he hoped that he would be at least present. “Do I need to come right now?”