Akiko was still unsettled the next morning, debating with herself whether she should have called the police, but really not wanting to spend any longer dealing with that sort of situation, or to draw that sort of attention to herself. She mentioned that she had been to an interview to Shiraishi, and the priest nodded to acknowledge hearing her, but said nothing.

After the abortive interview she had rung round the other places, and had another interview today. She mentioned that to Shiraishi as well, and this time the priest looked up and smiled slightly, as well as nodding, but she still didn’t say anything. Further unsettled by Shiraishi’s attitude, Akiko excused herself and went to get changed.

The radio news was talking about the flu-like disease that was spreading through Kawasaki. Apparently, it was still confined to the north of the city, but it was not yet clear what it was. SARS and bird flu were both mentioned, but government experts were advising against panic. Akiko realised that she had forgotten to buy filter masks the previous day, and resolved to do so before her interview.

On the bus, she checked the map, and decided to walk from the railway station. It looked like the bus at the other end went a very long way round, and she could just cut through a residential area to reach the office much more quickly. Almost everyone else on the bus had a filter mask on, but when the bus got caught in a traffic jam, Akiko realised that she wouldn’t have time to buy any before the interview.

By the time she got off the train, the sky was dark with clouds, heavy, black swathes across the sky. Looking up, she wryly calculated the chances of rain as being about 90%, if not more. Picking up her pace, she set off along the route she had chosen.

As she walked, she realised that the road passing through the area was very narrow, and ran between the backs of large apartment blocks as it crested a hill. Suddenly nervous, she looked around and behind her, and saw a couple of young men some distance behind her. Telling herself not to be stupid, she quickened her pace slightly.

Running footsteps came up from behind, and someone grabbed her arm. Akiko screamed, and twisted, trying to break his grip. The other young man came up alongside her, but before he could grab her he tripped on something, falling heavily against his accomplice. Falling, his hand slipped slightly, so that he was only clutching Akiko’s sleeve. Taking advantage, Akiko pulled her arm out, and then left the jacket behind as she started running. She heard shouts from behind her, but she did not stop, or look back.

As she ran, it started to rain, light at first but getting rapidly heavier. She ran on, nevertheless, not willing to stop until she was somewhere safe, somewhere with people. Breathing heavily, she kept running even when she reached the shopping district, pushing her way between masked people sheltered under their umbrellas, finally stopping, panting and fighting back tears, in the doorway of the company offering the interview.