Strange Houses

Uketsu is a freelance writer in Tokyo with an interest in macabre subjects. In September 2019, Uketsu is messaged by his friend, Yanaoka, who is looking for a house to move into with his pregnant wife. Yanaoka needs Uketsu’s advice on a house they are considering in a forested hillside area. Yanaoka and his wife were charmed when they visited the house, but they couldn’t help feeling bothered by the existence of a narrow dead space between the kitchen and living room, which the floor plan revealed. Because the realtors couldn’t explain the reason for the dead space, Yanaoka decided to consult Uketsu, whom he considers an expert on “weird things.”

Uketsu reaches out to his friend, Kurihara, who works as a draftsman for an architectural firm. Uketsu records and transcribes their conversation, which he presents in the text. Kurihara posits that the dead space was built intentionally; the two walls that enclose it serve no other purpose. He speculates that the original homeowners might have intended for the dead space to be used as a storage space, but he does not fully believe this was the case.

Uketsu shares that the house was previously occupied by a couple with one small child. This drives Kurihara’s suspicions as he admits that he was deeply disturbed upon seeing the complete floor plan. Kurihara turns Uketsu’s attention to the second floor, where the child’s room occupies the central space of the house. The child’s room is only accessible through the master bedroom, and even then, the child would have to pass through an additional vestibule built inside the master bedroom. Because it is enclosed by other rooms, the child’s room has no windows.

Uketsu wonders if the child had a skin condition that required them to stay away from sunlight. Kurihara argues that curtains would have been enough. Kurihara then points out that the toilet nearest to the master bedroom is only accessible through the child’s room. It is possible that the child’s parents wanted absolute control over their child’s movements. Kurihara adds that the windows on the second floor are configured in such a way that the existence of the child’s room is obscured from any passersby looking inside.

Kurihara draws Uketsu’s attention to the master bedroom. There is a double bed in the corner, which looks directly into the adjacent dressing room and shower. The lack of privacy between dressing room and bedroom suggests that the parents were very intimate with each other. Uketsu also observes the existence of a separate bathroom in the opposite corner of the house. This bathroom has no windows. The strange details lead Kurihara and Uketsu to conclude that Yanaoka should refrain from buying the house. After they hang up, Uketsu considers a new, more outlandish theory. He places the upstairs and downstairs floor plans together and then calls Kurihara once again.

Uketsu suggests that the dead space in the kitchen may have something to do with the second-floor layout. By combining the two floor plans, Uketsu saw that the dead space is just as long as the distance between the corner of the child’s room and the windowless bathroom. It is possible that the dead space served as a tunnel extending from the child’s room to the bathroom. With its entrance obscured by the child’s bookshelves, the tunnel would allow the child to access the bathroom discreetly, which aligns with their theory of child abuse.

Kurihara initially expresses his skepticism but then realizes that Uketsu’s theory may be right. He connects the tunnel theory to the existence of a separate bedroom on the first floor. They agree that the bedroom was likely a guest room, which prompts Kurihara to share his interpretation. Kurihara believes that the couple would periodically entertain guests in their home, serving them a meal and getting them inebriated with alcohol. The wife would offer to host the guest for the night, letting them stay in the first-floor bedroom. The couple would also direct their guest to the windowless second-floor bathroom to freshen up. When the guest was in the bathroom, the couple would give a signal to the child, who would crawl in through the dead space and stab the guest to death.

Uketsu is shocked by Kurihara’s interpretation. Kurihara insists that the house was designed for the family to commit murder. Uketsu wonders what would have motivated the couple to do such a thing. Kurihara infers that the couple must have been committing murder with some regularity, which means that they might have been contract killers.

Kurihara observes that the child’s room has a second set of bookshelves. The placement of the bookshelf aligns with the corner of a storage room next to the garage. Following Kurihara’s interpretation, it is possible that a second passage existed, allowing the child to dispose of the victims’ bodies through the storage room. To facilitate passage, the couple would have had to dismember their victims’ bodies and carry them in pieces. Once the victim’s body parts reached the storage room, the couple could easily place the parts in their car and dispose of them in the nearby forest.

Uketsu challenges Kurihara’s interpretation. It would have been easier simply to kill someone with all the window curtains drawn, obscuring the murder. Kurihara rebuts that keeping the windows open all the time would decrease suspicion. Kurihara reminds Uketsu not to take his interpretation too seriously since it is all speculation. After they hang up, however, Uketsu continues to think about Kurihara’s interpretation.

Before Uketsu can tell Yanaoka what he and Kurihara have discussed, Yanaoka informs him that he and his wife have backed out of buying the house. Yanaoka and his wife changed their mind when they saw a news report about a dismembered body being found near the house. Uketsu is shocked and asks when the house was built. The house was completed just over a year earlier in spring. Yanaoka regrets that he does not have any information on the previous owners due to client confidentiality.

Uketsu looks up the news report. The body, which was found a few days earlier on September 8, is unidentified. All the victim’s body parts were buried in the same place, except for their left hand. Uketsu is puzzled that the killer chose not to scatter the remains. He immediately connects this to Kurihara’s interpretation, recalling that the body needed to be transported piecemeal. Uketsu decides that he should dismiss the matter entirely since Yanaoka is no longer considering the house. However, he finds it difficult to think of anything other than Kurihara’s interpretation.

One week later, Uketsu shares the story with his editor, who suggests that he write an article about it. The publication could even draw the attention of someone who can provide more clues about the house. Reluctantly, Uketsu agrees, withholding specific details that might allow readers to identify the house. He is later surprised when the article leads him to a darker truth.