chapters 40-44 Summary

In Chapter 40, Gotanda's Maserati is dredged from the bottom of Tokyo Bay. The writer is not surprised. Gotanda is the fifth person to have died in the writer's life. Who is next? Yoshiyumi is not meant to die. Yuki is too young to die. The writer goes to see Bookish and gives a statement about Gotanda's state of mind. He does not mention Kiki. Still, the deaths upset the writer to distraction.

"Mei's death had left me shaken, Dick North's death sad and resigned. But Gotanda's death was unsalvageable. Gotanda never really got himself in tune with his inner impulses. He pushed as far as he could, to the farthest edge of his awareness - and then right across the line into that dark otherworld." (Chapter 40, p. 361).

The media issues many reports on Gotanda's life. The writer is angry and says...