Excerpt from Haruki Murakami's new book
- Will you take it for a ride again? The driver hesitated. - But... What did you, madam, uh... put in your mouth? Gun? - Yes. - Real? - Here's another! - Aomame snorted. The taxi driver opened the back door for her. She got into the car, took her bag off her shoulder, put it on the seat next to her, took out a handkerchief and dabbed her lips. The taste of metal and machine oil remained in my mouth. - Well, how did you find the fire escape? Aomame shook her head. “I thought so,” said the driver. - I’ve never heard of fire escapes in such places... So, we’ll still go to the descent to Ikejiri? “Yes, perhaps,” she nodded. The taxi driver waved to the driver of the huge bus and moved into the right lane. He didn’t reset the counter, and the screen showed the same amount that had accumulated throughout the entire trip. Leaning back and sighing calmly, Aomame fixed her gaze on the already familiar advertisement for Esso gasoline. The tiger cub still smiled invitingly, waving a refueling pistol. “Our tiger goes into your gas tank...” Aomame read in a low voice. - I'm sorry, what? – the driver asked, looking at her in the mirror. - Nothing. This is me to myself.
