Implied Scene in "Empire of the Sun"?

In Empire of the Sun (saw the movie last night and read the book many many years ago) there is a scene where James first enters the empty house shortly after the Japanese capture Shanghai. He sees makeup on the floor, foot and hand prints and what looks to be clawing marks and many footprints. I think it suggests a scene (clawing marks, handprints on the floor, many boot prints, dresser is open with underpants showing, the house is burglarized) but my wife disagrees and I can't seem to find anything on the internet about it. Opinions or other viewpoints anyone?