Disclaimer: I do not nor will I ever own Case Closed.
Truth Will Prevail
The First Truth
Shinichi scowled at his feet. Stupid parents. Stupid babysitter. At least his parents had the foresight to bribe him with another volume in his Sherlock Holmes collection, a "going away" present, since his father apparently wanted some inspiration for his newest story. He was still annoyed that they left him, but he at least got a book for it. His babysitter, though, hadn't wasted a minute. As soon as his parents were gone, she was all for dragging him to the park.
Now, why would anyone want to go to the park after getting a new book?
Exactly.
However, his supposedly more intelligent and responsible babysitter did not seem to understand this. He'd wondered at her determination, but as soon as they reached the park the reason was obvious. She was meeting someone here. She'd run off the instant that they reached the correct side of the road, and practically leapt into what was obviously her boyfriend's arms. Ever since then he'd been left to sit on a park bench and wait while she flirted and giggled. And did a few other things that he really thought was something people were supposed to do privately.
Insipid person.
He could just picture that book sitting at home too. Beautiful leather cover, crisp, cream colored pages all filled with the most incredible detective ever to grace the written arts.
And where was he? Seventeen blocks away because he was not technically old enough to be by himself. So what if he was seven years, three months? They trusted that girl to watch him, and he knew he had a higher IQ.
Okay, he wasn't being nice, but he was in a grumpy mood. And he did have a higher IQ.
"Hi!" a way too bright voice for such a depressing day such as this (it was about 83 degrees, sunny, with just enough clouds to keep comfortable) chirped.
Shinichi looked up, inwardly wondering, "Now what?"
There was a girl, probably around his age and height. She had brown hair up in two buns (must have a foreign parent) and blue eyes. She wore a pink tank top and a white skirt with matching white sandals. She was girly.
"Hello," Shinichi said, working up a slight amount of enthusiasm for his voice. After all, he was supposed to be polite, especially to girls.
"Do you want to play?" she asked, tilting her head up at him, since after all, the bench gave him the height advantage.
Shinichi sighed. Playing would at least decrease his boredom, but..."I can't. If I move, my less then adequate babysitter would doubtless be unable to locate me when she is ready to cease her overly enthusiastic improper public relations with her amorous boyfriend." The only reason he felt being safe in being so openly rude was that he'd noticed that kids his age didn't tend to understand words longer then two syllables, and two, because most of the time when he used that sort of language it discouraged further attempts at friendship. He hadn't really had much luck with kids his age to date, and didn't wish to deal with any more depressing things today.
He waited for the girl, whose name he still didn't know, to either express her confusion, or at least show some discouragement. Instead, she looked around, and, easily spotting his babysitter and her boyfriend "engaging in public relations" (not that they were that difficult to spot) she nodded. Did that meant she actually had a half-way decent vocabulary? Crap, did that mean she actually knew that he was being rude?
"Oh. Can I sit with you then?" she asked. Shinichi, slightly surprised, nodded.
"Sure. Um, did you just understand all the words I said?" he asked, not sure if he'd rather have her understand and hope for a halfway intelligent conversation, or that she didn't know that he been mocking someone about ten years older then him. Unfortunately, though he had a large vocabulary and a brilliant mind, he hadn't quite mastered the art of polite conversation among peers yet since he hardly had the opportunity to practice.
The girl wrinkled her nose and glared at him. "Of course I did! I'm not stupid!"
"Well, most kids your age wouldn't!" Shinichi replied.
"What do you mean my age? You're my age too!" the girl replied.
"Physically, maybe," Shinichi said.
"Are you saying that you're smarter then me?" the girl asked huffily, arms folded.
Shinichi finally realized he was treading dangerous, possibly deadly waters and retreated (er...repositioned the troops to a more strategic location) "No! I'm just saying that I'm smarter then most kids my age, and I didn't know that you were too, and didn't think you knew all the words I used because I didn't know that you had a broad vocabulary!"
The girl blinked, processing it all as Shinichi watched, fervently hoping he hadn't estranged the first person his age that could use his or her respective brain. "Oh. I guess that's okay then. Why did you use words you thought I wouldn't understand?"
Shinichi paused, and then said, "I'm kinda of annoyed at my babysitter, but didn't want to get in trouble for saying anything mean."
"Oh. Well, you could be a little nicer, though if she's supposed to be watching you she's doing a really bad job," the girl commented, hopping up besides him.
Shinichi brightened slightly. "Exactly! I didn't even want to come to the park, and she dragged me down her anyways so that she could meet with her boyfriend, even when she's supposed to be doing a job, not goofing off!"
"Grown ups are weird. Why didn't you want to go to the park though? I think it's pretty," the girl said.
"Before they left, my parents gave me a new book," Shinichi said nonchalantly, "The parks nice and everything, but I'd rather be reading my book then be at the park."
"What about me?" the girl asked.
"Huh?" Shinichi replied.
"I know you want to read a book, but don't you like talking to me?" the girl asked.
The corner of Shinichi's mouth moved upwards slowly. "You're not too bad, for a girl."
"I'm Ran. Mouri Ran, but you can call me Ran. What's your name?" Ran asked.
"I'm Kudo Shinichi, but you can call me Shinichi. Why do you like the park so much anyways? I mean, it's nice to look at, but isn't it kind of boring?" Shinichi asked.
"Boring? No! I love looking at all the plants, all of the people! Isn't it amazing, how nature started from little one-celled creatures, and over the millennia evolved into this? Birds, plants, trees, animals, humans? Isn't it magnificent?!" Ran gushed.
Shinichi looked around, and blinked. "You know, I never thought about it that much. It's always been there. The best thing about a park for me is watching how everyone interacts. You can learn so much from watching people."
Ran tilted her head slightly. "Yeah, that's true."
"Excuse me," a strange, disturbing voice said, "But I find I must interrupt this little discussion."
Both children looked up, and were alarmed to see a stranger. Both children, more then well-versed in the fact that strangers could easily equal bad, frowned.
"No one is forcing you to interrupt us, are they?" Shinichi asked. He looked towards his babysitter, and scowled. Still busy. Maybe if he yelled?
He hadn't noticed, but Ran, too, had been looking for her father, and unfortunately, she couldn't locate him either.
Even less fortunately the man had noticed their actions. He scowled and it certainly didn't improve his looks. He was ordinary enough, 5 foot seven, black hair, brown eyes, roundish face. Something about how he was looking at them was deeply disturbing, however.
"All right kids, don't expect any help from anyone else, 'cause you ain't getting it. And don't scream either, 'cause the minute you do I'm going to put a bullet through the other's skull," he growled menacingly, though quietly.
"Oh shit!" was Shinichi's first thought, especially as he realized that the man was wearing a coat in this weather to hide his gun, which he briefly flashed to show the kids. He knew shit was a bad word, of course, but his father had sat him down, and explained that those particular sorts of words were only to be used in very, very special occasions, especially ones in which his mother was not around to hear.
He thought this qualified.
"Now, you two are going on a car ride with me," the man said quietly, "you're not going to fuss, and so I'm not going to have to shoot you, right?"
Shinichi gulped, and he felt his hand being grasped by Ran's. He nodded, knowing that cooperation was best in these sorts of circumstances. Apparently Ran nodded too, because the man gave a short jerk of his head as he smiled in a self-satisfied manner.
"Good. Now you're going to stand up, and walk in front of me. Act ordinary, okay? Get off the bench, slowly," he ordered. They stood up, still holding hands tightly. Shinichi looked around. They were supposed to walk, but where?
"To your left. You do know which way is left, right?" the man asked.
"Of course we do!" Ran said. The man glared down at her, and she shrank back slightly.
"You will absolutely not smart off to me, you little idiot. If we weren't in public, I'd slap you. Now, walk!" he hissed loudly.
Shinichi, being on the left side, turned and followed the path, drawing Ran along with him. He wasn't sure if he wanted anyone to notice or not. If they noticed, the kidnapper might get nervous and shoot someone, but he really, really wanted someone to save them from this.
However, as they got farther and farther away from people, with no one noticing or caring, any hope of a dubious rescue faded. He and Ran were stuck, their lives hanging by a string the kidnapper controlled. He could die.
He would likely die.
Shinichi shivered slightly. The idea of death at his age was deeply disturbing. He knew that crimes were not confined to the pages of a mystery. He also knew that it could happen to anyone. However, this had all been clinical thoughts, never truly sinking in that it might actually happen to him, a kid! He was only seven!
They approached a blue car, and it looked almost as ordinary as the man. He couldn't see the license plate, but vowed the first chance he got to memorize it, in hopes that he might be able to use the information to good effect later.
"Get in," the man ordered, "the doors unlocked."
Ran and Shinichi looked at each other, their grips on the other's hand tight enough to seriously hinder blood circulation in that region. Shinichi gulped and used his other hand to open the door then climbed in with Ran following. Shinichi climbed all the way over to the other side, and Ran, opting for the slight security of sitting close to someone else rather then comfort, sat besides him in the middle seat instead of the slightly more comfortable seat on the other side.
Shinichi looked at the door he sat besides, and was almost tempted to run for it while the man got it, but he hesitated too long. The guy was in, the doors were locked, and they were off.
It was quiet for a few minutes, though Shinichi's mind felt besieged between various thoughts and feelings. The silence, however, was interrupted when Ran burst out, "Where are you taking us? Why?"
The man chuckled. It wasn't a pleasant sound. "You don't have a choice either way, girl. As for why? Because you were there, because you were convenient. You just had bad luck, or someone up here really doesn't like you. "Bad for you, good for me."
We didn't do anything though!" Ran said, her lips trembling slightly.
"So? That's the way the world works. Now, shut your mouth, or I'm shutting you up, permanently. That goes for the both of you. I don't need two kids-one will be more then sufficient. My gun is handy, and has a silencer. The blood stain in my car would be aggravating, but I could handle it," the man said. Shinichi gulped, and looked over at Ran. Their eyes meet, terror conveyed in equal portions from either side.
It wasn't but a couple minutes later that they were pulling over, parking in a parking lot besides an apartment complex. "Get out," the man ordered, and the two quickly obeyed."We're going to go over to 3B, and you're going to stay in front of me at all times. I'm not going to let either of you run away, so don't get any fancy ideas. You run, I'm going to shoot the one left behind, and then I'm shooting the other in the legs. Now walk!"
Shinichi's heart sunk, but he calmed himself. He'd think of something-he'd read lots of books, he'd just try and think like the protagonists. He'd cooperate for now, but the first chance he had, he and Ran were running.
The two children quickly spotted 3B and walked towards it. It was a short distance, and Shinichi wondered why they were going here. Was this where the man lived? Were they going to be sold into some sort of child slavery ring?
No, when they reached the door, passing through the almost empty lot the man tilted forward, leaning over them, and knocked. Shinichi could hear rustling inside, and approaching steps. Did this mean the man had a partner? Were they going to be left here for awhile with him or her?
The girl who opened the door was not exactly what Shinichi was expecting. She was a couple inches shorter then the man, very thin and pale with blond hair and blue eyes. She wore jeans, a green t-shirt, and her hair was back in a pony tail. This couldn't be his partner, could she?
"Hello, how may I," and then she noticed what was happening, "what?!" she gasped, and Shinichi, dreading what he would see but drawn to look anyways, saw the man holding his gun right at Ran's head. He opened his mouth to scream, shout, push her away, anything, but the man spoke first.
"Hello, Jennifer. If you don't want to be responsible for the death of this innocent child, you're going to put your shoes on and come with me now," the man said, his smile a predatory slash across his face.
"What did the girl ever do to you?! Why me?! What's going on?" Jennifer asked, her hands twitching as she looked up at their captor.
The man's grin broadened. "One more sound of protest, and I'll be down a hostage. Lucky I brought two, huh?"
The girl's mouth dropped, and she slid her house shoes off and slid normal shoes on as fast as she apparently could. "Where do you want me to go?" she asked, her voice trembling only a little.
"See that blue car? That's where we're headed. Now move!" he commanded.
Jennifer jumped slightly, and then started to run. "Idiot! Stop! Act normal, or you're going to get everyone killed," the man groused.
She slid to a stop, and then started to walk, only looking slightly stiff. They quickly reached the car again, and the man ordered the children in, and then got in besides them, pointing the gun at Ran the entire time. Jennifer was next, getting into the driver's seat at the man's command, though Shinichi's eyes kept wandering away from Jennifer and back to the gun, unable to keep his eyes away. So small, it was, and so deadly. The man knew how to use it too; the hand stayed steady, and always continued to point towards Ran.
"Okay, now what?" Jennifer asked, her voice a forced calm.
"Now we're going to go for a little ride. You're going to take us to the nearest hotel, and I'll explain to everyone how this is going to work," the man sounded confident. Shinichi decided to distract himself by figuring things out. That's what the good guys always did, right? If he wanted to get out of this, and get everyone else out too, he'd have to be calm, collected, just like Sherlock Holmes. What would Sherlock Holmes do? Notice the details, figure out what was going on.
The man said there was a plan. Now there was a plan? Was he selling them all into slavery? No, the man had driven exactly to the woman's apartment, and knew her name, whereas he pretty much told him and Ran that they were just an opportunity. That meant that Jennifer was the target. Why though? Why kidnap random children off the street in order to gain her cooperation? Most people found that having a gun trained to their head adequate motivation, and yet this man kidnaps two kids as hostages, when all he was doing was spreading himself wide, having to control three people instead of one, which didn't make any sense.
Why do people take hostages in the first place? To force cooperation from someone else, when there are too many people to a gun trained on everyone. Also, to ensure cooperation when the victim is not in range of the perpetrator. That made more sense. The man must want Jennifer to do something, but didn't want to be there himself.
Most of the time, in those sorts of situations, the criminal would normally kidnap loved ones, not random people off the street. Maybe Jennifer didn't have anyone she was really close too. And as for random people off the street, Shinichi had to admit taking kids made more sense. Most people had an aversion to being responsible for the death of a kid as compared to risking the life of a fellow adult. And two hostages meant that the criminal had a spare. Shinichi didn't like that thought, not a bit.
Okay, so he knew why Ran and him had been kidnapped, but why Jennifer in the first place? Was Jennifer really good at something, or knew something he wanted to know? Or was he mad at her? Maybe the later, he seemed really happy in a bad way back at her apartment.
Jennifer had to be at least a half-way decent person though, since she was letting herself be taken off by a mad man so that a girl she never met before wouldn't be killed, so what did she do in the first place to hack him off? She didn't recognize him either, which made it even weirder. Maybe it was something she could do then.
Shinichi was surprised to feel them stop. He looked up-apparently they were at a hotel. "I'm going to stay here with the kids," the man said, and Shinichi felt his eyes being dragged back to the figure besides him. It was terrifying, being right next to him, "You are going to take the money in the glove compartment, and go check out a two bed room. You will get the keys, and bring them back here. If questioned, I'm your husband staying with the kids in the car while you get keys for a room. Don't get any ideas, though. I want you to take that phone that's on top of the money, and I'm going to dial mine. We'll have a connection open, and the moment I hear you say something off color; I'm going to shoot at least one of these kids. Did you get it, or do I need to repeat it so that you understand and don't screw up."
"I got it," Jennifer bit out, and grabbed the phone as the man got a phone out and dialed the number. The phone Jennifer held started to ring, and she hit the button.
"And don't think about muffling the sounds either. If it's quiet, I'm going to shoot a kid," the man said.
Jennifer scowled. "Okay." She stomped off, and Shinichi stared as the man listened, Ran staring as hard as him. A bit later and Jennifer was back. "All right, we have a room. 154. It's on the other side."
"Well, what are you waiting for? Drive us there!" the man ordered.
About 26 minutes later, some hauling of baggage and everyone was settled into the room. The man sat on one bed, the other three on the opposite one. "All right. This is what's going to happen. You know how you just got the keys? You're going to be doing that a lot more often, but not with a room most of the time. You're going to be robbing a few establishments. You'll be disguised of course, don't worry. And you better not screw it up, because the kids will get it if you do."
"You're crazy!" Jennifer yelled, "Why do you have to drag these poor kids into this? Why do you have to drag me into this? You seem more then capable of robbing a bank yourself!"
"It really doesn't matter why I'm doing this," the man said, an odd smile on his face, "What matters is that I have the gun, I have the control, and so you're going to do what I say. I also must add that if you keep protesting, I'm going to get annoyed. When I get annoyed, these children are going to suffer. I'm sure you don't want to watch that, do you?"
Jennifer scowled, but didn't say anything. This relieved Shinichi slightly-he wanted things to remain calm.
At least his deductions were right. If he was in another situation, he might have smiled. It was really cool, to be right. It gave him some power, to be able to figure out what the bad guy was doing. He was interested in finding out why Jennifer had been targeted. Maybe he could ask her, when he got the chance.
Whenever that was.
"So I'm just supposed to walk in there and demand money?" Jennifer asked, her arms crossed in front of her and her eyes looking away from the man. Shinichi saw a weird scar along her arm. He didn't know what might have caused it, but he filed it away for future reference. At least he knew now, however, that she hadn't been taken for having experience at this sort of thing. This was a relief, as well as another clue.
"Yes. As you've noticed, people tend to cooperate when lives are on the line," the man said. He seemed to think himself amusing.
"Okay, so I somehow walk into whatever place you're planning on robbing, get the money; have no one take me down. By some miracle I pull all that off. How am I supposed to get away? Isn't that when most crooks are caught?" Jennifer asked.
"True enough. Lucky for me, however, that won't be happening. This is what you're going to do," the man said.
As Shinichi listened, he had to admit, it was pretty brilliant. The guy wasn't going after hauls of millions and millions of yen at a time. He was going for cash, in relatively small amounts. Only places that would have between 112,000 and 560,000 yen ($1,000 to $5,000) at closing, businesses that were more likely to receive cash as compared to larger places where larger purchases generally meant the customers were paying with credit or debit cards. So he wanted Jennifer to go in at closing, disguised as a normal looking Japanese woman with a black wig and brown contacts (he was making Jennifer cut off her hair so that she'd be able to pin a wig on quickly and almost as quickly take it off) and demand all of the money from the drawers and the small safe where stores generally kept the rest of their money. After they gave her the money, she would duct tape the employees and lock the door after her so that the alarm wouldn't be raised for a long time, likely not until the next morning when whoever opened showed up. She'd go on to the next few stores until she had finished for the night. She would then leave and find a dark spot, stuffing the money in a pre-addressed envelope and dropping it in the nearest mailbox. She would also throw away her wig and temporary contacts, that way, if anyone sees her, she would be dismissed quickly as a foreigner.
He even had a schedule. For the next two months, about four days a week he wanted Jennifer to hit certain stores. He didn't show them which, but Shinichi suspected that he'd done a lot of footwork between the different cities, discovering when which stores would generally have the most money, and when they close, so on.
That wasn't reassuring. The more work he's done to plan all this, the harder it would be to get the jump. The biggest thing they had on their side they had at the moment was that there was three of them, and only one of him. Eventually, they would have to be able to catch him off guard. However, he hadn't taken into consideration the fact that if he'd planned everything else so well, he had certainly planned this part out.
"Okay, I've explained everything. Now, it's time for sleep. Before hand, however, I want you each to each take a sleeping pill. Here's something to take it with," the man said, getting a pack of water bottles out of a suitcase, "this will make sure everyone has a nice, deep sleep."
Okay, there went any idea of waiting until the man was asleep. Maybe it would wear off, and they'd be able to take advantage then. They all drank, and settled themselves. They were all to sleep in the bed, and Shinichi felt a bit awkward. He hadn't even slept with his parents in years and years, and now he was sleeping with two girls. He didn't have much time to worry about it though, because shortly he felt his eyelids sinking further and further down, and he finally succumbed to sleep.
He woke up slowly from an uncomfortable dream into an even more uncomfortable position. His hands were tied tightly and pulled up so that he couldn't even move them. When he looked over, the other two were tied up similarly. It was late, or rather, early. Still dark and the girls on the other side of the bed were sleeping soundly. The pills probably got everyone deep enough so that he could tie them up without having to worry about putting the gun down. Also enough so that despite the pain, they could sleep for awhile. It wasn't really painful, actually, but it was a very awkward position and not good for circulation. Shinichi sighed, and stared up at the ceiling. He would much rather be asleep right now. He normally slept pretty deeply-maybe he could just let himself drift off.
He tried, tried thinking of nothing, tried counting, tried math, tried everything he had ever heard of and a few others and nothing worked. According to the hotel's digital clock, it was 2:35 AM, and he'd been awake for almost two hours.
Six hours later, Shinichi's eyes were red and he felt very stressed, his mind worn. He had been unable to relax-the few times he'd slipped off were almost as bad, uneasy dreams instead of uneasy imaginings and worries.
Ran stirred first, her eyes blinking slightly. He watched, his heart sinking slightly as he saw her realize where she was, what was happening. Her eyes were watery as she turned her head and looked at him. Shinichi tried to smile, but didn't manage more then a slight upturn of the corner of his mouth. "Morning," he said, unable to bring himself to say good.
Her smile was about as dismal as his. "Morning," she replied quietly, "What do you thinks' going to happen to us?"
Unfortunately, Shinichi hadn't really been able to think of anything hopeful. His father was away, and by the time he got back the trail would have grown cold. "I don't know," he said, his low voice miserable.
"My dad's a cop," Ran replied, "But he was at the park. How could he let me get kidnapped? He was supposed to be watching me. Your babysitter was supposed to be watching you!"
Shinichi closed his eyes. "I don't know. He was distracted, probably."
Ran's lip trembled. "But he's my dad, he's a cop. He's supposed to, was supposed to," she was sounding dangerously like she was about to cry.
It made him want to cry. He was scared. He was smart, and imaginative, and he was coming up with too many different, horribly ending scenarios. "I know," Shinichi agreed.
"Don't worry," Jennifer spoke, and both Shinichi and Ran looked up at her, surprised to find out she was awake. She was smiling, though she looked like it was an effort. "We'll figure something out, and even if we don't, he'll probably let us go when he's done with us."
Shinichi didn't think that likely. He didn't think Ran did either, but it was a nice fiction to believe in. "Yeah," he said softly, "that sounds good."
That night was Jennifer's first foray. Shinichi and Ran had pretty much spent the day watching the man get Jennifer ready for her first job, or rather watched him instruct her while he continued to point a gun at them. It had been weird, yesterday, but now he was almost becoming numb to the idea of having a gun pointed at him. Death was only a finger movement away, but he couldn't force himself to care as much anymore. He was becoming resigned to his situation, and thought that he could tell that the others were doing the same. They still obeyed, of course, but it was with a more resigned, rather then terrified air.
It was tense in the car, listening from the man's cell phone as Jennifer demanded the money. It went pretty smoothly at first-most businesses generally had protocol for this sort of thing. However, there were a few chancy moments when it came time for Jennifer to ordered one to duct tape the other. It was okay when one clerk taped the other, but the clerk couldn't duct tape her own hands, and when Jennifer had to set down her gun the clerk, a female, Shinichi thought, tried to get control. The man tensed, and both Shinichi and Ran watched the gun, knowing their fate if Jennifer failed. Jennifer managed to get back in control, however, and soon had her duct taped as well, and apparently made sure that the duct tape held. The next few stores went as well, though the man never relaxed but instead grew more and more tense, and soon Jennifer was back. She showed him the sealed envelopes, and then stuffed them into the nearby mailbox.
"Happy?" Jennifer asked her tone sarcastic.
"No. You left a note," the man said, "Seven, in fact. One in each store, and three along the way. You're going to go retrieve each one now, and tear them up in front of me. And don't leave anymore; I'll know if you do."
Jennifer's face froze, and she stared at him in shock. "But..." she said, staring, "How?"
The man was angry. "I just know. Now, go and get them quickly, or the punishment is going to be worse."
Jennifer disappeared quickly, and the man turned to them. He looked terrifying, and both Shinichi and Ran shrank back and together. "Never forget," he hissed, "I see everything, I hear everything of importance. You cannot slip by me; you cannot get away with anything. And anything you do that I find out about? I'm going to punish the other."
Shinichi gulped. The man was staring at Ran, and turned his attention to him, and Shinichi knew, without any hard evidence to support it, that he was going to be the one punished.
It didn't take too long for Jennifer to get back. She tore the notes up into little shreds, but the man tossed her a lighter and made her burn the remains as well. The ride back was horrible for Shinichi, wondering if these were his last few minutes. Ran was clinging to him, and that helped a little, but nothing relieved that feeling of doom.
They arrived back at the hotel, and the man tersely ordered them into the room, and then the bathroom. "Please," Jennifer said, "It was my fault, don't do anything to them. It was me."
The man shook his head. "No," he said his voice stern and resolute, "I told you that was not how it worked. Anything you do wrong, they get punished. Remember, this is what happens when you try to fool me."
Shinichi closed his eyes and braced himself. A muffled shot, and then there was pain. Gods, the pain! It hurt! His left hand grasped the top of his right arm. He could hear Ran and Jennifer screaming, and then nothing.
After that, nothing seemed the same. His arm was always aching, and the fact that the man kept tying him up in his sleep didn't help at all. A spirit of hopelessness seemed to engulf them. Shinichi found that he still couldn't sleep normally. The most he ever slept was three hours, and restless ones at that.
They moved around from hotel to hotel, from city to city, masquerading as a family on vacation. Even the faint hope that the police would track them down was abandoned after the first couple of weeks. The only sane times they had were the stolen ones. The man slept deeply, and often slept in, which explained his precautions in tying them up so well. They'd be able to talk from anywhere from fifteen minutes to two hours, talking of early memories, of better times. Sometimes Shinichi or one of the others would start to say, "When we get away from this," and then silence would fall. Sometimes the person continued after that moment, at least being able to give themselves the illusion of hope. Other times, on the bad days, the subject would be changed.
Shinichi felt like he was caught in a timeless warp. The routine seldom varied, and being cut off from the outside world left him keeping time only in his head.
And so it was with surprise that one day the man ordered Jennifer to stop on the side of the road. They were in the middle of the mountains, forested mountains, and a feeling of dread crept over Shinichi. This was out of the routine, and if there was anything they had learned, it was that this man liked his rules, and loved his routine. They were his god and his savior. While the man had a good scheme, he couldn't keep it going forever, and it seemed quite possible that this would be the perfect remote spot to get rid of them.
"Get out," the man ordered, "And keep walking into the woods." They obeyed, Shinichi as always having to carefully maneuver out as Ran helped. Jennifer grabbed Ran's hand and Ran grabbed Shinichi's, everyone keeping a tight grip, watching their footing and feeling the presence of the armed man following them.
They walked for several minutes. Shinichi could feel the tension rise-this entire ordeal was coming to an end. He had the bad feeling that this also meant that he would shortly be dead. It would be a relief, almost, to have it happen. After living with the knowledge that it could happen at any moment, to have it over with, done with, would lift a burden off his back. Besides, it would be so difficult, entering the real world again. The real world where he would have to deal with all the real world repercussions, have to deal with his parents, all of the fawning, all of the sympathy. As much as he missed his parents, he dreaded their reactions, having to face them.
They reached a remote clearing, and the man said, "Stop." They turned around so that they could see him, reluctantly but they'd all rather have him in their sights then not.
"Okay. I'd like to tell a little story. About three and a half years ago, I was in love with a beautiful woman. She was smart, intelligent, a perfect match for me in every way. We'd been dating for almost two years. This date was special though: it was the night I intended to propose. I sat there in the restaurant, wondering and worrying when she didn't arrive. I went home, not knowing if I'd been played a fool or something had gone wrong. The next morning on the news I discover that she'd been in a wreck. Some drunken teenager had decided to be an idiot, and drove drunk. She was dead, and no one had let me know. However, I was consoled by the fact that the girl was in a coma, a member of the living dead. It seemed a fitting fate. I toyed with the idea of breaking in and pulling the plug, but I thought it was more poetic that way," the man said. He was staring at Jennifer, who was ashen.
Shinichi knew what was about to be said, and shivered. He finally knew why Jennifer had been picked, why she'd skipped over certain things when talking. "A little over a year ago, now, that girl woke up, was slapped on the wrist with community service, and was allowed to move on. I was furious. That idiot was alive, and Himiko? Himiko was dead. I couldn't just go and kill her though. They'd look into her history, and suspect me right away. So, I decided I'd make sure everyone knew she was a horrible person, and then she would disappear. Everyone is on the lookout for you, Jennifer. They all know you were the one stealing the money. But they're never going to find you or the money because you'll be dead, but they'll just think you've run away. It's the best solution, really. They're going to blame you for the deaths, and they're going to blame you for the money."
"The deaths?" Jennifer asked her voice remote.
"I went back and killed a few of the clerks. Made it look like they'd struggled. Everyone knows you are a murderer and a thief now," the man looked crazed, but triumphant.
"So that's it? You're going to kill me, and get away with the money? You'll let Shinichi and Ran go?" Jennifer asked.
Shinichi already knew the answer to that, and the man quickly confirmed it. "Nonsense," the man said, "They know too much. I'm going to kill them right after you. Two more deaths on your conscious."
Jennifer straightened. "I was stupid," she said quietly, "I made a wrong decision, and innocent people have suffered for it. But there is one difference between us. There is always only one truth, and in the end, it must always prevail. It is not my fault. Yes, I am responsible for your girlfriend's death, but in gaining your revenge, you have become a far more horrible monster then I ever was, and that and the deeds that have resulted are entirely upon your shoulders."
Shinichi had never, ever heard anything more inspiring. He felt the truth ring out in every word she spoke, and each word touched something deep in his soul. The man, however, seemed to grow more and more furious with every word she uttered.
"You bitch," he said fervently, and raised his gun. Jennifer ducked, pushed Ran and Shinichi away, and then rushed the man.
"Run!" she yelled.
Shinichi and Ran ran. They heard a gunshot, a scream, and ran harder. Tears fell down his cheek, fell down hers, but there was no time. Jennifer had sacrificed herself for them, for them to run away, and Shinichi would do whatever it took to do so. He could hear the man's heavy footsteps, and he ran harder, Ran besides him. They ran until they fell to the ground, exhausted and panting; the sounds of cursing and pursuit having died long ago.
"She's dead," Ran said quietly, "I can't believe she's dead."
"I know," Shinichi replied, his heart heavy. Jennifer, being the adult, had become their protector. They had relied on her, and now she was gone. They were the only two left. And Shinichi had to make sure that they survived.
Shinichi slowly stood back up. His arm was throbbing, his legs sore from lack of exercise, and he didn't have a choice but to keep moving. "We have to keep going," he said, "we've left a trail that any fool could follow, in order to get away. Now we have to go slowly, so that he can't follow us."
Ran didn't protest, but simply stood up and followed them. They picked their way carefully now, confusing the trail as much as two children could. At one point, Shinichi bumped his arm and had to stop so that he could refocus on blocking the pain.
"I'm sorry," Ran said, her tear-streaked face falling.
"It's not your fault," Shinichi said.
"Yes it is. I gave Jennifer the idea about the notes, and she did it, and you got punished," Ran said quietly.
"It's that crazy man's fault. Everything's his fault," Shinichi muttered.
The subject was dropped, but Shinichi had the feeling that he hadn't completely convinced Ran. He couldn't worry about it now, though, because he had to keep going, keep moving. Ignore the pain, force one foot to move, then the other, and then all over again.
They finally had to stop. They were cold-fall had come while they'd been dragged over Japan, and they snuggled up together to be kept warm. Any awkwardness Shinichi had felt at the beginning had left long ago; in fact it seemed only natural to have Ran there, to have someone else there to reassure him that he was not alone.
The next morning they got back up and kept walking. They were lost now, and their only guideline was the sun, whose path they followed. In the morning, the sun was always behind them, in the afternoon, in front. They had no guide other then that, no other goal then to hope that they stumbled across someone before they died. The only water they came across wasn't fit to drink being mineral heavy, and neither Shinichi nor Ran knew which plants were safe.
They didn't find anyone the second day either. The third day their path was less then straight, and finally they stopped. Shinichi was overcome with dizziness, hunger, and thirst, and Ran as well. They sat there, staring off into the distance. Shinichi felt his eyelids slowly slid closed.
A couple hours later, a pair of hikers came across the two. They recognized them immediately from the news reports, and called the emergency numbers. They administered aid as directed to by the doctors on the other end. They didn't wake up as the hikers took them to the nearest clearing they could find as directed, and they didn't wake up as the helicopters took them back to civilization, and the real world.
End
This will be a series of one shots leading up to the beginning of the series. I am attempting to keep everything as canon as possible. I've always wondered why and how Shinichi and Ran meet, and became such good friends when they seemed so different. This is what happened. This series has actually helped me get to know some of the characters of Case Closed better. Things that are left out of the series, explanations, are going to be included here. I hope you have and will enjoy this as much as I have.
Also, I've only read as much as the current volume of manga that has been published in America. If something is contrary to what happens after that point, then it's completely unintentional.