Chapter three: No closure for this case.
Do you know what's uncommon during police work? That a bunch of evidence disappears off technical services' hands. However, when a case had a mid-high priority on the Buraza Police there was always this slim possibility of a rotten apple vanishing the most important of evidence on the case, I guess that's exactly what happened on Toru's first murder case. Whenever an Aishi was somewhat involved in a case, even as a witness, some strange shits tended to happen behind the scenes. I suppose those damn Aishis had some pretty damn good people looking out for them up top.
Saikou Department Store parking lot, Commercial Buraza; 4:07 P.M
"WHAT IN THE WORLD?!" That was all the detectives managed to spout over the fact that all the evidence they collected over the current case had gone missing
"I had a feeling you guys would react that way…" The coroner, Hideo, meekly responded over the phone
"What do you mean ALL the possible evidence we have collected so far has gone missing?! Who is this contact of yours in technical services?!" Akiyama angrily said over the radio, that was patched into Hideo's phone thanks to a dispatcher
"The Chief Technician, Satsuke Ouya. Look, I know you guys are disappointed about this…" All the detectives managed to do was sigh to the fact, the Chief Technician wasn't a guy who would lie and hide some important evidence "But, I've got good news: Not all evidence was lost. I, accidentally, left a small piece of possible evidence on my pockets, the only things that were lost were the objects were turned to technical services, such as Najimi's shoes and bag"
"Look, it'll only be good news if you tell us what exactly you managed to keep Hideo" Ichiro deadpanned, obviously not being optimistic
"Oh, I'm sure it will be regarded as great news… I managed to keep the suicide note, I'm currently scanning it to make digital copies and send one over email to the Detective Akiyama" Hideo claimed victoriously
The duo of detectives cheered upon processing Hideo's information, if a farewell note is left after a suicide, it is regarded as the most important piece of evidence on the investigation, be it to confirm it was a suicide or to discard the theory.
"That's great news coroner! Make as many copies as you can and send one to my private email address. Better to be safe than sorry" Akiyama instructed over the microphone, that was being held by Ichiro at this time
"Send me one too Hideo, make your pick between my registered addresses" Suzuki added to the instructions
"Got it… Also, I ran the note for fingerprints and DNA…" The detectives were excited to get informed about the results, it could be crucial for the investigation… "And all I found were Toru's fingerprints and my sweat, I also found a foreign fingerprint, but it was too blurry to be recognized by the database, it suppose it's Najimi's" Or maybe not
"I see… How's the autopsy coming along?" Ichiro asked, a bit disappointed by the previous information
"Well, so far it's all I said at the crime scene, severed jugular due to a neck snapping. In addition to very blunt head trauma, obviously due to the impact. Had she not died because of the snapped neck, Najimi would likely be on a very deep coma right now. Mind you, I haven't run the body for fingerprints or foreign DNA yet, so more surprises might be underway" Hideo debriefed the detectives of his findings so far
"Thanks for sharing Hideo, all of this is very useful" Toru thanked the coroner who was just doing his best job
"No problem! Just doing the job I love and get paid for!" Hideo says in a chipper attitude over the phone before hanging up
The detectives took a moment to relax and think over their next step, they didn't have any evidence that could point out in the direction of a possible suspect at the time. But one thing was for sure, this didn't look like a suicide.
"So, what now?" Toru asked his partner
"Well, we can't do Jack shit until Hideo sends us copies of the farewell note, or finishes the autopsy of Osana. So, my best bet? Let's go back to the precinct to think things over some more, and to get some ramen for the gods sake! I'm starving here!" Ichiro answered and pleaded for food
"Alright, alright…" Toru said a bit down before he fastened his seatbelt, and started up the engine "Let's go"
With that, both detectives parted to the station.
Homicide briefing room, Buraza Police Precinct, Downtown Buraza; 6:19 P.M
Two hours and a little bit more had passed since Toru and Ichiro had last spoken with Hideo, and they had yet to receive their copies of the farewell note that Osana Najimi allegedly left prior to her 'suicide' at Akademi High this morning. Both detectives were concerned, but in the meantime they had to fill out their written statements about the botched suicide attempt at the Saikou Department Store this afternoon over a cup of ramen (Alright, let's be honest, only Ichiro Suzuki could've liked the piece of shit for ramen that was sold at the vending machine on the homicide briefing room).
"Perhaps one thing I hate about my job," Ichiro said over a mouthful of sushi before swallowing it "Writing reports. I mean, aren't our verbal declarations enough? If they still want to waste paper, then why not look for a transcriber?" He complained as he was writing and before he took another bit of ramen from the noodle cup
"Hey, this is made so we can defend ourselves if anyone involved wants to sue our asses in court Suzuki, be grateful that this is mandatory" Toru sneered as he took a bit of corrector ink in and splashed it over a typo with a brush
"Oh yeah, I gotta be grateful for a sore wrist and a throbbing index finger. Yeah, I'm very much grateful for this" Suzuki sarcastically said as he shook his left hand with a pencil in hand, obviously trying to shake off some pain
TI-LING! A phone went off, signaling a notification
"Whose phone was that?" A fellow detective asked
"Mine" Toru blandly answered as be drew his phone out of his blazer's pocket to see the notification on the lock screen
SaikouMail – 6:22 P.M
Najimi Osana's farewell letter
"Finally Hideo" Akiyama muttered as he touched the notification and unlocked his phone to see the full mail
Hi there Toru! This is Hideo! I'm sorry I wasn't able to send this thing to you sooner, but the quality of the image after scanning was poor at first and the calligraphy wasn't very readable and added to the fact that I'm scrambling to get Najimi's autopsy through that door helped to the delay, I had to tweak the scanner whilst I was extracting some interesting stuff off Najimi's corpse, can you believe it? But now it doesn't matter because you have the letter now, and I can go back to finishing the tests on Najimi! I will call you soon with news okay? In the meantime, bye!
Cheers and luv, Yamamoto Hideo, veteran Coroner at the Central Tokyo Morgue.
Attached files: – - 2.1 MB
Toru scrambled to download the picture immediately, opened to check out the quality of the picture (which was indeed a high-quality scanning), and then reflected upon Hideo's very peculiar way of composing emails for a few seconds.
I mean, if I didn't know it's him I would guess I'm talking to a Genki high schooler girl from an anime. Toru thought to himself
TI-LING-NING-NING! Another phone sounded due to a notification arriving, but this time it was a sound that was ancient
When the notification quieted, Ichiro pulled his phone from his pants' pocket and guess what? Suzuki pretty much had the oldest phone in the room, a Saikou Phone from before Saikou Corp got their crap together and improved an American design with Japanese sophistication. Featuring a design from the early days of the slate factor (In other words: square as fuck), hard keys underneath a touchscreen, and a hard QWERTY keyboard that slid out. Ichiro started up the phone, seemingly opened the email app and then he faced Toru.
"Akiyama! Hideo finally sent me the victim's farewell note, what about you?" Suzuki announced and then inquired
"Got it before you, the notification I got was an email from Hideo. I downloaded the picture already" Toru said as he swiped down on an app
"So, now we got the farewell letter, but not a sample of Osana's calligraphy to compare. What are we going to do?"
"I know a person who can help us out"
"Whom?" Ichiro asked, a bit confused
"This person" Akiyama said before turning his phone's screen to Suzuki, where the contacts app was on display
Yamada Taro (Najimi Osana's Childhood friend)
Mobile – 0XXX – XXXXXX
"Where did you get the kid's number?'
"Remember when I gave him mine over at Akademi? Well, he called me at about 5:30 asking how the investigation was doing, and told him the whole truth" Akiyama elaborated as he hit the 'Call' button and placed his phone's earpiece on his ear
"Even the missing evidence stuff?" Suzuki asked concerned
"Yes, why?"
"You idiot, you shouldn't tell a person close to the victim that we're having a rough time investigating this shit! It will just make them feel bad!"
"Shut up, the phone's ringing" Akiyama held up his hand as he bossed his senior around
Two beeps, three beeps... Six beeps…
"Come on kid, pick it up…" Toru muttered under his breath
Seven beeps, eight beeps…
And then a runny nose sounded on the other end of the line.
"Uhhh… Hello? Who Is this?"
"Am I speaking with Mr. Taro Yamada?" Toru asked warily
"Yes? Please be quick, I am currently in mourning" He blandly said before sniffing
"Well, Mr. Yamada, It's Detective Akiyama from the Buraza Police? I'm currently investigating the apparent suicide of Osana Najimi? Your recently deceased friend?"
"Ah yes, the Detective… How are things going? Did you recover the missing evidence?"
"Well, not fully. But we have an important piece of possible evidence that we would like you to certify as authentic" Akiyama was being rightfully honest, something not common among cops who usually sweet-talk people
"What exactly is it? And why do I need to certify it as authentic? Aren't out there experts for that?" Yamada asked, genuinely curious
"It's Osana's alleged farewell letter, we need to analyze the calligraphy in order to see if Najimi actually wrote it or not. And seeing as her book bag got lost, we thought the closest person to her should be able to find out whether it's genuinely from Osana or if it was forged and then planted"
"I see… Do I have to go to the station?"
"No need for that, if you can provide your address we can go over your residence and not cause too much bother, after all, you are a young man mourning the loss of a dear friend" Toru said as he scrambled for a piece of paper and a pen to write down the address
"Sure… I live two blocks north of Akademi High, on the tenth block, house 132, do you know where that is Detective?"
"Sure… Don't worry…" Akiyama slowly said as he wrote over the address "Mind repeating the house number?"
"132" Taro blandly answered over the phone
"One… Three… Two… Got it, we'll over there soon"
"I hope I can get some closure out of this…"
"Don't worry sir, I am sure you will…" Akiyama reassured before hanging up "Alright, we got the note, someone to verify it's authentic, and their address. All we have to do is go there and let the kid do his best to remember his fallen friend's calligraphy"
"That was a low joke Toru" Suzuki deadpanned
"What was low?"
"The fallen friend thing, you remember the poor girl fell from a rooftop, right?"
"Ouch… Honestly, I forgot"
"You're an insensitive detective, you know that Toru?" Ichiro remarked
"I said I'm sorry for that!" And Toru just defended himself
They would be talking about this for ages until they got to the Yamada residence, that's for damn sure.
Yamada Residence, Residential Buraza; 6:42 P.M
The duo of detectives eventually arrived at the Yamada Residence, they parked up in front of the house, shut off their vehicle and got down, with Akiyama leading the way. The Yamada house wasn't something flashy, in fact, you could say it was a particularly generic-looking two-story house. Akiyama, with Suzuki in tow, helped himself to the entrance and knocked the door thrice, after a few seconds, a girl who could easily be a middle-schooler opened the door.
"Uhhh… May I help you misters?" The girl asked, confused
Toru simply drew his badge, then he spoke.
"Buraza Police sweetie, Detectives Akiyama and Suzuki. We need to speak with Taro Yamada, is he home?"
"Wait, you guys are here to arrest big brother?! I can rest assure you he did nothing wrong!" The Young girl started to freak out, obviously not getting the objective of the Detectives' visit
"Ma'am, please calm down. We're definitely not here to arrest Mr. Yamada, we're here because he's simply a person of interest in a murder investigation" Akiyama tried to reassure, triggering more confusion from the girl
"What?! Who died?!"
"Ummm, are you familiar with the name 'Osana Najimi'? Girl?"
"WHAT?! BIG SISTER OSANA IS DEAD?!" The girl screamed in panic
All Akiyama and his partner could do was give a nod in confirmation.
"Oh my God… Oh my God…" She simply clutched her head in shock, obviously not being able to cope with the information, but after a few seconds she simply sighed and signaled the detectives to come in "Please come in, I'll go get big brother, I guess this was the reason why he was so down after school today…"
The detectives complied with the request and made themselves comfortable, Toru and Ichiro took a seat in a reasonably-sized couch in the living room. As another revelation, the Yamada house was as flashy on the inside as it was on the outside, by that I mean that it was bland and generic as heck. Patterned wooden floor, pastel-colored walls with white accents, and matching furniture to boot, it was cozy, to say the least. But nothing particularly stood out.
After a solid minute, Taro came down the stairwell. He was still wearing the Akademi High School uniform, I guess the depression got the best of him.
"Mr. Yamada, glad to see you once again" Akiyama said as warmly as he could, trying to lift Taro's spirits a bit
Yamada simply plopped down on a recliner chair across the couch and activated it.
"Sure Detective, if you're glad to see me, then I'm glad as well" Yamada said blandly and virtually emotionlessly
"Alright son, let's just cut through the chase. I know this is putting a heavy load on you and we're also running scarce on time, I just got a question: How well do you know Osana's calligraphy and writing style?" Suzuki chimed in, trying to hurry things up
"Pretty well I would say, we grew together after all and we used to spend hours at a day writing random things on papers when we were little…"
"Well, in that case…" Toru took his phone out of his blazer's pocket once more, opened the gallery app, put the scanned copy of Osana's farewell note on display, and extended the phone to Taro "I want you to see this letter, and tell me if you think Osana wrote it"
Taro nervously grabbed the phone and looked at the screen's contents, after a couple of dozen seconds he started making all sorts of expressions, most of them denoted confusion, and Akiyama got wind of it.
"Mr. Yamada, Is there something wrong?"
"Well, perhaps one thing detective" He then turned the phone so the screen faced the detectives and pointed at it with a finger "While this sounds like something Osana would write in one of her tsun-tsun episodes, the calligraphy is completely different of how Osana writes"
"Mind proving it son?" Suzuki challenged out of the blue
"Sure, be right back"
With that, Taro got up, handed Akiyama's phone, and headed up the stairs, and after two minutes he came back disassembling a framed photo, which he handed over to the detectives. The picture was simple yet wholesome: Osana having a piggy-back ride on top of Taro at a fun fair, likely at Shisuta Town's carnival.
"Well, while this is cute and it melts my heart, but what does this have to do with what I asked?" Suzuki deadpanned
"Look at the reverse detectives, there is a note there" Taro blankly claimed as he made a 'spin It around' gesture
Toru turned the picture around and, unsurprisingly, there it was, a note that read:
Well baka, I can't believe it. You actually know how to have a good time! I enjoyed myself at the carnival, but don't think this is getting you any closer to me. But as a proof of my gratitude for the fond memories, have this picture father took with his camera, pretty cool isn't it?
Eternally grateful, your best and virtually only friend; Osana.
12 of March of 2014.
Whilst the content of the note was irrelevant to the investigation, the calligraphy wasn't. Osana's calligraphy looked aggressive yet cute at the same time, whilst the farewell note's calligraphy was bland, generic and without any sort of passion invested into it, as Yamada said, there is absolutely no way that Najimi wrote the farewell letter. It was definitely forged and planted in place to make it appear like a suicide rather than what it actually is: A cold-blooded murder.
"This… This doesn't match at all" Toru stated in awe
"No way in hell Najimi wrote this. The calligraphy doesn't match, and I'm pretty sure people don't give their calligraphies full makeovers in just two years. Trust me, I tried that" Ichiro claimed as his eyesight went back and forth between the image on Toru's phone and the note in the back of the picture
"I have to take a picture of this, it's vital evidence to back the claims I am now going to make" Toru said before closing the gallery app and opening the camera app to take a picture of the note, now a vital piece of evidence
"Glad I could be of help, it's what Osana would have wanted" Taro said before drifting off
As the detectives kept analyzing the new evidence they had, the main door to the house was opened, and through the threshold, four people walked in, two of which were either down, or crying.
"I know… I know… It hurts losing a child like this, I would be in the same place if I lost either Hanako or Taro…" A woman of dark, long hair said, comforting another woman, who was crying her guts out before noticing the detectives "Hey! Can either of you explain why are you in my house alone with my children?"
"Hey woman, no need to freak out, Buraza Police Detectives Suzuki and Akiyama, we're investigating the murder of Osana Najimi, is this your son?" Ichiro answered before pointing at Taro
"Yes, why?"
"I would just like to say that he's a great boy who has been cooperative all along with the investigation, and that has helped in ways we wouldn't have even imagined"
"Wait a second… Wasn't Osana's demise a suicide? That's what the preliminary report told these two" Taro's mother inquired as she pointed at the other two adults that were visibly tired and sad
"Well, ma'am, we have news, whether they're good or bad is up to you…" Akiyama then cleared his throat "Osana did not commit suicide, she was murdered in a way that would look like a suicide. And the farewell note left on the scene that was allegedly written by Osana? It was forged. The calligraphy on the note doesn't match with Osana's genuine calligraphy. This added to the way she fell, and the fact that Osana screamed when she fell off the roof of Akademi, rules out the possibility of a suicide" Akiyama elaborated, leaving Osana's parents flabbergasted
"This means… Osana didn't want to die?" The sad man alongside Taro's father asked
"Not at all sir, someone deprived her of her life" Suzuki chimed in, trying to reassure the parent
In the blink of an eye, the woman that was previously being comforted by Taro's mother rushed to the detectives, grabbed Akiyama's hands, and held them together with hers.
"Please detectives… I beg you… Find who did this to Osana… And make them pay" The woman said with teary eyes between jobs, and with extra emphasis on the last phrase
"Ma'am, justice for your daughter might not come in the next few hours, but I assure you, that it will come real soon, I promise" Akiyama tried to comfort the woman, who simply nodded, and then a smile crept on her face
"Thank you, detective… Thank you so much for doing this for me…"
"Ma'am, I am sorry to say this, but I am not doing this for you… I am doing this for Osana. Even though I never met her, I am pretty sure that such a young, promising woman shouldn't have died like that" Toru said with bravery as he freed his hands from the grasp of the woman
"People, this is very touching and all. But I am pretty sure that this is the best moment for us to leave. After all, Toru and I only have a little more than an hour to bring closure to this case" Suzuki chimed in, breaking the mood with the cold, hard reality
"That's right, we must go" Akiyama then faced Taro "Thanks kid, for everything"
Taro shed a tear and then replied.
"Everything for Osana"
With that, the detectives cued their leave from the Yamada household and headed for their car, and as they were getting inside…
"And this is what I found!~ Way back in Chinatown!~ Ah Ling Ting Tong, gotta sing this song! Ay sum onko bundam yey, ay sum onko-um" A phone began to ring, and it wasn't on Akiyama's pockets so…
"Huh, The Five Keys Ichiro?" Toru jokingly said as he took a seat on the car
Ichiro just huffed as he retrieved his phone to see who the caller was before sitting.
"Hey, it's Hideo, I'll put him on speakerphone" Suzuki then picked up and put the call on the speaker "Hideo, I got you on speakerphone so Toru can hear"
"Hi there Hideo, what's the good word?" Akiyama asked the coroner through the phone
"Alright! It's time for the news! Look, guys, I wrapped up Osana Najimi's autopsy about a few minutes ago, and you guys won't believe what I found…"
"Hit us with it Hideo" Ichiro said defiantly as he closed his door shut
"I found foreign sweat in Osana's stockings and thighs, and when I ran the tests against the database I was in for a shock! Want to know why?"
"Hideo, we're not in the mood for suspense right now! We've got less than an hour to wrap this case up dammit" Toru snapped, tired of Hideo's attempts at suspense
"The computer came back with Ryoba Aishi's DNA as a possible match, with a 50 percent of matching probability, which means…" Hideo tried to explain, before being cut short by Toru
"It must definitely be from her offspring…" Akiyama completed
"Exactly! Now, when I ran the body for foreign fingerprints I found a set on the thighs, I ran it against the database and guess who came up as a match? Ayano Aishi. Ryoba's only daughter" Hideo revealed, much to the detectives' anger
Toru slammed his door shut in frustration.
"The bitch! She gave us a false statement on the rooftop!" Suzuki angrily said as he smashed the dashboard
"My advice guys? Bring her in for questioning, then face her with all of this. I'll send over the results of the autopsy by fax to the station and over to both of you by email. Good luck" Hideo advised before hanging up
The detectives just stood there, frozen for a few seconds. Ayano had played them like a fucking piano, she deliberately lied to them and withheld information from the police in order to save her neck, but now? She had nowhere to hide. No excuses, no alibi, no nothing, she was caught right on the money. And the detectives were coming back in full force.
"Ask for the address of the Aishi Residence and a capture order for Ayano, we're bringing that little bitch in one way or another" Toru said full of rage as he started up the car and began to rev the engine
"Central, this is car 09-Satsujin-12 requesting the address of the Aishi Residence, and before you ask, yes, that Aishi Residence" Ichiro complied and called in the request
"Umm, sure… House 298, eleventh block… Is everything okay 09-Satsujin? Over"
"Oh, everything's not okay Central, we were seen idiots' faces and a suspect slipped right under our noses. Oh, also pass a request to the local court for a capture order for Ayano Aishi in relation to the murder of Osana Najimi, over and out" Ichiro then turned to Toru "Let's get that bitch before she kills anyone else or it gets away"
Akiyama simply put the car in motion with a burnout and a 180 turn with the sirens on.
Aishi Residence, Residential Buraza; 6:58 P.M
The Detectives' vehicle came to a screeching halt on the wet pavement in front of the house, on their way to the Aishi house a thunderstorm suddenly began, but that didn't stop Akiyama from driving like a man racing out of hell. The Aishi Residence looked like any other house on the street, there wasn't anything that made it stand out, except for this very uneasy aura that surrounded the house, and that accentuated itself even more with the thunderstorm. At this time all lights at the house were out for some reason, excepting one lonely window being lit by a light bulb in the room behind it on the second floor. The detectives hastily got down from the vehicle in the torrential rain.
"Akiyama! Go around the back whilst I go through the front entrance! Better to be safe than sorry!" Suzuki screamed in the middle of the rain
"Nah Ichiro! I'll take the front door! You go around the back! You're bigger and heavier than I am! So you'll do a better job blocking her way if she tries to escape!" Akiyama replied in the same fashion, refuting Suzuki's order and proposing something else
"Good idea! But hold on a second…!" Ichiro quickly retreated back to the car and pulled something out of the glovebox, the objects in question were a couple of two-way radios, one of which he gave to Toru "Take this! This will keep us in touch!"
"Thanks! But where did you get these?"
"Doesn't matter! Just take position!"
With that, Suzuki scrambled to find the house's back door, whilst Akiyama positioned himself on the front door, ready to knock it, but he had to wait for a couple of seconds so Ichiro could be in position. After a little more than ten seconds and a thunder later, the radio he was given started to sound.
"Akiyama? Akiyama, can you hear me? Akiyama come in" Ichiro's voice resounded through the speaker of the radio
"10-4, loud and clear Suzuki, are you in position?" Toru asked
"Affirmative, knock the door"
Toru then began to strongly knock the door, making sure the knocking would be heard throughout the house.
"BURAZA POLICE! OPEN THE DOOR IMMEDIATELY!" Toru screamed as loud as he could
Toru continued knocking for a solid minute and no-one had come to open the door. Akiyama was soaked down to the socks and he wanted in as soon as possible, he screamed one more time.
"IF YOU THINK YOU CAN AVOID THE POLICE BY SIMPLY NOT SHOWING UP YOU ARE VERY MISTAKEN! WE HAVE ALL NIGHT CITIZEN!"
After a couple of dozen seconds, he was starting to get tired of this, he was about to scream one more time until…
CLICK! CLICK! The locks on the door began to be undone, and then it opened to show Ayano Aishi, wearing her pajamas, rubbing her eyes and seemingly just awakened.
"Ahhhhh…" She yawned whilst rubbing her eyes "Detective, you better have a good reason to be here…"
"Ayano Aishi?" Toru blankly asked
"Uh, yes?"
"Ayano Aishi, you're under arrest in connection to the murder of Osana Najimi, you have the right to remain silent. Anything you might say and do will be used against you in a court of the law, yet you are innocent until proven otherwise, have you understood your rights as an arrested individual?" Akiyama told Ayano her rights as if he just read them off a book
Aishi just stood there with a blank face for a solid five seconds… And then she tried to run away.
"HEY! STOP! YOU'RE ONLY MAKING THIS WORSE FOR YOURSELF!" Toru said as he began to run after her "Suzuki! Suzuki! She's coming your way! Be ready!" Akiyama spoke through the radio, getting his message across to Ichiro
"Roger that!" That's all the older detective managed to say in response
Ayano was on a dead sprint, headed for the back door of her house with Akiyama chasing her closely, she was throwing all kinds of things on Akiyama's way to slow him down, only for him to gracefully avoid and jump over every obstacle, when Ayano reached the back door she briefly looked back as she opened it and then…
TZZZZZT-ZZZZZZZZZZZT That was the sound of Ichiro's Taser when it contacted with Ayano's skin.
Stunned and now convulsing due to the voltage, Aishi eventually plopped down to the floor, where Akiyama promptly handcuffed her.
"You're in serious trouble now Aishi…" Toru told to the defeated girl laying on the floor before looking at Ichiro "Great job partner, couldn't have done it without you"
"Nothing to thank me for Akiyama, just doing my job" Ichiro nonchalantly replied
Toru eventually lifted up Ayano and placed her on one of the couches on the living room, he then directed a couple of words to the handcuffed young lady.
"Seeing as you attempted to resist arrest Ayano, we are going to take the liberty to go over your house and ask you some questions. Do you receive?"
Ayano just looked blankly at the detective, as if trying to see through him.
"I'll take it as a yes…" Akiyama then signaled his partner to go over the house as he drew his notebook from his blazer along with a pen and then dried it a little to write on it "Now Ayano. Why did you think resisting arrest was a good idea?"
Ayano just remained silent.
"Come on Ayano, answer the question"
"You said I had the right to remain silent, and that is a right I am now sticking with" Aishi snapped back
"Well, whilst that might be your right, withholding information from the police is a serious criminal offense Aishi! Don't you think you have enough problems as it is? Connection to a murder that was attempted to be passed as a suicide, resisting arrest, and now withholding information! I don't think the judge is going to give you any less than ten years Ayano" Akiyama pushed, trying to break through Aishi's tough façade
"Either way, how can you link me to a murder investigation detective? And what are you even talking about?"
"Oh Aishi, don't play dumb, you know exactly what I am talking about, and I can prove it"
"Go ahead detective, prove your point" Ayano said defiantly
"I am talking about Osana Najimi's murder Aishi! You know that better than anyone! You were at Akademi High's rooftop at the exact time when Osana died! Don't play the role of the ignorant Ayano, it doesn't suit you at all" Toru lashed out at the tough girl
"Wow, detective, hold it right there. That was a suicide, everyone knows that"
"That's where you are wrong Ayano! You see, the way Osana fell, added to the fact that she screamed when she fell, plus the fact that the farewell letter was forged and planted discards the theory of suicide right away" Akiyama refuted Aishi's statement
"Uh-huh, very nice detective, but what do I have to do in all of this?"
"You tell me!" Akiyama then drew his phone, looked for the results of Osana's autopsy, and then laid it on the coffee table so Ayano could see it "Whose sweat and fingerprints were on Osana's thighs huh? Yours and no-one else's"
Aishi then remained silent, she was caught. She knew this was the end of it.
"That's what I like to hear. I think your sentence just went up a few years, maybe fifteen at least? Oh, maybe you're getting life because you blatantly lied to us on our first encounter. How does that soun-"
"ENOUGH!" Toru mocked for a few seconds before being cut short by… No-one else than Captain Kobawa from the homicide squad
"Captain? What are you doing here?" Ichiro asked as he went out of the basement
"You idiots tell me! You are in private property without a search order, and with a minor handcuffed!"
"Sir, you don't understand. This girl resisted arrest and has very deep connections to the murder of Osana Najimi, and we have the evidence to believe she is the murderer" Toru explained
"What a load of lies! I never resisted arrest! I just opened the door and these two tasered, handcuffed me, and started claiming I am a murderer! I am going to sue the department!" Ayano exclaimed angrily, trying to get on the Captain's good side
"Is that so?"
"Don't listen to her captain! She's lying!" Ichiro exclaimed to defend
"Oh shut up! This case is officially closed and this girl is being released immediately! I want the report on my desk before midnight! You heard me monkeys?!" Cap screamed in anger
"But Cap!" Toru bemoaned before being cut short
"But Cap but Cap! Shut up! Akiyama! Release this girl at once or I'll get you suspended and demoted! And not back to burglary! You'll be assigned to fucking parking duty! Got it?!"
"Sir yes, sir…" Akiyama said grinding his teeth in resignation as he took his phone from the coffee table and opened Aishi's cuffs, only for him to retire quickly in anger
"Permission for retiring Captain?" Ichiro asked
"If he went out without saying a word then you can as well idiot! Go away! I have to reach a settlement with this young lady here"
Akiyama was angry, his first arrest on the homicide desk was taken away by the lies of a girl and a captain too worried about the ruckus she would make, he made his way to the car, took a seat and started up the engine, Ichiro eventually caught up to him.
"Toru…"
"What?!"
"I know you're angry… But you better make sure you put this on the report" Ichiro said as he drew his phone and opened the gallery app
"Put what?!" Toru snapped back at his partner
"This you dingus"
The picture on display in Ichiro's phone was nothing else than the schematics for killing Osana, all of it neatly organized on a corkboard. From the time or the day where she would be at the roof staring into the horizon, to other possibilities and ways that are more gruesome like… Sticking her head on a running air conditioning unit.
"Holy shit…"
"Put it on the report, but keep it quiet will you?"
"Why?! This could put Ayano behind bars!" Toru complained
"She's an Aishi Toru, nobody's gonna believe us unless she does it more than once and the amount of evidence is overwhelming" Ichiro reasoned
"So more people have to die so Ayano can go down?!"
"Sadly… Yes… Also, I thought you might find this interesting" Suzuki said as he drew two audio cassettes from his jacket
"What is this?"
"Nothing else than the confession your father yearned for since 1989"
Toru could not believe what his partner was saying at that moment as he warily took both tapes and analyzed them.
"The oldest tape contains the confession, the other one explains the whereabouts of Ryoba right now. I'd recommend you to first listen to them and then discreetly take these tapes to the Supreme Court in Tokyo, I have a couple of friends who can fill out the paperwork and try to open the case again" Suzuki elaborated as he pointed at each one of the tapes
"Ichiro… I can't believe this…" Akiyama muttered in awe
"Kid, me neither, but I'll tell you something: If we can't bring this Aishi down. Might as well aim for the other one"
Akiyama simply smiled at the comment before setting the car in motion once again.
La nota: First case unsuccessfully closed, plenty of more to come. Stay tuned!