The walk back to the crime scene seemed surreal to Ken. Despite the fact that he moved at what he considered a normal walking pace, time seemed to slow to a crawl. The lips of civilians seemed as though they were barely moving. Bodies milling around suddenly seemed as though they were forcing themselves through honey. Even the sounds of the city around him seemed to virtually vanish. The only thing that seemed to be unaffected was the wreckage that served as his family's final destination.
Only the sudden squeal of screeching tires and the hood of a red sports car stopping mere centimeters away from his knees were enough to return the world to normal.
"Hey!" The driver shouted from behind the wheel. "Watch where you're going!"
Ken didn't verbally respond, instead simply and awkwardly raising his hand in apology. As soon as he stepped out of the way, the driver sped off, clearly not happy with the detective.
What was that? Ken asked himself. I haven't spaced out like that in a long time. He took a few more steps toward the scene before stopping. Not since I met Miyako...
He took a few more steps before a body cut off his path of approach. The female member of the American team, what was her name again? David?, stopped hm.
"I'm sorry for your loss," she said, a slight tone of sympathy behind the words. "And I know this may not be the best time, but I need to take a statement from you before we continue?"
"You're right, this isn't the best time." Ken moved to walk around her, stopping as she stepped in front of him again. He rolled his eyes at this action.
"I understand that you've had a terrible loss, Detective, but I have a job do to, just as you do."
He shifted his weight around for a moment, thoughts of we're wasting time here running through his head. Ziva raised an eyebrow, waiting for a response.
"Fine, but let's make this quick."
Tony shuffled around the wreck, camera snapping at various spots of the interior and exterior.
"Well, boss?" asked Tony, finger working the shutter on his camera again. Gibbs knelt by the side of the car, giving the underside a once-over for anything of value.
"Well what, DiNozzo?"
Another click. "Whaddya think?"
"About what?
"Think he's good for this?"
Gibbs got down further. His ear nearly touched the pavement. "Should I, DiNozzo?"
Tony leaned into the car, trying to get a shot of something on the inside. "Well, why not? In most cases like this, the husband's the first suspect on the list. Most of those cases, the husband's the one who did it."
Gibbs got up to his feet, silently staring at the back of his fellow Agent's head. Tony noted the silence for a moment before turning to meet his boss' eyes.
"Of course, that's not always the case." More silence. Tony shifted himself slightly, discomfort settling over him. "Which is why we always investigate instead of jumping to conclusions?"
A slight nod of the head
"Don't you think it's odd, though? Using a civilian on foreign soil as a spy for US activities?"
"Of course I do. That's why I plan on asking a few questions once we get back to the Embassy."
"Do we have anything yet?" A voice asked behind them.
Both men turned to see Ken standing behind him, Ziva quickly moving in from a few steps behind. Neither answered for a moment as Ken switched his glance between the two of them. Eventually Gibbs nudged his head to the side, a silent order for Ken to follow him away from the other two members of his team. Once the two were far enough away, they stopped
"Detective," Gibbs started quietly. "If you plan on assisting on this investigation, I expect full cooperation with me and my Agents."
"And what makes you think I was being uncooperative?"
Gibbs fixed Ken with a hard stare. "What took you so long to give David your statement?"
Ken raised an eyebrow. "I wasn't aware that I'd taken up so much time retelling the story of how I lost my family, Agent Gibbs."
"Special Agent."
"Look, I'm willing to do whatever I need to help bring my family's murderers to justice.
"I don't know how you do things over here, Detective, but we start by taking statements from every witness we can track down. That includes you. If you have a problem with that," Gibbs started to walk away. "Then I suggest you get yourself reassigned."
Ken stood there for a moment, not moving or saying anything. He watched as the older man walked back to the wreck and, by extension, his team. The three began to discuss something, though he couldn't be sure what. The group was too far away for him to hear. Instead, he let Gibbs' words roll around in his head. He was right. These visitors were in charge of everything. If he wanted to help, and to deliver justice, he would have to play things their way. Maybe he could find a spot where he could apply the skills he brought to the table, but for now it was their ballgame. With a sigh, he
"I got everything I could get a photo of, Boss, but I couldn't get a look at everything."
"What you've got will have to do. We won't be able to get this to our evidence garage for Abby. She'll have to do what she can until we get back."
Seemed like that point came sooner than he thought. "I can help with that."
The three turned to him. Ziva was the one to ask.
"You have a way you can get this from here to the United States?"
Ken smirked. "This, my family, and all of you. And it'll be faster than taking a plane, I guarantee. All I need is an IP Address and for the other computer to be in a room with plenty of space."
The three Agents shared looks with one another. None of them were quite sure what to make of what he'd said. After a moment, he finally got an answer.
"Do it."
With that, he spun on his heel, reached into his jacket, retrieved his phone and made a call in one smooth motion. It was a short wait before he got an answer.
"Dr. Makino's office."
"Rukia, it's me."
"Hey, Ken. Everyone's ready to go. I don't they're going to be too happy with having to make an emergency intercontinental flight, though."
"Don't worry about that. I've got it figured out. Have Wormmon ready to go with them, and make sure he gets plenty of food. He's going to need the energy."
"Gotcha. You want me to pack you something, too?"
Ken let out a small chuckle. "Sure, as long as you didn't make it."
"Har har."