*narrator voice* Last time, on The Silent Song of a Sparrow's Goodbye: * dramatic flashback*

"What are you doing up here, Edgeworth?"

"These are the papers I need to fill out to be the prosecutor for Maria's case, Wright."

"You're the Chief Prosecutor, can't you just assign yourself and be done with it?"

"I need a justifiable reason to take over the case. But I don't have one."

"Then let's go find one!"

"Hi, I'm Callie Coquette!"

"Long hair, black pantsuit? Yeah, I've seen her!"

"Oh, by the way, Ema wanted me to give this to you, Edgeworth."

Miles opened the envelope and pulled out a folded piece of paper. He adjusted his glasses and unfolded the note, his eyes carefully scanning the words. Before Phoenix could ask what the note said, he saw the prosecutor grit his teeth.

*narrator voice* Now for Chapter Nine.


Witness.

Miles stared at the document in his hand, his gaze cool and detached. He had returned to his office and sat behind his desk, Ema's envelope in hand. Inside was a witness report form and a document asking if he would be willing to testify in court when the time came.

So the police department wants me to be a witness. It makes sense, I was the one that discovered the scene of the crime. I even saw the assailant, albeit from a great distance. Naturally I should testify about it. This means I can't prosecute the case, but no matter. Perhaps it's best, given my personal attachment to the case. Indeed, I should just be a witness.

The Chief Prosecutor crumpled the files into a ball.

"Argh!" Miles exclaimed, throwing the paper at the door. He sighed, running his fingers through his hair. Assigning the Chief Prosecutor to a case was already going to be difficult, now it's virtually impossible. Especially when they're right. I'm a witness, I should testify. But how can I not prosecute? I owe it to Maria.

A knock at the door interrupted his brooding.

"Come in," Miles said, regaining his composure.

The door swung open and Kay walked. She promptly placed a stack of papers on his desk and locked eyes with him.

"Mr. Edgeworth, I want to be the prosecutor," Kay said in a formal, business-like tone.

Miles returned the gaze. "Is that so?"

"Yes. I know you want to handle this case yourself, but you can't because of your position. You can trust me to take this investigation as seriously as you do. I'll do everything in my power to find the truth. I haven't been a prosecutor for very long, but I'm very capable and very dedicated," Kay said. Clearly she had rehearsed this. "I want to know who attacked Ms. Coldstare as much as you do."

"I see," Miles said. He picked up the documents and leafed through them.

"So what do you say?"

Miles considered her proposal. He hadn't expected this, he was so preoccupied with assigning himself to the case he hadn't given any other prosecutor much thought. Honestly, I can't see myself trusting anyone else with this case. She is a good prosecutor, it's clear that her past experience with criminal investigation taught her well.

"All your paperwork is in order, you presented a strong case for yourself, very well done," Miles said. It makes perfect sense to assign her the case. I would trust her with any other case in a heartbeat….

"Thank you, sir," Kay said. "I intend to take this case very seriously."

"I believe you," Miles said, leafing through the paperwork again. He wasn't actually reading any of it, he was just stalling. I'm not going to be the prosecutor, at this point it's just a fact. So I need to assign someone. The more I stall, the more time the culprit has to cover their tracks. He knew everything he was thinking was true, but something kept him from admitting it out loud.

"I can prove it," Kay said.

"Hm?" Miles raised an eyebrow.

"I can prove I'll be a good prosecutor for the case," Kay said. "I don't expect you to just hand this over to the first person that walks in, no one does. So I want to prove my capability."

"Interesting…." Miles said. "And how do you propose to do this?"

"Simple," Kay said, placing her palms on the desk. "Take me to the crime scene. I'll demonstrate my investigations skills there."

"You want me to take you to the crime scene?" Miles said with a flicker of a smile.

"Exactly," Kay said, smirking.

"I see," Miles said, standing up. "You're a very clever girl, Kay."

"Thank you, Mr. Edgeworth," Kay said. "So, is that a yes?"

"Yes, it is," Miles said. "Let's see how much you've learned."


The two prosecutors stepped outside the building and walked over to the alleyway. There wasn't anything particularly distinct about the alley's appearance. A wide, concrete pathway separated the brick walls of two buildings. Aside from the investigators, the only things in the alleyway were two trashcans that had been knocked over on their sides.

"So this is where it happened," Kay said, surveying the scene.

Miles said nothing and merely tapped his finger against his folded arm. It felt strange to hand the reins over to Kay, the girl who had once been his assistant. In many ways their relationship was the same as it had been back then. He was still her superior, he was still teaching her, but things had changed. Kay was no longer a teenager that boasted about being a master thief to every law enforcer she came across. She was a law enforcer herself now.

When did I start sounding like an old man? I'm not even 40. I'm still young. He suddenly imaged what Phoenix would say if he'd heard that thought. "You've had gray hair since you were 10."

I was born with it, Wright, you know that!

"Hey, Mr. Edgeworth?" Kay said, interrupting his monologue.

"Yes?" Miles said.

"Doesn't something seem odd about this crime scene?" Kay said.

"You tell me," Miles said. He knew what she was talking about, but he was going to take this test seriously.

"There's no evidence," Kay said. "No weapons, no signs of a struggle, not even a blood stain."

"And why do you think this is?" Miles said.

"Well…." Kay crossed her arms, thinking. "I guess the police have been investigating all day. Maybe they have all the evidence."

"Well done, I came to the same conclusion," Miles said.

"See? I know what I'm doing," Kay said, rubbing her nose with an air of pride only she could pull off.

"I never said you didn't," Miles said.

"Hey, what's going on here?" a female voice behind them said.

The attorneys turned around to see Ema approach them. She immediately recognized them, as indicted by her surprised stance.

"Good morning, Detective Skye," Miles said.

"Mr. Edgeworth!" Ema stood up straight, her face flushed red. "What are you doing here?"

"To investigate, why else?" Miles said.

"But… um, didn't Mr. Wright…."

"Yes, he did," Miles said.

"He's with me," Kay said. "I'm the prosecutor for this case. I figured that since Mr. Edgeworth was such a vital piece of the puzzle, it would be beneficial to have him come to the crime scene to see what he could tell us."

"Oh," Ema said, still taking it all in. "That…. That makes sense."

"I'm glad you agree, Ema," Kay said.

I wonder if I should be concerned by how natural it is for her to bend the rules.

"So, what have you figured out so far?" Kay said.

"Not much really," Ema said, placing a hand on her hip. "There's nothing that implies any particular person or motive. We can't even rule out that it wasn't just a failed theft attempt."

"A theft?" Kay said. "I hadn't considered that. Was anything stolen?"

"We don't think so," Ema said. "She had her purse with her, and all her valuables were in there. So if it was a thief it was a really bad one."

"Any thief that feels the need to carry a weapon is a bad one," Kay scoffed.

"What evidence have you gathered so far?" Miles said.

"Well, we just got a medical report from the hospital," Ema said.

"What does it say?" Miles said, both eager and hesitant. He made sure to not show either feeling.

"The stab wound missed any major arteries, although the blade may have scratched a vocal cord. Nothing that won't heal in a month or two," Ema said.

"Then why is she in a coma?" Kay said.

"Because of this," Ema reached into her bag and brought out a red cloth bunched up inside an evidence bag.

"What is that?" Kay said.

"A scarf that was soaked in poison. Ms. Coldstare was choking on it," Ema said.

"She had that stuffed down her throat?" Miles said. He didn't remember seeing that.

"Yeah, the first responders managed to get it out before she choked to death, but the poison did something to her," Ema said, looking off to the side. "Basically, oxygen was cut off from her brain for a little while, so she shut down."

Miles wanted to ask if she would ever wake up, but the words wouldn't come out.

"Will she wake up?" Kay said, as if she knew her boss wouldn't ask.

"They didn't give me a definite answer," Ema said. "At the moment she's comatose. This could result in her expelling the toxins and repairing herself enough to wake up. Sometimes it goes the other way…."

"What kind of poison was this?" Miles said, forcing himself to spit the words out.

"I haven't had time to analyze it, so I can't tell you exactly what it is, but based on what happened I'd say it's probably some kind of neurotoxin or maybe a narcotic of some kind," Ema said.

"I see. What else have you found?" Miles said.

"So far the only things that have stuck out are the things Ms. Coldstare had on her when she was found," Ema said. "The knife, her organizer and her purse."

"May we take a look at them?" Kay said.

"Yeah, sure," Ema said. "Which do you want to see first?"

"The knife," Miles said before he could think twice. Of the three, the knife was the thing he wanted to see the least. Hesitating wouldn't get the investigation anywhere though.

"Alright," Ema said, and went to get the evidence. She came back moments later with an ornate knife in her hand, along with a few pairs of rubber gloves.

"Thank you," Miles said, putting on the gloves then taking the knife and examining it from all angles.

The knife was decorated with a simple pattern of six silver strips that ran down the handle. The blade seemed rather simple as well, its most noticeable feature being the dark red blood coating it.

It's just blood. You've seen much more blood than this, Miles.

"So…. witness. Have you ever seen this knife before?" Kay said.

Miles cleared his throat. "No, I've never seen anything like this before."

"You're sure?"

"I would remember a knife this strange. It's a very odd design. The blade is asymmetrical."

"Seriously?" Kay said, taking a closer look.

"There's an indention on one side," Miles said. "Right where it starts to thicken in the middle."

"That's weird, I didn't notice that," Ema said. "Where would someone even get a knife like this?"

"I can't even think of a reason for anyone to own such a blade," Miles said. "Perhaps it was damaged somehow."

"Maybe. The pattern on the handle is kind of weird too though," Kay said. "Two of these lines are straight, but the others are angled. It kind of looks messy."

"Very odd design choices…." Miles murmured, rotating the knife. "Interesting."

"What?" Kay said.

"It appears that these six lines are actually three that loop around the base of the handle," Miles said, displaying the base of the knife.

"Huh," Kay examined the knife. "It kind of looks like an 'A'. Could that be the culprit's initial?"

"Or the designer's," Miles said. "Hmm…."

"Think of something?" Kay said.

"I need to see more evidence before making any conclusions," Miles said.

"Alright, what did you want to look at next?" Ema said.

"Her organizer," Kay said.

"Alright," Ema said, and went to get it. She returned moments later. "Here you go."

"Thank you," Kay said, flipping through the pages.

"Maria was on her way to investigate with you, wasn't she?" Miles said.

"How did you know that?" Ema said, surprised.

"I spoke with her before she left," Miles said. "What were you investigating?"

"We were working on a few things, actually," Ema said. "All Rivale stuff. She was really obsessed with that family."

"It's a big group," Kay said. "I don't know how one prosecutor could handle all those people on her own."

"Oh, she's not the only one," Ema said. "The Rivales don't just live in this district. This is where their headquarters is, but smaller branches are spread out everywhere. Other prosecutors from different districts are going after them too."

"Wow," Kay said. "That's a big family."

"Technically all families are, scientifically speaking. It's really a matter of how many you stay in contact with," Ema said.

"I guess that's true," Kay said.

Miles looked over her shoulder. "Anything stick out?"

"There are so many different entries, she must have profiles on just about every Rivale in existence," Kay said.

"Hmm…. Any of their names start with A?" Miles said.

"So far, thirteen," Kay said.

"Of course," Miles said.

"Well, it had to be a Rivale, right? This is Ms. Coldstare after all," Kay said. "Rivales are kind of her thing."

"Yeah, that was my first thought to, but honestly…." Ema said, crossing her arms. "This is a little out of character for them."

"What do you mean?" Kay said.

"Well, this is pretty messy for a professional job," Ema said. "First of all, they failed. Second, this is a pretty weird spot to attack someone. I mean, every prosecutor in the district works right on the other side of the wall. Why not go after her at home, or anywhere else for that matter? And not in broad daylight?"

"That's true…." Kay said, closing the organizer.

"May I?" Miles said, gesturing to the black book.

"Sure, you're probably more familiar with her work anyway," Kay said.

"She's hard to keep track of actually, especially when trying to monitor every other prosecutor in the building," Miles said, taking the organizer.

Before he could open the binder, he noticed something on the cover. On the top right corner of the organizer was a pale tan smudge. It stood out against the dark cover.

"There's a stain here," Miles said.

"Oh yeah, we saw that," Ema said. "Pretty sure it's dirt. Coldstare dropped it when she, you know, fell. If you look closely, there's dirt all over the cover."

"That it is," Miles said, examining the cover more closely. "But why is it concentrated in this spot?"

"Not sure yet," Ema said. "Maybe that spot got wet or something?"

"Perhaps…." Miles said. He handed the organizer back to Ema. "I doubt I'll be able to make much sense of her notes. Out of the three of us, you know the most about her cases."

"Probably. I'll look through it later," Ema said.

"Guess that just leaves her purse," Kay said.

"One minute," Ema said.

The detective quickly returned with a black leather purse.

"Coldstare really likes the color black, doesn't she?" Phoenix said.

"Actually, she prefers green. She just thinks black looks better on her. Same reason I don't wear purple anymore," Miles said offhandedly.

"Alright, let's see what we got," Ema said. She reached into the bag and rifled through it. "Wallet, keys, cellphone, pen, flashlight, make up…. Nothing particularly interesting."

"So all her valuables are accounted for…. Good," Miles said. He crossed his arms, tapping a finger against his arm.

"Say, does Coldstare have a kid?" Ema said.

Miles took a moment to process the random question. "Um…. No, I'm fairly certain she doesn't. Why do you ask?"

"Because she has this in her bag," Ema said, holding up a pink rubber bracelet. It was much too small for an adult's wrist.

Kay raised an eyebrow. "Why would Coldstare have that in her bag?"

"Good question. I've never seen it before," Ema said, examining it. "Hey, it's got writing on it. It says 'Mary'."

"Mary…." Kay said softly, revealing her thinking face.

"Perhaps Maria went by that as a child," Miles said.

"Maybe. Still doesn't explain why she has it though," Phoenix said.

"Weird…." Ema murmured, placing the bracelet back in Maria's purse. "Well, that's everything we've found so far."

"There's not much to go on here," Kay said.

"Yeah, this alleyway was pretty empty to begin with," Ema said. "The fact that it's outside doesn't help. You can never be sure if the wind took something away or brought something new to the scene. Any DNA samples you find, you have to take with a grain of salt."

"That's not helpful," Kay said.

"Well, Miss Prosecutor, how do you suggest we proceed?" Miles said.

"Umm…." Kay bit her lip, her mind racing. "We should…. see what else we can gather from the crime scene. Figure out exactly what happened."

"And how do you suggest we do that?" Miles said.

Kay reached into her side pack and pulled out a familiar device.

"Little Thief, I see," Miles said. "And what exactly are you going to do with it? You don't have much data to go on."

"That's where my witness comes in," Kay said.