Telltale Lines
The small kitchen looked like a bomb had hit it.
Stains of coffee were hidden beneath newspapers, books and notes. A half-eaten toast left its crumbs on the table, still waiting for his destiny to be fulfilled.
Embedded in this chaos was no longer Kudo Shinichi, who had been the general of this battleground only an hour ago, but William Bell. Even with the layer of silicon, someone could guess that he hadn't found much sleep this night. He had mostly spent it at the small kitchen table that he had unceremoniously appointed to be his work desk.
But the scribbles at the side of the newspaper, the reference books and notes were nothing but a clever ruse, with which he at least tried to trick himself with. He should be working on the case, decipher the puzzles "Holmes" had given to them in order to prevent further victims.
Shinichi sighed, slumping a little deeper into his chair.
He should be doing that.
But he couldn't.
The wall of work he had carefully built around himself in America was not only crumbling, but was nothing but a dilapidate ruin since yesterday, some rubble that he couldn't put back together. There was nothing left that could shield him from what he had locked up behind it.
Shinichi slowly closed his eyes, trying to focus on today, on the case, on the murderer.
However, anyone would have recognized from his distorted face that he failed, because everything he was thinking of was her. Pictures that had kept him awake half the night, while the other half had been tormented by his dreams.
Eisuke and Ran.
Ran and Eisuke.
Together.
In love.
A couple.
The young detective groaned, drove both hands through Bell's dark blonde hair. Tracy had chosen a good wig for him, the hair felt real, they probably were.
He shouldn't have agreed to take this stupid case!
Okay, he now knew that they all were doing alright, and maybe he even got a new hint to the organization, but… was it really worth it?
Was it right to lie to all of them?
To gain false friends and even worse… false enemies?
Tired, he grabbed the coffee cup, squinted over the rim, while he guided the dark blue porcelain to his lips.
Cold and bitter.
However, he took a strong gulp, ignoring the chill running down his back, caused by the disgusting taste. He probably could have emptied a whole pot of cold coffee last evening without even recognizing it. He probably wouldn't have tasted, let alone felt anything.
It was stupid, Shinichi knew that much, but somehow, he still wished to get this numb feeling back, the void which had been in his head yesterday. But the silence hadn't remained with him for long, because after he had managed to fall into his bed in his trance-like state so that his racing heart had been able to calm down, the silence had been over soon.
The further his heart rate had lowered the more emotions and feelings had caught up with him.
Disappointment, jealously, anger and sadness brought their companions and playmates along and dominated his thoughts. And all of them came with the biggest foe of all his conscience.
Shinichi knew just too well that he should not feel this way, not if he'd been honest with himself all these years.
A bitter smile crossed his lips, he turned the rest of his coffee in slow circles, observing how a small maelstrom opened his mouth in the dark brew.
'I really have become a master of deception, a master of self-deception.' Shinichi sent a muffled laugh ahead before he flushed the rest of the disgusting cold caffeine down his throat.
He could hear the kitchen clock ticking behind his head, which remined him that he could not escape this new day.
'Even if I've no clue how to get through it.'
He had buried the hope that he would not run into her long ago, but Shinichi had to admit that it would be nice if he would not meet Hondo again. It was enough that he had to deal with him in order to confirm if the organization was involved.
'The CIA'
The sleep-drugged eyes of the detective narrowed.
'I really wonder how big this case really is'
With a short moan, Shinichi scrambled up from his chair. He'd just started to sort the few ideas and results for the meeting from the plie of rubbish on his table, when he heard the bell of the small guesthouse for the first time. Just a few seconds later he opened the door for the actual owner.
"Good morning Dr. Matzudo, just come in, I'll be ready in a second."
Shinichi assumed that the pathologist would follow him, so he made his way back into the kitchen. He could feel Matzudo's eyes on the back of his neck and even if he wasn't used to get visitors in New York, Shinichi knew that he was instinctively thoroughly when it came to Bell, so that even his fatigue was no threat to his secret.
Once he was back in the kitchen, Shinichi got rid of the half-eaten toast along with the plate and his mug, putting it into the sink. Only now he became aware of the chaos he'd created in the one night he had spent in the property of the doctor. But before he was able to explain himself or even apologize, his host decided to speak first. The doctor's eyes meticulously studied the crowed coffee table while he spoke.
"It seems like you've decided not to waste the night Professor, any news?" Matzudo was about to turn a piece of paper full of his scribbles before Bell turned around to him, to pick it out of the delicate fingers of the doctor.
"Nothing earth-shattering, I fear." With this confession, Shinichi collected the few usable pieces of paper into a book and tugged it under his arm.
Despite all the kindness the pathologist had showed him, he wasn't about to give him a glimpse at his cards. But when Shinichi looked up to him, an honest smile was displayed on the doctor's lips.
"You intend to solve the case."
"Huh?" Shinichi blinked, because of the strange question, before a sharp smile came to his lips.
"Indeed, I will."
The pathologist clapped his hands with a laugh and adjusted the ring on his finger until he cheerfully nodded to Bell.
"I'm really glad that York was able to convince you to help us. I'm sure you'll be a big asset for this case and the police force of course."
Shinichi returned the smile, heading for the front door getting Bells jacket from the wardrobe, while Matzudo was following him.
"I do hope so, doctor." But the smile faded behind his mask.
'Even when I doubt that the police force shares your opinion - especially one of them.'
XXX
They weren't late this time, so that beside an annoyed Superintendent and a slight bleary couple no one had taken a seat at the conference table. With a brief greeting, Bell joined the small group that had immediately become silent once he and Matzudo had entered the room, before he took his seat opposite of Takagi at the big table.
Hi eyes went to the side, drifting longingly to the wide open window. He didn't know if it was a good idea to mix the sweltering heat outside with the depressing mood inside their room. Although no clouds currently hovered over Tokyo, one could feel that a storm was coming.
While Sato and Takagi debated about how Miwako's mother was spoiling her little granddaughter, Megure and Matzudo were chatting about another pathologist they both knew. Shinichi had no other option than to sort his quickly collected notes. Only when a obviously far too cheerful Hattori Heiji entered the room, Shinichi looked over his glasses towards him.
"Good morning, everyone!"
They greeted back, before Matzudo handed Megure his latest results and disappeared while Heiji took his seat right beside Takagi only to eye Bell with a feigned compassionate gaze.
"Well Professor, ya look like ya had a long night?"
Shinichi looked up into Hattori's cheerful face in annoyance.
The Osakan detective was bothered that Bell didn't look half as sleepy as he had expected, but the murky look and the extensive yawning of the American were reason enough for the little jibe.
Shinichi didn't bother to answer right away. He put the newspaper along with the two minor notes into his notebook. It angered him that he couldn't suppress another yawn, not to mention what he would like to throw at his former friend's head for his dumb comment.
'You're lucky Hattori, that Bell is such a polite guy'
With that thought he folded his hands across his documents to give the detective of the west a meek look over the rim of his glasses. His voice was calm when he finally spoke.
"Forgive me, Hattori-keiji, it seems like I am one of a few that cannot sleep calmly, while a murderer - who we should have arrested long ago - is still on the loose."
Shinichi could see how the corner of his friend's mouth twitched - it seemed like Bell had won the first round between them, after he had finished his sentence with a calm smile that slowly turned into a grin.
'One to nothing for me my friend'
Heiji however mirrored Bell's expression, even if anger still gleamed in his eyes.
'Wait and see, mister.'
But before the nonverbal duel of the two could go into the next round, Megure intervened by clearing his throat, so that the two brawlers finally paid attention.
"Alright, so what do we have, Hattori-kun? Anything new?"
Heiji turned his eyes away from Bell, to explain what results and new questions the day before had brought.
"First, I want ta reassure ya Megure-keishi, yar officers didn't made a mistake. They didn't forget ta ask 'bout other relatives. One could rather say that there just are none."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
Hattori explained the incident along with the young love and its consequences.
"So, we've got a murder on a murderer." The police officer muttered at the end of Hattori's tale.
"Did you figure out the background of the crime back then?"
Heiji looked towards Bell, thinking that the professor might intervene, before he told Megure what he had found yesterday after he had searched half of the database the whole night.
The murder had taken place over twelve years ago, back then the victim and his girlfriend had just met, but there was an obstacle between them. His former ex-girlfriend wasn't able to keep her hands from him, she had followed him, watched him and even threatened him. It was too extreme, so that the whole thing ended in a dispute. She didn't want to let go, he was her possession, but he didn't love her back anymore – so she was threatening his new love when something in him snapped.
"Because of tha rough circumstances tha court had only sentenced him ta several years of imprisonment. That's all I was able ta figure out, since I am here and not in Osaka, I haven't all the access I need." The superintended clearly understood the hint, nodding towards Takagi in request.
"If that's the case we might have records about it. You'll probably even find something in the press archive, Takagi."
"Already done, Megure-keishi."
"Very well, speaking of the press, Sato-keibu did you check on the photographer?"
Miwako nodded, pushing a loose strand of hair behind her ear, before she explained her investigations.
The name of the 28-years old reporter was Kiraba Otuchi. He lived in a small apartment not far from Beika and had smelled his chance for a big deal with the pictures. It didn't matter to him, what the police was thinking about his actions, the officer explained with a tart voice, when a knock on the door rudely interrupted her.
When the door opened after the request of the superintended, the smell of fresh coffee entered the room and helped to forget the fact that they were a little too late, when the audience saw all the brown paper cups of coffee stepping through the door.
A pretty annoyed and contrite Mori Kogoro appeared in the door fame, who – while he spoke to Megure- sent an evil smile to his appendages.
"Please forgive me Megure-keishi, but Ran and the kids wanted to get all of you some coffee, so it took somewhat longer to get here."
Megure just sighed in annoyance. What were a few more strands of grey hair if it earned him a fresh cup of coffee, especially at this time and during this case. He offered Mori to take a seat, before greeting Ran and the kids in their round.
'If it'll continue like this, we don't even need any press to tell people something, we can as well offer them a place at our table.' He groaned and drowned not only one but two pieces of sugar in his coffee.
'Takagi was right yesterday. It's almost like old times.' But instead of smiling, the officer only took a long slip of his now sickly sweet coffee.
Shinichi's heart had stopped beating by the first knock on the door.
He had known who'd been out there immediately.
All he'd wanted to do was to sprint from his seat to seal the door, even if a jump out of the window had also been a nice alternative.
He groaned, sliding a little bit deeper into his seat.
'Why, Ran?'
Even his inner voice held a desperate tone, but how should she know that her pure presence was torture for him.
She didn't even know who he was.
She just didn't know.
"Good morning, Professor!"
Her voice tore him back to reality, but when he saw Ran's bright smile, Shinichi wasn't quite sure if the hell of his own mind wasn't gentler.
She looked at the Professor, slowly growing nervous as she waited for him to mirror her smile, what he didn't. The grey suit he wore today made him look pale, his blue eyes looked through her like she was made of air. Her smile wavered but she kept it confident on her lips before she handed him one of the cups they brought with them.
"Coffee?"
"Huh?" He squinted at her rather insecure and was not able to properly look at Ran. She had pinned her hair up today, so that only a few strands flattered around her face, underlining the slight red touch on her cheeks. A sour taste inevitably crawled up his throat, no doubt she had dressed up especially for him. Shinichi's teeth were crunching together, he could not prevent that the corner of his mouth began to twitch beneath the squeezed 'Thank you', he offered to her when he took the cup from her.
Ran noticed the strange behavior of the professor, who just removed the plastic cover from his coffee, but instead of adding any milk or sugar, he just seemed to stare at it. He had been so talkative until yesterday, but today?
Today he didn't even look at her.
'Why?'
She gulped nervously, kneading the coffee cup in her hand, before she started a new attempt to start a conversation with the silent American.
"If- if you would like to, I can show you the city later this day, Professor. I- I mean, it's important to get to know about the locals to figure out the case, right?"
But instead that he finally looked at her, the American just refused her offer.
"Your offer is really friendly Mori-san, but I don't think that I'm worth the trouble. Also… I think you would rather spend the evening with your boyfriend."
"M-My boyfriend?"
Ran's voice sounded hoarse by sheer surprise, unsure and confused she looked to Bell whose attention still was in the depths of his coffee. For a brief moment, heat started to crawl beneath her skin, for only a second, she thought that Bell might be thinking about him … but that couldn't be possible, since… since they never have been a real couple.
How should he now that only one name came to her mind when he spoke about her "boyfriend". The young women swallowed, her cheeks were burning while she spoke in a barely perceptible voice.
"W-who do you mean, Professor?"
She just heard how Bell took a long breath, and for a brief moment she thought that she could see his face convulse.
'Awe come on, Ran, we're to old to play those games.'
Shinichi took the glasses from his nose, brushing his hand over his eyes in order to get rid of the picture of the young pair in the restaurant. Appraising, but unable to really read a single word, his gaze drove back to his note, before he continued in a fake bored tone.
"I'm talking about the young man from last night."
The bitter sound of Bell's voice surprised Ran, who slowly understood who the professor was thinking of.
Shinichi however, had trouble to continue speaking because he tried his hardest not to become loud.
"I'm sure you've spent a nice evening together and I think he would love to join you for a walk through the city."
Ran blinked in surprise, she would have laughed about the thought that Bell believed Eisuke to be her boyfriend, if it not had been for his cold tone, which had hurt at some point. But now she had no other option than to explain it to him with a red shade of embarrassment.
"You're wrong, Professor, Eisuke is just-"
"Ran!"
She twitched beneath Megure's slightly louder voice, turning around to face him. The superintendent couldn't hide the annoyance on his face while he asked them for attention.
"I'm glad that you seem to get along so well with our guest, but I would be rather thankful if I could continue the investigation."
Shinichi's gaze drove to her from the corner of his eye, observing how Ran's own look lowered in embarrassment while she was kneading her fingers in her lap. Blame gnawed on him, digging his way deeper and deeper into his conscience.
It was his fault that Megure was lecturing her.
'Well done, Kudo!'
What a great actor he was, it must be obvious for her that he was jealous, and even if he tried not to be, the thought of Hondo made bile crawling up his throat.
Thankfully, Megure didn't seem to notice any of it, instead he nodded towards Ran, before his attention drove back to everyone else.
"Alright, where were we? The press… right. So, what do you think of this guy, Sato-keibu?"
The police officer put her notes into a neat pile, before she replied with a slight sour tone in her voice.
"We should get a closer look at him in any case. Something about him seems to be not quite kosher. On the other hand, we don't have any evidence, nor a motive or any connection to the victims right now."
Megure nodded gravely. In short, they had nothing.
So far, all their investigations came to nothing while this madman was still on the loose.
"Fine, I want you to keep an eye on him. Let's go on with victim number two. Again Matzudo-hakase's investigations didn't show anything that we don't already now. What've you got Hattori-kun?"
Heiji pushed his report over the table toward Megure, without bothering with too much details.
"Tha questionin' went without much of a result, but at least we were finally able ta get a connection between tha victims."
A brief triumphant smile accompanied his words.
"Tha parents recognized tha first victim on tha photo we showed them. They told us that her daughter had seen this man a few times in a small café nearby, so we finally have our first track."
The older police officer already took a heavy breath, excited to shoot more questions at Hattori, before Bell got between them with a cool and objective tone. The American obviously didn't share the euphoria of his fellow investigators.
"I think we've got even more than "just" the café." His eyes questioningly turned to the Detective Boys, so that his look involuntarily grazed Ran as well.
"Wasn't there something strange about the old couple?"
The high schoolers only shot him confused looks.
"You mean the parents?" Genta looked like someone had just told him that ell on rice had been sold out, but the other detective members also seemed to find it hard to give a response.
"Well, they were a bit… upset."
"And sad, of course," added Ayumi, while her gaze remained pinned on her now empty cup of coffee.
Shinichi only sighed, it was the same with his students in New York. The three of them had been fooled by the obvious behavior of the couple. It was just the reaction someone would expect from parents who'd just lost her daughter to a murder. He didn't know why, but he knew that her parents had not been honest with them yesterday. In response to the suggestions of the three, the detective merely shook his head.
"No, that's not it. I would rather say that-"
"Mr. Bell."
The harsh tone in which Megure interrupted him, made even Shinichi wince. He slowly turned to the officer, who tried to hold up a neutral look, but Shinichi could tell by the twitching of his moustache that he was not amused of Bell getting off topic.
"The two have just lost their daughter, it's no surprise that they are not themselves right now."
Shinichi just wanted to object when Hattori cut him short.
"I think we should focus on the café for now. We might even find something about our murderer, or is there a problem with that, professor?"
Bell obeyed the demanding look of his colleague. Just for a brief second the eyes of the two detectives met, before Bell's gaze finally lowered. He could understand that Megure jumped on Hattori's train of thought for now. For one, he wasn't even a real part of the team and on the other hand, Heiji had offered Megure a little spark of hope. No wonder that he didn't want Bell to tell him about his doubts.
'However… a puzzle is just as good as each part of it, you should know that Hattori. What's going on with you?'
But Shinichi's gaze went unnoticed, the officer from Osaka was already about to explain the facts about the small café to Megure, even if the result was rather disillusioning.
In such a case the examination of the café would unfortunately not be as easy as an amateur who had red a few detective novels would expect. They could not just bust in there to interview the guests and owner without that someone would notice that they thought the establishment had some connection to the past murders.
That would not only cause the press to siege the small bistro, but as well bring the chance that the owner would call them in due to defamation so that they would all get an appointment with the court. Both of them where events, which generally weren't appreciated by the police and their superintendent, so that they would rather avoid them under all circumstances.
So it would take some time before they would be able to visit the café.
They would only lose more time.
Time they needed.
Time in which the murderer would be able to choose a new victim.
On the other hand, the rules didn't work for him.
Shinichi couldn't hide a small grin. There had always been a reason that he didn't wanted to get a job on the department.
Because who could have something against a harmless American tourist visiting a cute small café in the city.
XXX
A couple of blocks from the police department away a slightly absent-minded scientist had trouble getting the bite of his morning scrambled eggs down his throat. For one thing his former roommate would not tolerate such a cholesterol bomb, for the other because his stomach was already filled to the brim with doubts and self-recrimination.
What had been hope and relieve yesterday was now replaced by concern that sucked all fortitude from Agasa like a bloodthirsty mosquito. The old man sighed, slipping uneasily back and forth in his chair while his eyes fell on the photo in the newspaper.
Names had not fallen between them just like they hadn't exchanged any promises and yet the old man knew that he would rather ask him to keep quiet about it.
Just like ten years ago.
But just like last time, the professor was torn by his loyalty of two parties. Of course, it wasn't his secret to tell, but on the other hand it seemed just as wrong to keep silent about it.
At least towards his parents.
'In what have you gotten me into this time, Shinichi?'
The scientist swallowed, just for a second his gaze wandered back to his picture in the newspaper. His false image, with a false face, name and age.
The least thing he could do was telling it to him. Maybe he had an idea how to deal with this secret. His eyes narrowed when he pushed himself up from the kitchen table, putting his now cold eggs into the dumpster, his appetite was gone anyway.
However, it was better if he only spoke to him about it. Yusaku could still decide if it was good for Yukiko to know or not. Despite his brave decision, it took remarkably long before the old man reached his neighbor's house and his finger reached for the bell when someone tore the door open in just that moment as if they had expected his coming.
"Good morning, Hiroshi!" Yukiko stopped abruptly in front of him, looking at him surprised, albeit friendly.
"If you want to talk to Yusaku, he has barricaded himself in his library again and when you're on it, tell him that I take his car to go shopping. It's standing closer to the gate."
Agasa's reaction wasn't more than a brief blink, when Yukiko passed him by. Her curls jumped up and down while she ran to the car. The actress was obviously in a hurry. The professor heard how the car howled and slowly closed the door behind him, still a little paralyzed.
Heavy steps guided him through the rooms of the Kudo's manor. He should be happy that routine got its way back into his neighbors live, but he could feel that this was about to change again soon.
Yusaku awaited him in his library. The author didn't look up when the professor entered the room, his fingers hammered on the keyboard of his laptop, while the ash of his cigarette, which was pressed between his lips, slowly braised away without that his lungs got in contact with the nicotine.
Since the professor knew Yusaku well enough, he was sure that the author was aware of his entrance. Just a while after he had closed the door behind him, the rattling of the keyboard stopped and Agasa heard how the laptop slowly drove into standby, leaving the two of them alone.
Before Yusaku looked up, he pressed the puny rest of his cigarette into an empty ashtray. The professor guessed that without Yukiko's aversion against the stench of smoke, it probably would be overflowing by now.
When Yusaku finally looked up to greet him, he noticed the unusual pallor on the cheeks of his neighbor, who now slowly went towards him to settle down on the chair opposite Yusaku.
"Good morning, professor, what can I do for you?"
But the addressee just passes his question with a smile, while his hands nervously struggled in his lap.
"Yukiko just made her way into the city to run a few errands, she asked me to tell you that she took your car, probably because she had no desire do repark it."
Even if Yusaku didn't like the thought that his wife was about to drive his poor old motor at full speed, he wasn't about to react to the professor's maneuver, instead he skeptically raised his eyebrow, while his question held a slight skeptic tone.
"What's wrong, Hiroshi?"
Caught, the old man gasped for air, avoiding the gaze of Shinichi's dad, speaking more into his beard than with his old friend.
"Have you ever heard of William Bell, Yusaku?"
Since the eyes of the professor still rested on his own hands, he hadn't the opportunity to see the authors reaction, and even if - he wouldn't have seen much more but the slight twitch of his delicate fingers.
It took a while before Yusaku moved again, so that the professor looked towards him. The short hiss he got instead of an answer, came from Yusaku's lighter that he just used to light another cigarette.
Agasa's worried look crossed the tabletop. The fact that Yusaku was smoking that much was mostly a sing of stress. But even before the professor could say anything, Yusaku stood up and slowly distanced himself from his desk, before he remained standing with his back to his old friend in front of one of the many bookshelves.
"What about him?"
Agasa gulped, his throat felt as dry as a desert.
"You- I'm sure you know that he's working with the police here in Japan to catch his "Holmes" guy."
The professor couldn't see how goosebumps formed themselves on Yusaku's neck, his heartbeat was fastening while he grumbly agreed with him.
"Mhm… I've read about him in the newspaper. Besides-" He pulled a book off the shelf, before he turned back to his friend putting it down on the desk in front of him.
"As you can see, his work is not entirely unknown to me. What's the matter with him, Professor?"
The author was leaning slightly forward, pushing himself up with one hand on his desk while he was holding his glowing cigarette with the other.
"So?"
Agasa needed to swallow inevitably, he was halfway shocked how gravelly his voice was before he uncertainly began to explain.
"I met him, two- two days ago." He could see the scene displaying in front of his eyes again. It seemed so real that even Yusaku's cigarette started to smell like the smoke of the incense sticks from the cemetery.
How should he tell the author what he had seen?
How should he explain it to Yusaku?
Especially, while he still couldn't explain it to himself.
The truth was that the professor had no idea how Shinichi had done it or how he looked like beneath the mask of the American. The only thing he knew with certainty, even though he could not explain why or how, was that he not only met William Bell a few days ago - but Kudo Shinichi as well.
"It's- it's Shinichi. Bell - he is Shinichi."
The professor had almost pressed out the few words through his lips. Without an explanation, without beating around the bush, just this one truth that spoken out loud only sounded even more implausible in his own ears. Agasa closed his eyes, waiting for Yusaku's reaction.
But there was none.
When his pulse slowly turned back to a normal range, it still was silent around them. Only slowly Agasa allowed himself to reopen his eyes to take a look at his neighbor. But what he saw made him forget to breathe for a few seconds.
Yusaku had not turned away from him, he was still standing quietly before him. The grey remains of his cigarette were building a fragile grey tower at the end of his filter. A dark shadow lingered over the dark blue eyes of the writer.
'What?'
The professor grew pale around his nose. He could feel how little drops of sweat were running down his neck. He stared up at his friend in disbelieve, barely managed to keep his mouth from hanging wide open.
"Y-Yusaku?"
The author swallowed and turned around to avert the professor's gaze that he could feel tingling on his skin before he slowly began to distance himself from him with rigid steps.
Agasa however, didn't share the calm of his friend any longer when it dawned on him what was going on. This behavior was typical, for both father and son.
"Yusaku!?"
The now stern vice of Hiroshi made him stop in the middle of his movements. His pulse was racing and the scientist could hear how his friend took a heavy breath. Yusaku just waited for Agasa to make him speak, but the silence made both of the two men speechless for a while. It took some time until the professor was able to breathe again.
"You- did you know about that? Yusaku, did you know?"
Yusaku, who had heard the rough and accusatory voice of his friend, bit his lips and closed his eyes. He closed his trembling hands into fists, to keep himself under control.
This had been bound to happen.
He swallowed, leaning his had back to stare at the ceiling. He had already guessed what Agasa wanted when he had entered his library all pale.
He should really work on his acting skills. He knew his features had given him away as soon as Agasa had started to talk about him.
'Shinichi…'
The author sighed silently. He had blown his cover, to continue lying to the Professor was senseless now and beside he just couldn't. A sad smile slowly stole itself on his lips.
'Just like you, Shinichi… huh?'
He sighed again and swallowed before he turned back to the professor, who was still standing in front of him, waiting for an answer. His attitude and the fact that he was avoiding his eyes was all the professor needed for his suspicions to be confirmed. He couldn't believe what was happening here.
"So, you knew, all the time. And you didn't tell us anything? Damn it, Yusaku, you knew and yet all of us thought that-"
"Hiroshi, please."
Yusaku interrupted his friend in a calm tone, the at the beginning whispered words were starting to get loud. The old man just shook his head and let himself sink back into his chair in sheer exhaustion, before he tiredly rubbed his temples.
"I- I just can't believe it."
The writer bit his lips, he went back to the table but kept standing, just finally extinguished his cigarette that he merely tasted but not smoked.
"I never really knew for sure."
"But, you just-"
But Yusaku blocked him with a move of his hand.
"I had my suspicions, yes, but I never truly knew, not until now."
The author finally settled down in his chair with a weary sigh, driving his hand through his hair. He still wasn't able to look the professor in the eye, who was still shaking his head in disbelieve.
He just couldn't understand it.
"But how? How for God's sake did you… or - has he told you something?"
"No." Shinichi's father took a heavy breath, leaning back in his chair, staring at the light on the ceiling.
"I just told you that I didn't know about it."
When his eyes lowered themselves, the professor recognized a hint of pain in them, what confirmed that Yusaku was speaking the truth. The writher however, went back to his explanations.
"Here." He straightened in his seat and passed the book that he had previously taken from the shelf over the desk to the professor.
"He could've just sent me a fingerprint, it would have been the same." Yusaku laughed humorlessly, shaking his head.
"The style, the manner of writing and his choice of words are always allowing conclusions about the author. For a stranger all those things are just a style to recognize, but for someone who personally knows the author it's like a personal signature that he left behind every single time, if he wanted it or not."
For a brief moment, Yusaku's fingers brushed over the golden letters that spelled out the author's name. A little smile flickered on his lips, while his eyes got stuck on the alias.
'It seems like you're still not very creative with that one right, Shinichi?'
But the longer his eyes rested on the fake name of his son, the faster his smile vanished from his lips.
"How is he?"
Agasa blinked, he looked towards Yusaku who now met his eyes with a stern gaze, but not only his words but his face also held worry in it. He hadn't heard from his son the past ten years.
The old man swallowed, tugging at his collar, but neither the answer nor breathing became easier that way.
"Ah… I'm not sure. As far as I can tell, I would say he's alright. Even if he looked a little upset, given the circumstances."
Yusaku immediately realized that the professor's thoughts went back to his meeting with Shinichi, his dull eyes drifted to the side in memory, so that the author had to make himself noticeable again, to get his attention.
"So?"
The professor bit his lips, nervously wriggling about in his seat.
"Well… our meeting, we- I met him at the cemetery," the professor stuttered, but one short look to Yusaku told him that he wasn't satisfied with his response yet.
"I was at her grave. I think- I don't know whether he was searching for it. He at least seemed shocked to me."
Yusaku swallowed, but the lump in his throat didn't move.
"So, he hadn't seen it yet…", he murmured, more to himself than to his visitor, while thoughtfully brushing his finger through his moustache.
The professor however looked up again. He wasn't sure what Yusaku meant, looking up to him in slight confusion.
"What? What do you mean, Yusaku? He- Shinichi has to know that-"
"No. No, Hiroshi." The tone in which Yusaku spoke to the professor wasn't loud, but determined just like his eyes, which's sharp gaze was now focused back to Agasa.
"I don't think he knows."
"Yes- But!"
But the author waved him off.
"It's not important for now, beside these are all just assumptions." Without looking back to Agasa again, Yusaku questioned him further.
"You haven't told anyone else about your suspicions, right?" The slightly raised eyebrow of Yusaku was answered with a shake of the professor's head.
"No, of course not."
"Alright. It's better if it stays that way, for now."
His neighbor made a face like he had just bitten into a lemon.
"But Yusaku, he might need our-"
"Help?" Yusaku only shook his head.
"If he needs it he can get it. But we do no longer know the case well enough, professor. Trust me, I don't like it either, but if we act now we probably only cause more harm than we're able to help."
As calm as Yusaku's voice seemed, when he finished his sentence the professor had the unmistakable feeling that the words "I'm sorry" lingered on the author's lips.
Because that's what Yusaku looked like right now.
He was sorry.
Sorry that he wasn't able to do anything.
Yusaku needed to let Shinichi continue what he was doing if he liked it or not. The professor swallowed, but nodded and followed Yusaku, who now opened his laptop again, to tell his neighbor that way that their conversation was over, at least for now. The scientist however had still something on his mind.
"What about Yukiko?"
The hands of the author stopped immediately and remained frozen on the keyboard. The professor wouldn't have needed to ask this question, they both knew that and yet he did try to stay polite, not jumping to conclusions.
"Does she know?"
The authors answer came reluctantly.
"No… no she don't."
"But Yusaku, she must think that-"
The author just nodded, taking a breathe before he looked into the winkled rimmed eyes of the professor.
"It's safer for her not to know, professor. She's his mother, she would try to help her son at all costs. Rationality aside… she is his mother."
"But-"
"Please, professor. Please." Yusaku looked up, he could tell from the professor's face that he didn't like it, at all. All that aside, he knew that the old man had lost a lot in the last years.
Nonetheless, Agasa nodded, before he finally left the room. The author looked after his old friend rather worried. Even when the knowledge of Shinichi brought relieve with it, the professor now was tormented by the same questions that had haunted his own mind for a while now.
'However, I'll think that we're about to get our answers sooner than we'd like to.'
His eyes fell back to the book that still lay on the edge of his desk. One could see by the cover of the book how well Yusaku truly had studied it. He'd had his doubts but now he finally had his proof.
'You've made your first step back, Shinichi. Like it or not - but your past will overtake you at some point.'
A tried smile lingered beneath the grey tinged moustache.
"Take care of you… Professor Bell."
Hey everyone!
A new month a new chapter, like always I want to thank Tobina for correcting this story! And of course a big thank you to those who reviewed!
As always reviews for this chapter would be loved and appreciated.
I wish you a nice day/night- till next month.
I hope I see you in the reviews ^.~
Shelling~