Shinichi walked home slowly after seeing Ran at the hospital. He couldn¡¦t believe anyone would do such a thing to Ran. If Ran died¡K He didn¡¦t want to think about it. Heiji and Kazuha had gone back to the hotel they were staying in, Kogoro had gone back to the Mouri Detective Agency, and Eri had decided to spend the night at the hospital. It was raining, and it seemed as if the sky was crying for Ran, just as her friends and family were worried for her. Why had Ran been shot? She didn¡¦t know anything, and she was so innocent. There was no way Ran could have ever done anything bad enough for someone to want her dead. Shinichi was positive of that. Ran would never hurt anyone, or even anything. A picture of Ran in the hospital appeared in his mind. She really was like an orchid, lovely, ethereal, and fragile. Normally, there was strength in her too, but now all of it was gone, drained away. Ran¡¦s life was so precious; Shinichi didn¡¦t want to think about what would happen if the orchid were killed just as it was beginning to bloom. Anger surged through him as he thought of Ran¡¦s condition. It was so unfair. Ran didn¡¦t deserve this.

Raindrops continued to fall from the dark sky, and a bolt of lightning suddenly flashed and lit the sky. In the flash of light, Shinichi was able to see someone lying on the street in front of him, and he hurried over to check on it. A figure was huddled on the street, wet and unconscious. Somehow, he didn¡¦t need any light to know that the figure had red hair. His eyebrows knit together as he frowned. He was tempted to leave Shiho on the street, she was a criminal, but he knew he couldn¡¦t do that. He couldn¡¦t leave anyone out on the street on a night like this, not even his worst enemy. What she had done to him didn¡¦t matter, he knew he couldn¡¦t stoop that low. He sighed. At least it wasn¡¦t that far to his house.

Shiho¡¦s eyes opened. At first, everything speared to be a blur to her, but gradually, she was able to focus. She looked around her, but was unable to figure out where she was. She slowly sat up and pushed the covers away from her; she was on a bed. There was no sign of anyone else in the room. She got off the bed and walked unsteadily to the door. She reached out for the doorknob and was about to turn it when the door was flung open and Shinichi walked into the room as Shiho fell back in surprise. Shinichi walked over to help her up, but Shiho slapped his hand away and used a chair beside her to pull herself up.

¡§ You¡¦re finally up.¡¨ Shinichi observed coolly as he moved in front of her.

¡§ You saved me?¡¨ Shiho asked in disbelief. Her eyes burned coldly and she tried not to look at Shinichi.

¡§ You were unconscious on the street. If I hadn¡¦t saved you, you¡¦d still be out in the rain right now.¡¨ Shinichi informed her.

¡§ I wish you hadn¡¦t. I don¡¦t want to see you again.¡¨ Shiho snapped. ¡§ Why did you save me?¡¨

¡§ I couldn¡¦t leave someone out on the streets to die.¡¨ Shinichi scowled.

¡§ I¡¦m not like you. I don¡¦t care about justice or being honorable. I don¡¦t care about what¡¦s right or what¡¦s wrong. I just follow my heart.¡¨ Shiho told him. ¡§ You¡¦ll regret saving me, you know.¡¨

¡§ Follow your heart?¡¨ Shinichi repeated blankly and sarcastically. Then, he started yelling at her furiously. ¡§ You¡¦re insane! What did your black heart tell you to do? Join a criminal organization, make drugs to ruin people¡¦ s lives, kill me? Do you have a heart at all? What¡¦s wrong with you? How can you harm so many people? They¡¦re not objects, they have lives, feelings, you know. You kill them just as easily as shredding a sheet of paper, just ripping it apart! You tell lies just as easily as you breathe! Where is your heart?¡¨

¡§ Fine! You¡¦re right! I¡¦m just a filthy criminal! I don¡¦t have a heart! If I do, it¡¦s black. You don¡¦t care if I¡¦m dead or alive, it doesn¡¦t matter to you! I like to tell lies, and I love killing people. No matter what I say to you, you shouldn¡¦t believe me. If I get killed by someone, it would serve me right.¡¨ Shiho screamed. She didn¡¦t know what he was talking about when he said ¡§ criminal organization¡¨, or ¡§ making drugs¡¨, and he was the only person she¡¦d ever tried to kill. She didn¡¦t care, though; he didn¡¦t have any right to yell at her like this. She couldn¡¦t believe she¡¦d ever hesitated to kill him, and she wished he were dead, but somehow she knew that even if she had another chance to kill him, she still wouldn¡¦t be able to do it. She sat down weakly on the bed.

Shinichi stared at her. He couldn¡¦t believe she was admitting it to him. Then she had been lying to him the entire time. She had never betrayed the Organization; she had always been part of it. She was so loyal to the Organization; she had been willing to take APTX-4869 to find out if he were still alive.

¡§ You really want me dead that much?¡¨ he asked hoarsely.

¡§ Yes. I hate you!¡¨ Shiho shouted. ¡§ I¡¦m leaving now.¡¨

¡§ Wait. If you want to leave, I won¡¦t try to stop you, but there¡¦s something I have to find out.¡¨ Shinichi cried as she walked past him. Shiho ignored him and continued to walk. Shinichi grabbed her wrist and held it tightly. Shiho tried to pull away, but Shinichi¡¦s grip was too tight. ¡§ You sent Ran to the hospital, didn¡¦t you? That red haired girl was you, right?¡¨

¡§ Yes, it was me. Can I go now?¡¨ Shiho demanded as she tried to pull away again.

¡§ Thank you. You saved her life. Do you know that?¡¨ Shinichi felt all of his hostility towards Shiho vanish when he learned that she had saved Ran¡¦s life. He realized that if she really didn¡¦t have a heart, she wouldn¡¦t have saved Ran. But after what she¡¦d just said, he didn¡¦t really know what to believe.

¡§ You don¡¦t have to thank me. No matter what you believe, I can¡¦t just let a girl I don¡¦t know die on the street.¡¨ Shiho said icily. She managed to shake Shinichi¡¦s hand off and calmly walked back out into the rain.

¡§ Did she really lose her memory? Or is she just a great actress?¡¨ Shinichi asked himself, wondering why she had been unconscious on the street at all. How could she have lost her memory?

¡§ Wait! Do you know anything about what happened? I mean, why she got shot?¡¨ Shinichi inquired.

¡§ No. Ask her when she gets up.¡¨ Shiho coolly replied.

¡§ One more thing.¡¨ Shinichi told her.

¡§ What is it now?¡¨ Shiho wondered impatiently.

¡§ It¡¦s raining awfully hard. Take this umbrella.¡¨ Shinichi handed her a black umbrella.

¡§ Thanks.¡¨ Shiho said grudgingly as she snatched the umbrella. She opened it and walked away into the darkness.