Hey everyone! I am back! I hope you all enjoy this chapter. After this one all of the characters will come into the story, and the plot will develop more. It will get better, and much more interesting, so bear with me while I go though important, but kind of boring details. If you do I promise a quick update, so we can get to all interesting things with all of the characters involved! Thanks, enjoy, and please review!
The officers were kind to Joey offering him coffee, donuts, and anything else they could provide. All Joey really wanted though, was to see Serenity. To know she was okay, to hold her, to tell her that he loved her. Joey hated standing around, waiting to find out what happened to his sister. He had asked if he could aid in the search of Serenity, but Yugi had not allowed it. "No civilians are allowed to help," he had told Joey.
More and more cops were arriving to help look for Joey's baby sister. They had even brought in trained search dogs, helicopters, and a team of divers, who were going to search the nearby ocean. This, to Joey, was an ominous sign. Anything they found in the river would most certainly not be alive. He brought this fact to Yugi's attention. "Just covering all of our bases Joey," Yugi said smiling meekly. Joey didn't press the matter, but he felt the knot in his stomach grow just a little bit larger. The crackle of Yugi's radio startled Joey back into reality. "Trooper Mutou?" asked the voice on the other end. Unclipping the walkie-talkie from of his belt Yugi replied, "Yes?" There was a long silence before the officer responded. "I think you need to come in here," the man said quietly. Joey's eyes widened.
"Did they find her?" he asked, grabbing Yugi by the shirt collar. Yugi gently took Joey's hands off of him.
"I don't know anymore then you at this point. I'll let you know when I find anything out." With that Yugi lifted up the yellow Police Line: Do Not Cross tape, ducked under, and set off towards the woods. Joey watched Yugi disappear, his heart sinking. He hated not knowing if Serenity was alive or dead, hurt or perfectly fine. As nice as the police were being, they weren't telling him anything. Joey looked around, and saw that no one was paying attention to him. He quickly darted under the tape, and went in the same direction that Yugi had. If no one would tell him what was going on with his little sister, he would just find out for himself.
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As soon as Yugi was far enough way from Joey he spoke into his walkie-talkie. "Where are you?" he questioned.
"I sent an officer to the edge of the woods. He will take you to the scene," came the reply of his partner Takumi. Soon, the waiting officer came into Yugi's view. Neither of them said a word, but the man motioned for Yugi to follow him. A little way into the forest they came upon what Yugi surmised to be the crime scene. The place was crawling with cops, many holding dogs that were barking and pulling frantically at their leashes. Yugi spotted his partner, Takumi Satoru, on the balls of his feet peering into a hallowed out tree. Yugi approached Takumi, "What's up?" he asked, though he was sure he already knew the answer to that question. Takumi stood up and motioned towards the tree.
"Take a look for yourself," he told Yugi. Taking a deep breath, preparing himself for what he was about to look at, Yugi squatted down, and glanced into tree. It was all he could do to stop himself from crying. Curled into the fetal position inside of the tree was Serenity Wheeler. The once beautiful young woman was now a mess, beaten and shot through the head. Yugi stood up quickly, and looked away from the tree, tears stinging behind his eyes. Memories of a happy, smiling, Serenity kept running through his mind. He thought about Joey, and how devastated he would be. It was his wedding day for Christ's sake, he didn't deserve this.
"You going to be okay, Mutou?" Takumi asked. Yugi nodded, and forced a grim smile as he turned back towards his partner. He could see in Takumi's eyes that he didn't believe Yugi. He knew Yugi wasn't okay. Yugi knew it as well, and try as he might to fool himself, he knew in is heart that he would never be okay again until he found whoever had done this to Serenity.
"Since it is a park we have jurisdiction over the local cops," Takumi informed him. "Haruno, assigned us on the case, but you can always give up the it," he suggested. Yugi knew that would probably be the smartest move. He was too emotionally involved in the case, and he was trained to give up anything which he had personal ties to. At the same time he also knew that he needed to stay on the case, for Joey, for poor Serenity. They deserved to have someone working hard to catch the person who did this, and he knew that no one would work harder to solve this case than him.
"No," he firmly told Takumi. "I want this case." Takumi nodded, not saying a word.
"So," Yugi said deciding to concentrate on the case. "What do we know so far?" A grim look spread across Takumi's face.
"Not much," he answered truthfully. "Some boys made the 911 call when they found her car. We've been combing the area for evidence, but all we've been able to recover were some shoe prints that look to match the vic's."
"No other shoe prints besides the girl's?" Yugi asked in disbelief.
"Yeah, guess the rain last night washed away a lot of the evidence." Yugi doubted this statement, since some of Serenity's footprints were still intact, but he kept his mouth shut , and instead asked,
"Is there anything else?" Takumi let out a long sigh, shaking his head.
"Nope, that is about it," he replied.
"Shit," Yugi cursed quietly.
"My sentiments exactly." Yugi stood there, lost in his own thoughts. He couldn't believe this was happening, it still hadn't sunk in. Who would do this to Serenity? She was a wonderful person, with no real enemies, at least as far as Yugi knew. Everyone liked her, so it was hard for Yugi to fathom why, or even how somebody could have done this. Yugi glanced back at the hallowed out tree, and made a promise to himself to catch Serenity's killer no matter what. Now motivated by rage, sadness, and a promise, Yugi looked over at Takumi.
"Okay, we need to interview everyone who lives in the vicinity of this park. Someone may have seen or heard something. Then we need to find out what Serenity was doing last night, and who she was with. We have to interview everyone that saw her the night she died. We need to talk to her brother. She lived with him and his girlfriend. Her close friends also need to be brought in. Hopefully someone will have an idea as to who might have wanted her dead." Takumi nodded as he wrote down everything Yugi said. "We have to make sure the ME (A/N Medical Examiner for anyone who may not know) puts this case on the top of his list. When the body is taken away we have to make sure that tree is searched for bullets. If any are found, get them to ballistics right away. Oh… and…um, her brother is going to need to ID her body," Yugi said.
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Joey had lost sight of Yugi and the other officer, so it took him a while to arrive at the location to which Yugi had been heading. Making sure he was hidden from view by the trees, Joey slowly approached the congregation of cops. He scanned the area for Yugi, finding him talking to a tall, well-built officer, with a mop of black hair, and piercing black eyes. Yugi's face looked tense, and filled with concern. There was a hint of sadness in Yugi's large, violet, eyes as well. Joey attempted to move closer, in order to hear what Yugi was saying, but in the process he stepped on a stick. It made a loud cracking noise as it snapped in two, causing a nearby cop to turn around.
"Sir, you can't be here this is a secured area," the officer informed him.
"Listen, ta me! My sister in in dere and I wanna know what's goin' on!" Joey shouted. At the sound of Joey's voice, Yugi whipped around. A look of shock spread across his face, and his eyes widened as he yelled, "Get him out of here! He is the brother! Get him out!" Joey began to move towards Yugi, but before he got anywhere two men grabbed him, and began to take him away from the scene of the crime.
"Yugi!" Joey screamed. "Tell me what's going on! Is Serenity okay?" Yugi locked eyes with Joey, and the look on Yugi's face confirmed Joey's worst fears. He let out a howl, collapsing to the ground. He was still screaming, and crying as the cops took him away.
The officers were kind to Joey offering him coffee, donuts, and anything else they could provide. All Joey really wanted though, was to see Serenity. To know she was okay, to hold her, to tell her that he loved her. Joey hated standing around, waiting to find out what happened to his sister. He had asked if he could aid in the search of Serenity, but Yugi had not allowed it. "No civilians are allowed to help," he had told Joey.
More and more cops were arriving to help look for Joey's baby sister. They had even brought in trained search dogs, helicopters, and a team of divers, who were going to search the nearby ocean. This, to Joey, was an ominous sign. Anything they found in the river would most certainly not be alive. He brought this fact to Yugi's attention. "Just covering all of our bases Joey," Yugi said smiling meekly. Joey didn't press the matter, but he felt the knot in his stomach grow just a little bit larger. The crackle of Yugi's radio startled Joey back into reality. "Trooper Mutou?" asked the voice on the other end. Unclipping the walkie-talkie from of his belt Yugi replied, "Yes?" There was a long silence before the officer responded. "I think you need to come in here," the man said quietly. Joey's eyes widened.
"Did they find her?" he asked, grabbing Yugi by the shirt collar. Yugi gently took Joey's hands off of him.
"I don't know anymore then you at this point. I'll let you know when I find anything out." With that Yugi lifted up the yellow Police Line: Do Not Cross tape, ducked under, and set off towards the woods. Joey watched Yugi disappear, his heart sinking. He hated not knowing if Serenity was alive or dead, hurt or perfectly fine. As nice as the police were being, they weren't telling him anything. Joey looked around, and saw that no one was paying attention to him. He quickly darted under the tape, and went in the same direction that Yugi had. If no one would tell him what was going on with his little sister, he would just find out for himself.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As soon as Yugi was far enough way from Joey he spoke into his walkie-talkie. "Where are you?" he questioned.
"I sent an officer to the edge of the woods. He will take you to the scene," came the reply of his partner Takumi. Soon, the waiting officer came into Yugi's view. Neither of them said a word, but the man motioned for Yugi to follow him. A little way into the forest they came upon what Yugi surmised to be the crime scene. The place was crawling with cops, many holding dogs that were barking and pulling frantically at their leashes. Yugi spotted his partner, Takumi Satoru, on the balls of his feet peering into a hallowed out tree. Yugi approached Takumi, "What's up?" he asked, though he was sure he already knew the answer to that question. Takumi stood up and motioned towards the tree.
"Take a look for yourself," he told Yugi. Taking a deep breath, preparing himself for what he was about to look at, Yugi squatted down, and glanced into tree. It was all he could do to stop himself from crying. Curled into the fetal position inside of the tree was Serenity Wheeler. The once beautiful young woman was now a mess, beaten and shot through the head. Yugi stood up quickly, and looked away from the tree, tears stinging behind his eyes. Memories of a happy, smiling, Serenity kept running through his mind. He thought about Joey, and how devastated he would be. It was his wedding day for Christ's sake, he didn't deserve this.
"You going to be okay, Mutou?" Takumi asked. Yugi nodded, and forced a grim smile as he turned back towards his partner. He could see in Takumi's eyes that he didn't believe Yugi. He knew Yugi wasn't okay. Yugi knew it as well, and try as he might to fool himself, he knew in is heart that he would never be okay again until he found whoever had done this to Serenity.
"Since it is a park we have jurisdiction over the local cops," Takumi informed him. "Haruno, assigned us on the case, but you can always give up the it," he suggested. Yugi knew that would probably be the smartest move. He was too emotionally involved in the case, and he was trained to give up anything which he had personal ties to. At the same time he also knew that he needed to stay on the case, for Joey, for poor Serenity. They deserved to have someone working hard to catch the person who did this, and he knew that no one would work harder to solve this case than him.
"No," he firmly told Takumi. "I want this case." Takumi nodded, not saying a word.
"So," Yugi said deciding to concentrate on the case. "What do we know so far?" A grim look spread across Takumi's face.
"Not much," he answered truthfully. "Some boys made the 911 call when they found her car. We've been combing the area for evidence, but all we've been able to recover were some shoe prints that look to match the vic's."
"No other shoe prints besides the girl's?" Yugi asked in disbelief.
"Yeah, guess the rain last night washed away a lot of the evidence." Yugi doubted this statement, since some of Serenity's footprints were still intact, but he kept his mouth shut , and instead asked,
"Is there anything else?" Takumi let out a long sigh, shaking his head.
"Nope, that is about it," he replied.
"Shit," Yugi cursed quietly.
"My sentiments exactly." Yugi stood there, lost in his own thoughts. He couldn't believe this was happening, it still hadn't sunk in. Who would do this to Serenity? She was a wonderful person, with no real enemies, at least as far as Yugi knew. Everyone liked her, so it was hard for Yugi to fathom why, or even how somebody could have done this. Yugi glanced back at the hallowed out tree, and made a promise to himself to catch Serenity's killer no matter what. Now motivated by rage, sadness, and a promise, Yugi looked over at Takumi.
"Okay, we need to interview everyone who lives in the vicinity of this park. Someone may have seen or heard something. Then we need to find out what Serenity was doing last night, and who she was with. We have to interview everyone that saw her the night she died. We need to talk to her brother. She lived with him and his girlfriend. Her close friends also need to be brought in. Hopefully someone will have an idea as to who might have wanted her dead." Takumi nodded as he wrote down everything Yugi said. "We have to make sure the ME (A/N Medical Examiner for anyone who may not know) puts this case on the top of his list. When the body is taken away we have to make sure that tree is searched for bullets. If any are found, get them to ballistics right away. Oh… and…um, her brother is going to need to ID her body," Yugi said.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Joey had lost sight of Yugi and the other officer, so it took him a while to arrive at the location to which Yugi had been heading. Making sure he was hidden from view by the trees, Joey slowly approached the congregation of cops. He scanned the area for Yugi, finding him talking to a tall, well-built officer, with a mop of black hair, and piercing black eyes. Yugi's face looked tense, and filled with concern. There was a hint of sadness in Yugi's large, violet, eyes as well. Joey attempted to move closer, in order to hear what Yugi was saying, but in the process he stepped on a stick. It made a loud cracking noise as it snapped in two, causing a nearby cop to turn around.
"Sir, you can't be here this is a secured area," the officer informed him.
"Listen, ta me! My sister in in dere and I wanna know what's goin' on!" Joey shouted. At the sound of Joey's voice, Yugi whipped around. A look of shock spread across his face, and his eyes widened as he yelled, "Get him out of here! He is the brother! Get him out!" Joey began to move towards Yugi, but before he got anywhere two men grabbed him, and began to take him away from the scene of the crime.
"Yugi!" Joey screamed. "Tell me what's going on! Is Serenity okay?" Yugi locked eyes with Joey, and the look on Yugi's face confirmed Joey's worst fears. He let out a howl, collapsing to the ground. He was still screaming, and crying as the cops took him away.