Notes: I was asked in my most recent review of this story, not to use the original codenames of Melkior and Kaspar (Gin and Vodka, not in that order). So, being the nice person that I am, I agreed. :P

Chapter 4

Conan tried his best not to pull away and yell in pain. Dr. Agasa winced for the boy as he cleaned off the huge gash on the back of his head. Heiji Hattori, the Great Western Detective, sat on the opposite couch, his elbows on his thighs and his hands clasped loosely between his knees. His head was bowed in thought; he had just finished relaying the events of the afternoon to the doctor.

"And how long has these men been tailing you, Shinichi?" the old man asked his charge. Conan gritted his teeth and shook his head as little as he possibly could.

"I noticed them last night," the other boy spoke up. "One of them, anyway. They were definitely after Ran."

"But I don't understand why," Agasa reached for the bandages. "I'm sure Shinichi hasn't let his identity slip," he looked down at the bloody boy and added: "have you?"

"I haven't said a word," he grunted with effort.

"The organization must have figured it out," Hattori guessed. "They must have overheard her talking about Shinichi, and must have definitely seen me with her last night. They probably thought what she did—she was talking to the real Shinichi Kudo."

"In other words, this is my fault," Conan groaned as Agasa tied the bandage tight around his skull. He hopped off the couch and began to pace, ignoring the wave of dizziness that slapped him upside the head. "I asked Hattori to pose as myself, for Ran's sake. And they saw, assumed I was still alive, and grabbed her."

"How did they guess you were still alive, though?" Dr. Agasa gathered up the materials. "I admit, they could have heard her talking and possibly seen her with Heiji last night, but what would cause them enough suspicion to put a look-out at your house?"

"The newspapers," Heiji concluded. "There was nothing in them about a mysterious death, and with a reputation like Kudo's, the murder couldn't have gone un-noticed. It would have been all over the papers for months."

"And with only that, they guessed you were still alive?"

"I've done more with less," Conan responded dryly, jamming his hands into his pockets.

"So, we have to figure out where they've taken Ran," Heiji spoke up.

Conan looked up at Agasa. "That's why I asked Heiji to bring me here—we need to fix my glasses. I can't track her without them."

"It will take some time to fix them…" the older man spoke hesitantly. Conan slammed his hands down on the coffee table, knocking over the candy dish placed atop it.

"Ran's in danger and this is the only way I can save her!" he shouted. "I want those glasses fixed yesterday!"

"Shinichi," Dr. Agasa tried to touch his shoulder reassuringly, "I can work as fast as I dare, but these things take time, and you know that."

"What about that girl?" Hattori spoke up suddenly. "The one that shrunk too. Hai…"

"Ai Haibara!" Conan blinked. "Of course! She's got to know where their headquarters are located!"

"Wait!" Heiji interrupted. "If they figure the same thing that happened to you happened to Ai, wouldn't they be after her too?"

"Shit!" Conan ran to the front door.

"Shinichi!" Dr. Agasa cried after him. "Your injuries—!"

"Fix those glasses, doc!" he yelled over his shoulder and wrenched the front door open. "Heiji, contact Detective Mouri!"

He tumbled outside and looked around frantically, spotting the solar skateboard in the grass by the porch. He grabbed it and ran out to the street, throwing it on the ground and hopping onto it. His heel kicked the switch, the solar panels opened, and Conan rocketed off to Ai's apartment.

The two men moved her body from the backseat of the car and into the freight elevator. Vodka hit the button for the floor they needed, and the doors slid closed with a hiss. They began to ascend. Gin glanced down at the young woman lying in a heap on the floor.

"Is she going to tell the truth, do you think?" he asked his superior.

The other shrugged: "If she knows what's good for her."

"What about that truth serum thing Shiho was working on before she tried to cut and run?"

"We'll use it. Let's just hope it doesn't fail, like the last drug."

"Hey, do you think if the kid didn't die from it, then Shiho—?"

"Someone's looking for her now. We already assumed she got in contact with detective-boy. Now it's just a matter of time before we locate her."

"Are they going to bring her back to headquarters?"

"No."

The elevator arrived at its destination. The doors opened and Vodka bent down and grabbed the girl's arms. Gin took it as a non-verbal "shut up" and reached for her legs. His eyes caught something on the other man and as they lifted her up and exited the elevator, he found he couldn't stop himself.

"Boss, what happened to your face?"

"She kicked me as I was giving her the tranquilizer."

"Oh."

Conan leapt off and didn't even bother retracting the solar panels. He raced up the steps to her apartment and banged on the door. Several startled yelps sounded from the room and he mentally cursed—Ai was not alone.

The aforementioned girl pulled open the door. "Shi—er, Conan? What are you doing here?" She got a better look at him. "And what happened to your head?"

"Ai, we have to go. We have to leave now!" he grabbed her wrist.

"What's the big hurry, Conan?"

He glanced at her company: Ayumi, Genta, and Mitsuhiko. It was Genta who had spoken. "Conan, your head!" Ayumi gasped.

"Did you fall off the skateboard?" Mitsuhiko raised an eyebrow. Conan couldn't think of anything else off the top of his head, so he nodded.

"You still haven't answered my question," Genta crossed his sizable arms over his chest. Conan tried to think of something to tell them.

"I… Ran's invited Ai to dinner."

"And not us?" Ayumi looked hurt.

Conan locked eyes with Ai and pleaded with her silently. She lifted an eyebrow and glanced back at their friends.

"We'll be right back," she called and shoved him out into the hallway. He stumbled and she closed the apartment door behind them.

"What's going on, Shinichi?" she asked in a low voice.

"It's the Black Organization!" he nearly shouted and she hushed him violently. He lowered his voice, but only slightly: "They've taken Ran!"

"What?" she gasped. "But, they couldn't have found out about you, could they?"

"Hattori thinks differently, and so do I," he shook his head. "I came to get you and move you to a safe place."

"Did they follow you here?" she glanced nervously over his shoulder.

"I don't think so," he glanced back as well. "But you're in danger as long as you're alone. I'm taking you to Agasa's place for a bit—"

Her eyes skipped over his shoulder and he froze. Heavy footsteps sounded behind them on the staircase. Wordlessly, he grabbed her hand and pulled her back inside the apartment, shutting the door behind them and leaning against it, gasping for breath.

"Conan, where are your glasses?" Ayumi came up to them. He looked at her, then at Ai, and then at the room itself.

"Look guys, there's no time to explain," he got away from the door and motioned for Ai to lock it. She did without question. "There are some men in black coats around here, and I think they're after me." He couldn't say what was really going on, that would take too much time. "Because I live with Kogoro. It might be one of the people he's convicted, or their family or friends."

"Are you pulling our legs?" Mitsuhiko made a face. Conan paused to listen out into the hallway. The footsteps were on this floor, and getting closer.

"No, really, you have to believe me!" he said in a rush. "We all need to hide, and whatever happens, be totally silent and stay hidden! These guys mean business!"

"Do they have guns?" Ayumi whimpered.

"Most likely," Ai spoke up, then looked down at her feet.

"I have to get out of here," Conan walked into the center of the room, looking around. "Now, I have an idea, but you guys have to do exactly as I say, alright?"

The four present nodded.