A/N: Wow, word count before adding author notes is 4,444. :D
Finally I got this chapter written. I've been waiting for this so much. Shugo gets to do stuff and other stuff happens. The only problem was that I had too many scenarios in my head to choose from. ;)
I hope you guys enjoy this chapter.
The fifth file: The middle year
Sub-file three: Broadway murder (At backstage)
"What!? The killer is among the four actresses!?" Yukiko exclaimed when Shinichi began explaining his theory. The five of them made their way to the backstage. "You've got to be kidding…"
"I went up to the terrace right after the murder. The cartridge I found there was not releasing any heat! The culprit planted it in advance to make us believe the gun was who from the terrace." Shinichi told her.
"If someone had found it later, say when the police arrived, the ruse would've fallen through." Shugo added.
"But, you two saw it too. The red light beam was aiming at the stage from the terrace's direction." Yukiko frowned.
"Yeah, it seemed like it, didn't it? Only, we wouldn't know from which direction the light beam was coming from. Most likely the light was released from the stage towards the terrace, not the other way around… This would make it seem as if the gun was shot from the terrace."
"Especially considering the steep angle of the laser sight. It wasn't aiming at Heath who supposedly was in the air at the time, but lower, at the actresses." Shugo spoke up again.
"Yes, and our attention was diverted to the terrace too with the mysterious individual buying a seat like that and sending the weird gift. It all shadowed presence of a stalker and to make it out the murderer to be a nonexistent suspicious person."
"Oh wow…" Yukiko muttered.
"I see." Redwood blinked.
"Of course, this was one of her tricks too…" Shinichi kneeled by a scratch mark on the floor of the backstage.
"This is where the armor fell before the show…" Ran noticed.
"Take a good look on the floor. A thin nylon string tied to a nail… And right next to it is a cutting mark on the floor… The same nylon string was attached to the armor." The teenage detective told them.
"Then it was not an accident." Yukiko realized.
"Exactly. Probably the culprit dropped the armor by cutting the string with a knife blade planted on a shoe. It was easy to anticipate the backstage tour since we the friends of Sharon were vising the theatre."
"With couple of them having long dresses as their costumes, it's easy for any of them to conceal the movement." Shugo dug out his phone again and began tapping to it. Ran peered at it curiously but concentrated then when Shinichi's explanation continued.
"Anyone who was here could've dropped the armor. Moreover, just as long as she was on the same stage as Heath, is was possible to beam the light towards the audience and shoot the victim. Anyone of those four goddesses could've done it!"
"But Heath was 6 feet 3 inches tall. Those four actresses are way shorter than him… How could one shoot down a person taller than herself? Not only that but he was also behind the mirror." Redwood pointed out then.
"Yes, how?" Yukiko asked eagerly. "Tell us, Shin-chan!"
"I haven't gotten there yet…" The boy replied sheepishly.
"We need more information. Motive for example. And for that we need to interview all the actresses." Shugo added, not lifting his gaze from the phone screen. With the time being in flux, no one watched weirdly at his phone even if it was a touch screen one.
"Shugo, what are you doing?" Ran finally asked him.
"Ah, don't worry about it, Ran-chan." The hacker smiled back at her. "Just checking stuff." He couldn't exactly tell her that he was prodding firewalls of FBI network for weak spots.
Three of the actresses had been dating Heath. And one…
"Oh… Heath and Iberis were a married couple." Yukiko informed them. "Sharon told me earlier during the tour. They were keeping it from even the troupe members in fear of losing popularity… However, what we must figure out is how the killer shot Heath from above."
With a crucial piece of information missing, it was no wonder that the investigations were stuck. Rose was lying on the floor, Iberis was sitting, Akane kneeling… Lila was standing but her hands were in full view.
"Could Heath have been crouching?" Yukiko asked Redwood.
"No way… His legs were tied to the gimmicks of the wings. He couldn't bend over." The captain answered.
From that, Shinichi got an idea and went with Ran back to the stage.
"Yukiko-basan… I think I'll go to the lobby to wait for the investigation to wrap up… Call if you need anything." Shugo spoke up then.
"Ah, alright. See you soon." Yukiko waved at the boy's already retreating back. She had long ago decided to give up on making not call her '-basan' despite occasionally protesting. But Shugo was the only exception to the rule. The only one.
At the lobby, Shugo took a seat on one of the couches meant of theater guests to sit on whilst waiting for the plays to begin. He slipped off his backpack that he'd fetched from Yukiko's car and took out his 'new' laptop. It was actually older model but still bought after his own one. It worked perfectly fine though with Shugo's modifications on it. And the battery life was better too.
"Now… Let's see what the Bureau has in store for me." The boy smiled and let his fingers fly as he traced the path he'd found with his phone. A couple of times he'd thought about hacking them before but from Japan… a bit too bothersome. And Shugo didn't want them to think it was the organization that attacked them. Just their regular but not so run-of-the-mill hacker.
"And Midori-Go is in the house." Shugo smirked. It seemed indeed that FBI was after the Japanese serial killer running in the streets of New York. That was the guy that Megure and Takagi had come to escort back to Japan but apparently their flight would only arrive in couple of hours. Agents assigned to the case… Tommy Murray, Bill Thompson, Sean Hodges and… "Shuichi Akai… They are apparently co-operating with the NYPD."
A light lit up in the upper corner of the screen.
"Oh, they noticed me. Impressive." Shugo began tapping rapidly again, he connected to the wireless networks in the area and let his computer jump between them, confusing the tracking signal. Then he began writing code that'd display itself on all the screens in the same room than the hacked system. The building was also in Manhattan. Not too far but also not far enough. Shugo didn't fancy getting caught. FBI wasn't to be underestimated.
"Sir! We are being hacked!" Agent Marcus Hamilton shouted from his computer. Michael Anderson made his way to his subordinate.
"Is it a known threat?" He asked.
"No, sir… This style is completely new and unknown." The agent swallowed. "I've never seen anything like this."
"Can you track it?"
"Signal is coming from somewhere in Manhattan but that's all. It's jumping too quickly to get a lock on."
"Arlanda!" Anderson shouted.
"Yes, sir?" A woman from other side of the room looked up.
"See, what this hacker is looking for and try to restrain their access. Karlson, look for the firewall breach, Jian and you shall fix it. Hamilton keep tracking."
"Yes, sir!" Echoed from all around the room of FBI's New York office.
"Just a bit more…" Shugo muttered. The opponent was fighting back. They had multiple players. But Shugo was better with numbers. "This is not a game of chess… but that of a Black Jack. And I'm counting the cards."
The teenager smirked and pressed enter.
"Jackpot."
All the screens went blank. First white. Then static and finally black. All the screens in the room, not just of the computers in use.
Letters began writing itself on the screens. Anderson frowned.
Thank you for the good game.
Thank you for the information.
I had fun.
Let's play again.
-Green-5
"Green Five? That's what they call themselves?" Arlanda asked.
"It appears so. Did you find out anything?" Anderson asked his agents of the cybercrime division.
"The files first attacked were from liaison case with NYPD…" Arlanda began. "He went through all the related documents and then went to the personnel files of the agents on the case." The woman hesitated.
"Any sensitive information?"
"There was many redacted files and other classified missions with a few of them but it appeared that the hacker ignored them. I need to see more closely if he somehow managed to unravel the sealed parts but I doubt it. Too short of a time."
"Karlson? Did you find the weak part?"
"I believe so, sir." The blonde man in the middle of the room nodded and continued searching. "The hacker prodded the firewall from several angles and direction before attacking. He also exited that way, not making any further damage. It very weird though… It's like he tried to do as few damage as possible."
"Curious…" Anderson muttered. "Jian? Hamilton?"
"His route was like… The hacker seemed to be jumping around Manhattan area." Hamilton frowned. "Probably a beforehand prepared algorithm. The signals were borrowed only though, it doesn't seem like he actually hacked the wireless networks. It's like…" The man paused. "Like a skipping rope. The hacker's location is one end and we are the other end. The middle part of the skipping rope twists and attaches to other locations and confuses us while the hacker's end remains hidden and stable."
"Can you track him with that information?"
"No, he left too swiftly."
"Jian? What about fixing the firewall?"
"On it, sir. It is curious though. It's like the earlier prodding rearranged some of the code so that the final entry point was weakened. Like ripples on water." The Chinese woman mused. "Impressive work I have to say. In the end it will be easy to fix. Like Tim said, the damage wasn't that extensive." Karlson nodded at her words.
"Well, at least some good news…" Anderson muttered, taking off his glasses and rubbing his eyes. He replaced the glasses and took a good look on his subordinates. "Get to work now and get me a list of the files accessed. I need to inform the necessary people of this breach. If this 'Green Five' makes another appearance, we need to be prepared."
"Yes, sir!"
"Ah, Ran-chan, is it time for the detective show?" Shugo smiled, and packed his computer away.
"Yes. Shinichi told Yukiko-san his deductions. She is about to start solving the case now." The girl smiled. "Are you coming?"
"Sure."
"Yukiko-san asked you to give a hand for the lighting."
"I see… I'll gladly help them."
"Some call me a legendary beauty of Japanese showbiz… And others call me the wife of a worldwide mystery writer. I address myself as the lady detective with little gray cells…"
Shugo aimed the light to Yukiko's corner.
"Night Baroness!"
All the players were gathered on the stage again. It was time to…
"The mist has cleared, Captain…" The Night Baroness spoke. "The mysterious smoke that has been obscuring the stage and the affair is now gone!"
Shugo leaned forward to listen as Yukiko explained the trick and revealed the use of trap cellar. A cartridge and more blood was found from there.
"Then the murderer is…" Redwood realized.
"Yes, it's her who was lying beside the mirror at the scene…" Yukiko smirked. "Rose, you're it."
"Rose…" Lila gasped.
"No, it can't be her… We were never told we would be using the trap cellar!" Akane protested.
"I know. Because…"
Damn, the acoustics were good. And now was the time for motive…
"Angel. You only loved the angel performed by him, not himself."
"Yes… So I sealed his life as Michael. I couldn't stand to see someone else playing Michael." Rose replied.
"But he had to quit the role for a film offer…" Lila said, terrified and confused at her friend's actions and reasons.
"Doesn't matter. He made the decision. He's the one who killed Michael! When he knew I was madly in love with the Michael he played. God blessed me, anyway…" Rose continued. Shugo narrowed his eyes and twisted the rubber band he'd been playing with around his fingers and snatched an eraser from his pocket. Rose would not get away from the next words. "When I dropped the armor, a nail caught my costume. Then she prevented me from being crushed. Thank you, sweet angel… You helped me to make it…"
The eraser flew over the seats and hit the actress in the eye. It would sting and hurt but unfortunately not damage her eye. Shugo glared at the woman when she flinched at the hit and covered her eye. His fingers were aching from the backlash of his makeshift slingshot but he didn't care. Rose had no right to say that to Ran. Absolutely none.
"Well, I have to go to the police station for questioning. You pick up a taxi and check in at a hotel with Ran-chan. You got it?" Yukiko asked when stepping into a police car. "One more thing… Be on guard because of the serial killer. He'd a Japanese descent with long hair."
"Yeah, yeah…" Shinichi muttered.
"Don't worry, Yukiko-basan, we'll keep our eyes open!" Shugo smiled. "And we'll stick together too. Three against one is nothing to cough at!"
"You better!"
The police car drove away.
"Geez, she still treats me like a baby… I'm in high school already!" Shinichi muttered.
"Are you really, Shin-chan?"
"Shut up, Midorikawa!"
"Make me!"
The long drive in the taxi passed mostly in silence. Shinichi mainly talked, with Shugo occasionally commenting whilst tapping a message to Yamato. Ran remained silent. Her down-turned mood was naturally noticed by the detective too.
"Don't tell me you're thinking about what Rose said…"
"Rose…?" Ran repeated. "She was speaking too fast that I couldn't get her English… What did she say?"
"Nothing that she didn't deserve to be hit with an eraser for…" Shugo grumbled.
"That was you?" Shinichi asked.
"Yes? Who else it could've been?" The hacker asked back.
"Never mind… By the way, close the window, Ran. You said you were a bit feverish since morning. You'll catch cold!" Shinichi berated the girl next to him. Funny how he was again sitting between her and Shugo.
"I'm okay now." Ran smiled. "Besides, I can't see the New York City is the window's closed!"
"But the car seats will be ruined by rain… I bet the driver wouldn't like that."
"Don't worry! I'll wipe the wet seats before I get off!" Ran waved her handkerchief by the open window. And just then, wind caught onto it and made it fly. "Ah! Excuse me. Please stop! Stop, please!"
The handkerchief was stuck in the railing of a fire escape above. The buildings in the area were abandoned. Why an earth had the taxi driver taken this route?
"No one seems to be living here…" Shinichi mused. "Hold on! I'll get it for you. You get back in the cab!"
The detective went to the building. Shugo sighed and glanced between the girl and the dark opening in the side of the building.
"Do you want me to stay or go after him?"
"Huh?"
"You know karate so you can defend yourself if needed. But that depilated building is bound to have traps and such... If Kudou gets caught in one of them, he is not in a state to defend himself as these are ideal for hiding…"
"Go on…" Ran said quietly. "Shinichi is probably distracted by now."
It might've been a mistake. To leave her but… Shugo was quick. He headed straight for the stairs to the second floor and made it to the fire escape. Shinichi was off doing some investigation, distracted by drops of blood.
Rain hit the metal grill the walkway was made of. Shugo carefully made his way over to the handkerchief and tucked it into inside pocket of his denim jacket. He was about the turn back inside when…
"Hey, hurry up! Jump in! He must be the serial killer!" The taxi driver shouted. Shugo looked down. Ran was there, scared and worried about Shinichi and probably Shugo, too. And in front of her stood Akai Shuichi in his… frankly menacing glory. Long black hair, black coat, black hat and jeans… It was only a year or two since his retreat from the Organization but intimidation was still well in hand with the agent.
"Shit!" The car speeded away.
"Kusoyaro…" Shugo ground his teeth together and made an impulsive decision. He jumped down from the balcony-like thing and landed with a splash on the wet ground. The noise drew attention to him and on instinct, the agent turned around, pointing the gun at him.
Shugo straightened up.
"Step away from her, gentleman." The boy spoke. Akai didn't even blink and didn't waver his aim either. Admirable and understandable considering the situation. While Shugo might've helped the man out of a trap with Yamato, he was still highly suspicious person. Yamato was an ex-member of the organization and probably had by now a reputation within some law enforcement too. He had never exactly quit being an assassin, he just could now pick his jobs on some other merits than the parameters set by the organization. And for all some people knew, Shugo was an assassin in training. Rei certainly had thought so when they'd met for the first time.
"You…" The sentence was left hanging. Akai didn't know that Shugo was with Ran. He didn't know who he was for and he had just practically ambushed the man. Besides, he probably had heard by now that the operational file was hacked and thus someone knew he was patrolling the streets and chasing the serial killer. No one would be surprised if he was attacked whilst searching an area like this.
"Don't make me repeat myself." The comeback wasn't most creative or reassuring but Shugo didn't care.
"Why are you…?" Akai began but didn't get further when…
"Shugo, run!" Ran screamed. The agent's attention drifted to her. Shugo smirked. That's what he needed. A confirmation that he didn't mean any harm to either of them, especially Ran. Unless Akai thought this was an ambush where Ran was the bait as an Akemi-lookalike. But then the taxi wouldn't make any sense. And he was overanalyzing things again.
"No." He stuffed his hands into his pockets and began casually walking towards the pair. The rain was soaking his jacket but he didn't care. It was just a warm spring shower on the first Sunday of May.
"What?" Ran blinked.
"This man…" Shugo nodded his head at Akai who placed his gun back to his coat pocket. "…isn't going to harm either of us."
"Have either of you seen a suspicious man?" The agent asked then. "A Japanese man with long hair dyed silver."
"No, I haven't." Ran replied, forgetting completely that this man had just pointed a gun at her friend who'd shrugged the situation off easily.
"No. We just stepped out of the car with a friend of ours." Shugo continued. A car stopped behind him from the direction Akai had come. A man climbed out. Maybe it was one of the people whose name Shugo had read from the list of agents on the case. Bill Thompson, Sean Hodges, Tommy Murray… Wait, wasn't Murray the name of the FBI agent killed in explosion in Osaka along with four other Organization NOCs? Shugo only knew about it because the names were mentioned in the conjunction of Cabin Trap chapters. The problem with Moon Files were that everything was still from the point of view of the canon characters and thus not everything about the Hunters and their kills were known.
"Did you find him, sir?" The other agent asked Akai.
"No. I found only tourists. Guess he didn't come into this street… The gunfight against us excited the beast… He couldn't have gone without catching her."
Why weren't they investigating the buildings? Shugo frowned and almost spoke aloud that thought but refrained from it. He wasn't supposed to know anything about the movements of the serial killer, especially after just saying he hadn't seen anything. And he was just a tourist on the area…
Akai tried to make Ran leave. She refused, referring to Shinichi who was still… gone.
"Then I'll say this once again to you and your friend… GET LOST! FROM THIS AREA, NOW!"
Thunder rumbled. The two agents left.
"Ran-chan, let's go to look for Kudou. We really need to get going." Shugo said, his eye fixed on the place where the car had been.
"You didn't see him at all?" Ran asked worriedly.
"No… He had already gone on his way."
The two teens stepped inside the building. Lightning flashed and soon after Ran kneeled on the ground.
"What is it?" Shugo asked even if he already knew. Lightning flashed again, highlighting the floor.
"Blood?!" The girl gasped.
"I can't be Kudou's. Maybe someone else…" Shugo crouched and touched the blood stains. Still slightly damp. Could be the weather too but seemed fresh."
"W-We need to go." Ran headed for the stairs that led to the second floor and the other side of the building that had a door open to outside. Shugo hadn't used that door but one on the same side than the entrance…
Ran went up the stairs, her umbrella forgotten on the floor. "Sh-Shinichi!"
Shugo hurried after her just when she collapsed against the bannister. He felt her forehead with his free hand.
"You're burning… You should really rest and not overexert yourself. I'll go look for Kudou." He offered. He knew that Ran wouldn't remain behind but he had to offer her a way out.
"No. I can do this. Shinichi entered this building because I lost the handkerchief…" The girl spoke.
"I got it by the way…"
"No matter… It's still my fault…" They came to the door.
"Ran-chan… you shouldn't think about what Rose said to you. She was obsessed with Heath and most likely delusional some way." Shugo said quietly.
"I… I know but…" Ran struggled to the fire escape and began climbing them too.
"You are too kind to others… and too hard on yourself."
Tap, tap…
Steps coming down.
Tap, tap, tap…
Ran started to hurry up. Shugo followed her.
Tap, tap…
The man with long silvery hair tied on a ponytail turned to the platform right above the two and stopped. Ran froze. Shugo grabbed onto her shoulder. Partly to support her, partly to prevent himself to curling into himself. The dark aura of the murderer was assaulting him again. And Shugo could only wonder how much the actual murderer's aura would've differed from Vermouth's.
"Midorikawa, get Ran out of here!" Shinichi shouted from the floor above. "That's the serial killer!"
"I kind of figured." Shugo swallowed and shifted to the side so it wouldn't look like he was using Ran as a meat shield. "Ran-chan, go downstairs. Or at least step behind me."
"Hehehe… There, now you know who I am… I managed to hide myself in here but damn it, the kid caught me…" The murderer spoke, leaning against the railing and digging his jacket pocket for a silencer. "Well, if you must, resent the one who prepared such ending for you… Yes, the so-called god Himself."
"Shugo was shivering. He wanted to run. This aura… The flash of it at the theater had been bad and then it had been aimless. But now it was directed at him and Ran both and it was… It was like pungent smell of rotten apples.
The railing broke and the killer fell. Ran moved from Shugo's side. Shinichi was on his way down the stairs. The short second of freefall when the murderer's attention wavered, Shugo felt like breathing again. His knees gave out and his hands hit the step in front of him.
Cling…
The silencer hit the asphalt.
"What are you doing!?" Ran shouted at the killer. "Hurry! Hold onto my arm!"
"I should help her…" Shugo thought distantly. He could breathe again. He should move too.
"Come one… I can't… the rain is…"
"Geez, you really are troublesome…" Shinichi was by Ran's side, holding on the murderer's jacket sleeve. The 'man' grabbed onto the remaining railing and flipped himself up on the platform again.
"W-Why…?" He asked, panting in excretion. "Why did you save me? WHY!?"
"Hmph…" Shinichi smirked. "Is a reason necessary? I don't know why you would kill someone, but as for saving someone… A logical mind isn't needed, right?"
Ran fainted. Shugo saw it from the corner of his eye and how Shinichi leaned over her in worry.
"O-Oi, Ran!?"
The murderer aimed his gun at them. Or rather at Shinichi as he was the most aware and fit of the three of them.
"Don't bother." The detective gathered Ran on his arms. "You're injured. That must mean that there are police nearby. If you fire a gun without a silencer, they'll definitely come and get you…"
"FBI is close…" Shugo managed to find the right words to speak up finally. "One of their agents asked us questions."
"You alright, Midorikawa? You don't look too good."
"M'fine…" The hacker heaved himself on his feet. His left hand found itself covering his mouth and he breathed in deep. The aura was gone. "S'rry, I wasn't much help…"
"It's alright." Shinichi nodded slowly before addressing the murderer once more. "I can't do anything to capture you at the moment so I will let you go for now. However, I won't show any mercy if I ever see you again. I will prove your cumulated crimes and evil deeds with all evidences necessary. Trust me, I will definitely put you in jail for good!"
The two boys made their way to downstairs where Shugo picked up Ran's umbrella. They walked in silence to the busier streets according to the instructions Ran and Shugo had earlier received from Akai, and hailed a taxi. If something positive had to be found from this incident, it was the fact that they definitely saved taxi money.
At the hotel they met with worried Yukiko. Ran woke up only briefly to the duration when they made their way to the hotel rooms. Ran shared one with Yukiko while Shinichi and Shugo had their own rooms.
As soon as he got changed into pajamas, Shugo collapsed on the bed and fell asleep. He was dead tired.
A/N: As you can see, I really hate Rose. And when there is a scene with only English speakers, I didn't bold the conversation. I didn't feel it necessary as there was no need to distinguish between two languages.
Some OC agents introduced though. I'm going to keep log of all the 'NPC's that I introduce. :D Also keeping track on the people named in anime.
-Michael Anderson: Unit leader for cyber crime unit. He is black. Strict but very efficient man.
-Marcus Hamilton: Young computer prodigy. In his early twenties. CalTech graduate.
-Arlanda: Latino woman. No-nonsense attitude. (name taken from an airport near Stockholm though...)
-Jian Ling: Chinese woman. Good head for maths.
-Tim Karlson: blonde. Also known as Agent 2 from Kir arc. (yes, I'm using some agents named in anime too)
-Bill Thompson: possibly from Kir arc too.
-Sean Hodges: possibly from Kir arc too.
-Jeff: guarding Mizunashi Rena's room just before Akai and Conan talk with Kir.
-Meyer: front entrance guard, only one named in manga.
-Tommy Murray: BO mole that was rude to Tsukiko and later killed in Osaka, my design.
-Taylor: driver of van number one, my design.
-Johnson: my design
And that's all of them. Tim, Bill and Hodges only had one name listed in wikia so I gave them the rest.
Replies to Reviews:
-Mystery0028:
Thank you. :)
-Zeladious:
Good idea but no. Shugo is quite good at remaining under radar. Vermouth doesn't suspect him of anything and doesn't think he suspects her of anything. She doesn't know about Yamato either as she has mainly been in America. Despite all the secrecy, Sharon Vineyard is still quite public figure.
And while Shugo behavior when sensing her aura is weird, it could be attributed to sickness or fear. And the symptoms were certainly similar.
()
Alright, the next chapter... Blue Birthday. I'll skip from May to September. XD