Chapter Fourteen: The Weight of the Prosecution

"So, you really are asleep on the job, Detective." Edgeworth stared disdainfully down at Ema Skye as she laid slumped on her side on the seat of the bench, her hair fluttered over her face and her hand in a half-eaten bag of snackoos.

After Mercy had gleefully, and Detective Time had miserably, taken their leave of him, Edgeworth had gone on a quick walk to stretch, decompress, and get out of the stuffy office for a little while, a reprieve he sorely needed. His shoulders had stiffened to the point he was having trouble breathing and, though he was improving, the effects of the carbon monoxide poisoning still rattled well throughout his system, so he had trouble ignoring it like he usually did when feeling under the weather.

However, halfway through his tour of the gardens, he'd come across Ema Skye draped over a bench in a deep slumber, and, while it was rather unlike her, he had expected as much. She'd been working around the clock while attempting to handle multiple cases compounded upon each other like pancakes in a stack, so it was just a matter of time before her last energy reserves were spent and she passed out.

It wasn't like she was used to pushing herself beyond the physical limits of a sane human being like he was.

"Mr. Edgeworth? What are you doing out here?"

Edgeworth broke out of his inner thoughts, spotted Maya crossing the garden from the opposite walkway, and a small smile ghosted upon his face. A far cry from how she'd been during the meeting with de Killer, the color in her cheeks had returned and she no longer looked as though she was about ready to throw up, a vast improvement if his opinion counted for anything.

"Miss Fe- Maya." Edgeworth bowed to her when she finally reached him. "I trust you are feeling better?"

"A bit." said Maya. "It's amazing what a little fresh air can do to replenish your- hey, what's up with Ema? Why's she out cold on the bench?"

"It's nothing to worry about. She's just exhausted herself." Edgeworth gestured at the limp lump on the bench with a flick of his hand. "The other detective told me she was out here sleeping, so I decided to see for myself if his claims held water."

"Seems that detective was right." Maya crouched down and poked Ema on the forehead.

She didn't respond.

"Poking her awake won't do any good. It's best to just leave her be for the time being." said Edgeworth. "She'll be fine."

"Mr. Edgeworth, it might be getting close to summer, but it's not all the way just yet." Maya clucked at him. "We can't just leave her all by her lonesome. Besides, what if the murderer comes back, sees her and decides to go for a 'three's the charm' job?"

"Then what do you suggest we do?" asked Edgeworth. "Keep watch?"

"Not at all. We'll just take her with us."

Edgeworth's mouth twisted into an unamused scowl.

"And I suppose that includes me carrying her as part of the plan?"

"Always nice to know you're keeping up." Maya winked at him. "You can't very well expect me to do it, she's bigger than I am, and the resident pack mule I keep on hand's out cold in the hospital with back trouble, so that nominates you. Yee haw."

For a while now, he'd had an awful suspicion Wright was led around by Maya's flights of fancy, but now he was sure of it. With Wright gone, she'd foisted his role onto Edgeworth and frankly, Wright could have it back as far as he was concerned.

Still, it didn't sit well with him that the murderer might choose the inert detective as his next victim, so, without another word, Edgeworth bent down, picked up Ema, slung her over his shoulder like one would a sack of flour, and started down the path towards the office, Maya right behind him.

"So, what've you been up to while I was out getting my third wind?" Maya asked curiously. "Anything good?"

Edgeworth recounted the events of Mercy's interview while trying not to die too much on the inside.

"Hmm, I see." Maya tapped the side of her face thoughtfully with her forefinger. "That's really strange, I've gotta say."

"Other than the obvious, what about it's strange?" asked Edgeworth.

"Phil's not that kinda guy. Yeah, he can be pretty stubborn when he gets riled up, but he's not the type to go around threatening people."

"Do you think Mercy is being untruthful, then?"

"I don't know." said Maya. "I don't think she's lying, but at the same time, doing that sort of thing goes against what I know about Phil. On the other hand, I wasn't there to see it myself, so I can't really give you my opinion on more than what I know about them. Talk about a terrible time for me to go skirting off on you like that. Sorry."

"It's of no consequence." Edgeworth waved off her apology with the hand that wasn't supporting Ema. "At any rate, the only way I can see that we will be able to make sense of this is by assessing Phil's side of the story, which we unfortunately can't do because he is refusing to testify."

"Yeesh, talk about a catch 22."

"Indeed." Once the door to the office opened all the way, Edgeworth strode inside and deposited Ema gently on the sofa. "In the meantime, however, I would like a word. There is quite a lot I need to discuss with you."

"Oh, yeah?" Maya closed the door behind her. "Like what?"

...

"You want to know what?!"

"How much does Pearl weigh?" Edgeworth repeated while he rifled through the file he was reading. "It's imperative to the investigation."

"How could that possibly be imperative to your investigation?" Maya brandished her empty teacup at him from where she sat perched on the desk's tabletop. "That's more than just a little personal a question to ask all willy nilly."

"Maya, you said you wanted my help, did you not?" Edgeworth glared at her from over the rim of his glasses. "Were you serious about that?"

"Of course I was serious, but what does-"

"Then you will have to trust me when I tell you that such information, as unimportant as it may seem, is crucial to the lead I am investigating." Edgeworth interrupted. "I will explain in due time if this particular theory bears fruit. For now, however, I must ask that you trust my judgment and tell me what you know."

"Mr. Edgeworth... do you really think I don't trust you completely?" Maya looked a little hurt by the implication. "I wouldn't have asked you for your help if I didn't."

"I am well aware that you have a tendency to trust people far more than you ought, though, honestly, it would do you some good to be more heedful when placing that trust. However, by refusing to answer the question, you are impeding the investigation and it is not you who gets to decide what is useful and what is not. That, as you are surely cognizant, is more my purview. So, please answer the question. How much does Pearl weigh?"

With a groan that sounded like a cross between a camel in heat and a bullfrog being eaten alive, Maya's shoulders sagged in defeat.

"... I guess I've got no choice. The last time we talked about it, she said she weighed about 80 pounds."

"She weighs that little?" Edgeworth's eyebrows arched upwards. "Are you sure of that?"

"Yeah, I'm sure." Maya stared at him like he'd just challenged Pearl's honor. "She's only about 4'8, so of course she'd only weigh that much. The only reason she dragged your unconscious carcass as far as she did was thanks to an adrenaline rush, not natural brawn."

"... I suppose that's true." The furrows on his forehead deepened as Edgeworth spared one of the files lingering about his desk a calculating glance. "Thank you for telling me, Maya. This information will prove most useful."

"It better." Maya huffed. "I just broke a cardinal rule of cousin talk for you. First rule about Weight Club: you do not talk about Weight Club."

"Must you be so theatrical?" Edgeworth eyed her disparagingly from over the top of the file he'd just picked up.

"Must you be such a stick in the mud?" Maya countered.

"Hmph."

With that, the room quickly fell into an uncomfortable silence, only interrupted by the sounds of rustling papers and a few spare growls Edgeworth muttered under his breath every so often, until eventually Maya couldn't stand it anymore and broke it.

"Hey, what did you mean when you said I shouldn't trust you?" She reached forwards and tugged the file down so his face was exposed. "Do you want me to be suspicious of you? That kinda negates the point of asking you to help me figure out who the culprit is, doesn't it?"

"Not nearly as much as you might think." Edgeworth shut the file, laid it flat on the table and laced his fingers together. He hadn't planned on speaking with her about it so soon, but the time seemed appropriate.

"I'm still not really getting you." said Maya. "Can you be a bit less vague?"

"You wish for an example? Very well." He removed his glasses and set them down on the tabletop next to her thigh. "Let's take, for instance, the events from earlier surrounding the death of Mrs. Voyant. As far as you know, I am the last person who saw Mrs. Voyant alive. I do not have an alibi that can be corroborated since the only witness to that statement is now deceased. I was also not being monitored when alone in the room with her, and when I came out, you did not verify that she was still alive. So, it is completely possible that during that time I was inside, I murdered her and you were never the wiser. For all you know, I could very well be the culprit and Mercy's assurance that she was alive afterwards is a lie she concocted in order to spare you any more trouble because you asked for assistance from the very murderer you hoped to catch. Did you possibly think of that?"

Maya's cheek puffed.

"Mr. Edgeworth, you wouldn't do something like that."

"Do you have proof of such a claim?" asked Edgeworth. "Do you have hard evidence that supports your theory?"

"Well... no, not exactly, but I know you wouldn't do anything like that because-"

"And that right there is my point. We butted heads about this earlier in the sword chamber and then again before with the previous interview, but there is something you need to get your head around. The first rule of investigation as a prosecutor is relatively simple, but vital to grasp. Everyone is a suspect. No one, not you, nor me, nor even Wright, are exempt from the shroud of doubt that has been cast over the true nature of this murder."

"Wh-what?" Maya's eyes grew very round. "I'm a suspect?! Oh, come on. Doesn't that happen enough already?!"

"On that we are in agreement, but the suspect list is not limited to just you. Along with you, the list has myself, Wright, Pearl, both detectives, Dr. Bolysm, Phil, Mercy, de Killer and anyone else that might be involved with this case, yet of whom we are not completely aware." said Edgeworth. "Earlier, you argued that Pearl had no connection to this case so she can't be the culprit, but you don't know that for certain. You believe it to be true, but belief and reality are two entirely different things. In my line of work, pure belief is meaningless. As such, no one gets a free pass. No one. Therefore, you need to stop thinking like a member of the defense team if we are going to make any headway on this case."

"So... basically you're saying I'm too 'defense-y'?" Maya's nose crinkled. "Is that even a thing?"

"Yes. Much like De Killer, defense attorneys place complete trust in their clients, whereas it is the prosecutor's job to consider the cold, hard evidence and follow it where it leads them, wherever that may be. You have never worked with a prosecutor before, so I suppose it's only natural for you to jump to another's aid without having gathered ample evidence to support your footing, but when working on this side of the bench, it is crucial to abandon the blind faith that defense attorneys bestow upon their clients, and instead think from a coldblooded perspective."

"But you didn't do it."

"That, Maya, is hardly the point."

"Mr. Edgeworth, I don't mean to be rude or anything, but that logic's more than a little skewed." Maya pulled out a bag of snacks from inside her obi and began munching on them. "What if the evidence was wrong? Where'd you be, then? Up a tree with a 'not guilty' verdict waving in your face, I imagine."

Edgeworth stared at the snacks.

"Where did you get those?"

"From Ema." Maya held up a chocolate snackoo covered in big white granules. "I was hungry and it wasn't like she was eating them anymore, so I snagged the bag and helped myself to a few. Don't worry, I'm not going to eat them all. Want one?"

"No, thank you." Edgeworth had never been a fan of snack foods.

"Suit yourself." Maya shrugged and dove her hand back into the baggie. "It's funny, I was expecting these to be salty, but I'm not really tasting the salt. Other than that, they're still pretty tasty."

"That's good to know, I suppose."

"By the way, I've been meaning to ask. How's your head?"

"Heinous."

"Do you want me to do the thing?"

"What thing?"

"Y'know," Maya made a massaging motion with her hands. "The thing. I promised earlier, didn't I?"

"Oh. Er, no, there's no need." Edgeworth deflected her offer. "You've done enough already, I wouldn't ask you to-"

"You're not asking, I'm offering." Maya pointed a snackoo at him. "If your head is killing you, I want to help out. I've got my magic fingers all primed and at the ready and everything."

"I assure you I'm fine." Edgeworth noted the melted chocolate smeared on her fingertips with a grimace. "Besides, I'd prefer not to get chocolate in my hair if I can avoid it."

"What?" Maya looked at her sticky fingers and noticed they were covered in the chocolate coating from the semi-melted snackoos. "Oh, that. Well, that's easily fixed. Give me a minute and I'll wipe them off no problem."

She then stuck a finger in her mouth.

"Maya, that's not wiping." Edgeworth watched in a mixture of disgust, disapproval, and another emotion he didn't care to describe as she swirled her tongue around her index finger, polishing it free of chocolate.

"What are you talking about? Yes, it is." Maya surveyed her handiwork and moved onto the next finger.

"No, that's licking. You're licking your fingers. That's not wiping."

"So? It's the same thing."

"No, it's not."

"Yes, it is."

"No, it isn't." Edgeworth purposefully turned his eyes away; for some reason, he wasn't feeling all that well. "Licking and wiping are two different things entirely. Wiping involves using a clean cloth or napkin of some kind, not… whatever it is that you're doing over there."

"But they're clean now, aren't they?" Maya wiggled the fingers on her right hand before moving onto her left thumb. "What's so wrong about licking your fingers when you've got stuff on them?"

"Plenty." said Edgeworth. "For starters, it's not good social etiquette."

"Mr. Edgeworth, we're not at a dinner party."

"That's no excuse."

"What do you propose I do instead? Wipe my fingers on your cravat?"

"Don't you dare."

"Then you don't get to tell me what I can and can't do if you don't have another suggestion. Come up with another option and maybe I'll take you up on it." Maya held both her hands up, inspected them carefully, and turned them around for him to see. "Okay, they're officially chocolate free. Gimme your head."

Edgeworth made such no movements.

"Oh, c'mon. When did you become such a germaphobe?" Maya wiggled her fingers at him. "I'm not sick and you aren't going to catch anything off me, so what's the problem? It's just a little bit of saliva- hey, are you okay?"

"What do you mean?"

"Your cheeks are flushed bright red." Maya pointed at his glowing face. "Do you have a fever?"

"Probably." Edgeworth ran his fingers through his fringe and felt his face. Sure enough, he was warm to the touch and just a tad sweaty. "I was recently discharged from the hospital. It's to be expected that I am not entirely up to snuff yet and probably pushed myself more than I ought to have done."

"Let me see." Maya reached forwards and placed a hand to his forehead. "Yep, you're pretty hot alright."

Edgeworth's eyebrows lifted an inch.

"I-I mean in temperature! Temperature! Your temperature is hot, so you've definitely got yourself a fever, that's what I meant, not the other thing-" Maya flailed about as she attempted to backtrack and failed rather spectacularly. "Oh god, I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that, it just came out wrong and-"

"Relax, will you? I didn't figure you had." Edgeworth rolled his eyes. Good lord, was Maya always this flappable or was this solely for his benefit?

"Well, in any case, you should drink some of that tea I brought you." Maya gestured to the untouched cup of tea next to the one she had drained dry. "You need fluids if you're overheated."

"I'm not thirsty." said Edgeworth.

"You should at least try it." Maya cajoled while picking up the teacup and offering it to him. "It'll do you some good."

She took a sip to show him how tasty it was, but all that did was annoy him further.

"Maya, I am not a child refusing to eat his vegetables." Edgeworth retorted stiffly. "You can stop treating me as such."

"Says the man who was being a stubborn old goat about the difference between wiping and licking." Maya peered over the top of the cup at him with a playful grin.

"There is a difference."

"So sayeth you." snorted Maya. "So, what'll it be first? The tea, or the head thing? It's your choice, but if you don't make one, I'll make it for you."

Edgeworth sized up the petite woman perched on the desk and sighed. It seemed no matter what he said, she was adamant on resuming her efforts from earlier, and while deep down he was quite flattered she wanted to help that much, she oughtn't. He could cope just fine without. However, since she didn't seem like she was going to let the subject go any time soon, he decided to let her have her way.

"Oh... very well." He set down the file and sat back in his desk chair. "If you truly wish to resume what you were doing earlier, you may, but please remember that you mustn't feel obligated. While the sentiment is appreciated, it really isn't nece... necessar..."

"Hm? What was that?" Maya grinned while his head leaned forwards of its own volition and his shoulders slumped as her fingers pressed into his skull. "Sorry, I can't understand you when you slur your words together like that."

"... mmph." grunted Edgeworth. His thoughts had fuzzed over almost instantly when the subtle pressure of Maya's fingertips kneaded into his temples and sharply reminded him of how tired he actually was.

"Yeah, that's what I thought. Now, let's see..." Maya shut her eyes and let her fingers guide themselves around the muscles that made up his skull's sinew. "Huh. That's funny."

"What's funny?" murmured Edgeworth.

"Mr. Edgeworth, I don't know if you know this, but you've got muscle knots in your face."

Edgeworth's shoulders sagged even further.

"Why am I not surprised?"

"Yeah, I didn't figure you'd be." Maya began moving the pads of her fingers in a circular motion on some of the tighter knots along the sides of his cranium. "You're always so tense about everything, it figures your muscles would be a testament to it. You work too hard, you should get out more and have fun, maybe exercise a little. That'd help get rid of the knot-causing stress you've got splattered along your muscles, or at the very least, alleviate some pain."

"I happen to exercise fairly frequently, if you must know." Edgeworth protested, though it was little more than a whisper at that point.

"Oh, yeah? What kind of exercise are we talking?" Maya peered down at him from where she was working. "You don't mean Apollo's vocal exercises, do you? Nick told me all about those and, while I do see how screaming could relieve emotional stress, I don't know if you can really count that as a physical activity."

"No. I don't, nor would I, engage in anything as undignified as that. However, I do exercise."

"Care to tell me what it is?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"It's personal."

"What do you mean? How can an exercise be persona... Ohh, do you mean 'that' kind of exercise? Well, I suppose that counts as a physical activity, but I thought you said you weren't interested in that sort of- wait, is this a 'no strings attached' kind of arrangement or-"

"Wh-what?!" Edgeworth reeled backwards out of her grasp. "N-no, of course not, it's nothing like… that. Don't be ridiculous."

"Enlighten me, then." Maya crossed one leg over the other, stuck her elbow on top and leaned her chin into her palm. "Why don't you want to tell me?"

The flushed hue in his cheeks grew redder and he deliberately looked to the side again.

"I just don't like intertwining my personal and professional lives together, that's all. It muddles things." He murmured while sparing a sideways glance at her through his fringe.

"How does telling me what you do for exercise sabotage that rule?" asked Maya. "I'm your friend."

"Yes, but in my work life."

Maya's eyebrow arched.

"… Mr. Edgeworth, you do realize I'm not actually a member of the legal world, right? I'm not a judge, lawyer, prosecutor, bailiff, paralegal, that guy with the metal wand who waves it at people to see if they're packin', court artist, court jester, or member of the police department. You know that, don'tcha?"

"Of course I am aware of that." Edgeworth snapped waspishly.

"Good. Because I'm not. In fact, I'd go so far as to say that when it comes to the legal profession, I'm at best a glorified former receptionist/caretaker/entertainment committee for the defense and at worst, a legal jargon/fund sponge. I'm a spirit medium, you're the Chief Prosecutor. In short, we've got completely different career paths. So, with that in mind, if I've got next to diddly to do with your work in the grand scheme of things, wouldn't I fall under the category of 'personal life' friend instead?"

"Well, I..."

"'Well, you', what?" pressed Maya. "Am I wrong?"

He wanted to tell her that, yes, she most certainly was, but the more he thought about it, Edgeworth realized that he couldn't support that argument. Maya really didn't have anything to do with his prosecutorial path. She used to, to an extent, but as of the present, she really had nothing to do with it at all now. He'd just happened to meet her while in the midst of his work, so he'd associated her with it, but she didn't really fall into the same categories as Wright, Ema, or anyone else with whom he spent a prolonged period of time. Even Trucy fell under the category of a work-related acquaintance since she was directly under Wright's care as his young charge. Once upon a time, Maya fit the bill well enough, also being a remora of Wright's to a degree, but now it didn't seem the classification of her current relation to Edgeworth was in step with the previous one.

He'd have to rethink things.

"Hey, you alive in there?" Maya reached out one of her slender fingers and poked him in between his eyebrows.

"I'm fine." Edgeworth deflected her finger with a swift stroke of his hand. "In any case, I concede that you make a decent point. You really aren't related with my work much anymore, this instance notwithstanding."

"So, does that mean you're gonna tell me what you do for exercise?"

"No."

"Why not?!" Maya huffed indignantly. "I thought we'd made some headway here. I was ready to hug it out with you and everything."

"I don't want to say because you…" Edgeworth's uncomfortable expression intensified. "You'll… likely find it humorous."

"What? No, I won't."

"Yes, you will. You'll laugh and I don't like being laughed at."

"Hold the phone a minute." Maya's eyebrows knitted together. "Are you telling me that you told somebody before and they laughed and that's why you don't want to say now?"

"Something akin to that."

"What?! Jeez. People can be so immature sometimes." Maya's cheek inflated like an irked pufferfish. "I know that's rich coming from me, but still. Who did you tell? Was it Larry?! I bet it was Larry- hey, don't tell me you put me in the same friend bucket as Larry."

"No. You are far different from Larry." Edgeworth stifled a hollow laugh. "He strictly falls under the category of 'friend that I have, but I don't quite know why'."

"Oh, really? I do." chirped Maya as she resumed her perusal of his temples.

"You do?"

"Yep. You're a creature of habit, so when somebody announces that you and they are gonna be friends, despite you glaring at them so they'll leave you alone, you go along with it because you don't know how to get them to go away otherwise. That's how you get most of your friends, I've noticed."

Edgeworth glared at her.

"You don't know me well enough to know me that well."

"Pish tosh. I know you plenty well. If people's minds were books, you'd be a leaflet passed out at kindergarten. So easy to read, it's borderline unfair." The strength in Maya's fingers deepened around a particularly nasty knot. "So, you're really not going to tell me, huh?"

"No."

"Alright, alright. I can see I'm going to lose this battle, so I'll drop it for now. Not forever, but just for now. Let's change the subject to something else."

"An excellent suggestion."

"Anyway, speaking of people who you never really got to leave you alone, are you ever going to tell me what happened to Gumshoe or not?"

Edgeworth's breath hitched so quickly, he almost choked on it.

"I-" He coughed into his fist and tried to rid himself of the walnut lodged in his throat, but it didn't budge. "I beg your pardon?"

"Gumshoe. You were going to tell me in the train compartment before the earthquake struck." Maya's jovial tone dropped for the more somber one she'd used in her flat. "I'm not exactly sure what went down, but the looks you and Nick got when I mentioned him was more than enough to tip me off something had happened and whatever it was, it wasn't good. Don't bother sugarcoating it for me, I can handle it, so just tell me flat out. Did he die?"

"... we don't know that yet." Edgeworth said quietly, his shoulders feeling four times heavier than a moment ago. "He's gone missing."

Maya's jaw dropped.

"Missing?! Are you serious?!"

"Yes." Edgeworth nodded. "He was on the track of a dangerous serial killer that the police department has given the name 'The Baytown Butcher' because he tends to hunt around the Baytown area near the pier. The entire department has been scrambling for any leads, but have come up empty-handed. The crime scenes were flawless, nothing was left behind and we still don't know what the weapon is, let alone how he conducts his... 'business'."

"Euch, that's horrible." Maya shuddered. "A serial killer that's good at his job is never anything to be happy about."

"Indeed. I've not gone into the details, but needless to say, his murders aren't exactly one that we can publish to the public without a discretionary warning." sighed Edgeworth. "He's clean about it, but the state of the corpses are usually less than savory by the time they're found."

"In any case, all the detectives were at their wits end, but then Detective Gumshoe announced he had figured something out and took off on a wild hare after his lead. He never established contact afterwards. It's been the better part of a month, but nothing concerning his whereabouts has turned up, and, despite the police's best efforts to locate him, no trace has been found. While I'm not one to wax poetically about anything, it's as if he vanished into thin air."

"Did he tell you what he'd figured out before he disappeared?" Maya leaned forwards so she barely kept her balance on his desk. "Or maybe where he was going? If Gumshoe had told anybody, it would've been you, Mr. Edgeworth."

"No. He didn't." Edgeworth attempted to hide the hint of bitterness coating his reply, but ultimately failed. "He didn't say a word to me about it. I didn't even know he'd gone missing until a week later when he failed to turn up for his salary review."

"Maybe he didn't want his pay cut one more time and ducked you."

"Initially, that's what I thought too, but upon a little investigation, I learned that he'd gone off on a mission and hadn't returned. I assumed the police department would keep me abreast of the situation, but they weren't as forthcoming with the details as I expected them to be."

"Y-yeah."

Edgeworth paused, glanced upwards, and frowned.

"What?" Maya stared back at him. "What is it?"

"You look pale."

"Oh, that? It's nothing, I'm fine." said Maya, though she certainly didn't look fine; Her whole head was drooping towards her chest, and it didn't look like her eyes weren't functioning properly. If anything, her pupils looked like a camera lens that was unable to focus on its target.

"Are you sure of that?" asked Edgeworth. "Because if you need to visit the clinic-"

"I'm okay, really. I'm just feeling kinda funny. A bit off, you could say." Maya insisted a bit more than necessary. "I was just caught off-guard about Gumshoe is all. Nick and I ran into him a lot and he helped us out loads in the past, so it's just a lot to take in at once."

"Very well." Edgeworth wasn't convinced, but if she said she was fine, he'd allow her her privacy.

"A-anyway," Maya ran a hand through her long black hair and smiled at him, though it was less of a high beam and more of a dim bulb's flicker. "Back to the whole Gumshoe thing, what about Maggey? Did anyone talk to her? She might know something- Oh, wait, are they still dating? Because if they aren't, she still might know something, but that could be a little bit awkward."

"Not exactly." said Edgeworth.

"Oh no... they broke up?"

"They got married."

"Married?! Seriously? Hey, how come I didn't get an invite?!"

"They eloped several years ago. Even if you had been in the country, there was no ceremony of pomp and circumstance to attend, so you needn't act so put out." clucked Edgeworth. "In this instance, no one was privy to an invitation."

"Oh." Maya's indignation subsided a smidgeon. "Well, I guess that's okay, then. Where'd they elope?"

"Las Vegas, I believe."

"Vegas, huh? That's cool!" crowed Maya. "I bet they got hitched by Elvis. Hang on, don't you need money to go to Vegas?"

It was common knowledge that while Gumshoe had unlimited quantities of loyalty and enthusiasm, monetary funds were a completely different story.

"I... might've pulled a few strings to advance Detective Gumshoe his salary." Edgeworth cleared his throat with a subtle cough. "And double it. H-however, that isn't important. As for your previous question, we did speak to Maggey about whether or not he had contacted her, but she told us she hadn't heard a word from him. In fact, she's who reported him missing when he failed to show up for their scheduled outing night."

"You mean 'date night?" Maya corrected with an impish smile.

"Yes... that."

"You can say it, y'know. It won't burn you." teased Maya, though her face was far paler than her attitude; she was starting to look ghostly. "So, the police department thinks he's gone for good?"

"That's what I've gathered." replied Edgeworth. "At this point, they seem to think that he's gone and there's not much they can do when it comes to locating him after so many months of searching and nothing to show for it. He'll either turn up, or he won't."

"You don't agree, I take it?"

"Of course not." said Edgeworth sharply. "I've known Detective Gumshoe for more years than I shall ever care to admit and, while he may be unreliable and flighty, he's not one to let someone like a serial killer spell his end. His resilience is unnatural. I expect he'll turn up any day now at my office, apologizing profusely and offering to clean it for the thousandth time as a means of recompense. I would've preferred that he'd told me ahead of time where he was headed, but I suppose that is water well under the bridge at this juncture. However, I shall have to make a point of discussing this behavioral misconduct during his next salary review, just so he knows where he stands in this situation."

Maya smiled at him.

"You're really worried about him, aren't you?"

Edgeworth scoffed.

"Don't make presumptions."

"I'm not." She patted him on the shoulder. "Just an observation."

Hmph. For some reason that he didn't care to explore, he sincerely doubted that.

Speaking of observations, however, Edgeworth noticed that the hand resting on his shoulder was no longer the steady, deliberate one that had been working on the muscle knots on his neck, but rather a weak, twitching mess.

"Maya, your hand is shaking."

"Really?" Maya raised her hands up in front of her nose and limply took note of the wavering tremors. "Huh. I guess they are. Well, at least they match."

"Maya, you've overdone yourself." Edgeworth frowned while Maya tried to keep her hands steady. "This was precisely why I didn't remind you of your earlier promise. You pushed yourself far too hard and now your body is protesting. I hope you've learned something from this."

"Yeah. I have."

"Oh? And what did you learn?"

"That you're a colossal hypocrite. Besides, something as tiny as getting rid of muscle knots shouldn't have done this." Maya responded sluggishly. "I've never gotten hand twitches from getting rid of muscle knots before... oof. My head feels... kinda heavy." She blinked like she was submerged in tapioca custard and pressed the heels of her palms into her eyes.

"Let me see." Edgeworth reached forwards, grasped her wrists, and pulled them down away from her eyes.

"Does it look bad?" Maya asked thickly as she stared at him through half lidded eyes.

"Yes, it does." answered Edgeworth. "You look quite unwell."

Maya snorted.

"It's a good thing you decided to be a lawyer instead of a doctor. Your bedside manner sucks."

"Am I supposed to tell you some half-baked emollient quip instead?" He retorted coolly.

"Yeah, but if you did that, you wouldn't be you." said Maya. "Your lack of tact is part of your charm, I guess."

"Duly noted. Still, it doesn't look like you are about to die, so you may have that with which to placate yourself." He continued scanning Maya's face as it proceeded to dip closer with each passing second. "You've likely dispersed your energy beyond its limits, which isn't that surprising, factoring in the events of the... last… several days, er... Miss Fey?"

"Yeah?"

"You're… *ahem*… you're quite close." Edgeworth warily regarded the face dully hanging a few inches from his own. "If you'd move a little, that would... that would be..."

Maya's exhausted gaze cut his objection off at the knees. She didn't reply, she just sat there on the edge of the desk, slender wrists still grasped in his hands, and blinked at him slowly like a doe caught eating a rose by a discomfited gardener.

"Er... Maya?" He tried again. "Did you hear me?"

"Uh huh." nodded Maya.

"Good. Then, if you heard me, will you get about moving?"

"Okay."

Edgeworth breathed out a sigh of relief, but that feeling was short lived.

True to his request, she did move.

However, he did not specify in which direction.

"M-maya!" Edgeworth froze when she gravitated towards him even more. "When I said move, I meant the other way-"

In response to his objections, there wasn't one that came from Maya.

Instead, her eyes closed, her whole body tilted forwards, she fell off the desk and promptly struck him in the forehead with her own.

"Yeowch!" Edgeworth's whole body recoiled as stars danced in front of his vision from the horrible pain that radiated throughout his entire face and made his eye burn and water at the same time. He'd never been hit in the head with a sledgehammer before, but he suspected that this was a fair reproduction of how it would've felt if he had.

What was her head made of, concrete?!

Once the initial agony dissipated, however, Edgeworth came to realize that, whether she had meant to do so or not, Maya's inert body had ungainly sprawled itself against his like he'd been attacked by a living weighted blanket with limbs.

In short, it wasn't the most dignified position he had ever seen her in.

Frankly, it was lucky she was so much smaller than he was, or else she likely would've fallen off and landed face first on the floor instead of on him.

That aside, the blow to her head must've been the final straw in knocking her out, Edgeworth thought to himself as he discreetly examined his new lap accessory. In her current state, Maya was in no shape to discuss anything more to do with the case, or anything else for that matter, and was, in essence, dead to the world until further notice. In fact, if it wasn't for the hot, labored breathing puffing down on his neck from where her head rested heavily on his shoulder, he easily could have mistaken her for a corpse.

"This seems to be becoming a habit, Miss Fey." Edgeworth commented nominally to the sleeping young lady draped across his chest, whose only reply consisted of a slight snoozing buzz and little else. Still, habit or not, he didn't like how she'd gone from just fine to comatose so quickly.

Perhaps she was getting sick.

"It's probably overkill, but I think a trip to the clinic is in order." As best as he was able, Edgeworth maneuvered Maya's body around so he could properly carry her without dropping her on her head and stood up from his seat, which actually proved much harder to do than he first thought because the chair he was sitting in had wheels. "Just in case you've contracted some horrible infection or disease."

Though he expected it was nothing other than a little cold or maybe a fever, excessive stress could severely affect the body if left unchecked, and he knew from personal experience just how much fun stomach ulcers weren't.

(A/N- And that's another chapter down. Woo, this one took a little longer to write than I first expected, so much so that in my myopia, I completely missed that the one year anniversary of this story just passed. It's rather strange to think it's already been a year since I started this, but that's probably due to the fact it's so much fun to write for. Well, either that or I'm just not paying attention to the passage of time again, which, in fairness, has been known to happen. Anyway, thank you all so much for the favorites, alerts, praise and comments you've sent me, it really does mean a lot that you'd do that, and I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. So, until next time, thank you very much for reading and please review!)