Saskia could always tell which invention was the greatest in human history. Earplugs and noise cancelling headphones have got to be it. What can be greater than being able to walk among the people without the fear of overhearing conversations that were had? Conversations that could and would inflict pain onto her. Earplugs allow her to walk among the crowd freely. Somewhat freely.
It was her day off work. But it doesn't mean she could just stay at home and do nothing. Living alone comes with many perks but pushing grocery shopping on someone else is not one of them. Some bills to pay as well. And, of course, on the day she has to be up and about, the weather is malicious. It's windy and cloudy. It might even rain. Here, in Yokohama… She tightened the belt of her jacket and pulled up the collar.
Watching the people move around in complete silence is different. Their mouths open but she cannot hear a thing. Drifting through the crowd, passing by… She was an observer of life, she figured. And she didn't like to be observed. Blok turned around. Nothing unusual. The flow of people with nothing unusual but why does she feel spied on? I'm just tired and on edge. It was nothing, she told herself, just a bit of paranoia that came with the absence of sounds around her, right? After all, this self-inflicted deafness leaves her exposed.
What's this? She felt the vibrations of her phone in the pocket. Someone was calling her on her day off?
"Not work again," she mumbled. But the display only said two dreaded words in the existence of cellular connection: unknown caller. It was only there a moment and the call ended. Saskia shrugged it off. It was likely to be an advertisement or a scheme.
"I can't do it," the man protested, raising his hands in defense. "It might not work on me." He was confident that he looked innocent. But he was also sure the act wasn't bought into. Giving the situation, only an idiot would buy into it. And his partner wasn't one. But it was entertaining to put on the act. The other man looked at him with scrutiny. His eyes narrowed in suspicion of what his partner just came up with. What else would he be calling about, right? Some scheme that he can't pull of alone.
"How are you so sure?" he asked, giving up. His partner will give up now if he went as far as to tail the woman. She does look exactly how Tanizaki had described her. But that doesn't mean it was her.
"I knew you'd ask for proof," the dark-haired man shrugged, pulling off his phone. The fair-haired one watched the woman on the other side of the street. That hair, that jacket, all fit the given description. But if he was about to do what he thought he'd have to do, he wanted to be absolutely sure there's no mistake. Otherwise, that would not be ideal.
"You stole her number from Tanizaki's phone?" the blond man asked, unsurprised. The other one just shrugged and smiled innocently. Not buying it.
"What do you want me to do?" the taller one asked, irked.
"Oh, so you agree?" the brunette smiled. "Well, then," the smile grew wider. There was a spark in his brown eyes. A spark on interest and excitement.
"Ugh, coffee, large, milk instead of cream, no sugar," she said, looking at the barista. "For B.L.O.K." The young man easily put everything in the register. The price of her drink popped up. Saskia took out her wallet to pay but someone's hand stopped her. Her eyes drifted up and up the hand to see a tall man, taller than she was, stopping her from making the payment. Instead, he opened his mouth, talking to the barista. The price went up. The stranger paid. Blok just watched him in confusion until he gestured her to take off her earplugs. He noticed? She reluctantly did so. If he decided to pay for her drink that was his choice to make.
"Allow me," the man said, fixing his glasses. Saskia cocked her head, watching the man. He was tall, blond and wore glasses. The prim and proper outfit, hair pulled in a ponytail. Nothing suggested that he was a lowlife.
"Why?" the woman asked. One earplug still between her fingers.
"Why does a man buy a drink for a woman?" he spoke.
"Sorry, not interested," Saskia replied. She was about to put her plug back in when the strange man started to talk again.
"My name is Tetsuo," he introduced himself and offered a hand.
Tsk. She looked at him skeptically. Lying right away about his name? Con artist? She didn't go for the handshake.
"I must say, you are my ideal woman," he continued. His face didn't betray a single emotion, but she already knew he lied. Definitely a con artist. Not even a good one. You don't talk about such emotions with a straight face. Her lips in a thin line, losing patience with the man.
"From the moment I saw you, I knew you were the one for me," he finished. Saskia rubbed her temple in irritation and frustration, "Thanks, but as I said, I am not interested."
The barista announced her order and placed two cups with hot beverages. One of them spelled Blok. But the second one didn't spell the name of the man.Saskia turned away from the man to grab her coffee. When she turned back around, the man was looking away from her, at the line of people waiting to be served.
"Thanks, Tetsuo," Blok said with venom, "for the coffee."
Kunikida nodded in acceptance, "So you reject my passion for you?"
Tsk. Why wouldn't he give it a rest?
"Yeah, that's what I mean by not being interested," she replied calmly. The man reached out to her. She stepped back, "Don't." She warned before pulling out her badge. Any man would be surprised to see her badge, even more so, any man who behaved this way towards an officer would be caught by surprise. Not this one. He stepped away, politely nodded, and took his drink.
"I meant every word, however," was the last thing she heard from that man. She put in her earplug, "Come near me again and I will arrest you for harassment."
Tsk. Saskia touched her temple again. Couldn't help that fact that it hurt a lot now. That guy could have kept his mouth shut but he had to say that one last lie, didn't he? Like a nail in the coffin, the last lie caused her most pain. Now grocery shopping will not be fun anymore. All she wanted and needs and can think about is getting something stronger with her coffee. But its just past noon. Let's exercise some self-control.
The brunette sipped on his extremely sweet tea. He looked at the man sitting across from him and smiled in amusement. He knew the reasons behind his partner's anger, and it amused him greatly. After all, he and his ideas were always a cause for Kunikida's discomfort and anger.
"Kunikida-kun," Dazai cooed, seeking for the buttons to push, "what's wrong?"
"You damn well know what's wrong," the man replied angrily. "Your plan was to make me like a pervert in public?!" he hissed in anger. Dazai continued to smile and sip on his tea. It took a few second until Kinikida Doppo took a deep breath and got a grip on his frustration, "So it's true then."
Dazai's smile disappeared. He didn't wish to display the wickedness that surfaced within him when he observed the woman. Every time Kuninkida said something ridiculously stupid, Dazai saw how she reacted. Pain. Not to mention the earplugs she wore.
"Uh-uh," Osamu nodded, "it doesn't seem she had any control over it."
"And you think she could be useful in tracking the gifted who escaped from Port Mafia?"
"Of course!" he answered with that child-like innocence and excitement. She better.
Tanizaki Junichiro was a brother to Naomi, an informant in Armed Detective Agency and worked part-time at the police station. And he had to admit that he admired the work Detective Blok had done yesterday. For one, he was taken by her confidence. Though her actions were harsh, she was confident, and it paid off. Yesterday saved a young girl from being molested and abused. Saskia Blok helped the helpless. And so did he. He had to tell the story. And it's like they were doing anything right now. The president called everyone at the office saying he had some news to deliver. So, everyone was here already. Doctor Yosano, reading a magazine at her table. Edogawa-san was eating something sweet. Kunikida, ever responsible, was working on something on his computer. And then there was Dazai, who was most relaxed of all, taking up the whole couch for himself. The younger member of the Agency got around the table to listen to what he had to tell. Naomi, of course, beside him. Atsushi with Kyoka by his side. And Kenji.
"She slapped him!" he spoke eagerly. That was his favourite part. It was wrong to like it but he did anyway.
"She shouldn't have laid a hand on a suspect," Edogawa criticized.
"It's true," added Kunikida without looking away from his work, "it could prove damaging to the case."
Well, now it was impossible to admit that Tanizaki planned on lying on his statement. He said he would do so. He said he would lie for Detective Blok because... because she was right and that man deserved what he got. And because of this boyish fascination, he had with the incident. But saying that he would lie for such reasons...That would disappoint about every second colleague. Possibly even the president. Yet he decided he would do it so he would. But now Tanizaki was lost. All he wanted was to tell a cool story to Atsushi and get some praise...maybe. Because of a real police officer — scratch that — a real homicide detective praised him for doing a good job. He wanted to share this with someone other than his sister. Someone like Atsushi who could be happy for him. And Kyoka and Kenji who were his friends too. But now it turned into a mess. Edogawa questions his temporary hero. Kunikida, his superior, is also not on his side. Tanizaki thought and hoped that older ADA members would ignore this boyish excitement.
"Well, yes, but —"
"They are right," passively added Yosano. "But she sounds cool."
Dazai was laying on the couch with his headphones on suddenly joined the conversation, "Does she seem like the type to commit double suicide?"
Only Dazai-san in his usual manner talks about suicide. Ignoring what everyone else seemed to be paying attention to.
"No, Dazai-san," Junichiro answered. Dazai Osamu got up from the couch and joined the two younger boys, "Start again, please."
Detective Blok detested many things in life: crowded places, sweet coffee, unsolved cases. Just like this one. It wasn't her case and the only reason she was here was due to the detective in charge of the investigation couldn't be deployed. So, it was her and another officer from the homicide department. In the ground was the body of a woman. The body was in poor shape due to being in the ground for a long time. But she was still recognizable.
"Takara Koharu," Detective Ueda Hiroto commented, "she's been missing." His gloved hands searched the pockets of her clothes. It didn't look like he found anything.
"Who found it?" Blok asked, putting on her gloves.
"Gardener," came the reply, "the house is for sale."
"Expensive part of town," she observed.
"Yes. That's why they do maintenance once a month on the property. To keep it appealing for potential buyers. And so the gardener came and found a suspicious looking patch of earth."
"He dug her up?"
"Uh-huh."
"Must have been a sight."
"She lived not far from here."
"Was it her husband who committed suicide?" Blok asked, looking at the body. It was a woman in her thirties with short jet-black hair that was covered in dirt. How else could she describe the body except for the fact that it was dead for some time and poorly preserved? It was a dead body. They are all pale and cold. Sometimes covered in blood or dirt. Possibly a bit decomposed but nothing much different.
"Yes," he confirmed, "he did cut open his throat with a knife." He spoke grimly. Blok could understand why. The case was gruesome, she heard, and remained unsolved. Takara Hibiki — the husband of the dead woman — was found dead and the evidence left little doubt that it wasn't suicide. What was strange is that the wife was missing and spotted only once in public. She wasn't the one who called the police, she never showed up at the precinct to make a statement. No visit to a hospital, no calls made from her phone. She was caught on a security camera once. And now she was found dead. And in a very different place from the last she was spotted in.
"Can't see anything that would suggest she was murdered," the woman observed.
"Not for us to decide that," the detective noted. She hummed in agreement.