Chapter 7
Jigen had a bad feeling.
They were driving back from the successful heist, the car silent. The jewel was snug in Lupin's pocket, they'd gotten away free, and no one was dead, so there shouldn't be any reason for the bad feeling. A bad feeling focusing on Shinichi.
He shook his head. No, Shinichi was probably fine. Goemon had gone home ahead of them just to check. He was probably feeling noxious from Lupin making goo-goo eyes at Fujiko in the rearview mirror. Disgusting.
He wanted to check Shinichi's tracking device, but refrained. He'd checked right before the heist started and Shinichi had still been in the hideout. Besides, Shinichi didn't need a parent hovering around; the brat was scarily independent, knowing how to take care of himself instinctively. If Jigen ever met the people who caused a 6-year-old to depend on only himself, they'd have a few more holes in them when he was done.
Eventually, they pulled up to the hideout to find Goemon waiting outside. The dread in Jigen's stomach suddenly tripled. Almost bolting from the car, Jigen approached his friend and colleague. "What's wrong?" he asked.
"I couldn't find Shinichi."
Jigen froze, crippling horror racing through him. "Did you search the entire house?" Lupin asked, taking action. "There are several places where a child as small as he could hide."
"I already checked," Goemon replied. "And all the doors and windows were locked from the inside."
Fujiko crossed her arms, an unusually serious expression on her face. "So he didn't leave on his own… Do you think it was the man who followed us the other day? If he figured out who I was…"
"It doesn't matter who took him," Jigen snapped. He turned on a small, rectangular device and a green map lit up the screen along with a blinking, blue dot. "We know where he is. So let's go get him back."