I really have nothing to say about this chapter, other than that I'm scared to see your reactions.

Sorry it's been so long. Next chapter will be up soon (Thanksgiving break-- yay!).

Standing in the doorway between the kitchen and the living room was a tall, lean, strikingly handsome man. His dark hair was spiked strategically around his head, as it always had been. The sleeves of his dress shirt were rolled up, and his shoes were casual. He was holding a big fork, which was dripping sauce from something I presumed he was cooking.

Somehow, he still managed to look inviting-- and presentable, for that matter. For the first time, Wright ... looked less like a boy, and more like a real man.

"Wright...!" I wasn't really sure what to say. Leave it to good ol' Edgeworth to make a situation incredibly awkward. "It's been so long..."

"Too long," Wright corrected me, smiling earnestly. I suddenly felt a pang of guilt for no reason. As if he weren't being endearing enough already, he greeted me with a warm embrace, as if he'd been waiting his whole life to see me. I can't say I was entirely comfortable.

"How about a hug for me, Mr. Edgeworth?" Maya insisted, her arms wide open. As far as I could tell, she was still as silly as ever. She just looked a little older. I laughed uncomfortably as she grabbed me around the waist. She smelled like some fruity shampoo... no wonder Wright was constantly attached to her. "We missed you!"

Wright stroked his chin thoughtfully. "You haven't changed at all, really... Well, you look a little less stuffy, but it's a welcome change."

I looked down at myself (and at Maya, who was still clinging onto me), and back at Wright. "You really think so?"

"Yeah," Wright replied. Something in the kitchen was beeping. "I'm gonna go get that... and clean up that plate. Sorry about that... um, make yourself at home!" With that, he disappeared.

Maya released me from her clutches. "Mr. Edgeworth! We have so much to catch up on! Let's go watch the game!"

The game?

"Since when do you watch football?" I asked curiously, following Maya onto the couch.

"Larry Butz got me into it. He told me to think of the game like an intense episode of the Pink Samurai, minus the whole ... samurai thing."

I laughed, "That's... sort of weird."

"Yeah, but it sure makes the game interesting." Maya watched for a few seconds as the quarterback made a touchdown. Leaping into the air, pumping her fists, she screamed, "OH! Yeah, that's what I'm talking about! IN YOUR FACE!"

Gumshoe, out of nowhere, came flying into the room.

"TOUCHDOWN?!" He yelled, asking Maya like some sort of pro-wrestler.

"YEAH!" she replied. The two engaged in a high-fiving, shouting, chest-bumping victory dance. Gumshoe was too excited to realize his own strength and toppled over poor Maya. Maya, collapsed on the ground, groaned painfully, quite similarly to how I had groaned earlier that day when Franziska told me I was going to blackmail Wright.

I got up from the couch, offering the girl my hand. She grabbed me by the wrist and pulled herself up. She held my hand for an awkward moment, smiling at me. I sheepishly smiled back, and wondered what Maya was trying to tell me through her playful smile. The moment ceased once Gumshoe looked over and gave us a funny look.

"Mr. Edgeworth!" Gumshoe exclaimed in shock. I abruptly, and rudely, snatched my hand away from Maya. After pausing for dramatic effect, he said nonchalantly, "I thought you weren't going to show up," as if he hadn't talked to me all day. What a liar.

Maya joked, eyeing me mischeviously, "How could Mr. Edgeworth not show up? We're his only friends. Isn't that right, Mr. Edgeworth?"

"...Pretty much, yeah," I replied in a mostly-shameful manner.

Please stop looking at me like that, I mentally commanded to Maya. Stop it. I might fall in love with those eyes-- STOP IT!

My heart sank a little every time I thought of Wright falling in love, especially with someone wonderful like Maya Fey, and me being left with nothing but a one-night stand with someone like Franziska Von Karma. Why I always seem to end up slighted, I haven't the slightest clue.

Everyone sat back down on the couch. I was sandwiched between a clumsy detective and a hyperactive spirit medium, but I felt at home.

"Game's over," Gumshoe pouted. "But we won, pal!"

"We did?" I questioned.

"Uhm... Mr. Edgeworth? Don't you know the rules of football?"

"I never really got into it, no."

Maya's jaw dropped to the floor. Stunned, she exclaimed, "Well! You're coming over again so that we can teach you all about it! And you can be a part of our victory dance!"

I imagined myself chest-bumping with Gumshoe and Maya, and shuddered.

But the fact that Maya mentioned me coming over again... it was comforting. Like I actually belonged somewhere. "I'd love that!" I said excitedly. I realized how enthusiastic I had just sounded, and blushed a little.

Maya laughed. "Don't be so embarrassed-- it's okay to have a personality, you know."

Ouch.

"I've been hiding it for so long," I said quietly, my face still red.

"Come on, Mr. Edgeworth! We're the closest people you have to family. I'm sorry, but the Von Karmas don't count. I think you can afford to open up a little!"

That was completely true. I couldn't hold my thoughts in forever. Besides, if I started to open up, I figured I could get a little information about that letter Franziska told me about...

"You really want me to open up? You might not like what you hear..."

"That's okay, pal! Now let's hear one of your darkest secrets!" Gumshoe squealed like a schoolgirl.

"Um..." I thought about that for a bit. "I have a huge fear of earthquakes."

"Mr. Edgeworth, that was pathetic," Gumshoe said blankly. "Now let's hear a real secret!"

I wasn't going to actually reveal one of my secrets-- that is, until I glanced over at Maya, whose eyes were so attentive and concerned, that I felt comfortable... for once in my life. I took a deep breath, and began, "Well, it's not really a secret, but it's something I don't like talking about."

Gumshoe and Maya both nodded in interest. I couldn't say no to their eager expressions.

"My whole life... I've been deprived of ... love, I guess." I waited for them to respond, but they were obviously waiting for me to elaborate a little more. "My parents, well... they passed on before I can even remember them clearly. The Von Karmas' perfect schedule never allowed time for anything even remotely similar to 'love', let alone anything besides studying. I've been hated by the courts for presenting supposedly-false evidence, shunned by fellow prosecutors who can't bear to be seen with me. And ever since I moved out here, my interaction with other human beings has reached an all-time low."

I stopped talking for a moment, but no one said anything. My feelings started to take over. I continued angrily, "And then they wonder why I'm so cold, why I have this... this strange inability to become close with anyone. The worst part is that I always seem to be looking for love --or even a friend, for that matter-- in the wrong places! I've... I've been looking for love from people that I know I will end up hurting me! But being loved and being hurt is better than not being loved at all, correct? ...Right?!"

They stared at me in silence.

I was brought back to reality when I heard another plate crash to the floor in the kitchen, and Wright yelled at us not to worry. Oh, God, I just went on a psychotic rant, didn't I? My face hot from embarrassment, I mumbled, "I said too much."

Maya hugged me again, resting her head on my shoulder as she replied quietly, "No, that was good... but you still need a hug."

Gumshoe, feeling left out of the love-fest, started patting my hair in a fatherly way. "Just let it all out, pal!"

Dick Gumshoe, you are getting way too into this.

"There's something wrong with what you said, though," Maya commented. "What about Nick? What about us?"

"What about you guys and Wright?" I asked, confused.

"I mean, we've always cared about you... I know Nick was devastated when you left. All he talked about was 'Edgeworth this!' or 'Edgeworth that!' or 'God, I can't believe Edgeworth would do that!'... and I was just as worried about you."

Gumshoe piped in, "Hey, I cared too!"

I didn't respond.

"I think, maybe," Maya let go of me, "You were too afraid to acknowledge the fact that there were people out there who really did care about you. You weren't used to that feeling; it was weird. And maybe you were scared to share your feelings with people that might actually listen-- like us. So you pretended we were out to get you, too..."

My heart was pounding practically out of my chest. My hands started trembling again as I tried to spit out a few words. "That's... that's... that's just it!" I whispered triumphantly. "Maya Fey, you just answered the question I've been asking myself for fifteen years!"

"Fifteen years...?" Gumshoe pondered profoundly, still stroking my head as if I were a dog.

Maya smiled, and was her normal, less-serious self again. "See... start opening up a little and you might learn something about yourself! I just wish Nick was in here to hear you!"

"NO!" I jumped up from the couch involuntarily. Gumshoe and Maya looked completely taken by surprise. I explained my erratic actions; "I mean... um. Let's just keep this between us for now. I'm not ready to reveal my soul to Wright just yet..."

Maya frowned. "Mr. Edgeworth, what's stopping you from--!?"

"I'm not having this conversation--"

"DINNER!!" Wright yelled from the kitchen.

Maya sighed in frustration as she made her way across the room. She said under her breath, "It'd mean so much to Nick if you would just talk to him!"

...Ugh.

I knew it would mean a lot to Wright if I just told him something. But I had to be focused on getting information out of the guy, not revealing my soul to him.

Even if I didn't have a secret agenda, I would never tell Wright anything too personal.

I sat down at the table, starving for the food that was placed in front of me. Maya sat across from me, and raised her eyebrows at me as if she expected me to do something-- something involving Wright, of course. I furrowed my brow. Gumshoe sat next to me, and was mumbling to himself about mashed potatoes and corn.

Finally, Wright joined us at the table, setting a plate of turkey down as he did so. "Dinner," he announced grandly, "is served."

"It's about TIME, pal!" Gumshoe was practically slobbering as he reached for a piece of turkey. I raised an eyebrow in a mixture of disgust and amusement.

Maya poked at her turkey with her fork. I noticed the sparkling diamond ring on her left hand. I looked over at Wright, who was smiling to himself as he looked at Maya. It was a heartbreakingly affectionate gaze. To think that Wright really did have a soft side... he noticed me staring at him, and I quickly looked back down at my food.

"So, Edgeworth, what have you been doing here-- prosecuting?" he asked.

Gumshoe gave me an awkward look, waiting for me to finally reveal a secret about myself to Wright. I said to Wright softly, "I haven't prosecuted in years-- since the last case that I lost to you, I haven't touched a case."

"Huh?" Maya mumbled inbetween spoonfuls of corn.

"You quit prosecuting?!" Wright choked, his mouth half-full. I nodded. "Why--"

"Mr. Edgeworth's writing now. You know... for a magazine!" Gumshoe interrupted the awkward moment enthusiastically.

Wright stared blankly at Gumshoe, then at me. I thought he was going to ask me to leave his house immediately.

"Sorry," I apologized pathetically.

After a moment of thought, he smiled, "Actually... that makes a lot of sense. You've always seemed like a writer type of guy."

Wright, why do you have to be so damn FORGIVING about everything!?

"You're the first person who's seemed relatively unsurprised about that."

"Yeah," Gumshoe chimed in. He hadn't finished chewing, but he spoke anyway. "When I heard that, I was completely taken by surprise!"

"I think it's because I'm one of the few people that really gets you, Edgeworth," Wright explained casually.

And why are you always RIGHT, Wright?

I didn't expect him to say something like that. I laughed quietly.

"Actually, knowing you, I'm surprised you showed up here, tonight. I mean, I'm glad you came and all, but I wasn't getting my hopes up. So even if you told me you had become a murderer, I'd still be happy just to say that I saw you-- well, not really, but you know."

"Wright..." I prepared to say something thoughtful, something... nice. I even thought about quoting one of the greeting cards; not the corny one, the good one.

Maya gave me an excited look, expecting me to pour my heart out.

Panicked by her gorgeous, yet childishly-anticipating smile, I cleared my throat and changed my mind. "Wright... this turkey is fantastic."

Maya gave me another look-- this time, she looked at me scornfully.

"Yeah, pal, it IS delicious!" Gumshoe was totally oblivious. The only thing he was worried about was the food sitting in front of him.

"So I guess it's my turn to interrogate you, huh?" I turned to Wright, changing the subject immediately. "What made you choose Chicago, of all places, to start anew?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Wright asked.

"Huh?! No..." I squeaked, taken by surprise.

"Well, bigger cities have more job opportunities. And I think we just wanted a change. The weather here is really refreshing."

"Who's 'we'?" I asked stupidly.

"Oh, it's..." Wright blushed. "It's Maya and me."

"Right," It was my turn to blush. "I... forgot to congratulate you two on... that."

On "that"? Way to be polite, Edgeworth.

Wright smiled, and was about to say something, but I awkwardly interrupted him. "I mean, really. You guys complement each other!"

Wright said nothing, probably not wanting to be interrupted again. He just beamed at Maya, who was beaming at me, and Gumshoe was beaming at his dinner.

Smiling was somewhat of an alien concept to me. I contorted my face into a desperate smile, and realized how ridiculous I looked. Wright smiled even more, although this time he was laughing at me.

And I laughed at myself-- really laughed at myself, and I smiled.

The remainder of the dinner was a little more relaxed. There was plenty of small-talk about Wright's cases, my work, and Larry Butz's new girlfriend.

"You know, I think this is a world record... they've been going out for a whole month now!" Wright commented when I brought up the fact that Larry went through women (or, rather, women went through Larry) like water through a fire hydrant hose.

"That's strange. I wonder how much he's paying her...?" I laughed back.

Friendship is a mysterious phenomenon. What makes someone feel relaxed around a person they haven't seen in years?

I simply couldn't help but feel comfortable, sitting at that table. I wasn't being judged. I was just being Miles Edgeworth-- the Miles Edgeworth that I didn't mind being, not the Edgeworth I had to pretend to be around most people...

A couple hours later, things had settled down around Wright's place. We were scattered across the living room. Maya was sleeping, curled up on the couch with her head resting on Gumshoe's chest, who had one arm around Maya and one arm falling off the side of the couch. Gumshoe was snoring louder than I'd ever heard. Apparently, all that turkey got to them both.

I comfortably sank into an armchair across from Wright, who was sitting in an identical chair. The television displayed a fuzzy image of the news-- the snowy weather was screwing up the satellite dish.

"Doesn't that weird you out?" I randomly asked Wright, who had been quiet for a while.

"Doesn't what weird me out?"

"Maya and Gumshoe practically sleeping on top of each other."

Wright looked over at the two sleeping figures on the couch, and grinned, "It used to. Actually, I used to get sort of jealous, but now I've realized they've got more of a father-daughter relationship... or something like that. That's just how they are."

"Huh. Well, at least you've got the upper-hand on the situation.. after all, Maya's engaged to you! Still... they're pretty funny to look at."

Wright laughed. "They really are," he sighed, turning around to watch the TV again.

Silence filled the room once more, aside from the soft voices coming from the TV set.

I had to get some information out of Wright, whether I wanted to or not.

"Can I... talk to you?" I asked reluctantly.

"Uh... sure? What is it?"

"Something important." How awkward. I couldn't just confront the man in front of Maya and Gumshoe. "Er... can we go outside?"

Wright gave me a weird look, but got up from his chair, grabbed our coats, and led me to the balcony outside the apartment.

We stood next to each other there for a moment, taking in the fresh air and looking over the street. Snow fluttered down from the sky rather heavily, but in a refreshing sort of way.

I took a deep breath, and began, "Well... this is about a letter... a letter that you supposedly wrote and passed off as a letter that I had written."

Wright stared out at nothing in particular. Quietly, he said, "This is about Von Karma, isn't it?"

"You wrote that I had forged evidence, had secret agendas, and blackmailed numerous people... why?"

More intensely, he repeated, "This is about Von Karma, isn't it?"

"...Yes, but..."

"I received a letter similar to the one you're describing. But it was from you. I never wrote anything."

"But--"

"Edgeworth," Wright grabbed my shoulder abruptly, looking me straight in the eye. He didn't smile at all as he said, "Please understand me... I wouldn't do that to you. I wouldn't pretend to be you even if you asked me to. You have to understand something: Franziska Von Karma wants me dead. She wants me to crash and burn, be banished from society, be ostracized for the rest of my life--"

"Why? And how do you know all this?"

Wright shied away, taking a step away from me and facing the street again. "You came here as her accomplice, didn't you... you came to help Von Karma seek revenge!"

"WHAT!? No!" I exclaimed. "Well, that's not completely true... I was told to come here to get information out of you--"

"That's the same thing as helping her seek revenge!" Wright growled. "Why, Edgeworth?"

"You didn't answer my question yet!" I retorted. The conversation was quickly escalating into more of an argument. I was afraid Wright was going to push me off the balcony, judging by the suddenly-fierce expression on his face. "Why does Franziska want revenge so badly, anyway?!"

Wright looked down, his expression softening drastically. "...It's a long story."

I took a step closer to Wright. "Well, I've got the time to hear it."

"Okay, well... this whole thing started only a couple weeks after you had disappeared. I got the letter... and it said it was from you, but I didn't really want to believe that. I mean, I know you would never write a letter disclosing your secrets-- that's just not you... plus, it wasn't even your handwriting. Nothing really made sense. Without thinking, I started showing the letter around to people. Franziska was one of the first people I showed it to. She acted so strangely, as if she knew I was going to come to her with some sort of bad news. She got all defensive about it."

"So you're saying she wrote it?"

"All the evidence points to her. Anyway, we started investigating a few suspects who could've forged your letter. Franziska was the most obvious of the suspects, of course. Gumshoe went behind her back, and helped me break into her office. We found... well, we found a number of things."

"Such as...?"

"...There was this big file in the bottom of her desk drawer. Inside it was tons of information-- about you and me! None of it was good. Some of it was made up. But the fact that it was there really made things crystal clear."

"What do you mean?"

Wright's voice wavered as he continued his story. I could tell things weren't about to end on a good note. "The last few pages of the file were... were forged suicide notes. God... I'm creeped out talking about this. There was one for me, you, Maya, Gumshoe, hell, even the Judge was in there. The final page of the file was a hit list, and guess what? Every single one of our names was on it."

I'd always thought Franziska would sink pretty low to get what she wanted. I mean, she was the one who seduced me into getting information out of Wright in the first place. But to plan the murders of so many people... a fully-disgusted feeling came over me.

"What the... what the hell!?"

"She had our murders planned from the very beginning. Edgeworth, she couldn't let anybody jeopardize her goal of perfection. If murdering a person would get her ahead of everyone else, she would do it. And the suicide notes were just backup, I guess."

"I think I'm going to be sick."

"When you suddenly disappeared, Franziska's plan of killing us off got messed up. Maybe you were next on her list, or something, I don't know-- but I think that's why she became frantic and wrote a letter pretending to be you. That way, if you ever tried to come back and prosecute, it'd be impossible. Your reputation would be shattered. And Franziska wouldn't have to worry about you getting in her way. Like you did all the hard work for her, except you were still alive in the end... do you get what I'm saying?"

I was at a loss of words for a while. Wright didn't say anything either; he only stared off into the distance. He sighed melodramatically, and finally turned to me, expecting me to say something.

"Why would you be on the list, anyway?"

"At first, I thought it was just because of the fact that I'd beaten her in so many cases. But then, Franziska tried to... She tried to..."

"Tried to what?" I was getting a little impatient.

"... Tried to kill Maya," Wright was speaking so quietly, I had to lean in to hear what he was saying.

What the HELL?!

I didn't know how to respond, so he continued. "We almost thought we were going to lose Maya for a while... but, Franziska didn't succeed, thank God."

"Wright, we need to do something--"

"Well, anyway... now I'm thinking that since I saw the entire incident, Franziska knows I'm going to do something about it. She can't be convicted, so how is she going to get rid of the evidence?"

"Get rid of the witness, of course," I answered softly. Kill Wright? She wouldn't.

Actually, after recalling recent events, it was quite obvious that she would.

"Anyway. That's the real reason why Maya and I moved out here. To get away from her."

I could only whisper, "Wright, I wish I had known--"

"It's not your fault, Edgeworth," Wright looked straight at me, almost as if he were apologizing to me, for burdening me with the sickening news of Franziska's secret agenda.

Something in me snapped, and I couldn't be stopped.

"Why did I quit prosecuting in the first place? For selfish, petty reasons... really, I should've been helping you, in return for everything you've done for me... God, I'm a horrible friend!" I lamented randomly, and rather loudly. "What the hell... Maya was right! I don't care enough about the people who care about me; I place my trust in people who will only stab me in the back!"

Wright looked genuinely concerned as he listened to my rant. The look on his face made me babble even more. "Wright, I'm so... I'm so sorry..."

"Edgeworth?" Wright tried to console me, but there was no turning back. I had been holding in those feelings for so long, that they wouldn't stop for anyone. Even if that meant revealing a whole other side of myself to Wright.

"It's my fault Maya was almost killed, my fault that Franziska wants revenge on virtually the entire world, my fault that everything is so screwed up... it's all because I was too selfish to step in and help anyone when I had the chance!" A warm, wet tear of frustration ran down my face. Oh, God, no-- "Now look where we are: waiting to be killed, taken advantage of... We have to stop this!"

"Edgeworth."

"I never meant to cause all this--"

"Edgeworth?"

"Please look away. This is very... embarrassing," I sniffled.

"EDGEWORTH!" Wright shouted aggressively. I accidentally let another tear slide down my cheek. He realized what a hopeless mood I was in, and he relaxed.

And then, something unexpected happened. He leaned into me and hugged me as if I were his little brother. He didn't say anything.

All I could do was stand there. A grown man crying on another grown man's shoulder. I was so ashamed of myself. I mumbled, "You, of all people, aren't supposed to see me like this..."

"Why?"

"Just... because." I sniffled again. "So many things have happened over the course of so little time... Franziska... she... came to my apartment the other day..."

Wright pulled away. "What?! What happened?"

"... I can't tell you. At least, not right now," I grumbled, looking away. I sighed and wiped my eyes.

"But... this is important."

"I guess I should go..."

Wright opened the door back into the apartment. Guiding me to the front door, he asked, "Well, I'll see you again, right? We have to straighten all this out."

"Of course." We exchanged phone numbers and planned on meeting the next morning. "Well... this has certainly been an interesting reunion."

"Yeah, tell me about it."

"Tell Maya and Gumshoe I said goodbye. Bye, Wright."

"Bye, Edgeworth."

...Half an hour later, I was in the bedroom of my apartment. Unsurprisingly, I couldn't fall asleep. Wright's voice kept ringing in my head, "It's not your fault, Edgeworth."

I had a hard time believing that.

My thoughts were interrupted by my phone ringing. I answered hastily, "Hello?"

"Edgeworth, it's me, Wright! I'm coming over!"

"Wright?" I said, puzzled. "Why the hell do you have to come over now, of all times--"

"I just got a phone call from the one-and-only Franziska Von Karma. Edgeworth, this is urgent. See you in about fifteen minutes." With that, Wright hung up. I didn't even have time to complain, or ask how he even knew how to get to my apartment, for that matter.

Less than a minute later, I received another call.

"What?!" I picked up the phone, agitation seeping through my teeth.

"That's no way to greet a woman, Miles."

"... What do you want, Franziska?"

"I hear that you didn't get the information I wanted," Franziska said. I could tell she was about to explode in anger. "You do know what that means, don't you?"

"Uhm."

"Listen, Miles," she growled unexpectedly. "I'm on my way to your apartment. We need to have a little... discussion."

I gulped. "I know where you're going with this, Franziska. And... I can't follow behind you this time. I have no reason to help you at all!"

There was silence on the other end for a moment. Then, so quietly I could barely hear her, Franziska whispered, "What?" She paused again. Suddenly, she was screaming. "WHAT!? Miles EDGEWORTH! You promised!"

"Don't be so... immature. I was drunk."

"Just as I am now! HA! And don't tell me to be more mature. You're not even man enough to--" I heard the brakes of a car squealing in the background. "Look what you made me do! Damn it..."

"Franziska, calm down! Wait, you're drunk?-- Pull over!" I was shaking at the thought of Franziska driving around in the state she was in...

"Oh, yeah... 'calm down, just pull over', he says," Franziska's voice tremored frantically. I heard the horns of at least five cars in the background, probably all beeping at her. "I don't think you understand, Miles. I spared you before. I thought I wouldn't have to get rid of you. And now, look... I ask you to do a little favor for me, and you can't even do it!"

"You were going to get rid of me?"

"Yes, I was. I even had your suicide note written out. It was a genius plan, if I do say so myself. But now-- now! Everything is ruined!"

"Please, Franziska, pull over... we can talk about this rationally!"

"LOOK!" Franziska barked into the phone, ignoring me completely. "There's Phoenix Wright! Right there! Crossing the street! Why, he looks as if he's on his way to your place! Oh, my God, Miles... are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

I started to get a little frantic myself. This conversation was going downhill faster than the speed of light. The sound of a police siren could be heard on the other line... pathetically, I started crying again. "Franziska?! ...Franziska, don't do anything crazy--"

"Thanks for nothing, Miles-fucking-Edgeworth!"

"Wright--" I yelled...

The sounds of grinding metal, one car crashing into another, and the faint scream of a man... permanently ingrained in my memory. After that, I heard nothing but the dial tone. The phone dropped from my hand... I was stunned, practically numb to any emotion... I wasn't sure what to think. All I could do was sit there, at the foot of my bed, shaking and crying.

The phone rang nearly an hour later. I was sitting in the same spot. I let the machine answer.

"Mr. Edgeworth? This is Gumshoe. There's been an accident... please, help... we're at the hospital... I need your help-- please hurry."

Tears still streaming down my face, I threw on a shirt and ran straight out the front door.