Chapter seven
Truth
ooOO-OOoo
Impatiently, Shinichi knocked on Kuroba's door and rang the bell for the fourth time. He was tapping his right foot anxiously by now as he pulled out his cell-phone. He typed on the surface harder than necessary and tried to force the line to connect with sheer willpower – what didn't work. After a few ringtones he was connected to the voicemail and Kuroba's cheery invitation to leave a message. He'd done that already – twice actually. The first time last night after the, uh, conversation with his parents. He hadn't been surprised when Kuroba hadn't picked up and had assumed that he was still speaking with Nakamori-san. Heart-to-heart talks took quite some time after all. So, he'd just informed him that he would come by the next morning and that he would try to call again before he would be on his way to make sure Kuroba was at home.
But when he tried again in the morning, Kuroba still didn't pick up and Shinichi began to worry a bit. What if the talking with his childhood-friend had taken an ugly turn? Remembering the girl's temper and what Kuroba had told him about her and a mop, it was possible that she'd knocked him out or even worse – told her father about his secret.
And here he was now – hoping that the thief just was so deeply engrossed in his heist-preparations that he didn't hear his phone, knocking or the door bell, but somehow couldn't shake off the feeling that something else had happened.
' One more time the bell and the knocking, and then I'll have to try something else.'
Musingly, he eyed the keyhole of the door, trying to estimate if he could pick the lock, when he heard footsteps behind him. He turned around, anticipating seeing Kuroba coming up to the house. Instead Nakamori Aoko walked up to him with a questioning and a bit wary expression.
"Can I help you? Are you looking for Kaito?" she asked him while her glance took in his appearance. He must have looked somewhat suspicious, standing at the door for straight ten minutes now. As a good friend, she now wanted to make sure he wasn't a burglar or creepy stalker.
"Yes, well I-" Shinichi started, but was interrupted by a gleeful squeal from the girl in front of him, who suddenly was hopping from one foot to another.
"Oh! Now I recognize you. You've been at the Police Department when Kaito and I visited my dad. It's so good to see that Kaito makes some new friends. He always buries himself in all that magic-stuff. I've been worried he would end up as some bird-keeping weirdo. Did you two hit it off right away?"
Shinichi blinked at her chatty outburst and hurriedly sorted his thoughts. "I think you could say that. I was supposed to meet him today, but apparently his is not home. Do you know by any chance where I can find him?"
She shook her head. "I'm sorry. I haven't seen him for some days, so I have no idea where he took off to again."
' She hasn't seen him for some days? So, he didn't go to her last night? Strange – I've been sure that he wanted to talk to her.'
Tipping her head to the side a bit, Aoko put one finger to her cheek and looked up while obviously thinking hard. Her face suddenly brightened up. "Ha, maybe I know where we can find him or at least someone who might know."
Without further ado, she grabbed Shinichi's wrist and dragged him away from the house and down the street to the bus stop.
"W-Wait, Nakamori-san, where are we going?" he asked while he ran a few steps to catch up with her.
"To a billiard hall."
ooOO-OOoo
True enough they had entered a billiard hall a few moments ago and even this early there where many tables occupied by players. Most of them looked like they spent quite some time here, their moves well practiced and accurate. The soft clicking of the connecting cues and balls filled the air and a TV was mounted on the wall, showing some commercial, but muted. Situated in a corner was a small bar and the barkeeper was busy polishing some glasses.
Shinichi followed Aoko to a back-room, where she knocked on the door.
"Coming," sounded a muffled voice and seconds later the door opened, revealing an elderly, bespectacled man.
"Aoko-chan," Kounsuke Jii smiled widely. "It's been ages since you've last been here. You want to play with Kaito-kun again?" His question was accompanied with a glance to Shinichi who stood a step behind Aoko and his eyes widened barely noticeable as he realized that he was not Kaito like he had expected.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I mistook you for someone else," he apologized with a quick bow. "Nice to meet you. I'm Kounsuke Jii, the owner of this humble establishment."
Shinichi bowed as well. "Nice to meet you too. My name is Kudou Shinichi." It was best when Aoko didn't know that they'd met already. With earnest eyes he fixated Jii's gaze. "We are searching for a friend, Kuroba Kaito. We hoped that you might have an idea where to find him." He could see Jii's understanding of the underlying message. 'Kaito is gone and left no hint to where and why. He might be in trouble.'
Jii rubbed his chin. "Kaito-kun, hm? I'm afraid I haven't seen him. He used to come here now and then, but not within the last two weeks. Very unusual for him - he must be busy with school."
Shinichi decoded his answer easily. 'Kaito didn't tell me either. It's very unlike him to disappear that shortly before a heist.'
Now, Shinichi really was worried. If Kuroba wasn't home and hadn't been with Aoko last night, then Jii had been the last one who'd seen him and that was almost fourteen hours ago. He needed to speak with Jii without Aoko listening, because she obviously didn't know that Kuroba and Jii saw each other more often than just for some billiard.
"Kounsuke-san, do you have a phone in your office? I'm afraid my mobile is low on battery and I need to make a call."
"Sure, follow me – I'll show you. Aoko-chan, I hope you don't mind waiting for a moment?"
Smiling, she shook her head. "I'm fine. I'll go and get something to drink from the bar."
"Alright, tell Sakagawa-san that it is on me," Jii said and made a sign to his barkeeper who nodded back. Aoko thanked him and made her way through the tables while Jii gestured at Shinichi and they entered the office, closing the door behind them.
Shinichi got straight to the point. "Did you bring Kuroba to Nakamori-san last night?"
Jii nodded slowly. "Yes, he wanted to come clean with her in case something happened to him, though I brought him home, because he wanted to get something first." His shoulders sank, weighted down from worry. "He didn't get there, right?"
Shinichi's grave gaze was answer enough. "Is there anywhere else where he could be? Any hideout or maybe he went to the heist-site for a last check-up?"
"No, Bocchama would have told me if he'd wanted to go there. My last information was that he wanted to put some final touches on his equipment today and meet up with you later," he said, unconsciously changing back to the polite addressing.
That was bad. Where could the thief be? Maybe he should go back to Kuroba's house to make sure none of his gadgets went off and accidently had hurt him – though that was quite unlikely. But what if-
His thoughts where cut off by the noise of shattering glass and the scream of a female voice. Both bolted to the door and Shinichi ripped it open to see Aoko staring at the TV with wide eyes, trembling. A broken glass lay at her feet, the juice slowly soaking her shoes, but she paid it no mind. He followed her gaze and froze. A grainy video footage showed a young man - bound, gagged and unconscious on the floor. A trickle of blood had run down from his temple and dried on his face. Despite the bad quality it was easy enough to make out Kuroba's features. Shaking off the stupor, he sped forward.
"Turn up the volume!"
The barkeeper struggled to get a firm hold on the remote before he found the right button.
"… received this video material from an anonymous sender along with a demand to Kaitou KID. It says, that he has to deliver tonight's heist target to them or the boy will die. The exact details he will receive at the heist. If the police try to interfere in any way, they will have to take responsibility for the death of an innocent civilian."
Aoko gasped in horror and clapped one hand over her mouth. "Kaito," she whispered and the first tears made their way down her cheeks.
The excited newscaster went on. "So far the video seems to be unfeigned. Our experts are currently working on it and we will inform you as soon as we know something new. Now to our KID-expert. Shiragawa-san – do you think KID will follow the instructions?..."
Shinichi tuned Shiragawa's voice out – it wasn't important what he thought. KID couldn't show up to give them the jewel because he was the one they held hostage. For sure this was Snake's work. But why did he decide to take such drastic means? Why suddenly acting so openly after they always made sure the police didn't notice them?
A sobbed "Tou-san," made him turn his attention to the girl next to him, who was holding her cell-phone to her ear in a tight grip. Well, shit – what was he supposed to do with Nakamori-keibu?
Aoko listened to her father's loud voice and nodded between strangled hiccups. "Yes, I'll wait. We are at Kounsuke-san's billiard hall." Two more hiccups. "Kudou-san is with me. – Ok, I'll tell him."
With shaking fingers she turned off her phone and looked at Shinichi. "My dad's coming to pick me up. He tells you to wait here for him and try to get a hold on that damned thief." She was clearly confused while she snuffled, "You know how to contact Kaitou KID?"
Shinichi squirmed under the attention of all people in the now quiet room. "Uh, well – I-" He didn't get to finish his sentence, as he suddenly found himself with an armful of sobbing girl. "Please – you have to tell him to help Kaito! He has to help! 'No one gets hurt', right?"
Very unsure how to handle the situation, he was grateful that Jii took Aoko by the arm and pulled her into a soothing embrace.
"Everything will be alright. You know Kaito-kun – he is strong and full of ideas. He will come back for sure."
For a moment Shinichi had the feeling as if he was looking at something from the past he hadn't seen himself. Somehow he was sure that Ran had been comforted in the same way when she'd learned about his own kidnapping. Seeing the crying girl, his stomach turned into a cold pit when he thought about Ran, suffering like that because of him.
He shook his head to get rid of this terrible feeling. Ran was alright and probably kicking someone's ass right now. He had to concentrate.
They kidnapped Kuroba to use him as leverage, so they actually didn't know or even suspect that he was KID. So far so good, but why where they forcing things now and not on any other previous heist? Had the heist-note been that convincing that they truly expected to get Pandora tonight? For sure they were not willing to take any risk losing the gem to KID. They had to be aware that no matter what they demanded, the police would be after them as soon as Kuroba's safety was confirmed. They wouldn't be able to work hidden any longer. So maybe it didn't matter? Well, if they really believed in the legend, immortality would weight up many disadvantages – maybe even being caught. Still, he had the feeling that their move was somewhat desperate. As if-
"Konsuke-san, can I have a word with you?" he murmured in Jii's ear. Jii gently sat Aoko down on a chair and told her he would be right back. Retreating to a far corner of the room he and Shinichi talked with lowered voices.
"Kuroba never told me the full legend of Pandora, though I looked some of it up on my own. I remember something about a time limit."
"That's right. Every ten thousand years, the Volley comet comes close to the earth. That is the moment to hold Pandora up against the full moon and drink its tears to gain immortality."
"Do you know when exactly this will happen?"
"Bocchama never believed in this myth, so we didn't give it that much thought," Jii explained. "To him, it was only important to stop them and reveal what really happened to Toichi-sama."
Shinichi had guessed that much. What a pity that he hadn't thought about it sooner. "What if the comet passes the earth very soon? To be more precise – tonight? I'm sure Snake and his men would know that."
Jii inhaled sharply. "They would take high risks to reach their goal in time. And they wouldn't mind to-" his voice broke off in a rasp.
"Right - they wouldn't mind sacrificing a random boy for it," Shinichi grimly ended his sentence. "We made our plans without thinking about how far our opponent was willing to go and now-" He wearily drew a hand down his face. "Now we are in deep shit."
They heard a commotion outside the hall.
"Seems like Nakamori-keibu is here," Shinichi stated the obvious. He caught Jii's sad gaze. "You know we can't keep it from him any longer, right? He has to know why KID won't come to Kuroba's rescue."
Jii looked at him unsure. "I've pulled off some heists before Bocchama took up the cape, maybe-"
Shinichi waved him off. "No offense Jii-san, but that was two years ago and even back then my dad noticed some significant differences about KID's style. Also-" He glanced at Jii's hands. "I think I've seen some trembling in your fingers that has nothing to do with fear. Are you sure you would be up to a heist including dodging bullets with Kuroba's life on the line?"
Jii visibly deflated. He raised his right hand to his face and watched the fine tremors running through the muscles. He sighed. "You're right. Age is catching up to me as hard as it is to admit that. But - maybe you could do it."
Shinichi stared at him and blinked – then he waved his hands in defense. "No way – I'm sorry, but I don't think that I'm already fit enough for such a task. Not to mention all the tricks and gadgets Kuroba only showed briefly to me ."
Kuroba had in fact shown him some of his toys, but Shinichi had had problems distinguishing the similar-looking capsules and almost knocked himself out as he mistook a capsule with sleeping-gas for a light-grenade.
"I see – looks like one of us is too old and the other one not back to full health. So, we are really left with no choice. We need help from the police."
With this statement, Jii really seemed a lot older than a moment before. He had kept KID's secret for two generations. To see how his young master was about to go down had to be hard on him.
Shinichi tried to give him some encouragement. "Maybe we can keep it between Nakamori-keibu and us. I know it will be bad enough if he of all people knows, but we have to concentrate on damage control and I think Kuroba's life is most important right now."
For a few moments Jii just stood there while he silently said goodbye to the mystery of Kaitou KID. He knew Kaito would never fly through the skies at night like before. Tonight would be the end of the magician under the moonlight – one way or another.
He collected himself and straightened his spine. "Alright, let's get Bocchama back. Kaitou KID's story will not end with the death of his number one fan."
'I promise you, Toichi-sama – we won't let your son die.'
ooOO-OOoo
Nakamori was torn between fuming because this god-damned thief was putting someone at risk (even if it wasn't really his fault), and being worried out of his mind for that certain someone. Why the hell had it to be Kaito-kun? Not that he would wish something that bad happening to anyone else, but seeing how devastated Aoko was and his own attachment to the boy didn't make things easier.
A bit clumsy, he patted Aoko's back. She was still crying and he always felt helpless in those moments. His wife had been much better at this. His eyes searched the room. Where the hell was that Kudou-kid? He had told him to wait here and not to run off.
Just as he inwardly rambled on about disobedient kids these days, he saw Shinichi crossing the room, followed by Kounsuke Jii. Nakamori knew Kounsuke as Toichi's assistant, but he hadn't had much contact with him these days. He lacked the time for billiard – and the patience. He turned back to his daughter. "Aoko, I have to talk to Kudou-san. Are you alright being alone for a moment?"
She nodded and wiped off her tears. With a weak but brave smile she looked up at him. "It's ok, Tou-san. Just - get Kaito back, ok?"
Nakamori's heart was about to break at that sight. "I will, my dear – I promise." And he meant every word. He would be damned if he would allow that his daughter would shed any more tears because of anything concerning Kaitou KID. He got up and went over to Jii and Shinichi, who were waiting a bit at a distance from the other people.
"Got a hold on that thief already?" he snarled at Shinichi.
"Am afraid that is not possible at the moment," came the reluctant answer.
Nakamori eyed him up. The boy seemed to feel uncomfortable under Nakamori's gaze and if he didn't know better he would say Kounsuke as well. "What is going on here?"
Shinichi heaved a sigh. "It would be better if you could come into the office with us. This is kind of – delicate."
Nakamori felt his left eye twitching. He didn't have time for skirting around topics. He wanted straight answers and fast. Grudgingly he followed them. He just hoped they would make short work of it.
Shinichi waited until Nakamori had entered the room and then closed the door. "Keibu – before I can tell you anything, I have to ask you to keep your voice down, no matter what you will learn next. I know your patience is already running low, but I assure you – this is important."
Nakamori grind his teeth. To have the nerve. But ok – he would give the youth five minutes. He gave him a harsh wave to continue – about his temper he would see what he could do. No promises.
"Well, as I told you before, it's not possible to contact KID at the moment," Shinichi started.
Nakamori huffed. "And why, pray tell?" Blasted thief – what a timing to drop off the map.
After a short glance at Jii, Shinichi went on. He decided to make it quick. They hadn't the time to play 'guess what'. "He is being held captive by his enemies and depends on our help."
"He has been kidnapped as well?" Nakamori gaped. "Then why the fuck do they ask for his surrender? They have to know that he can't come. Why do they have to threaten Kaito-kun-"
"Oh jeez – do I really have to spell it out for you?" Shinichi couldn't believe how dumb the man could be. Was it really that difficult to connect the dots?
"Koruba Kaito is Kaitou KID, but his captor doesn't know that, so we have a little problem right now!"
Nakamori fell silent. What did Kudou say? Kaito-kun should be Kaitou KID? Impossible. A nervous laugh escaped him.
"You're kidding, right? Kaito-kun can't be KID. He is way too young and on top of that I witnessed myself how he attended a heist and KID showed up anyway. So stop telling nonsense and get your ass in gear. We have to find a way to help Kaito-kun."
Shinichi rubbed his temples. He had expected something along these lines, but it still was bothersome.
"Nakamori-keibu, please believe me – it's the truth. You are right; we don't have time to waste, so here are the facts in short. Kuroba Toichi had been the first KID. He made some trigger-happy enemies who discovered his true identity and they killed him, setting it up as an accident. His son found out a few years ago and took on the role of the phantom thief. Somehow he tricked you with some feigned alibies, but let me assure you – he has been the one I've worked with over the last weeks and he is the one who got kidnapped last night."
He saw the denial in Nakamori's eyes slowly changing to uncertainty.
'Good – he finally gets it. Just a little further.'
"Obviously, our opponent bought his alibies as well and now thinks that he has the perfect bait for KID. So, let me recap for you: Kuroba Kaito is Kaitou KID, so KID won't come to pull off the heist tonight and he can't come to rescue Kuroba because he himself is the thief for crying out loud."
That was the moment Nakamori's jaw dropped to the floor.
A/N: And here we go - the shit finally hit the fan. What will Nakamori-keibu do? Find out in the next chapter :)
