Part Ten

Nakamori and Mouri - or Naka and Mouri as someone started calling them - did not go well together.

It was noon, and Hakuba snitched a sandwich from a pile someone had gone out to get and watched the two butt heads - figuratively and literally - over what had happened last night. Mouri was haranguing about being tied up by his pants and the indignity of it and the clear negligence of Nakamori and his team to think to have both towers of the Umeda Sky Building covered - as his own brilliance had made him deduce - and demanding restitution blah, blah, blah. Nakamori, by contrast, was more than fed up that the private eye was still there and lecturing; he was trying to work out the details of the caper, overseeing the reverse engineering of the cherry blossom curtain and inventorying personnel to see what uniform was stolen to get Kid so close to the jewel and so on, that he'd finally had enough and the Task Force inspector had erupted into a long string of particularly violent curses and threats that Mouri shut the +_)(*&^%$#!~ up and get the +_)(*&^%$#!~ away from him, etc, etc.

Nobody stood closer than ten feet from the two men.

Frustrated, Hakuba stood and left, still munching on his lunch, and went down a floor or two to where the heist had actually occurred. Uniforms were still sweeping up the flowers; many had been stomped into the carpet - another count of property damage against Kid - and more than a few were wondering out loud if they could filch some to take home and make jams with their wives and kids. The blonde walked over to the display case, empty of course, and stared at it in accusation.

Good grief; how could he have made such an ass of himself? Hakuba flushed at the very thought of it, pulling at Kudo's face and having the entire household throw him out for his overzealous actions. The entire reason he never overtly went after Kuroba was simply because there was no physical evidence; the half-blood detective hadn't realized how desperate he was to prove himself right until that morning, bursting into Toyama's house and making such ludicrous accusations.

He put a hand to his head, trying to stave off a headache. It had fit together so perfectly! Hattori an accomplice to the heist, hiding an injured Kid, Kid disguised as the legendary Kudo Shinichi. Nirvana had been laid at his feet and then brutally snatched away.

It was all so plausible it made his head hurt. Hattori, being Kudo's best friend, would of course offer the other teen sanctuary, and everything after was just the natural reaction of... of...

His head snapped up. What was the reclusive Kudo doing in Osaka, anyway? Why was he so close to Toyama's house? A puzzle, one the blonde couldn't find an immediate answer to. The great detective hadn't been seen in ages, going from being the forefront of the news to randomly showing up in Osaka during a Kaitou Kid heist. Kudo even failed to show to events he was personally invited to, so why suddenly make an appearance? What did Hattori and the others know about it?

No, it wasn't his business; it was an invasion of privacy. But if it couldn't be explained...

Hakuba allowed himself to growl under his breath and spin around. He had better things to ponder - when the jewel would be returned, for starters.

"Hattori-kun," a secretary said when she saw the teen, "ya look terrible."

"You try bein' up fer over twenty-four hours," Heiji growled.

"Oh, I see. Do ya want coffee?"

The Detective of the West made a face. "I've had too much coffee as 't is. Got any real food?"

It was a trick question. It was well known amongst Osaka Police that the precinct lived off of instant ramen, stale donuts, and vending machine food. The secretary made a helpless face of sympathy. "I'll see if'n I can find something," she offered, getting up.

Perfect. Heiji waited a moment before blowing by her desk and into the back rooms, where interrogation and holding was. He saw a few faces of the Task Force, but their presence was minimal, as he'd expected. The majority of the detail would still be at Umeda, collecting evidence and reverse engineering the heist for their files and reports. Heiji already knew how almost everything of the heist was done; he didn't need to go back to the building. No, what he wanted was information of a different sort.

"Hey, Yamano-han," he called out, catching the arm of the tech supervisor. "Couldja do me a favor? Has anyone asked ya ta compile the audio and video footage of last night's heist?"

"Have they?" the roguish looking man asked, rolling his eyes. "That damn Nakamori's callin' me every ten minutes demandin' why I don't have it yet."

Heiji nodded, expecting that. "Ya think I can sneak a peak before ya send it over?"

"Fer the boss's son? Anything," he said brightly, roughly batting the teen detective on the shoulder before disappearing around a corner. Heiji grimaced, hating it whenever someone referred to him as his father's son. He'd worked hard to garner his own reputation, fought to break away from his stone-cold father's image and unyielding attitude, but at the station it would likely never change. He was his father's son, and few indeed would ever see him as anything else.

Still in a foul mood, he kicked at a vending machine to give him a candy bar, ripping it open with his teeth before taking a huge bite out of it. The sugar helped a little, and he threw the wrapper away and stopped off at the men's room to clean up and look remotely presentable. Sloshing water on his face and rubbing it into his hair, he took in his haggard appearance in the mirror. He really did look like hell; the lack of sleep was carving dark circles under his eyes, and his hair was an unexpected mess.

Sighing, he pulled out a comb from his jacket pocket and dug it through his hair, washing his face again and rubbing his eyes. At least now he looked presentable. He was going to sleep twenty hours when he got back to Kazuha's. After he'd beaten Kid to a pulp.

Now, to find out what the hell had happened last night.

His first step was lockup, beeline-ing to the sniper he'd identified last night, the one who'd fired the fateful shot.

"Yo!" he called out brightly.

"Augh, you again," the sniper groaned. Out of his professional gear, Heiji found a man in his forties, thinning red hair on the top with a poorly done brush-over, and deep-set eyes with thin glasses. "I've never seen a teenager make fools out of so many professionals. What training do you have?"

"Kendo," he offered.

"Figures," the older man scoffed.

"Ya know why 'm here," Heiji offered, not bothering with further pleasantries.

"Same as everyone else," the sniper replied. "I'll tell you what I told everyone else - not that anyone believes me. Boss's orders was hold fire until a specific series of beeps came over the headset: F-I-R-E in Morse Code. It came over my headset, I took aim and Kid jumped too quick for me to follow. I'll tell you, I've never seen a man move that fast - reminds me of my daughter; she's a track star and holds the record for the five hundred meter dash in her school. With the kid in his arms I aimed for the far elbow and fired. Kid jumped down with the kid still in his arms and I waited for another order. Four minutes later you arrived mad as hell and took everyone into custody."

Heiji nodded, expecting about as much. "What kind o' headset didja use? Same as th' rest?"

The balding sniper blinked. "No accusations? No pissy tirades? Boy, I like you even more. We all were given the privilege to use preferred equipment. I had a digital earpiece and mike combo. Store bought but striped of its original programming and recoded for my use. The client broadcast on a standard channel. I can give you the specs, if you want."

"I do," Heiji replied, pulling out a notepad and writing it all down. Frowning, he looked up afterward and asked, "Anythin' unusual 'bout the transmission?"

"Only that it came at all. Have you met the client? Pansy, but a sweet pansy. He made it clear he didn't want any bloodshed, we were just for show."

Heiji nodded. "Alright. Thanks."

"You think you can get me out of here?" the sniper asked.

"Dunno," Heiji answered honestly. "But after hearin' yer story, I'm pretty sure I figured out part o' what happened."

The sniper nodded and Heiji ran a hand through his dark hair, rolling his head and trying to pop the kinks out. His stomach was rumbling, but he patiently ignored it, because it reminded him that he was having dinner with his parents and he didn't relish what that would entail. He was ducking into hallways as it was to avoid his father.

"Yo, Yamano-han!" he called out, spying his next stop.

"No I do not have'em ready!" the tech guy shouted, turning around to reveal that he was growling into the phone. "Maybe if ya stopped callin' me every ten seconds I'd get somethin' done!" He yanked the phone away from his ear and snapped it shut with a flourish. His roguish face turned and spied Heiji. "Ah! Y're here, good. I jus' finished."

The Detective of the West grinned. "I appreciate this," he said with sincerity.

"Hey, a body gets tired of bein' sworn at every couple of seconds. I figure it's payback fer the disrespect."

"Ha!" Heiji gave his colleague a pat on the back before following the handsome tech down the hall to a room.

"'s all set, on four DVDs an' two audio tapes. Some of the snipers used analogue, so it ain't all there, but as much as I could find."

"Good."

"Hattori-kun," Yamano said quickly, nervousness in his voice. "Yer dad know y're here?"

"I hope not," Heiji said, rolling his eyes and knowing what was next.

"'s just... I'm not th' only one Nakamori's callin'. If Hattori-han asks, I can't lie ta him and... well..."

Heiji nodded. "I'll be quick," he said, gritting his teeth.

Once in the room, he shut and locked the door, knowing it would piss off his father but too tired to care. He started with the audio first; that was the more important of the two. The video wouldn't give him what he needed unless the theory he was thinking of needed close range interference.

He pulled out his notepad to jot down what he needed. An hour later he'd filled out three of his little pages and not much else. It both was and wasn't what he expected. The important file he wanted wasn't there; he'd expected as much and only supported his theory of outside interference. There were some interesting noises on the audio; some points for him to ask Yamano to investigate further, but otherwise nothing of merit. Cursing, he leaned back and put his hands behind his head. God, he was tired; he would probably have this cracked if he was actually awake...

The door bursting open startled him out of his half doze, and he was startled enough to topple out of his chair. So much for locking-

"Heiji."

He froze.

"Dad."

Heiji stumbled to get up quickly, his legs inadvertently kicking the chair and the headset tugging around his neck, nearly choking him. Growling in his chest and cursing that he was audible, he finally managed to yank the wire off his neck and toss it vaguely to the table, flipping his memo pad closed and stuffing it in his pocket. He stared at his father, tall and imposing, and saw the sheepish form of Yamano looking down.

"Ya are aware," his father said slowly, his tone deceptively light - almost menacing, "that Inspector Nakamori has been asking for those records for the last hour and a half?"

The Detective of the West glanced at the clock and mentally cursed.

"This department, no matter the opinion, will always make every effort ta be cooperative ta fellow members of law enforcement. Given th' public status o' this... caper... in particular, an' the international connections that follow it, one would've thought that my son, of all people, would understand how necessary cooperation would be."

It was everything in Heiji's power to keep his jaw wired shut. There was a litany of things he wanted to say, but he knew from experience to keep it under his hat for now. Instead, he said,

"I'm... I'm sorry fer the inconvenience." He deliberately shifted his gaze to Yamano. "'m done, though, ya can take it," he said slowly, giving the tech an out for this increasingly tense conversation.

After a guilty glance, Yamano quickly gathered what he needed and moved to depart.

"Wait, Yamano," his father commanded, and the roguish tech froze on the spot.

"Heiji," his father continued, an impassive stare on his face. That was what Heiji hated the most: the impassive, business attitude that pervaded everything the old man did. "I know your mind. You have ideas. Give me your notebook."

... What?

"... What?"

"Give me your notebook."

In Heiji's defense, he hadn't slept in almost thirty-six hours, hadn't eaten anything substantial in over twelve, and had been on an emotional rollercoaster for almost as long. It was understandable, in retrospect, for him to react as he did.

Heiji saw red.

"Ya goddamn crotchety old bastard!" he shouted. "Ya'd never ask fer the notebook of any of the men 'n this building, it's an insult!" He stomped forward, startling Yamano and making him step back, but his father stood his ground, the living embodiment of stone. "But ya ask it of me? Bad enough ya won't let me do half of what I need ta do ta solve a case, makin' me pull in favors and go under th' radar that I know ya hate, but now that ya've perpetuated yer nontrust of me ya go an' ask fer my notebook? Screw you, ya bastard!"

Heiji stormed past him, past Yamano, furious. He'd almost made it to the door when,

"Heiji."

And he knew he had to capitulate before something even worse happened. Growling, he ripped the memo pad out of his pocket and flipped over to his three pages of notes on the audio, tearing them out violently and crumbling them in his fist before throwing it onto the floor in his father's general direction.

"Here," he growled.

Storming out into the precinct room, he saw that more than a few people had been listening in, and were now trying to look busy. Another reason why he would always be his father's son instead of his own man. God, he hated the situation he was in.

Face black as last night's thunderclouds, he stomped out into the midday sunshine and cursed that it was so bright outside.

It was almost two when he finally came home (re: Kazuha's house), and if it wasn't for the adrenaline still pumping in his system at the gall of his father, Heiji was certain he would have passed out from exhaustion. He all but fell out of his shoes and stubbed his toe when he stepped onto the hall, cursing loudly and creatively.

"Hattori-kun?" Ran stepped out of the kitchen, apron around her waist and a towel in her hands. "Are you alright? You missed lunch..."

Quite a few curses were still falling out of his mouth, but he finally was able to still his mind enough to process her question and answer in turn. "'m as well as can be expected, Nee-chan. How's Kudo?"

"They're both asleep," Ran offered. "The exhaustion finally wore them both out, especially Shinichi."

Envy...

Heiji shook his head and worked his way to the back bedroom, sliding open the door long enough to toss the disposable cell onto Kid's bed before closing the door again. Back in the kitchen, he eyed the empty plates and felt his mouth water. "Nee-chan, if I ask nice enough, 're there any leftovers?"

Ran giggled slightly, running a hand through her hair, before opening the fridge and pulling out a plate of sandwiches. "Kazuha-chan made them," she offered subtly. Heiji decided he'd process that later; hunger had taken over his intellectual side, and he attacked the plate like one imagined a caveman might. The food helped enormously, filling his stomach and giving him his fourth wind (or was it his fifth?). It also lightened his mood considerably, and for a little while he forgot how exhausted he was. When he was done, he leaned back and gave a great sigh of satisfaction.

"Gift from th' gods," he breathed, content for the first time in what felt like forever.

Ran smiled softly, taking the plate from him. "Make sure you tell Kazuha-chan that."

"Where is she?" Heiji asked, realizing how quiet the house was.

"I sent her out to buy food," Kudo's girl responded, sitting across from him after setting the plate in the sink for later cleaning. "The situation here was pressing her a little, so I thought some time outside would do her good. She's still very mad at you, you know."

Heiji groaned, rubbing his hands over his face. There were too many problems on his plate as it was...

"May I make a suggestion?" Ran asked from beyond his hands.

"I'll take anythin' at this point," Heiji muttered, leaning forward and putting his elbows on the table, resting his head on the palm of a hand.

"Just... just hold her," she said softly.

Heiji bristled. "Me? Hold Kazuha?" What a ludicrous thought! Even if it did sound nice... reeeeeal nice... He shook his head. "Thanks fer th' advice, Nee-chan, but I know how ta handle Kazuha."

Ran gave a knowing smile, but said nothing.

Heiji looked up, realizing something. "Nee-chan, you were at the heist, right? Ya said somethin' about monitorin' the security feeds an' the radio transmissions?"

The karate practitioner blinked, surprised at the change in topic. "Yes, why?"

"Couldja hear the sniper transmissions? All of them?"

"I don't... let me check the laptop. Oh, I hope I didn't leave it behind. I was so frantic last night..." Ran got up and disappeared down the hall. Heiji wanted to follow but didn't have the energy to do so. He sat at the table, listless, drifting and fighting the drift desperately, trying to hold onto the thought that had struck him.

"Here," Ran said, breaking his doze and opening the lid of the laptop. Heiji squinted at the brightness of the screen, his eyes burning and demanding to remain closed. "Let's see, I couldn't figure out how to record what I was hearing," she said quickly, an embarrassed flush blossoming on her cheeks, "but I did take notes when I could. The security cameras-"

"I'm not lookin' fer the security cameras," Heiji said quickly, struggling to focus. "I'm interested in whether 'r not ya could hear the sniper static. There wuz a total o' six snipers on th' roof. Couldja hear all six?"

Ran poked through her documentation for a moment before leaning back and closing her eyes, a finger rubbing between her eyebrows. "They didn't talk much," she muttered to herself, "the heist itself was more interesting. But there was... ah!" Ran looked up and went back to her laptop. "They did all give radio confirmation that everything was working ten minutes before the heist started. Here, yes, all six called in. Hm..." She leaned back again, her face furrowed in thought. "I'm not an expert, but there was one thing that was strange. One of the snipers, there was a faint clicking sound before he checked in. It might have been him loading his weapon but..."

"Nee-chan," Heiji said brightly, his mind briefly coming awake as his theory was confirmed, "Y're an angel!" Quickly, he whipped out his cell phone and called the station. "Yo, Yamano-han, 'm I still an ass at th' precinct?"

"Ah-"

"Good, do me a favor, will ya? Th' sniper that fired, check his radio log; specifically his time checks. Th' last one'll be the most interestin' if I'm right. When y're done with that, call Yukimura an' have'm check cold cases fer other cases with little radio ticks like what ya find. Tell'm ta go back at 'bout five years, th' tech wasn't good enough before that. Then call me, not my old man, with the results, 'kay?"

"Hattori-kun-"

"Thanks, see ya!"

Heiji snapped his phone closed and breathed a sigh of relief. At last, progress.

"Nee-chan," he said, looking at the confused girl in front of him. "'m havin' dinner with the parents tonight, an' I'm expectin' World War III. Can I sleep on the couch 'til Kazuha comes home an' throws me out? If Kudo wakes up tell'm I got an idea an' I'm followin' it."

Ran nodded quickly, getting up. "I'll fetch you a blanket."

"Don't bother, Kazuha'll probably charge me rent."

Ran smirked slightly and got the blanket anyway. Heiji was already fast asleep when she came in, and she gently tucked him in, noting the time and reminding herself to ask her friend when they should wake him.

Aoko glared at her phone. Again.

"Stupid Kaito," she growled under her breath, playing the message for the umpteenth time. "Kidnapped my ass. I'll kill him." Leave it to Kaito to tease about being kidnapped by his new relatives. He was probably having the time of his life, he sounded really excited in the message, and just wanted to rub her face in it.

Looking up, Aoko took in her surroundings: the hotel lobby. She's been waiting since noon for her father to show up. She'd heard about the heist on the news, and the fact that he hadn't called was testament enough to know that he was busy, and she could only imagine what he was going through. He'd called to say he'd try to break away for lunch, but it was now past four, and there was no sign of him.

She sighed. Kaitou Kid had stolen her father again, and she didn't even have Kaito to distract her. She was tempted to call her new friend Ran, but the karate practitioner was busy with friends of her own; she didn't want to bother her with her problems. Growling, she threw her phone violently into her purse and yanked it over her shoulder, stomping up to the main desk.

"Excuse me," she said in as bright a voice as she could manage. "Are there any tours this afternoon that I could go on?" She would not have her Golden Week ruined. Not by her father, not by Kaitou Kid, and definitely not by Kaito.

"Let me check," the receptionist said brightly, typing on her computer. The uniformed girl searched for a few minutes before looking back up. "There's a bus tour leaving from the station at five. It's a sunset tour that goes... oh, it goes up to the Umeda Sky Building. I doubt they're open after what happened last night."

Aoko clenched her fists, but kept on smiling.

Her purse vibrating surprised her, and she quickly apologized to the receptionist before pulling it out and looking at the number. It wasn't one she was familiar with, and so she picked it up. "Hello? Nakamori Aoko speaking," she said softly.

"Yo! Aoko!"

Rage.

"Kuroba Kaito, I'm going to kill you!" she shouted into the receiver at the top of her lungs. Her voice echoed across the entire lobby, and she blushed bright red when she realized how many heads she'd just turned. Scandalized, she bowed to the receptionist quickly before power walking to the nearest elevator. "Kuroba Kaito, I'm going to kill you," she hissed, waiting for the doors to ding open.

"You already blew out my eardrums," he whined, and Aoko could picture the other teen rubbing a finger in his ear to clear out the ringing, "what more could you do?"

"I could string you up by your-"

"Uweh, never mind, I'm not sure I want to know," Kaito said quickly.

"Where are you?" she demanded.

"Right now? I'm on a roof."

"That doesn't help at all!"

"Sorry, sorry," Kaito said glibly at the other end. "I have temporary amnesty from my darling relatives. They actually left me alone for more than five seconds, so I snuck out before they decided to eviscerate me."

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"Eh? Didn't you get my message this morning?"

"You mean that line of bull about handcuffs and straightjackets?"

"It wasn't bull!" Kaito said in a light, defensive tone. "They really did tie me up. They figured because I was a magician that I was also an escape artist. You wouldn't believe the stretching I had to do to get out of the straight jacket. And the handcuffs!"

Aoko rolled her eyes. "Well, now that you're free-"

"I'm not free, Aoko. I said I was on the roof, I didn't say I was free. See, they've got these guard dogs, too."

"Kaitooooooooooo...!" Aoko put a hand to her forehead to forestall a headache.

"No, I'm serious! There're four of them. One is this big, dark dog that barks at me whenever he gets the chance, and two girls that just sort of stand at the door to my room and stare - one'll lick my hand but the other always growls and tries to bite. The biggest problem is actually the smallest, tiny little mutt that just never leaves my side and yips whenever I go anywhere. All four of them are sitting in the yard glaring at me right now. Really!"

It was the "Really!" that made it all so fake to Aoko, and the energy just sapped out of her. "Kaito, why don't you just admit that you're having too good a time?" she asked.

"... because I'm not," Kaito said, all the light and teasing tones gone from his voice. "I really am stuck here, and circumstances prevent me from leaving just yet. It doesn't help that I'm a klutz, too. I fell down the stairs last night and have all the bruises to prove it. Everybody's hovering and I'm on the roof to get away from it all. I'm making light of it because I think I'll go crazy if I don't."

A tear slid down Aoko's face and she was surprised when it did. She wiped at it furiously and cursed herself for being touched by Kaito's voice, for feeling sympathy. "Then just tell me were you are so I can stage a prison break."

The laughter that erupted from the other end of the phone surprised her, and it continued for so long she wasn't sure if Kaito really had gone crazy.

"Aoko, the picture you put in my head just now is worth it!"

"Worth what? Kaito?"

Finally, the laughter died down to giggles, to humphs, to finally a modicum of control. "Ha, Aoko, thanks, I needed that. Look, the minute I can sneak out I will - and you'll be my first stop, okay? And as a thank you for the kindness, I'll be sure to tell you about the brainwashing."

Aoko blinked. "Brainwashing?"

But Kaito had already hung up.

She looked at the phone for a long time, not completely sure what had just happened. Frowning, she entered her hotel room to another surprise.

"Ah! Aoko, I was sure I'd missed you!"

"... Dad?"

She was engulfed in a hug. "Ugh, finally, a friendly face. I'm so glad you came! I'm sorry it took so long to get back, those shitheads were trying to run me in goddamn circles." The hug tightened, and Aoko was surprised to find her feet lifting off the ground slightly. That hadn't happened since middle school. She was engulfed in the sweet smell of pipe smoke, her cheek was tickled with the coarse hair that she'd inherited, and she could hear the relieved heartbeat of her father, glad that his fight to come back to her was worth it.

She found another tear slide down her cheek, and she wondered dimly if she was due to make her so emotional. Ultimately, she decided she didn't care, and she hugged her father back, drinking in his scent and glad, deeply glad, that her day wasn't ruined. She'd had a call from Kaito. She had her father in her arms.

What more could she want?

Author's Notes: Bleh, not the best chapter, but after all the drama for the last - what, five parts? - we needed a chapter that took a break from it all before it became melodrama. Lots of investigation stuff in this chapter, a few reflections here and there, and then the drama with Hattori and his father appeared. (face palm) can't get away from the emotional roller coaster, I guess. At least Hattori finally is getting some sleep.

Kaito, as always, was fun to write; he's just so teasing, and he has this natural ability to cheer everyone up (even Hattori if the poor kid ever LET him).

Several of you made comments on how Hakuba really got the short end of the stick last chaper. The two of us have gone back and forth repeatedly on Hakuba and how to portray him. It's why we complain about him so much. Is he as smart as Shincihi/Kaito/Heiji? Or is he too focused to really stand back and see the big picture? You'll notice last chapter that Hakuba barely had two seconds to look around since Conan, Ran, and "Shinichi" were all diverting his attention, to say nothing of the arctic blasts from Heiji and Kazuha. If Hakuba had stuck around, he probably would have started to notice things that would lead him down a road we don't think he's really ready for. Hakuba needs to loosen up and look at what sort of damage would happen if he finally put Kaito behind bars, but right now he can't see that because he's spending a lot of energy in just catching and not what's beyond. And since he's not ready, he needed to leave. Fast.

You'll notice that when secrets are divulged, not all of them are. We're doing that on purpose. Kazuha knows that there's a "Them" out there, not that Shinichi is Conan. Hakuba doesn't learn anything about Shinichi, and still has no proof for Kaito=Kid. Conan knows who Kaito is, but hasn't said anything to Ran and Heiji. These are deep secrets. Many fanfics, when someone finds out, they get the whole thing. That doens't seem likely. Conan, in particular, has been holding on to these secrets for so long that he's not just going to let them go easily. Ran finding out was an accident. Kaito getting the story was to make the thief feel safe while surrounded by detectives. Kazuha only gets the bit that's pertinent to her because the rest is just so fantastic it's unbelievable.

At least, that's how we view things.

Next chapter: Kaito answer's Conan's question.