Chapter 5

Idly picking at the blood under his fingernails, Kaito waited for the next corpse to come in.

Well, it wasn't a corpse when he was given it. It still moved and everything, still… alive. But it was easier thinking of them as dead already. They came once a day, at least Kaito thought it was only once a day; there was no way to tell time in this room. Five corpses made five days, he supposed. The lights were never turned off or dimmed, always brightly illuminating the concrete walls and floor. The room was a step up from the other rooms he'd been given, neither freezing cold nor blinding white. He was actually fed here, convenience store bentos and a water bottle once he was done, and under it all, a fresh pile of clothes to replace his soiled ones. Thankfully, there was a drain in this floor too, like the first one but it drained faster. Kaito wondered how many rooms in this specific building needed drainage systems. Based on the amount of torture that went on here, probably most of them.

Gin took away his tools once the corpse was finished, like they were afraid he'd commit suicide. He had realized they were his tools after the second—they were the same blades, with the same scratch on one of the handles. The scratch was on a little carving knife, always the last to kiss the skin of whatever body he made that day. With it, he carved KID's insignia into the shoulder of every one of his victims, as per the instructions' orders.

The instructions arrived on the same tray that held his tools, always showing up right before the body did. It would tell him what questions to ask, which places to cut, what things to threaten, all of which Kaito obeyed robotically, mindful of the ever-watching camera placed right above the door. Sometimes the Organization wanted information; sometimes they wanted revenge on the person. But the instructions always ended the same—Carve KID's symbol into their skin, so the police would believe KID was the murderer. He was. So he did. It didn't matter how much the victim plead in their drugged state, or how revolted Kaito was with himself, because he'd keep picking up the knife. He had to. For Shinichi.

Shinichi. Just the mere thought of his name made Kaito sigh and wilt against the wall. Kaito wanted to see him again so much—his strong arms, his wistful smile, his sapphire blue eyes… he'd do anything to see Shinichi again. Shinichi was safe where he was though; he better be, or Anokata would be the next corpse under his blade. His blood boiled at the idea of anything else. But Kaito didn't know for sure and that uncertainty is what kept him still, kept him in this room and putting man after man to death. He could've escaped if he wanted too; compared to the first room, getting out would be a cakewalk. He was uninjured, if malnourished and dehydrated, and could possibly overtake Gin when he opened the door. For all he knew, the door was unlocked—he never tried it. Because if he tried to escape…

Kaito had seen a lot of dead bodies lately. He didn't want the next one to be Shinichi's.

He missed him though, more than sunlight or freedom or… Aoko. He frowned. He'd forgotten her name for a second. And… what did she look like? She had brown hair, right? Her face… it was fuzzy… Kaito ran his fingers through his hair. How could he forget Aoko? Why… why did everything feel so far away?

Had he really been here so long? Without anyone rescuing him? Had… had they even tried?

Curling up into a ball, Kaito covered his face with his arms. He wanted Shinichi. Shinichi would help him, help him remember and escape with him. He felt safe with Shinichi. He started rocking back and forth, slowly loosing himself in his isolation. Future corpses didn't make for good conversationalists after all, and Gin barely acknowledged his existence. Isolation was horrible on the mind. A shuddering breath, lungs filling with antiseptic air, and an exhale all passed through his lips, time and again as he tried not to panic. He'd see Shinichi soon, he assured himself, rubbing his arms over black sleeves to simulate human contact. He just had to wait a bit longer and he'd see Shinichi again, a little bit longer…

Like his thoughts had been heard, the door swung open, rusty hinges squeaking. In the doorway, backlit by the hall lights like a demigod, stood Shinichi smiling, face battered and lip cut but smiling none the less. Kaito surged to his feet and threw himself at Shinichi, hugging him to his body, safe, the two of them sinking to their knees on contact. A smile, his first in days, graced his lips. He methodically checked him for any unseen wounds, fingers gently pressing against skin in search of bruises as Shinichi ran his fingers through Kaito's greasy hair. Eyes narrowed as he found more serious injuries, Shinichi wincing when he touched his ribs. "It's okay," Shinichi whispered and Kaito belatedly realized that he was crying. A thumb brushed away his tears. "It's okay, I'm here now. You're okay, we're okay. You'll be alright; no one can hurt you anymore."

He wasn't concerned with that. "Who did this to you?" He couldn't hide the rage in his voice. Cold fingertips traced the under edge of a black eye.

"Anokata." Kaito clenched his jaw. "But it's alright now. He's… he's dead." What? Leaning back, Kaito cupped Shinichi face in his hands. The other bit his lip and looked away. "I-I killed him."

Unsurprisingly, Kaito was thrilled at the news. But he hid it. Shinichi looked so ashamed, like he was expected Kaito to renounce him and hate him. He could never hate Shinichi. "What happened?" He tilted Shinichi's head back up, to look him in the eye. "You can tell me; I'm not going to leave you."

Shinichi swallowed. "He wanted me to… to kill a friend on the police force. And I couldn't, I never wanted to kill anyone. But… then he threatened you, he said he'd flood your room with poison gas and I… I just snapped. I didn't want to hurt anyone, but I…"

"Shh…" He stopped his babbling by pulling Shinichi into his chest, where the other shivered and shook. "It's like you said, we're okay. This… it's a good thing. We're free now, don't you understand?" Shinichi looked up at him with confused, red eyes. "We can escape, together, and be free of this." He could imagine it now; they'd find some government trying to take down the Organization, maybe the Americans, and tell them everything they knew. In return, they'd get new identities, probably as brothers because that would be easiest with their similar looks, and live in peace until the Organization was taken down. Then he'd take Shinichi back to his old life and introduce him to everyone: his mom, Aoko… Aoko's father… He frowned. He felt like he was missing a few people…

Shaking his head, Shinichi pulled away. There were tears in his eyes. "I can't."

Kaito's heart shattered in his chest.

Shinichi continued. "I want to go with you, Kaito, I really do, but you need to escape now. The rules of the Organization state clearly… the one who kills the boss becomes the boss. That's why his identity is such a heavily guarded secret." He grimaced. "If I abandon the Organization now, I'll be hunted down and killed, far faster than if I had left as only a traitor and not Anokata. There isn't a place on earth where they wouldn't look for me; there's no escape for me. But you can go. Very few people know you're here, only Gin, Vermouth, and Sherry. I-I can make sure they don't breath a word about you, that you can go back to your life—"

They'd eat him alive, Kaito realized. Shinichi was kind, too kind for this place. He may have grown up in an evil organization, but somehow, he ended up kind. If he showed that, if he let Kaito go, the other members would see that as a sign of weakness. They weren't kind like Shinichi.

He couldn't leave Shinichi to face that alone. If there was no escape for one, then there would be no escape for the other.

"No." He cut Shinichi off. "I think I'd rather stay."

Shinichi's eyes had gone wide with shock and terror. "You don't know what you're saying."

"I do," He said. "I can take anything they throw at me, as long as I can protect you." He'd been missing for months. Kaitou KID's legacy was in tatters. He knew the Black Organization already goes up against Snake and his lot. There was nothing to lose by staying here, not even his remaining sanity or sense of innocence… hell, even his status as "not-a-murderer" was gone. And if he stayed… Reaching out, Kaito grabbed Shinichi's hand and kissed the center of his palm, much to his shock. "Please accept my affections." Please let me stay, he thought, you're the only thing keeping me alive.

Shinichi didn't answer, too busy staring at him in shock, until a blonde woman appeared behind him in the doorway. Kaito glared at the amused look on her face. He'd never seen her before. "Boss?" she asked. "You mind introducing us?"

"Vermouth." Shinichi looked back at her, expression unreadable. So this was one of the people who knew about Shinichi's new position… and about Kaito's existence. Shinichi squeezed him and let go, rising to his feet. "This… is my right hand. You're to treat him like he is me, understood?"

"Perfectly." Vermouth smiled too wide, her eyes glinting in the light. Kaito swayed as he stood, but he made a rather intimidating figure, dressed in black and covered in old blood. "And his name?"

Shinichi glanced back at him and smiled sadly. Kaito nodded in return. "He's called Rum."