July 3rd, 5:42pm
Expo3 Convention Center
Conference Room No. 13
After Hackins had been escorted away by a police officer, Edgeworth and Maya saw fit to return to Capsul's area. They needed to ask the people there if anyone could corroborate or elaborate on what the young boy had told them.
"Who do you think the people were, Mr. Edgeworth?" Maya asked. "I know Cody thought the first one was Mr. Richards, but wouldn't Miss Riter make the most sense? She told us she was going there, after all. It would have happened at around the same time."
"That's only one person, though. While I do find it likely she was in the room at some point, we don't know when she entered." Was she the first person, or the second? Or was she even heard at all?
"Well, let's go talk to her, Mr. Edgeworth!" Maya picked up the pace.
The prosecutor and assistant searched the conference hall for the Turnabout Lawyers writer. Was she still in the staff room?
Maya spotted her first. It seemed she had just returned from somewhere, standing in the corner by the door and murmuring furiously. Her notebook was open, and the pen was flying.
"Miss Riter, I have some more questions to ask you." Edgeworth wasted no time. "It's about when you arrived in the staff room, minutes before Capsul's conference. Was there-"
She wasn't listening to them. Just murmuring to herself. "...A crossover story. Traveling across time and sea to a London long ago. There, our dear lawyer teams up with a great detective and his young assistant, and they solve the puzzling mystery of… hmm..."
It was like every time he talked to her, her ideas grew more outlandish. As if a real court case would ever be concerned with time travel!
Maya didn't seem to find it as ridiculous as he did. "Hey, that kinda sounds like-"
"Miss Riter! Are you listening to a word I'm saying?"
She blinked, startled to see him in front of her once more. "Oh what is it now? Is you're investigation still at a dead end?"
"Not anymore. Miss Riter, I need you to tell me about your time in the staff room. What you did when you got there, the state of the room… anything you might remember could be very useful." Edgeworth chose not to mention the details of what Hackins had told them. He wanted to see if Riter would bring them up herself.
She closed her notebook once again, eyes glancing downwards. "I wasn't there long. I don't remember much."
"Just tell us what you do remember."
She rolled her eyes, still not meeting his gaze. Riter breathed in, about to start her testimony.
-Witness Testimony-
"In the Staff Room"
"...When I finally found the staff room, I only had a few minutes left before the presentation started. I was in a bit of a rush.
"Nobody else was in there. I'd presumed they were all at the conference room already, and that Richards hadn't waited for me. I told you as much already.
"The room was messy, but I didn't think anything of it. My coworkers aren't the tidy sort.
"After looking around, I decided I couldn't stay and wait. I left the room soon after, and made it to the conference room just in time."
Edgeworth paused, making sure the witness was done speaking before he piped up. "That isn't much to go on, Miss Riter. Are you sure you don't remember anything else?"
"I was only there a minute, if that. You think I had time for a thorough observation?"
"I suppose not," Edgeworth conceded. Assuming you're telling the truth. "Would you mind if I went through your testimony a second time?"
"..." She didn't answer right away. "...As if I can stop you. No witness can refuse to testify. Not really. If they stop to save themselves, it is merely pried out of them with vicious blackmail and past secrets." The look she fixed him with was vile. "Is that not right?"
"Of course not!" Edgeworth objected, doing his best to not be rattled. First Cachè, now this woman. Why did everyone assume the worst of him? "I only seek to question you in the hopes of finding the truth. That is my true pursuit, and has been so throughout this investigation. Now would you please repeat your testimony?"
She didn't look convinced, but no longer resisted. That was a start.
And this wouldn't take long. Edgeworth already knew what he had to do. She must not know about the evidence I possess, if she thinks she can get away with such claims. It's not surprising she wouldn't know, but if she thinks that gives her license to lie… All I have to do is show her I have more information than she realizes, and see where that takes us.
-Cross-Examination-
"In the Staff Room"
"...When I finally found the staff room, I only had a few minutes left before the presentation started. I was in a bit of a rush.
"Nobody else was in there. I'd presumed they were all at the conference room already, and that Richards hadn't waited for me. I told you as much already."
"OBJECTION!" Edgeworth broke in, opening to the page where he'd recorded "Hackins's Testimony" in his Organizer. "You say you were alone in the room, and yet a witness who was near the room at the time says he heard two people enter. Who came in with you, Miss Riter?"
"..." Her face was blank. "I don't know what you're talking about. I was alone in there. Are you certain your witness was there when I was? Capsul employees had been going in and out of that room all day."
Edgeworth wasn't actually certain, but the events described by both parties occurred in an extremely narrow time window. What were the chances that in the span of roughly eight minutes, Hackins was kicked out of the staff room by Richards, had snuck back in, heard people coming, got out of the way, and the two people Hackins heard all left before Riter found the room and went in? The odds were astronomical. If they even existed.
So naturally, Edgeworth wasn't inclined to accept Riter's excuse. "It's doubtful they weren't, to put it mildly. Are you sure you didn't see anyone else in or near the staff room? Could they have been leaving as you approached?"
It was Riter's turn to shake her head. "Your witness wasn't there in the room, were they? Just nearby? What did they hear, a door opening twice?" She paused for a minute to think. "I wasn't in there long. Maybe they heard both my entrance and exit?"
Maya considered it. "Do you think that's what Cody heard? It sounds possible, right?"
Edgeworth forced himself to recall Hackins's testimony. Is what Riter is saying a possibility?
-Yes, it is
-No, it contradicts the evidence
Edgeworth shrugged off the woman's suggestion, shaking his head. "I'm afraid that still contradicts the other testimony. In the testimony given to Miss Fey and I, our witness specifically mentioned that he 'heard people yelling'. What would you like to claim next? That you were on the phone when you walked in and out?"
Riter stuck to her guns. "Who gave you that testimony, anyway?" She snatched and looked through Edgeworth's Organizer before he could consent. "That Hackins kid from earlier? What was he doing in a staff-only area?"
"Sneaking around," Maya admitted. "It took a few tries to get him to confess to it. Look, if you saw Mr. Richards after Cody and Mr. Cachè, it would blow that PI's entire case-"
"Well, I didn't. But it sounds like your kid has changed his story before, and more than once." She tried to soften her expression, to no avail. "Kids his age… they love their video game heroes. Half their lives take place in another world."
"I can think of someone else that description applies to," Edgeworth said pointedly. "You're hardly one to lecture someone else on the matter."
She opened her notebook again, indicating this conversation was close to over. "I'm not lecturing. I'm sympathetic. I've always had a very active imagination. It serves me well in my line of work now. But at that age… my creations, and those of other people... they were real to me."
"What are you claiming?"
"All I'm saying is that I have been nothing but consistent with you. Your other witness, the ten year old, hasn't." She changed her strategy without warning. "Your assistant seems… familiar with the boy. Have you two met him before?"
"Yeah, we have," Maya answered. "It was a case three years ago."
"Did he have an imagination then as well?" Make anything up, you mean?
Maya fiddled with something in her pocket, seemingly avoiding the question. Edgeworth thought back to that time in his life. He hadn't remembered it well at first, but now that he concentrated... "He was seven back then. He thought actors in costume were their characters, and was traumatized when their actions didn't follow the script. So he changed what he saw to fit his expectations."
"Ah... How good life would be, if we all just had a script to follow." Riter was smiling, but not genuinely. "But alas, I had my cue, and I came in late. I missed my meeting with Richards. Nothing happened in that staff room." She walked off without being dismissed, leaving Edgeworth and his curiosity behind her.
"She's hiding something," Maya announced, clutching a small object to her chest.
"I'd think that was pretty obvious," Edgeworth tapped his finger in thought, noticing the small object that Maya was clutching onto. "And I didn't think one would need a magic rock to spot it. Why did you bring it to the convention?"
"Nick gave it back to me last May. He felt like he had to return it, after… what happened. But he didn't! He shouldn't have. I... meant to give it back when we came to the convention together." She finally unwrapped her fingers, exposing the glowing green. "Do you remember when he lent you this last February?"
Not willingly. Edgeworth wasn't one to believe in occult matters, but that case had been something else. When he'd returned to the country, that man had wanted him to fill his shoes for a few days, and even gave him a magic rock that visualized people's secrets. Psycholocks, he called him.
Edgeworth remembered how cumbersome it had been, to dig through lock after lock to get through to people. "Are you saying Ms. Riter has locks?"
"Yes. Four of them. Do you think we can break them now?" Maya had her hands in fists, like she was ready to try it herself.
But Edgeworth wanted to hold off. "No, I don't. We just need to make sure she stays in the area and doesn't try to leave. Maybe someone else can shine insight on the matter."
As if on cue, Edgeworth remembered the other witness in the room. She had been waiting nearby the whole time, half covered in shadow. Edgeworth was expecting that he and Maya were going to have to track down a witness. He couldn't believe they were lucky enough to have such a person come to them.
"I... heard you talking with Amy." A voice that Edgeworth hadn't heard in a little while spoke. Edgeworth waited as Pitch approached Edgeworth and Maya. "It seems like she was giving you a hard time. But I know for sure she didn't meet with Richards before their conference."
"Really?" Edgeworth wanted to hear how this was going to go. "Do you know where both of them were at all times before the conference started?"
"No, but… I know she didn't want to see him. I know why. I... think I might know what her problem is, in speaking with you." Pitch said, now standing in front of a very hopeful (but outwardly stoic) Miles Edgeworth, who was anxious to discover what Lyra Pitch had to say.
"Miss Pitch, anything you can tell my assistant and I right now will be tremendously appreciated." Edgeworth was trying to be discreet, but the music director picked up on what Edgeworth was really asking for.
She recoiled. "You don't seriously think Amy did it, do you?"
That's… still taking it a little far. I have to pull back. I can't rush this investigation for any reason. Not now that I don't have to.
"Miss Pitch, right now I am just searching for witnesses to the crime or who have information necessary to solve the case. I am not planning on arresting a suspect just yet, so whatever you believe about the crime, I strongly encourage you to tell me the truth about what you know." Edgeworth was firm, but not aggressive. He could tell by the look on the music director's face that his words must have gotten through to her. "What made you think I suspected Riter?"
She didn't want to say anything at first, but couldn't keep it inside. "I'll tell you what I know, if it will help Amy out and point you in the direction of the killer."
Was she being genuine? Edgeworth honestly couldn't tell. "Go on, then."
-Witness Testimony-
"The Truth About Richards"
"I'm not one to speak ill of the dead, but I think you need to know:
"Noland Richards made himself look good in public, but behind closed doors, he was not a good man.
"He didn't treat his employees well, especially not female ones.
"He was rude enough to me, and I only met him a few times. I can't imagine how he was to others.
"Amy's complained to me before. I did what I could to help her, but she's been so stubborn… until recently.
"She was trying to switch to a different company. She was going to write a letter of resignation once the whole series had a working draft.
"I… don't know what happened to the letter, or if it exists yet. All I know is what I've seen and heard."
So Noland Richards wasn't exactly benevolent to everyone he met? That could be important, particularly when it came to establishing motive. I wonder if she would elaborate on that matter?
Pitch didn't look pleased to be giving testimony like this. "I know it looks bad, but I promise you: Amy was already leaving the company. This isn't a reason for her to kill. She just… wasn't eager to be alone with her boss. That's why she didn't meet with him this morning."
"I see." Edgeworth did his best to soothe her. "Miss Pitch, if you recall, you're the one who told me about Mr. Richards and Miss Riter's meeting in the first place. Now you're telling me they never met today? And that the victim's behavior is why?"
"I thought I only said they were supposed to meet. Not that they ever did." An astute observation on her part. "I knew the meeting was supposed to happen, but I never knew if it did or not. Hearing Amy talk to you… I wasn't going to bring it up, but it explains why she was resistant to your questioning." She looked away. "Are you saying I shouldn't be telling you this, sir?
"No, Miss Pitch. Not at all. I'm just trying to make sense of the new information. Would you mind if I asked you a few more questions about your testimony?"
"I guess not…"
-Cross-Examination-
"The Truth about Mr. Richards"
"I'm not one to speak ill of the dead, but I think you need to know:
"Noland Richards made himself look good in public, but behind closed doors, he was not a good man."
"HOLD IT! Ms. Pitch, I hope you aren't implying the victim deserved what he got. Need I remind you, he was strangled and had his body dangled from a rope before a crowd of hundreds."
"No no no! I wasn't saying that at all." She covered her ears, rocking back and forth as she did so. It was as though she were listening to music, and her fingers were headphones. "What happened to him was horrible. It's like something out a murder story. I still find it hard to believe."
"Then why would you make such a claim?"
"I just want you to know the relationship he had with... inferiors. His employees. People he thought were beneath him."
"Okay, then. Tell me about it."
"He didn't treat his employees well, especially not female ones."
"HOLD IT! I'm afraid I need you to be more specific. What made his treatment of female employees worse?"
She stared at him, dumbstruck. "Where do I start? It's not just what he says, though he makes 'jokes', too. He never wants to hear what we're saying, he likes to lean in close, sometimes he keeps his hand on a woman's person just a little too-"
"So nothing illegal?" Edgeworth asked, cutting her off. "Nothing that police would be able to do something about?"
Pitch ran a hand through her hair, thinking about it. "Well, I guess not. It never occurred to me to try reporting him."
"Miss Pitch, what more can you tell me about Miss Riter and Mr. Richards' relationship?" Edgeworth continued to question Pitch, who was a bit taken aback.
"What?" Pitch took a few steps back. "What do you mean?"
"Did she also have these experiences with the victim?"
"Well…"
"He was rude enough to me, and I only met him a few times. I can't imagine how he was to others.
"Amy's complained to me before. I did what I could to help her, but she's been so stubborn… until recently."
"HOLD IT! So she and the victim didn't have a good working relationship?" Edgeworth had to be careful with where he took this line of questioning. Most of his experience as a prosecutor was with homicide cases. He didn't usually deal with issues of this particular nature, and wasn't sure what approach he should take. "Do you think that could have motivated Miss Riter to… retaliate, in any way?"
"No, of course not! Amy… she would never take things that far. I know she was handling her problems in the best way she could."
"And what is 'the best way' to handle a situation such as the one you describe?"
Pitch sighed. "I hate to be this way, but…
"She was trying to switch to a different company. She was going to write a letter of resignation once the whole series had a working draft."
"HOLD IT!" Edgeworth was getting ready to ask Pitch a question, but Maya beat him to it.
"She was harassed at work, and the best thing for her to do about it was resign?" The medium looked furious. "That's not fair to her!"
"What else could any of us do? He owned the place, and as you, sir, pointed out…" Pitch indicated Edgeworth with a nod. "Nothing he did was really illegal. Just... rude. Usually, things like that would fall on the company to manage, but Amy was convinced there was nothing Capsul's resources would do about it, since Mr. Richards owned it all. So I told her if she ever applied for work at Odetnim, I would put in a good word for her. It was the best solution there was."
"And this is why you think she didn't meet with Richards? You think she avoided doing so on purpose?" Edgeworth piled on the questions. "Showing up late, only spending a second in the staff room... this explains all of it?"
"Yes. When she says she never met him today, I have every reason to believe she's telling the truth. Don't you see?" Pitch was getting more insistent now. "She was almost out of the company. For good. Why would she go after Mr. Richards now? It doesn't make sense."
Edgeworth could see the woman's point, but he needed to know she wasn't making it up. "And you can prove this with evidence?"
With that, Pitch deflated. "Well…"
"I… don't know what happened to the letter, or if it exists yet. All I know is what I've seen and heard."
"HOLD IT! So you have no way of proving anything you've just told me is true?"
"Ask any of Richards's female employees. They'll tell you the same thing I have. I'm sure of it!"
Edgeworth shook his head. "That's not what I meant. I was asking if you had any proof of Miss Riter's imminent resignation. Was it all just a topic of conversation between you two?"
"I mean, it mostly was talking... but I'm not lying! I swear! I'd swear it on the witness stand, if you wanted me to." She looked ready to cry again. "Please sir, you have to believe me."
"I'm sorry, Ms. Pitch, but such claims require evidence. I've spent enough of this investigation pitting testimonies against each other. That's not going to hold up well in court." It didn't help that Edgeworth had almost zero forensic evidence. Or anything telling him where the real crime took place. Or even the real murder weapon.
No. All he had were a bunch of conflicting accounts. If Edgeworth kept this up, his case was going to fall apart once it came to court. He just knew it.
Maya tried to be helpful. "Is there anything you have in writing from your friend that says she was planning to quit? A letter, maybe? Or even a phone call, if you recorded it."
"No, I never record personal calls, but… wait." Her eyes lit up. "Amy and I email each other quite frequently. I'll bet she said something about it there!" She snapped her fingers several times, trying to remember. "I brought my laptop to the convention center with me. There's more staff members in the Odetnim room, but all the rooms are the same size, so I left it in Capsul's. I could log into my email account and show you what Amy sent me. Maybe there's even a place I could print it. Would that be enough, sir?"
Edgeworth thought about it, then nodded. "It would be suitable. I think I may have seen your laptop the last time I was in the staff room. That reminds me." Edgeworth did his best to remain good natured, but his glare might have ruined it. "When I inquired about a certain online rumor, I was told it was you that had spread it. Did you post online that Capsul had earned the rights to the Steel Samurai game?"
Pitch didn't answer right away. "I... did."
"Why would you do that?" Maya asked, confused. "You work mostly for Odetnim, right? Wouldn't you want people to know your company had it?"
The witness shook her head. "Odetnim wanted to keep it a secret, to surprise people at the convention. But the gamer news groups were onto us anyway. Once they eliminated Hakari from their list, we were the next choice. I think someone might have leaked it. I did what I did to cover our tracks… and as a favor."
"A favor? Would you tell us more about that, Miss Pitch?"
"My post… it was a publicity stunt for Capsul, essentially. My best friend was proud of her work, but the biggest gaming companies are all here. Amy was worried that Capsul would be overshadowed."
"So she asked you to spread that rumor?"
Pitch didn't waste a minute objecting. "No, of course not! I did it without telling her. She only found out about it today." She made as if to leave. "Is that all, or can I fetch the evidence for you now?"
Edgeworth wasn't ready to let her go just yet. "One more thing, Miss Pitch."
"Yes?"
"The meeting between your friend and her boss, the one you say never happened. What time should it have occurred at?"
"Well, like I said before, they were supposed to have it before the conference at 12:30 began. Odetnim didn't want me to present at theirs, and that one was later anyway, so I was here. I'd imagine they were supposed to have it right before things began." She paused, green eyes clouded with confusion. "Didn't you already ask me this? Remember when you asked me why they were cutting their coordination meeting so close to the presentation?"
Now that she mentioned it, he did. "Ah yes, I do. Thank you, Miss Pitch. You may fetch your emails. Would you mind if I sent an officer along to assist you?"
"Not at all."
Pitch waited as Edgeworth called one of the half dozen officers over. When the policeman was in earshot, Edgeworth gave the man his orders at a near whisper. "Accompany this witness to the Capsul staff room. Don't leave anyone alone in there. When the witness is done in there, call a forensic team. I still think something happened in that room."
"Yessir!" The officer saluted, then walked off with the music director.
"Well that was… interesting." Maya put Edgeworth's thoughts to words. "Where do we go from here, Mr. Edgeworth?"
"Hm… Pitch claims that Riter never saw Richards today because she was trying to leave the company. But something about that seems odd to me."
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"Every time we try talking to Miss Riter, she's working on a future Turnabout Lawyers game. If she left the company, she wouldn't take any of those games or characters with her. Copyright wouldn't allow it."
"Well, Miss Pitch did say she wanted the series to have a draft ready before she resigned. Maybe that's what she's working on." Maya tried to make sense of it. "You don't think she killed Richards so she didn't have to leave, do you? That's ridiculous!"
"I agree it seems absurd, but even absurd things can occasionally be true. Your previous career as an assistant should prove that better than anything."
"Did anything even happen in Capsul's area? The more testimony we hear, the less sure I am. We don't know who Hackins heard in the staff room, and no one actually saw the victim after that scene at the entrance. What if he really did die somewhere else?"
"Where?" Edgeworth countered. "Where else could he have been killed? We have no evidence of him going anywhere after his encounter with Hackins. At least returning to Capsul makes sense."
"But he was found at Odetnim! Isn't it more likely something happened over there?"
"We had forensic teams go over Odetnim's entire area, on and off stage. They found no evidence of a struggle, of an unusual party being present aside from Hackins, and nothing that matched the marks around the victim's neck. I stick to my point that he was hung in the Odetnim backstage area, but not killed there."
"Maybe... the murderer took the weapon with them?" The medium was getting frustrated. "I don't know! We have no idea where or when he was killed. Do you think the autopsy report would show us?"
"Even if we had one, I doubt it. Time of death on those reports tends to be more of a range, as you know. And given that we're looking at a window that's roughly an hour long, I don't think the autopsy report will be any more specific than what we've already deduced for ourselves."
"But we still think that he was killed on the earlier side of the timeframe? Right after he was last seen alive?" Maya asked, a desperate tinge to her voice. "There are cameras at conventions like this, right?"
"Yes, there are. But they don't have any in the staff only sections, and the rest of the building was crowded at the time. The police officers assigned to the task have been looking through footage for hours, and have nothing to report." Edgeworth shared his assistant's frustration, but didn't want to get into it. "This is how initial investigations are, sometimes. I know you're used to getting involved only once a suspect appears, but one doesn't always appear right away. Until I have evidence suggesting otherwise, I'm going to continue investigating the possibility that Hackins is right, and our victim returned to the Capsul staff room. Where he went after that, or if he was even alive, is anyone's guess."
"I wish I were investigating with Nick," she confessed. "We always knew what to look for, when we went snooping around a murder location."
"Your investigations were far more structured and tightly paced, spread intermittently with court appearances. Initial investigations for the prosecution's side flow whichever way the situation calls for, and court comes only after the hard work is done." Edgeworth really felt like it was late in the investigation. So why did he have so little figured out? Edgeworth knew it would get him nowhere dwelling on it, but even still.
"I just wish we knew how the victim ended up at Odetnim. How was the killer able to hang his body from a stage rope and not be seen?"
"I don't know. But we can't waste any more time thinking about the leads we wish we had. We just have to pursue the leads we do have and see where it takes us."
"Leads?" Maya was almost groaning. She flopped down on the edge of the stage. "What leads?"
Edgeworth looked her over, unimpressed. "You're free to return home whenever you like, Miss Fey. In the meantime, I plan to speak with Miss Riter once again. See if she can corroborate what her friend had to say about her." It occurred to him he could wait for Pitch to bring him her evidence, but he wanted to see how far he could get without it.
"Sorry, Mr. Edgeworth. I'm fine. Just… really hungry. I could so go for another burger right about now."
"We can eat when the case is solved." Edgeworth knew it had been a few hours since lunch, but he wasn't focused on that. He was used to investigations eating up his time and energy like this. "I'll even pay for it, when it happens. Until then, let's go."
Organizer:
Profiles:
Miles Edgeworth
Age: 27
Gender: Male
Description: Me. What else can I say? Currently High Prosecutor for my local district.
Maya Fey
Age: 20
Gender: Female
Description: Once a legal assistant, Miss Fey is a spirit medium set to become the village leader of Kurain. Called me out of the blue for the sake of attending the Expo3 Convention together.
Amy Riter
Age: 29
Gender: Female
Description: Sole writer of the Turnabout Lawyers games at Capsul. Richards was her boss, and very involved in the creation of the game.
Noland Richards
Age: 35
Gender: Male
Description: Owner of Capsul gaming company. Was meant to give a speech at the convention, but never showed up. His body was found strangled in the Odetnim conference room.
Joseph Caché
Age: 46
Gender: Male
Description: A former prosecutor, now works as a PI. Insists on investigating the case for himself, and harbors an almost personal distrust of the legal system.
Allen Lite
Age: 28
Gender: Male
Description: A moderately popular online gamer. Was in the audience at the Odetnim conference when the body was discovered.
Cody Hackins
Age: 10
Gender: Male
Description: A convention attendee. Was seen arguing with the victim before the man died, and was caught snooping backstage at Odetnim's conference.
Lyra Pitch
Age: 31
Gender: Female
Description: A music producer for various games. Mostly works with Odetnim, but helped Capsul with their Turnabout Lawyer games. Went to look for Richards after he didn't show for the conference.
Evidence:
Prosecutor's Badge
Type: Other
Description: My badge. It allows me to do my job, and is to be kept in my pocket at all times.
Map of Convention
Type: Other
Description: Shows all areas available to the public at the convention. Capsul was in room number 13, while Odetnim occupied number 2. Each company is also provided a staff room in the employee only section. It's possible to get from Capsul's staff room to Odetnim's conference room in only a few minutes.
Knot Details
Type: Evidence
Description: The knot tied at the back of the victim's neck. Cannot be adjusted after tying, and very difficult for the victim to have done himself.
Stage Rope
Type: Evidence
Description: The rope used to hang the victim's body from the ceiling. Mostly likely tied by someone other than the victim, and unlikely to be the true murder weapon. Other ropes of this type held promotional posters.
Steel Samurai Banners
Type: Evidence
Description: Hanging from various places around the crime scene. Odetnim was given the rights to the Steel Samurai video game, it seems.
Lite's Testimony
Type: Evidence
Description: The victim's body was found during the Odetnim conference. The body and banners were lowered on cue by Odetnim employees.
Caché's Claims
Type: Evidence
Description: A summary of assertions made in Joseph Caché's testimony, with the claim that Richards and Hackins were seen arguing shortly before the Capsul conference among them. Check
Picture of Richards
Type: Evidence
Description: A picture taken of the victim as his body was lowered towards the crowd. It bears a message that is addressed to me. Check
Richards Speech Notes
Type: Evidence
Description: What the victim was going to say at the Capsul conference he never showed up to. Were found on Hackins person after he stole them from the staff room. Part of the speech was left behind on the desk.
Laptop Strap
Type: Other
Description: A strap that was broken off of a laptop bag. Found near the edge of the stairs in the Capsul conference room, and appears to have no relevance to the case.
Rejection Letter
Type: Evidence
Description: A letter that Global Studios sent to Capsul rejecting their request to be the makers of a Steel Samurai video game.
Hackins's Testimony
Type: Evidence
Description: After being kicked out by the victim, Hackins returned to the Capsul staff room. He heard two people enter, one right after the other. Check
A/N's: Both PTV and RJ were in charge of writing this chapter. They each wish to leave notes.
RJ: As always it was awesome being able to work with you on this chapter! The plot continues to thicken. The curtains are starting to close and this mystery is well on it's way to being solved! So who was expecting to see Amy Riter and Lyra Pitch again in this chapter? It has been a little while since we had Lyra Pitch on the scene so it was great being able to write another scene involving her, Edgeworth and Maya. And you don't come across very many kids in the AA series, so writing for Cody Hackins is always fun! You are awesome with the references, PTV! I'm going to pass the A/N's back to you, now.
PTV: Thanks, RJ. As always, you're a pleasure to work with. Would you believe we had this chapter written in just three days? We spent more time waiting on our beta than we did writing for it.
The next chapter (and the last half of End, Part 1) is under way as well. Let's just say it's about time everyone came together for one last round of questioning, arguing, and examining. No matter who you're gunning to see go down as the killer (so far, we have two suspects named by readers), you're gonna like what we have for you in the next chapter. And then in End, Part 2, we answer all the questions. And raise a few ones on the way.
But I'm getting ahead of myself. Thanks for reading, don't forget to leave your review, and I'll see you on the far side!