July 3rd 4:22pm
Dye Young Hospital
Second Floor Waiting Area

"I know you began your prosecuting career as a child. But if you wish to be acknowledged as an adult now, then perhaps it's time you prove yourself one." The words of that defense attorney remained in Franziska's mind even after talking to Agent Lang. Franziska hit the floor with her whip in annoyance, wishing Gavin's presence gone. But his words were only replaced with Lang's in her mind, leaving little room for Franziska's own thoughts.

Franziska understood the point Lang was trying to make, but words alone were not enough to diminish the number of imperfections this case had suffered as a result of her actions. She wished she could forget everything that had gone wrong in this case and move on, just as the agent suggested. How nice it would be if she were able to let past mistakes leave her mind.

...But that was impossible, wasn't it? All her life, Franziska had been raised to be better than that. Embracing such a creed as Lang's went against everything she'd been taught as a prosecutor. Not just by her father, but by Miles Edgeworth as well. No job was done until the truth of the case was found. And she could still persist in this case and find the killer… couldn't she?

"You aren't really thinking of giving up, are you?" Kay, who'd overheard Lang on the phone, asked.

"Sir, you can't do that! What about the promise you made to Ms. Washington?"

"..." Franziska crossed her arms, hand covering the shoulder that'd once held a serious wound. "I cannot allow my pride to continue disrupting this investigation. If I am not capable of handling this case perfectly and objectively, then perhaps I shouldn't handle it after all."

"What? No! You can't just back out like that. A promise is serious." Kay's voice nearly broke as she made her objection. Kay's gloved hand gripped her scarf, the beginnings of tears in her eyes.

Franziska couldn't deal with Kay's tears. Not when she was so close to the edge herself. So she turned away towards Gumshoe. "My promise to Cassandra Washington was to protect her. That promise has already been broken."

"That's not your fault, sir! That blame lays entirely on our local police force." Gumshoe may well have been trying to cheer her up, but he was entirely too comfortable making that admission just then. "You have everything it takes to solve this case. I know you do! Ms. Washington's death happened on the police's watch, but we're going to do everything we can to correct our mistake. And we'd do a lot better of a job if you stuck around to lead us."

"Yeah!" Kay jumped up and down. "It's like that one movie said: Maybe we couldn't save the victim. But we can avenge her!"

Franziska felt the beginnings of a smile on her face. These two were something else, weren't they? What they lacked in professional competence, they made up for in moral support. Perhaps that was the true reason her brother kept them by his side.

Regardless, they were correct. Giving up in the face of adversity was not the Von Karma way. The only thing she could do now was move forward and bend herself towards the light of justice. The light that would soon illuminate her as she pointed to the true culprit. She had to see this through. Not just for her reputation, but for the victim as well.

"There has to be something that I have overlooked, be it in the evidence or witness testimony." Franziska voiced her thoughts out loud. "But I still don't know who the killer is nor how I could find them."

"Franziska… I think I know of a way to answer one of those questions." Kay spoke up, softly at first.

"What is it, Kay?" Franziska turned to face her. Maybe it was time she started taking the teen a bit more seriously.

"We can use Little Thief!" The teenager exclaimed. Her smile beamed bright enough to light the entire hallway as she whipped a small device out of her bag.

Franziska had to restrain her smile. She'd heard much about the times that Kay, with Edgeworth's approval, had used a programmable holo-projector to replicate crime scenes. She had to admit, it was a much more respectable use than what the device had originally been designed for.

I suppose I can allow its use on my case for this one time. After all, what else did she have left to try? "...Yes, Kay Faraday. You may use your… Little Thief. But what will you show us? Surely not the crime scene. Have you been inputting case data at all today?"

"Yes, I have. You just didn't notice because you were so busy." Kay's answer came quickly. "Remember when you went around the second floor questioning everybody? I took down the stated positions of everybody I saw you question. Now we can bring up a 3D map of the floor plan and look for who would have had an opportunity. I figured you could add in the position of any people I didn't get."

Franziska had to admit she was impressed. Perhaps this approach could actually work. But… "How would this be any different from using a blueprint and pushpins?"

"It'll be bigger. More fun, too! You'll see. And now…" Kay pressed a few final buttons. "In the dark of night, where no other bird dares take flight, one alone soars to shine the light of righteousness on the world's blight! And that one is me, for I am the Great Thief, Yatagarasu!"

Kay pulled up the projection displaying Cassandra Washington's hospital floor, shrunken down to fit in the lobby. As such, the projection only went up to Franziska's thighs. Labelled personas in various colors were scattered all around the square shaped structure. On the far end was Washington's room with an unmarked person and plate at the door. Across the hall was a full fledged image of Bruce Hertz, squinting through a crack in his door.

"Since we know Mr. Hertz was in his room, chances are he wouldn't have been able to commit the murder unless he had someone else do it for him. Unfortunately, as we learned earlier, there's no way he could have called anyone to do such a thing." Kay knew that they have already been over some of this information, but for the sake of the Little Thief projection, she brought it up again.

"If I were to rewind time to before the murder, which I can do if asked, then Officer Ergic would be standing guard in front of Washington's door."

Franziska was able to build off of that. "We can assume the killer saw him leave and took that as an opportunity, but we don't know when exactly this fool abandoned his post."

"Would you like me to go ask him, sir?"

"...Not yet." Franziska would rather speak to the ex-cop herself. Though she was likely to whip him again, she wanted her information straight from the horse's mouth.

That foolishly foolish police officer Gerald Ergic was not standing guard like he should have been. If he was, he would known if someone was going to be intruding into her room. So where was he when the murder weapon was delivered? I will investigate further.

"Remain in place with the conditions at the moment of the murder. I need no alternate timeframe." Franziska gave the order. Kay complied right away so that the prosecutor could search for clues.

-Begin Investigation-

It wasn't easy for her to find anything in this state. She wasn't used to studying projections, and the reduced scale meant that Franziska had to bend down to study the finer details. While she was doing that, a thought occurred to her.

"This doctor right here," Franziska indicated the last individual she had questioned on the matter, "was standing right around the corner from the victim's room. Shouldn't he have heard something?"

"Maybe not, sir." Gumshoe scratched his head. "The walls in this hospital are pretty thick. Unless he was standing in the doorway, there probably wouldn't have been much sound."

"And we know the victim struggled on her way to death's door, so the entrance to her room was very likely closed during that time."

This killer was careful to ensure there would be no witnesses to the crime but for Bruce Hertz. And with Bruce Hertz's past and reputation, he is unlikely to be a convincing witness in any court of law. Franziska made a mental note not to call on the injured hitman unless it became absolutely necessary. She didn't need to have Hertz's character turn into a debate on the courthouse floor, not when it would only serve to derail her objectives.

Franziska continued to study Kay's model, murmuring to herself as she did so. "All in all, the killer's job was very simple. He only needed to enter the victim's room with the murder weapon, leave it besides her bed, disable the patient's alarm, and make his exit. So why did not but a single patient see him doing such a thing?"

-Disappearing Killer? added to Logic-

"He probably didn't look very suspicious, considering the circumstances. Visitors come in to see patients in the hospital all the time."

"I thought you said the visitor's log for the victim was empty," Franziska gripped her shoulder. "Could our killer have signed in with a false intent?"

"When we were down there, the lady at the desk said everyone had to sign in in some way to come up to this floor. Staff sign in a different book than visitor," Kay explained. Then her eyes lit up. "Which means there's no way our killer isn't on one of those lists."

"Scruffy! Head down to the front desk and collect the logsheet from today for both staff and visitors. I want you to bring me records of every individual who signed in or out on this day. I will peruse these records myself."

"Yes sir!"

-Records of Entry added to Logic-

As Gumshoe scurried away, Franziska went back to crouching on the floor. What other insights could this projection reveal to her? And what was this outcropping by the floor's outer wall?

"That's the fire escape," Kay explained when she saw Franziska looking. "See how Ms. Sims is standing out there with her boyfriend?"

"Yes, I see," Franziska mused. "I was upset before, but perhaps I should be grateful now that the fire escape was occupied at the time of the murder."

"Really? Why is that?"

"The presence of the nurse and her boyfriend ought to have discouraged the killer from using this way as an escape route. Their only open pathway out of the hospital would have been past the front desk, where everyone places a signature next to their presence."

"Oh, right!" Kay beamed. "Maybe there's hope for this case after all! I don't think even a Great Thief could have disappeared without a trace in these circumstances."

Will she ever give up her dreams of thievery? Franziska had heard from Edgeworth the girl had promised to a few months ago, but Kay Faraday had yet to settle on an alternate life path. Edgeworth's prodding hadn't been enough to get the girl to consider prolonged education, and Franziska had heard nothing of the teen's future job prospects. What did the girl think she was doing with her life? It may not be important to the case, but Franziska would be lying if she said it did not worry her.

But now was not the time.

-Blocked Fire Escape added to Logic-

Franziska straightened her back, taking a moment to consider the thoughts she had collected. Perhaps this virtual exercise had created new possibilities for connection. Now let us see… if we recall that the Fire Escape was blocked from use at the time of the murder, that limits the options for our Disappearing Killer.

The connection was flawless. "I think I am beginning to understand how our killer escaped from the scene."

"You are? How did they do it, then?"

"If we eliminate the escape routes that were impossible for our killer to use, we are left with only the truth of what the killer did. The killer did not leave through the fire escape, therefore he is either still here on this floor-"

"-Or he signed out upon leaving," Kay finished. "Of course, I don't think the killer would have used the fire escape even if it was empty."

"Oh, and why is that?"

Kay pointed to a detail she'd embedded in the projection right by the fire escape entrance. "There's a camera trained on the escape's doorway. Even the dumbest of thieves know to avoid the monitored exits!"

"...Yes, very true." How had Franziska forgotten that? The presence of a camera was a much stronger deterrent than an occupied couple!

-Limited Escape Venues added to Logic-

Now that she had a new puzzle piece in her mind, Franziska was back to considering ways to connect her thoughts. And to think such a process came so naturally to Miles Edgeworth.

With our killer's Limited Escape Venues, there are only two options for him to flee : the killer remains in the building… or the Records of Entry bear his signature from after the murder!

Another connection. This one wasn't as groundbreaking as some of her other conclusions, however. All it reinforced was Franziska's need to examine a single piece of evidence. "I need to see that list of names. Where is the scruffy detective?"

"Not sure." Kay crossed her arms in thought. "I didn't think retrieving a hospital log would be so difficult."

"Well, he best hurry. When I grow impatient, my whip follows soon after." The more Franziska fixated on that list of names, the more useful she realized it would be. For even if their killer was not someone who had signed out, he still would have had to sign in before the murder. In order to get on this hospital floor, he would have needed to claim visitation of another patient situated here. All Franziska would have to do is find the mismatch between patients who were meant to receive visits and patients who truly did.

The process would take a while, certainly, but there was a reason Franziska had lackeys to command among the police force. They were like Agent Lang's wolfpack, just less efficient.

Perhaps she had found a way to the truth after all. Franziska did her best not to get her hopes up, however. "While we're waiting, was there anything you wanted to see altered in this projection? I can change whatever you'd like." Kay offered.

Franziska considered the teen's offer. Is there anything I wish to change about the projection?

-Yes, have her switch...
-No need

"I don't see a point to such a thing, if I'm honest. You may shut off your device now." Franziska tried to ignore the hurt look on Kay's face as the projection. Failing to do so, she soon added, "but thank you for your assistance. This visualization has given me perspective on the finer details of this case."

That got her to cheer up. "Well, of course it did! It's my greatest tool of investigation. Little Thief helped my father steal the truth many a time!"

"Yes, well-"

"Sorry for making you wait, Prosecutor Von Karma, sir!" Gumshoe burst in on their moment, huffing up a storm. Tucked under his sweaty armpit, he held a single binder full of signatures. But why was there only one?

"Scruffy, you only have one logsheet with you. Did the two of you not tell me there were separate logs for both visitors and staff?"

"I know what we said, and I did try to get the log for the staff, but…" Gumshoe's face drooped, his lips almost in a pout. "That rich lady from before was down there. She said I wasn't allowed to touch 'her poor workers' ever again without a warrant. And Mr. Gavin was with her, just staring at me! I don't think they're over your accusation of that nurse, sir."

"First he insults you, and now he's bothering Gummy! That attorney's gonna pay for being such a jerk one day!" Kay swore. "He gives the good attorneys a bad name."

"May I see the evidence you actually succeeded in collecting then, Scruffy?" Franziska held out her hand. Gumshoe handed her the binder without a second thought.

-"Visitor's Entry Log" added to Organizer-

Flipping open the cover, Franziska immediately frowned when she saw the date on the first page was July first, not July third. "Why did you grab information for the whole month? I only asked for names from the day of the murder."

"Oops, sorry sir." Gumshoe pulled back, cringing as if he expected punishment. "I guess Gavin and his client distracted me."

"At least we're still early in the month, right?" Kay chose to look on the bright side. "We shouldn't have to flip too far."

Franziska ignored both of them as she flipped her way to the current date. Her finger ran down the list of names, starting with some strange folks who entered the hospital at 12:52am. Franziska's hand blew right past the time of the murder, looking for where the log ended when she noticed something very strange.

"Huh… that shouldn't be there."

"What is it, sir?" Gumshoe stood over Franziska's shoulder, trying to see where her finger had stopped.

"Mr. Gerald Ergic. His name is in here twice." There it was, right in the black ink. Signed out: 12:21pm. A few columns later, signed in: 1:18pm.

"Well, that's not too odd. He did say he went out for lunch, right?" Kay tried to explain it away. "He left first, and since he's been here since Washington got admitted, his sign in for that time should be on another page. Then when he came back, we ran into him almost immediately. Remember?"

"Yes, but that's not what I'm concerned about." Franziska couldn't believe it. How had she not seen this possibility before?

"Well, which part are you looking at, sir? What seems so odd about his signature?"

Franziska's hand didn't hesitate. Her finger landed square on the line listing the time at which Ergic signed out of the hospital. It was time for her to Deduce once again.

Now, is this spot connected to the evidence I hold in some way?

Franziska sifted through her Organizer, looking for the page in which she'd recorded details about the "Time of Death". It was just as the prosecutor had suspected. "EUREKA!"

"Oh, you say that too, sir?" Gumshoe waggled his eyebrows, now thoroughly distracted. "I thought it was only Mr. Edgeworth who-"

"Not now, Scruffy. Tell me: when was our dear victim killed, according to this piece of evidence?"

"Why, that was… 12:15pm, wasn't it? But what does that have to do with…" Kay trailed off, an epiphany dawning on her face. "But-"

"Mr. Gerald Ergic told us he had left the scene before the murder ever occurred. But according to his own signing, he was still in the building after the victim was killed! Now, why would he tell such a blatant lie?"

Gumshoe's expression darkened. "I don't know, sir, but this is serious. Police officers aren't supposed to lie to their fellow law enforcement."

"For once, we agree." Franziska's arm squeezed its opposing shoulder, her brow sculpted with thought. "We must speak to him."

-Investigation Complete-

"He should still be here, right sir?"

"Correct. Let us see if he has kept his promise to remain in the hospital this time." Without another word, Franziska turned towards the second floor hallway where Ergic had last been seen.

Do not try to flee my grasp, Mr. Gerald Ergic. Bad things happen to those who lie to a Von Karma.

Organizer:

Profiles:

Franziska von Karma
Age: 20
Gender: Female
Description: The Prosecuting Prodigy, also known as myself. Need this file contain any more information?

Detective Gumshoe
Age: 32
Gender: Male
Description: The scruffy detective who is always in need of a whipping. Why I must always work with him while in this country, I'll never understand.

Kay Faraday
Age: 18
Gender: Female
Description: My little brother's assistant whom he acquired a few months ago. Her obsession with thievery makes them an odd pair. Now she wishes to work with me.

Karin Jenson
Age: 22
Gender: Female
Description: A nurse for Dye Young. I encountered her on a case a few months ago. Asked for me personally when the victim was found dead.

Cassandra Washington
Age: 39
Gender: Female
Description: Head financial advisor for Hakari Inc. A key witness in the current investigation. She fainted during interrogation, then died in the hospital the next day. Foul play is suspected.

Maddy Sims
Age: 21
Gender: Female
Description: The nurse in charge of the victim's care at her time of death. Was meeting with her boyfriend while her patient lay dying.

Kristoph Gavin:
Age: 26
Gender: Male
Description: An obnoxious defense attorney I've encountered more than once now. Outside of court, this is very unusual.

Klana Dharless
Age: ? ? ?
Gender: Female
Description: Some rich local woman who wants to protect the hospital from bearing any blame. I don't know who she is.

Gerald Ergic
Age: 32
Gender: Male
Description: An incompetent police guard who was assigned to guard the victim. Unfortunately, he was too busy getting lunch when the murder happened.

Bruce Hertz
Age: 43
Gender: Male
Description: The patient located across the hall from the victim. His injuries are critical, and his temper worse. Gerald Ergic is claiming he is a hitman of some kind.

Shi-Long Lang
Age: 27
Gender: Male
Description: An Interpol agent, one I've worked with several times in the past. Though his investigative prowess is far superior to Scruffy's, he's on the other side of the world at the moment.

Evidence:

Prosecutor's Badge:
Type: Other
Description: The token of my noble profession. It is to be safely stored away in my pocket at all times.

Time of Death
Type: Evidence
Description: The heart monitor says the victim's heart stopped at exactly 12:15pm. It has not been touched since.

Patient Alarm
Type: Evidence
Description: Meant to alert the hospital if their patients experience any difficulties. However, it was turned off at the time of the fingerprints were found on the device, none were clear enough to be lifted.

Peanut Butter Sandwich
Type: Evidence
Description: Left on the victim's side table by an unknown party. Residue on the body indicates the victim touched it, causing the fatal reaction.

Care Provider List
Type: Evidence
Description: The nurse in charge of the victim at her time of death was Maddy Sims. Sims had no other patients at the time.

Sims's Outing
Type: Evidence
Description: This foolish nurse was visiting her boyfriend for twenty-two minutes while the murder was in progress, from noon to 12:22. She did not discover the body until after that.

Hertz's Medical Papers
Type: Evidence
Description: Describe the patient in the room across the hall from the victim. His name is Bruce Hertz, and his nurse Karen Jenson. Papers also describe Hertz's injuries, complete with his limited range of motion.

Mysterious Cell Phone
Type: Evidence
Description: By all appearances, a burner phone. There is no identification regarding who the owner is, and only one number is included in the call log. Despite being found in Hertz's hospital room, there are no signs the phone belongs to him.

Hertz's True Occupation
Type: Evidence
Description: By Ergic's account, the patient across the hall is a professional hitman. He may have gotten his injuries on the job a few weeks ago.

Hertz's Testimony
Type: Evidence
Description: Hertz claims he saw a man carry a sandwich into the victim's room around the time of the murder. So far, no one has been able to corroborate his story.

Visitor's Entry Log
Type: Evidence
Description: A detailed account of every hospital visitor from the beginning of the month to now. Contains time and date of visit in addition to names. Check

A/N's: Division of labor on this chapter is slightly different than the previous chapters. While both PTV and RJ wrote it, Ajani came back to serve as the beta in The Scollard's absence. PTV and Ajani would like to leave notes.

PTV: I feel an apology is due here. Five months without an update mid-case? I am truly sorry. Both RJ and I hit some slumps in our personal lives. RJ alone can speak for hers, but mine was finishing high school. I've officially graduated! One of my summer resolutions before I go off to college is to finish this episode and get started (since I definitely won't finish) on the finale in time for classes to start. Until that has happened, I will be working on no other fanfics as those have only served to distract me.

In happier news, Ajani is back with us!

AA: Hi, yes I still exist. Amazing, right? Glad to be back and I look forward to being here for the rest of it.

PTV: He helped get this chapter ready, and may even be writing some on the tail end of the episode. I think he's as excited for the finale as I am! We'll reveal actual details in the next chapter, but trust me when I say the hype is real. But don't take that to mean we don't care about this case anymore. We're still going to make sure the case gets the ending it deserves. I've waited too long to give Franziska a case to sideline her or give her anything but the perfect case in which to shine.

The next chapter is already underway, and it should be longer than this one. Hope you all enjoyed the update, don't forget to leave your thoughts below, and I'll see you on the far side!