File One Hundred and Twenty: A Secret Player
Conan's morning had started with a text.
It had been his brother. Although he had not said much, that alone had been motive enough to worry, to such a degree that it did not even cross his mind to be actually annoyed over being roused so early. To be fair, it might as well be that he was already used to it, thanks to the friends he had, and their insane predisposition to greet the day at such ungodly hours.
In any case, there he was now. Sneaking past the gates of his own, not unlike a measly burglar, glancing over his shoulder to that certain window at the Professor's house that faced his way. He hoped his friends were not there, faces pressed against the glass and questions stuck in their throats, ready to be shot at him the moment they met again ─ just like he would, had that actually been the case. He couldn't think of a single reason for them to keep watch on his house, as intensely as they were in his imagination.
Once he reached it, he opened the door that had been graciously left unlocked and unceremoniously slipped inside.
"Okay, I'm here," called Conan, slowly making his way past the entrance. "What did you want to talk about so…" Upon reaching the kitchen, the boy felt his movements halt. "... urgently…"
Inside the room, he found them crowding together in front of Akai's personal computer ─ or that he assumed to be his, since he was the one in the middle, actually using it. His brother was obviously there, yet, seeing that his gaze had not left the screen, he supposed he had not even acknowledged his arrival. Not that he minded about it, but it triggered his curiosity, and maybe a bit of fear. What in the world could have captivated his attention like that?
Unlike him, his mother lifted her head, enough to grin and wave so cheerfully that, had he not known the woman his entire life, it would have reassured Conan that everything was perfectly fine.
Surprising as that sounded, however, that had not been the reason Conan had stood there, rooted in the doorway in shock. There was a fourth person there, sitting on the opposite side of the table, sipping on a coffee with nothing but a small smile to show his interest in what was happening around him.
"What are you doing here, Dad?"
Yusaku's smile stretched in amusement. "It's my home."
"Whose existence you didn't remember until now." Conan lost interest. He let his gaze slide away from his father's form, closing the distance between a chair beside his older brother. "Why did you return?"
"He didn't," stated Shinichi. Conan paused, confused. "Dad never left Japan."
"I was here yesterday," he said. Then, pointing at his dad, yet not quite looking at him, added, "He wasn't."
"I was meeting up with an old friend of mine," replied the man. "And when I heard from your mother that you were solving one of my cold cases, I figured it would be best if I stayed away from home for the rest of the day."
"You let us struggle with the case you've already solved a long time ago? Arbitrarily?"
His silent smile spoke far better than any words could, and it did not surprise Conan, not even a little. It didn't stop him from rolling his eyes.
Shinichi sent his mother a look. "Were you spying on us?"
"Don't be silly!" Yukiko giggled. "Akai-san texted me all about it."
The face his brother made told Conan of how little that thought reassured him. "Do I want to know who that old friend is?" asked the younger boy.
His father's smirk widened.
"Nevermind." Conan turned his head away. "Can I know what's going on?"
"Oh, nothing at all," replied Shinichi, with a wave of his hand. "Just your friend's phone being hacked."
The kid paused in return, his gaze rising to meet with his brother's, blank at first. Something akin to realization, then horror, passed by them, and made them wide considerably. "Mitsuhiko," he murmured. "He said his phone's battery has been draining quicker than usual lately…"
A frown suddenly seized his expression as he leaned closer to the screen, even if he needed to climb on his brother's legs to reach his objective. Which would have been wise, of course, had he actually had an idea of what he was seeing. But all he got was a screen full of code that had him blinking stupidly.
"Even from here, I can connect to the Professor's Wi-Fi next door," explained Akai. "All your friends are connected to it, too. So it's easy to hack through any of their phones."
"Akai-san found a teleoperated app on Mitsuhiko-kun's phone," continued Shinichi, deadly serious. "It was installed around when Wimbledon took place."
Conan said nothing about it, yet the way his face paled considerably spoke of how little the news had settled with him. "They met Bourbon," Conan whispered. "While we were in London, they…"
"He must have approached your friends at some point, taken possession of your friend's phone long enough to install the app and turn it back in. With the appropriate gadgets, it could've been done in seconds." For the first time in forever, Akai looked away from the screen, if only to fix his eyes on the little boy. "But everything proves he knows not only about you, kid. He's investigated enough to know who your friends are."
Conan sat back on his brother's lap, long enough to process what he had been told, and what it implied. If Bourbon knew who his friends were, he definitely had to come into the knowledge of Haibara Ai's existence. "With that app in Mitsuhiko's phone…" There was a certain trembling in his tone, as if dreading what the answer to his unasked question was going to look like. "Could he have heard everything happening around him?"
"Enough to figure out you were trapped in a burning mountain cabin," replied Shinichi. He felt Conan's muscles tensing. "I don't know how he knew I got a message looking like that before, but he does. Bourbon is telling me he's aware I helped Ai-chan escape once in the past."
"First, when he visited you, he was proving he knew you were alive." Conan's gaze narrowed on his fists, resting atop his own legs. "And now, he's showing you he has been listening all along." They clenched lightly. "That he's aware of Sherry's true identity."
None of them asked how he was so sure about such a thing. They must have discussed the possibility earlier, he mused.
"He's coming after her." Yusaku rested his chin over his interlocked fingers, closing his eyes in thought. "One would think that he's trying to warn Shinichi about what would happen if he interfered with his mission. But anyone that knows him on a personal level would agree that it would have the opposite effect."
"To draw me in," concluded Shinichi, nodding at his father. "Sherry and Singani, eliminated at the same time. It's like killing two birds with one stone."
Followed by that, his gaze lowered, then softened at the sight. Though silent and otherwise calm, for Shinichi it was impossible not to notice the small hands gripping on his own pants, trembling almost unnoticeably.
It all stopped when Shinichi placed his hand on his shoulder, squeezing lightly. "But that won't happen." Though he was facing his father, it was clear those words were not for him. "Because we're going to fool those crows with the best plan ever."
Conan peered up at him, and Shinichi grinned.
"We still need to make it out, though… Would you mind making your friends for a little while longer, Conan?"
"Conan-kun!" Conan blinked back to reality, and instantly put his phone away from the curious eyes of a certain female detective that had suddenly come to be closer than he would've been comfortable with. "Got a text?"
The boy shook his head, an overly bright grin etched on his face. "It's just Arthur-niichan!" he exclaimed. "He was curious about how the case is going."
"That guy," grumbled Kogoro, rolling his eyes. "Couldn't he just come to check for himself?"
"It can't be helped, can it?" replied Conan. "He's watching out for Maria-chan with Aoko-neechan."
He did not leave any room for further questions, promptly skipping ahead to the next door, passing by the one with the murdered guy. "Let's hurry!" he called. "Ando-san is next, right?"
And promptly knocked on the door, waiting for no answer from any of his companions. I need to wrap this up, he thought, standing back and waiting. The others are already making their part.
He instinctively closed his hand around the phone he kept inside his pocket, where the text from his brother telling him that Ai was already with his mother, Subaru and himself, was stored. For the next part of this plan to work out… Conan heard Sera's steps coming closer, ultimately stopping nearby. I need to chase Sera-san away from this carriage.
Which was hard to imagine, as long as the case was still unsolved. Leading him, again, with the problem at hand ─ the case itself.
The door opened before he could even think of sighing.
"Indeed, I was rescued from that fire alongside Murobashi-san," said Ando, much later into the conversation. "Although I wouldn't have mentioned it unless I was asked."
"On another note," Sera began, peering inside the room. "That big bag in your room, what is it?"
Ando moved aside, to let them have a better sight of the large object resting atop of the seat. "That's a painting I was asked to analyze, but unfortunately, it ended up being fake."
"Mind if we take a look?"
Kogoro did not wait for an answer ─ not that the suspect was in any position to deny him ─ and promptly invited himself inside. He made it to the large bag immediately, opening it to inspect its contents, and indeed, a painting was what he found.
Conan took notice of the sparking golden frame that Kogoro's fingers were gripping on.
"It's pretty heavy," observed Kogoro.
"The frame is made of solid gold."
"I see, solid gold." Kogoro put it back down. "What was your relationship to the magnate?"
As the attention drifted away from the seemingly useless piece of evidence and redirected to the suspect, Conan inched closer to the bag. Not that he was doubting Kogoro's perceptions ─ this time around, because he usually did ─ but he took hold of the handles and tried to pull it closer to him.
Heavy. That much he knew for sure. The kid released it immediately, checked that the adults were still focused on each other and not on him, and promptly opened it again. Solid gold, just like the man had said. His eyes narrowed a little at the golden radiance, wondering if there was something in that bag that would be of use.
He placed his little finger, tracing across the frame. Sparkly, he noted. Almost too sparkly…
That fact alone prompted his eyebrow to shoot up. The finger stopped its gentle movements, and began to ─ as discreetly as he could so not to be killed in the spot in the event he was wrong ─ scratch against the surface.
All that glitters is not gold, thought Conan, a smirk growing on his face as he glanced over at the glittering golden particles left underneath his nail. Sounds fancy, but actually…
Conan gave the tiny darker, scratch marks one last glance, and closed the bag. Pure gold usually has a beautiful metallic luster. He jumped off the seat, rushing to join the other two detectives. It doesn't glitter.
And certainly, it does not chip away like a coat of cheap golden paint.
There was no doubt that Ando was becoming the most suspicious guy of it all. He had to be up to no good, or else there was no reason for him to be passing the frame off as pure gold. Then why is it so heavy? There had to be something else, something he was hiding ─ perhaps inside the painting itself?
It was dark as they stepped out, and for a moment, the kid wondered how many tunnels they had yet to pass through today. There has to be a reason the crime took place in a dim place at this. While Kogoro, accompanied by Sera, knocked on Room D, the kid allowed himself to wander off ─ well aware of how little this one suspect would help in clarifying the entire picture.
This is a waste of time, thought Conan, looking away from the 'maid's' eyes fixated on his form, glancing all the way to Room A. The conductor said he saw the door furthest away from him opening, and someone peeking out. But KID's accomplice said it wasn't open then, right?
Sighing, he spun on his heels, arms crossed behind his head. Then who did… He found himself right in front of the windows. … peek out…
His reflection stared back at him.
"Kid, are you in there?" He made out Kogoro's figure above his reflection, raising his eyebrows back at him. "Hey, I'm talking to you!"
Slowly, he turned around, just to gaze at the man, yet the fact that he wasn't really looking at him was a bit disturbing, Kogoro had to admit. Some recognition was blinked into his wide eyes, which slid slightly to the side, above his shoulder, and became much more alert ─ probably at the sight of Sera, making her way to them at a much calmer pace.
Conan's attention shifted back to Kogoro, and surprise coated every cranny of his expression. "What?!" So loud it had been that the man actually flinched back. "You figured it out already?!"
Kogoro blinked stupidly at the boy, who stepped back with a grin so bright that bode no good for anyone in there. "You said you wanted to give your deduction on the dining car, right?" He ran up to the door leading to Room D. "I'm going to tell everyone to meet you there!"
"Eh, uh…" Conan's cheerful facade melted, and a glare penetrated through the darkness. "Alright! You do that!"
The grin came back up. "Ah, Sera-san?" called the boy, directing to the girl with not even an ounce of reluctance. "While Kogoro-ojisan is preparing his deduction, would you mind calling Ran-neechan and the others?"
Sera looked at him in confusion. "Ran-kun?"
"Yeah!" Conan nodded, then added, with a far more serious expression, "They're key witnesses to the trick Kogoro-ojisan is gonna reveal in a second! Right, Kogoro-ojisan?"
Kogoro nodded. He feared what that innocent grin would do to him if he didn't.
Not that he had to deal with it for much longer, because the kid stuck his head inside the room and exclaimed, "Obaasan!" Then continued in a much lower voice, which he could barely understand, probably explaining the whole scenario to the women inside.
"It's no use," he heard Sera mutter from behind. Turning around, he saw her looking down at her phone. "I can't get through."
"Of course you can't," said Kogoro. "We're passing through a tunnel."
"I'll go tell them." Sera started to run, crying over her shoulder, "It won't take long!"
Off she went, disappearing within seconds in the middle of the darkness. The man stood there, as if lost, unsure of what to do next. Should he go to the dining car as the runt had told him? Or just force him to explain everything?
A bell ringing broke through the silence. The kid was standing just outside Komino's room, phone in hand and a smirk on his face.
"You will need it later," explained the boy, focusing back on the phone. "I'm sending the recording to you."
Kogoro stared at him for a beat. "D-Did you…?"
"Yup! But I have to go now." Conan hurried over to the next door. He stopped, hand lingering in the air like he had been about to knock, yet hesitated seconds before doing it. "I'll send the details to your phone when I finish here…"
Truthfully, the boy had fully expected the man to be somewhat annoyed, and try his hardest to get through his brain that he was the detective, so he did not need the help of a measly third grader. "Hey, brat." But, far from any of that, his tone was softer ─ much softer than he could have imagined it. "You're going to meet those people, aren't you?"
Conan was not sure how to respond.
"The same crazy guys that strapped a bomb to that little girl."
"It's possible, yeah," he conceded. Noting the frown that had crept up Kogoro's face, he quickly added, "Not alone, of course. My brother is going to be there, and a lot of people too…"
"The detective kid is here, huh?" he muttered, to which the boy nodded. And for a beat, the man said nothing at all, staring at the little figure in front of him for an entire second, or two. Then, finishing with a long sigh, and a hand passing through his hair, he muttered, "Then, I suppose it's fine."
Though he didn't look entirely convinced about it all. Conan inferred that his brother's presence was the reason he let go so easily, despite being uncomfortable with the idea. Anyone, even Kogoro, knew his brother would not let him do such a dangerous stunt, provided there was certainty he would walk out of it in one piece. That much was clear.
"Just don't get blown up or something, you hear me?"
"That's… terrifyingly accurate, you know."
Kogoro's head shot up.
"Don't worry, I'll be fine!" Conan hurriedly said.
The grin on Conan's features faded a little, but remained firmly in place, regardless.
"I'd hate myself if I made Ran-neechan cry, after all."
The hurried steps she could hear from the outside made the girl approach the door a measly sliver, just enough for her to peek out.
She got to see the back of Sera's hair shortly before she turned around the corner and vanished from sight. Her eyes narrowed, and might have bitten her lip, fully aware of what she needed to do right now.
"Aoko-neechan?" Aoko spun around to see young Hiroki, blinking curiously up at her. "Is something wrong?"
Her reaction took a little longer than what she supposed it should, but the girl managed a little smile, nevertheless. "I think I saw something outside," she said. "Or… someone, actually."
From all the way to the furthest corner, sitting beside an unmoving Maria, Takuma raised an eyebrow. "Who was it?"
These children were rather insistent. "I don't know," but she did not let it show in her face. "But…"
Hiroki and Takuma were silent, eagerly expecting her response.
"I think it was… a boy."
"Was it Conan?" asked Takuma, disinterested before even knowing the answer.
"Wait a second…" Hiroki's reaction was so much different. "What if it was Isamu-kun?!"
Takuma's eyes went wide as plates, having only now seen the possibility. At his side, Maria remained in place, her gaze stuck on her hands, trembling yet folded neatly over her lap. Like she had been doing all day.
Such a sight nearly made Aoko yield, but she made up her mind again right away.
"I'm gonna go and find out!" she exclaimed, opening up the door. "You all stay here, and don't leave unless Amuro-niichan returns."
To be fair, she had no idea of who that guy was, but according to Hiroki ─ who had stumbled into her room earlier alongside Takuma, in their relentless search for Maria ─ he was the adult that came with them.
"But we want to go!" protested both boys in unison.
"No way ─ it could be dangerous." They both deflated. "Besides, you two have the most important job of it all."
At their clueless expression, Aoko winked. "Protect Maria-chan from the bad guys in my stead, okay?"
It wasn't long before the confusion passed, and that certain cute determination that was usual in children of their age made her giggle. A wave of a hand later, the girl had disappeared behind a door, leaving Hiroki and Takumi nodding at each other.
And Maria to raise her head for the first time, casting an uncertain, slightly fearful glance at the place the older girl had been occupying just seconds ago.
There was a woman on the furthest end of the carriage whose features he could not perceive. Hidden by the shadows of a brim hat, addled to the poor visibility of a train passing through a tunnel.
She was walking in the opposite direction. The scarred man thought little of it, and merely averted his gaze, focused on nothing but the mission at hand. Moments before they crossed ways, a small smirk crept up on the woman's face. Words were whispered, making him halt, frozen with shock.
Yet the woman continued on her way, as if nothing had ever occurred.
"Who are you?"
Behind him was her, the proof that the woman and him were not alone in that carriage. Her eyes flashed with anger. "Who the hell are you?!" and repeated, yelling this time, presumably unnerved by his lack of response.
Thus, he gave it to her ─ in the form of a malicious smirk.
"You haven't changed a bit, Masumi."
As the train finally left the tunnel, the shadows receded, leaving behind a sight that had Sera's heart skipping a beat.
That of a green gaze identical to hers, which she had believed lost forever.
"S-Shu-nii…" Her voice trembled. "Is it really you?"
Yet, not another word was pronounced on his end. No explanations, not even the laziest excuse ─ nothing came out of his mouth. Just plain silence, and that permanent smirk plastered on his scarred face.
Impatience broke her out of her stupor. "But how?!" she shouted at him, stepping closer, her gaze never leaving his ─ as if scared of what would happen if she ever let him off her sight. "I heard you were dead-!"
Out of nowhere, a jolt of pain shocked her entire body, effectively silencing any further questions roaming in her mind.
"Now, that's what I thought you'd say."
Gently, a door closed. Never did the man know of the blue gaze that had been watching every single one of his movements.
From the safety inside of the room his mother had booked, Shinichi allowed himself to frown. "They just took out Sera," he said, pressing his ear against the door for another beat, but ultimately giving up when he heard nothing but Akai's voice assuring the clueless conductor that she was just 'anemic'. "She's walking away now."
"She's probably taking her to her room," said Subaru. He turned to the girl, back flushed against the seat, trying, and failing, not to shiver. "You mentioned earlier that you witnessed the man with the burn scar walking out of Room B, did you not?"
The little girl nodded. She did not even look at him, however.
Shinichi stayed put on his spot for a little longer until the sounds of footsteps reached his ears again. He waited, and when he could hear nothing else, he opened the door again, just enough to peer outside. "She's gone," he announced, and stepped aside.
Subaru said nothing, promptly walking out.
And really, the detective did not need to ask to figure out what he was going to do next. Maybe, for the first time, Shinichi could say he understood the nature of the actions of that man he thought so little of.
But he stuck his head out, regardless. "Take good care of her," he called. Subaru turned around, just in time to see a cocky smirk drawing itself on the young detective's features.
His lips moved soundlessly, but not meaninglessly. Shu-nii, he mouthed.
Subaru stood for a moment, long enough for the other to know his message had been completely understood. No further words were exchanged, though. Merely pushed his glasses closer to his face and left to fulfill his task.
"You might want to stick your face back inside." Ai sounded slightly exasperated, but he supposed it was better than freaking out of her mind. "Since it's the real one."
"Don't worry about it." He closed the door back again, however, true to her wishes. "Both Bourbon and Vermouth already know I'm alive, so there's no difference, really."
"How stupid are you?" growled the girl. "Can't you sense it?!" Her voice lowered a little, and even with his back facing her, he knew her arms had raised, in a self embrace lacking any warmth. "This presence… There are more out there. Hiding who-knows-where in this train…"
Shinichi stood rooted in his place. "It will still be fine." Her head rose sharply, just in time for him to send her a rather confident smirk over his shoulder. "Since today is the day I die."
She did not move a single finger. His smirk slid off his face and disappeared from existence.
"That didn't sound great, did it?"
Ai crossed her arms over her chest and waited.
"Okay, it sounds awful. But it's true that we're following a plan."
"Is it yours?"
"For the record, this time it's mostly Conan's."
"And that's supposed to make me feel relieved?"
He brought his hand to his face, pressing the bridge of his nose. "Look, everything is fine," he told her. His free one went to rest over the door handle, where it stayed, for as long as he looked at her, as if determining what to say next.
"Mom shouldn't take long," he told her. "Wait here until she returns."
"What are you going to do?"
"I'm going to meet Conan," Shinichi explained, casually shrugging. "And another ally we have around."
With that, he opened the door. One last time, he looked over his shoulder, just to find that she was giving him that one gaze ─ distant and impossible to decode. So, he sent her a warm smile. "See you in Nagoya."
And, without further ado, he closed the door. Outside, he stood for a moment enough to take a deep breath before starting on his way back to the eighth carriage.
Yet, he did not even get to take a step before it burst back open, all but giving him a heart attack.
"Now, what do you want? We're all here."
That, he could certainly tell. Really, even behind a freshly served cup of fine wine and a smug grin on his face, the detective was starting to have second thoughts about this. And the attention that he had always loved and sought like water in the middle of the desert was beginning to suffocate him.
Everyone was there. Noto Taisaku from Room A, Ando Satoru from Room C, Komino Natsue and her maid, Sumitomo Hiruka, both from Room D, Idenami Mari from Room E and the conductor in charge of Carriage 8…
Ah, yeah, and him, of course. Mouri Kogoro. The forty-year-old fool that was expecting a text from a brat who had not even reached double digits yet.
What am I even doing? Behind his smile and all secured inside his mind were the nastiest curses, directed at no one in particular ─ though aiming them at a certain, bespectacled little kid was kind of tempting. God forbid Ran gaining mind-reading powers and finding that out. I'm the great detective here! Why am I even waiting for him to explain it to me?!
As the exasperation of each of the suspects' faces began to be too evident to be brushed off any longer, he, under the excuse of preparing for a long talk, raised his glass to his lips.
That brat, he totally forgot about me. He barely resisted the urge to groan at the thought. What's wrong with him? Leaving me hanging like that-
A choking sound later, he found himself turning to the side, coughing out the wine that had gone down the wrong pipe. He… just forgot about it. It might have been himself trying to convince himself, probably. The detective kid is there too. He's a good for nothing, for sure…
But he knew. If it was about his little demon of a brother, the young detective was extremely competent.
"Um, Mouri-san?" Ando's face crossed his field of view, leaning forward slightly and closer to him. "Are you alright?"
"Of course I am!" Quickly wiping his mouth, he turned fully to the man, eyeing him weirdly. He was about to laugh it off, boisterously so, but stopped at the sight of the large bag he was carrying under his arm. "What's that?"
Ando's eyebrows knitted in confusion. "The boy with you told me to bring it."
"Ah, right!" This time, his laugh successfully broke through. "I forgot I told him that…"
Idenami eyed him. "Did you really solve the case?"
For a second there, Kogoro struggled to come up with a proper response.
"Don't worry about it." Soon, it turned out he didn't have to speak for himself, since a voice different to all others did it for him. "Mouri-sensei usually likes to pretend he is clueless about the case. Until the very end."
Raising his head, he found where it all came from. "Because when he finally exposes the culprit to the light…" None other than Amuro was there, approaching them with that smirk plastered all over his face. "The result is far more surprising and satisfying."
The explanation did not appear to appease the woman in the slightest. "Who are you?" she inquired, unfriendly as she had been the entire day towards everyone.
"I'm Mouri-sensei's number one apprentice, Amuro," he explained, with a slightly nervous smile.
Certainly, the thought of asking him what he was doing there crossed his mind, yet the man immediately brushed it off. Instead, he fixed his mustache and straightened up his back.
"Now that everyone is here, I'll start with my deduction show," he told everyone, a serious frown lowering to his facade and gathering the spotlight once more. "About how I figured out that the murder at Room B was never a locked-room crime to begin with…"
Because that was the only thing he understood about it all.
"That was my eye."
"I know the basics of human anatomy, Tantei-kun, but I'll thank you for the lovely reminder."
"Then why do you keep putting powder in it?"
"Because you know everything except how to close it when they tell you to."
"Like hell I'm going to let you off sight with my watch out of my reach."
There was a loud gasp. "Tantei-kun! What would your neechan say?!"
"Thief."
"Yeah, I guess she would-"
"A ghost."
"That too, I got it, but what I meant to say is-"
Conan could barely stop himself from sighing in relief when the door opened, stopping the thief from speaking any longer.
"Finally," he said. "What took you so long?"
His brother's nervous chuckle reached his ears. "Sorry," he said. "We had to hide in Room B for a while before getting to this carriage."
The boy was about to roll his eyes when he halted. "We?"
"Yes. 'We'." Even the magician appeared surprised, all but dropping his brush at the female youthful voice that crossed their ears. "Would that be a problem?"
For a moment, he did not want to look at the door, fully aware of who he would see there, arms crossed over her chest, silently demanding an explanation out of him, but eventually, seeing there was no further option, he did. Haibara Ai's glare on him was certainly not any fiercer than how he had imagined it, not any softer either.
His gaze dulled, rising until it met his brother's nervous smile. "You brought her here."
"She came on her own," explained Shinichi, shaking his head.
"Then chase her away somehow!" Ai's glare darkened, but he figured that, if he ignored it, it would be like it did not exist. "I have enough on my plate with this lousy thief and a dress awaiting me."
Ai opened her mouth, but the words hardly escaped her throat. Slowly, her gaze lowered, and eyed the outfit she had chosen for today, consisting in, coincidentally, a simple dress and knee socks.
Next, she raised her head. Conan was sitting there, a makeup cape laid out all over him and an annoyed expression starting to take over his features. There was also a teenager there sporting a ridiculous similarity to Shinichi, save for the messy birdnest he had as a hairstyle instead of the detective's distinctive cowlick.
Unlike any of the two brothers present, that one decided not to comment on anything ─ wisely, he placed the makeup brush back on the coffee table and dropped back on the opposite seat, next to where Conan's many gadgets resided, forgotten by everyone else.
"If you have any ideas, I'm all ears," Shinichi said, carefully closing the door behind them. "Believe or not, she's almost as stubborn as you are, so you get the picture."
Conan's watch, bowtie, glasses ─ all of them were there, beside a large bag that captured her attention. Slowly, she inched closer, enough for her to take a glance inside.
Though the unfamiliar teen certainly noticed all of that, it would seem he did not care enough. Not even when her factions hardened, and her hands brazenly went inside it, plucking something out.
It was silent all of a sudden, the other two gazes instantly falling on her.
Or rather, on the black and braided wig she was holding ─ identical to that her past self would use.
Her eyes narrowed. "What's this?" she asked, raising it further, as if it couldn't be seen well enough already.
"A wig," Conan replied.
Ai's eyebrow rose.
"Kaito-niichan made it."
Kaito lazily crossed his arms behind his head, uttering no word at all. The little girl paid him no attention.
"Why?" The boy's gaze slid to the side, away from hers. For some reason, to her anyway, it was as if he was afraid of her, somehow, figuring it out if he kept eye contact any longer. "You… What in the world are you planning?"
His lips pressed into a thin line. His older brother watched him shift in his seat, as if debating with himself what he had internally discussed for so long, one last time.
Finally gathering enough courage, he faced her.
Shinichi felt like he could easily predict what he would say next.
"I don't know about this…" Shinichi dropped to his seat, massaging his head after hours of talking and planning. "This… This is seriously risky, Conan."
Conan's plain gaze zeroed on him. "Do you seriously think you're the one to talk?"
The high school detective took a moment to breathe out before continuing. "But this is Bourbon who we're talking about." He was struggling there, really, hoping that his little brother would see reason ─ as hopeless as it was. "And bombs, most likely."
Because that was what they had been talking about for a while now. If Bourbon had been listening to all those conversations involving Mitsuhiko, then he definitely knew they were going to board the Bell Tree Express today ─ a moving prison where nobody went in, nobody went out. It sounded like the perfect opportunity to corner Sherry and capture her back.
So first, they would ensure somehow that the train did not stop, no matter the circumstances. Then, they would lead her somewhere where she could be taken away with nobody noticing ─ meaning, it had to be before they got to the station. Leading her all the way to the last carriage, where the storage would be held, then separating it from the rest was a viable option. With Vermouth aboard, however… Her bombing the entire thing away was even more likely.
"Relax. KID just said he got his part covered, right?" Conan said next. "That guy possesses an unnatural amount of dumb luck. I'll be with him, so that means I'll get some of it, right?"
"If your bad luck doesn't rub off on him instead."
Shinichi's eyebrows knitted together, worried even before getting a single step into the train, before he noticed something in the corner of his eye. Turning around, he confirmed that his father, who had been silent the entire time until now, was smirking.
"This plan of yours… sounds interesting," he said. "With so many players and turns, the possibility of success is remarkably high."
Conan looked like he wanted to smile. But he couldn't.
"But there's a single factor you should take into consideration." Next, his gaze fell upon his younger son. "Ai-kun must know nothing about what you have just discussed."
The boy was visually taken away by what he had said. But his father did not bother in explaining a thing, just kept his stern gaze on him, watching as he slowly blinked back to reality, and a frown took over.
"But she will definitely be able to tell if there's any of them on that train!" Yusaku uttered no reply, which agitated him even further. "Then I'm supposed to let her think she's going to die. That's what you're saying."
Yusaku merely stared at him, his expression unmoving.
"Dad-!"
"That is all I'm going to say." Conan flinched back, frozen. "If she finds out, your plan is ruined."
And unmoving he remained, even as Yusaku stood from his seat, calmly walking past him.
"What you're going to do next, it's entirely up to you, son."
"I'm going to disguise myself as you and face Bourbon."
Internally, Shinichi felt himself smirking ─ that went exactly as he thought it would. From the determined glint that took over his younger brother's gaze to the look of incredulity that crossed Ai's.
"Since it's kind of my fault this happened," he said calmly, despite the growing horror in her face. "I called you by the name you expressly told me not to. You were afraid someone would hear, weren't you?" Then, the apologetic little smile appeared on Conan's face. "I'm sorry for thinking that fear was unfounded."
She struggled to get a hold of her voice. "Don't tell me…"
He nodded. "Mitsuhiko's phone was bugged. And Bourbon listened to it. All of it."
His head lowered in shame.
"Because of me, he knows who you are, Ai."
For a beat, he waited for a response that did not come. Besides the faint squeezing of the wig against her chest, that much was clear.
"While I'm out there pretending to be you, you'll have to pretend to be me," he continued. "For one thing, it'll help convince everyone it's real. If I'm not posing as you, then nobody would." Since it was clear that involving any of his friends would not work. "Besides, as long as you're me…" A frown took hold of him. "Vermouth is going to spare you."
She ignored the involuntary shiver that ransacked her body at the mere mention of her name. "I thought…" It came out as a whisper. "I thought you said…"
He averted his eyes.
"She promised she would leave you alone," Shinichi said, deciding that his brother was reluctant to elaborate further. "But that doesn't mean she can't take you to Bourbon so that he can kill you."
Conan did not either acknowledge or deny it.
"So… You're basically planning my death." Her entire gaze darkened, shifting from the eldest to the youngest Kudo. "What am I going to do next?"
No answer.
"You… Weren't you the one who told me that?" she was biting each and every single one of his words. "That I shouldn't run away from my destiny?" Still, nothing. "Where did all of that go?!"
He raised his head sharply. "It went away the day you decided not to take that train!" She flinched back, so he took the opportunity to continue. "That day, you made me promise it to you, didn't you?"
To this day, he could still remember. Her hair flickering in the air as she turned around to face him. Her gelid distant eyes meeting his, narrowing as if attempting to see through his soul.
And those words, softly spoken, but that would resonate with him forever.
"You will protect me, won't you?"
And that one gaze was back at the present moment. This time around, it did not surprise him as much.
"You…" she spoke, words spilling venom. "You are the most hypocritical person I've ever met."
Okay, maybe that one did startle him a little.
"Remember when your father tried to take you back to America with him?" As a matter of fact, yeah, he did. Of course he did. "Weren't you mad because 'I didn't care' enough about your departure? Even if it was to keep you alive."
"That's different-"
"Or how about that one time Jodie-sensei suggested I enter Witness' Protection?" Her voice rose higher. "You were glad I didn't, back then. How come now-?"
"Well, I didn't think you would die!" Conan did the same. "If we don't do anything, you die today! What part of it do you not understand?!"
She turned her head away.
"For God's sake, Ai-!"
At that moment, Shinichi decided that enough was enough. The situation was escalating beyond what he had predicted.
"Say, why don't we find some common ground?" He tried, in between the children's glares that suddenly were aimed at him. "We still can figure out a plan. One where Ai-chan does not have to play dead, nor be actually dead…"
Conan flung the makeup cape away, hopping back onto his feet. "You think I haven't tried already?"
"Yeah, but with some outside help… From your friends, for example," Shinichi said, smiling. "Listen. We could try to find a way around what happened to you at the fire. Then if we were to have you dress as how Sherry looked and have Ai-chan showing around-"
"Did you just forget about Vermouth?"
"If Bourbon is busy with the fake Sherry-"
"What's there to say she's not gonna kill her?!" Conan snapped. His brother stepped back in shock, silent as he took into the misguided anger visible in his eyes. "Her word? Is that all?"
Shinichi's eyebrows knitted in concern, as the boy buried his head in his hands, letting out a lengthy sigh. Blue peeked out from little fingers, taking on his form long enough for Shinichi to note something far darker passing by them.
"That day… She had no qualms in getting you killed." It was softer ─ such a contrast against the outburst from just seconds ago, he couldn't help but notice. "If it's inconvenient, or if it goes against what she wants… She'll do anything."
Trembling hands separated from his face, lingering on the air to be stared at. "I've already believed in her, a long time ago… And…" They closed into fists. "Believing in her word again…"
Wide eyes fell onto him ─ and he could not help but be reminded of that of a small, lost child, seeking answers about the intimidatingly enormous world surrounding him.
"It would be stupid, right?"
Shinichi wished he had any.
"I am fine. Don't fret over me.
─ Haibara Ai"
That was the text Ran had received, the same her eyes could not stop looking at, over and over again. Even if a full minute had passed since it had first rang.
"Well, that's certainly her address," observed Agasa, peering down her screen from over her shoulder.
Mitsuhiko smiled as he turned to his friends. "Maybe she is with Conan-kun?"
Ayumi nodded, brightly as well. "It makes sense!"
Genta was decidedly gloomier than any of the other two. "Man, I want to go too!"
"Why don't you just go then?!" groaned Sonoko, arms crossed over her shoulder as she leaned back.
Through annoyed grumbles and careless laughing, the group settled back on a friendly conversation, a topic that bore no resemblance to the girl missing from the group. But Ran, even if she tried to, could not stop but kept on staring at the message, as if something would be revealed if she did so long enough.
As long as the feeling of her little hands clinging to her shirt prevailed in her memories, Ran could not let go.
Huh? Her eyes widened, ever so slightly, when they caught sight of the scrolling bar. It's smaller than usual…
Immediately, she scrolled down.
And stood back up. "I think I'm going to check on her anyway," she declared, as all gazes fell upon her again.
"What?" Sonoko raised an eyebrow. "Leave her alone, Ran. You'll just get on her nerves."
"I can't help it. I'm just worried."
She did not cast her friend another look, fully knowing already that she would find her rolling her eyes at her actions, and approached the door. Just before opening it, she paused, looking over her shoulder at the three children, attentively gazing up at her. "Do you guys want to help me look?" she asked them, smiling a little.
They exchanged looks with each other, as if debating what was, really, a ridiculous question.
"There are five links in the chains for all other rooms, but in the victim's, there were six." Kogoro puffed his chest out proudly. "You all might think this is purely irrelevant, but as you might see, it's of utmost importance. In order words-"
"Mouri-san." Amuro was leaning over his seat, eyebrows inching together in something akin to worry as he whispered. "Is everything alright?"
Kogoro eyed him weirdly. His response came in the form of a slight glance over the blonde's shoulder, towards the suspects gathering in front of him. Unlike what he had first believed, a second look made him fall into the realization they were not listening to his deduction, attentively as he had hoped, but instead they were whispering amongst each other.
"You have been talking about the trick with the lock for the past half an hour," explained Amuro. "You have to move on to the next point!"
"The next… point." Kogoro cleared his throat. "Yes, of course."
Amuro's head tilted slightly. "This case… is solved, right?"
"Who do you think you're talking to?" Kogoro did his best to look absolutely offended at the suggestion. "It's all solved, right here." For better emphasis, he tapped his head while smirking widely.
Though Amuro's expression was like that of someone that wanted to believe so hard, but was finding it difficult.
"Just… wait a moment, Amuro-kun."
Followed by that, he turned sideways to curl around his phone, in an attempt to hide it from plain view, so that he could glare at that certain contact on the screen that had yet to give any signs of life like previously agreed.
In a last desperate attempt, he opened the chat he shared with the boy hoping… Well, he did not even know what he was hoping for at this point. A miracle, maybe?
"Then, if that much was clear, then explain this, great detective." Idenami was close to losing it, from the looks of it. "If somebody was loitering around…" She motioned to the conductor. "How come he did not see anybody?"
"True," said Ando. "He says that he was in the hallway the entire time."
"Well, someone was peeking at me through the door…" said the conductor.
"What?" It seemed like it was the first time Noto ever heard about such a thing. "Who was that?!"
Far from paying attention to the discussion surging in the same room he was in, the detective's attention was grasped by a harmless, inconspicuous message with a file attached to it. At that moment, he remembered the boy grinning at him, phone in hand, and the buzzing in his pocket. "You will need it later," he had said then.
If only he had demanded the brat to explain.
"They weren't very visible," the conductor continued to retell his experience to those who wanted to hear. "It was when the train entered the tunnel."
"So the culprit might've escaped." Ando fixed his glasses. "Perhaps they ran to another car."
Komino and her maid nodded, but besides that, they expressed no opinion at all.
"It certainly could be an outsider," Idenami theorized. "There shouldn't be anybody here that'd do something like this here, since the attendant was familiar with all our faces-"
A certain little sound cut the woman short, making the conductor react with a barely concealed flinch, instinctively looking around for something, until he realized it was not there. Surprised, everyone turned to the detective, whose head rose sharply, looking not any better than anyone present.
He was about to apologize ─ because he had just tapped on the file the brat had sent him, out of curiosity, but stopped himself. A long stare at the phone screen later, his smile was back, and with it, the brimming confidence that would allow him to see the truth.
"I had Conan ring the bell at Room B and record the sound." Though it had been 'D', if his memory did not serve him wrong ─ speaking of which, that was the room that the old lady and her maid shared. How come they both appeared this confused right now, as if they had not been there to begin with? "The conductor heard the noise, but didn't see the corresponding light for any room, so he just assumed it was Room A."
The aforementioned conductor confirmed it all with a nod. "While Noto-san and I were arguing, the door to Room B was opened by Murobashi-san," he recounted. "He was on the phone with someone."
It was getting closer, Kogoro knew. But, as much as he was headed in the right direction, there was a lot missing until he could finally piece everything out together. There's also the bag, too, he thought, eyeing the object the kid had told Ando to bring along. For some reason.
If a kid figured it out, then I should be able to! Or his pride would not let him live with it, as much as it was this certain boy he was talking about. Think. He must have seen something. Something that made him realize the gist of the trick!
Had there been a moment like that? He remembered it had, right before chasing Sera away. The kid spaced out. And realized everything, most likely. What was he doing then? Think, damn it, think!
It had been right after entering the tunnel, but he could clearly picture the boy staring out of the window. What could he have seen? It was too dark to see anything!
But he had to have seen something. If there was nothing outside, then…
Kogoro's eyes flew open.
His own reflection.
Next time the scarred man saw that woman, he found the smirk missing.
There was another expression akin to worry replacing it, eyes flickering restlessly around, as she closed the door behind her back. Back and forth her gaze moved, tinted with slight fear, inspecting every spot of the car to make sure it was safe. Yet, it obviously wasn't as effective as she would have led to believe, since he was there, concealed behind a corner.
Finally, she sighed, then, eyeing the door once more, she walked away. Once gone, he stepped out of his hiding spot and sneered. So Room E, it was.
Even though he expected it to be empty, the man soon found his assumptions had been terribly off the mark. A mop of dark hair, tousled over the cushions, welcomed him inside. There was a small child lying across the seats, it took him a little longer to realize ─ sleeping, judging by the way he didn't even shift at the sound of him closing the door, or stepping closer to inspect him better.
Peering down at him, he confirmed it was that certain bespectacled little detective he knew very well.
Soon, the surprise vanished enough for the smirk to surface.
He made absolutely no sound after that, silently searching for the luggage that the woman was keeping somewhere. It was found right away ─ and gone the next moment, after a minute or so of him ransacking her room, thrown over the window to not be seen ever again.
"My, my. Isn't that much?" Her voice did not take long to make itself known. "It was my favorite, too." Though he was completely aware of who he would see, he turned around. Indeed, there she was, leaning against the doorframe while crossing her arms over her chest. "I loved the dress I put in that suitcase."
The man and the woman locked eyes for a moment. He raised his hand to his face. "Anyway, isn't it time you stopped doing things like this?"
And pulled apart the mask, allowing the woman to smirk at the sight of those light blue eyes that bore no resemblance to the man from before.
"Right, Sharon?"
Sharon's lips curved upward as she put her hat away, revealing the platinum blonde hair that had been previously hidden in a bum away from sight.
"How unexpected," she said. "This feud between us and your boys…. To think that you, their mother, would also become involved."
"I put myself up to it." Yukiko grinned brightly. "I told him if the opponent is a star of the silver screen, then he better cast me, a legendary Japanese actress as well!"
"By using 'him', who am I supposed to think about?" Vermouth glanced over her shoulder at the figure lying across the seat. "Is it this boy that remains slumbering amid the chaos…" She turned back to the front, facing the other woman. "Or that high school detective that doesn't quite know how to stay dead?"
Instead of answering, Yukiko giggled. "My, I wonder about that!" she said, placing a hand against her cheek.
"In any case, what you said to me when we crossed paths earlier…"
"If we outsmart you again, then this time," Yukiko had whispered. "You're going to lay your hands off her for good, won't you?"
"What was that supposed to mean?"
"Exactly how it sounds. Ai-chan is on our side."
Vermouth couldn't help but scoff at the thought. "You seriously think you'll beat us?"
"Don't you know? Right now Shin-chan and Co-chan are actually in the lead." Her answer made her face drop with surprise, a frown taking over her young features. "That girl you left unconscious and slumbering in your room, Sera. We've already carried her to her room."
"Oh, well, don't you work quickly?" The smirk came back. "With your youngest here, I'll assume young Singani-kun is our most valuable player today."
Yukiko, however, shook her head. "We might have a very special guest on our team."
As much as appearances could tell, the news had shocked Vermouth. Her eyes widened slightly, and her head tilted slightly, curiosity gradually taking over her expression. Before long, they closed, and a chuckle shook her body whole.
"Very well. I'll find out who this 'special guest' is."
When they opened again, fixating on the woman once more, Yukiko found she was smiling ─ in an eerie, yet incredibly amused way she had never witnessed before.
"But you should hurry up and find out, too… Where our own secret player is hiding."
A/N:
F.C. Meyer: Well, no, I didn't hear about the spoilers, but I already read the chapter, so yeah. I don't want to spoil it in case anyone else is reading this, but that was kind of intense xD