Maya did not return to the house. Trucy was finding it increasingly difficult not to break out into song. At long last, she had Daddy all to herself. Athena was still very much present, of course, but she did not live with them. She stopped by for an hour or so every day, reassure Daddy that everything was fine at the office and try to offer him words of consolation, before awkwardly saying good-bye and leaving. Edgeworth stopped by occasionally as well, to ask Daddy questions about the case. But for the most part they were left completely alone.
It was wonderful. It was more than she could have ever hoped for. Pearl's Death had brought about the kind of change in their routine that she had desperately needed. Maya Fey, following her argument with Daddy, had completely vanished from their lives. She had to returned to Kurain Village and committed herself to her duties as Master.
The only downside, of course, was that her father had fallen into a deep depression.
"Have you eaten yet today, Daddy?" She asked him courteously, as she reached for a bag of oatmeal. She had just gotten out of work herself and was exhausted, but tried not to let her feelings show. Phoenix did not answer her. He simply sat and stared at the blank TV screen. She felt her heart sink.
"You can't just stay here like this." She told him, sternly. "It isn't healthy."
"What's the point?" He asked darkly. "
"They'll get the guy who did it." Trucy assured him. "Believe me."
He tried to give her a smile. "Edgeworth can't bring her back, Trucy."
She tried not to let her frustration show on her face: Pearl was dead. So what? The important thing was that she, the person who really mattered, was still alive and hurting. Why did he not care? Why did he not grasp that all she wanted was to see him be happy?
It frustrated her how the only time he seemed like he was his normal self when he was mentoring Athena. He was able to distance himself from his feelings to involve himself with other people.
Leaving Trucy alone with her magic tricks.
If only Athena would disappear. She thought to herself sadly, as she began to check her hat. It would make all of this so much easier for them all to bear.
Miles Edgeworth had elected to find the culprit personally. The days passed with no word on the progress of the case. She and Daddy were sitting at home, trying to make the most of a rather unpleasant evening, when a knock came at the door.
"Edgeworth."
Edgeworth stepped into the room, followed by his protégé Kay Faraday.
"You remember my assistant Kay, of course…"
"I've heard a lot about you, Mr. Wright." Kay said.
Trucy's hand was trembling as she tried to serve them tea. Kay stood up and helped her with it.
"Thank you…" Trucy said quietly. Kay gave her a reassuring smile.
Daddy and Edgeworth stared at each other.
"We have a suspect." Edgeworth said at last. 'I'm going to indict him."
"I hope you have the right person."
Edgeworth's lip curled. "Quite sure." He said. "Except… there is a chance that he we will not be able to prove his guilt."
"What?"
Trucy sat her tea down. For a brief moment her inner rage and fury made its way to her face. No one noticed it, as within an instant her mask was replaced with one of polite concern.
"His name… is Data Hackins." Edgeworth said. "He is the father of the man that Pearl Fey was slated to marry, Cody Hackins. He is a CEO of a wildly successful software development company. He is a billionaire."
"A…"
Edgeworth nodded.
"His son met Pearl at an fan event for the Steel Samurai." He said. "They decided to get married that day. His Father disapproved. He thought of her as nothing more than a gold digger."
"Pearl would never-"
"I am well aware." Edgeworth said, his voice heavy. "By all accounts they were very happy together. Maya Fey has told me as such…"
Kay Faraday glanced towards Trucy. She adjusted her face to look as if she might cry.
"The father felt so strongly about this marriage that he had the girl killed." He said. "It was all to protect his interests… his idea of his ideal family."
"He hated Pearl that much…?" Trucy whispered. "How could anyone do such a thing?"
Kay reached over and held her hand. Trucy wished she would stop. She wasn't gay.
"These people think they can do anything, Trucy." Kay said. "But it's our job to bring them to justice. No matter the cost."
"But if he's that wealthy- how are you going to stop him?"
"You stopped the CEO of BlueCorp on your second ever case." Edgeworth said. "Forgive me if I think I can do the same."
His eyes flashed.
"But I can't guarantee it." He said. "This will be a brutal battle, Wright… I won't conceal from you that I am uncertain of our chances. But I will promise you that I can will do everything I can to bring him to Justice."
Everything he could… did that involve cold blooded murder of the bastard? Trucy doubted it. Edgeworth was probably going to go home, peruse some case files, drink some tea, and then maybe have sex with the woman who wouldn't let go of her fucking hand. He had no intention of taking an eye for an eye: He was simply going to put his faith in the court system that had fucked them all several times over.
"Mr. Wright…" Faraday said. "I ask that you have faith in Mr. Edgeworth. He's the best prosecutor I know. And I have faith in him that he will get to the bottom of this."
And what were you going to do, you stupid bitch? Sit in his office in lingerie and make his tea for him and lose to him in his chess games? Maybe if Gumshoe came to the door she would tell him to fuck off, High Prosecutor Miles Edgeworth had a dick sucking scheduled every hour, on the hour all week.
Phoenix nodded, his voice grave.
"If there's anything I can do to help you… I will." He said.
"Trucy."
Trucy looked at Edgeworth.
"You will be called upon to be a witness." He said. "As the one who found the body, you will be an instrumental part of our strategy. I ask that you be prepared to tell the truth of what you saw."
The truth… Edgeworth was expecting her to lie.
"Of course." She said. "I'll do whatever I can… Mr. Edgeworth."
The High Prosecutor stood up.
"I think we've dallied here enough, Kay." He said, as he checked his watch. "There remains much to be done."
Kay gave her hand one last squeeze before standing up and taking her place beside him. Trucy felt a strong urge to wash her hand with soap and water.
"They'll get their verdict." Phoenix said quietly. "They have to."
Probably for the wrong person. Trucy thought to herself wryly. Knowing Miles Edgeworth he would probably just go after some low level thug and be satisfied. Maybe going after a billionaire would help his career somehow… he certainly didn't care about Phoenix or Pearl, and especially not her.
…
It was the next day that they got the news.
The Yatagarasu returns!
She took a moment to marvel at how mythological figures in the Japanese Shinto religion had made their way into the everyday American lexicon before reading the newspaper.
The Yatagarasu was, apparently, a legendary thief that had last operated more than a decade before. Although several people had been indicted of being the Yatagarasu, none had ever been convicted .
And now… the legendary thief had returned. And he had raided a major software company for information.
Something about that last bit tickled the back of her mind. A major software company…. What a strange coincidence. Edgeworth had mentioned something similar when they had last spoken. She read on.
The Yatagarasu dealt in information. He only appeared to steal sensitive information from corrupt organizations and governments. He was the noble thief, a man who stole for the greater good.
And…
The information he had gathered…
Implicated Data Hackins as the murderer in the Pearl Fey case!"
She rumbled the newspaper up in her hands. She could feel an intense fire in her eyes. This thief had done more for her than Edgeworth ever had. She was now convinced of the man's guilt.
And he had to pay.
…
"I don't care how you do it." Data Hackins snarled into the phone. "Make the accusations go away!"
He slammed the phone onto the desk and slumped backward into his chair.
He had been speaking to lawyers all day. That wretched Prosecutor, Miles Edgeworth, had been around asking too many questions. His people had all answered as best as they were able, and had done everything they could to head him off.
But Miles Edgeworth was not a man who could be bought or controlled. He was a hound, searching desperately for something to pin on him and topple his empire. And now, that Yatagarasu himself had gotten involved… and managed to get a hold of the evidence that he had desperately tried to keep hidden.
He had one stupid little girl killed. Cody was upset, of course, but he would find another more fitting for his station. He had more for love when he should have known that marriages were purely practical. There was no room for romance when there was money to be made or deals to make.
The setting sun was shining on his back through the large window. He sat back, enjoying the feeling of the warmth on his back.
He noticed almost immediately when a dark shadow fell across him.
He whirled, pulling out the handgun he kept on his desk and blasted. The figure standing just outside the window reeled, as it shattered into pieces.
He lowered the gun and stared as a wooden puppet, held aloft by ropes, hung there limply.
He was angry: Was this someone's idea of a joke? Was it Edgeworth? Or… perhaps…
He stepped forward and examined the puppet in more detail. He took in the bright blue hat, the cloak… and the little pin attached to it. He took in a deep breath and examined it.
IT was unmistakable… it was the symbol of the Yatagarasu. The three legged crow was almost shining. The puppet was hanging so limply that he felt no danger as he stepped towards it, raising his hand to pull it inside and examine it in more detail-
The puppet spung to life and wrapped its limbs around him. Data Hackins let out a scream of fear and rage as he was lifted off the ground, and out the broken window. His body fell down, down, down the cliff and into the rocks below.
He was dead when he slammed into them, head first, his brains and blood covering the rocks, as he slowly slid into the sea. Because of the location and the currents, his body would never be recovered.
The puppet slowly began to raise itself upward, and its master hurriedly placed it back under her cloak, and quickly made her escape.
Daddy…
Daddy would rest easy now.
The guy who had caused him so much pain-
Who had hurt him so much.
He was dead now. And he wouldn't be doing anything like that again.
Everything had worked out for the best.
Everything was fine.
Everything would be happy.
And now… maybe… things would go back to the way they were before. Just her and Daddy, living together. Celebrating Apollo's successes, and laughing about old stories.
Yes…
Pearl Fey was now nothing more than a good memory. And to be honest… she liked her better that way.