Case Closed Fan Fiction ❯ The Detective Prince ❯ Blacked Out ( Chapter 34 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

The Detective Prince
Chapter 34
Blacked Out

It was no surprise when those that surrounded the area became spectators, crowding around the scene of death.

"I didn't hear her scream on the way down," Tim thought to himself. "She may have been dead before hitting the ground, but we'd need an autopsy to prove that."

Conan kept his eyes to the body, giving every curve his full attention. He found nothing out of the ordinary. A faint warmness came over him in the moment, tampering with his vision ever so slightly.

"Are you feeling alright?" Ai asked noticing his dwindling posture.

"I'm fine," Conan replied wiping the sweat from his forehead. "Just a little dizzy, that's all."

"Dizzy...what could have caused that?"

The sound of a whistle ringed loud to their ears, looking to the left to find two of the park officers heading their way.

"What happened?!" The first asked stopping just over the body.

"Her seat fell from the tracks shortly after the ride began." Ayumi answered.

"Can anyone else confirm this?" The other officer asked.

Those who had seen the fall confirmed her claim. Now all that remained was the how. They waited for a few minutes to pass, the Dragon Spin arriving back to its station right on schedule. The passengers made their way out, noticing the large group of people crowded together.

"I could have sworn I heard you scream, you got scared didn't you?"

"What do you think is going on over there?" Ran asked looking forward.

"You just flat out ignored my question." Sonoko said walking up next to her.

"I wasn't scared in the least." Ran finally answered.

They closed in with each step, becoming more and more concerned from the expressions of the bystanders.

"What's going on over there?" Eito asked joining the two of them.

"We're not sure," Ran replied. "Hopefully no one got hurt."

"I'm with you on that one," Eito agreed. "Lets hope it's just something minor."

As they moved in closer it became very apparent it was a lot more serious than they had originally believed.

"Conan what happened?" Ran asked noticing him looking forward.

"She's gone."

"Gone," Eito questioned. "Who's gone?"

"I think you better have a look yourself."

Concern quickly turned to fear, the factor of the unknown weighing heavily. All fell blank to the mind, becoming breathless, taking it all in within that moment.  He raced forward, feeling himself held from both sides.

"That's my sister," Eito exclaimed trying to fight the officers off. "What happened?!"

"We're trying to figure that out," One replied. "I know how upsetting this must be, but we need you to try and stay calm."

"What a freak accident." Sonoko said.

Tears formed to his eyes, to shocked to see what he was feeling inside. Ran turned back to her side to see Conan had taken off.

"Where'd he run off to this time?"

This was the perfect opportunity to give the scene a look, all attention was focused to the body leaving the roller coaster open for investigation.

"Now let's see if I can find anything that may explain what happened."

He dropped his eyes to the tracks, giving it a detailed scoop. There was nothing out of place or catchy to the eyes that he felt could lead to a breakthrough.

"Need to keep looking, there's gotta be something here," Conan thought. "No coaster car goes flying from the tracks just like we saw, at least not intentionally."

He continued his search,making sure he gave everything a second look. There had to be something, but what? After another moment of searching he finally caught a break, there to the side of the tracks lay a pair of wheels.

"Bingo, now we're getting somewhere."  

As he reached down for the wheels he heard someone drop down to the side of him, glimpsing over with a quick turn.

"Find anything?" Tim asked.

Conan responded with a nod, pointing to the laying wheels.

"I'm not really a roller coaster expert," Conan admitted. "But what do you think that could mean?"

Tim moved in closer, as not to touch the potential evidence. He gave them a long hard look, noticing a faint redness around the outer edges.

"So what do you think?" Conan asked.

"Based from their size, I'd say they were the bottom wheels." Tim replied.

"Bottom wheels?"

"They are one of two sets of wheels which are attached to the track, used to keep the seats from flying off."

"That means this little accident may be a homicide," Conan said. "If someone indeed planned this, they must have removed the wheels before the ride began."

"Now all we need is the who."

"On another note, did you see the redness to the wheels?" Conan asked.

"Saw that as well," Tim said giving it another look. "It's defiantly not blood, can't really say to tell you the truth."

"It's paint."

"Paint....are you sure?" Tim asked.

"Positive," Conan said assuringly. "Just look at the way it bleeds clear."

"Why would paint be on the wheels?"

"Good question," Conan said. "Yet another answer waiting to be unraveled."

They turned at a sudden movement from behind, only to find it was the rest of the Detective Boys.

"What are the two of you doing over here?" Ayumi asked.

"Nothing special," Tim replied. "I was just watching Conan do the detective thing, hoping on learning a few things in the process."

"But wasn't it an accident?" Mitsuhiko asked.

"There's a possibility it wasn't." Conan replied.

"Don't limit yourself to just him," Genta said. "I could give you a few pointers myself."

"Me to." Mitsuhiko added.

He stood back straight, looking to where the body had landed. He took off once more, leaving the others behind.

"Conan where are you going?" Tim asked.

By that time he had already found himself lost amongst the crowd.

"Don't sweat it," Mitsuhiko said. "He probably has a lead."

"Let's hurry and catch up with him," Genta said. "He may need our assistance."

The rest followed after him, Tim being the only to stay behind. He slid through the large group, making his way to where the body still lay. But it wasn't the body he was interested in, but rather the seat it sit strapped to. Conan waited for the right moment, the officers turning away to enforce others to get back. He jumped forward landing to where the bottom of the seat point, giving it a good look. He smiled, pleased at what he saw.

"Looks like the coloring to the wheels have been reinforced by another source."

Before he could investigate any further he felt himself grabbed from his sides, launching into her grasp.

"Didn't you hear what the officer said," Ran exclaimed. "Where'd you go to anyway?"

"I just went to see the roller coaster," Conan replied. "Ask Tim if you don't believe me."

She slowly placed him to the ground to the side of her.

"Don't move from that spot," Ran instructed. "I don't want you getting lost."

Conan turned his head to the side at the sound of sorrow. He couldn't help but be taken back by this.

"Looks like Hajime is taking it hard as well."

"Conan did you find anything else that could help us crack this thing?" Genta asked coming to a stop.

"I noticed a red coloring to the wheels we found under the track," Conan stated. "The same tint of red I saw was also around the edges of the bottom of the seat where the wheels were supposed to be connected."

"Great find," Mitsuhiko commented. "But what do you think it means?"

"I don't know yet," Conan replied. "I checked the other seats as well, the one Chiyo sat to was the only to have the red coloring upon the wheels."

He had given the track one last look, not gaining any further ground then he had two minutes ago.

"The bottom wheels were removed, but what about the top ones," Tim thought. "They're nowhere to be seen."

He then noticed a man in a suit of orange standing to the wall a few yards away, a very distraught and draining look in his face. A single tear slid from his left eye, holding back as much as he could.

"I wonder what's up with that guy, did he know Chiyo?"  

Tim slowly made his way over, the young man looking to him as he closed in.

"I saw you cry," Tim said. "Did you know her?"

He couldn't bring himself to reply, his eyes swelling up with tears once again. Tim turned at something touching down to his shoulder.

"Eito...I'm sorry."

"I see you've met Elroy," Eito said trying not to think about it. "He's the guy we came to meet."

"That would explain the orange suit," Tim said turning back to him. "So what exactly do you do here?"  

"I'm a mechanic," Elroy replied. "I work many of the rides here."

"Including the Dragon Spin?" Tim asked.

He shook his head from side to side.

"That's Kenny's job," Elroy answered. "I work on stuff over to the north side of the park."

"How'd you know Chiyo?" Tim asked.

"We've been friends since elementary, best friend I ever had."

He turned away, the tears rushing down the sides of his cheeks. Emotions took over Eito as well.

"I know you're hurting inside, but do you think you could tell me where Kenny is now?"

"He's right over there," Elroy pointed. "Talking with the police officers."

He looked up to her, a little bothered by her silence. Conan tugged at her arm, causing her to look down.

"Ran are you ok?"

"I'm fine, it's just I think I've seen that man." Ran replied.

"What man?" Conan asked.

"Right over there," Ran said with a point. "The one next to Tim."

"Hmm, he doesn't look to familiar," Conan said. "Where again did you see him?"

"That's the same guy who was staring at me when we were in line."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes." Ran confirmed.

Conan kept his eye to him, why had he been staring at her? He brought a hand to his head, feeling his temperature rise.

"Alright everyone," One of the officers yelled out. "It's time to clear out!"

"Did you find out what happened," Sonoko asked. "A lot of us would like an explanation."

"It was an accident, pure and simple." He replied.

"Uh oh, that's not good."

Conan darted from her side, racing away as fast as he could.

"Conan where are you going?!" Ran called.

Tim had his attention to the sky, still thinking about what could have possibly happened to the top wheels. He felt a couple light hits to the side of his leg, looking down to see Conan.

"Do you know how annoying that is?"

"Never mind that," Conan stated. "You need to get over there and talk to those security guards."

"What for," Tim asked. "We don't have enough evidence yet."

"They're already ruling it an accident," Conan informed. "If you share with them what we know that will enlighten them on what may have really happened."

"Got it, that's the last thing we need," Tim said. "Giving the killer time to dispose of any evidence we may have not come across yet."

The two of them made their way over to the two officers, joining them around the body.

"I thought we made it clear that we want everyone to clear out."

"And I will do that, just hear me out."

"Go ahead."

"I don't think you're dealing with an accident," Tim began. "I came across a few things which may point more to the lines of a homicide."

"A homicide," Kenny exclaimed. "Are you sure about that?!"

"All signs are pointing in that direction."

"Care to share the evidence which brought you to these allegations?"

"Right this way officer." Tim said.

Conan waited next to the body along with a third security guard. His hands began to tremble, sweat coming to the palms of his hand. It took them under a minute to arrive back.

"So what do you think Officer Grean?"

"The kids got a point," He replied. "One set of the wheels were found under the tracks."

"How'd they get there?"

"The only way they could have, someone removed them," Officer Grean replied looking to Kenny. "That makes you our prime suspect."

"I understand." Kenny said with a nod.

"Officer, did you happen to see the redness where the wheels should have been," Conan asked pointing to the seat. "Look, it's right there."

"Huh, let me have a look at this."

He looked to the spot Conan had said.

"Well I'll be dammed," Officer Grean remarked while standing back to his feet. "The boy's right."

"Nice find Kudo." Tim whispered.   

Conan smiled in return.

"Mr. Kenny, do you think it would be ok if we saw your tools," Tim asked. "The set you use while at work?"

"Of course."

He removed the strap from around his shoulder, dropping the bag to the ground. Officer Grean opened it up, giving the whole bag a quick sweep. Conan looked to Tim who looked a little disappointed.

"What's got him so on edge all of a sudden," Conan thought. "Was he expecting to see something else?"

"There you are," Ran said walking over along with the others. "You had me worried, where'd you run off to?"

"I just needed to tell Tim something," Conan replied. "When I came back you were gone."

"Because the officers told everyone to leave," Sonoko said. "What are you two still doing here anyway?"

"They've actually been of great assistance," Officer Grean stated. "This whole incident may have been pre planned."

"What do you mean by pre planned," Eito asked. "Are you saying someone intentionally caused this to happen?!"

"I'm sorry to say, but It's a possibility."

Tim kneeled down next to Conan, whispering into his ear.

"I want you to pretend you're giving me instructions." Tim stated.

"Why?" Conan asked.

"You obviously haven't been paying attention, Haibara's watching us like a hawk," Tim replied. "I have something I want to go check out, if she asks just say you sent me."

"In other words you don't want her knowing you're a detective, correct?"

"You hit it right on the money."

"Does it really matter," Conan questioned. "What's wrong with her knowing you have traits of a detective?"

"Have you already forgotten," Tim stated. "Your friends already know Red Robin is a detective, if Ai sees I'm one as well what do you think she'll think then?"

"I stand corrected," Conan said. "So what is it you're going to go check out?"

"I'll let you know when I get back," Tim replied. "Keep these guys occupied ok."

"Won't be a problem."

Just as he was going to push back to his feet Sonoko joined the two of them, kneeling to the other side of him.

"What are you boys doing down here, having a detective meeting?"

"Something like that," Tim replied. "If you read the manual correctly it said no girls allowed."

"That's funny, because I plan on cracking this case before you," Sonoko said. "Ask Conan, I'm an astonished detective myself."

"Is that you challenging me again?"

"I don't plan on losing this time." Sonoko confirmed.

"Good luck with that." Tim said standing back to his feet.

"Don't need it." Sonoko said standing straight as well.

He gave Conan one last look, taking off in that instant.

"Hey Conan, if you find something let me know," Sonoko said. "We can't let Tim outdo us."

"Us....don't you mean you," Conan corrected. "I don't want any part of this."

"I'm pretty sure we can come to some kind of agreement."

"She just doesn't give up," Conan thought to himself. "I think nows the time to begin the questioning process, if Kenny did it he must have had a motive."

Conan directed his attention to Kenny who sat to the bench, one of the officers standing over him while continuing to question him. He decided he'd try his luck with someone else, walking over to Eito who stood alone.

"Sir, can I ask you a question?"

"Go right on ahead." Eito replied hiding his emotions as best he could.

"That man over there looks sad to," Conan pointed. "What was your sisters relationship with him?"

"That's Elroy," Eito answered. "They were practically best friends, up until high school of course."

"What happened when they got to high school?" Conan asked.

"Things escalated, from friends to lovers," Eito replied. "They broke it off just at the end of last year."

"Was it a hard break up, any bitterness between the two afterward?"

"Things were a little awkward at first," Eito admitted. "But it didn't take long for things to return to normal."

"How long has Elroy been working here?"

"About two years I think," Eito replied. "Like I said before, this is my first time coming here."

"Guess that makes the both of us." Conan said.

He turned away, taking all that he had heard into account.

"That didn't help much, being the fact Elroy doesn't work at this part of the park," Conan thought. "Unless he came here just for this little occasion, but we can almost cancel that out being the fact how close they were."

His hands fell to his pockets, beginning to pace in wait. Conan looked to see Kenny was still in conversation with Officer Grean and another officer.

"There's still to many holes...something's not adding up."

He stopped in his path, closing his eyes. There wasn't enough, he needed more to close this up. Conan reopened his eyes to find Ai standing next to him.

"I saw you and Tim talking before he took off," Ai said. "Where did he go?

"I sent him to look into something for me." Conan replied.

"Using him to be your voice, not a bad move."

"Looks like she's buying into it... then again that might be what she wants me to believe."

"Have you tried talking with Hajime?"

"As a matter a fact I haven't," Conan said. "Guess that slipped my mind a bit."

Ai headed into his direction, Conan doing the same. He didn't move, not in the slightest as they approached. They weren't sure what to say at first, expecting the other to take charge.

"Mr. Hajime, do you mind if I ask you a question or two?" Ai asked.

He looked down, giving her the go ahead nod.  

"Did you see or hear anything strange before the ride began?"

"I guess you could say that," Hajime answered. "Being the fact Chiyo took my seat."

"Your seat?" Conan questioned.

"Yes, I always sat to the very last seat," Hajime continued. "Those who know me knew that, she just decided to sit there tonight in attempt to annoy me."

"Did you hear anything strange within the first fifty seconds of the coaster ride?" Ai asked.

He thought about it for a few seconds, rehashing the first moments of the ride.

"Yes, I do remember hearing something," Hajime stated. "It was a bickering sound, like something was rattling."

"Was this before or after you began moving?" Ai asked.

"After, defiantly after," Hajime assured. "Is that all you wanted to know?"

Ai nodded. The two of them turned back, heading back over to the others.

"I hope I was able to help."

"More so than you may realize." Conan said.

It was all coming together now, piece by piece.

"I think I know exactly what happened to the top wheels," Conan thought. "There's one person who may have had the motive to do it, still don't have enough to prove it."

They came to a stop once reaching the others. His hands began shaking once more, different gaps in between breaths. This was alarming. Conan took a deep breath looking down to his hands.

"What's wrong with me, I feel so....so light."

He stumbled forward, taking to a knee.

"Conan are you ok?" Ayumi asked.

"I'm fine, just a little tired."

He stood back up, relieved to see Tim heading their way. He could see the positive look in his face. He walked to the side of him, lowering himself down.

"You don't look so hot," Tim said. "You ok?"

"We'll worry about that later, right now I have to fill you in on what I learned." Conan said.

"I'm all ears."

Conan told him everything he had gained from talking with both Eito and Hajime, feeling himself slowly fading.

"What you just told me, coupled in with what I discovered leaves us with only one suspect."

"So what is it you found?" Conan asked.

"The red coloring we found, it's not just on the coaster seat Chiyo was in," Tim informed. "I also found the same type of red to some of the other rides in the northern section of the park."

"Looks like we have our guy." Conan said immediately knowing who it was.

"Time to cap the lid on this case," Tim said standing back to his feet. "Bare with me Shinichi, we're almost done."

He watched as Tim walked over to Officer Grean. His heart rate continued to flourish, gripping his chest with the use of his right hand. Ai came to his side, watching Tim advance toward the officers.

"I take it you know who did it."

Conan nodded.

"I told him everything he needs to know."

The three of them turned from the discussion they were having, rather surprised to see him.

"You're still here," Officer Grean said. "I thought you had left."

"As did I," Kenny said stepping up from the bench. "Like I've discussed with the security guards, I checked all the connections this morning, there was nothing out of place."

"Being the fact you aren't the one responsible, I have no reason not to believe you."

"Not responsible," Officer Grean questioned. "If not him, than who?!"

Tim smiled, turning back to the rest of the group. Sonoko rolled her eyes, quickly turning to Conan.

"Any idea who did it smart one," Sonoko asked. "If you do, hurry and tell me before Tim gets the chance to."

Conan choked out, following it up with a few fake coughs.

"Conan are you alright?" Ran asked coming to his side.

"That boy is so useless at times." Sonoko said crossing her arms.

He waited a few extra seconds, looking over with the extention of his arm.

"You my friend are the one responsible for the death of Chiyo."

"No way, Elroy would never hurt her!" Eito yelled in protest.

"It wasn't me," Elroy fired. "She was my best friend!!!"

"And I'm not denying that, that wasn't your intention," Tim said resting his hands to his pocket. "Let's start from the beginning shall we."

"He seems so confident, I just hope he knows what he's doing." Ran thought to herself as he looked her way.

"Ran, you said you saw someone staring over at you earlier tonight, is that correct?" Tim asked.

Ran nodded.

"Can you clarify who it was?"

Ran looked over, pointing directly to Elroy.

"So what if I was," Elroy admitted. "That doesn't make me a killer."

"But it wasn't her you were staring at, now was it?" Tim asked taking a step forward.

"If he wasn't staring at Ran, then who was he staring at?" Sonoko asked becoming testy.

"It's simple, he had his sights fixated to the man directly next to her," Tim answered. "That's why Ran thought he was looking at her."

"And that man is none other than Hajime." Conan said stepping up to his side.

"What," Hajime exclaimed turning to Elroy. "Is that true?"

"Of course not," Elroy replied. "Why would I be staring over at him?"

"A little jealousy, which has probably been mounting up," Conan stated. "We both know you and Chiyo used to be an item, I wonder if Hajime even knew that."

"Is that true Elroy?"

He didn't answer back, turning away to the opposite direction.

"It's true," Eito said. "Neither my sister nor Elroy never felt the need to discuss or even mention it to anyone."

"You've been working here for over two years right?" Conan asked.

"With that kind of time you must have been able to take notice of certain habits," Tim added. "Maybe one of them being the fact Mr. Hajime likes to sit to the very back, when riding the Dragon Spin."

"You're wrong."

"Just admit it, you removed those wheels before the ride began," Tim pushed. "And when you saw us coming all you could do was run."

"Not having enough time to hide the wheels you left under the tracks," Conan finished. "You even loosened the top wheels, knowing once the ride took off they would fall right out of place."

"That would explain the rattling sound I heard." Hajime said.

"Elroy....why," Eito asked. "I don't understand."

He clutched his fists, not able to look either of them in the eyes.

"All I've heard is allegations," Elroy said still looking to the ground. "There is no proof I did any of this."

"Oh, but there is," Tim stated. "We found a certain redness to the seat Chiyo sat in, the same red I saw to many of the rides to the north side of the park."

"That's Elroy's section to check up on." Kenny said.  

"But what does it mean?" Officer Grean asked.

"Check his tools," Tim replied. "Everything will become clear from there."

They made their way over, grabbing his box of tools which lay at his side. They opened it up, every tool to his box painted in the color red.

"Now you can see it for yourself," Tim said. "The red paint from his tools must have rubbed off when he took the wheels apart."

"Do you have anything to say for yourself?" Officer Grean asked.

"I want a lawyer."

"Elroy, why!!" Eito yelled.

He looked away, feeling himself cuffed from behind. The security guards escorted him to the exit. It was over, the case had been solved.

"Sonoko was right, he does have some flashy deductions." Ran thought to herself.

"Six to zero." Tim whispered tauntingly as he passed by Sonoko.

She nearly jumped at him, Ran quickly stepping in front of her to help calm her down.

"Great job Tim." Genta complimented.

"Couldn't have done it without Conan." Tim said. "All of you might be smarter than me some day if I'm not careful."

"Conan are you sure you're feeling ok?" Mitsuhiko asked noticing he could barely keep his eyes open.

"I guess I could use a little sleep."

"Don't worry, we're heading straight home now," Ran said while looking to Tim. "Not bad back there, where'd you pick up skills like that?"

"Books, reading detective stories always helps."

"Sounds a lot like Shinichi."

"Come again?"

"He's a friend of mine," Ran said. "I'm pretty sure you two would get along."

"Yea, I bet we would." Tim said slightly glimpsing to Conan.

As they made their way for the exit they heard a loud whistle, looking over to one of the small stands to see a young woman waving over at them.

"Hang on Conan," Ran said. "I'm sure this will only take about a minute."

They walked over seeing the cheerfulness in her face.

"Hi, my names Eve," She greeted. "I saw the way you handled that case, so amazing."

"Well, thanks." Tim said not really sold on what to say.

"If you're interested I'd like to offer you a free gift," Eve said pointing to the back wall. "Anything you want."

It didn't take him long to choose, taking the soft object into his hand.

"A pink stuffed rabbit, why that of all things?" Conan thought to himself.

Tim walked over, stepping around Ran who kept her eyes to him the whole time. She had her back to him, kneeling down from behind while bringing the stuffed animal to the front of her face.

"Here you go, it's for you Haibara." Tim said.

She took it from his hand into her own. Tim pushed back to his feet, heading straight next to Conan.

"What are you trying to do?" Conan muttered.

"It's all about them mind games my friend," Tim replied. "I've got this all under wraps."

"Oh, look what you did Tim," Ran said noticing the redness to her cheeks. "You made her blush."

"Huh, what?" Tim said in surprise.

Conan began snickering, not sure how he was able to hold back his laughter.

"So much for mind games." Conan giggled tapping him to his leg.

"So what's your name?" Eve asked.

He turned around, facing her once more.

"It's Tim, and my names Sonoko," She said pushing past him. "I'm somewhat of a detective myself."

"Is that right," Eve said becoming interested. "Care to share a story or two."

"We'd love to." Sonoko accepted leaning to the counter.

"This could be awhile," Tim said pulling some cash from his wallet. "This should be enough to get you all home, I'm going to stay here with Sonoko until she's ready to go."

Ran looked to Tim, then to Conan who looked like he was ready to fall over.

"I guess you're right," Ran said taking the cash. "No use in waiting it out with Conan is like this."

"I'll see you in class tommarrow," Tim said then looking to the others. "I'll be looking forward to seeing the rest of you as well."

"We will to." Ayumi said.

They waved on their way out, heading directly to the exit. They arrived out, standing to the street corner where they awaited the arrival of one of the many cabs. He heard someone walking from behind, a slow and cautious walk. This was enough to grab his attention. Though his vision was blurred he could see exactly who it was.

"That's the man I saw with the briefcase."

He kept his eyes to him, watching as he disappeared into an alley.

"Can't let him get away, gotta get a tracer on him."

Conan zoomed off, hoping he'd get one last look at him to place a tracer.

"Conan where are you going?!"

He made it into the dark alley. There was no one to be seen. Conan stepped further in, there's no way that man could have gotten away that quick. Then he felt a cold pain to the back of his head, falling forward into a pile of trash.

"Play times over kid."

To Be Continued   








  





 




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