InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Closing the Case ❯ Chapter 7 ( Chapter 7 )

A/N: A number of you have pointed out that an officer would be taken off a case that they had an emotional investment in. This I know. So why did I do it anyway? 1) Because, Inuyasha would never trust Kagome's safety to some one else. Even in the series Inuyasha rarely leaves Kagome with Sango or Miroku unless there is no other option. 2) Because it's more dramatic. =P

Closing the Case

Chapter 7

Inuyasha opened the door to greet Miroku and Kanna. The little girl released her uncle's hand and raised her arms to him in the universal sign to be picked up. It amazed him how far she had come so quickly. The first time they met she had stood on his doorstep with a blank expression on her face and clinging to a mirror that had belonged to her mother. It took several more visits over a few months to get her to warm up to him. When Kagome came into his life and met the young girl for the first time, he got to watch the process all over again. But after several years of therapy, and now her first year of school, she had become much easier to get along with.

The white-haired detective reached down and lifted the girl into his arms. She gave a small squeal when he tossed her into the air and caught her. The sound must have attracted Kagome, because when he turned around she was standing in the doorway leading into the living room. She was dressed in a pair of jeans and a simple green tank top. For one fleeting moment she had the strangest look on her face, and then it was gone, replaced with surprise and a little annoyance.

Kanna struggled to be let down and he complied. The little girl ran across the room and lifted her arms to be picked up by Kagome instead. Kanna wrapped her small arms around the older woman and gave her a hug.

"Uncle Roku and Uncle Yasha said you would help me with my homework, and then we could make cookies," The girl chirped happily.

"Did they now?" She shot an annoyed look at the two detectives over the little girl's shoulder.

"Uh huh. I want to make chocolate chip cookies! Can we make those please, Aunt 'Gome?"

"Homework first, then cookies," She agreed. Kanna jumped down and retrieved her backpack from Miroku, before running back to Kagome. The older woman took the moment to give the detectives a hard glare. The two disappeared into the living room to read the book, with Kanna talking about her school day and her new game.

"I find it safe to assume that you did not tell her we were coming," Miroku drawled.

"Feh, I just wanted her to stop moping."

"Is there really a press briefing tomorrow?"

"Yeah, unfortunately."

"Then let's get to work." With Kagome and Kanna in the living room, the detectives took their work to the dining room. The small table was set in a small dining room with two chairs that did not quite match. A third folding chair had been set up in anticipation of another guest. They had barely gotten seated when the doorbell rang again.

"Inuyasha…" Kagome's voice held a slight edge as it drifted in from the living room.

"I think you should have told her," Miroku whispered. Inuyasha nodded his agreement before he left to answer the door. Miroku noted that he took the long way around so he would not have to pass through the living room.

Inuyasha opened the door to find Shippou and his new daughter standing on the step. The little girl was clutching a stuffed cat and looking around curiously. Her blond hair had been cut so it was neat and straight. She was dressed in a small pair of jeans and a black shirt with the word 'Meow' on it in big pink letters. Shippou stood next to her, holding her free hand, and looking the very picture of a proud new parent.

"You must be Kirara," Inuyasha said and squatted down to the girl's level. She blushed and moved to hide behind Shippou's leg, muttering a tiny hello. Inuyasha chuckled and stood back up. "Hey, Runt, thanks for coming. Kagome and Kanna are in the living room and we'll be working in the dining room."

"You want me to help?"

"You are already involved, might as well." Inuyasha shrugged and led them into the living room. Kagome had the book open on her lap with Kanna snuggled up next to her reading the words. They both looked up as the three entered. Kagome gave the young detective and his daughter a smile, before casting Inuyasha 'the look'. Kanna moved closer to Kagome, trying to hide from the new people. It seems old habits died hard.

"Kagome, Kanna, this is Shippou and his daughter Kirara. Shippou's helping us with some things. You don't mind if Kirara helps you with the cookies do you?"

"Of course not." Kagome smiled and motioned for the girl to join them on the couch. Kirara looked up at her father for reassurance before accepting Kagome's offer. Inuyasha led Shippou back to the dining room where Miroku was waiting.

The detectives took their respective seats and set to work. Press briefings were touchy subjects at best. They had to give enough information to make the reporters happy, but not too much at the same time. Too much information would make copycats harder to identify, and may make the perpetrator feel like they were too close and flee. They also had to consider the people involved. Finally, their words had to be carefully chosen. Reporters were infamous for twisting meanings to make a story better. They also had to come to a decision on how many questions to take and which reporters to take them from.

The girls finished reading the book, and soon sounds and smells of cookie production filtered into the room. Inuyasha smiled when Kagome began to sing softly. The girls joined in her song, both off-key. By the time the detectives had made all their decisions, several dozen cookies had been made and were cooling on the counters.

Kagome stacked some onto a large plate and brought them into the dining room, setting it in the middle of the table. The girls made stacks on smaller plates for their respective father figures.

"Hey, where is my personal plate?" Inuyasha pouted as he covered up their work. Kagome smiled and took a seat on his lap, feeding him a chocolate chip cookie. "Never mind, this is better."

"Hey, hey, hey!" Miroku protested as he covered Kanna's eyes, "There are children present." Inuyasha lifted a surprised eyebrow.

"So that's what it takes to stop you."

"Yash, you have cookie crumbs right there," Miroku replied, using his middle finger to indicate the spot. The white-haired detective could not hide his smile even as he wiped his mouth.

"So, what are you three so busy doing in here?" Kagome interrupted before the two could get going.

"Press brief." Shippou answered, "All the fun of a root canal and twice the pain."

"They can't be that bad. Besides, then that reporter will be happy and stop coming here looking for you." Kagome answered as she started to get off of Inuyasha's lap. She gave a surprised yelp when he pulled her back down. The amusement from Miroku's banter had faded into concern.

"A reporter came by here? Did you say anything to him?"

"Yeah, but he wanted to talk to you. I told him you were at work." She replied, confusion becoming evident in her voice.

"You didn't open the door did you?"

"I'm not stupid, Inuyasha."

"I know, but reporters are sneaky little sons of… worms." He managed to correct his language under the dark glares of the other two detectives. "Which reporter was it? I'll make sure he doesn't bother you anymore."

"It was that one you don't like."

"That only narrows it down to every reporter he's ever met," Shippou offered as he took a bite out of a cookie. "Kirara, honey, these are wonderful!" The girl beamed.

"He's got a point. Yash doesn't like reporters as a general rule," Miroku agreed, "Of course, the same can be said for anyone who's been on the force long enough."

"It was that one with the long hair. His name starts with a K or a C I think. He hit on me that one time you wouldn't put our date on hold for an interview."

"Kouga?"

"Yeah, that was it, Kouga."

"He interrupted a date for an interview?" Miroku asked. "He's either brave or stupid."

"He's stupid." Inuyasha assured, "Don't worry about him, Kag. I'll make sure he doesn't bother you anymore. And if anyone else comes by, don't say anything to them, ok."

"Yes, Your Majesty," She replied dryly.

&&&

Miroku straightened his tie as he stepped up to the podium. Bright flashes from fifty or so cameras attempted to blind him and reporters were already shooting off questions, all vying to be heard. Miroku took no notice of them as he straightened his notes and coat once more. When he finally did lift his head, the din of voices rose in pitch before dropping to nothing at the signal of his raised hand. At the back of the room he could see Inuyasha leaning against the wall near the door, looking disgruntled with all the activity.

"Welcome, ladies and gentlemen of the press," Miroku began. "You have been called here to help quell the rumors regarding the bodies that have turned up in the East River. While we lack a suspect at this time, we have a number of significant leads that we hope will bear fruit. We have three bodies connected to this case, all male and all under the age of fourteen. In respect for the families, we can not release their names at this time. The public is advised to not linger around the river at any time, for any reason, and never to visit the area alone. If there are any questions, I will take them now." The room once again erupted in sound as the reporters stood and shouted to be heard. Miroku took it all in stride, pointing to a red-haired woman in the front row.

"Sara Rictor, City Gazette. Do you yet have a theory about why this person is killing these children?"

"We do have a theory, but we are not ready to discuss it at this time," Miroku replied coolly. Translation: we don't have a fucking clue. Inuyasha thought as he shifted his position in the back of the room. Miroku directed a thin man with glasses to ask the next question.

"Roy Taylor, Daily Bulletin. You said that you don't yet have a suspect, but do you at least have someone you are looking at as the perpetrator?"

"As I said, we have no suspects at this time."

"So, three children are dead and you are sitting on your hands," A young, brash reporter called out before anyone could stop him. Instantly, the room filled with the sound of scratching pens on pads. In the back of the room, Inuyasha growled. The reporter was the very one he wanted to have a word with. Kouga Prince, the star field reporter for Pack News and the bane of every detective on the force. Kouga seemed to have made it his personal mission in life to point out and exaggerate every mistake they made. Inuyasha and Miroku had the good fortune of being his favorite targets.

"I would hardly say we are sitting on our hands. We have already gathered sufficient evidence to hold any suspect."

"But you don't have a suspect, and while you're sitting around eating donuts there is a madman out there killing children." Inuyasha watched as Miroku let out a slow breath, a calming technique he had tried to teach Inuyasha without success. A pleasant smile crossed the dark-haired detective's face.

"Mr. Prince, I know that you, like everyone else, are very concerned for your loved ones. But we are investigators and our job requires us to take a step back from the situation and look at it from an objective point of view in order to be fair to all involved. It is not justice for us to arrest the first person who crosses our path and charge them with whatever crime suits our fancy. We must follow the evidence to its ultimate end, then and only then, will we have achieved justice and made the streets safer for all. Now if you will excuse me, I have a job to get back to." Miroku made a show of restacking his papers and walking away from the podium. Reporters shouted questions after him, but Miroku never faltered.

As his partner disappeared out a side door, Inuyasha ducked out of the room as discreetly as possible. He waited outside the pressroom as the reporters started to filter out. Most of them were too busy taking notes or calling their editors to notice him. Those that did, knew better then to bother the white-haired man.

Kouga was one of the last to leave, followed by his camera man. The reporter yelled animatedly into his cell phone, something about getting the story on at 6 rather than 8. Kouga gave a loud yelp and dropped the phone when Inuyasha grabbed the back of his shirt. The camera man all but dropped his equipment in surprise, but did not follow at Inuyasha's barked order. Kouga gave a loud protest, but Inuyasha ignored him, shoving the reporter into a small side room where Miroku was waiting. Inuyasha shoved Kouga into a chair while Miroku shut and locked the door behind them.

"What do you two think you're doing? I know my rights!" Kouga protested.

"Fuck your rights." Inuyasha snapped back. "Kagome said you were snooping around my apartment yesterday."

"So? What of it?"

"Why were you there? That's private property, jackass!"

"None of your business. I have Freedom of the Press."

"That may be," Miroku stepped in before the yelling turned to blows, "But that only covers your rights in a public setting, not a private one. A dwelling, be it a home, apartment, or cardboard box on a street corner, is private property. Freedom of the Press ends where the rights of private citizens began. And" Miroku continued before Kouga could interrupt, "While, Inuyasha and myself are not private citizens because of our jobs, our homes are still private. Therefore, you were trespassing."

"Maybe I was just looking for a good lay."

"Son of a bitch!" Miroku managed to hold Inuyasha back, but only just.

"Kouga," Miroku spoke through clenched teeth under the effort of restraining his partner, "trespassing is a crime, so you can either answer the question or we can arrest you. Inuyasha, calm down!" Inuyasha gave a final growl before snorting and turning his back. Miroku sighed and looked pointedly at Kouga.

"Fine, I was following a tip."

"What tip?"

"I don't have to give you my sources," Kouga defended.

"I don't care about your sources, just about the tip that brought you to Inuyasha's doorstep." Miroku clarified. Kouga did not answer right away, looking instead at the far wall. When he did look back, his blue eyes had taken on a strange edge.

"That Kagome had moved there."

"What?" Inuyasha growled. "So it's trespassing and stalking!"

"I'm not stalking her, fucker. But when one of the city's 'finest' leaves a crime scene to go see his girlfriend, and that very night said girlfriend moves in with him, it brings up a lot of questions." Inuyasha looked away and Miroku shifted his weight. Their silence spoke volumes to Kouga's well-trained ear. "It was her brother, wasn't it? One of the victims was Kagome's little brother. And one of the others was your precinct M.E.'s; Sango or something like that."

"Shut up!" Inuyasha snapped. Kouga gave a bark of laughter.

"Shit! This story keeps getting better and better! I can see the headlines now: 'Kop Kid Killer'. This story is going to make my career!"

"You can't go public with that, it could ruin our case!" Miroku protested. "Besides, how is Kagome going to feel when you rub salt in her wounds?"

"Hey, she already turned me down for dog-shit over there," he replied callously. "I know when to cut my losses. And you know what they say, 'you can't make an omelet without breaking a few eggs'. This will definitely make the 6 o'clock." Kouga pushed past them, a skip in his step and a smile on his lips. "Nice chattin' with ya boys. We should do it again soon." He reached for the doorknob, when Inuyasha's voice stopped him.

"What's it going to take?" Kouga turned back, a little surprised. Inuyasha's head was bowed, his thick bangs hiding his eyes. "What's it going to take to keep this quiet?" Kouga lifted an eyebrow and Miroku looked on with wide eyes.

"I don't think there is anything you have that I want." Kouga replied, turning to leave again.

"We'll give you the exclusive." Inuyasha offered his voice soft but decided. There it was, the magic words of the news world. Kouga turned back slowly, as if he feared his ears had deceived him. Inuyasha had not moved.

"You two will give me the exclusive." The reporter studied them through narrowed eyes. "You have a deal, but only if I get it in writing."

"Done." Miroku replied.