Murder Broods
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+. to F › Detective Conan/Case Closed
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Chapters:
14
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Category:
+. to F › Detective Conan/Case Closed
Rating:
Adult +
Chapters:
14
Views:
2,579
Reviews:
1
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Disclaimer:
I do not own CaseClosed/Detective Conan Manga/Anime, Gosho Aoyama does. This is a not for profit, fan-derived work of fiction
The Hacker
Murder Broods:
Chapter 3: The Hacker (Part One)
Conan sat on the couch his head pounding, heart thumping; he barely paid attention to the television -- news of missing persons, murders, an explosion caused by a gas leak buzzed in the background. Nothing happened yesterday -- Ran came home safe bidding Hakami and Sonoko goodbye a half hour before.
He glanced at the clock 8 AM, he’d woke three hours ago, his dreams nudging him awake; nightmares that faded as he woke though their aftermath kept his heart pounding. Unable to go back to sleep he tried to figure out more to the hacker ID -- but his gut pushed all his deductions away.
“This…this is a code…a message from the hacker, but why…who is it to?” He picked up a pencil and pad, the ID written out glared at him from the white sheet. “The second half m r d r w n g is interesting, using English letters but no vowels. And if I add them….” He bit his lip and wrote the ID’s letters adding in the vowels, the most glaring combination wrenching his gut. “‘mrdr’ becomes ‘murder’ and ‘wng’ becomes ‘wing’….”
He rubbed his forehead and studied the new message: +r09-murderwing, the ‘murder’ rung dire in his head, but what it meant in the message other than someone being killed, he couldn’t pinpoint. It had to do with the word ‘wing’, but how…what would connect those two words?
Conan started at the sudden pulse in his head, a cold coming upon him -- he glanced at the television screen, the news highlighting the recent gas leak explosion.
“….a recent development suggesting yesterday evening’s explosion at the small house outside the city wasn’t an accident has police digging deeper into the matter….”
Conan’s cell rang, drawing him away from the TV, his mind pulsing with suspicions -- seeing Jodie’s number on his cell solidified those suspicions.
The FBI agent spoke briefly, then text him after hanging up.
Tr0DWNFLL||CM3NXT9r0
Found written out at recent gas explosion
Seems connected to hacker’s ID.
Don’t call back. Dangerous.
Conan closed out the message, his pulse racing as he turned back to the news -- no injuries or fatalities resulted from the explosion except the yard and cellar appeared bomb-struck; no one lived in the house since five years ago when a recluse retired there for a few months after the structure had been rebuilt to fix damage from fire.
Conan listened to the information the newscaster revealed, muting the volume after the topic switched his attention focused on Jodie’s text and the new message left at the crime scene. He had no doubt the same individual left both messages, but the explosion deepened his resolve to catch the hacker -- it seemed too consequential that the gas leak happened at the house with the second message; it had to be deliberate. That made the hacker more dangerous -- and the word ‘murder’ encoded in the first message hinted at the extreme Conan hoped to prevent.
He inscribed the second message on the same sheet as the first and filled in under the code the words created after adding the vowels:
Tr0DOWNFALL||COM3NEXT9r0
“These are definitely messages, but to who? The first was after the Syndicate’s mainframe was hacked, and the second was after that explosion….is this someone on a vendetta? Or someone taunting from the shadows, challenging the Syndicate?” He rustled his hair, his headache worse from trying to deduce the culprit’s intentions. “Whoever he is, this person wants attention….”
0
In the dark room lit to grey by the slivers of light slipping pass the blinds, Vermouth stood beside a desk, her eyes reading the message on her cell phone. Across the room a small muted TV flashed with the news headlines; Vermouth flipped her cell closed, her eyes flitting to the figure in shadow beside the window.
“Quite a bold move, wouldn’t you say, Gin?”
“Too bold.” Gin left the window, his eyes glaring at the television screen; the intensity glinting in his eyes brief yet palpable when the image of the house flashed on the screen. His lips twitched before he hardened his expression and faced Vermouth. “This fox will regret his challenge. I’ll see to it personally.”
“What about spying on the detective? Going to leave that to the newbie Absinthe?”
“That’s what she was brought in for.” Gin glared at the television once more before switching if off; the room silent and heavily shadowed despite the light creeping pass the blinds. “Nothing more.”
0
“Really Conan, you didn’t have to follow me.” Ran sighed, the afternoon sun bearing down on the city as she walked toward an apartment building.
“But you’re visiting your new friend, I want to meet her again.” Conan gave a wide, childish smile until Ran looked away with another sigh. ‘It’s the only way I can keep an eye on Hakami…to find out if she’s really a member of the Syndicate.’ His expression darkened.
“I’m helping her catch up on her school-work -- she transferred in late.”
“Oh.” Conan followed Ran into the apartment building, the address written down on the sheet of paper Ran held. ‘This might be a trap…they could be waiting to kidnap Ran or something worse….’
“Here it is.” Ran stopped in front of the door numbered 201, glanced at the paper before putting it away and ringing the doorbell. Thirty seconds later the door opened, Hakami glanced at Ran and Conan, her hair gelled back out of her face, and motioned them inside.
“I’m so glad you showed up.” Hakami turned to Ran after shutting the door. “And you brought your friend…Conan-kun, right?”
“I hope you don’t mind -- Conan insisted on coming to see you.”
“Not at all, come sit at the table, I bought some snacks to eat while we study.” Hakami motioned to the table, bags of chips and cookies opened in the center.
“Thank you.”
0
Ten minutes passed before Conan left Ran’s side; with no immediate danger present he explored the apartment while Ran and Hakami studied.
‘Haibara sensed a Syndicate member when we first met Hakami -- I need to find proof of it, maybe somewhere in this apartment….’ Conan searched around the sparse apartment, few things had been unpacked, leaving the bedroom near empty, but only two boxes remained: one filled with books, the other with clothes. ‘It seems Hakami hasn’t settled in much…with such few things it doesn’t seem she expects to stay here long….’ He glared behind him through the bedroom door, the position of the doors allowing him view of Ran and Hakami.
‘What is she planning?’
Conan turned back to the boxes, the one of books catching his eye; he sifted through the top books, glancing at the titles -- all English -- his headache returning. He dropped the top books onto the floor next to the box before his eyes alighted on a certain book, one he grabbed before someone stepped behind him.
“Conan! What are you doing?” Ran glared down at him, hands on her hips. “It’s rude to go searching through other people’s things. If you can’t behave you can go home.”
“But Ran-ne-chan, Hakami-san has many good books --look.” He held out the last book he grabbed: a collection of Sherlock Holmes stories by Conan Doyle.
“Sherlock Holmes…? I know you like detective stories, but seriously Conan, it’s impolite to take things without asking….” She sighed.
“Oh, I don’t mind.” Hakami smiled beside them, then knelt by the box. “We should take a break anyway, Ran-san.”
“But what about studying? Plus Conan should apologize….” Ran stared down at Conan, who quickly turned to Hakami to apologize; his brief ‘I’m sorry” cut off by Hakami.
“It’s all right, I’m a pretty curious person myself. But I’m amazed you can read English, Conan-kun.” Hakami paused, picking up the books around the box before glancing back at Conan. “Are you some sort of prodigy perhaps?”
“I can read a little English….” Conan laughed nervously. ‘Great job, Shinichi, raise more suspicion about your intelligence while one of them is in the same room.’
“Conan just loves detective stories, he probably just recognized the English words ‘Sherlock Holmes.’” Ran explained, taking the book from Conan. “We should clean up and get back to studying, while Conan goes back home.”
“All right, if that’s what you prefer --”
The scream splitting through the air cut off Hakami’s sentence; she, Ran and Conan reacting in seconds -- Conan rushed out into the hall, three apartments down he saw the open door streaming out light into the hallway. Ran caught up to him moments after he found the body, Hakami appeared seconds later, her hand reaching into her pants pocket.
“Ran, call the police.” Conan shouted at Ran who appeared ready to scream herself; she nodded and turned, but Hakami took out her cell instead.
“I’ll call.” She quickly dialed the emergency number, informing the police as Conan watched her; he stared at her, intrigued that she made no suspicious move.
‘This must not be connected to the Syndicate -- unless they got rid of the evidence already.’ His blood pumping, Conan glanced around the room, held back from thoroughly investigating by Ran.
0
Gin glared at the apartment complex across the street through the rearview mirror of his Porsche, the shade as well as the placement of the building and parking-lot concealing his Porsche from view. He cursed as the police cars showed in front of the apartment complex, his cell-phone clenched tightly in his hand. ‘If this is the hacker’s doing….’
Gin’s glare intensified, he squeezed the steering wheel with his left hand, the brim of his hat shadowing his eyes. The ring-tone of his cell-phone broke through the air, and he flipped open the phone to read the text message:
- No connection to other incidents yet
Will stay on alert
--Absinthe -
“Heh….you better Absinthe, you need to spy on that detective.” Gin seethed, his glare back on the apartment complex; he narrowed his eyes at his surroundings, the glint as a crow flew and landed on the tree in front of his Porsche raising a red flag. He focused on the bird, the glint coming from its leg. “What….”
Eyes widening, Gin rushed out of the Porsche, now able to see the red glow of the tracker on the crow’s leg; he recalled seeing a crow fly over him and Vodka a few days back in the alley, and the crows that gathered when he met with Absinthe to give the newbie her assignment.
“That crafty bastard….”
The crow flew into the shade under the tree, the tracker and mini-microphone visible to Gin as he stalked the bird; his left hand grasping the Beretta tightly in his pocket.
0
Hakami leaned against the doorway as the police and Inspector Megure wrapped up the case, the culprit having been found fallen down the fire-escape stairs. That had been the scream they heard. She glanced at Conan standing beside Ran as the police led the culprit out, then glanced furtively at the corner of the room where a mirror laid against the wall.
Conan caught Hakami’s glances, his suspicions aroused when he saw that the mirror reflected the TV media system from the room across the hall.
‘Why is she looking there? If she needed the time she could check her cell-phone, or look at the wall clock….’ Conan peeked at the room across the hall from the doorway. ‘Before Inspector Megure got here she glanced into that room, but since then she avoided it….’
Conan clenched his teeth, his eyes narrowed as he tried to figure out how to look into that room but avoid Hakami’s attention.
“Hakami-san, where are you going?” Ran’s voice broke through Conan’s concentration, and he glanced up to see Hakami stepping out of the apartment.
“I just need some fresh air….this isn’t something I’m used to….”
Conan narrowed his eyes and glanced at the room across the hall, before following Hakami; he sensed her urgency and felt no surprise when she took out her cell-phone.
‘She found something important….something she needs to tell her partners about, but what….’ Conan’s eyes flew open, the sudden thought wrenching his stomach. ‘No, it couldn’t….’ He rushed into the room reflected in the mirror, his eyes searching over everything in the media-center.
He found it. Carved on the hard-plastic of the VCR the code: f0rTNT0.
“This is….”
The sudden bang of an explosion filled air, and Conan rushed out to Ran, his fists clenched as he saw the smoke rising from across the street. The cause hidden by the building and trees.
‘Damn! Across the street….and….’ Conan glared back at the room with the VCR, then ran to Inspector Megure.
0
“Damn it, that bastard will pay.” Gin roared, his eyes glowing dangerously; blood trickled from the wound on his right arm, the flow staunched by his left hand clenched tightly around it.
“Lucky you weren’t in your Porsche during that explosion, Gin.” Vermouth averted her eyes when Gin glared at her daring her to say another word. She drove a safe distance from the scene of the explosion and then turned onto an empty side-street. “What about the newbie?”
“According to the last message Absinthe sent before you picked me up, the police found explosives planted in the apartment complex she’s in. A total of three bombs in three different apartments.”
“That means the hacker knew she’d be staying in that complex, as well as knowing where we’d watch from.” Vermouth narrowed her eyes and stared ahead as she drove on.
“The bastard could have gotten the apartment information from hacking the system before…assuming the culprit was only a hacker at that time, only Absinthe’s room number was changed.” Gin glared ahead as Vermouth continued driving, his expression seething. “Today she was to be moved…but that clever bastard….”
“How did he know where you were though? Your Porsche was inspected beforehand and no tracers turned up, nor explosives, right?”
“Heh, he used the crows in this city. Before the explosion I saw a crow wearing a tracer around its leg, along with this.” Gin held out the mini-microphone so Vermouth could see, her eyes widening at the sight.
“That….damn.”
“That bastard is playing games with us. I won’t stop until I hunt him down and kill him.”
A/N: End Chapter
Absinthe = Hakami’s codename in the Syndicate.
Chapter 3: The Hacker (Part One)
Conan sat on the couch his head pounding, heart thumping; he barely paid attention to the television -- news of missing persons, murders, an explosion caused by a gas leak buzzed in the background. Nothing happened yesterday -- Ran came home safe bidding Hakami and Sonoko goodbye a half hour before.
He glanced at the clock 8 AM, he’d woke three hours ago, his dreams nudging him awake; nightmares that faded as he woke though their aftermath kept his heart pounding. Unable to go back to sleep he tried to figure out more to the hacker ID -- but his gut pushed all his deductions away.
“This…this is a code…a message from the hacker, but why…who is it to?” He picked up a pencil and pad, the ID written out glared at him from the white sheet. “The second half m r d r w n g is interesting, using English letters but no vowels. And if I add them….” He bit his lip and wrote the ID’s letters adding in the vowels, the most glaring combination wrenching his gut. “‘mrdr’ becomes ‘murder’ and ‘wng’ becomes ‘wing’….”
He rubbed his forehead and studied the new message: +r09-murderwing, the ‘murder’ rung dire in his head, but what it meant in the message other than someone being killed, he couldn’t pinpoint. It had to do with the word ‘wing’, but how…what would connect those two words?
Conan started at the sudden pulse in his head, a cold coming upon him -- he glanced at the television screen, the news highlighting the recent gas leak explosion.
“….a recent development suggesting yesterday evening’s explosion at the small house outside the city wasn’t an accident has police digging deeper into the matter….”
Conan’s cell rang, drawing him away from the TV, his mind pulsing with suspicions -- seeing Jodie’s number on his cell solidified those suspicions.
The FBI agent spoke briefly, then text him after hanging up.
Tr0DWNFLL||CM3NXT9r0
Found written out at recent gas explosion
Seems connected to hacker’s ID.
Don’t call back. Dangerous.
Conan closed out the message, his pulse racing as he turned back to the news -- no injuries or fatalities resulted from the explosion except the yard and cellar appeared bomb-struck; no one lived in the house since five years ago when a recluse retired there for a few months after the structure had been rebuilt to fix damage from fire.
Conan listened to the information the newscaster revealed, muting the volume after the topic switched his attention focused on Jodie’s text and the new message left at the crime scene. He had no doubt the same individual left both messages, but the explosion deepened his resolve to catch the hacker -- it seemed too consequential that the gas leak happened at the house with the second message; it had to be deliberate. That made the hacker more dangerous -- and the word ‘murder’ encoded in the first message hinted at the extreme Conan hoped to prevent.
He inscribed the second message on the same sheet as the first and filled in under the code the words created after adding the vowels:
Tr0DOWNFALL||COM3NEXT9r0
“These are definitely messages, but to who? The first was after the Syndicate’s mainframe was hacked, and the second was after that explosion….is this someone on a vendetta? Or someone taunting from the shadows, challenging the Syndicate?” He rustled his hair, his headache worse from trying to deduce the culprit’s intentions. “Whoever he is, this person wants attention….”
0
In the dark room lit to grey by the slivers of light slipping pass the blinds, Vermouth stood beside a desk, her eyes reading the message on her cell phone. Across the room a small muted TV flashed with the news headlines; Vermouth flipped her cell closed, her eyes flitting to the figure in shadow beside the window.
“Quite a bold move, wouldn’t you say, Gin?”
“Too bold.” Gin left the window, his eyes glaring at the television screen; the intensity glinting in his eyes brief yet palpable when the image of the house flashed on the screen. His lips twitched before he hardened his expression and faced Vermouth. “This fox will regret his challenge. I’ll see to it personally.”
“What about spying on the detective? Going to leave that to the newbie Absinthe?”
“That’s what she was brought in for.” Gin glared at the television once more before switching if off; the room silent and heavily shadowed despite the light creeping pass the blinds. “Nothing more.”
0
“Really Conan, you didn’t have to follow me.” Ran sighed, the afternoon sun bearing down on the city as she walked toward an apartment building.
“But you’re visiting your new friend, I want to meet her again.” Conan gave a wide, childish smile until Ran looked away with another sigh. ‘It’s the only way I can keep an eye on Hakami…to find out if she’s really a member of the Syndicate.’ His expression darkened.
“I’m helping her catch up on her school-work -- she transferred in late.”
“Oh.” Conan followed Ran into the apartment building, the address written down on the sheet of paper Ran held. ‘This might be a trap…they could be waiting to kidnap Ran or something worse….’
“Here it is.” Ran stopped in front of the door numbered 201, glanced at the paper before putting it away and ringing the doorbell. Thirty seconds later the door opened, Hakami glanced at Ran and Conan, her hair gelled back out of her face, and motioned them inside.
“I’m so glad you showed up.” Hakami turned to Ran after shutting the door. “And you brought your friend…Conan-kun, right?”
“I hope you don’t mind -- Conan insisted on coming to see you.”
“Not at all, come sit at the table, I bought some snacks to eat while we study.” Hakami motioned to the table, bags of chips and cookies opened in the center.
“Thank you.”
0
Ten minutes passed before Conan left Ran’s side; with no immediate danger present he explored the apartment while Ran and Hakami studied.
‘Haibara sensed a Syndicate member when we first met Hakami -- I need to find proof of it, maybe somewhere in this apartment….’ Conan searched around the sparse apartment, few things had been unpacked, leaving the bedroom near empty, but only two boxes remained: one filled with books, the other with clothes. ‘It seems Hakami hasn’t settled in much…with such few things it doesn’t seem she expects to stay here long….’ He glared behind him through the bedroom door, the position of the doors allowing him view of Ran and Hakami.
‘What is she planning?’
Conan turned back to the boxes, the one of books catching his eye; he sifted through the top books, glancing at the titles -- all English -- his headache returning. He dropped the top books onto the floor next to the box before his eyes alighted on a certain book, one he grabbed before someone stepped behind him.
“Conan! What are you doing?” Ran glared down at him, hands on her hips. “It’s rude to go searching through other people’s things. If you can’t behave you can go home.”
“But Ran-ne-chan, Hakami-san has many good books --look.” He held out the last book he grabbed: a collection of Sherlock Holmes stories by Conan Doyle.
“Sherlock Holmes…? I know you like detective stories, but seriously Conan, it’s impolite to take things without asking….” She sighed.
“Oh, I don’t mind.” Hakami smiled beside them, then knelt by the box. “We should take a break anyway, Ran-san.”
“But what about studying? Plus Conan should apologize….” Ran stared down at Conan, who quickly turned to Hakami to apologize; his brief ‘I’m sorry” cut off by Hakami.
“It’s all right, I’m a pretty curious person myself. But I’m amazed you can read English, Conan-kun.” Hakami paused, picking up the books around the box before glancing back at Conan. “Are you some sort of prodigy perhaps?”
“I can read a little English….” Conan laughed nervously. ‘Great job, Shinichi, raise more suspicion about your intelligence while one of them is in the same room.’
“Conan just loves detective stories, he probably just recognized the English words ‘Sherlock Holmes.’” Ran explained, taking the book from Conan. “We should clean up and get back to studying, while Conan goes back home.”
“All right, if that’s what you prefer --”
The scream splitting through the air cut off Hakami’s sentence; she, Ran and Conan reacting in seconds -- Conan rushed out into the hall, three apartments down he saw the open door streaming out light into the hallway. Ran caught up to him moments after he found the body, Hakami appeared seconds later, her hand reaching into her pants pocket.
“Ran, call the police.” Conan shouted at Ran who appeared ready to scream herself; she nodded and turned, but Hakami took out her cell instead.
“I’ll call.” She quickly dialed the emergency number, informing the police as Conan watched her; he stared at her, intrigued that she made no suspicious move.
‘This must not be connected to the Syndicate -- unless they got rid of the evidence already.’ His blood pumping, Conan glanced around the room, held back from thoroughly investigating by Ran.
0
Gin glared at the apartment complex across the street through the rearview mirror of his Porsche, the shade as well as the placement of the building and parking-lot concealing his Porsche from view. He cursed as the police cars showed in front of the apartment complex, his cell-phone clenched tightly in his hand. ‘If this is the hacker’s doing….’
Gin’s glare intensified, he squeezed the steering wheel with his left hand, the brim of his hat shadowing his eyes. The ring-tone of his cell-phone broke through the air, and he flipped open the phone to read the text message:
- No connection to other incidents yet
Will stay on alert
--Absinthe -
“Heh….you better Absinthe, you need to spy on that detective.” Gin seethed, his glare back on the apartment complex; he narrowed his eyes at his surroundings, the glint as a crow flew and landed on the tree in front of his Porsche raising a red flag. He focused on the bird, the glint coming from its leg. “What….”
Eyes widening, Gin rushed out of the Porsche, now able to see the red glow of the tracker on the crow’s leg; he recalled seeing a crow fly over him and Vodka a few days back in the alley, and the crows that gathered when he met with Absinthe to give the newbie her assignment.
“That crafty bastard….”
The crow flew into the shade under the tree, the tracker and mini-microphone visible to Gin as he stalked the bird; his left hand grasping the Beretta tightly in his pocket.
0
Hakami leaned against the doorway as the police and Inspector Megure wrapped up the case, the culprit having been found fallen down the fire-escape stairs. That had been the scream they heard. She glanced at Conan standing beside Ran as the police led the culprit out, then glanced furtively at the corner of the room where a mirror laid against the wall.
Conan caught Hakami’s glances, his suspicions aroused when he saw that the mirror reflected the TV media system from the room across the hall.
‘Why is she looking there? If she needed the time she could check her cell-phone, or look at the wall clock….’ Conan peeked at the room across the hall from the doorway. ‘Before Inspector Megure got here she glanced into that room, but since then she avoided it….’
Conan clenched his teeth, his eyes narrowed as he tried to figure out how to look into that room but avoid Hakami’s attention.
“Hakami-san, where are you going?” Ran’s voice broke through Conan’s concentration, and he glanced up to see Hakami stepping out of the apartment.
“I just need some fresh air….this isn’t something I’m used to….”
Conan narrowed his eyes and glanced at the room across the hall, before following Hakami; he sensed her urgency and felt no surprise when she took out her cell-phone.
‘She found something important….something she needs to tell her partners about, but what….’ Conan’s eyes flew open, the sudden thought wrenching his stomach. ‘No, it couldn’t….’ He rushed into the room reflected in the mirror, his eyes searching over everything in the media-center.
He found it. Carved on the hard-plastic of the VCR the code: f0rTNT0.
“This is….”
The sudden bang of an explosion filled air, and Conan rushed out to Ran, his fists clenched as he saw the smoke rising from across the street. The cause hidden by the building and trees.
‘Damn! Across the street….and….’ Conan glared back at the room with the VCR, then ran to Inspector Megure.
0
“Damn it, that bastard will pay.” Gin roared, his eyes glowing dangerously; blood trickled from the wound on his right arm, the flow staunched by his left hand clenched tightly around it.
“Lucky you weren’t in your Porsche during that explosion, Gin.” Vermouth averted her eyes when Gin glared at her daring her to say another word. She drove a safe distance from the scene of the explosion and then turned onto an empty side-street. “What about the newbie?”
“According to the last message Absinthe sent before you picked me up, the police found explosives planted in the apartment complex she’s in. A total of three bombs in three different apartments.”
“That means the hacker knew she’d be staying in that complex, as well as knowing where we’d watch from.” Vermouth narrowed her eyes and stared ahead as she drove on.
“The bastard could have gotten the apartment information from hacking the system before…assuming the culprit was only a hacker at that time, only Absinthe’s room number was changed.” Gin glared ahead as Vermouth continued driving, his expression seething. “Today she was to be moved…but that clever bastard….”
“How did he know where you were though? Your Porsche was inspected beforehand and no tracers turned up, nor explosives, right?”
“Heh, he used the crows in this city. Before the explosion I saw a crow wearing a tracer around its leg, along with this.” Gin held out the mini-microphone so Vermouth could see, her eyes widening at the sight.
“That….damn.”
“That bastard is playing games with us. I won’t stop until I hunt him down and kill him.”
A/N: End Chapter
Absinthe = Hakami’s codename in the Syndicate.