Detective Conan FF: ♤The Poisoned Trio♤ (English)

Chapter 8

Blood.

A lot of blood.

Nick had noticed the open front door and had rushed in, worried. Why had his parents left the door open? "Mom? Dad?" the boy called out. His brown eyes searched the apartment in fear. He had only been fourteen; there was a lot he didn't yet understand. Nick turned into the kitchen, but there was nothing there either.

Except for blood.

He looked down at the floor. The boy hadn't even noticed how he had stepped into a lake of blood. "Where are you guys? Mom? Dad?" repeated Nick. Slowly, tears came to his eyes, why was there so much blood here!? What had happened here? Then he stepped into the living room, gasping hard for air. His heart cramped, and the last air from his lungs was squeezed out. As if concrete slabs were laying on him, trying to crush his body more and more. He wanted to scream, but no sound passed his lips.

"Mom? Dad?", choking sounds. Nothing more. He would never forget this sight. Never. Two severed heads on the table, the loose bodies below, on the carpet. Blood dripped rhythmically, forming patterns on the floor. On the walls, written in blood several times, was one word. Rat. Rat. Rat. Why? His parents were not rats...or...were they? What had they done? "It's all right," Nick began to sob, carefully touching his mother's lifeless, gray head. His eyes were wide, his mouth contorted into a desperate cry.

"Don't cry, it'll heal," Nick cried, thick tears running down his cheeks. He tried in vain to place his parents' heads on the body, but blood splattered his face, the body parts falling to the ground. Slowly they sank into the blood. No, they acted like a sponge, slowly drawing in the blood. Nick collapsed to his knees, trying to wipe away his tears. It's going to be all right. It's going to be all right. I'm sure this is just a bad nightmare, nothing more.

The blood was sickeningly warm and clinging to his skin. "It...will...be...all...right," Nick gasped, feeling abruptly nauseous. He tried shallow breathing, but a few seconds later he was gagging and spitting. Suddenly, he heard voices coming from the stairwell. But he was too weak, his knees gave way, and he pushed his face into the broth of blood and vomit.

"Mom...Dad...I...I love you..." he whispered weakly, reaching out to take his parents' cold hands and squeeze them one last time. The police officers were currently storming the apartment, holding their breaths in shock and horror. Nick didn't care. He didn't care about anything. He felt nothing anymore.

Furthermore, he felt nothing any more but deep sadness.

♠♠♠

"Did he die?" heard Nick in a faint, familiar voice. "No, he's breathing," someone else replied. Slowly, he regained consciousness. With a heavy head, Nick sat up. In front of him, he recognized Ash and Minoru. "What...what...happened?" wondered Dubonnet, looking around. Still, he sat in the bathroom. "You fainted, Nick," Minoru explained, looking at the boy with wary eyes. "Too bad, thought I was rid of you," Ash commented, disappearing into the next room. Nick didn't reply anything, he stood up and washed his face with cold water. "Sure, you're well enough for the mission?" echoed Minoru seriously, standing in the doorway. "Yeah, yeah," Dubonnet just grumbled and waved off. Minoru stared at Nick for a few more seconds, then turned away and sat down in his chair after changing the record on the record player.

Nick entered the room, completely forgetting that Ash was in there too. "GET OUT, you pervert!" she yelled as Nick accidentally caught the moment Ash was changing. The door was boarded against Nick's nose and plumply he stood there glaring at the door. "Sorry," he muttered. Finally, Brennevin came out in her agent clothes and gave him an angry look. Nick sighed and changed as well.

The three met in the living room as it was getting late in the night. "It's time. Break it down. And remember, keep this guy alive. Got it?" stressed Chardonnay, his eyes turning to Nick. Did he know about his anger issues? Maybe Vermouth or something had told him. For the moment, it didn't matter. Dubonnet just had to be careful, he couldn't make another mistake. He couldn't freak out again like he had on the job before.

"Then let's go-", Dubonnet wanted to say, when Brennevin was already off to get to the bar with the grappling hook. "I need coffee, badly," Dubonnet grumbled, following her across the rooftops as best he could with his staff.

Minoru was sipping his tea quietly when suddenly the bell rang. A customer. It was probably the man with the rat. Minoru came downstairs. "Good evening, I see you're still open at such a late hour," the man greeted him. Minoru smiled. "For once. I can't sleep too well tonight. By the way, the rat is ready," Minoru replied. The man nodded gratefully. "Thank you very much," he put the money on the counter. Then he said goodbye and Minoru closed the store. As he was putting the money away, a piece of paper fell to the floor. Only one word was written on it:

Lies.