Disclaimer: Detective Conan is not mine. This fanfic is a translation.
Enjoy Reading!
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Driving a light-purple painted Beetle, the late-arriving Hayasaka quickly parked about five meters away from the flashy supercar.
Don't ask why, if you do, the answer is she was afraid of scratching it and having to pay for damages. Still, wasn't five meters a bit too cautious?
Slipping past the police cordon, Hayasaka looked toward her superior, who was examining the two victims, and asked, "Inspector, do you need any help?"
"Bring that officer over here for me."
"Understood."
When the officer approached Ritsu, he instinctively held his breath. There was no helping it, a faint smell of decomposition was already coming from inside the car. He spoke up, "Inspector Sasajima, what do you need me for?"
"You've already confirmed the identities of the victims, right? Give me a brief summary."
From the officer's explanation, Ritsu learned that the person in the driver's seat was Yumitani Masako, 45 years old, unemployed. After getting married, she became a housewife, staying home to support her husband and raise their child.
In the passenger seat was her son, Yumitani Shiro, 17, a second-year student at Hachioji High School.
After confirming their identities, Ritsu began observing the condition inside the car.
Masako in the driver's seat had her head tilted back, her mouth slightly open, and her arms hanging naturally at her sides. Shiro in the passenger seat had his head slumped to the left, resting against the window.
Both of their skin and lips showed a cherry-red coloration. Livor mortis and rigor mortis had already formed, with the latter having spread throughout the body and reached its peak. This indicated a time of death of at least 12 to 16 hours prior.
Counting back 16 hours, the estimated time of death would be between 4:00 PM and 8:00 PM the previous day.
Ritsu reached out to examine their pupils. Both were dilated, and there was no light reflex. Combined with the cherry-red lividity, both the cause of death and approximate time of death could be determined.
There was also a faint smell of bodily waste in the air, it seemed both victims had experienced incontinence before death.
"Hayasaka, notebook."
"Yes, sir."
"Both victims died from carbon monoxide poisoning. Time of death is approximately between 4:00 PM and 8:00 PM yesterday evening. Go arrange for someone to check the road surveillance along the mountain route."
Hayasaka had been transferred here from the Kyoto Prefectural Police Department. She had previously worked in the Third Investigation Division, spending over half a year handling theft cases. This was her first time dealing with a homicide case, she felt both a sense of anticipation and unease.
The anticipation came from finally breaking free of her father's control and standing on her own. The unease came from the fact that her superior didn't seem easy to get along with… and she was also worried about seeing something too gruesome.
Fortunately, her first homicide case was relatively "peaceful" in appearance.
When no response came from beside him, Ritsu frowned and looked at his absent-minded subordinate.
"How long are you planning to stand there like a telephone pole?"
"Huh?"
"I told you to arrange for someone to check the road surveillance along the mountain route. Didn't you hear me?"
"S-Sorry! I'll go right now!"
Watching her nearly flee in panic, Ritsu felt a headache coming on. His subordinate clearly had zero experience, very likely a non-career-track officer as well.
This was going to be troublesome. It seemed the department was short on manpower if this was the level of personnel assigned to him.
Ritsu recalled that Hayasaka's file was in his briefcase. Striding over to his car, he opened the door, retrieved the document, and leaned against the door as he flipped through it.
Hayasaka Yuna. From Kyoto. Age 22. Height 168 cm. Weight 48 kg. Formerly a Sergeant in the Fourth Theft Investigation Unit under the Third Investigation Division of the Kyoto Prefectural Police.
Sergeant… judging by her age, she should be on track for the career officer path. But her performance didn't reflect that at all, she'd actually spaced out at a crime scene.
More importantly, the Third Investigation Division mainly handled burglary, pickpocketing, and bicycle theft. And yet someone who chased thieves was assigned to the First Investigation Division.
What were the higher-ups thinking? Could it be that she had some kind of background?
He glanced at the light-purple Beetle parked five meters away, clearly a private car, then at the lifestyle photo clipped in her file, where she was carrying a women's handbag.
A Louis Vuitton spring collection model.
Hmm. Her family background was probably quite well-off. She might really be a connected hire.
"…Whatever. As long as she doesn't cause trouble."
After putting the file away, Ritsu returned to the crime scene. Now that the cause and approximate time of death had been established, all that remained was to review surveillance footage.
And also… to investigate the victims' social relationships.
Looking at a nearby officer, Ritsu asked, "Do the victims have any family?"
"Yes, we've already notified them. They should be arriving soon."
Speak of the devil.
A black Toyota Lexus LS400 slowly pulled over by the roadside. A middle-aged man, roughly the same age as the female victim, rushed out from the driver's seat. He ran straight toward the car at the crime scene but was stopped by an officer.
"Sir, please state your identity."
"Let me through! I'm the victims' father, Yumitani Kumateru!"
Ritsu watched as the man ran toward the passenger side. Throwing himself in front of the boy's body, Yumitani Shiro, he broke down in tears.
"I can't believe you left your father… Why would you make me bury my own child…" and similar cries poured out.
But it was precisely this reaction that caught Ritsu's attention.
The man seemed devastated over his son's death, yet showed no concern whatsoever for his wife, not even a glance at her body. Even when he arrived, he had only identified himself as the victims' father.
"Aren't you going to look at your wife?" Ritsu asked.
Wiping away his tears, Kumateru stood up, straightened his coat, and said in a subdued tone, "My wife suffered from depression… She probably took her own life and… and dragged my son into it!"
Depression. Suicide. Both his words and actions conveyed a clear message: he only cared about his son. As for his wife, he showed complete indifference.
It seemed this case wasn't as simple as it looked.
Ritsu turned to the forensic team collecting evidence nearby and crouched down. "Have you found the murder weapon?"
"In the back seat, we found some camping gear, clothing, and prepared sandwich lunches. In the trunk, there were three tennis balls, an umbrella, and a deflated yoga ball."
The team leader added, "Other than that, nothing else."
"Let me see the yoga ball."
Ritsu took the yoga ball, which couldn't fit into an evidence bag. After examining it for a moment, he asked, "Where's the air plug? You didn't find it?"
"No. We searched the entire car."
A yoga ball without its plug, combined with carbon monoxide poisoning… could it be—
"Inspector!"
Hayasaka ran over, slightly out of breath. After steadying herself, she reported, "I personally checked several surveillance cameras along the road near the scene. There were no suspicious vehicles or individuals approaching the car."
"Good. I need you to investigate something else."
"What is it?"
"Look up all carbon monoxide suppliers in Hachioji City." Ritsu glanced at Kumateru, who was sneaking looks in their direction, then leaned closer and added in a low voice, "Especially those near the Yumitani family's residence and Kumateru's workplace."
"??"
Hayasaka blinked in surprise. Was the inspector suspecting the father of killing his own wife and son? Looking at the man still quietly sobbing… was the inspector mistaken?
Even with her doubts, Hayasaka took out her phone and stepped aside to begin making inquiries.
After all, he was the superior and she was the subordinate.
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