Aaaaaand we're almost done uwu

Chapter Nine

The judge was dead. Shot right through the head. The killer disappeared back into the shadows. Conan and Ran stared in disbelief at the television screen. "H-how…? We disabled the door… he should've…" Ran said, her voice shaking, but Conan shook his head.

"There isn't anything we can do for him now. Obviously the killer must have more ways into the rooms that we don't know about," Conan murmured, his eyes narrowing.

"W-we have to get everyone! We have to warn them—" Ran looked at the television screen. Three men burst into the judge's room. It was Kogorou, Dr. Tsukuda, and Himura.

"He's dead!" Kogorou exclaimed. His voice sounded garbled through the sound system.

"How the hell did this happen!?" Himura asked, "I locked my gun away! Nobody knows the combination but me!"

"W-was it your gun?" asked the doctor. Himura nodded solemnly.

"I found the secret door to my room, so I destroyed the lock. When I went in to check on my briefcase, it was open and the gun was gone!" Himura gasped, then gritted his teeth. "The bastard… he musta seen the combination and stolen it."

Kogorou growled, "Dammit… where the hell are Ran and Conan?! Why haven't they turned up yet?!" He turned to the other two men and snapped, "We have to find them! Did anyone see them recently?"

"I did," Himura replied, nodding, "And I think I remember which way they went."

"Then what the hell are we standing around here for?! They could be in danger!" Kogorou shouted, charging out of the room and out of view of the camera. Dr. Tsukuda and Himura darted after him, leaving the judge's body alone in the room.

"We should go too, Conan," Ran said softly with a shiver, "Get out before the killer comes back."

But Conan shook his head, carefully worming his way out of Ran's arms. His side gave a painful throb, but he ignored it. Walking around the dingy room slowly, the little detective examined the walls carefully. Ran kept close to his side just in case.

"There's nowhere to go," Conan said seriously after a moment, "There's only one way in or out. Even if we leave, we're gonna run into the killer." As if on cue, footsteps echoed faintly in the hall, getting louder as they got closer...

Seeing no way out, Ran placed herself defensively between the injured boy and the door, clenching the fire poker tightly.

The door opened slowly.

A lean man with ratty black hair stood in the doorway. He wore a baggy black shirt and equally baggy, striped pyjama pants. His face was gaunt and scruffy, and he looked dazed, as if he was half asleep. "… ah," he finally said, his voice hoarse, "You've arrived."

"Were you expecting us?" Conan asked, crossing his arms. Ran narrowed her eyes, raising the fire poker. She wasn't afraid to use it if the man tried anything suspicious.

But the man just smiled dreamily. "You seemed to be a clever boy, so I figured it'd only be a matter of time before you found his place." He pulled out the stolen pistol from Himura's briefcase. Conan and Ran froze, preparing for the worst, but the man tossed it on his ratty mattress. It seemed they were safe for now. He gave them a shrug and asked:

"So. You've found me. What do you intend to do? Beat me to death with a fire poker?" He eyed Ran's weapon.

"No, of course not," Conan said. He narrowed his eyes and asked, "We just want to know why. Why did you do all this?"

"Why…?" The man scratched his stubbly chin, shrugging again. "I suppose because it sounded fun."

"Fun?!" Ran suddenly shouted, jabbing the fire poker at the man accusingly, "Six people are dead because of you!"

"Yes, that was my intention."

"What did they ever do to you?!"

"Nothing, I suppose. I don't really remember."

Conan tugged at the hem of Ran's shirt and said, "Please calm down, Ran."

"No, Conan! This man killed six people and he has no remorse at all!" Ran cried furiously. The man simply laughed, his voice echoing in the room.

"They were criminals, too, little girl. Don't you think that's fair? A life for a life?" he asked, his words distant. It was almost like he wasn't even there.

Before Ran could retort, Conan asked softly:

"What's your name?"

The man blinked as if he'd forgotten. "It's… it's Takuma Honda," he replied slowly.

"Takuma Honda, huh? Where have I heard that name…" Conan thought for a moment. He gulped, looking up at Honda with furrowed brows. "… you're a convicted murderer, aren't you?" He remembered working on the case; or rather, Sleeping Kogorou worked on the case.

"I was, yes," Honda murmured, nodding thoughtfully, "Before that I was a writer." He smiled nostalgically.

Ran lowered the fire poker, looking over the man as he daydreamed. "I remember you, too. You only published one book and it was criticised for plagiarism. You murdered two people who accused you of stealing their work, but my father stopped you from murdering a third," Ran said, venom in her words, "In court, you were sentenced to life in prison."

"That's also true," Honda said, the smile fading slightly, "It was hell, you know, that prison…"

"So you broke out," Conan said promptly, "Intent to murder the people who testified against you in court."

Honda nodded. "They all said I was crazy… they're still telling me I'm crazy." The dreamy look on his face slowly warped into something more disturbed, his eyes and grin widening. "What the hell do they know? They're all dead! Dead, dead, dead…" He clasped his hands to his head, grabbing at his hair.

He's insane… we have to be careful on how we continue… Conan thought. "Ran," he said, pulling on her shirt again. She knelt down next to him and Conan continued in a whisper, "Let me do the talking. The man is mad and we shouldn't upset him." Reluctantly, Ran nodded, straightening up and keeping an eye on Honda, fire poker at the ready.

"What?" Honda asked, his eyes darting around the room, "What was that? They think I'm crazy, too?" He looked back at Conan and Ran, his shoulders going slack. "I don't want to kill her now… it wouldn't be following the story!"

"No, no, Mr. Honda! We think you're really brilliant!" Conan said, laying on the flattery, "I'm one the best thinkers here and you had me fooled! You surprised me at every turn!" He nudged Ran with his elbow discreetly, glancing towards the door. Honda was busy pacing in front of his bed, so Conan and Ran inched towards the door.

They stopped when Honda turned his attention to them. "Really?" he asked, "Because Ms. Christie told me I couldn't do it!" Turning in his place, he glared at the picture of the woman with her eyes cut out.

"Ms. Christie told you that? How rude!" Conan replied in disbelief. They were so close to the door, but Honda whipped back around to face the two, a triumphant smile on his face.

"I know! I said, 'I could pull off those murders and no one would know who did it! I'd go down in history as the greatest murderer in the world!'" His smile suddenly turned into a frown as he scratched his head. "Wait… I said that?" Honda's gaze drifted to Ran then to Conan, and he let out a pitiful wail. "No! Then Ms. Christie was right! Some bitch and some snot nosed brat found me! I failed!"

Conan waved his hands in front of his face and said quickly, "N-no! You didn't fail! You'll just have to try again! It'll work out!"

Honda struck his head repeatedly with his fists. "NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO! STOP SAYING I FAILED! I DIDN'T, I DIDN'T!" he shrieked. His calm eyes turned wild as he lunged for Ran's fire poker, kicking Conan out of the way. The little detective landed on his injured side and cried out in pain.

Ran and Honda wrestled for control of the fire poker. He tore it out of her hands, but she was too fast for him. As quick as lightning, Ran smashed her foot into the madman's nose, sending him flying into the wall of pictures.

She was at Conan's side in a flash, helping him to his feet. "Are you okay, Conan?" she asked urgently.

"I-I think…" Conan hissed, pressing a hand to his side. Honda's kick hadn't been extremely powerful, but it had certainly worsened Conan's condition. Damn… we have to get out of here! he thought, turning to face the door. "C'mon, Ran!" he said, grabbing her hand.

But Honda started to rise to his feet as if he were possessed. He scraped the fire poker across the ground as he advanced. Ran took up a fighting stance, putting herself between Conan and the murderer. "Ready for round two?!" she snarled fiercely.

Honda giggled, swaying slightly, blood staining his face. "They're telling me not to kill you~ Not yet, anyway~ You come very last, by your own hand~!" he said in a singsong voice, "But whatever… you've crossed the line, bitch~ Accusing me of plagiarism? Accusing me of murder? I only did as I was told~!"

He swung the fire poker at Ran's head, but she sidestepped him expertly. She drove a series of punches into Honda's side. He hardly seemed phased, and he head butted her in the nose, laughing maniacally. Ran staggered back, stunned for a moment, but she regained her footing, matching blows with the madman.

Honda lashed out with an unexpected kick to Ran's stomach, and she let out a pained cry. Before she could back away from him, the madman grabbed her by the hair with his free hand, a crazed smile warping his face as he raised the fire poker above his head. "Goodbye, little girl~"

Conan may have been injured, but he wasn't about to sit quietly and watch Ran get killed before his eyes. Grabbing an old soup can that had been carelessly discarded, Conan powered up his shoes and wound up for a kick, aiming at Honda's head.

CRACK!

He didn't even know what hit him. The next thing he knew, Conan was lying on his side, coughing violently. Instead of striking Ran, Honda swung the fire poker at the little detective, the metal rod crashing against his injured ribs.

"Conan!" Ran cried, letting out a furious snarl and lashing out against Honda, punching and kicking at anything she could. The madman's grip was too strong, and he drove his knee into her stomach.

Honda threw the coughing girl to the floor next to Conan, his smile wide and toothy. "Seems this is the end, eh, Mr. Detective~?" he asked. He giggled and turned to face the wall of pictures, his back to his victims. The madman spread his arms and cried, "See, Ms. Christie?! I could still kill them all! No one will find the killer after all!" His cackle echoed throughout the room, but he stopped suddenly when the door knob rattled. "Helloooooo~? Who is it?" Honda called.

No answer. The door knob rattled some more. Honda was getting annoyed. "HELLOOOOO~?! WHO. IS. IT?" he spat every word, his teeth bared. Again, no answer. Grumbling under his breath, he stormed towards the door.

While Honda was distracted, Ran crawled over to Conan, tears stinging at her eyes. "Oh, God, Conan…" she sniffled, "Please don't be dead…!" She was more than relieved when she saw the little detective's chest rise and fall slowly.

Honda whipped back around, pointed the fire poker at Ran, and shrieked:

"DON'T YOU DARE TALK. DADDY NEEDS TO TAKE CARE OF SOME UNWANTED VISITORS~" The madman threw open the door and thrust the fire poker into—

-open air. Honda blinked. Nobody was there. He stepped out into the hall tentatively.

From either side of the door, Kogorou, Himura, and Dr. Tsukuda jumped on the murderer. He and the other men collapsed in a screaming, grunting heap. Kogorou and the others struggled to keep Honda down. The lean man was surprisingly strong for someone his size.

"Dad!" Ran cried, "Conan's… Conan's hurt badly!"

"Ran, get outta here!" Kogorou shouted back over Honda's screaming, "We'll hold him down! Just go!"

"WHY ARE YOU ALL RUINING THE STORY?!" Honda roared. He elbowed Himura in the nose and savagely bit down on Dr. Tsukuda's hand. The doctor reeled back and Himura loosened his grip on the mad man. Honda took advantage of that lapse and head butted Himura with a bone crunching crack.

With his support down, Kogorou managed to hold Honda in a headlock, though the murderer struggled violently in his grip, trying to lash out in any way he could. Finally, Honda slammed his heel down into Kogorou's foot and leapt away from the detective, a crooked smile crossing his face. He swung the fire poker at Kogorou's head, but the detective blocked it, wincing as the metal rod struck his arm. Though in the split second of Honda's confusion, Kogorou drove his free fist into Honda's already broken nose, and grabbed the madman by the wrist and hurled him over his shoulder with a furious roar. Honda slammed into the ground, stunned.

"That's for the brat," Kogorou hissed as Honda went limp. He clutched his injured arm and turned his attention to his daughter, darting into the room and asking:

"Ran! Are you okay?"

Ran threw her arms around her father in a tight hug. "D-dad… Conan, he…" she stammered, glancing back at the little detective. Himura and Dr. Tsukuda came to their senses and entered the room as well, and the doctor examined Conan carefully.

"He's in a very critical state… we have to get him to a hospital as soon as possible," Dr. Tsukuda said, "Himura, help me pick him up; I don't want to aggravate his wounds."

Himura nodded, but before he could do anything, he let out a gasp when he saw the outline of Honda raise the fire poker above his head, ready to split the doctor's head open, a cold grin warping his face.

Time seemed to slow down. Ran and Kogorou were charging towards the mad man; Dr. Tsukuda turned his head, eyes wide in horror; Himura trying to scramble to his feet.

Conan, just barely conscious, raised his arms, clicked his watch open, and fired a single dart. It struck Honda square between the eyes. The madman's eyes rolled into the back of his skull and he crumpled in a twisted heap, unconscious.

"There…" Conan whispered, his vision going dark, "… there were some." He blacked out, finally able to rest.

uwu