Chapter 101 A Trick Hidden in Cotton
When Amuro tells Hagiwara that the woman he met that night was an extremely dangerous person, the "friend of women" is greatly disappointed: "Eh? I thought such a beautiful and cute girl was deeply attracted by my personal charm! I didn't expect she had ulterior motives..."
The bombing incident that caused a great uproar because of the escaped prisoner made Hagiwara a focus of attention. Vermouth took this opportunity to ask Hagiwara out to dinner under the pretext of wanting to express her admiration.
To Amuro's surprise, Vermouth did not ask about Kawabata-senpai or Conan as he had expected. Their conversation sounded quite normal, and Hagiwara was careful not to mention any sensitive topics.
Why did Vermouth approach Hagiwara?
This question lingered in Amuro's mind without an answer. He had initially thought that Vermouth's sudden inquiry about Conan after returning from America was to catch the young detective. But judging from the current situation, Vermouth seemed to have other things to do and wasn't in a hurry to take action.
"I wonder when Vermouth plans to make her move?"
Amuro felt a mix of relief and nervousness, secretly worried for the young detective.
As for their chance encounter that night, neither of them said anything. Vermouth didn't even ask why Bourbon was there, and Bourbon, naturally, tactfully didn't pry into her private affairs.
Because mystics don't need to explain their behavior.
Vermouth hadn't contacted him since their meeting, and Amuro breathed a sigh of relief, thinking the matter was over. He then turned his attention back to the case of the little girl who was burned 20 years ago.
Why do you have to go find her?
The initial reason was guilt and remorse, but now, after so many days of fruitless and futile efforts, another reason is resentment.
"I refuse to believe we can't find anything!" Amuro vowed to himself. He carefully read through the case file again and noticed a detail: in addition to the deceased, there was a dead rabbit at the crime scene, which was found on the balcony.
"It must be a pet rabbit."
Amuro decided to find out where the rabbit came from. However, the investigation progressed much more smoothly than he expected: so much had changed in 20 years. But the pet shop was still there! Only, the owner had changed from a father to a son.
Amuro excitedly went to the pet store to inquire about the situation. As soon as he entered, he saw all kinds of fluffy little cuties. The golden retriever couldn't help but tease them as if he had met his own kind. His heart was warmed.
The pet store was quite large. When Amuro found the rabbit section, he saw a slender girl wearing a white rabbit-eared hoodie and glasses playing with the rabbits in front of the cages.
Sensing someone behind her, the girl turned around and looked back. Amuro smiled and said, "Hello."
Are you here to buy rabbits too?
"I'm just browsing."
"If you're just looking and not buying, don't let the shop assistants bother you!" the girl said with a mischievous smile.
"You seem to be quite experienced. Do you know where the boss is?"
The girl pointed and said, "Second floor."
Thank you!
Amuro ran up to the office on the second floor and found that it wasn't the current boss's son inside, but the former boss's father whom he was looking for.
The old man asked, somewhat surprised, "Sir, is there anything I can help you with?"
“I would like to ask you something,” Amuro said earnestly. “Twenty years ago, a family named Fukuyama suffered a misfortune. Did they buy rabbits from you? Here is a news report from that time.”
The old man thought carefully, nodded, and said, "Yes, I remember this case. Why are you asking about it?"
"Here's the thing, I was asked by Mr. Fukuyama's friend to investigate this matter. My employer has been living abroad for many years, and recently after returning to Japan, he heard some rumors that Mr. Fukuyama's daughter is still alive, so he wanted me to help find out the truth."
The old man, seeing that the blond youth didn't seem like a bad person, told the truth: "That little girl did come to me to buy rabbits, but she's long gone."
"Did they die in the fire?"
The old man shook his head and sighed, "No, it's because they couldn't save him at the hospital."
Do you know which hospital it is?
"Hmm... I really can't remember, but I know that no relatives were willing to adopt her or afford her medical expenses, so she could only wait to die in the hospital. It's such a pity, she was such a nice little girl," the old man replied with regret.
"Okay, thank you."
Amuro dragged his heavy steps and walked downstairs in a daze.
"So, that's it?"
He searched for so long with so much expectation and fantasy, only to receive a cold, hard answer in the end: dead.
The girl in the bunny-ear hat and hoodie was still playing with the bunny when she noticed Amuro's pale face and asked, "Are you alright?"
"Oh? Thank you, I'm fine."
"Goodbye then!" The girl smiled at him and turned to leave.
Amuro called out to her curiously, "Aren't you going to buy a rabbit?"
He thought she would say something like "I didn't see one I liked" or "I'll buy one later," but the girl asked him instead, "Are you going to give me one?"
Amuro was stunned; he had never seen such a bold and proactive girl. Although he had always been quite popular with women—many young women had expressed their interest in him when he worked at Poirot's Café—none of them had ever dared to ask him to pay the bill.
The girl raised her voice slightly when she said this. But a difference of just a few decibels was enough for the sales clerk to hear it. Eager to boost sales, the clerk darted over and enthusiastically introduced, "Our store has been open for almost 30 years! Just ask around and you'll see, our pets are the best quality! And since Easter is coming soon, we're giving away a free Easter egg with every rabbit purchase! Sir, which one would you like?"
"Uh, well..." A bewildered Amuro stood awkwardly in place. He really wanted to tell the shop assistant that he didn't know the girl and hadn't planned to give her the rabbit. But the shop assistant kept talking, making him feel very embarrassed.
"Forget it, a rabbit isn't that expensive, I'll just buy it!"
"Which one do you like?" Amuro asked.
“This one!” The girl pointed to a pure white lop-eared rabbit.
"You really don't hold back!"
Reluctantly, Amuro paid the bill. The clerk deftly took the rabbit out and put it in a cage, then gave a long explanation of rabbit care, handed the girl a surprise gift, and finally handed the rabbit cage to Amuro. Everything seemed so natural.
"Hey, I don't know her!"
The golden retriever thought to himself, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. He glanced at the frail girl, then looked down at the large rabbit cage, sighed, and said, "How about I help you carry it home?"
Thank you so much!
Amuro walked out of the pet store and said to the girl, "My car is parked over there."
"No need for that trouble, my home is very close, it's just a few steps away."
"Eh? Well, okay then."
The golden retriever, clutching a rabbit cage, followed behind the girl with mixed feelings. Having learned from Hagiwara's experience, the highly vigilant man was convinced that any strange romantic encounters were actually karmic calamities.
The golden retriever was on high alert to deal with this unknown opponent. When he realized that the girl's house was much farther away than "a few steps", he wondered: Have I already fallen into a trap?
"Oh right, you gave me a rabbit, but I haven't asked your name yet!"
"My name is Tooru Amuro. What's yours?"
“Mr. Amuro, you can call me Nanami.”
Upon hearing this name, Amuro's heart skipped a beat, because the name of the burned girl he was looking for was: Nanami Fukuyama.
"Although Nanami is a very common name, is this coincidence really just a coincidence?"
"If Nanami Fukuyama were still alive, she would be 26 years old this year, which seems to match her age quite well."
Amuro secretly glanced at Nanami, who was leading the way: she had delicate skin, and there were no burn scars visible on her face, neck, arms, or other parts of her body.
Moreover, he was certain this wasn't Vermouth in disguise. At such close range, he couldn't sense the organization's presence at all. Besides, given the organization's style, wouldn't they at least buy a black rabbit?
"She's not the person I'm looking for, nor does she seem to be a member of the organization, yet I ran into her here. It's as if she was deliberately waiting for me. What is her purpose in coming here?"
Amuro racked his brains and came up with a possible answer: Maybe she knows some unknown inside information and wants to tell me?
However, it is difficult to explain how she found him and why she told him.
Nanami remained quiet the whole way, only glancing at the little rabbit every now and then.
Amuro followed behind, observing the situation. He noticed that they were heading towards the Fukuyama residence, which further convinced him that she was involved.
"Nanami, where do you live?"
"Oh? Mr. Amuro, are you tired? Would you like to take a rest?"
"It's okay, I'm not tired."
"Hang in there a little longer! We'll be there soon."
As Amuro had expected, they stopped in front of the Fukuyama house: now lived an elderly widow who had no other relatives in Tokyo.
"Nanami, is this your home?"
“It used to be.” Nanami narrowed her eyes slightly, answering with a nostalgic tone. She turned to look at Amuro, enjoying the slightly surprised expression on his face. Her brown eyes were slightly red in the sunlight, like a little rabbit's.
Amuro tentatively asked, "Why did you bring me here?"
Nanami gave a sly smile, tinged with a hint of danger. That expression sent a chill down Amuro's spine, as if a little white rabbit had suddenly turned into a big bad wolf.
"why are you laughing?"
"Haven't you been looking for me?"
"She actually knew?! Was I being followed? Why didn't I notice at all?"
Amuro was a little flustered, his palms sweating as he held the rabbit cage. He tried to remain calm and asked, "Nanami, what are you talking about? I don't understand."
"Eh, don't you understand?" Nanami said, feigning regret. "In that case, I need to explain it to you properly. But this isn't a suitable place, let's go somewhere else!"
Where to?
Nanami smiled mysteriously and whispered in Amuro's ear, "Do you want to come home with me, Bourbon?"
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