The Whitechapel Case

Fox-Trot-9

PG-13

Horror/Suspense/Mystery (How-Catch-'Em)

Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Hunt or Death Note.

Part 3: The Usual Suspects
Chapter 1

Day 3—Noll awoke to the patter of rain outside his room. The morning of April 11th began with a time-honored English tradition that hasn't changed since the first Britons settled in England thousands of years ago: waking up to the sound of April rain drops hitting the roof.

He sat up and looked around, absorbing the surroundings of his room. The walls, ceiling and even the carpet were awash in dismal shades and shadows that seemed to mingle here and there throughout the space. To his right was the door leading out of the room, for some reason slightly ajar. In front of him, the low bookshelf filled with books on the paranormal, the camera sitting on top of it next to an old 1960's Fisher radio. On the wall above it were certificates recognizing his achievements in paranormal research. To the left of that was a credenza, most likely still filled with Gene's clothes. On top of that, a TV that neither of them had much time to watch; but when they did, they usually turned it on to shows like Most Haunted or Ghost Hunters, getting kicks out of how these so-called ghost hunters overreacted to harmless orbs of dust. To the left of that was the window with its blinds closed, casting hazy streaks of light onto the floor from the outside. And to the left of that was Mai, tucked up and beautiful in Gene's bed.

Then he looked at the clock on the night stand beside him. It was 6:30 a.m., still too early for Mai to wake up. So he got out of bed and opened the blinds, letting the dreary light into the room; it was still drizzling out there. Then he looked back at Mai and admired the sleeping beauty on this dreary morning.

Then he went to the bathroom and took a shower, doing all the things you do when starting off the day, until he looked at himself in the mirror. Spick and spam as he was, he still showed the wear of yesterday's events on his face. His eyes were no longer blood-shot, but the blue in each pupil was still faded, and the bruises on his neck had turned into pale patches of black that were less painful to the touch. After getting dressed, he went to his room to wake Mai up.

"Wake up, Mai; we have a long day ahead of us," he said, looking at his watch. "It's almost 7:00 in the morning." Her eyes twinkled beneath her eyelids as she shifted to her side, still oblivious to his words. Noll sighed; Mai wasn't a morning person, that's for sure. "Mai, if you don't wake up, I will cut your wage by half."

She roused again as if she heard him, shifting to her other side and mumbling in her sleep, "Why are you so mean?"

Well, he had to admit it; for someone who wasn't much of a morning person, Mai looked kind of...nice when she was like this. But he hid his admiration and turned away when she opened her eyes. "It's about time you woke up."

"Geez, Naru, can't you give a girl a break? I didn't get much sleep during the plane ride. Can't you be at least a little more considerate?"

"Only if you try harder to wake up," and he got up and walked away.

"Naru! Hey, get back here!" (But the kid kept walking.) "You bastard!" And she threw a pillow after him; then she plopped onto the bed. Why does he have to be so mean?

Down the stairs and into the kitchen, Noll heard his father talking to Jacob and Bert at the breakfast table, while Luella had prepared pan-fulls of yummy scrambled eggs with melting pepper jack and bacon bits in between the folds, the kind that mothers have a flair for as the smell wafted from the skillet through the kitchen and up the stairs.

When Noll came in, Martin motioned him to the table. "Ah, there you are. Come sit with us; we have much to talk about."

"Not during breakfast," said Luella; Martin was about to say something when she repeated, "I said not during breakfast. Unless you're not feeling too hungry."

"All right, dear, you win."

A few minutes later, Lin, Madoka and Mai walked in.

"Mmmm, something smells really good," said Madoka. "Mrs. Davis, is that eggs and bacon I smell?"

"Yes, with pepper jack to add some bite to it," and in no time, she served out the dishes as the three took their seats for a hearty breakfast.

Mai was just about to sit when Noll said, "Tea, Mai."

"Noll, she's a guest in the house, not a servant."

"No, it's okay; I cahn do it. Naru ahlways makes me make tea aht his ohffice."

"All right, but ask if you need anything."

"Don't wohrry," said Mai, but no sooner had she said that when she called for help; she couldn't reach the top shelf of the upper cabinets, which housed the tea cups. Luella took out the cups, while Mai boiled the water, and after ten minutes, tea was ready for everyone.

Then they ate in silence for a while; but Luella's cooking was so good that Madoka, Jacob and Bert complemented her. And when it came to drinking Mai's tea, Bert had to say, "This is some mighty fine tea you've made, little lady. Better than Starbucks, let me tell you."

"Thahnk you," said the little lady, growing a bit pink. "I think thaht's whaht Naru hiyahd me foh."

Everyone sniggered at that; even Lin couldn't hide a smile.

"And that's a mighty fine joke, too," added Jacob.

Another round of sniggers, but Noll glared at her.

"It's just a joke, Noll," said Madoka.

"Oh, and one other thing, Ms. Taniyama," said Martin.

"Mai," said the little lady. "My friends cahll me by my fehst name, even Naru."

"All right, Mai; why do you call Noll Naru? If my Japanese is correct, you should call Noll Noru."

She looked at Noll, steely-eyed as ever, thinking, This is payback for earlier. "I cahll him Naru, foh he is ah nahcissist. Ahs in Naru the Nahcissist," she said, smiling defiantly at him.

Another round of sniggers.

"I second that, believe me," said Bert. "Who else? Give me a show of hands, and be honest."

Everyone was reluctant at first, but they all raised their hands, including Lin who wanted to get back at Noll for insinuating that he not trying hard enough with Madoka. Hell, even Noll's parents raised their hands. Don't get them wrong; they loved their son; it's just that sometimes even parents had to admit the obvious. This made Noll glare a hole through Mai.

"Noll, can't you take a joke?" said Madoka. "Really, you need to learn how to loosen up some time."

"And when was the last time I loosened up?"

"Not since Gene's death, I imagine," said Bert; everyone fell silent at that. "Sorry, man, that's all my fault. I should never have—"

"That's all right," said Martin. "Just... Just don't mention it again."

Whatever good spirits there were disappeared with Bert's words, so they finished their breakfast in silence; afterward Luella and Mai took care of cleaning the dishes, finishing before the rest decided on what they should do next. When they got back from the kitchen, they all stood up.

Noll said, "We're going to the Central Library."

"The one near the Clocktower?" said Martin.

He nodded and said, "And I want you and Mother to go with the rest of us."

Martin didn't expect that coming; he looked at his son, then at his wife to see if she was willing to go (which she was) before agreeing. Besides, Noll and the rest needed all the help they could get in this case, so an extra pair of brains would do some good. But he had personal reasons for going, too; last night, Luella made him promise that he'd look after their remaining son, and by Hell or high water, he'll do everything in his power to watch over Noll—maybe not pry in on him, like Luella would do, but watch out for him from a distance the way a guardian angel would. And given the dangers, everybody needed one.

"And what about all the interviewees?"

"Don't worry, Noll; I got it all covered," said Jacob. "The commissioner, Laurence and Terry are taking care of it as I speak. We'll drive you to the library, then I'll have to take care of business back in the MIT building. The news hounds are still crowding around that place, can you believe that?"

"Can it wait?"

"Well, yes, it can wait. What's on your mind, Noll?"

"I was hoping I could interview you and Father Carmyne there."

Jacob furrowed his brows. "But you know as much as I do of Reynard Malders and everything else."

"Maybe you're right, but I still don't know nearly as much about you or Father Carmyne as yourselves. I have other questions I want to ask both of you, but I'll save them for when we get to the library. Is that fine with you?"

"Of course," and the old man walked out the door to call Father Carmyne on his cell, followed by the rest.

By now, the rain had stopped, and much of the street and sidewalk had dried. Jacob resigned himself to expect yet another of Noll's scathing inquiries, because by now he had grown accustomed to it. Maybe it comes with age; when you reach the grand old age of seventy and above without succumbing to the perils of a dangerous profession like Jacob's, you get used to things real quick. When he was done calling, he grabbed the handle of the driver's side door of the police cruiser.

"Hey, I thought I was driving?" said Bert.

"I'll drive this time," he said; Bert looked at him. "I'm not blind; unlike most men my age, I can see the stitching of a cricket ball from twenty yards away. Give me the keys," and Bert grudgingly gave them.

"Hey, who wants to hop in with the old man behind the wheel?"

As it turned out, Noll and an unwilling Mai were the candidates; Mai was reluctant, because her mother told her when she was five that the back seat of a police car was where the bad guys ended up after getting caught doing their crimes. She described the place as a kind of Purgatory without the possibility of parole; it was but a temporary punishment that would take you to the real punishment, instead of taking you to salvation. And it all starts from doing bad things to others. Yes, like all moms (such as Luella, to name one), Mai's mom was a bit paranoid when it came to the well-being of her daughter—especially after her husband died. She made her daughter fear getting into trouble, which served her well; if her mother could only see Mai now, she would be proud to know that her daughter had become a self-sufficient and self-supporting young woman. Though it did have side effects. Now instead of looking for trouble, trouble looked for Mai.

She sat next to Noll in the back seat of the police cruiser, grabbing onto the seat cushion.

"I think you might want to follow her lead, Noll," said Bert from the front passenger seat. "It's just a precaution; trust me, Jake's a speed—"

But before Bert could complete the phrase, Jacob gunned it down the street. Noll smirked; no one, not even Mai, would get the better of him without facing the consequences.

And if that wasn't enough, after easing off the driveway Martin did the same thing in his Nissan Primera, surprising Madoka and even Lin, both grabbing onto the seat cushion. Only Lin didn't see what he was grabbing, but Madoka sure did; she blushed a little, thinking of how nice it was to hold hands with Lin, even if he didn't realize it.

As for Luella, she was nagging at her husband the whole way. She sighed to herself. I guess boys will be boys. When will they ever change?

(To be continued...)

A/N: Finally! After a month of getting sidetracked up the woozle hole, you finally get another installment of The Whitechapel Case. Let's celebrate! It's only a short one, but anyway, this is the first chapter of the next arc in this story, The Usual Suspects. Hope you enjoyed it! ( ^_^ )