detectivephiliac:

Not much, to be honest. The evidence was destroyed well – certainly not the work of an amateur. Even the body didn’t give much, especially since there wasn’t any identification at the time. We carried out the investigation before the officials got there and left afterwards, as Hattori-kun had something he had to attend to.

But the body hadn’t been found until that day, so it presumably was in that dumpster since the day of the murder. Decomposing hurt the evidence and it became difficult to determine even the cause of death… And Hattori-kun admittedly became little help because of the odor and the infestation of bugs.

As said, the cafe was literally nothing but ashes… Nothing was recognizable… Except… except for a cell phone, which Hattori-kun identified as his. It wasn’t functioning – perhaps just a dead battery – but it was among the ash and didn’t appear to have been caught in the fire due to its condition…

The odor gave Hattori problems? Hakuba hadn’t been aware of this tidbit of information. Not that it was terribly uncommon; all decomposing bodies gave off a rather pungent odor once it reached a certain stage… that was just part of the chemical process. Still, he noted that for later, and nodded once again to Kyouko.

“There’s much here that suggests quite a few things to Hattori’s – as you put it so aptly – unreliable testimony. Am I correct in assuming that your current theory is that Hattori-san had something to do with the death of that man that you found, as well as the fire? Perhaps being the cause…”

Hakuba finished his tea and set it on the table, reaching for the kettle to make another cup.

“Also, your tea is getting cold, Kirigiri-san…" 

detectivephiliac:

A separate case brought me to the hospital Hattori-kun was staying at. While looking for someone else, I found out he was staying there.

I had… never exactly met a famous detective before, you see. I much prefer to work in the shadows – but I recognized his name and impulsively decided to check it out myself. He told me about his case and I said I was willing to help, so when he was discharged, he called me and requested my services.

“Understandably…” Hakuba wondered if Kyouko thought of him as a famous detective as well, then… If Hattori-san was worth visiting, perhaps…?  Not that that mattered. He chided himself inwardly. And drank more tea.

“So what is your next step from this juncture, Kirigiri-san? What did you learn when you visited the site?”

detectivephiliac:

… There’s no point in blaming yourself. You couldn’t have forseen it. It’s not as if you neglected to give that possibility a single thought even though it had been staring at you in the face. The possibility didn’t even enter your mind…

*She stopped, some sort of distress or regret flashing on her face for a few moments.*

I feel… the corpse was not responsible for the fire. Culprits wouldn’t exactly return to a scene where they know a fire will start at. They must have approached the fire afterwards for some reason. And if, they happened to be an assailant of Hattori-kun… who ended up unconscious a couple blocks away from the fire…

Hakuba couldn’t be sure, but it almost sounded as if the girl were blaming him. At least, making him partially responsible. Had she meant to sound sarcastic, or was that his own insecurity making him think that? The half-brit wasn’t certain. So he drank more tea. 

After a moment, he lowered the cup again and nodded to her.

“And now with no recollection of what happened…" 

There were a lot of things about this case that bothered him, aside from being all about Hattori and partially about the argument that they’d had. Things weren’t adding up.

"May I ask how you came to be on this case, Kirigiri-san? Specifically – if you know why Hattori-san asked you for your help…”

detectivephiliac:

I see. So you didn’t know… You seem to be fearing the worst – that he is the culprit for this specific incident. He claims he doesn’t remember anything after entering the cafe with you.

We also found a decomposing body not far from there. It was slightly scorched – the clothes at least – and looked like it had been there… well, at least since the incident. Hattori-kun claimed to not know him, but the location of the corpse and the condition seem to suggest he was at the scene of the fire while it was still burning. So… that gives us a witness to the fire.

“No, I wasn’t aware of the building’s demise.” Hakuba scrolled through his phone with one hand, tapping buttons and screens, while reaching for his teacup with the other. 

“Doesn’t remember our interaction… found singed body… Hattori’s injuries…" 

The detective took a sip of tea, then finally glanced back at Kyouko. 

"When I visited Hattori-san in the hospital on the insistence of one of our mutual friends, I did show him the lighter, which seemed to cause him some amount of distress. Whether he was the cause, or the corpse, or someone/thing else entirely… I feel somehow responsible.”

detectivephiliac:

I’m looking for the truth, to put it simply.

The cafe had been burned down to the point where almost nothing remained. Now, assuming you yourself did not burn it down, that means there wasn’t a chance for this lighter to be used. The remains say that you and any other potential witnesses must have been quite a distance away when the fire started, since no one seemed to notice the smoke. At least until it was too late. It takes a fair bit of time for a building to be reduced to nothing but ashes.

Hattori-kun had mentioned the lighter, so I just wanted to verify it.

*She looked at the lighter closely, as if there was a chance of a tiny hidden message on it.

She hadn’t forgotten about Heiji’s cellphone, which was mostly unscathed despite being in that mess, but she wasn’t going to bring that up now.*

The lighter was on the small side and very well-kept. No scratches or scuffs, very clean and orderly. On one side was engraved an ornate crest with a lion and unicorn. On the other side was the inscription ’S. J. Hakuba’ in script. The tool was in perfect working condition, and the only sign of wear was the faintest groove where the thumb rests to flick it open.

Hakuba watched the detective with his lighter, doing his best to behave and not feel too territorial. After all, she was only doing research, and he didn’t need to explain why he owned a –

“Burned down?" 

Startled, Hakuba straightened up in his chair, the fished in his pocket for his mobile phone. "I hadn’t heard that part. I must admit that I turned in my findings and left for London the next morning, withdrawing from the case. I’d intended to look back into it after visiting Hattori-san in the hospital, but other things have called my attention…”

Had Hattori burned it down? Had his lighter been part of that? It was true that it took quite a while to burn down a building of that size and, if done properly, could have quite the time delay between starting and becoming noticeable. 

The half-brit detective looked deeply troubled as he pulled a hand to his chin, considering. But then, what of Hattori’s memory loss and injuries? It could have easily been caused by the very culprit that they were to track down..

“Perhaps I shouldn’t have left him there alone…"