Who would have guessed that this would happen... Who would have expected a police officer to commit something like this? Emiko was standing by the newspaper kiosk, leaning against its wall, and with bated breath she followed the next lines of the newspaper's text... At the same time feeling incredibly uncomfortable.
The article said that the former policeman, and until recently a working detective, had climbed onto the roof of the university rooftop just the night before, got drunk and then jumped off it. The girl felt her uneven heartbeat and was leaning more and more against the building, because the article was accompanied by a photo of a suicide, in which she recognized... the man she had followed some time ago.
'How is this even possible?'
Emiko stared at the face shown in the photo, carefully analyzing the situation. She felt as if it was all inextricably linked with a certain blonde-haired young man... She swallowed.
'So that detective... Mr. Richard Braun must have got on his trail somehow. It's possible that he discovered something he shouldn't have, that's why he ended up like this...' The girl put her thumb on her lower lip, biting him lightly. 'First Fahren's death when the real son of Schuwald appeared, now Richard Braun while the investigation was underway... And at the center of this story this demon. It's Johan's case, no doubt... This detective had his own investigation related to him!'
She closed her eyes, trying hard to focus. Is there a person from whom she can learn something more about Braun? Emiko suddenly opened her eyes.
'...He was going to that addiction clinic!'
She decided to sneak up to Dr. Reichwein's office and find out what he might know about it... Or at least how much he was NOT suspected.
****
On the first day after finishing work, Dr. Reichwein went straight to his home, while on the second... he started walking in a completely different direction. Emiko, driven by her inquisitiveness and willingness to solve all puzzles, went straight behind him.
Then the truth struck her - the older man for some reason started his own investigation of Richard Braun, diligently looking for information about him wherever he could: in the bar where the detective had been last night before his death, at the police station, in the night district, and others places that could only be associated with the death man and... with Johan.
'...He might be in danger.' Emiko thought, walking in quite a distance behind him. 'He's looking for the truth, just like me and my brother... I'd better watch him just in case. I don't want him to end up like Mr. Braun... He seems like fine man.'
In the end, she followed the old man underground, to the subway platforms. When they stood there for a longer time - he was staring at the tracks, and she at the area surrounding him, she suddenly realized that a young man in sweatpants was approaching him. She cautiously started walking towards them... suddenly discovering with horror that the young man was reaching out to push Dr. Reichwein right under the wheels of the oncoming train...
The old man, however, had an extremely sensitive sense of perceptiveness, as he immediately turned back, which made the young man immediately start to run away in panic. Immediately, the older doctor ran after him... and Emiko after them.
They ran for a long time through the streets, and the young woman was surprised to realize that the "old man" was really in an incredibly good condition (for his age), because he not only managed to catch up with his opponent, but also when he was led out of the bar by him and his "boss", she didn't manage to help him... because he himself knocked out his attackers. The girl stood by the wall of the second building, watching the scene unfolding in front of her with her mouth open. It was undoubtedly an extraordinary feat.
"Do not underestimate the former police doctor!" The old man grunted in their direction, putting on the glasses that had fallen off him a moment earlier during the fight and he dusted himself off. In a dignified movement, he continued his walk, leaving two defeated men on the pavement, squirming in pain.
****
Dr. Reichwein didn't go straight to his home that evening. On the way, he stopped in one more place - the cemetery, the grave of the late detective. To Emiko's surprise, after his behavior it was obvious that they shared more than the usual relationship between the doctor and the patient; it was more like a friendship that had been brutally ended. The girl, standing in the shade of tall trees, carefully watched the whole situation. Dr. Reichwein seemed to her to have human feelings and want to do justice on behalf of his friend... She understood that his willingness to solve the investigation was related to this, and therefore, he was a trustworthy person.
Suddenly, however, the silence surrounding the place of eternal rest was broken by the rustle of leaves from the even darker part of the cemetery, and the young Tenma quickly jumped, hugging the trunk of the nearest tree, hiding even more in its shadow. Someone was slowly approaching them, someone who was hidden in the surrounding darkness of the night...
Finally, a few meters away, a figure emerged from the bushes growing there. And it was none other than...
'Brother...?'
Kenzo stopped just a few meters away, his eyes directed straight at the old man sitting at the grave. He began to observe him closely, which made the young woman convinced that his appearance here was certainly not accidental.
Emiko started hugging the tree trunk even more, not even moving one step. If only a little twig had broken beneath her feet... it would no doubt she has been exposed immediately. Only a few days had passed since her last meeting with her brother, so he would no doubt recognize her as a girl from the narrow alley between the blocks, where the fight took place. She didn't want to let it happen at all costs...
Her heart was beating in an accelerated pace, making her feel humming in her ears from his too loud beating. If someone accidentally heard it...
Fortunately, nothing like that happened. After a dozen or so minutes, Dr. Reichwein got up and continued on his way, most likely to his home, and Kenzo followed him. Emiko, without much thought, started right after them. Because who knows, what might happen?
That evening, however, it was absolutely nothing.
Totally nothing else happened, because the older man returned safely to his home, and Kenzo after a long observation of his property, also went in an unknown direction. The girl sighed and decided to observe the old man for a few more days, just in case. She knew that since her brother had appeared, something could happen in the near future... or at least she had that impression.
Her intuition didn't disappoint her. When a young woman was waiting near the clinic just a few days later, hidden in the nearby bushes, she suddenly noticed that a very nervous doctor Reichwein was running out of the back entrance of the building, followed by a tall man with a gun in his hand... An old man dressed in a white, medical apron was hurrying down the stairs, and an unknown man began aiming at him through the storeys...
Suddenly a pistol shot joined the whole situation. Her eyes flashed like lightning bolt to the source, and more precisely towards Dr. Reichwein, who had now fallen on the floor, staring at another person who was standing right next to him.
"Hurry up!!" Kenzo was standing next to the old man, his gun pointed straight up the stairs. "I've been watching you for some time. You've become a target! Run away!! Fast!!" The older man didn't have to be told twice. He started to run again with a quick movement, and Kenzo ran after him, covering the rear. Emiko crouched in the bushes even more, watching the tall man who started walking down the stairs without haste.
'I have an impression I had seen him somewhere before...' She stared at his silhouette and face, trying hard to remember it. 'Where did I meet him...?' Nothing came to her mind, however, so as soon as he left in his direction, first she made sure that no one was following her, and then carefully returned to her rented room.
****
The next few days, Emiko conducted her own investigation of Richard Braun, increasingly making sure that his death was linked to the Edmund Fahren case and to Hans Georg Schuwald.
She put the puzzles piece by piece, revealing more secret paths... leading to a young, handsome blonde. The progress in this matter, despite the lurking danger, pleased her greatly. Finally, she began to feel that she hadn't come to this country in vain.
One day, while she was browsing the news from the newspaper for more information, she noticed an advertisement that caught her attention in a special way.
Let's recall our cheating.
-Rudy
'This is undoubtedly a message from Dr. Gillen!' Emiko smiled slightly, following the entire text with her eyes. 'Is he also in this town? Or maybe it's not direct, but he wants to contact my brother about some matter? I hope he won't tell him about my arrival...' At the very thought, the girl shivered a lot, then shook her head firmly to throw her worry away. 'No. He certainly won't. He promised me that...' She focused again to return to the investigation of the detective case.
The newspapers didn't give much information, therefore, being most cautious, Emiko decided to go to Dr. Reichwein and find out his position on the matter, and, if the circumstances are favorable, let him also get to know her secret, just like Dr. Gillen. The truth had to see the light of day at all costs...
****
Full of determination, she stood at the door of Dr. Reichwein's house, calmly settling everything in her mind once again. When she finally came to the conclusion that she knew everything she needed at the moment, she took a deep breath after a short while and knocked on the hard wooden surface.
It didn't take long for hearing footsteps coming closer to her, and the door opened, revealing Dr. Reichwein himself.
"Yes? How can I help you?" said the old gentleman, carefully looking at her.
"Good afternoon. Could I get a little of your time, doctor?" Emiko looked at his face with serious eyes. "I'd like to talk..." Here she lowered her voice and brought her body slightly closer to him. "...about the murder of Mr. Richard Braun." At these words the man opened his eyes wide.
"Who are you?!" It was obvious that the mere mention of the former detective made him nervous. Emiko moved away from him a bit, then gently turned towards him.
"Don't worry, I won't hurt you, sir. I just want to find the truth." The doctor looked at her for a moment longer, then waved her forward into his apartment.
"I understand that you have your own case? However, I can say that it is quite dangerous. You'd better stay out of this..." They both headed into the living room, where a boy of about ten years old was sitting in one of the armchairs, staring out the window with worry written all over his face. As soon as he noticed that two people had entered the living room, he turned towards them, curiosity written in his eyes.
"Dieter, would you please leave me alone with this lady for a while? We need to talk about something."
"Okay..." The boy nodded understandingly, then got off the chair and headed through the door to the other room, passing them at the entrance on the way. Before he completely walked past them, the young woman gave him an apologetic smile.
"Hope I didn't interrupt you with something important, sweetheart." Dieter paused for a moment and looked at her more closely, then his face lit up with a smile.
"Don't worry sis, I didn't do anything interesting." After that he left the room for good, and the old man and Emiko sat down in the armchairs.
"So? Who are you, miss, and why did you contact me?" The girl took a deep breath.
"Richard Braun was your patient, wasn't he?"
"Right, but what does it have to do with anything? Who are you if I may ask?" The doctor looked at her carefully, which made her feel a little uncomfortable; but she tried to continue.
"You started your own investigation of his case and you were attacked by someone. It made me realize that you're a person whom-"
"Please wait! What are you..." The doctor jumped up from his place, incredibly confused.
"...whom I can trust. I feel so." Emiko raised her head looking straight at him. "I want to help you, sir. Please trust me." The man remained silent for a moment, staring at her figure sitting in the armchair, then pushed his glasses upright and looked at her with a questioning gaze.
"Who are you?"
"My name is Emiko Tenma." She answered him bluntly.
Only now the doctor's eyes have opened for good.
For several long seconds he stared at her in disbelief, and she bravely held that gaze. She knew that for now she didn't need to say anything more, because he himself had to get used to this new situation. There was silence for several more, long moments, broken at last by Dr. Reichwein.
"Are you related... to Dr. Tenma?" The man slowly sat down in the chair opposite her, and Emiko nodded affirmatively.
"Yes, Kenzo is my older brother. I came to this country to save him..."
Feeling that Dr. Reichwein took her word for it, the girl began her story from the very beginning - she told about everything, starting with how she found out that he was wanted, and ending with the events from just a few days ago. The doctor listened her carefully, sitting in his chair and nodding his head from time to time; however, he leapt to his feet when he heard certain name from her lips.
This started their long discussion on each individual investigation, which revealed the next pieces of the puzzle, around a mysterious young man named Johan...
"...I wasn't wrong!" The man was nodding, his brow furrowed. "He does exist, and you are a witness who not only knows about his existence, but also got to know him personally. You have to be careful! He is ruthless!"
"I know. Therefore, I'm asking you to be careful. I think he's driven by some deeper motive that so far neither of us has been able to decipher..."
"One of my former students is a criminal psychologist who also helps me with this case and has been here quite recently. Thanks to him, I got a photo of Johan and his personal psychological analysis. His name is Dr. Gillen and... Is something wrong?" The man raised his eyebrows in surprise and looked at Emiko, who, for some unknown reason, suddenly started smiling from ear to ear.
"So Mr. Rudy keeps his promise and he hasn't say anything about me to anyone..."
"'Mr. Rudy'? You know Dr. Gillen?"
"I lived with him for several months; He helped me with the analysis of Johan's messages and..." The girl paused for a moment, and in an instant her smile disappeared from her face. "...It was from him that I found out that my brother wants to end what started in 1986."
"So you're also thinking... that Tenma..."
"Yes. He wants to end Johan's life and thus fix his past mistake... but I won't let him! I won't let my brother become a murderer!" Young Tenma jumped up from her seat in a sudden rush of emotions.
"Sis, are you Tenma's sister?" Unexpectedly, two people in the room heard a voice coming from behind the slit of the closed door, which made both of them turn their heads towards its source. Soon after that, the door opened wide and a brown-haired boy stood in it with a serious face, staring at Emiko with a slight disbelief.
"Dieter! What are you doing here?" Dr. Reichwein said a little sharply towards him, but stopped himself and quickly fell silent in understanding. He realized that the little one also had a right to know the truth, especially since...
At the same time, the girl approached the boy and bent a little over him, because he was about a head shorter than her.
"Do you... you know Kenzo, sweetheart?"
"Yes. Tenma is my friend!" He answered her with a serious face, which made her feel something warm and smiled at him.
"I'm glad that my brother has found friends in such a distant country." Dieter didn't hesitate to return her smile; it did not last very long, however, as the boy assumed again a serious expression tinged with worry.
"Please, big sis... Please stop Tenma, he..."
"I know." Emiko knelt down by him and grabbed his hands. "I'm here to prevent that from happening. Trust me." Dieter looked at her face, suddenly realizing something.
"You know... you don't look like Tenma at all, but..." The boy began to look her straight in the eyes. "... but you have a similar gaze. That's why I know I can count on you." The young woman smiled and released his hands only just to hug him tightly. It wasn't long before Dieter hugged her back, resting his head on her shoulder. They had formed a bond that needed no words.
At the request of Dr. Reichwein and Dieter, Emiko stayed with them for dinner, telling more about herself, and got to know the two sitting with her better. She learned about the past of the boy who had been raised by one of the ministers of health who had custody of the children of the Kinderheim 511 orphanage in the past, and how this man had abused him; he was saved from the whole situation by Kenzo, who ended his relationship with the cruel man and took care of his upbringing as much as he could. Dr. Reichwein told her about his bond with Richard Braun and what information he had discovered about Johan.
On the way out, Emiko asked both of them for the same thing she had asked Dr. Gillen earlier - not to disclose to her brother under any circumstances that she was here especially for him. Of course Dr. Reichwein didn't want agree to that, and neither would Dieter, but the girl didn't want to give in for anything.
"You know, it's great to have family and friends you can rely on. You cannot bear that responsibility alone!" The doctor gave her a friendly pat on the shoulder, trying to cheer her up.
"I don't want to worry my brother, especially since it's been so long since my arrival here... If it made him unable to focus on his part of the investigation and something terrible happened... I would never forgive myself."
"I see. Fine then, but know one thing." The man adjusted his glasses and cleared his throat. "You can count on me. If something was happening and you would need help... Come right away. I'll do as much as I will can."
"Me too!" Dieter joined in with a smile, placing his hands on his hips. "Me and Dr. Reichwein will help you as soon as possible, big sis. You can count on us!" Emiko smiled warmly at both of them.
"Thank you. You can count on me too." After that, she said goodbye to the old man and the boy, and then went back to her room. The two newly met people stood by the gate for a moment longer and stared at her moving away figure.
"Do you think Emilie can save Tenma?" The boy turned to Dr. Reichwein, who was standing silently, and the other turned his head in his direction.
"Certainly, with help of all of us." Dieter looked again towards the street, where Emiko disappeared around the next corner. The older man without any delay, also followed her direction.
'Emiko Tenma... You're just like your brother. He also doesn't want to involve anyone in this matter, at the same time trying to solve it by himself... I don't know how much at that moment your eyes were telling the truth, but please don't make the same mistake as Dr. Tenma...' The doctor with boy headed towards the inside of the house. '...Don't try to end it on your own...'