Chapter Text
—
He jolted awake, sitting up and running his fingers through his hair as he tried to get a hold of himself.
His phone rang. He reluctantly picked it up.
“Hello?”
“Hey Cole!”
“Oh hello. What’s up Plundar?”
“Are you still hunting for a flatmate?”
“Yeah. No luck so far.”
“I have someone you might wanna live with. Meet me at the hospital.”
The call hung up before Cole could ask anything.
“The hospital?? Hello? Plundar??”
Cole sighed and decided to just go see who this person Plundar recommends.
He grabbed his cane and threw a coat over himself as he walked out of the house.
—
“Cole! Over here!” Plundar waved. Cole went over, brushing his hair out of his eyes to look presentable to both Plundar and the person he was about to meet.
“So who are we meeting?” Cole asked as Plundar led him to some room in the hospital.
“Jay Walker. Have you ever heard of him before?” Plundar asked to which Cole shook his head.
“Well, I think you two might get along.” Plundar smiled as she opened the door to a chemical laboratory in the hospital.
There sat a short man with light brown hair, looking into a microscope. He wore a long coat and had gloves on.
“How did you two meet?” Cole asked as he walked in.
“I was involved in a case while you were gone. He solved it and I didn't go to court!” Plundar cheerfully explained.
Cole looked around the lab. “It’s different from the one I had been in.” Plundar shrugged, “every hospital is different.”
“Hello Plundar,” Jay said as the pair walked closer. “Hello Jay!” Plundar greeted back.
Jay looked away from the microscope to look at Plundar and Cole.
“Can I borrow your phone, Plundar? Signal’s not working on mine.” Jay asked both of them.
“Oh I didn't bring mine…” Plundar says as she searches his bag.
“Here. You can borrow mine.” Cole took it out of his pocket and handed it over to the brunette.
“Oh! This is an old friend of mine. Jay, meet Cole. Cole, meet Jay.”
Jay gave a small smile as he took the phone and opened it. Cole only nodded, a bit awkward.
“I’ll leave you two alone. Take good care of each other!” Plundar smiled and left the room after saying goodbye.
Jay silently gave back the phone and turned to his laptop.
“So, Iraq or Afghanistan?”
“Excuse me?”
Jay turned away from the laptop. “Which was it? Iraq or Afghanistan?”
“Afghanistan. How did you know?” Cole asked, slightly impressed and also slightly confused.
Before Jay could answer, his phone rang. He picked up the call almost immediately.
“Good timing. I was getting bored.” Jay’s face had brightened up then he had hung up immediately.
“Say, are you free right now?”
Cole thought for a moment and then shook his head. He already was planning to quit his therapy.
“Want to have some bonding with your future roommate?” Jay grinned. Cole shrugged and Jay took it as an agreement. It can’t be bad, right?
—
Jay and Cole rode the taxi to the riverbank. They got out of the taxi and walked over to the policemen that surrounded the place.
“Why exactly are we here?” Cole asks as he limps behind Jay.
“Crime scene.The police aren't always good at their job, Cole.” Jay tells him as he puts on gloves that were given by one of the policemen.
Cole puts it on as well, he looks at others who wore a protective suit. Seeing as Jay didn’t wear one, he guessed it was alright to not wear one.
“Jay!”
A person with silver hair with a purple streak walked over.
“Hey Pixal!!” Jay waved to her.
“Hello. Who’s this?” Pixal asked, looking at Cole as if she’s performing a full body scan on him.
“He’s with me.” Jay answers vaguely, “Give us 15 minutes.”
Pixal nodded and led them to the crime scene.
On the grass, beside the river, lay a body. Skin pale as snow, blood red as wine. A man laid there on his back, blood pooling around his body, staining the grass. In his right hand, held a gun.
“We suspect that he killed himself. There’s finger prints on the gun that he’s holding.” Pixal filled in on what the police thought.
“Wrong. The gun is a revolver, it still has all six bullets. He couldn’t have killed himself. He’s wearing expensive clothes but has a ugly tie and no ring. Either he never got married or is divorced.” Jay said nonchalantly, like it’s something basic to know about.
“Cole.”
Cole jolted when he heard his name being called, “yeah?”
“Help me. Examine the body.” Jay requested, Cole simply nodded and bent down, ignoring the numbness in his leg.
Cole unbuttoned the white collar shirt and was surprised to see that the bullet did not go through his body. The victim was shot from the back. He checked if there was still a faint pulse but there wasn’t.
Cole looked at the victim’s free hand, ink stains? The body is cold to the core and it has a pungent odour, so the victim was dead for about 24 hours.
“Shot in the chest. He has been dead for about 24 hours. His clothes are wrinkled so he could’ve been in a tussle before his death. Yet no other injuries on his body.” Cole says in one breath.
“Good analysis. You missed most of the key points but overall, better than what the police can do.” Jay gave a pat on Cole’s back before crouching down to the body.
“You’re right that he has been shot in the chest, from the back. So it’s not a suicide.” Jay showed the ink stains on his right hand.
“Give me that man's phone. If I'm correct, it will have past emails and calls.” Jay says. Cole raised a brow but watched as Pixal took out a phone from the pocket of the victim.
Jay gave a small smile as thanks and opened it. He looked at the mail. He grinned.
He showed the phone first to Cole. “Look at all the deleted emails. I’m correct.”
“He was blackmailed?” Cole guessed.
“Yes!” Jay then went over to Pixal to show her. Cole looked at the body, getting reminded of the bodies back in the war, deaths aren’t that rare but it’s still unsettling. The war was…horrible in terms of morality.
Before Cole could think about the war or anything else, Jay had placed a hand on him, breaking the chain of thoughts away.
“He’s blackmailed by this person who has his child, that means he’s divorced. Blackmailed for money, the sum is huge, about twenty thousands dollars. It has to be in a suitcase. Ink stains meant that he could’ve been writing a will or a letter to his child.”
Cole still felt the gears turning in the head and Jay just continued to explain.
“Revolver, he was going to attack the kidnapper but none of the bullets were shot. He couldn’t fight the killer, he was shot from the back and it seems that the person stepped on him after he was killed. The footprint is like a heel so the killer is a woman. The suitcase with the money was taken and he was left here for the wild coyotes to eat.” Jay then took a very big inhale.
“So, where’s the kid?” Cole asked. Jay thought for a moment before gasping, “I forgot about that! Pixal, did you find the kid?”
Pixal frowned and shook her head. “We’ll start looking now. Though you are correct about almost everything about the victim. But you must know, the man was abusive. The child went with her mother.”
Jay looked stunned at that. “What? Then why would he go to such lengths for his child if he was abusive?”
Cole thought about it for a moment before saying a theory, “maybe he wanted to create a perfect family image for his gain? I mean, he looks rather powerful and wealthy so reputation must’ve mattered.”
Jay gasped loudly and grabbed Cole’s shoulders. He was grinning ear to ear, “you’re right!! He must’ve cared about reputation, my god! Why didn’t I think of that!?”
“His child was kidnapped, he would’ve not batted an eye if it weren’t for his reputation! He wanted to seem like a father wanting to get his child back and who still loves his wife to others, when actually- he doesn’t care at all! He came here to give the money, wanting to get it over with and also wanted to kill the kidnapper for all the trouble he had to go through because of them!” Jay rambled on.
“Before he could shoot the kidnapper– wait.” Jay abruptly stopped. “Oh I have to check something. Be right back!” Jay then ran off into the direction of the woods near the road.
Cole just stared. Until Pixal had asked a question. “We’ve never met. You are?”
Cole let out his hand, “Cole, uh Cole Brookstone.”
“So, why are you here with Jay?” Pixal asked, her green eyes looking at him as if she was analysing him and his background.
“I was looking for a flatmate and my friend who knew Walker, introduced me to him. Then he asked me if I was free and here I am.” Cole replied, shrugging.
“I see. He might be thinking of sharing the apartment above the bookshop.” Pixal muttered.
“Bookshop?”
“Yes. Oh, you’ll see what i’m talking about when Jay takes you there. Hope you three get along.” Pixal smiled and then walked off before Cole could ask questions.
Wait, did she just say three?
Cole looked over at Jay, who looked disappointed while explaining something to Pixal, and raised a brow. He didn’t mention a third flatmate.
“Not a sniper. He was just killed from behind because there were two kidnappers involved. Evidence is in the phone. Kid is at the station, safe so the kidnappers just did it for money. Currently, the police is looking for the kidnappers.” Jay sighed as he told Cole the whole thing.
”You’re not going to help them search?” Cole questioned. “No, they can do that themselves. This case just became boring at the end.” Jay sulked.
“The ink smudges?”
“Ho? You noticed those too? It was nothing, he wrote a letter to the kid’s mom.”
“Oh.”
Cole looked at the frown on Jay’s face and sighed. “You’re great at whatever you do. So uh, don’t feel down.”
Jay perked up after hearing this.
“You’re saying I'm a genius?” Jay beamed. Cole scoffed, “not what i said! Don’t change my words.”
Jay only laughed as he took off his gloves and exited the crime scene. Cole follows, scoffing as Jay continues to laugh.
“Are you hungry, Walker?” Cole asked, because he was hungry. They had been at the crime scene for almost an hour! (It was only 12 minutes)
“I don’t usually eat when doing experiments or cases but it seems like i’m free right now.” Jay smiled and waved a cab down.
“Alright, know any good restaurants?”
“Uh, only the best ones, duh!”
—
Cole and Jay exited the restaurant, they got to know each other better. It was already dark outside so Jay offered to take Cole back to where the former army doctor was currently staying.
They got into a taxi yet again.
“Cole, you play the violin?” Jay suddenly mentions.
“How did you..”
“Your hands. Your left hand is just a bit longer than your right. You’re right handed but your left hand is very strong. Calloused fingertips and your nails seem to never grow and stay short. Must’ve been playing it recently. I narrowed the instruments down to a cello and a violin. Then I realised you could have been taught the right-hand bowing technique, so violin it is.”
Cole looked at his own hands then looked back up at Jay.
“So, how did you know?” Cole asked, “that I was from the Afghan war?”
Jay cracked his fingers as he spoke, “well, first thing is that your form says military yet your hair doesn’t. So you must've been unable to cut your hair before you were sent out to war. Weird, not related to anything, just odd to me.
Your conversation, Plundar mentions other hospital. So military and hospital. Army doctor, maybe. Your face is tanned but there’s no tan above the wrists. You were overseas but weren't sun tanning.
You limp really badly when you walk but you don’t ask for a chair as if you forgot about it. Might be psychosomatic, that means the injuries were traumatic.
Wounded in action, suntan, Afghanistan or Iraq. Not to mention, Ninjago has no parts of the country that’s fighting so those two countries were the last two I deduced”
Jay finishes his explanation, leaving Cole simply baffled.
“Incredible.” Cole simply says, making Jay blurt out a, “huh?”
“Usually people slap me or get irritated.” Jay sheepishly admitted.
“That phone.” Jay points out. “It’s not yours, it’s quite obvious from the engraving. Lou Brookstone. It’s something that isn’t too flashy and it seems abit old. Must be your father.”
Cole seemed to tense up at the mention of his father.
“You’re looking for a flatmate, easier to pay rent but you aren’t staying with your father. You’re temporarily staying in a military pension and didn’t go back home. Must have problems with him.” Jay ends it off at that since he noticed the way Cole’s demeanour changed the moment his father was brought up.
“Oh right!” Cole suddenly snapped his fingers when he remembered, startling Jay.
“Pixal mentioned about three of us. Are we going to be sharing the flat with another person?” As soon as Cole asked, the cab arrived at their destination.
“Well, yeah. As long as you're alright with it.” Jay opened the door and got out.
“Yes. Just wondering why.” Cole pays the driver and gets out. Did they even pay the previous drivers?
“I actually haven’t met them.” Jay admits.
“They run a bookshop. We will be living in this flat upstairs that is big enough for three people.” Jay then turned around to Cole.
“They said to meet them tomorrow in the afternoon.” Jay says, Cole only nodded.
“Well then, goodnight, Walker.”
“Night, Cole.”
—
Jay received a call from Pixal saying that the kidnappers had turned themselves in and the child was safe. Jay was confused as to why they suddenly turned themselves in until Pixal guessed it was the guilt.
Jay sighed and shook his head, he’s so curious so after he moves in, he’ll have to go to the station.
Cole packs up his clothes and his instrument. He gets a text message from Jay.
[Walker]: Bookshop’s name is Book Express. See you there
[Cole]: Okay
Cole had sent a reply but once he walked out with his suitcase, only then he realised.
Where is the bookshop?
Cole wanted to text Jay back, but his phone was dead. He forgot to charge it last night. Now he can only rely on himself to get there…
First thing he did was to ask some shop owners nearby if they knew of the bookshop.
Almost all the shops he went to said that they were unsure. All except the bakery.
A man that was listening to the conversation had given Cole some directions. The reason why most people didn’t know about the bookshop is because Ninjago City is big and also because it’s new.
After making some turns here and there, he made it in one piece.
Cole soon saw Jay walking towards him, waving. He gave a small wave back.
“Well, the owner said to just go in.” Jay shrugged and unlocked the door to the store.
Jay looked around the bookshop and was amazed. There were so many books from all over the world. Cole had to drag Jay to the stairs but he has to admit it himself. This was a pretty nice place.
Once they reached the second floor, the door to the apartment was unlocked. Jay was about to waltz right in but Cole managed to remind him to knock.
No one answered the door.
Jay decided to just walk in before Cole could stop him.
Inside, there was a woman who was holding two bags of luggage. Before Cole could react, Jay was pinned to the ground by the woman, who was now holding a dagger.
“Who are you?” It did not sound like a question but more like a demand.
“Hey! Put the weapon down. I’m Jay Walker and that’s Cole…” Jay trailed off. “Brookstone.” Cole added on for the shorter man.
“We’re here to rent this flat. We aren't intruders so please, let him go.” Cole sighs in relief when the woman lets go of the shorter man and gets up.
“Sorry. I am Nya Smith.” Nya kept the dagger away in her pocket and bowed for trouble.
“I assume Plundar had told both of you about this apartment being available?” Nya questioned. “Yes, uhm. Are you perhaps the landlady?” Cole asks as Jay dusted his pants while getting up.
“No. I’m only helping my elder brother move in. He’s away for work currently but should be back tomorrow morning.” Nya then added, “I will be staying until then.”
“You can start to unpack your stuff now.” Nya says, looking at the pair from head to toe. She was judging them.
Nya reached into her pocket and tossed them two keys. Jay failed to catch the keys whilst Cole caught it with ease. “There’s three rooms on the left. On the right is the kitchen and a guest room.”
“The room that my brother has taken is the door on the right.” Before the two of them could speak, Nya carried the two luggages and silently went to her brother’s room.
Jay nudged Cole gently on the elbow. “She’s kinda cute.” Cole only raised a brow at him.
“What? You don’t like women?” Jay jokingly says. Then stops when realised how silent Cole was.
“Ah.” Jay only smiled. “It’s not like that’s weird dude. Besides, I already figured it out when we had dinner.”
Cole’s tensed shoulders dropped, his eyes no longer showing that fear. He only smiled back, “some genius detective you are.”
Jay only grinned at that. “Well, which room are you taking?” Jay asked as he walked over to the rooms, Cole following behind him.
“The middle one.” Cole says and walks forward to open the door. Jay nodded, he was already planning on taking the one on the left.
–
The phone rang, Nya picked it up immediately.
“Hey.” Nya started off. “They’re already here. They‘re unpacking their stuff.”
“Alright. What’s your thoughts about them?”
“Uh, Walker is weird. Brookstone is decent.”
“Wow. So helpful.” Sarcasm in his voice, Nya only leaned against the table and waited for the next sentence to be said.
“You’ll take care of those two…pawns tonight, right?”
“Yes. Why did you call, brother? We’re seeing each other tomorrow.”
“Dearest sister,” he chuckled. “I was simply checking up on you.”
She only rolled her eyes as her brother's carefree voice.
“If that is it then, goodbye, Kai.”
“Take care, Nya.”
She hung up first.
–
[Somewhere within the police station]
Pixel walked to the cells, to check on the two kidnappers. She gasped when she saw the scene before her.
“Somebody get help right now!” Pixel yelled to the guards near, “the two prisoners are severely injured!”
“Who did this to you two!?” She yelled out as she unlocked the cell. One of them was unresponsive, the other was in a daze smiling.
“Jiang.” The one smiling mutters out.
“Jiang? Who is that? Stay alive! Who are you working for?” Pixal demanded to know as she tried to examine the wounds.
“Monarch…” The one who had been unresponsive had spoken out one word that trailed off.
They both no longer responded.
When help arrived, it was too late.
–