The Boy With The Blank Stare: Future

Chapter Twelve: Doubt

Saihara's POV:

"The problem is I believe you more than your Uncle"

Those words still rang clear in my head even days later as I carried on my school work, I didn't think this work was that important. I mean, the case needed my attention much more than any math assignment but since my father was also homeschooling me there was no getting around those assignments.

At least he was doing his own research on school budgets, so far he found twelve other schools with similar traits to Ouma's. Something told me there was much more, the rabbit hole was opening up...and I was ready to jump in.

But those words that father had said, his doubts about my Uncle...it dwelled in my heart as well. My Uncle, who didn't seem to care about the case enough to fight my father on letting me stay at that town, a man who didn't investigate his own daughter's death when he had several living witnesses to tell him the truth, what had stopped him from the search?

Why wasn't he helping me? He wanted me to be there, he wanted me to discover the truth on my own terms. That I can understand, but for what reasons? How was my cooperation in this case necessary? And if it was, why did he wait so long?

There was also the matter of Ouma and his lack of protection, he should be in some sort of witness protection program or should have been interrogated surrounding the case. I could understand why they didn't when he was still unresponsive but it seems at least from what he told me he was able to communicate through sign language for at least half of that time post the incident.

My uncle knows sign language, and if he thought it would interfere with casework or show bias he could have just hired an interpreter to help then. He had the resources, time, and credibility yet he used none of that. Instead, he gave that case to me.

It hurt thinking of him in this way if the man I had looked up to almost my entire life turned out to not be the person I thought he was...what do I do though?

Ouma's district was still in his jurisdiction, and it's not like I would magically become a hired detective and take control of the area. I haven't even graduated yet, or gone to college to get my necessary degrees or training to become a detective, and I certainly didn't have that much time to wait. Who knows how long I even had till the statute of secrecy ran out on this case, so even if it was brought to life it wouldn't matter. Along with the pressure of each passing day, even more, evidence is being lost to the forces of nature and cover up.

Instead, I needed to convince my Uncle that enough is enough, he can't just stick to the sidelines anymore and he needs to work with me on this case. That's what my father would say, he wouldn't have even waited nearly as long as I have yet...I can't say that to him...no I just don't want to do this.

Maybe I'm a coward as well, for not being able to confront him, knowing I would be shaking and panicking as I did.

I gave up on my assignment as a migraine came on again, I quickly grabbed my phone and checked to see if I had received a response from my Uncle when I asked when I could come back, framing it as a check-up with Ouma...

Unanswered.

Ouma hasn't talked to me since the day I left either...I paused and checked my contacts, Kiibo had stopped talking to me altogether, he usually at least sent one message a day asking if I was fine or talking about Ouma but he too had fallen silent despite my frequent messages.