The Contingency Plan

Chapter 13

Pyrrhic

With some difficulty, Ran managed to pull him the rest of the way back onto the safety of the path. The last of the effort required her to anchor her feet on a rock as a pivot and heave backwards with the sum of her weight. When the point of critical mass arrived, the laws of physics proved to still be in effect.

She fell onto her back, dragging Kudo down with her. He landed on his hands and knees, straddling her, coming to a rest mere centimeters from her face.

Between sheer exhaustion and the adrenaline dump, her mind only processed notions of the world around her. And the world around her was him. His body shielding her from the rain. The warmth of his breath on her cheek. His bright, passionate eyes focused solely on her. There was something mystifying, serene, and tragic in those eyes that caused her heart to race. She blushed deeply. "Shinichi!"

"I hurt you."

"No, I'm okay."

Flustered, he looked away. It had to be done. By him, right now, while he still had his wits. Insanity was calling on him with all the sweet nothings with which sleep tempts the weary. It took all his focus, all of his will to keep his mind grounded in reality. Sooner or later, the strain would win, and the moment he relaxed, it would all be gone.

She deserved the truth, not from professor Agasa, not from his parents nor Haibara, but with his own voice. "I'm sorry, Ran." He said.

"It's okay."

"No, it's not. There's something I have to tell you."

She cupped a hand on his cheek. "Shinichi, it's alright. Really"

"I don't know how much more time I have."

"That's just it. I..." She tried to interject, but he was determined.

"Please, Ran. Listen. I don't know how to say this, but the truth is, I...I..."

She pulled him down by the collar, bringing him to silence with a kiss. "I already know." She said gently.

All the wondrous charm her lips imparted disappeared as if it was a dream. He looked more hurt than ever by the sudden admission. "You do?"

"Your client already told me. But it's alright. I have the antiserum."

"Antiserum!?" He exclaimed.

"Yeah! I grabbed it from lieutenant Grierson's pocket when he took me hostage. That's why I took so long getting free." She gave a little exasperated huff. "He had a lot of pockets."

Every volt of energy Kudo Shinichi had left in his body escaped in a tired little laugh. He brushed a strand of hair from her face. "You are, without a doubt, the most incredible person I have ever known."

Together, they got to their feet and made their way south towards the makeshift landing zone, running into Akai halfway up the road. His pistol was drawn, but upon seeing the two, all urgency in his bearing ceased. Without exchanging a word, he seemed to understand what had happened and holstered the weapon to help carry Kudo back to the group.

Putting him down next to Shiho by the lighthouse, Akai provided the trio with water bottles, a med kit, and space blankets before joining Jodie to stabilize Andre Camel for transport.

Shiho quietly administered the antiserum with the spare syringe she hid in her stocking. The relief was near instantaneous. Within minutes, the pain had completely cleared, the pressure evaporated, and his vision came back into alignment.

They then put a splint on Shiho's leg and proceeded to bind and bandage the rest of their wounds as best as possible.

The storm had started to break by the time they were done, the crimson hue of the sky giving way to the majestic blues and purples of an approaching dawn as the fire aboard La Paloma was extinguished. This allowed a flood of first responders and law enforcement to wash over the island.