204 How to respect the dead?

tired, ren steps out of the interrogation room. he hasn't slept for long. the officers pay no heed to them. he sighs, wondering what he should do now. he doesn't see takeshi anywhere. he's probably gone. he sighs and walks toward the exit. nina is dead and he couldn't save her. she died right in front of him and he couldn't protect her. if he didn't stay by her side, she would have survived. if she didn't leave the motel, she would have lived. 

he knows that the dark hackers' boss would have found her even if she hid in the motel. even nina knew it. even rie couldn't keep nina safe. will they go after rie now? 

"mr kawamoto." he hears a cool and detached voice. he turns around. iori's cousin is walking toward him with a straight face. her eyes are dark and emotionless.

"kamiyama takeshi is waiting for you outside." she stares at him. there are dark circles around his eyes. he looks like he will collapse at any time. this idiotic man looks like this for a woman whom he met only a few days ago. 

it's been years since she started working as a coroner. she has seen plenty of corpses, but she has never seen a corpse with a smile. considering that the woman was assassinated, shock or fear would have been more appropriate. then, who is she to tell the dead what to feel during their last moments? why would any woman have that kind of smile for a man she only met a few days ago? 

yamashina chiyo narrows her eyes on ren. what kind of specimen is he? 

under her scrutinising dark eyes, goosebumps start to rise on his spine. he gulps and steps back. why does he attract weird women's attention? he gives her a slight bow and turns around to leave.

she blinks her eyes when he stops and looks back at her with clear eyes. "miss yamashina, when can i come and get nina?"

come and get nina? the woman is already dead. she frowns at him. "nina's corpse?"

his heart clenches when he hears her say that. so cruel! do people only become a corpse after they die? he knits his brows. "don't call her that."

"what did i call her?" she raises her brow and chuckles. there are people who get offended when she calls their loved ones a corpse. but, she's merely stating a fact. when a person dies, that person becomes a corpse. "she's dead. what do we call the dead?"

"had nobody taught you how to respect the dead?" ren glares at her. 

"to me, dead is dead. they don't need respect." she cocks her head. "they can't care whether someone respects them or not. only the living ones are sensitive about these matters."

ren clenches his jaw and fists his hands. he doesn't want to argue with this strange woman.  "just tell me when i can come to get her."

"you can't." yamashina chiyo crosses her arms and raises her chin. "there is a procedure. if she has no family left, then only --"

she pauses and scrutinizes his expression. there's no change. he doesn't know much about nina. she lets out a sigh. she doesn't understand living beings. she doesn't want to understand either. she snorts, "you know nothing about nina vasiliev, but you get offended on her behalf. i doubt she would care about someone disrespecting her after she died."

"she was my friend," he replies to her with a low voice. "she died, but does that mean that her existence is wiped out from this world? nina existed in this world. even if it was only for a few days, she was a part of my world. even if she died, she will always be a part of my past and she will remain in my heart."

what a hypocrite! she rolls her eyes. "if you care so much about her, you should have been honest. you would have told us what you know. i called her a corpse and you are offended. what about her murderer? should you not be doing something for her? is giving her a proper burial enough for your friend?"

ren inhales sharply. though she's right, he can't speak the truth. there's rie. she already has dh's boss as her enemy. if the world finds out that she's 'instant', she will never be able to come out of hiding. it's already dangerous for her right now. he has his reasons. this woman will never understand. he doesn't want to explain either.

the cold smile on her lips is rather provoking. "someone will contact you after the formalities are done."

she watches him leave right away. chiyo huffs and walks back to her lab. the man didn't break once. usually, they would get mad and reveal some information. he's not smart enough to see through her manipulating words either. who is he trying to protect and how is this murder connected to the kamiyama family? 

usually, she wouldn't care. but, that corpse's smile keeps appearing before her eyes. who can delve into the secrets of the kamiyama family? she's curious about this red-headed man who seems breakable only on the surface.

bitter, ren opens the car door and gets in. takeshi opens his eyes and looks at him. ren seems exhausted. he tells him with a warning in his eyes, "kawamoto-san, i hope that everything was okay and you told them the truth. let's talk about the details at home."

leaning back, ren gives him a nod. he looks at iori who has her eyes closed. this moment isn't right to talk about those matters. ren closes his eyes. though he cleaned himself earlier, he still feels like he's slathered with nina's blood. "sure, i am taking a nap. wake me up when we reach home."

takeshi glances at iori and notices her nose twitch. she woke up around fifteen minutes ago, but she is still pretending to sleep. he shakes his head. this idiot thinks that he can't tell her whether she's asleep or not. he has known her for years. since he's a childhood friend, there are certain benefits of being a childhood friend. he's going to exploit those benefits well.