"It's not what it seems, Mai," Gene told her.
Mai watched the twin carefully, taking note of the desperation in his voice. He advised her to more careful than usual, adding she needed to watch over her. The brunette watched him as he led her down a black path. At the end, they came to a brown door with a gold knob. Behind it was a room that looked to be that of a teen's - a boy's to be more specific. Gene put a hand on her shoulder, stopping her from going in any further.
He shook his head at her.
"What is it, Gene? Is something bad going to happen here?"
"Not here," he shook his head again. "Listen to me, Mai. No matter how crazy you'll think you're going, don't rule anything out. Do you understand?" Hesitantly, she nodded. "Good. Wake up before it comes. Wake up...
The office was quiet without the rest of the gang chattering about nonsense. Usually, they were all gathered on the couch, even laughing without a reason. Now that Ayako took more shifts at the hospital and Takigawa was getting back to work at the temple, Mai rarely got to see everyone. Well, the more cases Naru takes, the more time she could regain. But with all that's happened during the Urado case, not many cases are as appealing to Naru as they would have been. He was more careful about the cases he took. Although his ego hasn't faltered, he knew when he was able to handle a case or not. And when one was worth his time or a complete waste of money.
Things needed to start looking up, the way Mai thought. She needed to have another case. After the things she saw in Urado's blood sanctuary, as she thought it, she needed to help people get rid of the evils in their home - or hearts. The events of their last case would make a person want to completely give up on ghost hunting. And at first, she did. But then she realized that if Shibuya Psychic Research didn't help to cleanse things, people could get hurt.
Or worse, die.
Of course, Naru claimed things were more important than dreading the worst. As usual, he was right. Mai couldn't sit around all day in the office and let herself be troubled by the thoughts of death. She had to make her narcissistic boss tea. Stupid, arrogant, jerk, she mentally cursed him while the tea kettle whistled a high pitch.
"Here's your tea," she sat the teacup on the corner of his desk. She noticed there was a lot of paperwork scattered atop it. "What's all this?"
"Paper, obviously," he stated. "Do you need your eyes checked? Our insurance won't cover it."
Flushing in an angry blush, she bit her tongue. "No, I mean what are you researching?"
"We have a new case. There's been a few incidents in a place not too far from here. It's been all over the news and police are trying to cover it."
"Wait, if it's a case for police, why are we taking it?"
He sighed, annoyed. His hand held down the papers, telling Mai to close the window while in the midst of containing his annoyance to a minimum. "Because the clients called. They believe it's a lot more than just a murderer on the loose. From what they tell me, I also believe it's more to it than that. To put it simply, it sounds like a type of demon. So, I'll need you to call everyone and tell them to be ready first thing in the morning to go to the Edogawa district."
"Mai, help Lin with the equipment," Naru demanded the moment they exited the vehicle.
The place was nice. The house was a little more than they expected.
It was a two-story house with a large driveway, big enough for two or three cars. It was the large yard they hadn't been paying attention to until the others set foot out their car.
A woman with dull brown hair and blue eyes stepped out the house to greet them. She was obviously Asian, her petite frame and shiny hair gave it away. However, her eyes weren't as small, in fact, if it weren't for the almond shape, she wouldn't appear that much Japanese.
A little girl with the same brown hair and eyes stepped out, hiding behind her mother's dress. Normally, a lot of children would be outside playing, Mai thought quietly. She looked around past the house's garden walls. It was quiet in a eerie fashion. At her side, Masako stood with a kimono sleeve hiding her pursed mouth. There wasn't anything for her to feel at all. No evil, no hideous aura emitting the house either.
It felt normal, oddly enough.
"You must all be with Shibuya Psychic Research," the woman smiled. Despite the friendly gensture, her eyes appeared exhausted. The bags underneath didn't help her appearance in the slightest either. "I'm Hayami Nao. This is my daughter Sachiko."
Naru shook her hand with a business-like stature. "Shibuya Kazuya. These are my assistants, Lin and Mai. Would you show us to base so that we can setup and start our work?"
"Of course," she lead them into the house with Sachiko following close behind.
Inside the house, things felt homey. There was already blankets sitting on a couch in an upstairs work space. Two chairs sat across the sofa. There was also a table by the sofa, another against a wall, a chair pulled up to it. The walls were a light grey that made Mei feel a little intrigued. It was a pretty grey that almost came to a silver...She shook her head to get back on track.
Lin sat up his laptop, hooking up a desk-jet printer. The monitors sat on either side of them until he put the printer atop one.
"We're going to leave you to your business now, Shibuya-san," Nao guided her daughter out the room by her shoulder.
"Oh, Hayami-san," Naru called out to her. "My crew will be setting up cameras and such around the house. Don't be alarmed if you run into one."
"Thank you for letting me know," she shut the door quietly.
To Ayako and Takigawa, he said, "I want you two to start setting cameras up downstairs then work your way up. John and Mai, you'll start up here to take temperatures of rooms then work your way downstairs."
Mai blinked at Masako, who sat on the couch smugly staring back at her. "W-What about Masako? Doesn't she have to do anything?"
"She's a medium. What can she do but give sight on spirits? She'll do that while she's up here. Get to work," Naru barked.
Grumbling about the pretty ones always getting away with things, Mai stomped off.
John carried the clipboard and thermometer, hurrying after her.
Mai never did understand why Masako was always able to get away with not doing anything on a case. All she ever did was claim to feel a spirit then act week and fall onto Naru. That always was such an obviously fake act. How the almighty Naru was never smart enough to realize it, she'd never know. Perhaps he enjoyed having someone as attractive as her always fawning over him. Teh, she breathed.
John asked if she was alright, earning a tired "yeah." She apologized for running off and leaving him to carry everything. It was never easy ignoring him, the priest sympathized. She offered to record the temperatures since he had to put up with her rudeness a few seconds ago. Even when she was angry, she managed to apologize, he thought with a chuckle.
They had all but two rooms finished upstairs: the base and a single bedroom. They were going to open the door when Sachiko appeared around the corner, her footsteps catching their attention.
They looked over their shoulders.
"You're Sachicho, right," John asked.
Mai seemed happy. "We'll just go in then come right back out."
Her eyes gave off a sad and scared expression. One that said she knew something.
A pigtail fell over her shoulder as she tilted her head in thought. Feet were scurrying up the stairs. She whispered that it was her onii-chan coming home. Mai saw a boy with shaggy black hair and the same blue eyes as Sachiko and Nao's. He was tall, almost taller than Naru, but of course, he had nothing on Lin's height. He looked from his little sister to Mai and John then back at the pigtails.
"Who are they? And why are they about to go in my room?"
"Who are you," Mai asked. She blushed, realizing how rude it sounded.
"I'm Kentaro," he said with understanding now. "I get it. You're the ones that Kaa-san called? Why do rooms get their temperature taken though?"
John shook his hand, introducing himself and Mai. He then said, "It's to gather information. Usually, a room will be colder than average temperature if a little paranormal activity is near or taking place in it. We want to make sure to get all rooms, like usual."
"And the arguing weird-o's downstairs setting up cameras?"
Mai laughed. "That's Ayako and Bou-san. They fight like that normally. They're setting up cameras to catch anything we may not see during the night or something."
"Oh," he said again. "Well, if you need to, go ahead and take its temperature. Doubt anything'll show up, but it's worth taking, I suppose. I'll be downstairs, if you need me. Oh, yeah. Sachiko, Kaa-san needed you downstairs for a second."
With that, they both descended down the stairs. Odd, John thought as he opened the bedroom door finally. Mai's eyes widened as she stepped into the room.
I-It was just like the one that Gene showed her the other night. Its walls were the same color, the bed's covers in place. The only thing that was missing was the trunk at the end of the bed. The room was simple, but the feeling she got made her tell John it gave her a weird vibe.
"I have a weird vibe just being in this house," Ayako said from the doorway, causing the priest and assistant to jump. "Reporters are even staying away from here now." They gave her a weird look. "What, you guys haven't watched the news? There's a murderer in this neighborhood and people are pointing fingers at this house. Didn't Naru tell you, Mai? John? Heh, doesn't surprise me. He always thinks he can handle something, doesn't he? A baby-sitter and two guys were killed. Gruesome murders too - a kidney removed and a liver...one boy was skinned - alive."
Mai gasped, a hand over her mouth. "What?! And Naru let us come here?! Without telling us anything?!"
"You know he has good reason," Takigawa appeared by Ayako. "If he told us, I sure wouldn't have come."
"But why are we here?" John asked. "If this is something so sick, we should let the police handle this."
"I'm sure not asking him why," Takigawa shrugged. "That guy's glare is almost lethal."
By the time they finished their given tasks, it was three hours past lunch time. The moment they entered base, Naru instructed Masako to walk with John and interview the mother. He needed more details about their investigation; Lin was steady researching what he could get from the online media.
Disgusting, he read graphic details on the screen. He scribbled notes, even copying and pasting things into the electronic memo-pad.
While she sat not doing much of anything, Mai couldn't help but let her mind wonder to that night. Seemed like just last night that she confessed to her boss. And of course, as she expected, he broke her heart.
Like she'd really be in love with his twin, she thought.
She should have never told him that she knew he had a twin. That he was English. Or that he wasn't even really Shibuya Kazuya. Why did she even feel that he had a right to know what in HER heart? It would have been better if she'd kept quiet, kept it a secret from him. Not only did he break her heart, but he made her feel foolish for even thinking he would have a heart to bite back any type of sarcastic remarks.
How could someone as smart as him be as stupid as to believe she only thought of him as a substitute for his murdered twin?
He could have at least answered that question.
"Instead of spacing out, make yourself useful and make me some tea," Naru broke into her thoughts. Flinching, she hadn't realized she'd been spacing out again. "Really, as much as you space out, you're beginning to portray yourself as a real airhead."
"You don't have to be such a jerk about it! One of these days, I'm not going to do as you command, like a dog!" She slammed the door shut behind her.
Lin turned his chair around to give him that infamous look.
Sighing, the narcissist wondered when she'd start to think rationally. If she'd remember not to go off on her own when he tells her not to, she wouldn't be injured as much on cases. Though, he did suppose he caused her to run off half the time. With an unknown suspect running around the neighborhood, stealing organs, one would think she'd be smart enough not to give it an opportunity to kill her.
Like sleeping at the foot of the second story's stairs...
He saw the brunette curled up, sleeping already. He tapped her leg with his foot, making sure she was alright (alive). When she mumbled in her sleep and turned on her side, he saw her tear stained cheeks. Instantly and regrettably, he felt guilty. Why did this girl always make him feel bad for being himself?
Picking her up, he made sure not to wake her. He laid her on the couch at base with Lin's eyes watching from the back of his head. It was almost like he knew everything that was going on.
Damn Shiki, the teen cursed.
They were always telling him what Naru was up to, even when he told them to "sod off."