A New Case chapter 28
A/N: WARNING: DO NOT READ IF YOU ARE ONLY READING THE
VERSION. SPOILERS. DON'T SAY I DIDN'T WARN YOU.
~~~~~Gee's POV~~~~~
"Do you know what's the most valuable thing on the black market nowadays?" He suddenly asked.
"How should I know? Drugs?" I snapped.
"No, no no. People want to live longer. They aren't going to take nasty drugs that kill you! No, what they want is..." he grinned feverishly. "Organs." He declared. A horrible realization dawned over me. The table...
"Oh god..." I muttered out loud, straining against the straps even harder. The sick, twisted, insane bastard...
"Oh yes. A healthy woman's organs are very, very expensive. A kidney's worth...16,000 pounds to the right buyer. Imagine your heart. Or your eyes. Or your lungs. Bone marrow's very expensive—at least 100,000 if it's healthy. Contary to what people think, you're not worthless. In fact a healthy human body is worth 500,000 pounds at the least. Not so shabby, wouldn't you say?" He grinned derangedly.
"And now here's the problem...I don't have any anasthesia." He said, letting that sink in. It sank in like a punch to the gut. This bastard was going to dissect me alive and without any sort of painkillers. I was going to die. My mind flashed back to all the images of the kids. I was going to be doomed to the same fate. I never thought I would get killed like this! No...
"No...stop..." I whimpered. He picked up a scalpel.
"Sorry doll. You played with fire. Now you're going to get burned." He grinned. I was screaming before the knife even cut into my flesh.
Pain. Pure, raw, pain. Never stopping, uncontrollable, undescribable, pain. That was all I felt. I'd gotten a bone broken once before. Gotten a lot of bruises. Nothing could've prepared me for this. My body was literally being ripped apart piece by piece. The sickening sound of bone snapping, the disgusting squelch as each lump of quivering flesh was torn out...it all proved as the gruesome BGM for my slow, painful death. My face was wet from all of the tears and mucus as I cried and screamed.
I'd gotten a small burn once before. It had hurt like crap, smarting and throbbing, for days. Now it was being multiplied by a thousand, stinging and throbbing and sending uncontrollable spasms through my body, nerves on overdrive from the sheer amount of pain signals it was sending to each and every corner of my body. My vocal cords gave out from the stress, coughing up blood and me choking on it. Witch burnings would've hurt less than this. I wanted it to all end. Someone, anyone, please...stop...this...
The last thing I ever saw was the fireworks I had seen once as a kid. They flashed and popped until nothingness consumed all.
There was nothing for the longest time. Then...there was something. A supernova exploded in the darkness.
Now I was in a tunnel, shining with white light. I didn't feel tired, scared, or hurt. Someone kept calling to me at the end of it, and it mingled with singing, pure and sweet, tangible and strong as a hug. I kept running toward it. I somehow knew someone I loved was waiting for me over there. Someone I would rather die without. As I ran toward it, I heard L's monotonous voice, echoing throughout the path.
"Why did Kay put me up to it...I...ah...please, forgive me if I say anything stupid. I am not good at dealing with emotions. But I do know that...I feel affection for you in a way different from my family. I...guess this is what they call...love? I do not know, but I do not want you to die, and apparently this helps...I love you." His voice seriously cracked on the last word. Fueled by a need to stop him from hurting, I ran straight into the light.
I slowly opened my eyes. Was this...Heaven? It sure didn't look like Hell. Sunlight streamed in through an open window and glittered on various bottles and a glass-topped table. Two woven rocking chairs stood around it, cushions lining the seat and back. A shelf full of books stood to one end. Birds chirped and twittered outside. The white, clean room was scented with herbs and flowers. I was lying on a comfy bed with white cotton sheets, dressed in some kind of airy clothing. There was a memory of pain in the back of my mind, but now I was cool and comfortable and wide-awake. It felt like a resort. I lifted up the shirt and gasped. There was no wound, not even a scar. Just clean, unbroken skin, though I was quite a bit skinnier. Just then, the door opened, and Kay walked in. Huh? Her face brightened up completely at the sight of me.
"Gee! You're awake!" She said, grinning happily. Compared to the miserable girl from the weeks past, she seemed like an entirely new person.
"Am I dead?" I asked, dumbfounded. She shook her head.
"Nope. You're still on Earth." She replied, coming over and sitting down next to the bed.
"How? I-I mean...there was that guy...he was ripping my organs out..." I muttered. I lifted up my shirt again to check. Nope. No wounds. Had I seriously dreamt the whole thing or something?
"Well...Gee, I think it's time we told you another family secret." She said, grinning michievously this time. And with that she unfolded two giant black wings sprouting from her back.
My mouth dropped open. I wasn't even kidding on this one. They were feathery and black as a raven's, and shone in the light. Like angel wings. Except they were black.
"What...who..." I stammered.
"I'm an angel. Oh, that feels good." She said, flapping them.
"Then...the glowing Sprite. That was you." I stated. She nodded.
"Magic. I can use magic. It's how I healed you. Oh, and also...the rest of them are angels too. Everyone under this roof, even Watari." She answered. With that, the rest of the boys and Watari shuffled in, almost rehearsed. All of them had white angel wings in varying sizes. Then I noticed that hers was the only one that was black.
"Why are yours black?" I asked. Her smile turned bitter.
"I'm what they call a halfling. I'm half angel and half demon. And don't ask how it happened. It just did." She replied. Okay...how did that happen? It was obvious she didn't want to talk about it though, so I let it be.
"You guys can all use magic?" I asked. They nodded.
"Yes. But Tom and Kay were born angels, so they're stronger. A lot stronger. We were turned into angels, so we're not quite as strong. But yes." Mello added.
"I'm kinda jealous though." I said. They burst into laughter again.
"Oh, and also...you heard L saying something to you, right?" Kay asked. His words suddenly came back to me. Saying he loved me.
"Yeah." I replied. Had it been real? I wanted it so badly to be real.
"It was real. Every last bit." She said. L actually blushed a bit. Yes, L. Robot boy. I couldn't believe it, and at the same time happiness flared inside my heart.
"I love you too." I said without hesitating. A smile ran over his face, remaining for the longest time yet. They all started clapping.
"We'll leave you two alone, but before I do, take this." She handed me a small cup of bright blue liquid.
"It's a strength potion. Tastes great." She told me. I shrugged and downed it. Mm. It tasted like fruit juice. She took the cup and threw it in the trash can, then shuffled out with her brothers, leaving me and L alone.
~~~~~Kagami's POV~~~~~
I teleported back to the house to find them all standing around.
"What is it?" I asked.
"Kay, tap into your empathy link. Gee's not answering her cell phone." L ordered. I nodded and concentrated...to be met with pain, so raw and so terrible I screamed.
"Oh my gods. She's in trouble." I said in Angelic, panicking. I tended to use my birth tongue when I was panicking or terrified. Which was both right now.
"We have to go." Tom said, grabbing his gun. I nodded and drew my silver twin blades, affectionately named Psycho and Killer. I would've taken My Little Friend, but I needed the extra power. We grabbed each other's hand and teleported to the place.
It was a warehouse, and a man was standing over a table spattered with blood. Gee was strapped to it, her stomach cut open and a lot of her insides removed. Oh my gods...the man turned around, shocked.
"How did you—" He didn't get a chance, because Tom pistol-whipped him cold, then stomped on his fingers, breaking them. He whipped out a cell phone and began dialing MI6 while I started casting enchantments—she was barely hanging on.
"Agent 1987. I need backup. Track my cell and hurry the fuck up. We have a killer here." He snapped, flipping it shut. He then cuffed him to one of the support beams. He put a hand on both of us and teleported instantly to the apothecary I had built into the house.
While Tom laid her on the sanitized table, I grabbed my herb kit out of the Realm and told him to mix a potion for blood loss, knife wounds, and scars. I'd taught him to help me in heavy-duty situations like this. While he mixed the herbs, I started scanning her memory to help me heal her. With severe wounds like this I'd need to know her better than her own mom. At first, she rejected me, but soon gave in.
I went through each memory as fast as I could. I watched her when she was a little kid, watching a crystal-growing kit intensely. That period was full of childish joy, but also sadness, anger, and hurt as she realized her dad was gone.
Then I started getting into darker years. I watched as she was bullied for being a nerd and for hanging out with a gay kid. I felt intense protection for each of her friends, and the simple contentment of watching movies and shows that she loved. Which was also how she got her fear of deer.
I found intense gratitude to Teddy Harper, who saved her from the building and her determination to become an officer. I also found her deep fear of fire and losing someone whom she cared for.
Sorrow and grief took hold of her after his death, but soon went away and she started up as a detective.
I found anger and hurt at some of her past boyfriends. But then I found some interesting things about L. And us.
She had quite a mixture of feelings toward him—love, lust, annoyance, and confusion. I watched as she solved the killer case with him, then a few others after. As for us...she had a mix as well. She was affectionate towards all of us, and had a few different ones for Tom and me. She was angry at Tom for being so apathetic about death, but then it dissolved into sympathy as she found out what had happened to us both, though I really didn't agree on her description of Auntie and Uncle. They were as far from bastards as they could get. Then at the end I found pain, searing, uncontrollable, and deadly.
I snapped out of my trance and started chanting to heal the serious wounds. Purple hieroglyphs came from my lips and sank into her body, healing it and growing new organs. They attached themselves to each other and slowly grew until they were fully back to normal. Then the giant wound started to close up, and I felt myself getting more and more tired with each second.
"Tom, tell L what he needs to do." I managed to mutter before I passed out.
I woke up again later, lying on my bed as the sun shone down. My head throbbed and my muscles felt like jelly. A sour taste pervaded my mouth and my tongue was like sandpaper. Tom was there, sitting beside me. Keeping an eye on me. I appreciated the gesture.
"Did...she make it? " I croaked. In order for her to regain consciousness, someone close to her heart like L had to call her back. I could only hope L had understood.
"Yeah. She'll be fine now. She's resting. L really does love her. You need something?" He replied.
"Water." I said. He grabbed a glass and helped me drink. While he did he filled me in on the details.
"They caught him, and he confessed to everything in exchange for a lifetime sentence. Gave us a lot of new leads during the past week that you were out. I took the special liberty of wiping any memories related to us. Oh, and they found incriminating evidence that Ian murdered the four kids and the two parents. Real footage of him murdering those people. They released Ilya, and he wanted to see you. I let the guy see you when you were out. Um, hope that's okay. And...you know, if you like him, I say go for it." He said jokingly, his eyes flickering with...was that sadness? I grinned weakly, relieved that Ilya was okay.
"I don't like him in that way. He's like my brother, and that's it. I like someone else. He doesn't like me in that way either. I don't think he's got the right mentality for it yet." I replied. He shrugged, but I could see a hint of relief. I still wondered why.
"Anyway, are we still on for this weekend's concert?" He asked. Oh yeah...it was three days from now.
"Definitely. We deserve to party after all the shit." I answered.
"Yeah, like having to hide your angel form for an entire month, and Ilya getting arrested, and Gee getting her guts ripped out by a psychopath..." He listed. I laughed.
"Yep. I'd say a break is in order." I remarked. He laughed and helped me drink an energy potion. I downed it and felt the strength return to my muscles. I hopped out of bed.
"I want to pay a visit to our new sister-in-law. Even though in-laws are fussy, demanding, and hypocritical." I said, grinning.
"Alright. You dug your grave." He replied cheerfully. I walked into the apothecary, a renovated room for any healing business that was cleverly hidden in the hallway. Gee was up, looking a bit confused but otherwise healthy. She saw me, and looked quite shocked by it.
"Gee! You're awake!" I said, grinning happily. Ilya and Gee were safe and I felt giddy enough to float.
"Am I dead?" She asked, dumbfounded. I shook my head.
"Nope. You're still on Earth." I replied, coming over and sitting down next to the bed.
"How? I-I mean...there was that guy...he was ripping my organs out..." She muttered. She lifted up her shirt again to check. Now for the grand unveil.
"Well...Gee, I think it's time we told you another little family secret." I said, amused. And with that I unfolded my wings in all their glory. Her mouth dropped open.
"What...who..." She stammered.
"I'm an angel. Oh, that feels good." I said, flapping them. Well, to be exact, half.
"Then...the glowing Sprite. That was you." She stated. I nodded, and silently cursed myself for that incident.
"Magic. I can use magic. It's how I healed you. Oh, and also...the rest of them are angels too. Everyone under this roof, even Watari." I answered. With that, the rest of the family and a recently-returned Watari shuffled in. All of them had their wings out.
"Why are yours black?" She asked. My smile turned a bit sour.
"I'm what they call a halfling. I'm half angel and half demon. And don't ask how it happened. It just did." I replied defensively. She asked no further.
"You guys can all use magic?" She asked. We nodded.
"Yes. But Tom and Kay were born angels, so they're stronger. A lot stronger. We were turned into angels, so we're not quite as strong. But yes." Mello added.
"I'm kinda jealous though." She said. We burst into laughter again.
"Oh, and also...you heard L saying something to you, right?" I asked.
"Yeah." She replied, almost afraid of the answer. I was all too happy to tell her.
"It was real. Every last bit." I said. L actually blushed. Yes, L. I couldn't believe it. I never thought I'd live to see the day. Which was saying a lot, seeing as we were immortal. Provided we were left alone, of course.
"It was." He muttered. Aww!
"I love you too." She said without hesitating. He smiled briefly, and we started clapping. I decided to give them some peace.
"We'll leave you two alone, but before I do, take this." I handed her a small cup of strength potion.
"It's a strength potion. Tastes great." I told her. She shrugged and downed it. I took the cup and threw it in the trash can, then shuffled out with my brothers, leaving her and L alone.
