Remember Not To Breathe…
By: CagedRaven
Chapter two:
One more tally, one more case
The area had moister in the air. The mirrors were coated with fog so thick that it wasn't possible to see your own reflection. The small area had a smell to it, like urine and feces, mixed with the smell of bad chicken. The door was closed tight, even though no one was on the other side. Knocking on the front door could be heard loudly through out the apartment building. The knocking turned into pounding and threats of them kicking down the door.
But all they got was the same answer over and over again, silence…
Finally breaking down the front door they were greeted by nothing in the small apartment. Until they heard running water…
In the room was a tub, in the tub a woman. In the woman there was emptiness. Her long blonde hair floated away from her, the dye staining the water with a yellow tint; however, it was not just from her hair dye. Her body was nude, submerged under the dirty water, and her dark gray eyes open.
A phone ringing in one officer's coat packet was heard by all, knocking the newbie's out of their trance, while others took Polaroid pictures of the body before the medical examiner's were called to the seen of the murder.
"Yea, she's dead…" the officer trailed.
"…The case of Amber Klean still goes on unsolved for two weeks now. Law officers found where Dottie Klean had been at staying, only to discover her dead in the apartment. She died the same way as her daughter; drowning not in a lake but in her tub. Medical examiner's say they found bruises on her arms, showing there was a struggle, and their leaning toward this case being a murder. The boyfriend of Amber's is named Edmond White. Her mother gave his name to the officers before she was killed. We do not have any other information at this time. The victims' husband had no comment; others say he's in mourning."
"In later news, a fire that has started about a half an hour ago still burns strongly as fire fighters try to putt out the building complex. So far only three people have had to be sent to the nearest hospital with burns—"
"Grandpa, you're watching the news again? I'm sure not much has changed since three this afternoon," his grandson said, walking in the house with his soccer ball, his mother right behind him.
The sun was setting; the sky had a red-orange tint to it. If you looked hard enough, there was a line of purple on the horizon; however, that was only for the eyes of an artist. Soon the moon would be out along with the stars. A cool breeze blew softly, swaying the leaves.
The grandfather shushed Souta, wanting to listen to the rest of the only show that made him feel he still knew what was going on in the world.
"Kagome will be here in a few hours, right?" the teenager asked his mother, choosing to ignore his grandfather and let him watch the depressing news.
Mrs. Higurashi looked at her golden watch, reading the time. She didn't read it out loud, but nodded to her son. The flight would be almost a day's worth in hours, and she knew Kagome had flown it before; however, she heard from her daughter that Inuyasha wasn't really a flier. Well at least this long flight wouldn't be his first…
"When she gets in, wake me up if I'm sleeping okay?" Souta smiled, wondering how this Inuyasha really was. The family had never met him, but Kagome's mother respected her daughter's wishes to marry him, having only seen photos of him when Kagome sent them through the mail, or e-mailed them.
The wedding was another story…
They didn't know where to have it, with it being in New York all Kagome's friends and coworkers could come; however, she didn't know if her grandfather would be up for a plane ride with the arthritisin his knees.
With it in Japan, at least Sesshoumaru and Rin would be able to go, but the friends again. It wasn't even a money problem; many people had different feeling on flying on an airplane for ten hours, or just flying in general.
"Well in would be, seeing as how she left tonight, we wont see her until tomorrow, so go take a shower and then go to bed," she said, pointing her index finger up the stairs.
Souta sighed. "Fine."
The plane ride was long, too long if you asked Inuyasha. When were they going to land? He was already missing the feel of cement under his shoes, and the cities taxi car drivers that seemed to almost always run him over. Moving his golden eyes over to the sleeping from to his left, near the window was his fiancé. Her red framed glasses hanging on the neck of his own shirt; afraid she would break them. She was smart; in some of his sweat pants that were four sizes too big for her, and one of her own black tank tops with a matching hooded sweater to the pants.
She told him to wear his sweats too; thank god he'd listened this time. In jeans he would have been dieing. His outfit was a dark blue, while Kagome wore one of his white sweat suits. His own shirt was white underneath. Kagome teased him that morning, saying that they matched in reverse. He didn't pay it any mind.
Maybe he should take a nap too…
The plane rocked with turbulence, and Inuyasha stretching that idea off his list. How was Kagome able to be so relaxed? Well, maybe because she wasn't the one who had to meet her new mother in law. But even when she met his brother she was relaxed, and had even said that he seemed nice…Sesshoumaru? All the other girls he brought home either tried to run off with him only to get there heart broken by his bitter words, or said he was so cold and seemed uncaring.
Well hopefully her family would like him too. Inuyasha thought to himself as he tried to relax again.
The plane rocked again, this time going a little down, making Inuyasha's stomach go up. A loud beep was heard, causing Inuyasha to start up his anxiety until he realized the plane were landing. Ignoring the captain speaking over the intercom, Inuyasha moved in his seat. Leaning over Kagome to open the small window shade, his eyes were greeted to nothing but darkness. It was night time in Japan, which was kind of funny because they left at night in New York.
The plane dipped down again this time thankfully it was a little less noticeable.
"Kagome…" Repeating her name again while nudging her shoulder, Inuyasha grinned when she opened brown her eyes, blinking a few times before focusing on him.
Before she could ask anything, she felt the plane dip. "Are we here?" she asked, rubbing her eyes and yawning.
"Yeah, just got here really," Inuyasha said, and then noticing that she was trying to read her watch, he handed Kagome her glasses.
"Thanks, do you think I could put on my phone now?" she asked as she pulled it out of her black purse.
"I say wait until we get off first. Your mother's going to pick us up, or are you just going to get a car?" He really had no idea.
"I told you I was going to get a car while you get the bags. Just remember, lime green."
He rolled his eyes. "How could I forget…"
Kagome stood on the line to get a rental car, holding the information she needed to get a cop car. She had to remember she was there for business. Somehow…
The case was glued on her mind. First they thought the mother killed her own daughter, everyone found it weird how both Dottie and Edmond disappeared after the call they had on call records. But after the find of the mother's body in an apartment ten miles away from were Edmond lived and fifth-teen from her own house, the thought of someone else killing Amber came to mind. But there was still the possibility that Dottie did kill Amber, but maybe someone else killed Dottie. Or suicide from guilt, it could have been that too.
Kagome's first person on her list was Edmond White. Still missing after three weeks. Getting a search warrant was easy as Kagome heard. The judge had a daughter Amber's age and wanted this killer in jail soon.
She would have to look into seeing Edmond's home herself.
She heard he seemed to live by himself. He was still getting mail, and they'd found letters from his father and mother. They opened them of course, reading every line. After calling his parents, they found out they were devoiced and thought that he was living with the other.
When asked if they knew were he would be, the parents told the officer they didn't even know he had a girlfriend, let alone where he could be. Bad parenting skills, very bad. How could you not know where your son was? Didn't they call him at all…? Kagome recalled how many times her own mother called her, long distance and all.
Kagome pulled out a piece of folded paper that had the name of the cop that was on the case, along with his picture. He was very handsome; his dark blue eyes stood out on this tanned skin. In the picture he had his long black hair pulled up into a pony tail. His lips didn't smile.
'Kouga Wolf…' His name had a little ring to it…
"Next in line!"
Kagome looked up, seeing no one in front of her as she walked over to the woman behind the glass, most likely bullet proof.
Inuyasha stood with his arms crossed around the luggage pick up area, waiting for one more bag, and having three at his feet. As much as he hated the color lime green, he found that it was easy to spot the suitcases.
Seeing it fall out of the machine, Inuyasha uncrossed his arms getting ready to pick it up when it came around on his side. His eyes spotted the color and grabbed the bag, pulling it of the machine before he would have to wait till it came around again.
Putting all the bags on a cart that the airport kindly provided, he pushed it over to the wall, still waiting in the area that others waited to get their own luggage. Inuyasha saw many black, red, and blue suitcases, all the colors he had already owned. Of course, he'd been on an airplane before, dozens of times actually, but that didn't mean he liked them.
Actually he didn't like anything that meant he would be but so many stories in the air. His feet liked the solid ground, this of course coming from the man that was on the sixty-seventh floor in his own building. But that was why his back was to the window when he sat at his desk. Making him look out it made him feel like he was going to fall out.
Looking to his left when he thought he heard his name, he saw Kagome walking over with some other man that he guessed was going to work with her. Inuyasha could just see it already. He wasn't going to like him. He wasn't the only one thinking the same thing…
'So this is the lucky New York bastard.' Kouga thought to himself as he looked up and down the man, as him and his new partner walked up to Inuyasha.
'The idiot,' Kouga had done some digging on them both, which he was sure Kagome did on him. It was a cop thing; that was the first thing they all did when they got someone new to work with. And Kouga didn't like the fact that the woman new she was away on business and still brought her 'fiancé' with her, the journalist… they already had their own news casters digging and digging for information, and they didn't need some hot shot New Yorker with a brother who was the top asked for lawyer asking for info and/or his rights.
Holding out his hand, Inuyasha spoke, "Inuyasha Takahashi."
Kouga only looked at him for a moment, then walked pasted him, looking at the luggage bag instead.
Pulling his fingers into a fist Inuyasha glared at the man who'd ignored him, mumbling curses under his breathe.
"You'll have to bring your bags to the station, just to make sure," Kouga stated.
Kagome only nodded as Kouga turned back around and started walking the other way, motioning for them to follow. Inuyasha threw up his middle finger behind his back as he pushed the cart.
"Inuyasha!" she hissed then went on telling him his name under her breathe.
The station was cold and basically empty, only but a few were still there, probably because it was the middle of the night. Inuyasha was told to wait in the front of Kouga's office as he spoke about the case. Wolf didn't trust the journalist at all.
Kagome walked into the small area, sitting in one of the hard chairs in front of his desk. Sitting in front of him only made her see the picture gave him no justice. He was a very handsome man. His eyes were not as dark as the picture made them seem.
After talking about Amber Klean's case, he went straight into her mother's.
"They found her body in the tub, as you know. No finger prints, again she was drowned in it but none of the neighbors said they saw her walking in with anyone. Nor leave with anyone. They said she had bought the place one year or two ago, no one knew she was married and no one knew she had a kid," he informed.
Kagome cut him off, putting in her own idea on the information. She spoke in a flat voice, much different then the one he had heard earlier in the car, when she talked to her lover. "Their marriage must have been going down the drain around that time for her. What did her husband say about the mirage?"
She picked up some papers he handed her and read them over, pushing up her red framed glasses. That was when he saw the ring on her finger. It looked expensive, the diamond wasn't small but it wasn't too big either. The gold was so polished it looked like it would turn into white gold any minute. Journalism must pay good…
"Wolf, did he say anything about they're mirage going bad?" she asked again, looking at him over rim of her glasses.
"No, he said everything seemed fine until they heard of Amber's death." Letting out a sigh he looked through more pages of paper work, and handed her some more papers. "You can take those with you, and by the time you come back in two days, we can go poke around her living space."
Kagome nodded, evening the pages out by tapping them on the corner of his black desk.
"Also, this Takahashi… he won't be coming," Kouga said. "And I don't need you giving him any information to the media. That includes your family."
Standing up, Kagome looked down at him with intense eyes. All her respect for him flew out the open window. She said, "How dare you think I would get my personal life and my career mixed up. Plus, you have some nerve talking down to me like I'm some child. If I wished to bring Inuyasha with me, I would but just keep him outside. And if I wouldn't I wouldn't. It has nothing to do with you either way. Now if you want my help you will respect me and my family."
Kouga only looked away from her and started messing around with papers again until she slammed her hands on top of the papers to grab his attention, succeeding.
"Do I make myself clear?" Her face was close to his but there was no attraction behind it. He stood up from behind his desk as she straightened her back so that she was standing up straight as well.
"Crystal."
Kagome walked out of the station with a key in her hand, and in the other lots of paper. Inuyasha was already moving the bags into the back of the as she walked up to him. "Everything okay in there?" he teased, knowing she was the one who probably made the noise in the room.
"The bastard had the nerve to ask me if I was going to give you any information, and my family, I mean," she wasn't even able to get all her thoughts out before she spilled all the papers onto the floor. "God, why do you hate me today?" She asked as she bent over to pick them up.
"You need help? I don't want to go over and seem like I'm reading over your shoulder when I knew he's still looking out the window," Inuyasha said.
Kagome moved her eyes over to the building, and sure enough there were blue one's staring back at her. Fighting the erg to give Kouga the finger, Kagome told Inuyasha no, but did toss him the key to the car that the station had given to her.
"You can drive though. Maybe that's why I'm so pissed off; I just want to go to bed." Kagome picked up the last few pages and vowed to buy a hole-puncher and a binder.
"Well, go on get in the car." She said flatly
Inuyasha blinked when he saw her get in on the left side of the front car. "I thought you said I was driving!" Inuyasha said, confused.
Kagome looked at him like he was crazy. "You are. Japan drivers are on the right side of the car, Sweetie." Closing her eyes, Kagome wondered if she should just drive. She heard the door open and close behind him.
"Driving is just like U.S.?"
She sighed. "Inuyasha, just give me the keys."
Without getting out of the car they switched places, the black car rocking a little back fourth with the movement of weight inside. Before Inuyasha could click his seat belt, she was off.
"Hey cop, slow down. Wouldn't want to be pulled over by one of your friends," Inuyasha said.
"Inuyasha, I told you I'm on homicide. I'm not the traffic police."
"Did you mark the tally chart I made for you?" a small woman's voice was heard in the dark room. Her arms wrapped around a young man's shoulders loosely. She lightly kissed his check then let go of him. Walking up to the white chart she spoke of, blood red tally lines counting whatever she wanted. The street light coming in through the window showed her half dressed body. Her long, rust colored hair went past her shoulders to end at her waist. Her face was still in the shadows but he knew what she looked like.
He still didn't seem to be interested in her like she wanted him to be. But he didn't have to ignore her completely.
"Edmond… look at me. Did you tally the chart?"
When he shook his head, she sighed. "You have to tally the chart. There's a number on all our targets backs and we have to make sure we get them all, okay? Just these few people. Then every one will know our names, and we won't get pushed to the back any more…"
Her silhouette moved closer to his and hugged him. She froze when she heard water dripping in the kitchen.
"Stop it," she said.
It wasn't followed by the metal sound this time, he wasn't walking, and she was holding his chains together. But a different metal sound, like the sound of metal rubbing together... a knob.
"Stop it, Edmond."
Before she could repeat what she'd said, a puddle of water was around her feet, then around her ankles.
"Stop it!" This time her voice wasn't soft, she screamed for her life, literally.
The sounds stopped, and the water that was just above her knees stopped moving until it fell and became a puddle at her feet. She let out a breath that she knew she was holding. She'd thought he was going to kill her that time. Instead of saying that out loud, she instead said, "I see you have better control now… Edmond… you wouldn't kill me though, right?" her voice soft again.
Again her response was silence, and she didn't know how much she liked that answer. So her next idea was to make him think she was stronger than him.
A breeze blew the shade slightly around in front of the window, the light from the street lamps moving with it, showing her pink lips in the moving light.
"You couldn't kill me anyway… I made you who you are right now. A person that is helpful and kind. Don't you see? Your helping me get rid of all the human trash bags. Soon everything will be fine again. Very soon…"
Lacing her fingers around his waist she forced her lips onto his own stepping on the tips of her toes to reach him, but he didn't pull away nor responded back. She pushed back hanging her head down, not wanting him to see the tears that she couldn't stop, and told him to hold her… that's all she wanted…
TBC…
CagedRaven
Hope you liked it! And sorry for the wait, went away for a week. But anyway I'll try and get the next chapter out soon.
Thanks for reading! Review!
