"Chapter 3"
"The Threat"
The day had been a long one as Kagome, ran up the stairs of her house, she had spent the majority of the morning and afternoon debugging Sesshomaru's two houses and many cars.
Now she was running late for her birthday dinner with Hojo, not that she really wanted to go but it was necessary, Hojo was a good friend and though he did still want to be with her, he was not what she looked for in a guy.
"Why do you, go out with him, Kagome?" Kai asked coming into her room.
Kai the butler, maid, cook, friend, a tall handsome man in his mid thirties, Kai had short black hair cut in a short sexy spiky style. His face was gentle with striking gray blue eyes, his body though lean was more on the slender side but his sense of style was impeccable tonight he wore a a grey blue and white vertical striped shirt and dark slacks with nice shoes. The reason Kagome was so comfortable with Kai was that he was irrevocably homosexual, he was more like a girlfriend than a guy friend.
"I go out of boredom, more than anything, Kai" she said going through her closet and pulling out a nice little black dress made of crushed velvet, holding it up to her self, she looked down at the square neck line that dipped low but not so low that she showed off her cleavage.The lacing that started just below the neckline to the waist to make it look like a bodice, the skirt flowed down in an "A" line down to her knees, it also had flowing sleeves that came to her elbows and was just long enough to hide her scar. Always her clothing was chosen to hide any trace of the scar.
"This one?" she asked
"Yeah, that one looks gorgeous on you, but I don't understand you don't like him, why bother even going to dinner with him"
Sighing Kagome put the dress down one the bed and went into the bath room to strip and start the shower, raising her voice so he could hear her over the running water.
"I'm twenty nine. Kai and very few men seem...interested, or fail to pique my interest, for a good portion of my teenage life I had some very strong examples of how men should be, how they looked, how they acted. Though Hojo never, got my interest he was always nice to me, even when I was...sick when I was younger. I like him, he's a good friend"
"I understand that, but if I wasn't interested in a guy I wouldn't lead him on like your doing with Hojo" he said crossing his arms, not that she could see.
"I am not leading him on, I have made it very clear to him" she said over the noise of the shower "I have told him very bluntly that I didn't want a relationship with him that I only wanted to be friends with him, he just doesn't seem to get it" She explained as she turned off the shower, and toweling off before slipping into the matching underwear that went with the dress she chose.
"Besides dinner with Hojo isn't so bad, at least I go out on dates regardless of whether we are friends or more" she said
"Okay fine, but don't say I didn't tell you so, how this new case going?" he said switching subjects.
"Mmm, this one is not going to be easy, his office, both his penthouse and his manor, and all his cars were bugged. I have a bad feeling about this and I am seriously hoping I am wrong about it"
Going back in to the bathroom to put the dress on, Kagome looked in to the mirror she looked good. Brushing her hair straight before putting on a light dusting of makeup, the woman never needed much in the way of makeup, her natural beauty more than made up for it, she only ever used enough to enhance her features.
"You know you should really be careful, I know you didn't forget what happened last time you were on a case"
"I know Kai" she sighed as she exited the bath room "However Sesshomaru is an old friend" she was a little surprised that those words came so easily to her lips. Kagome had nothing against the taiyoukai, actually she never had anything against him except that one time in The Dog General's tomb when he had deliberately tried to kill her but she had forgiven that.
"Don't worry too much you know I always carry, when I think the case will end up violent"
"Okay, you know I'll always be here for you, be careful"
"Thank you, I will" hugging him and placing a light kiss on his cheek. Kagome left the room, leaving for the restaurant that Hojo had chosen.
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Could this conversation be any more boring? Dinner with Hojo was a long and tedious affair, and she realized that it was more boring to be with him than not.
"Kagome" Hojo said taking her free hand, her other one holding a fork with some very delicious desert on it.
"We've known each other for a very long time and we've been dating for just as long"
Kagome looked at him, and a sinking feeling settled into her stomach, she didn't like where this was going.
"I wanted to take what we have to the next level" he continued not noticing that she put down her fork.
Was Hojo about to propose? 'Oh kami save me' She thought as she watched him pull a small black velvet box the kind that would hold a ring.
"Ahh Hojo I..." Interrupted by the ring of her phone, Kagome breathed a sigh of relief "I have to get that" flipping open the phone knowing who was on the other end.
"Higarashi"
"You, have told me to call should there be a new development
"Yes"
"Well there has been"
Kagome paused, if she didn't know better she could have sworn that Sesshomaru was pissed, and the demon lord never allowed his emotions to leak through, then again she didn't really know the modern Sesshomaru.
"I see, may I ask?"
"I would prefer you see this your self"
"I'm on my way" she said hanging up.
Looking back at Hojo, she smiled apologetically, and silently thanking what ever god was looking down on her now.
"Uh I got to go, that was my client" she said standing up gathering her purse.
"But Kagome, what about...there's something I have to ask you" Hojo looked incredulous as she cut him off.
"Sorry Hojo but this is very important, I'll talk to you later" With that she left with out another word.
Making it to her car in quick order, silently thanking Sesshomaru for his perfect timing. She couldn't believe that Hojo was going to ask her to marry him, not that there was anything wrong with Hojo, but holy cow she really didn't want to have to do a necessary let down and have to explain to him that she never ever thought of him that way, that he was just a friend. That boy was really too dense, she had never welcomed Hojo's advances, yet he thought that she was interested in his suit.
Changing the direction of her thoughts Kagome wondered what had happened to have Sesshomaru so upset, it was probably the blackmailer again, she did tell him to call should the bastard contact him again.
She didn't know what it was that caused this feeling of dread, but she had a feeling that she was going to have to meet up with one of her more informative contacts tonight.
Pulling up the long drive to Sesshomaru's estate, she was relieved to see the large house come in to view. For the past two days she had kept everything professional between herself and Sesshomaru, it had been one of the hardest things she had to do, not to acknowledge the fact that she knew him from five hundred years ago. Every once an a while she had caught him staring at her, today, it was unnerving and gave her the impression that he did remember.
She would leave it up to him to bring it up, she had a case to solve.
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Hanging up the cell phone as he leaned against the counter in the stainless steal kitchen, Sesshomaru looked again at the small mahogany box. It had been a shock when he had looked inside, things were not looking up and he realized he would have to tell Miss Higarashi exactly what he was, bringing her in to a world of danger.
He couldn't ignore the warning in the box, and regardless of how veiled it was. This was beginning to unnerve him, the Great Lord Sesshomaru, normally was the one doing the unnerving. Though there were a few humans he trusted he was going to have to place Mai Higarashi into that category. He hated being forced to do things, that bastard was going to pay when he found out who he was, a slow, painful death awaited him.
Looking again at the small rectangular box, Sesshomaru sighed, this was not how he wanted to bring the human into his world. Though he had to admit, the women was beautiful, and he had become aroused every time she had bent over and he got a good look at her nicely curved rear end, but she was strictly business. Every once and a while thought the afternoon she had glanced at him expectantly as if she were waiting for him to do something, what? he had no clue.
Gods how was he supposed to tell her what he was? he had always explained his facial markings as tribal tattoos that he had gotten done when he was thirteen against his parents wishes. How to tell her that he had been born with them, that he was a demon the taiyoukai lord of the western territories.
Things were not going the way he wanted them too, though he loathed to complain about the injustice of it all, he would if it got him out of this loathsome situation. Who the hell would have the gall to black mail him, the other cardinal lords knew nothing of what was going on and if one of the was behind this Sesshomaru would be adding to his territory. He didn't care that he promised the government that he wouldn't wage war against the other lords, the other lords had made the same agreement and all had been well compensated for that.
A car door slam brought him out of his thoughts. Striding to the front door, Sesshomaru pulled it open and promptly froze in his spot. Looking down at Kagome her long ebony hair swung seductively around her shoulders, her sapphire eyes rimmed with smoke and the dress she wore clung to her curves before flaring out to accent her long curvy legs.
Swallowing hard, then regretting the deep breath he took, her scent was so clean like a herb garden after a rain storm mixed with the light spicy scent of vanilla. It seemed to him that she never wore perfume or used any soap that had scent to it, she smelled very nice, very alluring.
Giving himself a mental shake he stepped aside with out a word and led her in.
"So what's the emergency?" she said glancing at him out of the corner of her eye.
"Did I interrupt something?" He asked gesturing to the small mahogany box on the kitchen table.
"Nothing important" she said opening the box
Leaning back against the counter Sesshomaru could smell a male on her and knew that he had interrupted dinner not saying anything, he watched as she looked down at the exorcism scroll in the box, a very ancient and effective exorcism scroll. She looked him directly in the eye and raised an eyebrow.
"Why do I get the feeling that your not telling me everything, Mr. Tashio"
"Please Miss Higurashi, call me Sesshomaru" his voice was charming, his smile disarming and seductive. She was a beautiful woman and he wanted to get to know her as more than just an investigator, so there was no reason not to be charming, however there was still the little matter of how she would react to the fact that he was a demon.
"Okay, Sesshomaru, you may call me by my first name"
"Very well, Mai" he said. Her laugh echoed through the tiled kitchen, it sent shivers down his spine.
Shaking her head she looked at Sesshomaru's confused expression.
"Mai is my middle name, you can call me Kagome" she said, a crooked smile plastered on to her lips.
The name was vaguely familiar but Sesshomaru didn't recognize it. Nodding his head he said.
"Thank you , Kagome"
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She had shivered when he had said her name, having watched him intensely for any sign of recognition, but nothing had happened. Thanking Kami for her good fortune she wanted to get to know the modern Sesshomaru before she told him who she was, call it curiosity on her part.
She couldn't deny that she found him attractive, he was gorgeous and in modern cloths as he was now, dressed in a white corded cashmere sweater, with snug fitting black jeans, the thigh length silvery white hair tied back in a low ponytail. Tonight when he had opened his door Kagome had felt her stomach jerk and a warmth pool in her lower abdomen. Okay so modern Sesshomaru was really really hot, so what she was mature enough to acknowledge that and not just blush and look away like she used to do when she was with InuYasha.
Sesshomaru had been flirting with her, she knew that much, and it had given her butterflies , making her a little nervous but she, turned her mind back to the business at hand.
"What are you not telling me Sesshomaru?"
The Inu Lord looked at her as if deciding what exactly he should tell her, when he finally decided to speak his voice was calm but his eyes betrayed his emotions.
"Humans are taught that we are myth, it's been that way for centuries now"
"I don't understand" she said knowing full well what he was, however she wanted him to trust her, a human, with that kind of information.
"The sutra though not deadly to me would react to my touching it"
She raised an eyebrow and waited patiently for him to continue. Watching as he caught her eyes again she could see him make his decision.
"I am a demon, Kagome, an Inu Taiyoukai, I am over a thousand years old"
"Mmm" she said standing. Glancing down at the scroll again she said "Some one obviously knows what you are. I'll go see one of my contacts tonight" though she missed the old days when he was trying to kill InuYasha for his sword and tried to kill her a few times for good measure. His admission almost made her want to blab, almost made her want to tell him.
'All in good time, Kagome, you have a case to solve you can't be trying to avoid Sesshomaru if your going to help him' she told her self. Her decision to help him could end up being a bad thing, but she was determined to go through with it, he was an old friend of sorts, a really yummy looking and very desirable old friend.
"You don't think I'm crazy?" he asked a little confused by her reaction.
"No, over sixty percent of my client list are demons, so I already knew of the existence of Youkai" she turned her back to him "I'll call you if I find out anything" she said heading for the front door.
"Wait, Allow me to accompany you, it could be dangerous"
She knew the youkai underground was dangerous and the informant that she was going to see was a youkai, even though she took precautions, a youkai of his power would be a better insurance to her safety. Eyeing him, she could tell he was serious, he had a look in his eyes a look that said he was hoping for a battle, a fight. It had probably been a long time since he was last in battle, something told Kagome that he was getting restless with everything that was going on and that he wanted to actually do something to stop this blackmailer, but...
"I don't think thats such a good idea, uh ya kind of stand out a lot with that white hair and the unique color of your eyes"
"My appearance is not a problem, a concealing spell will change my physical appearance for a limited time" he said a little smug.
"How long?" she asked folding her arms over her chest.
"Four hours at the most, I am not a kitsune and cannot hold the illusion indefinitely"
Sighing she placed two fingers on her temple and rubbed, tonight was going to be a long night, first Hojo now this, though she knew Sesshomaru would be a great help he was inexperienced in the ways of an investigation, then again maybe he wasn't he was over a thousand years old he might be helpful. However she was not going to allow him to accompany her dressed like that, regardless of how yummy he looked.
"Okay you can come with me" she said heading upstairs.
"Where are you going?" he asked following her as she climbed the stairs.
"Your room" she threw over her shoulder as she opened his bedroom door and headed directly for the closet.
"What do you think you are doing in this Sesshomaru's room" he demanded, hands on hips his famous freezing glare boring in to the back of Kagome's head.
"Finding you something suitable to wear"
"There is nothing wrong with the clothing I am wearing"
"No not really, you look" she paused to look over her shoulder at him "Delicious"
She had noticed the silvery brows shoot up over surprised golden eyes, before she turned back to his closet.
Business, Kagome stick to business, thinking about what Sesshomaru would look like naked is not going to get this case solved, besides you know that when he finds out that you are the miko his half brother used to travel with , there's no way he would try anything, as far as he's concerned your soiled goods, regardless of if anything happened or not between the two of you, not, and it's not like it did, humf, a thirty year old virgin.
"Well let me put it this way cashmere is not a fabric found where we are going"
"And where's that?" he asked leaning against the door frame.
"The Dragon's Den"