Psychic Detective Yakumo
Well, it's Friday night and there's nothing scarier than sitting downstairs all alone with only a small lamp on. The only reason I'm not freaking out is because of the cheesy music I'm listening to in the background.
Anyways, I would like to thank my readers, reviewers, followers, ect.! Please excuse my grammatical errors and I hope this chapter meets your expectations. I'm sorry if it's a bit boring or confusing. I'm really trying my best here. :)
Won't Give Up
Chapter 7 - Creation
It was pouring outside, but that wasn't an obstacle for Yakumo. He headed down the stairs, a bit more quickly than before, and toward the door. Haruka tried her best catch up to him, but unfortunately, she wasn't be able to. She wondered if Yakumo had even noticed her following him.
"Hey, Yakumo," Haruka called out to him as he placed his hand on the door knob. When she finally reached the last step, he turned back to look at her. The entire situation was clearly leaving her out of breath. "Where are you going? Don't you see it's raining cats and dogs out there? If you go outside in this weather, than you're only going to get sick later. Why don't you wait until the storm lightens up a bit? We need to tell Gotou-san and Isshi-san about this! They're still with the Principal. What if something happens to them?"
"You really are a scatterbrain." He insulted her, but Haruka was already used to it. "He's not going to believe us if we tell him just like that. We need to find those other bodies. We need proof."
Yakumo opened the door and a gust of wind immediately blew in. Haruka quickly ran toward him, grabbing onto his sleeve and trying to stop him from going outside. "Stop it, Yakumo." She pleaded desperately, feeling another gust of wind hit her face. "You need to wait until the storm is over. Believe it or not, Yakumo, it's dangerous out there. Let me go with you. It's not safe for you to go out there alone."
"No." He pulled his arm from her reach, completely ignoring her. "Just stay here. Go call Gotou and tell him what's going on. Don't do anything that might attract attention." Without giving her a second glance, Yakumo walked outside. He left her. He ignored her plead. Didn't he know that she was just worried about him? Didn't he know that he was more important to her than anything?
Haruka could feel her heart thumping loudly as she stared at the closed door. Even though she was there with him, Haruka still got the feeling that he was pushing her away. He told her that it was for her own safety, for her own protection, but was that really true? She curled her hands into fists while she stared down at the ground. She could feel hot angry tears swelling in her eyes. She felt so frustrated. She felt so frustrated by everything. If she annoyed him so much, then why did he marry her in the first place?
Didn't he know how she felt? She had just been told that her boss was a murderer. He was the one that had killed his own wife. How was she suppose to take that? She had seen him so many times during school and it seemed really hard to believe that such a kind man would do such a thing. He seemed incapable of harming anyone. It was scary to think what would have happened if Yakumo hadn't accepted the case. The Principal would have probably continued on with his monstrous deeds unconsciously.
Suddenly, there was a gunshot. It was heard throughout the house, making startled Haruka duck to cover by instinct. Her heart was racing and she could feel her hands quivering with fear. In a matter of seconds, she saw the Principal's two daughters running toward her from the hallway. Their faces were pale were terror. The sudden blast had probably frighten them too and Haruka could see them trembling as much as her. Of course, neither of them had a single clue of what was going on. Haruka wanted to comfort them, but the maids quickly beat her to it.
"What was that loud sound?!" One of them asked as she gripped on tightly to the maid's dress. "What was that? It was so loud and scary? What was it Mei-chan? What was it?"
"It was just thunder. Very loud thunder." The maid patted her head nervously, lying straight through her teeth. "C'mon. It's best if we go to bed."
They kept asking for their father, but the maids weren't listening to them. They pulled them up the stairs, but the little girls kept asking for their father. Haruka stared at them, too scared to move anywhere. Had that really been a gunshot? Was Gotou-san and Isshi-san okay? Haruka forced her feet to run to the living room. She could feel her heart pounding at a thousand miles per hour. What was really going on? Why was everything so complicated and mysterious? Panic suddenly flowed into her body as an image of Yakumo appeared in her mind. What if it was a gunshot and what if it came from outside? What if someone attacked Yakumo? With that on her mind, Haruka decided to quickly check on Gotou first before she set out to look for Yakumo.
When she stepped into the living room, she was surprised to see the Principal in Gotou's big strong arms, a pistol laying on the floor. She looked at Gotou, who was grabbing the Principal tightly by the neck. Surprisingly enough, the Principal didn't protest against Gotou's grasp and he was staring intensely at the floor, his eyes close to submerging tears.
"Isshin! Call the police, right now!" Gotou hollered at him as his grip increased on the Principal. Then, he noticed her standing there. "Haruka-chan, where the hell is Yakumo?! Why did he just leave us like that!? We almost got our asses killed just a minute ago! Where is he?! Why isn't he with you?!"
"What happened?" Haruka asked him, completely ignoring his questions. She kept taking steps back as she heard Isshi talking on the phone. This was why Yakumo always kept her out of cases. They were too much for her and it was sad to think that a person she knew was involved in the entire problem. "Do you know about what happened?"
"We were just talking normally when he suddenly just pulls out a gun from out of nowhere!" Gotou explained to her, shifting his gaze to the Principal in his grip. "If the maid hadn't stopped him, I would have had another bullet through my gut! Anyways," Gotou held him tighter, not showing him any sign of sympathy. "This pistol he has is the same model his wife used to suicide herself and you know what I think," Gotou hissed at the Principal, making him snap his eyes shut. "I think you had something to do with your wife's death."
"No! I would never!" He was crying now which caused Gotou to release him. "Why would I do something like that to her? She was my queen. She was the love of my life. She was the only one I ever loved. She gave me two beautiful daughters and I couldn't have possibly asked for more. But, I wanted more. I did. She was always busy, always working. She never had time for me. Over the years, I just grew so lonely! I couldn't take it anymore. I couldn't! I wanted to be with her! I loved her from the bottom of my heart, but no, she didn't have time for me or my daughters because she was always busy working! Work! Work! Work! I tried to get her attention even if it was by force! I tried! I did everything I could to make her see me again!"
He paused as he looked down at the pistol on the floor. Tears kept flowing from his eyes. "Then, one day she gives me the news that she was diagnosed with cancer. After that, I don't know! I don't know what happened! She killed herself! Yes, that's what she did! I wouldn't hurt my wife! I wouldn't! I loved her! It devastated me to hear that she had cancer! I cried, shed a million tears for her! She was going to die! She was going to die! I don't know and I was really willing to go with her! Why would I kill her?! I loved her too much...I would never...I would never...Midori...I would...never..."
He was running out of breath and Haruka didn't know how much more she could watch. He had probably killed her out of desperation. He probably couldn't take the fact that she had the probability of dying. Haruka took another step back, her eyes focused on the Principal. She could hear the sirens through the thunder.
"I would have, though." The Principal suddenly said in utter shock. "It was better that she ended her life the way she did. It would have drove me mad to see her suffer. I don't think I would be able to see her suffer so much over her long battle. Yes, it was better that way. It was...but I didn't. I didn't kill...her. I didn't kill her! I would never do something like that! Something so horrible and monstrous! No...No!"
He walked over to the wall and was about to start banging his head, but Isshi stopped him from doing so. Haruka stared at the Principal, at the man named Ichiro Takahashi, her boss. She didn't know what to think anymore. Haruka didn't exactly believe the theory Yakumo had told her. She believe that what had caused the Principal to kill his wife and his love romances was a state known as despair.
Despair. Darkness. Loneliness. Pain. Agony. Fear. Rejection. Torment. Sorrow. Misery. All those emotions and feelings were linked up together. If a person gets controlled by one of those emotions, then they're certain for doom. Haruka didn't need to take a college class to learn that. She knew the consequences of those emotions from her past experiences. Everyone they ever encountered in past cases were always connected to one of those emotions and that was part of the reason why they acted the way the did.
Without thinking about it twice, Haruka ran out the living room and ran straight toward the the front door. She opened them widely, but before she could step out the door, Haruka suddenly came face to face with Yakumo. He was out of breath, standing in the doorway, his clothes dripping with rain. Haruka's eyes widen as she stared at him with surprise. "Yakumo-kun?" She said to him, her voice almost completely gone. She could feel her eyes getting a bit swollen from all the tears she was trying to fight back. "You're back already? Gotou-san. He was looking for you. He wants an explanation. He got him and you were right. It was the Principal after all."
Haruka rubbed her eyes as Yakumo stepped inside in silence. They could both hear the police sirens through the thick rain and Haruka was glad that everything was about to end. "I'm so sorry." Haruka suddenly said to him as she felt her chest getting heavy. "I was just in your way, wasn't I? I understand now. I promise to stay out of your work from now on." Oh no. She could feel tears escaping from her eyes.
"It's just so hard to believe." Haruka told him, rubbing her eyes as she tried to calm herself down. "It really was him. It's so clear. He murdered his wife because he didn't want to see her suffer during her long battle against cancer. I know that isn't justification, but it just proves that he did love her. He loved her so much that he didn't know how to deal with it."
Yakumo didn't say a word. He kept staring at her motionless even though Haruka could still hear him breathing heavily. "He was desperate, Yakumo. The Principal was desperate to get his wife's attention, his wife's love. I'm sure it was a big blow on him that his wife was probably not going to make it." Haruka bit her lip as she stared down at the floor. She couldn't look at Yakumo in the eyes. She was afraid that he would scowl at her for acting like such a child. "I just feel so sorry for him. It's so sad to see someone go through something like that. He keeps saying that he didn't kill his wife, but I'm sure he just can't remember. He can't remember. He doesn't want to remember."
Haruka sniffed and she slowly closed her eyes. She couldn't tell what Yakumo was thinking since he had just covered his face with his wet brown hair. "Yakumo," Haruka whispered, barely audible. "Did you find them? Were you able to find the bodies?"
They stayed in silence. The only thing that could be heard was the loud sound of thunder. Then, much to her surprise, Haruka suddenly heard Yakumo sigh heavily. She looked up at him and only to find herself getting pulled into a tight embrace. Yakumo wrapped his arms around her in a way he had never done before. He buried his head into her neck, making her feel his hot breath on her skin.
"I thought it was you." Yakumo suddenly said quietly as he hugged her tightly. "I came running as fast as I could when I heard that gunshot. I thought you were the one that had gotten hit."
"Yakumo."
"It's such a relief." Yakumo was almost resting on top of her body, but his arms remained around her. "It's a relief to have you in my arms. If something happened to you, I don't know what I would."
He had never said such kind words to her all at once especially somewhere that wasn't their home. Haruka could feel her cheeks getting hot, but that didn't stop her from hugging Yakumo back. He had been worried about her. "Yakumo."
"You're very important to me." He whispered in her ear like if he was telling her a secret, like if he didn't want anyone to hear. Haruka could hear the police sirens outside the house and she could see the lights flashing like crazy, but in that moment, she was caught up in a dream. "That's why I want to keep you safe."
"Yakumo."
…
It was dark. She couldn't see because she was blindfolded. She couldn't talk because she had a rag stuck in her mouth. She had no idea where she was and she didn't even get the chance to get a good look at her kidnappers. They had done a good job of drugging her before they forcefully pulled her into a car.
She was walking, but she had no idea where she was walking too. Someone was behind her and if she slowed down, they would push her forward with force. "Keep moving!" They would yell at her before letting out a horrid cackle. "We don't got all day! You ain't the only one up here! We're losing money!"
She did what she was told, afraid she would killed if she disobeyed. Every now and then, she could feel a knife tickling her neck. She was afraid. Of course she was afraid, but she had lived in the streets most of her life and she already knew how to suppress her fears. After all, she had gotten out of worse scrapes before. Why wouldn't she able to get out of this as well?
"Stop right here." The voice told her silently and it wasn't long when she heard him walk away. "If you move from your spot, I swear I'll slit your throat."
The threats. They weren't enough to scare her, but dying at the age of 15 didn't motivate her to try and do something stupid. She remained intact when she heard a loud voice over a microphone. "Excellent." The voice said in a rather low raspy voice that gave her the complete chills. "Our next candidate, is indeed quite special. She has beautiful blue eyes and light brown hair. She's young and has energy to spare. She's also physically fit, ready for anything. It's true that she might be a bit dirty and vulgar and I earnestly apologize if she doesn't meet your standards. But, I'm quite sure that with some discipline, she'll learn to meet your needs. Nothing excites more than a rebellious wild flower."
What was going one? Were they talking about her? She wanted to run, but she suddenly felt two objects grabbing her by the arm. What the heck? What were they going to do with her? She tried to set herself free, but they more she squirmed, the tighter the force. She tried to scream, but it was useless since he mouth was gagged.
"Good luck, sweetheart." Someone whispered in her ear. "Let's hope a bastard doesn't buy you."
Then, she suddenly felt some light come into the room. She couldn't see, but she could feel light before her. She could also hear the voices of many people. She could hear people speculating her. Then the voice over the microphone spoke. "My fair people," He said with some more enthusiasm than before. "This is candidate number 3. Please observe her marvelous features! I can assure you that what's underneath will not disappoint you."
She could hear voices coming closer to her. She wanted to back away, but someone was holding onto her firmly, not letting her escape. For the first time in her life, she truly felt afraid. This was much more frightening than running away from the police, much more frightening than fighting against a gangster, much more frightening than losing a loved one. This was pure hell.
"Well," The voice over the microphone began. "We will start the bidding at 350,000 yen."
That's when it clicked on her...
Human Trafficking.
…