Disclaimer: I Do Not Own Bleach
Here is another chapter. Slowly getting my focus back. Enjoy!
Gin continued to place his signature on the stack of papers as Renji brought more for him to sign. Gin thought about how this is the one of the things he did not miss when he left the Gotei 13.
"Renji, before your captain died," Gin remembered he had to choose his words carefully with Renji, "was he working on any 'special projects'?" Gin watched Renji's reactions. He knew that Renji respected Byakuya and he was afraid of him also.
Renji was very hesitant to speak. He looked at Gin as if he had said something negative about Byakuya. Gin did not back down. He continued to stare at Renji.
"Kuchiki taichou," he paused, "it was rumored that he was working on something for the commander." Renji started to leave when he stopped. "Ichimarau taichou, word is that my captain died because he was getting to close to finding out who was involved in the black market here. Do you think, sir that someone would actually kill my captain for the information that he knew?"
"Renji, is that what you think? Do you actually think someone would kill Kuchiki taichou over information that he knew?" Gin sat back in his chair and stared at Renji. "Renji I'm not here to solve the case or bring up bad memories for you. I am here just to help out. If you have any information," Gin stopped because he could see that Renji was obviously upset. He had balled his fists and started to say something but he stopped. "Would Kuchiki taichou keep any hidden records here in the office?"
"If he were to keep any records here it would be in his private office there." Renji pointed room with the closed-door. Gin recognize to door. That door and led to a room that all captains had in their divisions to have privacy or if they had to work late they would how a place to sleep. I "I guess the room is now yours since you are the captain now. Renji slowly walked out the office and closed the door behind him.
Gin slowly rose from the desk and walked toward the door. He took a deep breath and opened the door. As he stepped into the room, his thoughts went back to the first time he entered this room with Byakuya. Gin stared at the bed and remember the night that they both were just laying there, staring at the ceiling. That night was special to Gin because, that was the first night they spent the night together. They did not make love; they just held each other and talked. Gin walked around the room until he came across a locked cabinet. He pulled on the drawer but could not get it open. He knew if he tried to force it open, Renji would come into the room; so he decided to stop. Since he knew it was locked, he knew that he could come back later. He slowly walked out of the room and sat back at his desk, picked up his pen and started to sign the papers again.
-#-
Later that evening, Gin sat in the room with Byakuya's grandma. They both sat quietly as they sipped their tea. When he sat with her, he always felt that she knew more than what she was telling him; giving only bits and pieces. She placed the teacup on the saucer and cleared her throat.
"May I ask you a question, Kuchiki-san?"
She nodded.
"You told me that the body they found was not Byakuya. You stated it more as a fact, not as a person who's grieving. Is there something that you want to tell me?" Gin sat closer to the Byakuya's grandmother. "I feel as though you are keeping something from me. What are you hiding from me?"
Her stoic gaze softened. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I know the person they found in the shallow grave was not him. You see, that night," she said as the tears fell from her eyes, "he found out some news that he was going to tell you, but as always he had to take care of some business."
'He had something to tell me', Gin thought to himself. "What was he going to tell me? Please tell me. Please tell me. I am tired of playing the guessing game. How do you know it was not Byakuya?"
She reached for Gin's hands. He placed his hands in hers. She stared straight into his eyes.
"He was going to tell you that he was pregnant. You see, in the autopsy report, the body they found was not pregnant."
Gin felt his heart drop in his chest. He stared at her in disbelief.
"He was going to tell you that wanted to go with you. He was going to tell you that he was going to leave it all behind for you. For once, he was happy."
"Why did you not tell me this before?"Gin's shock slowly began to change to anger. All he could remember was seeing Byakuya smiling face. The face he always gave him when he had a secret. Then he thought about 'the pride' thing. That was something that he and his grandmother shared.
"If he had told you, would you have left the Gotei 13? Would you have left him?"
"He had another lover; was he the father of his baby?"
Byakuya's grandmother looked at Gin. She looked at him as though he had insulted her. She suddenly realized that he and her grandson had no secrets between them. He knew about the other lover.
"Did he ever tell you his name?" Gin asked.
"No, he never told me his name, but he told me your name. He told me all about you and how you were the one for him. I knew others would not believe me but I knew you would believe me that the body they found was not him." She leaned back in the chair and gave a slight yawn. "I'm growing tired. I am going to retire now, we will continue this conversation another time," she said as she signaled for the maid to assist her.
"Kuchiki-san, may I search Byakuya's room again?"
A slight smile came to her face as she nodded yes as the maid assisted her out of the room.
Gin watch as she left the room. He got up from the chair and walked to the section of the estate that belonged to Byakuya.
As he stood outside of the room, his mind went to Byakuya and the pregnancy. "Why, why didn't you tell me? Why didn't you tell me that we were going to have a child?" Then his mind went to Hajime. He slowly tried to convince himself that Hajime was not Byakuya. They would have said something to him if he was ever pregnant. Gin slowly walked around the room looking for any clues that he may have missed before. As he walked around the room, the floor was making that squeaking sound in that same spot. He remembered because it always annoyed him as he walked around. As he looked for more clues, the more annoying the sound became.
Gin decided to see why that floorboard was loose. He got down on his knees and removed the rug that covered that floorboard. He found it and removed it. Underneath the board, he found a box. In the box was a journal. He sat on the floor and opened the journal. To his dismay, this is what he was looking for; Byakuya's hidden information.
Gin replaced the board and made sure it was covered. He wanted to make sure that the room looked exactly the way he found it. He hid the journal under his sleeve as he left the room. He walked back to the Sixth division and went to the private room that was next to the office.
He sat in a corner and placed his knees to his chest he wrapped his arms around his knees and hid his face. He started to cry softly. He began to think how frightened Byakuya must've been that night.
"That was what I felt that night. You were alone and afraid. Why didn't you call for me?" Gin whispered between sobs.
As he later got himself together, he began to read the journal. He read how Byakuya noticed that he was getting morning sickness and how he could not keep down his favorite food. He read how happy he was about the pregnancy but worried that Gin would reject because he may not believe that the child was his. He also read he was going to make a break from 'him'. "Who was 'him', Byakuya? Gin thought how Byakuya and his grandmother leave things out. He smiled to himself.
He then began to read about his notes from the investigation. He read that Byakuya had narrowed the list down further to three name and their lieutenants: Aizen, Tonsen and Amagai.
Gin was surprised by the third name on the list. Amagai was not even part of the Gotei 13 before his death. Gin stared at the page for a long time before he blinked.
"Why him? Why is he on the list?" Gin said as he looked at the list. Then his gaze went over to the locked cabinet. He got off the floor, placed a journal on the bed and went to the cabinet. He pulled and jerked on the drawer trying to force it open. He looked at the lock it. It had its special lock and it required no ordinary key. As he stared at the lock, could not think what type of key it was but it felt familiar to him; like he has seen it before.
After staring at it for a few minutes, he decided to stay in the room for the night and read the journal again.
