"I asked you: what were you doing?"

Mercedes looked at him, her eyes trembling with fear. He caught her. What would she say to him? How could he justify herself? She gulped when his expression darkened even more. He slowly closed the door behind him but didn't look away.

"I…" she tried but words simply didn't come. She was sitting on his chair, in front of his personal laptop and she looked guilty as hell. Inuyasha walked closer, his hands clenched into fists.

"What were you doing?" he harshly repeated, his voice low and heavy on her ears. "What business do you have with my personal records?"

Kagome stood up and forced a smile on her face.

"Mr. Taisho, I have no idea what you're talking about." She responded confidently. "I was not looking at your records."

"Then what were you exactly doing?" he shouted, making her take a few steps back. She could not but wonder what his reaction would be when he will find out that she was here to destroy him.

"Mr. Taisho, you don't understand."

"The hell I don't!" he cried, his face reddening with anger. "Is it your business to mess with my things? Do you see me searching in your things?"

Kagome shook her head negatively.

"Of course not monsieur. It is just that…"

"That what?" he cut her off. "That I am surrounded with traitors! That I cannot take one step without acing someone who wishes my end?"

His voice dropped a little and Kagome could not suppress that strange feeling in her heart. Ache. Her heart ached. She did not wish to see him like that. He seemd so desperate, so lonely, so vulnerable.

"I am not a traitor!" she suddenly shouted, her head spinning lightly. "I was just sitting there because I wanted to experience the feeling of being sitting in the chair of the head of the company! That's all! And if you don't believe me than I quit, because I have never been so insulted in my whole life. All I showed you was devotion in my work. I have never betrayed you and I never will."

She felt low, extremely low. She would never look at herself the same way before. The way she said those words, she almost believed them herself.

"I would never betray you." She murmured, her voice exhausted by the sudden outburst. "I could never betray you." She involuntary added and nearly cursed herself. Why did she say that? She didn't mean to! It was just as the words went out by themselves, so truthful and yet so deceiving. She bit her bottom lip and looked at him. He was standing, tall, strong and unreadable as always.

"Why?" he murmured after a few seconds of silence, almost an eternity for her. Kagome frowned a little.

"What do you mean?"

Silence stretched again, thick and unbearable. Kagome thought that he had dropped her question but his answer proved her wrong.

"Why do you act exactly like her?"

Kagome stayed silent, her heart thundering in her chest. They stood in front of each other, him immobile as a statue, her trying to search her heart for an answer. She dropped her gaze to the floor. She had never felt such tension with a man before. His simple voice was able to make her feel so light, light.

"I could answer if you told me who 'she' is." She tried. Her eyes returned to his face when she heard a chuckle coming from him. It seemed so fake that she almost regretted her actions. Almost. His chuckle soon turned into a long laugh. Slowly, he made his way towards his chair and collapsed, never breaking his emotional outburst. Mercedes looked at him as he laughed. She could not find anything funny. Was he playing with her? Making fun of her?

"What's so funny?" she coldly asked. She had pride. She would not let him laugh at her. Her voice made him double in his laughter. After a few seconds he took a deep breath and leaned his head on his chair. He looked exhausted.

"I am." He finally answered. Kagome did not seem to understand his answer.

"You asked what was funny. I am. I am."

She looked at him, her eyes wandering on his face. He was not normal. He was anything but normal and if she didn't know better she would say that he was crazy. What did she get herself into? He was eccentric, illogical, but breathtakingly charming.

"You are not funny Mr. Taisho. You simply have your own personality. You're different."

He moved a little in his chair.

"Don't you ever wonder why I never remove my glasses?"

He caught her off guard. She was dying to see his eyes. She needed to see his eyes. It was like a mystery to her. The reason for which he hid the windows of his soul.

"I don't like to disturb you with your own personal choice."

He smiled and she almost melted. How could someone like him steal from Naraku? It was almost impossible, unbelievable. Almost.

"But you like to sit on my chair?"

"Who wouldn't?" she immediately countered, her voice hinting to more than he could bother to understand. If only he could read through the lines she projected to him. If only he could see what her true intentions were he would save both of them some ache, because she was not a fool. She knew, she knew that she was entering dangerous territories the moment she saw him. She knew that she could resist but eventually she would have to say that he was more than a project to her. He was different, interesting and somehow he occupied her dreams. She could deny but deep down she was certain that she was falling hard, and her empty memory was starting to draw a web, a web where he was involved.

He smirked.

"Clever answer. But I need to tell you the truth. I have a personal reason for wearing those glasses but I cannot keep them all the time. They tire my eyes greatly that's why I need to remove them for a few hours each day. And since we are working together almost all the day, I will have at some point to remove them so…"

His hands went to his eyes.

"I trust you enough Mercedes." He said while grabbing the side of his glasses. Kagome felt like she needed to stop him. She was not worth his trust, and she felt that seeing his eyes was something that was important, at least for him, like he entrusted her with his greatest secret.

He removed the dark glasses and tossed them on his desk but before she could see those two hidden details he laid his hands on them and messaged them.

"I need some time to adjust to the light." He explained and suddenly his hands fell from his face and he stared directly in her blue ones.

Kagome felt her heart skip a few beats. It was like nothing she had ever imagined. Why? Why would someone hide something so beautiful, so luminous? Yet, yet it was familiar. Had she stared in them before? Familiarity again, so much more than ever.

"You may leave early today." He said but she could barely hear him. She hated herself. She hated being so clueless. She was empty and his eyes staring directly at hers made her feel so desperate.

"Remember that we have a celebration tonight in the demon's club. If you have a boyfriend you can bring him with you. And if you don't want to come don't. I am not forcing you or something. I personally don't like these kinds of celebrations."

Kagome removed her gaze from his and stared at a distant point in the wall.

"I'll come. Thank you for the invitation. "


Naraku was sitting at the stairs in front of the door of the apartment he chose for Kagome when he heard footsteps coming towards him. He got up and came face to face with Mercedes.

"Mercedes…" he started but could not continue as she flung herself into his arms.

Once they settled inside, he looked at her as she lay on her sofa, looking from the window.

"What's the matter with you?" he asked, frustrated by her silence. "The Mercedes I know was always happy, but the one I am seeing is broken."

She sighed heavily and snuggled deeper in her couch.

"I don't want to see him anymore." She murmured. Naraku took a deep breath.

"Did he hurt you because if he did I swear that I am going to make him pay for it…"

"No." she quietly answered. "It's just that when I see him I feel that I am not doing the right thing. I feel that he doesn't deserve what we're doing. Oh Naraku he's so different from what you have described to me. He's so gentle, it is true that he is always angry but he has such a beautiful and golden heart. I don't want to hurt him. Maybe there is a misunderstanding in the deal he stole, maybe he did not know it is yours, maybe you are mistaking."

"Enough!" Naraku shouted, getting up from his seat. He paced the room, his hands trembling with anger. "Are you taking his side? Are you claiming that I lied? Did you forget your part Mercedes?"

"No!" she shouted back. "But I cannot look at him and just lie. He trusts me!"

"Yes. And I want you to use this trust against him, dammit Mercedes."

Kagome placed her head between her hands.

"I cannot. I feel pressure just by looking at him. He seems like if he is able to read into my soul. I am going back to France. I may be a lot of things but I cannot help you destroy him when I think that he is innocent."

"Please!" Naraku mocked. "Innocent? He is everything but innocent! He is a devil. I cannot believe that he turned you against me!"

Kagome tried to approach him but he just walked into the other direction.

"Naraku, I beg you, I am not against you. I will never be against you. You're my everything. It's just that…"

"That what? Inuyasha Taisho is not worth such revenge? He is a kind man that accidently got involved in my deal."

Kagome collapsed on her nearest chair. She was suffocating. Inuyasha was killing her, slowly and painfully. She could not get his eyes out of her memory, his look, and his smile.

"Please understand me. I cannot continue this stupid game. Not with him. Please."

Naraku nodded.

"Fine. If you don't want to continue this I will book you a ticket to France for tonight."

Kagome looked at him, hope shining in her eyes. It was her chance, her only chance to get away from him.

"But…" he continued."I have to tell you something about Taisho that will prove to you that he is not the man he claims to be."

"Naraku, nothing will change my mind on him. He's not a bad man."

Naraku sat next to her. This was his only chance to get her against Inuyasha. It was unexpected for him to see her crack this soon but he already prepared a backup plan.

"I want you to listen carefully to me. Three years ago, Taisho was a senior in college. He was finishing his degree. Back then he was known as a playboy, a heart crusher. Anyway, on that year, a girl entered the same college. She was innocent, beautiful, and smart. Well, it seems that she attracted his attention. He made some moves towards her but she refused him. She needed her scholarship and did not want to waste her time on a guy who would just use her for sex."

Kagome nodded, making Naraku understand that she wanted him to continue.

"However, the girl was innocent and she finally fell for him. What she didn't know was that Inuyasha had made a bet with his friends. He didn't love her; he was actually sleeping in the same time with his real girlfriend, a senior like him. So the girl became deeply in love with him. He used to play with her feelings, leave her then get back to her. This is until one evening they were returning from a night out. That night, the girl discovered that her beloved boyfriend was actually still dating his old girlfriend and that the woman was pregnant from him."

Mercedes looked at him, tears in her blue eyes.

"I cannot believe it, it is so awful. I…"

"Let me continue." Naraku cut her. He took a few seconds before going on.

"The girl was innocent, inexperienced. She felt so helpless, so betrayed, so she ran away."

"Didn't he try to stop her?" Kagome asked, suddenly feeling an ache in her throat.

"No, he did not. He stayed with his girlfriend. He didn't even care about her. He just dropped her, dropped her like an old bag he did not want."

"Oh my God!" Mercedes murmured. "I cannot imagine what she felt, the hurt, the feeling of betrayal."

"She could not stand it. She killed herself."

Kagome's eyes widened and she looked at Naraku, tears rolling on her cheeks.

"What? What did you say?"

"She killed herself." Naraku repeated. "She threw herself off a bridge. He did not even go to her funeral. She was only nineteen. She was a kid."

Naraku leaned back on his couch, secretly smiling. The look on Kagome's face was simply priceless. She looked so devastated, so hurt. He almost laughed. It was the second time that Inuyasha broke the heart of that girl and he will be there again to help her get back on her feet.

"He's a monster." Kagome finally said. "He killed her and he doesn't even feel any remorse. He's dating that model. He's so…I hate him. I cannot stand to see him anymore. He even fooled me, and I am an expert in guys. Of course that poor girl was not able to protect herself from him. That killer, criminal. I hate him, I wish him everything bad!"

She got up and paced the room.

"I can almost feel her ache. I hate him for doing this to her."

Naraku looked at her.

"You can make him pay for everything Mercedes. Don't back down from me now. He was able to fool you once but he will not fool you twice. His air of innocence, he just made it up in order to hide his true face."

Mercedes looked at Naraku, confidence shining in her face.

"I have never met in my whole life someone as deceitful as him. But I will be even cleverer this time. I swear that I will not rest until he pays. The asshole!"

She stayed silent for a few minutes before she placed her hand in her pocket and took the USB out.

"What's this?" Naraku asked. Kagome smiled and played with the little device.

"These are the secret files of Mr. Taisho. I guess that we should have a look on them, shouldn't we?"

Naraku smiled.

"Now I can recognize my Mercedes. But before anything I want to ask you. Did he invite you to this little party in the demon's club?"

"Yes he did. Why?"

"Well, I want you to go Mercedes. I have something planned for Inuyasha's evening tonight, something that he will find very interesting."

Kagome looked at him puzzled.

"Really? What do you intend to do?"

"I cannot tell you in details beautiful. I can just tell you that sometimes we could have lots of déjà vu to the point that we could feel that our mind is playing tricks on us, or maybe, we're getting crazy."

"I don't understand."

Naraku laughed a little.

"You don't have to understand. Just follow me."


Inuyasha was sitting in his living room while Karla was fixing her make up on her mirror.

"You don't have to go if you don't want to baby. Just tell your brother that you are not feeling well." She said while placing her eyeliner. Inuyasha who was wearing a white shirt with black pants simply shook his head negatively before replying.

"I wish it was that simple but they will make me go to a psychiatric if I don't go."

"But why?" she exclaimed.

"It's a long story. We will just go there for a half hour, sit down, laugh, tell a few jokes, kiss a few times in front of my father then we will politely take our leave. Okay?"

"Okay, but do we have to kiss in front of your father?"

"Yes, that's the whole point. Are you done yet?"

"Yes." She replied, placing her mirror in her purse. She went to his side and he could only admire her breathtaking beauty.

"You know Karla, I don't think it's such a bad idea if we stay in for the night."

She hugged him and smiled.

"Don't worry. We will still have all the night."

He leaned in to kiss her but she stopped him with her hand.

"If we start we will not be able to stop. Let's go to this party first okay?"

"Of course. Let's go." He answered.