Captured By Death

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Summary- Kagome thought the nightmare was over. Two weeks after putting her psychotic cousins in prison, however, they escape and they need a hostage. Who better than Kagome? What can she do now without the aid of her friends? She's all alone with nowhere to run, no one to turn to, and her time is running out.

Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha.

Captured By Death

Chapter Ten

Inuyasha hadn't told Sango, Miroku, or Ms. Higurashi about his latest conversation with Kagome, knowing full well that there was a possibility that she wouldn't be able to get away. He hadn't wanted to get them excited over a false hope.

He was now tossing a quarter he'd found on the side of the street up into the air, keeping his amber-eyed gaze on the horizon for any signs of Kagome. It had been over an hour since he'd last spoken to her and he was beginning to worry.

'Give her time,' a voice said in the back of his mind. 'She is walking. It'll probably take her a while.'

He couldn't help but feel an odd and false sense of hope. He just knew, deep down, that she wasn't going to make it out of there and come walking into that horizon, capturing him in her brown-eyed gaze, joy filling them. He knew that he wouldn't be able to run up to her and sweep her up into his embrace and kiss her passionately, while whispering how much he missed her in her ear.

He caught the quarter one last time and held it in a tightly balled fist, feeling the worry, anger, and sadness wash over him. However, the strongest emotion of all that enveloped him was one he hadn't felt in a while, and wasn't accustomed to feeling: fear. He was afraid that he wouldn't be able to see her or embrace her again, or even speak with her. He was terrified that he wouldn't be able to tell her how he really felt about her, over and over again, and hear her say it back to him with her sweet voice, her voice like an angel.

'Just hang tight,' he though, finally giving up, even though a part of him kept him rooted to the spot he'd been standing at for an hour. 'I will get you out of there alive and safe. It's a promise.'

-----

How could she have been so stupid? How could she have been so naive, so powerless? She couldn't believe that she had let Ryura get that close to her and get just as close to doing something she swore she'd never do until she'd found the right someone -- and Ryura certainly wasn't that someone. She was now constantly cursing at herself, both aloud and mentally. She reprimanded herself repeatedly over this issue, keeping her mind off of her latest sin -- murder.

She hadn't meant to kill that innocent police officer who had, obviously, been summoned there just to ask questions. He hadn't done anything wrong -- just simply knocked on a door to an old warehouse…

…Then again, that particular warehouse just happened to accommodate some of the most notorious killers, rapists, pyromaniacs, and thieves.

And, oh yeah, two people who were innocent and just needed to get the hell out of there.

Personally, she didn't want to think about either of those subjects -- murder and sex -- and tried to think about other things. There was nothing, however, to think about. If she thought about Inuyasha, her friends, her mother, her life back home, then she would feel immense sadness at the thought that she might never see them again.

Whenever she pondered over Ryura, she felt anger and hatred seething through her. She despised him, despised who he was and what he did. But most of all, she hated herself. She was acrimonious towards herself for what she had done. She had inspired him to do things to her that had never been done and had almost let him take something away from her that was precious, very dear to her. Something she wished to hold on to. She had been determined to keep it that way, to protect herself. And what had happened? All he had to do was touch her, steal a kiss from her, and it was all over. She had broke, snapped, beneath him. Her body had enjoyed his tantalizing kisses and disobeyed her mind in order to get more, to get him to continue. The only thing that had prevented her from doing such a rash thing was Inuyasha's face flashing through her mind. All she had to do was remember the one she loved and it was enough to jump-start her rebellious behavior once more. It was enough to get her to fight for her virginity, as well as her life.

Then, whenever she thought about Suikotsu, she felt even more abhorrence and detestation toward him than Ryura. She loathed him, his personality, his face -- everything about him. She hated the fact that he had thrown away a perfectly sculpted friendship -- all over a woman he had gotten involved with a crime gang and she'd ended up getting killed. He had tossed away that innocent and untainted friendship in order to play sick mind games with her and get her to choose innocent victims so he could kill them and torture her. She hated him for that. And what was worse, he was dead set on how 'she was such a killer.'

She punched the hard wall of the warehouse, hardly even registering the pain that coursed throughout her now red knuckles. "I'm not a murderer," she said firmly, in order to assure herself, to establish some belief. It didn't work…she didn't believe her words, herself…

Every time she thought about Suikotsu, she remembered how that cop had looked, lying in a puddle of blood, half of his head missing. He had been innocent of any wrongdoing -- well, at that point, she didn't know anything about him -- and she had shot him dead, right in the head.

Accidentally shot!

She closed her eyes and only saw his crumpled and bloody form. She could hear Suikotsu's voice all around her, repeating, "You're a murderer! You killed those kids at your school and you just murdered a cop!"

"No," she whispered, still not believing herself.

Whenever she thought about Suikotsu, it eventually led to Naraku. She could see his glowing, angry red eyes and hear his deep, frightening voice. She was afraid of him, and yet, whenever she was around him, she felt the need to be defiant, and show that she had a backbone, some courage. He seemed to be fond of that flare in her, and enjoyed Kagome's acts of holding his men hostage and racing through the woods, as if she were performing for him!

'Well, I'm not going to be his dog and play fetch,' she thought bitterly. 'I guess I should stop fighting…'

She shook her head. She couldn't stop fighting. It was her only chance to actually try and escape.

Sighing, she thought about how both Naraku and Suikotsu had some kind of feud between them. Naraku was obviously the leader, bossing everyone around and all this other nonsense while Suikotsu didn't like it. He claimed that, at one point, there had been no leader, no rules. Every man for himself. Do each his own. And Naraku hadn't obliged to that and had 'rose to power.'

'That is their only weakness I can think of,' she thought sadly. 'Whenever I mention Anaya, Suikotsu gets all worked up and angry, not sad. Maybe I can use that anger against him somehow.'

"How do you know about Anaya?" Suikotsu demanded, his eyes blazing with fury that she was not familiar with. "Who the hell told you?"

"It was Naraku, wasn't it?" He demanded. "He told you, didn't he?"

"Yeah," she whispered. "Naraku told me."

"Damn him!" Suikotsu raged.

Kagome, not wanting any sort of commotion to start due to Suikotsu's outburst of anger, placed a hand on his shoulder and said, her voice low, "Shut up! Do you want him to come in here?"

"I could care less," he hissed indignantly. "He would just end up dying."

Kagome gasped at the sudden flashback. That was it! Suikotsu, thinking that Naraku had informed her of Anaya, was prepared to kill Naraku! All she had to do was revive some of that hatred and animosity and get Suikotsu alone with Naraku! It was perfect!

Unless…somehow Naraku found out that she was lying to Suikotsu and figured out that it had really been Yoshiro. If that happened, it would result in Naraku probably hurting -- if not killing -- her while Suikotsu took out Yoshiro.

She entered her adjoining bathroom and looked at herself in the mirror. She still seemed to be the same old Kagome, only with cuts and bruises, and a new look about her -- the look of death. She couldn't look at herself without thinking about Suikotsu's words, how they were, in a way, horrifically true. She had killed that cop, even though she hadn't meant to. She had also chosen those victims, knowing full well that they were going to die. Murder, is murder…

Exhaling, she exited her bathroom and paused when she heard a noise. It was faint, but still loud enough for her to distinguish that it had been a muffled cry for help. Her heart stopped then, realizing that someone was being dragged into the main room of the warehouse, their cries muffled. Even though she couldn't hear all that well, she was able to note that the cries were that of a woman.

She pressed her ear against the door and heard Naraku and Suikotsu.

"You picked a good one this time, Suikotsu." Naraku commented.

"Whatever." Suikotsu said. "I always pick the good ones."

"Yes, true," Naraku agreed with a sigh, "judging by that cousin in there of yours."

"Shut up about her," Suikotsu said. "Are you ready to do this, or not?"

"Of course I'm ready," Naraku said.

Kagome, thinking that they were going to do horrible and unmentionable things to the poor, innocuous girl in there, closed her eyes and prayed to God that someone would come and break it up and help her get away. She didn't care if she escaped or not, she just cared about that girl in there. She had had no previous dealings with this group, so why did she need to be brought into it, like Anaya?

Unexpectedly, her door opened, and she stumbled backwards, her eyes wide, but not full of fear. They were, as always, filled with anger and hatred.

"Come on," Suikotsu growled. When she didn't comply with his request, he seized her by her upper arm and began dragging her out. She fought him, of course, but noticed that he had began to finger that knife jadedly, and she knew that if she continued to struggle, he would, indeed, whip it out and probably use it on her.

Naraku slid a chair out and Suikotsu slammed her onto it, jerking her arms behind it, binding them together with rope. It bit into her skin, but she kept herself from complaining. She was more concerned about their plans and why they consisted of her and this innocent girl who lay tied on the concrete floor. She had a head injury, blood dripping down her face and onto the floor. Her mouth was gagged, her hands behind her back with handcuffs on them, her legs had rope around the ankles.

This girl wasn't going anywhere.

Kagome's eyes locked with the other girl's petrified and confused green-eyed gaze and she felt an immense sadness well up within her. This girl hadn't done anything! She didn't deserve to be brought here.

"Let her go!" Kagome commanded.

"Well, Kagome," Suikotsu began, "She's seen our faces and our hideout. Do you honestly think that we will actually release her and let her run free? No. She'll tell the cops."

The girl began shaking her head furiously. "Look!" Kagome said, motioning toward the girl's pleading eyes, her frantic shaking. "She says she won't!"

"She's says that now," Naraku spoke up, "because she only wants to be released. Give her some time and she'll go straight to the police." He sighed and knelt down in front of her. "I think you want her to go to the police so she can tell on us and you can be released -- you can go back home."

"Oh, what gave you that idea," she said, sarcastically.

"Now, now, Kagome. Are we really that bad?"

"Obviously."

Naraku stared deep into her eyes, almost as if he were penetrating her soul. "What can we do, Kagome? We've given you a bed, a private room, food, a bathroom. What else can we possibly do to get you to like us?"

Kagome leaned forward so her face was a mere couple inches away from his and snarled, "Go to hell."

Naraku stared at her for a long time and, normally, she would have began to feel uncomfortable by his constant, unwavering gaze. This time, however, she held fast and returned his watch with a glower. Finally, he rose to his feet and approached the girl, who immediately began to struggle.

"No!" Kagome said, even though she didn't know what he planned on doing. She had a feeling that it wasn't going to be good.

And it wasn't. He kicked her in the back, also kicking her forearms. She winced in pain, not able to scream. He stomped on her stomach, slapped her across the face. The beating continued unmercifully, unemotionally.

"No! Quit!" Kagome wished she were the leader of this gang. She could keep this from happening. She wouldn't have allowed it in the first place. Since she wasn't the leader, however, all she could do was beg.

Naraku hit her again. "Stop it!" She screamed. Suikotsu, obviously aggravated by her constant screaming, hauled back and hit her across the jaw line. She felt everything spin, swaying back and forth. She shook it off, however, and watched as Naraku sported a large knife.

Kagome gasped. A hunting knife.

She was deathly afraid of those…all because of Suikotsu.

"Here," Suikotsu offered. "I'll do it." he reached out and took the knife in his fingers. He approached the girl, the huge knife in his hand, and Kagome felt her heart rate jump. Was he just going to cut her? Or was he going to completely gut her?

"No," Kagome growled. She had to stop him. "Why did you do it again, Suikotsu? Why did you bring another girl here and get her involved? I thought you learned your lesson from what happened to Anaya."

At the mention of his dead ex-lover's name, Suikotsu immediately stopped, the knife poised in midair next to his head. He lowered his hand and turned back to Kagome. "Why don't you…" he began, rage making him shake. "just shut up!" He went to strike her, but Naraku prevented him from doing so. When Suikotsu gave him an indignant and questioning look, Naraku shook his head and averted his gaze down to Kagome before looking back up at Suikotsu. He nodded and cut the ropes that bound her hands together.

Kagome was insanely confused as to what was going on. She was even more perplexed when Suikotsu took her right hand and placed the knife into it. She stared down at it, feeling everything spin. What was going on? Why were they handing her the knife? She looked up questioningly at Naraku. "Wha--? I don't…I don't understand."

"Kill her." Naraku stated simply.

Kagome actually laughed. "You've got to be….no wait -- you are insane."

"I'm serious." Naraku said tonelessly. "Kill her or else."

"Or else what?" Kagome was laughing. She thought it was funny. "You'll sick Ryura on me?"

"I can," Naraku said. "But I had other things in mind."

"Like what?"

"I'll kill Inuyasha."

Kagome wasn't laughing anymore. Now, it had grown very, very serious, and incredibly personal. "You're lying."

"I am, huh?" Naraku looked offended. "Where do you think the others are? They're certainly not still cleaning the mess up from that cop you shot earlier. They're looking for your precious Inuyasha, with Jakotsu as their guide."

She felt her heart stuttering in her chest as her grip on the knife tightened. "I-I don't believe you!"

Naraku then pulled out a cell phone and dialed a number. He then put it on speaker phone so Kagome could hear the whole conversation. "Hello?" It was Ryura.

"Ryura, where are you now?" Naraku asked.

"We just passed exit fifty five. No sign of Inuyasha or her friends yet." Came Ryura's reply.

Kagome instantly lunged for the phone, screaming, "No! If you hurt them, I swear to God that I'll kill you! Do you hear me?" Suikotsu caught her around the waist, also taking hold of the hand with the knife in it so he wouldn't get hit with the blade. "He better not hurt them!" Kagome screamed after Naraku hung up.

"Well, in order for him not to, you better do your job. Kill her." Naraku commanded, his voice flat.

Kagome was shaking now. It wasn't due to fear or rage, but conflicting emotions battling it out inside of her. She felt pity and extreme sadness for this girl. She felt hatred and anger towards Naraku and his little group. She felt frustration with herself, disappointment that ate her to the core. She didn't want to kill, especially if it was a young girl's life she was stealing. But this was her mother, her two best friends, the love of her life. She was doing it to keep them safe. She really didn't want to kill anyone, but it seemed as if she had no alternative choice.

"Now!" Naraku shouted. Kagome flinched.

'Maybe I can focus on something else and not have to think about what I'm doing,' she thought as she approached the girl. 'Maybe I can fall into another state of consciousness…'

And she did. She fell into this state of dormancy. She was operating on auto-pilot, with her vision straying away, her mind elsewhere. She wasn't coherent to the girl's muffled cries of pain, or the blood that was now covering both herself and the floor. She only kept one thing in mind: make it quick and essentially painless. It was the least she could do…right?

Once that atrocious and vindictive task was complete, Kagome sat, in a state of shock so deep, it hadn't even occurred to her to attempt an escape. She had the knife and she could use it to her advantage. However, the shock was too much for her to take and she simply sat there, unmoving.

Naraku ordered Suikotsu to take her to her room and then they would begin the task of cleaning. When Suikotsu and Kagome were out of earshot, Naraku called Ryura back. "Hello?" Ryura asked.

"She did it; she killed the girl." Naraku informed him.

"Damn," Ryura commented. "She's more than determined to keep these people safe. What now?"

Naraku smirked evilly, gazing down at the blood splattered everywhere, all around the now dead girl who had had a quick death. "Kill him, anyways."

Note- Oh my! What did you think of Naraku's idea to get Kagome to actually kill someone? And will Inuyasha and the others make it out alive? Find out!

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