Chapter Ten: The Dog!
Kaiba sneered at the archives that his computer had displayed on the screen. Pictures upon pictures of his great rival filled one side of the massive screen. On the other side were images of Mutou Yugi – pictures taken outside of duels. The differences between the two sides of the screen were as uncanny as the similarities. Mutou Yugi's expression was tender and earnest. He looked the stereotypical pushover, innocent and unwilling to fight back. His eyes were like young violets, vibrant but easily crushed. The other Yugi had eyes as hard as rubies. His entire face seemed chiseled out of rock. His eyes were too vibrant, too alive, as if he knew more about his opponent than the opponent himself did. His flame-colored eyes held a deadly fascination for Kaiba. This, Kaiba realized, was the opponent whom he had wanted to crush. This man was the one he wanted to bring down forever…
Kaiba stood from his chair. The slow hum of the computer lingered in his ears to remind him of what he had seen. I'll teach Mutou Yugi to lie to me! Kaiba thought. His coattails swirled as he rounded the corner to the hallway. Suddenly he paused. Suppose that Yugi was only another pawn of his opponent? Kaiba's senses reeled. It was not like him to accredit so much intelligence to an opponent, but what else could have happened? I've been tricked, Kaiba thought. Rage flickered in him but did not ignite. That had to be it. His opponent had surely wished to escape what was coming to him, so he used his other self as a façade. And it had worked, too… Kaiba thought with a pang of the pathetic young boy he had almost raped instead of his rightfully-beaten rival. The first thing I must do is get my rival to show himself. But how? Kaiba continued his long walk down the corridor where red sunlight pooled like blood upon the wooden floor. The young man jammed his hands into the pockets of his coat. His fingertips brushed his cards. He smirked. He would know them anywhere. But what's this? Kaiba paused for a moment and withdrew another set of cards, all well-used, some dog-eared and crinkled. The dog's cards…and Yugi's cards… Kaiba put them back in his pockets and continued on his way to Yugi's room. Then the inspiration struck him. That's it! Another duel. My rival won't be able to resist, surely. Especially with his precious cards at stake. Kaiba began to walk a little faster, the memory of his rival's true face burning in his mind and quickening his blood.
{****}
Jounouchi's every nerve tightened until it seemed one of them must snap. His predicament was worsening in nightmarish proportions. He and Yugi had remained behind the curtain for almost five minutes waiting for the voices to pass. He had not dared to look out of the curtain for fear of attracting attention. Finally when the voices had faded, he had dared to take a peek outside the drapery. Kaiba himself had been standing right there staring into space! Jounouchi's pulse had clicked madly away. Even if Kaiba did not find him and Yugi behind the drapery, there could be no doubt that he was on his way to Yugi's room. Jounouchi knew that once Kaiba discovered the empty room, there would be little hope for him or Yugi if the two of them were still on the mansion grounds. Kaiba's eyes were so distant that Jounouchi peered at him a little longer than was safe. In that time, he saw Kaiba pull out two decks of cards from his large coat pocket. The first deck, orderly and pristine, could only have belonged to Kaiba himself. Jounouchi recognized the other one as the combined deck that Yami had used in his duel against Kaiba. That Kaiba! What's he doing with our cards? Suddenly an odd premonition filled Jounouchi's mind. Kaiba was indeed going to Yugi's room with two dueling decks. That could only mean that Kaiba planned to challenge Yugi again! Jounouchi's head swam as he ducked back behind the curtain. Several seconds behind the musty velvet passed, the sun baking his back. Finally Jounouchi heard the footsteps begin again. Gradually they grew dim. The youth finally came out from his hiding place and mopped the sweat from his brow. His pulse had begun to flutter. Every other heartbeat, black specks of pain danced across his vision. Somehow he had to find a way out of this damned mansion. Gritting his teeth, Jounouchi continued onward.
{****}
Kaiba paused before the door to Yugi's prison. How many days has it been…? Kaiba did a mental count and cursed aloud. He had remembered to bring Yugi food about three days ago. He had not ordered his servants to bring food to Yugi, since Yugi's very presence here broke many of Domino's laws. Although the rough men who served as Kaiba's 'bodyguards' were perfectly good for keeping Jounouchi in line, Kaiba had no wish to subject Yugi to their often cruel ministrations. Kaiba thought for a minute, wondering how he could possibly use a half-starved slave to his advantage. Then, smirking to himself, Kaiba turned from Yugi's room to the kitchens.
{****}
Jounouchi froze as he looked at Kaiba's enormous computer screen. On one side, Yami leered at the doorway. On the other side, Yugi smiled innocently. Jounouchi clenched his fist and drew in a sharp breath. What kind of monster is Kaiba? he seethed. Clearly the dim, windowless computer room wouldn't help them to find a way out. If Yugi had been strong enough to summon Yami, Jounouchi would have bet that Yami could find a way out using Kaiba's own computer. As it was, Yugi lay asleep in Jounouchi's arms, though his repose was by no means peaceful. Jounouchi had no idea how to operate Kaiba's computer, and he figured that attempting it would surely end in disaster. At the very least, it would waste time.
So Jounouchi turned from the computer room to the narrow stairwell. One led down into a familiar musty murkiness. Jounouchi was almost certain that the gloom comprised Kaiba's cellar. That smell, like rusty machinery, so similar to the coppery taste of blood, would remain in his memory long after his wounds healed.
In the end, Jounouchi decided to follow the stairs up. Up, and up, and up, as it turned out. The higher he went, the steeper the stairs became and the slower he had to proceed. The passage was barely wide enough for Jounouchi alone. With Yugi in his arms, he risked bashing his elbow at every corner, of which there were many in this strange staircase. Several times he was forced to stop, muting his desperate gasps of pain. He begrudged every pause, but as he continued upwards through miles of white plastered walls and midget-sized steps, they became even more necessary. Movement was aggravating his injuries, and agony was sapping his strength. Nonetheless, whenever he stopped, Jounouchi forced himself to look at Yugi. For his sake, if nothing else, he had to keep going.
At last Jounouchi emerged from the stairs into a hallway so wide and so richly-furnished that it almost seemed like a room itself. However, Jounouchi kept to the cramped shadows of the stairs, not trusting the wide-open space. A tapping sound, much like the scrape of heels against the hard marble floor sent his heart straight to his mouth. Slowly, soundlessly, Jounouchi backed into the stairwell again, hating its confines with every ounce of his strength. Hatred became alertness, and he waited, wide-eyed in the dark.
{****}
Kaiba returned from the kitchens with a tray laden with food. He was certain that the food would lure Yugi from obedience to his other self. And when that happens, Kaiba thought. His eyes chilled several degrees. First, we shall have a meal together… And then, I shall finish what I started.
His hand was on the doorknob when the beep sounded from his inside coat pocket. "Dammit," Kaiba swore. He balanced the tray a little more securely and reached for his cell phone. "What in the hell do you want?" he snapped.
"My most humble apologies, Mr. Kaiba," said a voice that sounded like tires scraping across gravel. Kaiba cringed and checked his caller id. Sure enough, it was one of his 'bodyguards' on the phone. "The dog has escaped. I await your orders, sir. Shall I turn on the house alarm?"
Kaiba dropped the tray of food. It landed with a clatter. The bottle of red wine shattered, sending a blood-colored pool streaking across the floor. Fruits rolled down the hall, thudding to a halt as they hit the wall. "Do not turn on the alarm!" Kaiba snarled. "If you do, the entire house will go into a panic, and the police will be up here in five minutes! Remember what I told you about the nature of this situation."
"You could just say that they are intruders, Sir," his bodyguard suggested.
"No. That is still not a good plan." Kaiba thought frantically. "Turn on the silent alarm. That will alert every bodyguard on duty that something is amiss. Then you can call them and fill them in on what's happening. I don't care if you have to shoot him; the dog mustn't escape to tell the police what has transpired here. Not until I can put together a good bribe anyways."
"As you wish, Mr. Kaiba." Disapproval tinged his words. The bodyguard hung up with a click. Kaiba glared at the phone. "He had better not turn on that alarm," Kaiba growled. "I don't need all hell breaking loose here on top of everything else." Leaving the fallen tray on the floor, Kaiba opened Yugi's door. Inside, absolute darkness kept sentinel. Kaiba pushed the door open wider, noting that the candles had all melted. He stepped back into the hallway. He had set a candle on the tray before leaving the kitchen. Lighting it, Kaiba returned to the inside of the room. A gasp escaped him as the light cut through the darkness. Yugi's bed was empty! The bindings were gone from the bedposts! Kaiba looked at the closet doorknobs, where he had stashed Yugi's precious puzzle. It too had vanished. Kaiba stared at the vacant room for several minutes, his fury building to a crescendo. At last he spoke two words that dripped with hatred and malice. "The dog!"
{****}
Incessantly the scraping and scratching continued. Jounouchi felt as if his head would burst from the endless noise. He wondered if Mokuba was out there, toying with him. Just a few more minutes, Jounouchi reassured himself, looking down at Yugi. For his sake… he reminded himself. The allotted time passed, and still Jounouchi could hear the strains of scritch, scrape, scratch, tap, tap… He began to worry that his pain had muddled his head. Perhaps there was no sound in the hallway at all! What if he was just crouching in the darkness listening to a noise that only he could hear? Apathy prevailed over these hideous possibilities. Jounouchi forgot that he cradled Yugi in his arms, forgot even that he was in Kaiba's mansion. All he knew was that he wanted to sleep… His eyelids drooped, and he leaned against the chipped white plaster wall.
A sudden crash jolted him to wakefulness. Adrenaline leaped in Jounouchi's veins, live wires conveying simultaneous pain and alertness. White light exploded in the hallway, illumining every swirl in the marble. Each window flared like the wrath of a god. It was then that Jounouchi was able to see the source of the tapping. Trees, peering into the hallway like eager zoo exhibit visitors, knocked on the glass when it suited their fancy. Jounouchi heaved a deep, shuddering breath. When the crash once more died into silence, rain pattered on the side of the house, splashing the windows.
A crazed idea took hold of Jounouchi. As swiftly as he could manage, he made his way across the dark hall, following the tap-tapping of the branches. At last he stood at the window. The storm howled, striking the land with another bolt of lightning. The tumult rumbled through Jounouchi's body, sapping his courage little by little. Jounouchi set Yugi on the floor and jerked the window open.
An alarm screamed from the bowels of the mansion. Its shrilling seemed almost demure beside the closer, fiercer storm. Rain streamed into the hallway. Already Jounouchi was soaked. He picked up Yugi again and tightened his grip on him. Then he swung one leg over the windowsill. Lightning exploded in the distance. It was only a matter of time before the chest-constricting boom. Torrents of rain lashed Jounouchi's face. Yugi sputtered and coughed but did not awaken.
Lightning shattered the darkness, shining the light of day upon Kaiba's mansion. In the sporadic light, Jounouchi was able to see the sickening drop that lay below him. Nonetheless, he swung his other leg over the sill. Then he shifted Yugi's full weight to one arm and shoulder. The tree was close, so close… There was no way he could miss it, even reaching one-handed. Jounouchi stretched his arm out, grasping the thick, gnarled branch with all the strength he could muster. Then he pushed off the windowsill with both feet. The ground lurched and seemed to open like a hungry mouth as Jounouchi shot over it. However, Jounouchi landed just where he had expected, in the thick upper branches.
Leaning against the trunk, Jounouchi heaved a sigh of profound relief. He had to rest for a minute…he just had to. He lowered Yugi's slight weight from his shoulder to his other arm. The thick canopy of leaves above him provided cover from the rain. However, the lightning flashes were screaming from the sky more frequently than Jounouchi would have liked. Suddenly the chill of the rain permeated his skin as he remembered the worst place to be during a lightning storm: in the shelter of a tree…
{*********************************************************************************************************}
Sorry for the delay in updating; I've been keeping busy this summer. I'm glad that this story is still enjoyable. :) I must say it's much more fun for me to write now that I'm not double-checking duel moves.