Chapter 12: Museum Blues Part 4

A/N: Holy crap it's been so long since I've updated. I apologize for taking so long, and hope this chapter make up for it. If not, I grovel at your feet for forgiveness. Its been a long couple of months with little to no writing. Please review whatever you think!

Mai stood up from the Nurses' station as a scream echoed through the halls. More orderlys ran down the hall towards the source of the noise, they stopped at the door Mai had been at not 10 minutes prior. Another scream, this time a man's rang out. Mai stood paralyzed as scream after scream rang out. After what seemed like hours, but was really only a few minutes, the woman, who'd been locked in the room, appeared in the hallway a crazed gleam in her eyes. She was holding a pair of scissors in her hand, the blades dripping with blood.

This woman walked closer to Mai, slowly but surely advancing like a murderer in a bad slasher movie. Mai reached under the table to press one of the two small buttons, the silent alarm. As the woman drew nearer Mai could hear the woman muttering to herself. Strange things about men living the in walls and killing everyone flooded Mai's ears in the silence of the hall. As she neared the neared the station, the woman looked up with a crazed look in her eyes. "Open the doors," she said raising the scissors above her head. Mai's hand reached under the table again pressing the second button. The clunk of locks echoed throughout the ward as the doors swung open. Soon the halls were filled with the residents. Mai screamed as one of the people staggered toward her a sharpened toothbrush in their hand.

Mai sat up in bed resisting the urge to scream. "Mai," a groggy voice asked from beside her.

Mai looked over to a half asleep Naru. "It's nothing Noll. Go back to sleep," she cooed.

Naru's eyes narrowed. "It is definitely something Mai. You're shaking," he said wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

"Tell me about the dream Mai," Naru implored.

"it was horrible Naru," Mai said her breath shaking as if she would start crying any second, " It was the patients. They took over the hospital." Naru pulled Mai closed stroking her hair. "Its alright Mai, you're safe here," he whispered into her ear.

A loud knock came from the door. "Mai, have you been in there all day. It's nearly 8:00 p.m. ," the voice of Ayako shouted through the door.

"Hold on a second Ayako," Mai said pulling herself from Naru's grasp to collect her papers from the floor.

The pair froze as they heard the electronic door lock click. "Naru, closet," Mai said not turning to look at him. Naru sighed forcing himself into the small closet as the door opened.

Ayako stepped through the door looking around the small hotel room. "Well, you really did a number on this place," she said looking at the room. While slightly less covered with paper the room still looked like a small hurricane had ripped through the room. She reached down to pick up one of the papers, but Mai snatched it up before she could reach.

"Sorry Ayako, for my eyes only," Mai said. Ayako sighed.

"Mai, just out of curiosity, have you seen Naru. No one has seen him since this morning," Ayako asked looking around the room again.

Mai fought down a blush, "nope, haven't seen him."

Ayako eyed Mai one more time before leaving Mai to her mess. Mai let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. Naru had emerged from the closet as the door closed, his phone in hand already dialing.

"Lin, any news," Naru asked holding the phone to his ear. He frowned, "no, I'll be back tomorrow morning. Bye."

Mai looked quizzically at her boss. "Everything alright," she asked.

Naru looked at her not really wanting to answer. "Yasuhara thinks he's found something, but it can wait. Lin says there hasn't been any activity since we've left."

Mai shook her head. "Naru, go. Sitting around here won't solve the case." Naru nodded sighing. He hugged Mai to him. "Don't work too hard," he whispered into her ear. Then he let her go, and walked toward the door pulling his coat out from under the bed.

Mai listened as the door opened and closed, before turning to collect the strew pages of her manuscript. A few musical notes caused Mai to jump. "It's just my phone," she told herself holding her heart.

She walked over to the bedside table picking up the phone. She unlocked it gasping in horror. 14 New Messages the screen read.

"Shit," she said looking through the message log. There was one from each of the team, and eight for her publisher. Mai looked at the messages from her publisher first.

2:45 pm : MAI, YOU HAD AN INTERVIEW HALF AN HOUR AGO. WHERE THE HELL WERE YOU!

Mai sighed. She'd forgotten about the interview. Since she'd started back with SPR all her other appointments had gone by the wayside.

3:00 pm: MAI, THAT'S IT, YOU'RE GETTING AN ASSISTANT. I CAN'T TAKE YOUR FORGETFULNESS ANYMORE.

6:00 pm: MAI ARE YOU DONE PLAYING GHOSTHUNTER YET?

6:05 pm: ANSWER YOUR DAMN PHONE. WE NEED THAT MANUSCRIPT YESTERDAY.

Mai stopped reading after that text. The rest of the texts probably were in a similar vein. Mai shook her head, her publisher was being really overzealous lately. It had, after all, been her brilliant idea for Mai to go back to SPR. Now that Mai was here, all she did was complain. The manuscript was coming along fast enough, the manuscript wasn't good enough. Everything had gone to hell in a hand basket.

A noise startled her again. This time her phone was playing "What doesn't kill you," by Kelly Clarkson. Mai laughed a little, never having expected Naru to call her. She picked up. "Hello, Mai speaking," she said turning and sitting on her bed.

"Mai, stop working on your book and get down here," Naru said coldly.

"Alright boss, be there in ten," she answered with a chipper tone. As she was saying bye the line went dead. "Oh, Naru," she thought as she grabbed her flats, and a tumbler for tea.

She arrived back at base in only seven minutes, to find Naru and Lin alone in the base. "Naru," she said handing the tumbler over to him.

He sniffed the contents, "English tea?" He asked. "Yes, I brought some back with me from my last trip there," Mai laughed as he gulped the hot liquid down.

"Was there a reason you called me down here other than to deliver tea," Mai asked sitting down at one of the screens watching as the last of the tourists were herded out of the front doors. A think manila folder landed on the table in front of her.

"Tell me if you recognize anything," Naru said from behind her. Mai opened the file and started to skim through the contents. It was mostly pictures, old ones from the look of the finish. She flipped through the packet until a large group photo fell out. It was of nurses and doctors. The sign in front of them read Kurosawa Sanatorium for the Insane and under it 1924. Mai picked this one up studying the image carefully.

"Naru, those two," Mai said pointing out two buff looking men at the back of the photo. "They were in my dream."

Naru took the photo from her looking at it. "Lin," he called.

Lin handed Naru what looked like an old newspaper clipping in lamination. Naru looked between the two for a minute before nodding. "It's definitely the same people," he said.

Mai turned around in her chair and looked up at Naru. "What's going on," she asked. Naru shook his head a tiny bit handing the laminated paper to Mai. She squinted through the glare on the sheet.

Inmates Riot at Local Asylum , the headline read. Mai looked at Naru with a questioning gaze. "I don't think that's what happened," she said handing the paper back, ignoring the pictures entirely.

"Then what happened Mai," Naru asked sitting down across from her. "It was like one of the inmates took over. She was controlling them," Mai tried to explain.

"She," Naru asked.

"Yes, the woman who stood over me with the scissors," Mai said softly. Naru nodded picking up a stack of files.

"Mai, these are the records of every person who was ever committed here. Can you go through these and try to find the woman from your dream," Naru asked dropping the stack in front of her. Mai sighed looking at the stack of files, thinking about her novel that was still 40 pages short of what Janice wanted.

"I'll try to get you back to your novel soon," Naru reassured her, earning a look from Lin.

Mai ignored the two men turning to the files opening the first one. She glanced down at the picture before moving it to the side. The pile thinned quickly and Mai had still not found this mystery patient.

Another stack was waiting for her when she'd finished the first. Plugging away Mai pulled out her phone engaging the Dragon dictation software and talked through the plans she had for the remainder of her novel. She hadn't used the software since London. Where she'd sit in a taxi on the way somewhere and dictate her latest ideas in Japanese. This time she worked in English, since only half of the team spoke it with any fluency. She also tried to speak in code, something she did around fans.

Mai worked until there were no files left for her to look at. When she glanced at the time it was well after midnight. "Damn it Naru," she mumbled standing up from the chair stretching. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up, as Mai turned around. A feeling of pure fear washed through her. Standing behind her was that woman holding a pair of scissors dripping with blood. Mai hesitated before starting the nine cuts.

"Rin, Pyo, To…" she stopped as the woman fizzled out as if someone had changed the channel.. Lin was standing at the door, his fingers in his mouth. She hadn't even heard him whistle. "Thanks Lin," she said leaning against a wall.

"You're Welcome Mai," he answered, "Noll was getting worried when you didn't come back to the hotel." Mai nodded breathing deeply. "That was her, she's not in the records at all," she said. Lin nodded ushering Mai outside to the waiting car.

At the hotel, Mai found herself mobbed by her friends. "Guys I'm fine," Mai said pushing past them towards her room. She got through the door closing it behind. She took a deep breath before throwing herself on her bed.

"Mai," a soft voice called from the door of the room. "Go away Naru. I need some sleep," she said trying to bury her head into the pillow. "Not just yet Mai," Naru said pulling her up to him. Mai struggled for a minute before giving into to him.

"What do you want," she mumbled into his chest. "I need you to look at something Mai," he said.

She nodded sitting up. Naru pulled a photo from his jacket pocket. "Does this woman look familiar," he asked handing her the picture. Mai took the photo in her hand inspecting the grayscale woman. With her hair neat, and make-up Mai almost hadn't recognized her.

"This is she. The woman from my dream, from earlier," Mai said flipping the photo over hoping for her name. The back of the photo was blank. Instead Naru handed her another photo. This one was of the nurses and doctors on staff in 1911. Mai looked between the two photos, her eyes widening. The woman was in the picture, in a typical nurse's outfit.

"She was a nurse?" Mai asked handing the picture back to Naru. He nodded silently handing a final photo to Mai. She gasped, letting the photo fall from her hands. She thrust her head back into the pillow. Naru pick up the photo of a happy family, placing it back in his pocket as he left.

"Goodnight Mai," he whispered shutting off the lights.