Case 3: Truth
Naru stood up. There was no time. Without a thought to the consequences, he gathered his PK and shattered the door in front of him. The spirits fled as Mai twitched in the noose. Naru ran to her, grabbing her legs and pushing her up so she wasn't choking. Lin followed, whistling for his shiki who quickly cut the rope, causing Mai's body to fall on top of Naru.
"Don't die," he whispered as he felt no breath from her lips. Naru started doing CPR immediately. Lin stood by. Mai was dead. They were warned. Naru felt her cold face, but refused to give up. He lost his chance to tell her. Just let me tell her, he prayed silently. Suddenly, Mai started coughing weakly. Naru picked her up.
"We've got to get her to Matsuzaki-san," he said as he picked her up and moved through the halls. Lin pulled out the walkie-talkie, informing everyone to meet them back in base and asked the miko to bring her medical bag.
When they got to base, the rest of the team was there. Naru laid Mai on the interview table.
"That's not Mai," Masako said, moving next to her. "There's a spirit possessing her."
"John," Naru said as the priest immediately began an exorcism. Ayako pushed Naru out of the way, grimacing as she looked at the state Mai was in. She was covered in bite marks, bruises from something like a belt or switch hitting her repeatedly, hand prints and more. She looked up accusingly at Naru.
"What did you do?"
"I saved her life," Naru said. "The spirits were forcing her to commit suicide. I suggest you start with the damage around her throat." Ayako's eyes grew wide as she looked at the ligature marks.
"Get out of the way and let me work," she said, examining Mai. Naru stepped back, almost falling into the chair.
"You'll need to examine Noll as well," Lin said. "He used his PK to blast his way into the room." Ayako glanced at him, feeling bad for accusing him of hurting Mai. He looked as pale as the girl lying on the table. He watched as Ayako started on Mai's throat, and then moved over her body. There was no section of skin where a bruise, cut or bite wasn't evident. He felt sick seeing her in that condition. Somehow, he knew this was his fault.
"There's some damage and swelling in her throat, but considering what could have happened, she's very lucky." Ayako stepped to Naru. He grabbed her hand as she shined the light in his eyes to check his pupil response.
"No, take care of Mai," Naru said.
"I can't do much until John is done. Most of the damage is soft tissue damage and there's nothing but time that will help. Until she's conscious, I can't finish my diagnosis. You, on the other hand, need to be examined so we can determine if we need an ambulance."
"I'm fine," Naru said flatly.
"I'll be the judge of that," Ayako said as she continued examining him.
- x X x -
It didn't take long to exorcise the spirit. It was chilling to realize Mai's body wasn't fighting the spirit. It laid there as if nothing was happening. Until she regained consciousness, Ayako couldn't finish her examination. She wanted to call an ambulance, but Naru refused. The hospital was an hour and a half away. He couldn't let her go that far. Instead, Ayako cleaned up the wounds and did what she could to make Mai comfortable. She made Naru and Lin promise to wake her as soon as Mai woke up. She didn't want to give Mai any pain medication until she knew if it would help or hurt her.
Naru glanced at Mai, sleeping on her bed. He refused to let her out of his sight for any reason. The others brought the bed and her personal belongings into the base, moving everything around so there was enough room for it. Naru sat watching her for an hour before realizing how tired he was himself.
Lin insisted he sleep, but he didn't want to leave Mai. To make Lin happy, he shifted Mai over and crawled into bed next to her. He put his hand on her chest to feel the air moving into and out of her lungs. With his back to Lin, he allowed the tears to escape. He almost lost Mai. He couldn't let her go.
- x X x -
Mai felt pain. It was a constant pain that seemed to encompass her body. Unfortunately, it was familiar. When the spirits attacked her, this was how she felt . . . night after night. She wanted to cry, but there would be no one to hear her.
Something was different, though. She was warm. That was unusual. The bathroom floor was cold. No matter how many blankets she used, she was always cold. Mai opened her eyes to see Naru's face in front of hers. His eyes were swollen. She moved her hand over the pillow to touch his face when she realized it was wet. Was Naru crying? What was so bad that he would cry?
Mai cupped his face and concentrated on him, blocking out her pain. She was overcome with the desire to help him. It didn't matter if he didn't love her. He was her friend and she had to help. Mai moved in his mind, feeling fear and something else. Suddenly, she heard her name called.
"Mai, where are you? Don't leave me." Naru's voice shook as he looked for her. It was dark. He couldn't see. Panic drove his search. He had to find her. He needed to save her. Mai moved in front of him, smiling sadly. He would always think of her as the awkward teenager who needed protection. Naru reached out and pulled her close.
"Never," he whispered. "I'll never leave your side, Mai."
"Don't make promises, Naru. Promises are always broken," Mai said as she reached her arms around him. She wished this was real and not just in his mind. She could put him at ease, though. It was the least she could do.
"Then what can I do to keep you safe?" Naru muttered.
"Trust that I know what I'm doing like I trust you," Mai said. She felt him nod against her head.
- x X x -
Lin looked up at the sound of the door opening. Ayako followed Monk into the room. Neither looked like they slept. Lin glanced at the clock. It was almost 3 am.
"So, you're worried about her too," Lin said.
"Not as much as Naru, obviously," Ayako said as she looked at the two in the bed. Naru was wrapped around Mai. Her arms were around him as well, so Mai woke some time. The pain wasn't too bad if she went back to sleep.
"He has finally admitted to himself that his love for her is stronger than his pride," Lin said. Monk and Ayako looked at each other, not saying a word. They almost lost Mai. Hearing she died and watching it almost happen were entirely different. Monk reached up and gently touched Ayako's lips. She blushed slightly and looked away, missing the smirk on his face. Ayako turned toward Lin.
"It looks like Mai woke up at some point, her arms are around Naru." Lin nodded.
"By the time I realized she was awake, she fell back asleep."
"Well, I for one have had enough of those two," Ayako said, looking at the two men in the room. "If they don't admit how they feel about each other, I'm locking them in base together until they do." Lin chuckled.
"I've been waiting for that to happen for a long time. It does wear on your nerves when you want to tell them to . . . " Lin paused as Ayako laughed.
"Get a room?" she asked. Lin nodded.
"Who would have thought Lin was a matchmaker?" Monk said, grinning at the Chinese man.
"If you'd suffered through the headaches I have from these two, you'd be willing to play matchmaker too."
"Well, since we're up, Lin, why don't you get a couple hours sleep. We can wake you if Naru gets up." Lin looked at the two. Obviously, Naru and Mai weren't the only ones with confessions to make. He nodded his thanks and left the room.