Short chap.
Chapter Twenty Eight
She thinks she hears voices, but she can't be too sure. The world is still spinning even with her eyes shut. Her mouth opens like a fish, but no sound escapes.
Weak. She feels so weak.
"There's so much blood."
"I think she's dead."
"Miss, miss can you hear me?"
"I think she's still alive! Call 911!"
"No, don't move her. She's breathing and we could make it worse."
"You're going to be okay. Just hold on. Just hold on."
#
"No! Let me go!" Asami cries. She tries to fight, to pull away, but there are too many of them. Someone punches her in the midsection. She nearly vomits as she slumps over.
"Tie the bitch up," the driver demands.
They had already covered her face and driven off. They took her and left Korra. She doesn't even know if she's alive or dead.
A new surge of adrenaline spikes through Asami as she finally catches her breath. They've nearly got her tied completely, but she knows she must still fight. If they take her, she may not make it out alive.
With her shoulder, she slams into the nearest captor. It's all she can do with bound hands.
He grunts in pain. "Son of a bitch!"
A debilitating blow to the face makes her rethink her plan. She's never been hit that hard before. She can't help the whimper that escapes her. She swallows and tastes warm copper. Asami staggers into another man. He holds her tightly.
"This isn't a fight you can win."
"What do you want?" Asami asks as she tries to focus.
"Us? Nothing. You'll find out what he wants soon enough.
With that, the man wraps an arm around her neck and chokes her out. She's helpless to sop it, but her last thoughts before unconsciousness aren't of her well being. Korra is at the front of her mind.
#
"…dropping. Her…is…"
"Pack the gauze."
"Bp is…"
Korra's eyes flutter open. There's a woman over her. Light's flash in her eye. Sickness fills her being again."
"Miss? Can you hear me?"
She blinks twice.
"I'm a paramedic. I'm going to…"
She passes out again.
#
When Asami comes to, her mouth is gagged and her hands and feet are still bound. Her body feels like it's been hit by two trucks and a herd of elephants.
It takes her about five minutes to focus enough for her to take in the room. She's alone. The room has no windows. It's bare. Concrete. Gray. Cold.
Fear slithers over her as she realizes that she might die here.
She still tastes blood in her mouth.
She begins to shake. At lease she doesn't cry, she says to herself.
Asami forces herself to calm down. Right now, all she can do is wait.
#
"…female, blunt force trauma to the head…and out of…"
Korra's being wheeled through the emergency room. She tries to speak, but her tongue weighs a ton.
"Does she have identification?"
"…detective."
"Asa-sami."
"Miss?"
"Fi-find her," she whispers.
"Miss, it's going to be okay."
"Find…Asami. Call…chief."
Another blanket of darkness coats her.
#
"Fuck!" Lin rushes out of her room. Before Kya can ask, she throws her her jacket. "Korra's been admitted to the hospital. They think that she's been attacked."
"Spirits! That's awful. Hasn't she been through enough? I'll drive. You can make some calls. Where did they find her?"
"They didn't say. I'm going to call Asami Sato first."
Lin calls as they head to the car. There's no answer. She calls again. Still, nothing. She tries one more time. No luck. She calls everyone else back to back letting them know what's going on and asks if they've heard from Asami.
"Last I heard, they were together. Supposed to have gone to dinner," Mako tells her. "Chief, you don't think-,"
"I do, detective. After I check on our girl, I'm going to personally pay Hiroshi Sato a visit."
#
Asami leans against the wall and tries to listen for the sound of footsteps, voices, anything. It takes some time, but the sure steps of someone stops at her door. Two locks unlock and then a door slowly opens.
The light from the hallways makes her head hurt. She turns her head back toward the darkness. One set of footsteps enters followed by another. She forces herself to look up.
"Hello, Miss Sato. How wonderful it is to meet you." The man is tall, built sturdy. His skin is dark like Korra's. But, his eyes don't shine with the same vibrancy as hers.
Lifeless.
"I can't say the same under these circumstances. Perhaps you can be a bit more accommodating and I'll be in a better mood."
The other man tilts his head to the side studying her. He's looks slightly older and less sane. Their resemblance is striking. Brothers. And he's the one in charge.
"What do you suggest?" the tall one asks.
"Untie me. I'm clearly not going anywhere."
He chuckles. "You're absolutely right about that. The problem is, it's easier to torture people that are tied up. Less thrashing and the like."
She just stares at him trying to figure out if he's serious. Finally, she notices a tiny drain in the middle of the room.
Easy cleanup.
"What do you want?" she finally asks.
"So predictable. Well, since you asked…"
#
There are officers going over the scene trying to find any witnesses. The server at the restaurant said they paid and began to walk. They were headed to Asami's. She only lives about five blocks away," Kuvira tells Lin.
"The news has already gotten tipped off. They're waiting for a statement."
"They can wait."
"Where's dad? I thought he'd be here by now." There are tears in Jinora's eyes as she looks around. They've got Korra in a medically induced coma until the swelling goes down.
"He's out of town as a representative on a case for me. They needed his expertise. I've already informed him of the situation."
What she means is that he needs to find information on the brothers ASAP because it feels like it's all connected.
"What if she has permanent brain damage?" Opal asks quietly.
"We can't think like that," Mako says firmly. "She's a fighter."
"Yeah, she'll be up in no time," Bolin says with a sniffle. Opal squeezes his hand and nods.
"What about Asami?" Iroh asks. They'd all been concerned about Korra that they forgot.
"Someone checked her apartment, but she's not there and there's no sign of a struggle."
"I'm going to go see Hiroshi. You keep me updated on the kid. No one is to speak to the media," Lin tells them.
"I'm coming with you," Kuvira responds.
Lin narrows her eyes at her, but Kuvira doesn't so much as blink. Finally she shakes her head in defeat. "Fine, but you follow my lead and you don't speak unless I tell you; is that clear?"
"Copy that, chief."
Opal pulls Kuvira into a hug and she returns it with equal warmth.
"Take care of our girl, Ope," Kuvira whispers.
"I have some files we have to talk about later," she whispers back.
They take their leave and the team watches as the doors slide open to take them into the night. Kya comes back into the waiting room with cups of coffee. She hands them out.
"Jinora, can you call Korra's parents?" Kya asks.
"Of course."
#
"There's talk that there was a job tonight. It involved two cops. Heard it was a success. Good for them, but now I need a name of at least one of the men that took the job."
"Why?"
Tenzin leans forward. "A friend of mine spent a long time in prison behind a job that he did with an acquaintance of one of the men. He thinks he may know where to find him and he's paying me a lot of money to find out."
"What if I don't know?"
Tenzin places $300 on the table and slides it across to eager, waiting hands. "We help each other out, right? He wants this information by any means necessary. I don't want to have to do what's necessary, friend. Do you understand?"
The man frowns. "You wouldn't."
"I'm offering you money for a name. It's up to you what happens next."
He swallows slowly. "Give me an hour."
He places another $200 on the table. "Twenty minutes."
#
Handfuls of emotions course through Asami; hurt, betrayal, fear, anger, sadness, confusion, despair. The brothers had told her all about her father's- Hiroshi's involvement with their father, Yakone. The partnership they had created, the lives they ruined, the money they made. They told her about the bomb and how they planted it- how they felt that he had betrayed them by not helping their father stay out of prison. They told her of the man her father-Hiroshi had beaten, the messages he had been sending, the dangerous game they all played.
Now, Asami understood. She finally knew the depth of her father's evil as well as how she'd been trapped as a pawn in their game. She'd be collateral damage and there's nothing she can do about it. Even if they let her go, she'd never trust Hiroshi again. Even if they let her go, she'd have to keep it a secret or send her father to prison. They would possibly lose F.I. They would try to take her inheritance too.
But these men, these ruthless creatures raised as assassins, hired by politicians, the wealthy, and anyone else who could afford it, in order to stack the deck the way they saw fit, to put people in positions they see fit, to rule the city from the underworld- they have her tied up and at their mercy. There's no way she'd leave this room unharmed.
Still, somehow, she kept the tears at bay.
#
Hiroshi opens the door himself, still dressed in a white button up and dark slacks. He blinks in surprise once he takes in Lin in her black long sleeved polo, slacks, and boots, and Kuvira in her black leather jacket and olive green skinny jeans. He quickly puts his cool mask back on.
"Chief Beifong, to what do I owe the pleasure?" he asks.
"May we come in?"
"Certainly."
He opens the door wider and ushers them in. Then, he locks the door and escorts them to his living room. "Would you care for some tea?"
They don't even sit. "No," Lin answers.
"Well, how can I help you? I assume this isn't a personal visit."
"When's the last time you heard from your daughter?"
He looks like he's been slapped. He thought that this was about the explosion. They both gauge his reaction.
"I uh- yesterday. What's going on?"
"You tell us. What did you do Hiroshi to piss people off so much? We have your daughter's girlfriend lying in the hospital with a head wound and no idea where your daughter is."
"What?! Why aren't you out there looking for her instead of interrogating me?"
Lin looks at Kuvira and nods.
"My friend is in the hospital and instead of being there with her, I'm here talking to you because my other friend is missing. All three of us here know that this is your fault. So, you're going to make it right before this goes any further. What the fuck did you?" Kuvira takes a step toward Hiroshi but he doesn't back down.
"If I knew anything, I would let you know. But, I don't. Now, get the hell out of my house and do your job. Find my daughter."
Lin pulls Kuvira back and looks around. She sees a vase on a stand. She knocks it over and watches Hiroshi's eyes narrow.
"I will be back with a warrant and I will tear apart everything you own. Either you help us or you will wish you'd never crossed me. Meanwhile, your daughter could die. Have a good night, Hiroshi."
He watches them leave and then takes a glass and smashes it against the wall. After he regains his composure, he grabs his phone and dials a number. It rings six times before someone answers.
"What do you want?" Hiroshi asks after someone just breathes in the phone.
"We'll get back to you on that. But, for now, we'll have a little fun."
In the background, he hears Asami scream before the line clicks dead.
#
"There's nothing more we can do right now for her. Korra would want us to get out there and look for Asami," Iroh says.
"I agree. We need to get to work," Mako says.
"I'm staying," Jinora tells them.
"I understand. Let us know if anything changes. We'll come right back."
Bolin gets up. "Opal, are you coming?"
She looks torn. She stares at Jinora and then beyond the doors where Korra lies. Then, she looks at the rest of them with her fist clenched. "I'm going to help you guys."
"Okay. Let's go."
Jinora wipes a tear from her eye as Kya wraps an arm around her.
"They'll get her back," Kya promises her.
Jinora nods, but she knows that everything doesn't always have a happy ending.
#
These notes aren't related to the story, so you can skip it if you wish
My grandmother passed away on March 18th. I haven't been having the best month, but that's life. Some days, you'll have good days and sometimes bad. If you've been following any of my stories, you know that I like to leave you with little thoughts or small life lessons. Experiences, in my opinion are meant to be shared and I think that there's a lesson here for me to teach you as well.
I came out to my parents when I was fifteen (12 yrs ago) but I waited until I was about 20/21 to tell my grandmother. She was one of the last people to know. I didn't really have the best relationship with my father because of my sexuality and I thought that she'd react the same way and it scared me because I didn't want to ever see her disappointed in me, even if sexual orientation is beyond one's control. Well, I had to explain to her what I meant by "girlfriend" a couple times, but after she understood, she just looked at me and said, "Alanna, it's not a big deal. People are what make it a big deal." (She was essentially talking about my church upbringing and how God sees me compared to people) My grandma was Catholic. I grew up Baptist and my relationship with church and spirituality had always been this weight, this fear if you will. But, when she said that to me, it was like this burden I had been carrying was completely lifted from me.
I ended up breaking down and crying right then. When you come out to people in your life that you feel are important, their reaction is everything.
So, she said that she wanted to meet my then girlfriend, (now wife) and for years, we went to lunch together and our bond grew stronger. My gram taught me about life and filled me in on parts of my history. Her father who emigrated from Cape Verde, what it was like growing up in her time, etc. And she always included my wife- made sure she got to know her and her family as well. I don't think she really knew how much that meant to me. I don't even think I can put it in words…
My grandma got really sick two years ago. She had a stroke and then another. In the beginning, I visited her frequently and she got better. But, she ended up getting worse about a year ago. Then, I became scared. I stopped visiting as much. I hated seeing her that way. I made her promises to come and see her and I didn't. I could have just sat with her. I could have done that for her. I could have been brave for her, but I wasn't. There were too many, "I'll visit her on my next day off" and now I don't have another week. My grandmother was kind, patient, and beautiful and I thought that I could wait one more day to tell her, to thank her for accepting me without condition, to just hold her hand.
What I have is good memories as well as regrets. I wish that I didn't fail her in that way.
But, maybe there's someone that is dealing with a similar situation or something that may even seem really small in comparison. Well, let's put it in perspective. Can you really wait another day? To stay angry, to not speak to someone, to not forgive? Is it worth it? Actions are how you prove that you love someone in the end.
