Chapter 29
The Edge
"Is she pregnant?" Seto Kaiba asked in a rather angry tone.
"No." Defended the young man next to him.
"Then explain to me why you did something so stupid."
"It's not stupid. I love her." The young man said in a huff as he watched the scenery go by through the window of the car. "I told you what I was going to do before I left."
"And I told you to wait. You've got your whole life ahead of you, I don't see why you felt like you had to jump into this."
"But you and Anna…"
"I know." Seto cut him off. "But I also wished we would have been able to wait. Marriage is a big thing, Mokuba. It's a lot of responsibility. I don't think you know what you're getting into."
"I thought you'd be happy about this." Mokuba moaned. "That's why I wanted to tell you first."
"You expect me to be happy that my little brother in the middle of a rock tour, a career path which I disliked from the beginning, runs off and marries his girlfriend without anyone knowing. In a foreign country no less, are you sure the marriage will even be legal in Japan? And what about Anna? You don't think she's going to be upset that she didn't get to attend? You didn't think this through."
"I don't live like you do Seto. I can't be ruled by logic. It doesn't work for me. If I love someone I have to express it. You may suppress your feelings, but I can't."
"Very disappointing…" Was Seto's only defense. He sighed in an exhausted way and ran his hand through his beard. "We'll sort this all out when we get back to the apartment. But not a word of this to Isabella. She's not feeling well and I don't want you exciting her unnecessarily."
I yelled at him. Why did I have to yell at him? Why couldn't I have just accepted the fact that he married that girl and say congratulations. That would have been easier and less harmful, but I never do anything the easy way, not when people go against my wishes. But if I had, if I had only done things differently he wouldn't have been so mad at me. Then he wouldn't have stopped. He would have kept walking by my side. He would still be here.
"We're coming up on the building now, sir." Came the voice of the driver over the intercom. "It doesn't look like the police have cleared the area yet."
"Then pull around to the back entrance. They'll be too many people at the front." Seto responded. He clicked off the intercom and sighed. "I'll be glad when they finish building the parking garage. Just so I can avoid these idiots."
"Are they still protesting?" Mokuba asked as he looked more intently out the window.
"Worse than ever."
"Wow is that Greenpeace?" Mokuba said astonished as he watched a rather large and hateful banner zip past the car.
"Even the environmentalists are here." He glanced out the window through the corner of his eye. "You'd think they'd be on our side."
"What do you expect Seto? You bought up all the major oil producing companies in the world and cut off production. There was bound to be some opposition. People need gasoline."
"What they need is to stop polluting the air and start looking for cleaner and more efficient fuel sources."
"It's not like they can do it overnight. You can't force them."
"The fact is if we don't do something drastic then nothing will ever get done. They'll keep dancing around the issue and never change until it's too late. I'm just giving them a reason to start now."
Mokuba looked at his brother with disbelief. "Is that truly why you're doing this, or is this it because of Isabella?"
Seto crossed his arms in a huff. "It's not fair that I can't even take my daughter to the park without the smog and pollutants nearly killing her. She deserves a normal life and I'm going to give it to her by any means necessary."
"Just be careful, Seto. People don't like it when you mess with they're way of living."
The car came to a stop. The back doors were visible through the smaller crowd that was gathered there. A handful of security guards exited the building and took up strategic posts along the walkway to bar anyone from getting too close. Mokuba opened his door but Seto stopped him by grabbing his arm.
"It's an unruly crowd, I should go first." Seto said sternly.
Mokuba pulled his arm from Seto's grip. "I'm not a little kid anymore, Seto. So stop treating me like one." Mokuba's voice was harsher than Seto remembered it being before. "Besides, I deal with this kind of stuff all the time. Just walk fast and don't stop."
Seto scowled at him and Mokuba stepped out of the car. His older brother slid out after him, all the while keeping an eye on the crowd. There were a few security guards protecting the perimeter and holding back the crowd. But the mob outnumbered them at least three to one. Seto blocked out all the shouts and foul language as he plowed through the open line formed by the guards. He didn't pay any attention to the noise around him until it changed from hatred to admiration. There was a sudden change in attitudes after some young girls in the crowd apparently realized who Mokuba was. Things like 'Is that really him?' and 'I can't believe he's here.' or 'He's so hansom in person.' came floating out of the mass of people. Seto noted Mokuba take a glance over his shoulder at the crowd and smile. He was quite pleased with himself and his fame, but Seto was not. Mokuba was in enough trouble already.
"Ignore them." Seto ordered his brother as they walked side by side.
Mokuba gave him a defiant 'humpf!' as he turned away and walked back the few feet to greet the girls who were cheering and waving at him with star struck eyes. Having no other choice, Seto stopped in his tracks and watched as Mokuba exchanged pleasantries with his admirers and sign pieces of paper that were handed to him. Seto hated this. He didn't hate that people loved Mokuba, that was just a fact about Mokuba that he learned to accept. Mokuba always made friends easily and was loved by practically everyone who met him. Even though Seto was not like that himself, he never discredited Mokuba for having such a trait. It was the waiting he hated. Mokuba knew he was in hot water with him over his sudden and unexpected marriage and he was purposely stalling his full blown lecture by dallying with these fans. That made Seto mad, he didn't like to be kept waiting and he certainly didn't like this new rebellious attitude Mokuba had gained. It was something Seto was determined to stamp out as soon as they got upstairs.
Impatiently Seto waited off to the side as Mokuba made a show with his groupies. Finally Seto gave out an angry huff and approached him. With his arms crossed he said in a malice tone, "That's enough, let's go."
Mokuba gave his brother a stern stare. "Fine." He said unwillingly.
At that Point I didn't know what happened. I barely remember the movement in the crowd…the shine of something metallic…the three loud bangs…the pain in my side…the screams…the guards jumping into the crowd. What I remember most was Mokuba pushing me. I was angry at him for that. I thought he was doing it in spite, because I didn't like the fact that he had gotten married. I despised his rudeness so much that I even pushed him back. I felt like I had to show him who was boss. I was his older brother and he had to respect me. Now I wish I hadn't done that. Because…because it was the last brotherly gesture I would ever give him.
Seto pushed Mokuba away with his elbow and the young man floated back without resistance. He stumbled but stayed on his feet. With a pale face and his hand clenched at his chest he stared off into nothingness. Seto opened his mouth to chastise Mokuba for his actions, but he didn't make a sound. He was thoroughly distracted by the dark red stain that was quickly growing on the front of Mokuba's pale yellow shirt. At first confusion, what would cause?…Then panic as the cause became apparent. Touching Mokuba's shoulders, Seto tried to help him, only to have the young man collapse into his arms. The shock of the moment wore off and Seto could hear the noises around him again. There were shouts both menacing and sympathetic, there was a great scuffling of people as guards tried to subdue and man in the crowd and others tried to protect him. One of them said something like, 'Quick get him inside!' Although much around him was chaos, Seto understood that. He pulled Mokuba closer to him and with all his might dragged the boy into the building. He could sense Mokuba trying to walk, to help, but mostly he was dead weight. A guard ushered them both into a small office on the ground floor. It was unoccupied other than an empty desk. Seto didn't even know what room he was in, his mind was consumed with Mokuba at the moment.
He laid Mokuba carefully down on the floor and quickly shed his suit jacket, exposing his white long sleeve shirt and vest in the process. He wadded up the jacket and placed it under Mokuba's head as a pillow. There was no need to fold it or make it presentable, the jacket was already stained with Mokuba's blood and it would never be useful again. A guard popped his head into the room to check the situation, but he didn't dare speak, the sight had stunned him.
"Call an ambulance!" Seto screamed at him. Most likely that had already been done, but he didn't know what else to say. The shout was enough to make the man retreat and leave him alone with Mokuba again. But perhaps that's what he wanted. If these people were not helpful to the situation it was better that they not be there.
Grabbing Mokuba's shirt forcefully, Seto was able to tear it right down the front and through the rock logo printed on it. Exposing the wound didn't help calm Seto, it only made him panic even more. The wound was relatively small, it was only a single bullet, but the blood seeping from it made such a mess that the damage looked worse than it was. Seto placed his hands on the wound and applied pressure hoping to stop the bleeding, but the blood still oozed out from under his fingers.
"I'm sorry…"
The soft words snapped Seto out of his daze. He had not realized Mokuba was still conscious. He diverted his eyes from the wound and fixed them on Mokuba's face. The young man wasn't even looking at his older brother, his eyes were staring up at the ceiling and his lips trembled as he tried desperately to speak. Seto couldn't respond.
"I'm sorry…" Came the soft voice again. "I'm such a disappointment."
Seto jerkingly shook his head to answer him. "No." He whispered. "You're not…Mokuba you're not."
He received no answer, no sign that his brother had heard him. There was nothing.
In a flash Seto reached his bloody hand to Mokuba's neck and checked for a pulse. There was none. For the first time in his life, Seto Kaiba's hands trembled.
"Mokuba!" He screamed in vain. "Mokuba!"
Determination set in, Seto was bound and determined to not lose his brother. He didn't lose him when their parents died, he didn't lose him when Gosaboro separated them, and he was not going to lose him now. He once again placed his hands on Mokuba's chest and began compressions.
In a chair on the side of the small room sat Seto Kaiba silently. Beside him was his wife, Anna. He was as still as the grave, never stirring or making a sound. The room itself was devoid of voices. No one spoke. The only noises to be heard were the gentle rustling of papers by the three people seated at a desk at the front of the room. The silence was the last thing that Seto Kaiba needed. Being there, about to face that man, and the silence that engulfed him only made the bad memories of that day come forth again. Especially the sight of the blood on his hands, the blood he thought would never wash off.
The door opened and man was escorted in by two armed guards. The man in the orange jumpsuit had trouble walking due to the shackles on his feet. The clanking of the chains snapped Seto out of his self induced trance and he glared up at the man with utmost hatred.
The guards sat the man down in a chair opposite the three people at the table and things began.
"We're here today to consider the request of early parole for prisoner number 2462624, Mr. Mark Davidson." Said one of the three. "We understand you would like to make a statement on your behalf?"
The man in the orange jumpsuit stood respectfully and bowed to the three at the table before speaking. "I won't try to justify what I did back then because I understand now that it was wrong. But at the time I thought it was the only option I had." His voice was weak and timid. "I lost my job and my wife left me and that was all due to Kaiba Sung Incorporated. In my mind they were to blame for all my troubles, so I did the unthinkable. I killed that boy. It was a mistake. And I can't tell you how sorry I am for that. I wish I could change things. I'd give anything to bring that boy back. But I can't. I can only hope that what I do in the future will make up for the mistakes I've made. Thank you." He sat back down and watched warily as the three people glanced down at or wrote things on their papers.
"Is there someone from the family that would like to speak?" Said one of them. Seto stood and took a few steps forward. It was as close that man as he could get. Both he and Anna knew that if he got any closer, Seto would be too tempted to strangle the man where he sat.
"There is only one reason why we are here." Seto said in his typical stern and deep voice. "And it's not to see if this man has or could ever be reformed. We're here to determine what a person's life is worth. Granted some people's lives might be worth more than others, so let me tell you about the life this man destroyed." Seto paused. His audience thought it was for dramatic effect, but his wife knew that this was more difficult on him that any of them could possibly know. "Our parents died while we were both very young, and Mokuba was the only family I had left. As a brother he was loyal and unwavering in his devotion to me. Even during the toughest of times, we stuck together. He compensated for my faults and encouraged me to do good. And although he was younger than me, he was the one who taught me it was okay to open my heart to someone and allow myself to be happy." Seto glanced over at Anna. "But he was more than a brother. He was an adored uncle to my daughter. When he walked into the room she would give him the biggest and most loving smile. One that she saved just for his visits. My daughter doesn't smile like that anymore. Not for anyone." Seto closed his eyes for a second and then reopened them. "But anyone can be praised by their own family. Truly it is the opinion of others that holds more weight in determining a man's worth. And in this case it would be quite easy for me to produce thousands of people, fans of my brother's work, that could tell you how his music inspired or shouldered them through hard times. It could do that because my brother's music wasn't about hatred or greed, it was about hope and joy and everything that was good in humanity. His fans understood and responded to that. And he had no greater fan than his wife. A beautiful and intelligent young lady who was widowed after only two weeks. She was so distraught over losing Mokuba that she would rather die than live without him. If not for a swift intervention, that man would have two deaths hanging over his head." Seto paused again trying desperately to collect himself. "Despite being raised by me, my brother became the most decent and noble person I have ever met. And I ask you what that kind of life is worth. Is it only worth twenty-two years? Is that all my brother was worth? Does that man think that twenty-two years in prison repays what he did to me, to my family, to millions of people? Does he really think that if he's released that people will forget what he did? I won't forget." Seto put a lot of stress on that last sentence. "I have a scar that won't let me forget that day. And because I can't forget, I'll never forgive. As far as I'm concerned he can rot in jail. It's better that he deserves."
Without another word Seto went back to his seat. Anna quietly wrapped her hand in his as they sat next to each other. He acted tough but the truth was he was hurting. He didn't say anything to her, and didn't even glance her way.
'We've come a long way since that day.' She thought to herself as other people testified for or against the man sitting before the table. 'I was so afraid I had lost Seto. I don't know what I would have done if I had.'
And like Seto, while sitting in that room Anna tuned out the noises and voices, and he mind returned to that terrible day.
"Mrs. Kaiba!" Shouted Mrs. Wong the secretary as she burst through the door. Anna could tell she was quite panicked. "Hurry, Ma'am, they need you on the ground floor. There's been an incident, Mr. Kaiba has been shot."
Anna wanted to yell 'What!' or 'No!' but no words escaped her lips. Instead she ran. She ran past Mrs. Wong, into the elevator, where she paced nervously until the door opened on the ground floor, then quickly ran to the room that security was directing her to. The door was cracked open, but it was obvious to her that no one dared enter it. And although she was so rushed to arrive at her destination, she found that she suddenly was stopped just at the door. The idea of seeing her husband's dead body lying on the floor terrified her. She gathered her strength and pushed the door open.
"Oh thank God!" She said silently as she saw the scene before her. There was a mistake. Seto was not dead. Instead he was heaped over a bloody body on the floor trying to perform CPR. Even though his back was to her she instantly recognized him due to the blue pin stripped vest he was wearing. Seto had made quite the fashion statement that year by wearing business suits with vests. It was one of this own designs and was highly praised and imitated . That was before the protesting started.
As she approached him she could hear his jagged shallow breaths. Finally reaching the body on the ground she realized who it was that Seto was trying so desperately to save.
"No! Not Mokuba!" And she promptly fell to her knees near the young man's head. Cradling his head in her hands tears starting flowing. "How did this happen?" She asked but got no response. Through watery eyes she looked at Seto. He was mess. Blood stained his hands, the front of his clothes were drenched in it, and some spattered onto his face where it mixed with the sweat and tears that rolled down his cheeks. He never diverted his eyes from his brother's body, never hesitated, he continued to relentlessly pound on the young man's chest. He was a man obsessed. But no matter how hard Seto was trying, she could tell it was too late. Mokuba was already dead. The lifelessness in his eyes and the steady pour of blood from his chest wound told her that. And yet Seto would not stop his compressions. Every thrust into Mokuba's chest only caused more blood to seep out of his body.
"Seto stop." Anna pleaded.
But he continued.
"It's too late Seto, stop." Her voice raised an octave hoping he would hear her.
But he continued.
This time she clamped down on his hands in mid-compression and yelled. "He's dead! MOKUBA'S DEAD!"
Seto stopped with a jolt, as the truth finally sunk in. And when he stopped he sat there completely still and stared at the body. At the time, Anna could not have known what happened, but in retrospect she understood that in that instance something in Seto's brain snapped. He went numb and in a sense dead. She wondered what would happen then, if he did go cold again. Would she be able to bring him out of this ice age?
The silence and stillness of the situation only lasted a minute before Seto took in a few gasps of breath and then appeared to choke like a person does when their throat is constricted from immense sobbing. She expecting him to start bawling and tears to flow like rivers. Instead he coughed up blood.
His hand clenched his stomach as he tried to control the cough and spat out blood. When he started crumpling forward Anna rushed to his side and held him about the shoulders. As soon as he was safely in her arms he went weak and fell into her.
"Seto!"
Anna tried her best to hold him upright, but in the end she had to lay him down on the floor next to Mokuba. That's when she noticed the large stain of blood along his side. Because most of Mokuba's blood was on the front of Seto's body the blood along his side must have been his own. Carefully Anna unbuttoned and peeled back Seto's vest to reveal an obvious wound to his side. The blood was flowing quite steadily. It must have been agitated from all the strain Seto was putting into saving Mokuba's life. Quickly she clasped her hands onto the wound as a make shift compress. She wanted to yell at Seto and tell him he was stupid for not tending to himself during this crisis, but she didn't. One look at him and she knew he was in no condition to be lectured.
He was pale and appeared tired. She called to him but he didn't response, he would only look at Mokuba. From where Seto lay on the floor he was parallel to Mokuba's body and their heads were level. All Seto wanted to do was gaze upon his brother's face. The brother he couldn't save. The brother that sacrificed himself for his family. Such bravery and selflessness was not a comfort. All Seto could think was that it was his fault. He was the cause of it all. And whether through instinct or spousal intuition, Anna knew this. She could tell by the look in his eyes that Seto didn't want to live. He had given up.
"No, Seto!" She screamed at him. "Don't do this to me!"
He didn't move.
"You can't quit! I won't let you give up! I need you! Isabella needs you! You're what makes waking up bearable. You're my life, my love, the father of my child. I can't do this without you. Do you hear me?"
He still did not move.
Seeing that family obligations was not going to stir him she decided that the next best thing was to pray on his ego. "How dare you give up? You're the great Seto Kaiba, you can't quit! What would people say about you after you rolled over and let death take you. When did you ever give up without a fight. That's not you, Seto. You must live. If not for me or Isabella then for Mokuba. You have to make sure his killer is brought to justice. You have to have your revenge!"
If anything Anna knew her husband. She knew his ego, his passions, his sense of duty, and above all else his capability for hatred. This she figured would rouse him, and it did. It was not a grand gesture, nor a spoken word. He simply blinked and turned his head away from his brother's body. That was all she needed to know that he would live.
'Those next weeks were the greatest hell I have ever known.' Anna thought to herself. 'It was an eternity before the ambulance could fight their way through the panicked protestors to reach the building and Seto. Then hours of waiting to hear how he faired through the surgery. He did make it, I knew he would, but…he wasn't the same. His eyes…they were so distant and cold. I was so afraid he had locked himself up again. Just like he was when I first met him. He found no pleasure in anything. Even after recovering he didn't have any drive. For the first two weeks after the funeral he wouldn't even get out of bed. When he finally did he wandered about the apartment in a daze. He didn't sleep, he didn't eat. He was the walking dead. Nothing I did could snap him out of it. I was so afraid that I had lost him for good. It was only a miracle that saved him.'
Anna opened the door to the bedroom quietly. The sight of Seto curled up mindlessly under the covers of he bed didn't surprise her. He had been there on and off for three days now. It pained her so to see him like this, but contrary to all her best efforts she could not comfort him. She felt as if she had failed him.
She changed into her bed clothes. At this point it was useless to be quiet, Seto wasn't asleep and he probably wouldn't be all night. With a 'plop' she fell into the bed. Not even bothering with covers her head hit the pillow and her eyes drooped. She was exhausted. Ever since Mokuba died Anna had carried all the responsibility. With Seto out of commission she had to run the business and household, not to mention the more morbid tasks like arranging Mokuba's funeral and receiving updates from the police concerning the case against Mokuba's murderer. She was so tired that when there came sickly calls from the bedroom across the hall, she didn't hear them. It was a few moments before the weak coughing from the other room caught her attention. Much to her then guilt she hesitated to answer her daughter's soft cries. Perhaps it was fatigue, or perhaps she just wanted to tempt Seto to move, either way she did not answer them. Minutes went by and the cries became a little louder. 'Daddy' could be heard between the coughs as Isabella called for the one she wanted. Anna was on the verge of tears, she wanted him back as well. Then she felt it, the shift in the bed, then the sound of feet padding across the floor and the door opening. She sat up and strained her ears to hear. Yes, voices…one deeper than the other. Shocked she got out of bed and went toward the source. It was true, she could hear him, he was talking. He hadn't spoken since that terrible day, but now he could find words. She peeked into the room to make sure she wasn't imagining the scene.
"It's all right, Princess. Daddy's here." He said kindly as he stroked her hair. "I'll make sure no one ever hurts you."
That should have been an ominous warning to her, but Anna didn't care as long as Seto showed some signs of life.
He rose from the bed and Anna took a step back. They met in the hall. He looked at her tired face with pitiful eyes. He touched her cheek and Anna thought she would melt into his hand.
"I'm sorry. I've neglected you both." He kissed her forehead. "Go to bed, I'll take care of things from now on."
'When I went to bed that night I didn't know what to expect the next morning.' Anna's mind continued to wander as the panel gave their verdict. 'I prayed that he would be back to himself, but I knew that would not happen. After losing Mokuba he would forever be a different person. A piece of him was ripped out and you can't remain the same after something like that. But something did happen, I couldn't tell if it was bad or good. When I awoke the next morning I found that Seto was cleaned up and wearing a suit. He even shaved off the short beard he had sported since Isabella was an infant. He went to work, but that wasn't all. That night while I slept he packed away all the pictures of Mokuba and his awards, everything that would remind Seto of him. Perhaps he thought the pain would be easier to bare that way. And as a result it became almost taboo for anyone to mention Mokuba around him. It may not have been Seto's intention, but it was the outcome. And in ways it did help Seto and slowly he healed from the wounds.'
The verdict given, Seto led Anna hand in hand out of the building and into the mob of reporters waiting outside.
"Mr. Kaiba are you pleased with the verdict?" A reported shouted as he stuck a microphone in Seto's face.
"We're satisfied." Anna said plainly in Seto's place.
Seto stopped dead. "No, I am not satisfied!" He nearly shouted which caught all of the reporters attentions. "That man shouldn't even be allowed a chance at parole. He's a murder and deserves to rot in prison for what he did."
"I take it then that you'll be opposing him the next time he's eligible for parole?" Asked another reporter.
"As long as I live that man will never get out of jail." Seto spoke harsh and bluntly. "I'll be at every one of his parole hearings to remind the board what kind of monster he is."
Seto tugged on Anna's hand and they continued walking through the mass of people to the waiting car. The driver opened the door and Seto ushered Anna in first as he glanced around at the press and spectators. He was still very wary in large seemingly unruly crowds. As soon as Anna was safely tucked away he followed her in and shut the door.
The drive home was quiet for the first half hour. Anna leaned against Seto and he had his arm around her, but neither spoke.
"I don't know how you did it." Seto broke the silence.
"Did what?"
"You took care of me and Isabella, ran the business, arranged the funeral, helped the police, and even saved Hikari's life. You kept our family together."
"I don't do it because I wanted to, I did because I had to."
"And I was no help to you."
"I understood what you were going through Seto. But I want you to know that I can't so that again." Anna drew in a deep breath. "If something were to happen to you. I…I wouldn't be able to go on."
"I feel the same way."
"I'm glad we're in agreement." Anna said with levity. "So what are we going to do about it?"
"Live forever."
"If you can figure that out, I'm all for it." Anna chuckled.
"In case I don't." Seto held her a little closer. "Then we'll just have to die together."
Anna looked up at him in a query.
"I promise you Anna that if you die before me, I will be only breath's hair behind you. We'll leave this world together and journey through the afterlife side-by-side."
She smiled at him and nodded her agreement.
"Let's not make it too soon, okay."
