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Chapter 29

Naru's POV

I sat restlessly on my couch, trying to clear the irrational thoughts going through my mind—I needed to calm down. First things first, I had to think of all the options, not just the worst. Mai could have gone out, or Miss Matsuzaki may have come over and demanded to take care of her. Or Takigawa. Either one seemed possible. Praying that was the case, I pulled out my phone and dialed Miss Matsuzaki's number first. It rang for so long I thought she wasn't going to answer. Right as I was going to hung up, however, she picked up.

"Hello...?"

I took a deep breath before speaking. "Is Mai at your place?" I cut to the chase.

"Naru?" Miss Matsuzaki asked in surprise. "No, I hadn't talked to her or seen her since the case... Why?"

I cursed mentally. "She's not here so I was hoping she was with you. I'll call Takigawa to see if he knows anything."

"...What's wrong?" She demanded. Thinking for a moment, I debated on whether or not to tell her the truth. But that would waste time—time which I didn't have.

"I'll explain later." I cut her off, finishing the call before she could say anything else. She'd yell at me for it later, but that didn't matter right now. I decided to call Takigawa next. Dialing the numbers, I felt even more uneasy than before as I waited for him to pick up. In fact he didn't pick up. When his voicemail started, I slammed the phone down. Damn it.

I suddenly stood up and walked to my door. Perhaps she just went back to her apartment. It was unlikely and even more illogical, but I was beginning to feel desperate. I arrived at Mai's quicker than usual. Possibly due to my faster than normal pace. As I walked into the building, I decided to call Lin as well. Mai going to the office was an even less possibly than going to her apartment—especially since she said she wasn't going to willingly go anywhere—but I had to make sure. Dialing the numbers, it didn't take Lin nearly as long to pick up as it had Miss Matsuzaki.

"Yes, Naru?"

"Is Mai with you?" I asked quickly.

"Of course not. You said she had a fever so both of you were staying at your apartment." Lin answered before pausing. "What's wrong?"

I wanted to scream in frustration. I wished everyone would stop asking that ridiculous question. If I'm calling to ask where Mai is, then shouldn't 'what's wrong' be obvious?

"Mai's gone." I growled down the phone as I arrived at Mai's correct door. I didn't waste any time, trying the door and finding the spare key when it didn't open.

"Gone?" Lin repeated as if he didn't believe me. "How could she be missing when you were with her all day?"

I clenched my jaw as I entered Mai's apartment. Lin, or anyone else for that matter, doesn't know about the engagement—and I'd like to keep it that way for a while.

"Yes, gone. She convinced me to leave her alone." I admitted through gritted teeth. Lin momentarily became silent on the other end.

"How? What could she have said that would convince you to leave her by herself?" He pushed, sounding very suspicious of my actions.

"I don't see how that's any of your business." I shot back, finishing up looking at all of the rooms in Mai's apartment. She wasn't in any of them. "Seeing as how you don't know where she was, this phone call is pointless now." Before he could say anything else, I ended the call and focused on looking around Mai's place. I had only searched to see if she was here when I first arrived, not looking for any signs that she or someone else might have been here before. Since I was no longer speaking with Lin, I could search more properly though. Nothing really appeared to be out of place—almost to a suspicious degree. And every time I came over something was always out laying around. But there was nothing. Everything was neat. Not a thing laying on the ground for Mai to trip over.

I ran my hand through my hair, trying to take a calming deep breath. I had to figure this out. Who else would Mai have spoken to recently? They might know something. There were her friends, which I had already spoken to, the rest of SPR, whom I've tried to contact most of, and... that other guy, Kei. I clenched my teeth at the thought of him, but it's a very high chance he might know something. As much as it irks me, Mai talks to him often. In fact, I'm almost certain she would've spoken to him once we got back. I do not have his number though, only Mai has it. Perhaps it was on Mai's phone.

I frowned, remembering I saw it back in the living room at my apartment. I didn't want to go all the way back when I was over here now. Perhaps she had his number somewhere in her apartment. Walking around, I checked over near the landline. I noticed a small piece of paper beside it and picked it up. The name Kei was written is Mai's scrawl above it. Scowling to myself, I pulled out my phone and began to dial the number Mai had displayed. As I waited I had mixed feelings about talking to him. But it was for Mai's sake, and if she had told him something, then I needed to know. I have a theory about what's going on, but I need to be certain.

Finally someone picked up. "Hello?"

"...I need to ask you something." I stated, trying to put aside my opinions of this person for the time being.

"What?" He asked sounding confused. "Who is this?" He demanded, making me scowl at having to explain.

"It's Kazuya." I told him, irritation clear in my tone.

"Oh...Naru." I could just hear his teasing smirk. "To what do I owe the pleasure of you of all people calling me?"

I bit back my angry response in favour of more important things. "Did Mai tell you anything after we got back?" I asked.

"...You're going to have to be more specific."

I nearly growled at him. "Do you know where Mai would be right now, and do you know if her father was back?" I snapped.

"Woah, wait, what?!" He yelled angrily.

"I asked if you knew anything about how Mai's been acting—the reasons behind it." I clarified irritably. Why did I have to repeat myself to this guy?

"Her behaviour? What's been going on with her?" He began to demand. I sneered.

"If you don't know, then you haven't been paying attention. She's been off for a while."

"Yesterday was the first time I had talked with her since the day you guys went on your last case. She called me yesterday and said it was over with now."

"And she didn't sound strange at all? Say anything off?" I asked frustrated. It was silent on the other end for several moments as he was probably trying to recall the conversation they had. It was nerve wracking, waiting for him to find something—there had to be something. Suddenly I heard him cursed loudly. "What is it?" I demanded.

"Yesterday she said she might go for a walk in the park because the weather had been nice. Damn it, why didn't I see it sooner?!" He said angrily. I frowned.

"Is there some significance to that sentence?" I inquired, confused.

"When we were young, that-that was a code of sorts between us." He explained quickly. "Whenever things got too bad with her step-dad... Fumito... That damn bastard has her again!"

I knew that the chances had been high, but hearing my thoughts confirmed made my heart almost stop in panic. I clutched my phone so tight I truly thought it might break into tiny pieces. "Do you have any ideas as to where they could be?"

"...I don't think so... I left before Mai's mom even died, so I don't know too much."

I barely contained my frustrated shout. "I'm going to contact Lin to see if he has more information. You should start looking as well."

"Yeah, of course." He said. Just as I was about to hang up, his voice stopped me. "Naru... Keep in mind she could be anywhere. Not in Shibuya or possibly not even in Japan. I may not have been there when Mai went through the abuse the most, but I do know Fumito won't stop at anything to keep Mai with him now that he has her again."

I didn't reply, simply ended the call and dialed Lin again. I was too angry at everything to give a reply to that. Not that he was probably expecting one. This time it didn't take Lin long to pick up.

"Noll, tell me what's going on now." He ordered sternly. I didn't beat around the bush this time.

"Fumito's back and he has Mai."

I heard him repeating that name until it finally clicked. "Her step-father?" He asked in surprise. I rolled my eyes in annoyance.

"Yes, her step father. We need to find them."

"Do you have any clue of where they are?"

"Kei said something about a park. See if that turns up an answers." I suggested, not sure where they were but willing to try just about anything. He did say it was a code of sorts so Fumito wouldn't know about it though. Perhaps Mai and Kei never even went to a park when she said that, just anywhere to get away.

"Nothing." Lin confirmed my thoughts. "I had my shiki go and confirm it." He added a moment later. I furrowed my brows in concentration trying to think of another place. I pinched the bridge of my nose. My mind seemed too panic and clouded right now. Where would he have taken her? Considering I know nothing about the man, other than what he had done to Mai, it's impossible to know. I needed to do some more research.

"Look everywhere and tell me if something suspicious happens." I stated. Surely even he would leave a trail. It was a ridiculous thought seeing as how he kept his abusive nature a secret from everyone—and also from everything Mai, and even Kei, has told me about him. But there had to be somewhere that he would take her to keep her away from everything. But where? Damn it, I don't know enough to do anything! I had to think. What would I do if I were him? I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.


Mai's POV

I began to stir awake as I heard muffled voices through my foggy mind. My head was spinning and everything sounded loud but at the same time quiet. What was going on? I couldn't help the small moan that passed my lips. My body felt unbelievably heavy and my arms felt tight and uncomfortable. My body felt like it was on fire, just like the last time I woke up this morning. Only this time I felt even worse—if that was even possible.

I tried so hard to clear my head, to understand what had happened. Why do I feel like this? The last thing I remember is Naru leaving to go get my engagement ring... But if that was true then why did I feel so terrible right now? Shouldn't I be resting? How long had I been out anyway? The thoughts spinning around in my head were making me a little dizzy as I forced myself to try and comprehend what was going on. I had fallen asleep after Naru left...then I had woken back up because of something. But what would have forced me to awaken in such a weird way?

Despite my pounding headache, I cracked my eyes open. They felt heavy and my surroundings were blurry as I tried to see. I could already tell though, that I was not inside a bedroom. And that I was tied down, my wrists and ankles burning. Sheer panic began to coarse through my veins. I opened my mouth to scream or make some amount of noise but found that my throat was too dry to get anymore than a whimper out. Where am I? How did I get here? And where was Naru? Was he okay?

A memory flashed in my mind, making me stop breathing. Fumito. My slight movements froze in panic. Oh my God... I thought. Fumito! Things that I didn't understand began to add up like pieces to a puzzle. My breaths began to come out short and sharp. This couldn't be happening right now. Not again...please no. My chest ached as I found it hard to force air into my lungs. I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to keep my tears from leaking out. I couldn't give in like this. I needed to be strong, no matter how much I want to break down. Besides if Fumito saw me crying he would just beat me more.

I took a deep but shaky breath. Opening my eyes once more, I blinked away the last of my tears. I know how Fumito is. I know what makes him mad and what doesn't. If I focus on keeping myself composed and just go along with him for the time being, then I can figure out where to go from there. I know Naru will try to find me. It's just a matter if it's possible or not. But do I really want him to? There were so many risks, and Fumito wouldn't go down without a fight. Unfortunately it's not as though I could stop Naru. I'd never be able to get in contact with him. Especially not in my current condition.

I kept taking deep breaths to try to remain calm, though it didn't stop the tears from forming in my eyes.


Naruisawesome: So yeah...here's the latest chapter...

MzShellSan: She's just afraid you guys will hate her because things will just get worse from here.

Naruisawesome: Shhhh! No one asked you!

MzShellSan: *smiles innocently* What? I'm only speaking the truth.

Naruisawesome: *glares*

MzShellSan: *ignores* Please review~! ^_^