James stared where Sam vanished in the nondescript black car. "Shit." He turned to face his fiancée, surprise danced across Tim's face as well. "Shit. Shit, shit, shit!" How didn't he see this? How did she-? Sam. Sam was going after Jack. Who the hell gave her that information? "God dammit!"
"Detective! Detective!"
James didn't want to deal with the reporters, now. Plus the Queen looked all too willing to answer any questions. Grey eyes flashed over to Eliza, why was that? "Fuck off." He grunted, he turned back to the direction of the funeral. He needed to retrace Sam's steps. He needed to find her.
"I am certain that Commissioner Anderson will authorize this head hunt led by our dear, Militia."
James swung back around to face the Queen, his mouth dropped open in surprise. Pieces clicked together. Shock settled across his pale face. William. Fall of London. Fred met James' surprise eyes with his own wide eyes. Sam told him what happened and he has read the reports. James never had an issue with the young Queen in the past. Now, he was pissed. "You planned this." He whispered, flabbergasted. "You took advantage of Sam." James said, his voice rising a noticeable fraction.
The Queen's cool blue eyes met his grey gaze and back to the reporter, "Please, excuse me for a moment." She said and slid over to James and Tim. Her bodyguards were a clever blockade against the reporters. "Now, what were you saying? I would be careful with your wording, detective. I wouldn't want you to say such treasonous things to your Queen."
"Eliza, please." Fred spoke, stepping up alongside James and Tim. "Please tell me you didn't."
"What exactly did I do?" She asked, innocently.
James felt a bubbling rage grow and he quickly squashed the anger. As furious as he was, he wasn't an idiot but he did feel somewhat emboldened with the prince backing him rather than his own sister. "You gave Sam, the letter. You knew that she would go after Jack for retribution. Now, you all but sanctioned her man hunt for the Ripper with injuries that are still healing." Stormy grey eyes glared at the regal figure, James couldn't stop the words from spilling from his mouth. No one could. "You signed Sam's death warrant." James spat out.
His best friend could die at the hands of one of the most infamous serial killers known to date because of a petty grudge that wasn't even Sam's fault. No one was at fault. He didn't need his quirk to know that he was right. James could see it written across Eliza's still neutral face. The only break in her facade was a small, victorious twitch on her mouth.
James spun around and marched away, heading to Shimizu Asami's grave marker. Fred stepped in front to run interference and damage control while Tim, Greg and Lily followed behind him. His stomach sank as the distance grew between him and the Queen. Jo was right, he couldn't believe it but Jo was right all along. James always believed that the older heroine was simply, a normal paranoid American. Sam should've left the country, a long time ago. Hell, he might get the hell out of dodge after this mess was over with... And Sam... He needed to find Sam before she killed herself on her righteous path of vengeance. James has to focus. James must find her and stop Sam.
James came to a stop in front of Asami and pulled out his phone. Time to start making some phone calls.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Shouta, Nemuri, and Hizashi were visiting the hospital for Tensei. Shouta was enjoying his fifth cup of coffee in the cafeteria when the news caught his eye. Sam was on TV dressed in black and forest green dress. He recognized a cemetery when he saw one. James Rogers was approaching the heroine, angry and afraid behind the U.A. teacher. Shouta frowned, what was going on?
"Sam!" James shouted but Sam didn't turn to face the detective. Sam was addressing Sally Sparrow, a reporter for the BBC.
"I received your letter and completely agree. Let's finish this game of ours. I'll be where this game of ours began. You have committed grave offenses over your years in London and are guilty of countless crimes but this was one step too far... I'll see you there, Jack." Sam growled, swinging away to be caught by James.
Shouta had a feeling of what the phone call would entail when it rang in his pocket. Slowly, he brought the device to his ear. "This is Detective James Rogers, we met after the USJ incident. I'm a friend of Sam's. Have you seen the news, recently?" Shouta recognized the cool voice of James Rogers. The man that blamed him at first for Sam's injuries at the USJ. First impressions weren't the best but Shouta managed to understand the detective more after Sam's dinner party.
Shouta's dark eyes flickered back to the TV screen where James had taken hold of Sam's wrist. "Yeah, right now. What's going on?"
"Nathan Dark was murdered by Jack the Ripper and now, Sam is going after Jack the Ripper." James said, his voice was tense and stressed over the line. "She lied -wasn't-. Sam wasn't supposed to have those details. Access to Jack's letter... She does and now, she's MIA. Can you try to reach out to her? Give me any details that you might have? We need to find Sam before she confronts Jack."
"Who leaked the information? That could lead to Sam."
"No, it won't. The person who leaked that information had a grudge against Sam, not linked to Jack the Ripper." James said, brushing Shouta's train of thought off.
"Who was it?"
The other line was silent.
"The Queen Of England was the leak."
Shouta took a minute to process what James just said. What a mess and the teachers had wondered what drove Sam to teach in Japan to start with when the spotlight of their investigation was on her. Especially, after the USJ incident. Now, they had their answer. Far more complicated than they had originally thought. "Sam didn't say anything about this." Shouta turned to see Nemuri and Hizashi staring at the TV in shock. "Sam said that you talked to her."
"She lied to me." James hissed out like a whistling radiator about to blow. "Please, ask around. Will you? We need to find Sam before she gets herself killed. The commissioner has already sanctioned her manhunt... It looks like she's dropped off the grid."
"Yeah."
Shouta slid his phone in his pocket, turning to his friends.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
James stared at the laptop's screen over Greg's shoulder. "She vanished." Greg sighed, leaning back in his chair. He glowered at the moving images of traffic. Tim sat on the desk to the left of Greg on his own phone, searching for Sam's phone or activity on her accounts. The four crowded in Tim and James' small office in their flat on the hunt for Sam. Sam's colleague didn't offer any insight in Sam's whereabouts. That left cameras to try a follow Sam's digital steps. They lost her in the city, not even two miles of driving.
"Sam's worked for the police and as a pro for so long, she knows what to avoid." James said, shaking his head. He knew that the video feeds were a long shot but, they had to try. "She can't fight Jack as is. Sam needs some other way to fight or to heal."
"No hospital or private practice is authorized for expedited healing for a nonlethal injury if they have that ability." Lily chimed in, her fingers danced across her phone's screen. "But..."
"She's Militia." James finished. A doctor might leap at the chance to aid the pro heroine, laws be damned. "Do you have a list of all hospitals with that capability?" That was a lead of some kind, James wanted to exhaust all efforts.
"Yeah."
"How many?"
"Seven." Lily answered.
"We'll each take one." James ordered. "I'll text Mike, Mickey, Rory and Melody to take one as well. Greg will stay here to cover the feeds." The four he listed were already apart of the Ripper task force, so it was technically, work related. A lie to tell his subordinates was already forming in James' mind. James closed his eyes and felt a soft hand snag his own.
"We'll get her, James." Tim murmured as he gave James' more calloused hand, a soft squeeze.
"I hope so."
"Do you think Sam would turn to the underworld?" Greg asked.
Tim, Lily and James shared a look. "No, I doubt so. Sam doesn't have a good rapport with those kind of doctors." James shook his head, Sam would never trust one of them to come close enough to touch her. "Let's go."
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Tsubaki stepped out of the elevator and curved around a corner to enter the cafeteria. Rin and Kim trailed behind their mother. Rin was quiet, too quiet. She had been since the news came through. Rin spotted her most of her teachers huddled around a bleak looking table.
Tsubaki threw a cautious look back to her daughters. "Get something to eat, I'm going to talk with the other teachers."
Rin made a dismissive hum to her and wandered away from her family to look out a window overlooking a calm park sitting in the middle of the park. Her electric blue eyes slid over to Kim and back to the pleasant park nestled in the center of the large, towering hospital. Rin's wyes widened a fraction as her gaze landed on a dark haired man nsitting on a bench. She slipped down the hall leading away from the cafeteria. A couple of signs later, she exited from cool linoleum and sterile air to a warm breeze and crunchy gravel. "Hi, Aizawa Sensei."
"Hello."
Rin sat next her teacher on the bench. "Have you heard from her?"
"Radio silence."
Rin didn't want to ask her sensei if he thought that Sam would survive an encounter with the Whitechapel Murderer in her current state. She didn't know how'd she take his answer. Instead, Rin asked. "Why did she do it?"
"Sam isn't an idiot." Aizawa muttered. "Foolish and rash but not an idiot. To her, I believe, there are lines that she draws for herself with her own logic and morals. Jack the Ripper crossed one too many times. I'm absolutely not agreeing with her choice but her reaction to the Ripper's murder is somewhat understandable. Getting herself killed on a lone fool's errand, however... what would've been more logical was to rely on other heroes to capture Jack the Ripper and not solo."
Rin couldn't help the bristle of defiance for her aunt's honor. "Look at what good that's done." Rin retorted, sharply. At Aizawa's tired, leering gaze, Rin deflated. He was right. Rin frowned and nodded at his words. A face of a curly haired woman came forth into her mind, followed by a lanky, pale professor looking man. "I know someone who recited a poem about a man. He was a good man, saved so many and endured, so much. People thought they could act against them without much cost because of his goodness and his code of rules. They never questioned why he had those rules in the first place.
'Demons run when a good man goes to war
Night will fall and drown the sun
When a good man goes to war
Friendship dies and true love lies
Night will fall and the dark will rise
When a good man goes to war
Demons run, but count the cost
The battle's won, but the child is lost'."
Rin frowned, harder as she thought about the madman and his little blue box with the companions that he always left behind. Why Sam was doing it wasn't her true question. Rin's true question would be why was she leaving Rin. Taking a risk that could result Rin loosing her when Sam swore to never leave her. Wasn't that is what she's doing that now? Taking the bait and running into the jaws of a trap laid out just for her? By an infamous psychopathic murderer?
Aizawa inclined his head but didn't respond, right away. "I think there could be some truth to that."
"She's clever." Rin muttered to herself. "She has a plan, Sam's had all week to plan." A firm hand landed on Rin's shoulder, jolting her out of her panicked rambling. However, stress had already sank it's teeth deep in her mind.
"I think her main concern is keeping James away from her trail, not her confrontation with Jack the Ripper."
"She should be worried about the Ripper."
"Yeah, she should." Her sensei agreed and his gaze turned up to the darkening sky. "Your mother is probably looking for you."
Rin sighed, bitter bitting her words. "Yeah, your right." She looked up to the sky as well. Sam better make it back in one piece. "Thank you, sensei."
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
James slammed the file on the table with a wordless snarl. "Damnit!" He snapped. Sam was nowhere. She wasn't in any of the hospitals that they searched. Nowhere around anywhere that she normally frequented. "Where the hell is she?!"
"Calm down."
"Don't tell me to calm down, Timothy!"
"Calm down, we'll get her."
James cursed but something on the wall caught his eye. A newspaper clipping that he had framed. Sam and him had captured a big time mob boss. They had only managed to capture him due an informant. James scowled. An underground doctor with a quirk to accelerate healing to an outstanding degree but he was a dishonored doctor who served underneath the table to villains. At a higher price of course.
Ex-doctor John Smith became an informant for James after his old hospital was raided. The doctor had brokered a deal with James. James would grant his freedom and turn a blind eye to his underground hospital and he would slip information back to James. Nothing huge unless directly asked. Small things that ensured his safety with both parties. He'd do anything if paid enough. The thing that influenced James' decision the most was that the doctor tried to give back to the community when he could. Healing the needy as cliche as it was, however that's how James and Sam uncovered the doctor in the first place. During his spontaneous acts of charity.
Sam might have had enough trust in the doctor to heal her and plenty of money to seal his lips. James growled, pulling out his phone. Ever since, the bust on the hospital. The doctor chose a more sporadic option. Popping up his hospital wherever it was needed by higher paying clients while he had a clinic ran by a partner but he was rarely stationed at the clinic. He was after all, a busy man.
"Tim, we're leaving." James told his fiancée. "We need to act fast if we want to catch Sam." James put the phone to his ears and looked out the window to the nearly set sun.