Chapter 2

Kagome nibbled at the corndog in her hand. Her stomach was churning, and the thought of eating didn't sit well with her. Still, she forced herself to take a bite, knowing her body needed some sort of sustenance. It was cold now, her body shivering, but she had nothing more than a thin long sleeve shirt, and a pair of worn jeans. She wasn't complaining, because at least she had shoes. The people she had seen these past few days sometimes didn't even have that.

She winced as she gripped the corndog, her hands paining her. They still hurt. Even after all of these weeks, they just wouldn't seem to heal. Many things about her weren't healing. She looked out to the crowd around her.

She wasn't blind. She could see the wide berth everyone gave her. They either thought she would beg for money, try to steal from them, or she just smelled that bad. She didn't blame them. She used to do the same thing whenever she encountered a homeless person. She would throw them coins, or whatever change she had, but then scurry away. She was a horrible person.

Now she knew how it felt. No, she wasn't angry that people treated her the way they did, but it hurt. She was human too. She was a person, she had emotions, just like everybody else did. Looking back to her half-eaten corndog, she blinked away the tears. As cold as it was, they may freeze to her cheeks. That was the last thing she needed.

She was an idiot. At least sometimes she thought she was. Right now, her mind was degrading her, telling her she should have stayed. The truth was, if she had stayed, she would be dead. He would have killed her on the spot, but at least she wouldn't be cold and hungry.

The other part of her, the more silent part said she was strong. She escaped something many people wouldn't have. She fought back and made an escape. She was homeless now, her money gone, and she was forced to survive on the kindness of others. But she was alive, and she was free.

She missed being a teenager. That was when life was easy. Her only worry was schoolwork and making sure she graduated. However, that all changed. The moment she graduated; her mother told her the shrine was in debt. So much, they couldn't afford to pay it off. She had come up with a plan. If Kagome married, their debts would be paid.

Her mother made it sound amazing, begged and pleaded. In truth, it was all simple manipulation. Kagome learned that the hard way. She agreed to marry Kouga, thinking it was going to be perfect. There was the added bonus that she was helping out her family, which was something Kagome always wanted to do. As promised, Kouga paid her mother's debts, but the moment they were married, everything changed.

Their wedding night was the worst of her life. She had been nervous, had asked that he grant her some time so she could shower and work through her nerves. She had just wanted a few hours, but he disagreed. He forced her, raped her, and then left her a sobbing mess.

She wanted to leave then, but she was stuck.

It was a few months into their marriage when he hit her for the first time. She had dropped a meal that she had prepared, and that meant she wouldn't have dinner ready in time. It was one backhanded slap, but he promised more if she didn't have dinner ready within an hour.

Slowly she learned. What to do, what not to do. Most times she could avoid his anger. As long as she did what he said, opened her legs when he wanted, and kept him happy, he left her alone. One night, about two years into their marriage, nothing she did worked.

She had become pregnant. Kouga wasn't happy. He beat her so badly she couldn't walk, and only when she began to bleed between her legs, did he stop. She miscarried. He hadn't even taken her to the hospital, just called her mother to handle the mess.

Kagome had hoped her mother would help her to escape. What mother wouldn't when they find their daughter in the abusive mess that Kagome was. Unable to move, sobbing over her lost baby. the real betrayal came when Kagome's mother told her to suck it up. She cleaned up Kagome, helped her into the bed, and then told Kagome that this was life. If Kagome wanted to keep Kouga happy, then she needed to make sure she didn't get pregnant. Kouga's word was law. It turns out, that Kouga could retract his money at any time if he wanted. It was enough of a threat for Kagome's mother to choose money over her daughter.

That had hurt more than Kouga's hands ever did.

For years, Kagome endured. She did whatever was needed to make sure Kouga was always happy. She couldn't always avoid getting a beating, but she did pretty well. Finally, something in her had snapped. She had found him in bed with another woman.

She didn't really care if he slept around. She wanted nothing to do with him, but it still angered her. Mostly because a male couldn't even look at her without him accusing her of cheating. It didn't matter if it wasn't her fault or not. If a guy looked of her of his own free will, then she was dolling herself up on purpose. At least that was how Kouga's mind worked.

When she had found him with that woman, she had been angered that he would make such a big deal about being possessive over her, but then he turned around and screw other people. She had slammed the door. That was it. It was the worst mistake of her life.

That one little door slam sent Kouga into a rage. He had literally tackled Kagome to the ground, yelling about killing her for the way she acted. She tried to get away, clawing at the floor, but it was useless. He was much stronger than her.

The woman had left in her fear, sparing a single glance at Kagome before she hightailed it out of there. She left Kagome alone to deal with a crazed Kouga. At that moment she really had feared for her life. Kouga didn't seem to want to stop until she was killed. Whatever had snapped in her to cause her to slam the door, snapped again.

She fought back. She kneed him in the groin, opened the oven, and grabbed the hot cast iron skillet that she had been baking dinner with. She hadn't felt the pain on her hands, she just felt as it connected with Kouga's face, and sent him to the ground.

He was knocked unconscious, but she didn't hesitate. She took whatever money he had in his wallet, grabbed her own wallet, leaving behind her purse, put on her shoes, and ran. She had made it onto a bus, and it was only then that she began to feel the pain. It was agonizing. She hadn't been able to move her fingers at all, plus her body ached all over from Kouga beating. She was a mess, and it didn't even bother her when she started to sob. Let the other riders think what they wanted.

That was three weeks ago. She had moved across Japan, and tried to find a place to settle, but that hadn't happened. She had slept on the bus, and while she did, someone picked her pocket, stole her cash, and left her wallet open in her lap. She took out her I.D. and threw the wallet away.

A kind woman had noticed her hands and offered her bandages, but Kagome still couldn't care for her wounds as she should. Her bruises were yellow now, almost gone, but her hands, they were oozing puss. They were infected, and she knew that was apart of what was making her stomach upset. Health care wasn't free, and she couldn't afford a doctor. An emergency room, while they would treat her for without payment upfront, could potentially leave a trail. If Kouga tried to look for her, she didn't want him to be able to find her.

"You hear about the club Safe Haven?" A male walking past spoke louder, getting quite a few glares from others. "It's a strip club. Has a shit ton of rules, but those bitches are nice."

"I've heard of it. I heard it's like an outreach program. The owner helps the women get on their feet." The second male shrugged his shoulders, not really having any interest in the conversation.

"I don't care about that. Not as long as I get to see some titties."

Kagome watched them walk away and then turned back to her corndog. Safe Haven. A strip club that helped girls get on their feet. Kagome looked down at her body, surprised that she was actually thinking about. She was becoming desperate.

Then reality struck her, and she scoffed. It didn't matter what her body looked like. Kouga told her she was flat and had nothing to offer, but it was a moot point. She was terrified of men. She had tried to go to a self-defense dojo, was going to beg for lessons, but one look at the two males in there, and she couldn't. She had turned and ran, then hid behind a dumpster until the male that had come after her left. He had kind blue eyes, that she remembered, but it didn't matter. He was a male, and she didn't trust him.

If she couldn't handle speaking to a male about self-defense classes, she couldn't dance for them.

She stood, tearing the stick from her corn dog. The stick went into the trash as she passed it, the corndog went to a stray that she saw occasionally. He was always nice, and she hoped one day the dog found a home. Walking, she kept her eyes open, looking for a place to sleep for the night. It was going to be a cold and long night, and she needed to prepare for it as much as possible.

…

Miroku weaved around the guest in his club, making small conversation as he greeted as many as he could. He was friendly and flirty, but it was all a show. He was working, walking around the strip club and making sure no one was breaking any of his rules. If they did, they were booted and banned.

Kohaku, his bartender's younger brother was doing the same. He was young, only eighteen, but Miroku had decided to help him out when he helped out Sango. Now both were on their feet and a permeant fixture to Safe Haven.

Making his way to the bar, Miroku scooted into a stool, motioning Sango to give him a glass of soda. Miroku didn't drink. He refused to touch the stuff, and Sango knew that. She placed the glass in front of him, and he sipped at it, looking around the club from this position.

"Any sign of trouble?" Sango twirled a bottle of vodka in her hand, quickly pouring three shots before sliding them to a female at the end of the bar. She had learned her bartending skills from Miroku, who had taught himself when he opened Safe Haven. "I've been watching sleaze ball over there. He's been trying to get handsy with Kikyou. She has already stopped him twice."

"Aside from that, no." Miroku stood, pushing his glass to Sango. She would set it aside for him until he came back. Pulling out his phone, he texted Kohaku, waiting on the boy to show up. Kohaku had learned self-defense from InuYasha, just as Miroku had. It came in handy when it was time to throw out someone who broke the rules.

"You ever find that girl?" InuYasha had told Sango about the woman that had come into the Dojo. Miroku had tried to look for her after she ran away, but there had been no such luck. Earlier today, before the bar opened, he had gone out again. It had started to snow, and for some reason, he couldn't get her off of his mind.

He sighed, twisting his head to crack his neck. "No. It is probable that she has moved on to another town." Kohaku showed up then, and Miroku pointed to the guy who was once again trying to touch Kikyou. Kohaku nodded, and together, they removed the man and added him to the banned list.

So much of him wished he could find that terrified little woman and get her into Safe Haven. He wanted to know she was okay, that she was safe, but he couldn't find her. At this rate, he didn't think he ever would.