Chapter 46

Miroku stood outside of the car, ignoring the chilly air as it brushed past him. Kagome was inside, in the driver seat with her window down so she could talk to him. He was anxious about leaving her side, especially after the explosion two weeks ago.

Kouga had gone quiet again, which worried all of them, but Miroku had plans, and he couldn't have Kagome around while he did them. It was a surprise for her. Still, he didn't want to leave her. Naraku was still in critical care. He had been transported by air to a burn hospital, a place that could better handle his injuries. Kagura went with him.

That could have been Kagome, and he was having trouble moving away from the car to let her go, Touga was there, with all of the girls. He had no problem protecting them and had said so, many times. Sango was just as trained as InuYasha was, and a threat when she needed to be. The girls would have two strong people to protect them.

"I'll be okay, Miroku. Touga is here. Sango too." Kagome mirrored Miroku's thoughts, but he squeezed his hands on the window, still not letting go. She leaned over, kissing his mouth sweetly. "I'll text you every hour. If I don't, it's because I am getting a massage and fell asleep. At which point, someone else will text you an embarrassing photo of me drooling."

Miroku smiled, nodding his head. "I love you."

"I love you too." She blew him a kiss, and he finally stepped back, letting go of the car. It was the hardest thing he had ever done. He waved as she pulled off, and then turned to his brothers. "Let's get this done. We only have a few hours."

They walked into Miroku's house, him leading the way to the spare room. Inside, the room was bare, nothing inside of it. "This will be the nursery. I hid the paint in the closet, and the furniture will be delivered in three hours."

"Then let's get to it." All three boys quickly changed their clothes into ones that didn't care if they got ruined. They laid down the plastic, taped off the trim and borders, and then got to work. InuYasha had joked about getting naked women painted over the walls, but Sesshomaru claimed that Kagome would kill them and Miroku agreed.

Within the time frame given, the boys had the room painted, and the window open so the paint could dry. The furniture was delivered, and they put everything together, InuYasha griping about not being paid for the manual labor. Sesshomaru threw a screwdriver at him, and Miroku yelled at Sesshomaru about not hitting the walls.

It was an amusing few hours as they worked and got everything done within four hours. They finished a lot quicker than they expected and decided to head out to get some food. The others would eat while they were out.

After changing they headed outside and to the cars. Miroku decided to take his own so he could go to Kagome after their lunch. InuYasha and Sesshomaru would go their own way and piled up into Sesshomaru's car.

About halfway to the city, Miroku realized he had a problem. A major one. He pulled out his phone with a shaky hand, calling Sesshomaru's phone. When his brother answered, Miroku swallowed, both hands gripped tight on the steering wheel. "My brakes aren't working."

"What?" They could hear the panic in Sesshomaru's voice, and Miroku's heart raced in his chest.

"I noticed that my brake pedal was loose, but it wasn't anything serious. I figured I would take it in after I picked up Kagome. But now it's not working at all. Neither is the emergency break." Miroku managed to keep his car steady as he took a curve, breathing fast and shallow. There was a hill coming, and if he didn't get his car to stop…

"Put your car in neutral. It should slow it down." InuYasha was also frightened, his voice tight. The hill was coming closer. It was steep, going down at an angle that would do nothing but speed up Miroku's car. When the hill finally leveled out, it went straight into a curve. If Miroku didn't slow down before then, he wouldn't be able to make the turn.

Miroku put his car in neutral, noticing an immediate drop in his speed. However, it won't be enough. He was too close to the hill, and not slowing down fast enough. Grabbing his phone, he quickly sent Kagome a text, telling her he loved her, and then braced himself.

He slowed down to a speed where a crash wouldn't be that bad, but the moment he went over that hill, his speed picked back up. He tried to make the turn, to keep his car steady, but he couldn't. His tires spun out, losing their grip, and he went off the road, his car tumbling, rolling over and over again. He was unconscious before the car stopped moving.

Sesshomaru slammed on his breaks, skidding to a stop as his stomach dropped. InuYasha was already on the phone with emergency services, both of them running to the car. It was trashed, a mangled mess. All of the windows were busted in, shattered.

"Miroku!" Sesshomaru tried to force his way into the car, seeing his brother hanging upside down and limp. "Damn it. He's not responding, InuYasha." Sesshomaru's phone went off, but he ignored it, instead calling out to Miroku again.

"They say don't move him." InuYasha was kneeling down beside Sesshomaru, trying to hold the oldest of the three back. "If we move him, we could make it worse. Check his vitals instead. Is he breathing? Does he have a heartbeat?"

Sesshomaru studied Miroku for a moment, his heart in his throat. Reaching in, he grabbed Miroku's wrist, eyes burning as felt for anything. "He's not breathing. There isn't a heartbeat." Sesshomaru looked at InuYasha, both brothers with wide and wet eyes.

They heard the siren's getting closer, and InuYasha ran to the road, waving his arms and getting their attention. When they parked, he returned his phone to his pocket and began to inform the paramedics and firefighters of what happened. They got to work on freeing him.

Sesshomaru stepped out of the way, his phone ringing in his pocket once more. Pulling it out, he saw it was his father, and walked away from the carnage to answer it. When he did, Touga was clearly annoyed. "I have been calling you, InuYasha, and Miroku. We are coming back early; Kagome wasn't feeling well."

"Turn around. Don't come this way." Sesshomaru's voice was emotionless, his entire being in shock. There was only one road that led to their house. That meant whoever was driving would have to come down this road. Sesshomaru didn't want Kagome to see Miroku this way.

"Why? What is wrong? You are-" Touga's voice cut off as he rounded the curve, seeing exactly what was wrong. Sesshomaru heard Kagome's scream through the phone, wincing. Putting his phone back into his pocket, he started walking to the car, breaking into a run as Kagome shot out of her tesla and towards Miroku's smashed vehicle.

Before she could reach him, Sesshomaru wrapped his arms around her, both of them falling to their knees. Kagome struggled against him, sobbing hysterically, but he just held her, his head on her shoulder.

Touga ran past Sesshomaru, towards InuYasha, ordering the girls to stay behind. Izayoi wrapped herself around Kagome's back, also sobbing. Sesshomaru was shaking, his body finally coming out of shock. His brother wasn't breathing. He didn't have a heartbeat. Miroku was dead.

"Kagome." Sesshomaru fisted Kagome's hair, pulling her head back so she was forced to look at him. "Calm yourself. Do it for your son." Kagome shook her head in denial, but leaned forward, pressing her face against Sesshomaru's chest.

"Fuck!" Touga yelled suddenly, throwing his phone in a fit of rage. He began to pace, pulling his hair in his grief as his eyes filled with tears. InuYasha ran to the side, throwing up near a tree. Touga was the one becoming hysterical and turned that rage on the paramedics. "You fix this. You get my boy breathing again or so help me, I will sue you, your family, and the entire city."

"No!" Izayoi stood, running over to Touga. When her eyes landed on her son, who was being pulled out of the car, she let out a sobbed wail, her knees giving out. Touga caught her, both of them sobbing for their grief.

"Sesshomaru." Kagome had heard what Touga said, her heart breaking. She was clinging onto Sesshomaru, trying to keep herself in control for her baby, but it was an impossible feat. Her husband was dead. The father of her baby was dead. How was she supposed to stay calm?

"I know." Sesshomaru held her closer, rocking her. He looked up to Naomi and Sango, seeing both girls crying, but trying to keep it silent for Kagome's sake.

Touga held his wife, watching as the paramedics worked on his son. Baring no expenses, he told them to do whatever was necessary. It took four minutes before they finally got Miroku breathing again, and when they did, Touga let out a gasp of relief.

"He isn't out of the woods yet. We called in a chopper." One of the paramedics inserted an IV into Miroku's arm, another was squeezing a bag at his mouth, getting oxygen into his lungs. It didn't take long before they all heard the chopper coming.

Watching it land, the blades whipping around the trees, grass, and their hair, drove in the severity of the crash. Miroku may have a heartbeat again, but that didn't mean it wouldn't stop. He was in serious danger of losing his life, and all his family could do was watch helplessly.

When the chopper was gone, Touga led Izayoi back to the car. "Let's get to the hospital." They all followed his lead, trying to keep calm for Kagome's sake.

When Sesshomaru stood, he tried to escort Kagome to the car, but she didn't budge. Instead she shook her head, hands fisted in his shirt. "I want to go home. Take me home Sesshomaru, please."

"What about Miroku?" Sesshomaru looked down at her, seeing the wheels of grief tumbling in her head. He knew what she was going to say before she said.

"It's my fault. I don't deserve to see him." As she spoke, she was becoming more upset, her body shaking once more. "I wish he had never found me. I wish I never left Kouga. All of you got dragged into my mess, and now Miroku is…." She let out a sob, and Sesshomaru closed his eyes with a sorrow filled sigh.

"I will take her home. Keep me updated." Sesshomaru knew if he fought Kagome in that moment, she would break. She would lose herself, go hysterical once more, and he didn't want that. He wanted to keep her as calm as possible so her baby stayed safe and healthy.

While the rest of the family got into Kagome's Tesla and headed to the hospital, Sesshomaru drove Kagome back to her house. When she saw what Miroku had done for her and the baby, she broke down once more and Sesshomaru held her until she cried herself to sleep. He took care of her, making sure she was comfortable, then leaned against the wall in the hallway. He finally let out what he had been holding back. All the tears that had threatened to fall earlier fell then, and for once he didn't try to stop them. His brother was gone.