Niragi felt fantabulous. He didn't even remember the last time he had been in such a great mood, and every eye rested on him as he paced through the halls with that rifle rested on top of his shoulder. He was the one writing the rules, and all those tiny little insects had to obey. They knew what he had done – what he made Sonja do up in that room.
He could have killed that poor bastard himself, of course. Just that it was so much more fun to watch someone else do it despite their own will. Sonja did not want to kill her boyfriend, she would have never been able to even hurt him with a lousy punch. And now she most likely lay in this bedroom, blaming herself for the death of that sad being of a man. Niragi had planned to play it the other way round at first; to have Takagi kill Sonja to make him suffer. But when he was having fun with this foreign looking woman, he realized that Takagi was nothing but a waste of time and energy. Sonja was the true toy; she was the insecure creature that he could break and form into something entirely new.
It wasn't fair, he knew that. Nothing was fair in life, so why should he bother? Takagi had broken him and built the base for what Niragi was today, and now he would do the same with Sonja. She would be not only his toy, not only a puppet led by strings, but his weapon. The pain and hatred she felt right now would slowly turn into something deeper and much more powerful. She would learn to enjoy how to give back all the darkness she received, and they both would be alike.
Getting her there would require more than just a single murder, and Niragi already had an idea how to continue. He had to show her that power was in his hands right now, and since he was due for another game tonight, this was the best way to make it clear to her as well.
The cars were already being gathered on the south parking area when he ran up the stairs to Sonja's room, leaping several stairs at a time. He didn't bother to knock or ask for permission to enter – he wouldn't get it. The carpet was still stained with blood, and a metallic taste lingered in the air, but the dead body was gone. Niragi doubted that Sonja had managed to do it herself, since the dark-skinned woman was crouching in the niche between the nightstand and the window, as far away from the bloody spot as possible, legs curled up to her chest and swaying back and forth. She didn't even notice him entering the room.
Niragi approached her and knelt down in front of her, lifting her chin with his hands. This forced her to look up, and her eyes finally widened in fear when realization struck her. Her hands immediately begun to tremble as she tried to retreat even further into the wall, but the stone wouldn't budge.
"Hello, little sunflower", he grinned and brought his face closer to hers. "Tonight's games are about to begin, so I'll need you downstairs."
The woman was not dull at all, that much he had to admit. Sonja's eyes widened even more, and she shook her head. "N-no. I don't have to. My visa-"
"I don't care about your visa." His fingers clenched harder around the smooth skin of her chin, with enough force to leave marks or bruises. "You'll accompany me to tonight's game, no matter if I have to drag you out of this room."
"I don't… I don't want to."
"Sweetheart, you'll have exactly two options. First, you join me for the game. Second, you'll stay here, and I'll make sure to have lots of fun with you afterwards."
"How can I be sure that you won't do both?"
"You can't. But it will be less fun for you if you refuse."
She flinched, and Niragi could see the defeat in her hazel eyes once she realized there wasn't exactly a chance. He stepped back, allowing her to get on her feet, but he didn't leave her unattended. The way her eyes flickered to the window and the door now and then left no doubt that she was already searching for a way to flee, and he wouldn't let that happen.
Sonja was quick to slip into jeans and a dark green hoodie, underlining the auburn and golden specks in her hair, probably glad to have a chance to hide her body from him better than it would have been possible in the plain bikini. Niragi couldn't resist to touch the thick curls falling over the back of her shoulders, causing her to wince. He was already quite excited about the game awaiting them.
When they reached the door, it was not surprising at all that the small woman immediately begun to run, but Niragi had expected such a move. She moved fast for her chubby legs, but Niragi was faster. He grabbed her waist with ease, pulling her from the ground and pressing her against his chest, arms tightened around hers hard enough for her to yelp in pain while the side of his gun pressed against her shoulder.
"Don't run away from the fun, little sunflower", he whispered against her ear, using the tip of his tongue for a tease. Sonja's heart raced heavy against her ribs and she dug her fingernails into his arms, wordlessly pleading him to let go. "I will find you wherever you are."
Niragi released her with a chuckle, watching how the woman stumbled away from him just to get out of his reach. Arms slung around her, she squeezed against the wall. It was so easy to read the thoughts busying her mind while she desperately tried to swallow down her tears. Why me? Why not someone else?
Because life is not fair. "Let's go. We don't want to walk all the way to the game, do we?"
She didn't answer, but that was not needed anyway. With the gun resting loosely on his shoulder, Niragi pointed his new companion to start walking, and the sight of the weapon should be enough of a reminder to her not to run away again. Not that he'd kill her, but there were certain parts of her body that were not necessary for a game. Or for him to have fun.
The car was still waiting for them, of course. Most of the other cars had already left the parking area, but they were not the last ones. Niragi took the passenger's seat while Sonja squeezed herself onto the back, obviously glad at the space she could bring in between them by doing so. He didn't need to turn around to see that her eyes flickered to him and the gun now resting in between his legs, filled with fear and a hint of anger as well. Exactly what he wanted her to do – turn fright into power.
Tatta was driving the car, and he seemed uncomfortable with Niragi's presence as well. It wasn't anything personal, since Niragi wasn't interested in harassing the youngster too much, but the maintenance boy was always scared in the presence of Militants. Stuttering into a Walkie-Talkie, Tatta coordinated with the other cars what part of Tokyo they would search for a game, and it didn't take too long for a lit-up sign to show up in front of them.
They left the highway on the next exit, the car's headlights being the only source of light except the signs leading to the game area. It was a view that didn't cease to impress, even more when one had known the original Tokyo, always bright as daylight and buzzing with life. How boring it would have been without the Beach.
A simple two-storey living house turned out to be their game area, and Tatta parked the car just out of reach of the three street lamps activated in front of the house. Light was shining through all the windows, the sight blurred by white curtains. It didn't look like an exciting game at all.
Niragi clicked his tongue and slammed the door of the car, and while he wanted to adjust his rifle on the shoulder at first, he decided against it. Sonja didn't need days on her visa so early, and running away now would be a smart move because Niragi relied on tonight's game. And searching her within the completely dark Tokyo would turn out much harder than inside the Beach, so Niragi had to be ready to shoot.
He waited for the dark-skinned woman to get out as well and pointed the gun towards her, making clear that she wouldn't get far. Sonja swallowed, hugging herself tighter with a shudder as she stared at the house in sheer horror. It wasn't cold at all tonight and the building couldn't look more average, and it made Niragi grin to think about the fear turning her blood into ice.
Once they passed the laser barricades on the entrance, Niragi allowed himself to lower the gun since the woman decided to behave. She reached for a phone and held it close for face recognition, which wasn't that easy with the tremble of her fingers.
It didn't take long for the registration to close, and their phones revealed a Two of Clubs. Niragi snorted. He really had hoped for some more tension, but a boring house could only provide for a boring game.
GAME: THE MISSING PIECE. FIND AND PUT TOGETHER ALL THE MISSING PIECES OF THE PUZZLE FOR A GAME CLEAR.
TIME LIMIT: TWO HOURS.
Two hours to complete a stupid child's puzzle. The door leading out of the small hallway they had gathered in opened, and Niragi was first to step into the warmly lit living room. A stair on the left led to the upper floor, while a blue-and-white-tiled kitchen stretched on the right. Whoever had lived here could not have been younger than sixty, with pieces of old furniture littering the walls together with fading pictures of average looking people doing average things.
On the coffee table waited a puzzle frame to be filled with pieces, the image not recognizable yet. Niragi could easily tell that there was a total of 24 pieces missing, each the size of a peach. They had two hours to find those oversized puzzle pieces, and even if it was just a Two of Clubs, there was not even the slightest challenge in that.
Around him, doors and drawers were already being opened, and Niragi turned around to watch the other players. Everyone had gathered somewhere around the living room, except Sonja, who was still standing in the hallway like frozen. She had turned pale, at least much paler compared to her usual color, and it would be stupid to think the game frightened her that much. Considering the way she had eyed the house already on the outside, the reason had to be something different. A previous game, most likely.
"Don't just stand there", he grunted loud enough for everyone inside to hear, "come and make yourself useful."
Niragi watched how Sonja carefully stepped inside the living room, her eyes fixed on the TV screen on the opposite wall, when she suddenly turned around and hurried up the stairs. There was no way she could escape, since lasers would most likely secure every window around them, so maybe it was just Niragi she tried to escape from.
There were already enough people roaming through the main floor, and Niragi ascended the stairs with a grin. The wood creaked under his feet, proving to be as old as the rest of this house, and he internally shook himself when he entered the first room to his left, a bathroom held in baby pink. Everything was pink – the shower, the toilet, the basin, even the carpets on the ground. But there was something else he noticed a few seconds later; darker spots staining parts of the ground and the furniture. Blood.
It was old already, long dried and mostly wiped away, but traces of it were still left in between the tiles and on the carpets, and a look into the shower proved that whatever had happened there had been a total massacre. A single razor blade, rusty and covered in dark red proved that the last game inside this house had been accompanied by violence.
And suddenly Niragi understood why Sonja was so hesitant to be here. The grin on his face widened while he ripped open the drawers, where shaving foam and anti-wrinkle cream barely managed to hide a single part of the puzzle. Half of a bulldog puppy was printed on it, staring straight at him with huge naïve eyes.
He found one more piece lying under one of the carpets, but nothing else appeared even though he turned the entire room into a whole mess. All the time he wondered what type of game it had been. Spades? Hearts? How many survivors had been possible, or had Sonja been the only one? Had she actually been the one to kill the other players?
Once the bathroom held nothing of interest for him any longer, Niragi moved to the next room. It was a child's bedroom, but there were no toys or posters on the wall, as if it had been used for a kid a long time ago and had then been turned into a guest room once the child had left the house. The wooden planks on the floor had been soaked with blood as well, only that the wood turned out much harder to clean from its residues than tiles.
Sonja was cowering against the bed, knees pulled up to her chest, a puzzle piece in one hand and a bracelet in the other. She had been crying just recently, for the traces of tears were still visible on her cheeks. Niragi bent down towards her, sticking out his tongue with a grin that wouldn't fade. "Found something, I see!"
She held out the puzzle piece for him to take, but Niragi barely paid attention to the bright yellow balloon printed on it. He tapped the bracelet instead, a simple brown lace with a single pearl added to it, causing Sonja's hand to close around it tighter.
"Wanna tell me what this is?"
The curls whirled around her face when she stubbornly shook her head, pursing her lips in silence. Niragi moved closer with a chuckle, reaching for her face and turning it towards him. "Listen, I don't really care about that trinket. What I do care about though is the fact that you and I are here alone, and no one else upstairs…"
Her eyes widened in an instant, the haze caused by tears quickly replaced by horror. "No! No…"
Niragi laughed, following whenever she tried to squeeze herself away from him. It was tempting to simply close the door and have some fun here and now. No one would ask any questions, and no one would dare to interrupt him. They would simply ignore the screams, pretending to overhear them and afterwards act as if nothing had happened. The bed seemed dusty and not too comfortable, although that wouldn't matter much. He'd had worse locations already.
But it was still a game, and even if it was such a simple one, it needed to be cleared. The fun had to wait for a little bit longer.
He pressed a kiss onto her mouth, tasted the salt on them and bit her lower lip hard enough for Sonja to whimper. "Just a bit more patience, little sunflower."
Collecting her puzzle piece, Niragi straightened his back and headed for the door. "Now be a good girl and find some more of these, yes?" he grinned with a wink and then left her alone.
It turned out that the bloodshed in the upper bathroom and the child's room had been nothing at all. While the rest of the upper floor had been clean, the kitchen downstairs resembled a slaughterhouse. The blood was everywhere – on the ground, on the counter, on the insides of the drawers. This had been not a simple murder, it had been torture. And the metallic taste of so much blood still lingered in the air, causing some of the other players to retch. Niragi on the other side couldn't have been more amused now that this tiresome game finally turned into something slightly more interesting.
"What the actual fuck?" muttered another Beach member as he stepped up next to Niragi, sheer disgust written on his face. Niragi slapped his shoulder, hard enough for the other man to stumble over his own feet.
"This must have been fun! What a shame we came too late."
A collection of knifes had been spread on the kitchen table, and they were covered in long-dried blood from the handle to the edge of the blade. No, there must have been more than one survivor. Sonja would have never been able to produce such a mess, and she would not have managed to win a fight against whoever had rioted here with the knives.
Too much violence, even for a Spades game. By now Niragi would have betted that it had been Hearts, and not one of the lower ones.
Three more pieces were hidden in the kitchen, one inside a pot, one within cookies in a jar that had been disposed on top of the wall cupboards, and one underneath a loose tile. With them, 23 pieces had been gathered by now, creating the image of two bulldog puppies running along with a boy holding a bunch of balloons. It looked peaceful and cute, and Niragi liked to imagine that the same dogs had eaten the boy alive on the next barbecue, when he carried steaks instead of balloons.
But no matter what they did, the last piece couldn't be found.
When the timer announced twenty minutes left, the whole house had been turned into chaos. All drawers had been ripped open, pieces of furniture had been moved away from the walls, carpets were crumpled and pillows cut and torn. Niragi had thrown every frame to the ground, making sure nothing was hidden behind the stupid family images except secret love letters proving that the family hadn't been as happy as the outside world was told to believe. And despite the game being only a Two, Niragi begun to get restless.
Sonja hadn't left her room since the beginning of the game, and the last time Niragi had checked, she had still been sitting against the bed frame, holding her stupid bracelet. But they were missing something, and Sonja had already survived a game within these walls, so if there was someone able to find the last piece, it had to be her.
He grabbed Tatta, who was just running past him to check the guest bathroom for the umpteenth time, at the collar of his shirt and jerked him around. "Go get the girl down here. Now."
The maintenance boy didn't ask, since there was only one female in this group, and hurried up the stairs. It didn't take long for him to return, accompanied by Sonja, who had strapped the bracelet over her wrist by now and was playing with it absently. Her eyes were glued to the ground, and she was obviously avoiding looking towards the kitchen. She knew about the bloodbath.
"Tell us where the last piece is", Niragi barked without wasting any time, causing Sonja to flinch.
"I… I don't know. If I did, I would have collected it by now."
The barrel of his rifle rested quicker against her temple than she could blink. Niragi knew that she wasn't lying, and he still had no intention to kill her, but he was sure that Sonja had seen a hint the last time she had been here. All she needed was to remember, and he wanted to help with that.
She lifted her eyes in shock, staring directly at Niragi since he was the only option besides the open kitchen door. Her brain was working so hard to figure it out while she whispered again and again that she did not know, but giving up was no option. And finally, there was a hint of recognition in her eyes.
Niragi loosened the pressure of his rifle against her temple but didn't remove the weapon entirely. "Tell us."
Her mouth opened and closed a few times without producing any sound while Sonja seemed searching for the right words. "In the kitchen… the sink. The back panel below is… it's fake. There's a small tunnel behind, and I don't know if the last piece is there, but…"
A hidden room? Now that was interesting. Not only did it answer his question how Sonja managed to survive the last game, but in case it was true, it would provide a perfect spot for the missing part. He eventually lowered his rifle with a grin. "Go and grab it then, will you?"
He didn't really expect her to obey immediately, and yet it bothered him when she shook her head, fresh tears welling in her eyes. "No."
Instead of his rifle, he clasped her throat with one hand. "Don't be stupid and solve the game for us."
Sonja tried to shake her head again, which proved to be difficult while being in his grip. "No… I- I won't enter the kitchen." Her voice was pressed, but the determination in it left Niragi speechless. The way she emphasized every single word and held his gaze despite the tears running down her chocolate skin was so much braver than he had experienced her to be, and it was impressing. Annoying considering the lack of time, but impressing nonetheless.
"Don't worry. I'll get it." Tatta hurried into the kitchen, leaving no one a chance to protest, and Niragi let go of the woman with a sigh. Sonja immediately begun to massage her throat, barely suppressing a cough. They listened to the muffled sounds only interrupted by the timer announcing five minutes left, and just in time, the maintenance boy appeared again, accompanied by lots of grunts and curses.
Tatta's cap had skidded to the side and his hair was covered in spider webs, but he held the last missing piece in hands. Niragi fetched the bit of cardboard out of his hands and smashed it into the puzzle, completing the motive and stopping the timer.
He had so many questions about Sonja's other game, and he knew how to get the answers. But for that, they had to get back to the Beach first.