Tang Mu

Chapter 12

I never thought I would ever voluntarily enter a jail. Though I know
Saitou would never go against his word, I can't help but feel wary
about this. After all, I was once sentenced by this man. "I see you
came." Speak of the devil.

I don't bother to greet him. My eyes say enough. I'm out for blood.
Last night, I decided not to kill the man yet. No. He will be cut,
carved, just as Liya was. That will make my revenge much sweeter. "You
proved yourself last night to be worthy of having this back. Don't make
me regret my decision." Much to my astonishment, My sword, still
wrapped in its cloth, is presented to me. I smile. This will make
things much easier.

"Has he confessed anything to you?" Saitou nonchalantly touches his
famous Japanese sword. I take it the bastard hasn't been saying much.
He'll find his tongue soon. That's for certain. "I never would have
imagined you, of all people, working for the government."

"It is the only way I can freely live out my ideal. Aku Soku Zan." Nice
logic. I like that about Saitou. He's blunt and simple to understand,
unlike Battousai who's…I don't really want to think about that right
now. Saitou opens his office door and gestures for me to enter. The
government treats him well. "Did you get your woman to talk last
night?" He raises his eyebrow as he takes a seat at his desk and lights
a cigarette. My eyes narrow at the implications in his voice, yet I
find myself smirking anyway.

"She is only an innocent victim in this. She doesn't know anything."
His mouth twitches while he takes a long drag.

"So she talked, did she?" He seems amused at our little conversation.
Is he trying to be friendly? Interesting.

"I forced her to tell me everything. She doesn't know anything that
would be of use to you."

"What about you? You sold them weapons didn't you?" I knew he'd ask
that question at some point. So that's what this whole 'welcome me into
the office' thing is.

"Yes. I sold them several weapons. But, as a businessman, I don't ask
my clients questions."

"I see. What sort of weapons did you sell them?" He lights another
cigarette and takes a drag. How does his wife put up with a chain
smoker?

"Mostly custom swords, hand guns, darts, and one custom made cannon
that was specifically made to be able to transport easily." Is that
intrigue I see in his eyes? "Yes. I memorize all my deals. Records can
be deadly."

"What about that dagger?" I pull the mentioned weapon from the secure
spot between the back of my shirt and my pants. Tossing it to him, I
let him look it over. If it hadn't been put to Liya's flesh the
following night, I would openly remark on its exquisite design. I'll
leave that to Saitou.

"It was a family heirloom of Liya's. Michio's men stole it from them."

"It smells of blood."

"They used it to torture her and she killed a man with it so that she
could escape." He raises an eyebrow at that.

"Well, let's visit the prisoner then. Maybe you can get him to talk."
We exchange wicked smirks as we stand and make our way to the cells.

* * *

"How you feeling, Kaemon?" He smiles as I enter the room with tea and
soup. As usual, his fingers brush mine when he takes what I offer him.
He is a sweet man, but he is not the man I want to spend my life with.
At most, his self-delusions of subtlety do nothing but make me feel
uncomfortable.

"Better now…" More bluntly than before, his hand brushes my hair out of
my face. My eyes snap to attention. He is being much bolder now that
Enishi isn't here. "I was wondering. It is customary for twenty year
olds to visit a shrine. Would you like to go with me?" His good hand
grasps mine. "It would mean a lot to me." All I can do is blink at his
sudden request.

"Enishi say not safe." Snapping out of my astonishment, I proceed to
place Cho-chan's food in front of her. "Morning Cho-chan!"

"Morning Liya-san! Did Enishi-nii say good night for me like he
promised?" So thoughtful! I smile, neither agreeing or disagreeing. I
don't wish to upset Kaemon. It is still his birthday in my mind.

"Liya…Will you go with me to the shrine?" He looks so hopeful, but it
isn't safe for me to leave the clinic. He knows that.

"Enishi say not safe. I-"

"Enough about Enishi. You don't have to do his bidding all the time." I
don't like the tone in his voice. My eyes narrow in both frustration
and slight fear. Cho is biting her lip and nervously playing with her
chopsticks. Why is he pressuring me about this? It would be nice to go
to the shrine, but not when there are men who want to kidnap me.

I wish I could tell him my fear, but I don't know enough of the
language. I could try, but it would come out all wrong. It would upset
him more. A man who is angry and jealous is a fearsome being. I don't
want to see what kind of creature Kaemon would become, so I simply cast
my eyes downward and stay silent.

"Hey! She said she didn't want to go! Drop it!" Yahiko comes bursting
in the room. His eyes are ablaze with the same frustration I am feeling.

"Shut up brat! You don't know anything about this!" Kaemon stands to
loom threateningly over the boy. Yahiko remains undaunted as he puts
his wooden sword between me and the twenty year old man.

"I know some pretty nasty men are looking for her! I may be just a kid,
but even I can see when a guy is thinkin' too much with his pants! You
just want to get her alone! Well, what if she gets kidnapped while
you're at the shrine? Did your pants even think o' that?" Kaemon's eyes
widen at the young man's outburst. I underestimated the youthful
swordsman. He isn't a boy, but a young man. He and Enishi are
obviously at odds, yet he still takes it upon himself to protect me.
Only a real man would do something like that.

"Onii-chan! Don't hurt Liya-san!" Cho-chan chimes in with Yahiko. So
many people protect me. I have nothing to offer them in return. How can
I possibly return their kindness?

"Hello? Yahiko?" A man with flame-red hair wanders into the room. "Oh
there you are. Kaoru-dono and I were getting worried, that we were."

* * *

Our man lies sprawled upon the ground. His eyes bluntly show their
haziness. I grab him by his kimono. The man can't talk when he's being
choked. "So…Yukio is it? You gonna talk?" He remains silent. Che,
figures…

"I didn't really want to use this," I say with a smirk, "but you leave
me no choice."

"Liar…" My smirk widens. He's still alive. That's good. That's very
good. Slowly, I unwrap my sword. It glistens. Saitou must have polished
it for me. How nice of him.

"You're right. I am a liar." I press the tip of the blade against his
pants. "So I'll cut to the chase. You don't talk and I get to avenge
Liya."

* * *

"I see. So you're name is Liya. It is nice to finally meet you, that it
is." This Kenshin seems very nice. If he is friends with Yahiko, I will
trust him. "Yahiko told me all about what's been going on, that he has.
How is your wound feeling?"

"De gozaru…?" I was able to somewhat decipher what he said, but I have
never heard this phrase. He says it a lot, so I think I should learn
what it means.

"Oro?"

"It's just something he always says. He's being polite." The young
samurai leans against the door frame with his wooden sword resting on
his shoulder. I see. The phrase is simply an interesting quirk, like
'oro'. I smile in understanding.

Kaemon left a little while ago. He was still upset, but I believe he
got the point. I am holding Cho. Her brother left in an almost violent
flourish. I had forgotten how dangerous men can be when it comes to
women. The little girl sniffles and rubs her eyes on my kimono.

"Where is Enishi now?" His question catches me off guard. It's not that
it was astonishing, just a rather abrupt return to where our
conversation was going before. Kenshin's eyes have narrowed with the
seriousness of the matter. His wife is a lucky woman. He is very
attractive no matter what mood he is in.

"He talk to man at jail." The red-haired man before me gives a knowing
smile. Does he know something I don't? What kind of past has Enishi had
with these people? They seem to know a part of him I haven't seen. He
told me he hurt these people. How did he hurt them? Yahiko scoffs and
mumbles about Enishi 'talking'.

"What Enishi do?" Kenshin's eyes widen as Yahiko snaps his attention
onto me.

"He didn't tell you?"

"He say he hurt you. That all." Yahiko leaves. His face is contorted
with anger. I think he's trying to control himself. He doesn't want to
upset me. What did Enishi do to these people to make them react like
this? Kenshin sighs and takes a long sip of his tea. When he sets his
cup down, I notice that his eyes are now laced with golden specks. I
knew a foreigner once who's eyes changed color when he felt strong
emotions. They called the color 'hazel'. Is this similar? What did
Enishi do?

* * *

Yukio writhes on the floor. I warned him. It's his fault he thought I
was bluffing. He must not have heard too much about me from his fellow
yakusa members. "I'll ask you again." I press the tip of my blade
against his belly. He will endure all of Liya's wounds each time he
doesn't speak. "Talk or I avenge." The man makes a sound like he's
choking on his tongue. I know the pain must be great. Good. He deserves
it. The smell of blood evades my senses giving me a rush I haven't felt
in a long time.

"I…I don't know anything!" My eyes narrow. I don't believe him. My
blade presses more firmly against him showing him my lack of trust.
"Honest! I don't…!" He holds what used to be his manhood and makes
choking sounds between sobs. Through his pain, he begins mumbling
incoherently about his lack of knowledge. Now I believe him. The pain
is finally taking its toll. It took long enough for the shock of my
deed to lose effect. I stand and swipe the blood off my sword. There is
no use talking to him now. He won't be able to make full sentences for
a while.

"I'm done…for now…" I call to the jail keeper. True to Saitou's word, I
am let out. "We will chat again in two days time. I shouldn't be so
nice." Yukio's mumbling becomes more desperate as he begins rocking
back and forth. I have given him quite a blow. Next time he shouldn't
test me.

"Did he talk?" I toss an unreadable glare at the chief. He orders
someone to take the man to the jail infirmary. Even inmates need some
medical attention sometimes. That man will need a lot more if we're
going to get anything out of him.

"He says he doesn't know anything." I take a step in order to leave,
but Saitou's sheathed sword blocks my path. It rests mid-air just in
front of my neck. The sheath shows me he merely wants to stop me from
leaving. He is not taking me into custody. With that in mind, I openly
glare at him.

"I'm surprised you didn't get anything out of him."

"He's scared of me now. He'll talk once he's healed." The Japanese
sword is lowered. His golden eyes tell me I am free to leave at any
time.

* * *

"Enishi did many horrible things to my family to get to me. He thinks I
purposely killed his sister. I don't blame myself anymore for what
happened. It was an accident. I loved her. She was my wife. He had
every right to be angry and seek revenge, but he took it much too far.
That is all I will tell you. He should be the one to tell you the
rest." Kenshin finishes the conversation with a drawn out sip of his
tea. When he opens his eyes, they have returned to their former violet
shade. "After he tells you his side of the story, come to me for my
side. I will tell you all I know, that I will. It is good that you
wish to understand his past, that it is."

My eyes narrow with this new information. Enishi's past just seems
further from me now. There are parts to him that I don't think I'll
ever understand. I have wanted to hear his story for some time now.
Every so often, I gently ask. Each time, he brushes it off with anger
in his eyes. I want to know. He knows my past now. It is only fair that
I should know his. After all, he is the man I want to spend my life
with. I openly admitted that last night when I accepted his kiss.

Mother told me a wife knows her husband inside and out. True, they have
their secrets, but this is too big to be kept from me. As he did me, I
will have to force him to tell me everything. Perhaps if I mention
Kenshin visited the clinic today it will make him angry enough to blurt
it all out. I hate seeing him angry, but if I am to be his woman I will
have to face that fear.

Kenshin stands with the tray he brought the tea in with. While I was
thinking, he was cleaning up after us apparently. I didn't even notice.
"No. Woman's work." I rise and place my hands on the tray. He simply
stares blankly at my attempt to take over his chore.

Finally, he relinquishes the tray to scratch his head. "Sessha guesses
he's so used to it now…" Sessha? Another quirk? Anyway, I get the idea.
He is too polite.

"You too polite." He chuckles at that.

"Yes. That is what Sessha's wife says too, that she does."

"Battousai…" We look up to see Enishi glaring from the doorway.

* * *

Author's Notes:

Well, I hope you liked this chapter! I know it's long, but I like how
I ended it so there! *sticks out tongue* Heh...Anyway, I'm working
as fast as I can to get these chapters out to you. Unfortunately, now
I'm not so sure of what to write. I didn't plan the story out this far.
So, please bear with me! I'll do the best I can for you guys!

Thanks for reading!