Chapter 6
Yayoi was out on a daytime call for the NOS. A young prostitute had been found dead on a street corner in a shady part of town. The coroner's office was just about to take the body away when she arrived on the scene. She coolly flipped her badge for the officers and asked to see the body. The black bag was unzipped and the girl's body was bared for her inspection.
"Knife wound...to the gut," one of the medical examiner's men said to her and her eyes trailed down to the bloody hole exposing the young girl's innards.
"Yes," Yayoi agreed, "but look here," she said and pointed to the cadaver's neck. Two pin-prick holes were embedded in her jugular vein with rust colored streaks of dried blood emerging from the wound.
"Yeah, but that didn't kill her. That's probably just an animal bite," the young man said and then proceeded to zip the bag up one more time and carried the body off to the morgue.
"Yeah...That was some animal all right," Yayoi murmured to herself. "But which one?" she asked as she got into her car and headed for the office.
Shido had come to a decision. He was going to have to go away for awhile. Just a short period of time in which he could clear his thoughts and his conscience and come back to his friends as a new person. But how to say goodbye? Could he even do it? Could he take Guni's accusing diatribes or Yayoi's snarky comments about running away? And Riho? Riho's tearful eyes and soft touch, begging him without words to not leave her behind.
Was this even a good time to be leaving? He still didn't trust that vampire, Hunter, who was following Riho around. What did he want? What had he told her last night about him? Would Riho wait for him if he left or would she fall willingly into this Hunter's embrace? Just the thought of Riho lying in another man's arms turned Shido's eyes to their vampiric golden color and had him seeing red.
Shaking off the mood, he proceeded to plan his getaway. He decided that he wouldn't tell anyone about it. He would just have to go and hope and pray that everyone would forgive him when he returned. And, he thought selfishly, it would allow him one more night with Riho. After last night's disastrous ending, he would get one more chance to put things to right before he departed.
Yes, that was what he would do. Leave tomorrow after spending the night with his friends and his lover.
As Shido stared out the window contemplating where to go, Yayoi strolled into the office. Guni fluttered out of the kitchen area when she heard Yayoi enter.
"What's up?" she called to Yayoi, as the lovely NOS agent took a seat on the couch, crossing her slender legs.
Shido turned around and greeted Yayoi.
"Anything going on, Yayoi?" he inquired, hoping that there would not be any nightbreeds on the loose for a while so that he could rest easy knowing that his friends were safe while he was away.
"There's a demon out there," Yayoi said. "But not one that's killing at the moment. It is being cautious, careful. It doesn't want to arouse suspicion."
"And," she added, "It's a vampire."
"A VAMPIRE!" Guni and Shido cried in unison.
"Hunter!" Shido exclaimed a moment later. "I never trusted him."
"I suspected the same," Yayoi agreed. "But what's his angle?"
"What do you mean?" Guni inquired, confused. "Isn't he just feeding to survive? I mean maybe he doesn't have a donor like Shido and Riho have."
"That could be a possible motive," Yayoi agreed. "But why is he trying to win us over? Why does he want to impress us? Why did he attack that nightbreed when he, too, is preying on humans?"
"He's definitely trying to get to Riho," Shido declared. "I came upon the two of them together yesterday and I think that he was telling her tales about me. But she wouldn't tell me what he said."
"So," Yayoi uttered while trying to put the pieces of this mysterious puzzle together, "he's trying to present a good front for Riho. Why? So that she will leave you and go to him? But again, why? How does he even know Riho or you? What kind of stories could he tell about you if he doesn't even know you? Where would he get the information?"
"Uh,oh," Guni muttered. "I have a really bad feeling about this. Who is the one person in the world who would want Shido and Riho apart so that Shido was all by himself?"
"CAIN!" the trio exclaimed all together.
"That would explain the rash of memories that I have been experiencing lately," Shido muttered to himself.
"What?" Yayoi asked.
"Nothing," Shido replied. "We have to find Riho and warn her. Does anyone know where she's gone?"
"She went to the market to get office supplies," Guni responded. "She should be back soon."
At that moment, Riho was carefully making her way down the street to the office carrying a heavy load of office supplies in front of her when they were suddenly whisked out of her hands. She looked up in some surprise to find Hunter standing in front of her, easily bearing the load of her packages in one hand.
"Hunter!" she exclaimed. "You startled me!"
"Oh, please," he stated, "don't ever be startled or frightened by me. I only have the best intentions where you are concerned. Always."
And with that he gently placed Riho's hand within the crook of his arm and began to escort her down the street.
Yayoi was out on a daytime call for the NOS. A young prostitute had been found dead on a street corner in a shady part of town. The coroner's office was just about to take the body away when she arrived on the scene. She coolly flipped her badge for the officers and asked to see the body. The black bag was unzipped and the girl's body was bared for her inspection.
"Knife wound...to the gut," one of the medical examiner's men said to her and her eyes trailed down to the bloody hole exposing the young girl's innards.
"Yes," Yayoi agreed, "but look here," she said and pointed to the cadaver's neck. Two pin-prick holes were embedded in her jugular vein with rust colored streaks of dried blood emerging from the wound.
"Yeah, but that didn't kill her. That's probably just an animal bite," the young man said and then proceeded to zip the bag up one more time and carried the body off to the morgue.
"Yeah...That was some animal all right," Yayoi murmured to herself. "But which one?" she asked as she got into her car and headed for the office.
Shido had come to a decision. He was going to have to go away for awhile. Just a short period of time in which he could clear his thoughts and his conscience and come back to his friends as a new person. But how to say goodbye? Could he even do it? Could he take Guni's accusing diatribes or Yayoi's snarky comments about running away? And Riho? Riho's tearful eyes and soft touch, begging him without words to not leave her behind.
Was this even a good time to be leaving? He still didn't trust that vampire, Hunter, who was following Riho around. What did he want? What had he told her last night about him? Would Riho wait for him if he left or would she fall willingly into this Hunter's embrace? Just the thought of Riho lying in another man's arms turned Shido's eyes to their vampiric golden color and had him seeing red.
Shaking off the mood, he proceeded to plan his getaway. He decided that he wouldn't tell anyone about it. He would just have to go and hope and pray that everyone would forgive him when he returned. And, he thought selfishly, it would allow him one more night with Riho. After last night's disastrous ending, he would get one more chance to put things to right before he departed.
Yes, that was what he would do. Leave tomorrow after spending the night with his friends and his lover.
As Shido stared out the window contemplating where to go, Yayoi strolled into the office. Guni fluttered out of the kitchen area when she heard Yayoi enter.
"What's up?" she called to Yayoi, as the lovely NOS agent took a seat on the couch, crossing her slender legs.
Shido turned around and greeted Yayoi.
"Anything going on, Yayoi?" he inquired, hoping that there would not be any nightbreeds on the loose for a while so that he could rest easy knowing that his friends were safe while he was away.
"There's a demon out there," Yayoi said. "But not one that's killing at the moment. It is being cautious, careful. It doesn't want to arouse suspicion."
"And," she added, "It's a vampire."
"A VAMPIRE!" Guni and Shido cried in unison.
"Hunter!" Shido exclaimed a moment later. "I never trusted him."
"I suspected the same," Yayoi agreed. "But what's his angle?"
"What do you mean?" Guni inquired, confused. "Isn't he just feeding to survive? I mean maybe he doesn't have a donor like Shido and Riho have."
"That could be a possible motive," Yayoi agreed. "But why is he trying to win us over? Why does he want to impress us? Why did he attack that nightbreed when he, too, is preying on humans?"
"He's definitely trying to get to Riho," Shido declared. "I came upon the two of them together yesterday and I think that he was telling her tales about me. But she wouldn't tell me what he said."
"So," Yayoi uttered while trying to put the pieces of this mysterious puzzle together, "he's trying to present a good front for Riho. Why? So that she will leave you and go to him? But again, why? How does he even know Riho or you? What kind of stories could he tell about you if he doesn't even know you? Where would he get the information?"
"Uh,oh," Guni muttered. "I have a really bad feeling about this. Who is the one person in the world who would want Shido and Riho apart so that Shido was all by himself?"
"CAIN!" the trio exclaimed all together.
"That would explain the rash of memories that I have been experiencing lately," Shido muttered to himself.
"What?" Yayoi asked.
"Nothing," Shido replied. "We have to find Riho and warn her. Does anyone know where she's gone?"
"She went to the market to get office supplies," Guni responded. "She should be back soon."
At that moment, Riho was carefully making her way down the street to the office carrying a heavy load of office supplies in front of her when they were suddenly whisked out of her hands. She looked up in some surprise to find Hunter standing in front of her, easily bearing the load of her packages in one hand.
"Hunter!" she exclaimed. "You startled me!"
"Oh, please," he stated, "don't ever be startled or frightened by me. I only have the best intentions where you are concerned. Always."
And with that he gently placed Riho's hand within the crook of his arm and began to escort her down the street.