Suddenly Tea spotted a still form in the shadows and she let out a scream. "It's Yugi!!!" she cried, kneeling down and touching the boy's shoulder. "Yugi, can you hear me?!" she whispered.
"Be careful," Seto warned. "You might hurt him worse."
The chauffeur quickly switched on the overhead light and all of the conscious teens looked at Yugi worriedly. The boy was slumped against the door and he wasn't moving, nor did he stir with Tea's wails and pleas.
"He's hurt seriously," Seto muttered. "Call an ambulance now!"
Yami Yugi soon came out to tend to Yugi's injuries, and not long after that the paramedics arrived as well. Bakura was conscious by that time, and he insisted that they examine Yugi first.
"Oh, is he hurt bad?!" Tea cried in horror.
The paramedics laid the boy across the seat of the limo and then gently pried his eyes open to look at the pupils. "He doesn't have a neck or a spinal injury," the first EMT reported, "and his eyes look normal."
The teens—and Yami Yugi, too, of course—were immensely relieved.
"But why doesn't he wake up?!" Yami Yugi demanded now.
"He hit his head hard on the door," the paramedic explained. "He might have a bad concussion, but we'll only know that for certain if and when he wakes up."
**Yugi, can you hear me?** Yami Yugi called through their mental connection, still feeling panicky.
Yugi stirred then, much to everyone's relief, and opened his eyes. "Yami?" he said weakly.
Yami Yugi smiled. "Yes, Yugi," he said quietly. "Are you alright?"
Yugi blinked. "I . . . I think so," he said, staring in confusion at the paramedics.
"Do you know where you are? And what happened?" one of them wanted to know.
Yugi paused, thinking. "I . . . we're in Kaiba's limo," he replied slowly. "I . . . I remember a crash. . . ." He tried to sit up, but Yami Yugi gently pushed him back down. "Is everyone okay?" the boy asked worriedly.
"Yes, Yugi, everyone's fine," Yami Yugi assured him.
Tea rushed forward and embraced her friend warmly. "Oh, Yugi, we were so worried about you!" she declared.
Yugi blushed. "I'm okay," he said firmly, smiling.
The paramedics questioned him for a while longer, but they eventually concluded that he was truly was okay.
"All of you were incredibly blessed tonight," one of them remarked. "You might all have died."
Yugi blinked, suddenly remembering something else. "Hey, what happened to the people in the car that hit us?" he asked, his eyes worried. "Are they hurt?"
Seto grunted. "There was no one in the car that hit us," he stated.
Everyone turned to stare. "You're kidding!" Tristan cried.
"It's true," a second paramedic confirmed. "It seems that someone purposely tried to kill all of you. They apparently took the brake off the car and then sent it down the street towards your limo, Mr. Kaiba." He nodded at the young businessman, who looked irritated.
Everyone all looked at each other. Lila had been arrested, but things definitely weren't any safer.
****
Again Mokuba was laying awake on the couch, waiting for his brother with increasing worry. "Where is he, Velma?" he wailed. After finding out what had happened to Marik, he was more afraid than ever that something would happen to Seto.
"I don't know, Mokuba," the maid replied softly, wringing her hands. "I just don't know!" She couldn't forget the evil threat that had been made against her boss last night. What if Seto wasn't alright? she worried.
The phone rang then, breaking the silence. Instantly Mokuba snatched it up. "Big brother?" he said hopefully.
"Hey kid," the older boy said warmly.
"Oh Seto, I've been so worried!" Mokuba cried, his eyes shining. "Are you okay, big brother?"
"I'm fine, Mokuba," Seto replied in a gentle voice.
"What happened, Seto?" Mokuba demanded. "Why aren't you back yet?!"
Seto paused. "I'm sorry, kid. I got . . . delayed. But I'm coming back now," he promised.
"I hope so," Mokuba said fervently.
After Seto hung up with his brother, he turned back to the other teens wordlessly. At last he directed the chauffeur to start the limo again. The front of the automobile was badly dented, but it still seemed to run virtually flawlessly. "Drive carefully," Seto ordered.
"Yes, sir," the chauffeur agreed firmly. He didn't want any more accidents.
"I wonder where Joey is?" Yugi mused sadly, rubbing the large bump on his left temple.
"Yeah, I wonder too," Tristan muttered. "Would he even be upset to hear that his old friends could've been killed tonight, or would he just say that we deserved it because we keep saying how devilish Vivalene is?"
"Tristan!" Tea scolded. "Joey wouldn't be like that!"
"Well, I'm not so sure," Tristan said bitterly. "He's changed, Tea. I have to wonder if he even still considers us his friends!"
Seto didn't join in the conversation. He already knew that Joey didn't consider him a friend—but then they never had really been pals. Still, Seto again felt the sting of the other boy's words. Joey had spoken harshly, but Seto had a hard time believing that he would treat his real friends the same way.
****
Joey was just settling into bed when the phone rang abruptly. The boy muttered to himself and then finally lifted the receiver. "Yeah? What is it?" he demanded. "Do you know what time it is?!"
"Oh, now darling, is that any way to speak to your sweetheart?" Vivalene scolded gently.
Immediately Joey's voice and expression changed. "Vifa!" he said in delight. "What's up?"
"Well, actually, darling . . ." Vivalene paused. "I'm in a bit of a predicament. Can you possibly come out here?"
"Of course!" Joey exclaimed. "Where are you, Vifa? Still at the hotel?"
"No, darling," Vivalene replied softly. "I'm at the KETY studios. Please come quickly!" There was a crash and a scream, followed by silence.
Joey was horrified. "Vifa?!" he screamed. "Vifa!!" Without another thought, he turned and headed for the door.
****
Ishizu watched Marik in horror, seeing how drawn and haggard the boy looked. Nothing that doctors had done had been able to help him. She knew her brother was dying.
Rishid knew this as well, and he looked down sadly at his poor brother. How could Marik really be about to leave this world?
"Dear brother," Ishizu whispered. "If only you could come back to us! . . ." Or at least, she prayed silently, please let us speak with him one last time before he. . . . She trailed off, unable to finish. Marik couldn't die!
As if in answer to Ishizu's prayer, Marik groaned weakly and forced his lavender eyes half-open. "Dear sister," he rasped softly, squeezing Ishizu's hand. "I am afraid I will . . . not make it."
The Egyptian woman choked back a sob. "Oh Marik . . . please do not leave, brother," she begged.
"Do not worry," Marik replied gently. "We will meet again, dear sister."
Ishizu, normally in control of her feelings, couldn't repress them now. "No, Marik!" she cried. "Do not speak that way! You are not going to . . . to . . ."
Marik smiled at her comfortingly, then turned slightly to see his dear brother. "Rishid," he whispered, trying to reach for his hand.
Instantly Rishid grabbed it, tears emerging from his eyes. "Master Marik, please . . . please fight," he said softly.
Marik shook his head sadly. "I have tried," he replied. "I will not give up, but I fear that . . ." He trailed off. "Rishid? When . . . when I am . . . gone . . ."
Ishizu cried out in anguish. Marik weakly squeezed her hand.
"When I am gone," he repeated, "always remember how much I . . . I loved you and Ishizu." He looked back and forth between his two older siblings. "You have always been a brother to me, Rishid."
Rishid clutched tighter at the boy's hand, trying to somehow make him stay, even though he knew he didn't have that power. "I know . . . Marik," he said softly. "You were always . . ." He choked. "Always my brother as well."
Marik embraced him weakly and then hugged Ishizu as well. "Farewell," he said softly, his eyes closing. The heart monitor flatlined as the boy's hand went limp.
Ishizu was absolutely dumbfounded. This couldn't be real! "No!" she screamed. "No, Marik, no!!" She collapsed across her brother's lifeless body and embraced him tightly.
****
When Joey arrived at the KETY studios, everything was completely dark and ominous. "Hello?" the Brooklyn boy called as he walked through the revolving door. "Vifa?! Where are you?!"
Suddenly an arm reached out and yanked him behind the front desk. "Darling, stay quiet," Vivalene hushed him.
Joey relaxed. "Oh man, Vifa, are you okay?!" he cried.
"Yes, darling," she assured him, "I am just fine."
"Well, what the heck happened?!" Joey demanded. "I was afraid you were bein' attacked or somethin'!!"
Vivalene paused. "Actually, darling, I was," she said softly, shuddering. "Oh, it was terrible!"
"What was it?" Joey gasped, his brown eyes wide.
"Another of those dreadful ninjas!" Vivalene explained. "Somehow I managed to hit him with a vase, knock him out, and drag him into a closet—but oh, I've never been so frightened!"
Joey pulled the woman into his arms. "You're safe with me," he declared.
"Oh, I know, darling," Vivalene purred now. "That's why I need you to help me with a little job."
Joey blinked. "Eh, sure, Vifa, but what kind of job is this?"
Vivalene pulled out of his embrace and held up what looked like a blue sheet of paper. "We're just going to find a few things that I lost a while ago," she told him, standing up. "Come, darling."
Joey stood up as well, completely baffled. "Lead on, Vifa," he said, following after her.
****
Seto, meanwhile, had taken the other teens to their homes and then returned to his own. Now he was in his computer room, looking for any information on Vivalene or someone resembling her.
"So, what's up?" the computer asked after Seto explained what to search for. "Are you still tryin' to help Joey out? From what you said, he's made it pretty clear that he doesn't want any help."
Seto grunted. "I'm not trying to help him any more. He wouldn't listen to anything I said anyway. But I'm certain I've seen Vivalene somewhere before. I want to know if it's actually possible."
"How could you not remember meeting someone like that?!" the computer cried.
"I may have passed her in the halls at KaibaCorp," Seto replied. "I want to know if she works there in some way. I, unfortunately, don't know everyone who's employed by my company, so I might very well have seen Vivalene and not known it."
"That makes sense," the computer agreed, pausing as she continued to search. "Hey, I think I've just found something!" she cried excitedly.
"Can you show it to me onscreen?" Seto asked.
"Here it comes," the computer said grandly, and then an employee's record came up. "The name doesn't match, but the picture fits the description you gave me."
Seto stared intently at the employee's bio while he waited for the picture to download. "'JoDee Anderson,'" he read, his eyes narrowing. "It says she applied for a job as a clerk several months ago."
The picture finally finished its download and Seto stared at it.
"Well?" the computer asked eagerly. "Is it her?"
"It certainly is," Seto replied. "Her's hair different and she's tried to make herself look older than she really is, but it's definitely her." A new thought struck him. Had Vivalene been the one embezzling his company's money?
"Hey!" the computer cried suddenly. "I just remembered something else!"
"Go on," Seto said, crossing his arms.
"I remember an article about a girl down in California named Elizabeth who died tragically in a boating accident five years ago," the computer told him. "If I remember right, she looked an awful lot like this Vivalene!"
Seto was intrigued. "Can you find it again?"
"I'm sure I can," the computer said confidently. "Just give me a minute to log on to the Internet."
Seto waited for about five minutes while the computer logged on and searched, thoughts tumbling over each other in his mind.
"I've got it!" the computer announced at last, and the article appeared on the screen. Seto read over it quickly, several of the pieces finally starting to click when he reached the bottom.
Seto pointed at the words on the screen. "It says here that Elizabeth is survived by her two sisters—one younger than her, named JoDee—and a twin."
"Vivalene?" the computer supplied.
"Exactly," Seto nodded.
"Big brother?"
Seto whirled around. Mokuba was standing in the doorway, sleepy-eyed. "Mokuba!" he exclaimed. "What are you doing out of bed?!"
"I couldn't sleep, Seto," Mokuba said softly, coming over and standing next to him. "I'm so worried about you, and I'm afraid that something awful just happened!"
Seto laid a hand on the younger boy's shoulder. "I'm alright, kid," he said softly.
Mokuba shook his head. "I'm afraid something happened to someone else," he whispered, then suddenly turned to stare at the pictures on the computer screen. "Who's that?!" he cried in astonishment.
"That," Seto replied with obvious distaste, "is the girl Joey Wheeler's dating."
Mokuba gasped. "That's Vivalene?!" he cried.
"It sure is," Seto said in surprise. "Why? You almost sound as if you know her, Mokuba."
Mokuba nodded vigorously. "I remember seeing her at KaibaCorp a few weeks ago! She was coming down the hall looking really upset, but when I tried to ask what was wrong she called me a brat and shoved me out of the way!"
Seto's eyes narrowed. "Oh, she did, huh?" It didn't surprise him in the least.
The phone suddenly rang, startling them both. Mokuba's eyes went wide. "Who would call at this time of night, big brother?!" he cried.
Seto shook his head and picked up the receiver. "Kaiba," he said sternly, then listened. Mokuba watched, seeing the older boy's expression change from suspicion to disbelief. Something was wrong.
"Seto, what is it?" Mokuba cried worriedly when he hung up.
Seto paused, then turned to look his brother directly in the eyes. "Mokuba," he said softly, pulling the boy close, "that was Rishid. It seems that . . ." He paused again, struggling for words. "Kid, Marik is dead," he said softly.
"Be careful," Seto warned. "You might hurt him worse."
The chauffeur quickly switched on the overhead light and all of the conscious teens looked at Yugi worriedly. The boy was slumped against the door and he wasn't moving, nor did he stir with Tea's wails and pleas.
"He's hurt seriously," Seto muttered. "Call an ambulance now!"
Yami Yugi soon came out to tend to Yugi's injuries, and not long after that the paramedics arrived as well. Bakura was conscious by that time, and he insisted that they examine Yugi first.
"Oh, is he hurt bad?!" Tea cried in horror.
The paramedics laid the boy across the seat of the limo and then gently pried his eyes open to look at the pupils. "He doesn't have a neck or a spinal injury," the first EMT reported, "and his eyes look normal."
The teens—and Yami Yugi, too, of course—were immensely relieved.
"But why doesn't he wake up?!" Yami Yugi demanded now.
"He hit his head hard on the door," the paramedic explained. "He might have a bad concussion, but we'll only know that for certain if and when he wakes up."
**Yugi, can you hear me?** Yami Yugi called through their mental connection, still feeling panicky.
Yugi stirred then, much to everyone's relief, and opened his eyes. "Yami?" he said weakly.
Yami Yugi smiled. "Yes, Yugi," he said quietly. "Are you alright?"
Yugi blinked. "I . . . I think so," he said, staring in confusion at the paramedics.
"Do you know where you are? And what happened?" one of them wanted to know.
Yugi paused, thinking. "I . . . we're in Kaiba's limo," he replied slowly. "I . . . I remember a crash. . . ." He tried to sit up, but Yami Yugi gently pushed him back down. "Is everyone okay?" the boy asked worriedly.
"Yes, Yugi, everyone's fine," Yami Yugi assured him.
Tea rushed forward and embraced her friend warmly. "Oh, Yugi, we were so worried about you!" she declared.
Yugi blushed. "I'm okay," he said firmly, smiling.
The paramedics questioned him for a while longer, but they eventually concluded that he was truly was okay.
"All of you were incredibly blessed tonight," one of them remarked. "You might all have died."
Yugi blinked, suddenly remembering something else. "Hey, what happened to the people in the car that hit us?" he asked, his eyes worried. "Are they hurt?"
Seto grunted. "There was no one in the car that hit us," he stated.
Everyone turned to stare. "You're kidding!" Tristan cried.
"It's true," a second paramedic confirmed. "It seems that someone purposely tried to kill all of you. They apparently took the brake off the car and then sent it down the street towards your limo, Mr. Kaiba." He nodded at the young businessman, who looked irritated.
Everyone all looked at each other. Lila had been arrested, but things definitely weren't any safer.
****
Again Mokuba was laying awake on the couch, waiting for his brother with increasing worry. "Where is he, Velma?" he wailed. After finding out what had happened to Marik, he was more afraid than ever that something would happen to Seto.
"I don't know, Mokuba," the maid replied softly, wringing her hands. "I just don't know!" She couldn't forget the evil threat that had been made against her boss last night. What if Seto wasn't alright? she worried.
The phone rang then, breaking the silence. Instantly Mokuba snatched it up. "Big brother?" he said hopefully.
"Hey kid," the older boy said warmly.
"Oh Seto, I've been so worried!" Mokuba cried, his eyes shining. "Are you okay, big brother?"
"I'm fine, Mokuba," Seto replied in a gentle voice.
"What happened, Seto?" Mokuba demanded. "Why aren't you back yet?!"
Seto paused. "I'm sorry, kid. I got . . . delayed. But I'm coming back now," he promised.
"I hope so," Mokuba said fervently.
After Seto hung up with his brother, he turned back to the other teens wordlessly. At last he directed the chauffeur to start the limo again. The front of the automobile was badly dented, but it still seemed to run virtually flawlessly. "Drive carefully," Seto ordered.
"Yes, sir," the chauffeur agreed firmly. He didn't want any more accidents.
"I wonder where Joey is?" Yugi mused sadly, rubbing the large bump on his left temple.
"Yeah, I wonder too," Tristan muttered. "Would he even be upset to hear that his old friends could've been killed tonight, or would he just say that we deserved it because we keep saying how devilish Vivalene is?"
"Tristan!" Tea scolded. "Joey wouldn't be like that!"
"Well, I'm not so sure," Tristan said bitterly. "He's changed, Tea. I have to wonder if he even still considers us his friends!"
Seto didn't join in the conversation. He already knew that Joey didn't consider him a friend—but then they never had really been pals. Still, Seto again felt the sting of the other boy's words. Joey had spoken harshly, but Seto had a hard time believing that he would treat his real friends the same way.
****
Joey was just settling into bed when the phone rang abruptly. The boy muttered to himself and then finally lifted the receiver. "Yeah? What is it?" he demanded. "Do you know what time it is?!"
"Oh, now darling, is that any way to speak to your sweetheart?" Vivalene scolded gently.
Immediately Joey's voice and expression changed. "Vifa!" he said in delight. "What's up?"
"Well, actually, darling . . ." Vivalene paused. "I'm in a bit of a predicament. Can you possibly come out here?"
"Of course!" Joey exclaimed. "Where are you, Vifa? Still at the hotel?"
"No, darling," Vivalene replied softly. "I'm at the KETY studios. Please come quickly!" There was a crash and a scream, followed by silence.
Joey was horrified. "Vifa?!" he screamed. "Vifa!!" Without another thought, he turned and headed for the door.
****
Ishizu watched Marik in horror, seeing how drawn and haggard the boy looked. Nothing that doctors had done had been able to help him. She knew her brother was dying.
Rishid knew this as well, and he looked down sadly at his poor brother. How could Marik really be about to leave this world?
"Dear brother," Ishizu whispered. "If only you could come back to us! . . ." Or at least, she prayed silently, please let us speak with him one last time before he. . . . She trailed off, unable to finish. Marik couldn't die!
As if in answer to Ishizu's prayer, Marik groaned weakly and forced his lavender eyes half-open. "Dear sister," he rasped softly, squeezing Ishizu's hand. "I am afraid I will . . . not make it."
The Egyptian woman choked back a sob. "Oh Marik . . . please do not leave, brother," she begged.
"Do not worry," Marik replied gently. "We will meet again, dear sister."
Ishizu, normally in control of her feelings, couldn't repress them now. "No, Marik!" she cried. "Do not speak that way! You are not going to . . . to . . ."
Marik smiled at her comfortingly, then turned slightly to see his dear brother. "Rishid," he whispered, trying to reach for his hand.
Instantly Rishid grabbed it, tears emerging from his eyes. "Master Marik, please . . . please fight," he said softly.
Marik shook his head sadly. "I have tried," he replied. "I will not give up, but I fear that . . ." He trailed off. "Rishid? When . . . when I am . . . gone . . ."
Ishizu cried out in anguish. Marik weakly squeezed her hand.
"When I am gone," he repeated, "always remember how much I . . . I loved you and Ishizu." He looked back and forth between his two older siblings. "You have always been a brother to me, Rishid."
Rishid clutched tighter at the boy's hand, trying to somehow make him stay, even though he knew he didn't have that power. "I know . . . Marik," he said softly. "You were always . . ." He choked. "Always my brother as well."
Marik embraced him weakly and then hugged Ishizu as well. "Farewell," he said softly, his eyes closing. The heart monitor flatlined as the boy's hand went limp.
Ishizu was absolutely dumbfounded. This couldn't be real! "No!" she screamed. "No, Marik, no!!" She collapsed across her brother's lifeless body and embraced him tightly.
****
When Joey arrived at the KETY studios, everything was completely dark and ominous. "Hello?" the Brooklyn boy called as he walked through the revolving door. "Vifa?! Where are you?!"
Suddenly an arm reached out and yanked him behind the front desk. "Darling, stay quiet," Vivalene hushed him.
Joey relaxed. "Oh man, Vifa, are you okay?!" he cried.
"Yes, darling," she assured him, "I am just fine."
"Well, what the heck happened?!" Joey demanded. "I was afraid you were bein' attacked or somethin'!!"
Vivalene paused. "Actually, darling, I was," she said softly, shuddering. "Oh, it was terrible!"
"What was it?" Joey gasped, his brown eyes wide.
"Another of those dreadful ninjas!" Vivalene explained. "Somehow I managed to hit him with a vase, knock him out, and drag him into a closet—but oh, I've never been so frightened!"
Joey pulled the woman into his arms. "You're safe with me," he declared.
"Oh, I know, darling," Vivalene purred now. "That's why I need you to help me with a little job."
Joey blinked. "Eh, sure, Vifa, but what kind of job is this?"
Vivalene pulled out of his embrace and held up what looked like a blue sheet of paper. "We're just going to find a few things that I lost a while ago," she told him, standing up. "Come, darling."
Joey stood up as well, completely baffled. "Lead on, Vifa," he said, following after her.
****
Seto, meanwhile, had taken the other teens to their homes and then returned to his own. Now he was in his computer room, looking for any information on Vivalene or someone resembling her.
"So, what's up?" the computer asked after Seto explained what to search for. "Are you still tryin' to help Joey out? From what you said, he's made it pretty clear that he doesn't want any help."
Seto grunted. "I'm not trying to help him any more. He wouldn't listen to anything I said anyway. But I'm certain I've seen Vivalene somewhere before. I want to know if it's actually possible."
"How could you not remember meeting someone like that?!" the computer cried.
"I may have passed her in the halls at KaibaCorp," Seto replied. "I want to know if she works there in some way. I, unfortunately, don't know everyone who's employed by my company, so I might very well have seen Vivalene and not known it."
"That makes sense," the computer agreed, pausing as she continued to search. "Hey, I think I've just found something!" she cried excitedly.
"Can you show it to me onscreen?" Seto asked.
"Here it comes," the computer said grandly, and then an employee's record came up. "The name doesn't match, but the picture fits the description you gave me."
Seto stared intently at the employee's bio while he waited for the picture to download. "'JoDee Anderson,'" he read, his eyes narrowing. "It says she applied for a job as a clerk several months ago."
The picture finally finished its download and Seto stared at it.
"Well?" the computer asked eagerly. "Is it her?"
"It certainly is," Seto replied. "Her's hair different and she's tried to make herself look older than she really is, but it's definitely her." A new thought struck him. Had Vivalene been the one embezzling his company's money?
"Hey!" the computer cried suddenly. "I just remembered something else!"
"Go on," Seto said, crossing his arms.
"I remember an article about a girl down in California named Elizabeth who died tragically in a boating accident five years ago," the computer told him. "If I remember right, she looked an awful lot like this Vivalene!"
Seto was intrigued. "Can you find it again?"
"I'm sure I can," the computer said confidently. "Just give me a minute to log on to the Internet."
Seto waited for about five minutes while the computer logged on and searched, thoughts tumbling over each other in his mind.
"I've got it!" the computer announced at last, and the article appeared on the screen. Seto read over it quickly, several of the pieces finally starting to click when he reached the bottom.
Seto pointed at the words on the screen. "It says here that Elizabeth is survived by her two sisters—one younger than her, named JoDee—and a twin."
"Vivalene?" the computer supplied.
"Exactly," Seto nodded.
"Big brother?"
Seto whirled around. Mokuba was standing in the doorway, sleepy-eyed. "Mokuba!" he exclaimed. "What are you doing out of bed?!"
"I couldn't sleep, Seto," Mokuba said softly, coming over and standing next to him. "I'm so worried about you, and I'm afraid that something awful just happened!"
Seto laid a hand on the younger boy's shoulder. "I'm alright, kid," he said softly.
Mokuba shook his head. "I'm afraid something happened to someone else," he whispered, then suddenly turned to stare at the pictures on the computer screen. "Who's that?!" he cried in astonishment.
"That," Seto replied with obvious distaste, "is the girl Joey Wheeler's dating."
Mokuba gasped. "That's Vivalene?!" he cried.
"It sure is," Seto said in surprise. "Why? You almost sound as if you know her, Mokuba."
Mokuba nodded vigorously. "I remember seeing her at KaibaCorp a few weeks ago! She was coming down the hall looking really upset, but when I tried to ask what was wrong she called me a brat and shoved me out of the way!"
Seto's eyes narrowed. "Oh, she did, huh?" It didn't surprise him in the least.
The phone suddenly rang, startling them both. Mokuba's eyes went wide. "Who would call at this time of night, big brother?!" he cried.
Seto shook his head and picked up the receiver. "Kaiba," he said sternly, then listened. Mokuba watched, seeing the older boy's expression change from suspicion to disbelief. Something was wrong.
"Seto, what is it?" Mokuba cried worriedly when he hung up.
Seto paused, then turned to look his brother directly in the eyes. "Mokuba," he said softly, pulling the boy close, "that was Rishid. It seems that . . ." He paused again, struggling for words. "Kid, Marik is dead," he said softly.