Standard Disclaimers Apply. The rights to Rurouni Kenshin are exclusively owned by Watsuki Nobuhiro, Sony Entertainment, Shueisha, Jump Comics and other associated groups. Do not sue!!! I am writing this to satiate my urge to write.

Deadly Family Ties

Chapter Fifteen

It was past midnight, Kenshin still couldn't put down the journal he had started to read. The revelations that the journal brought were so immense and mind-boggling that he just needed to go on and on until he finishes the journal. It had brought him a flood of emotions… some good, some bad but one thing was for sure. He desperately needed to know what was going on.

On the last page of the journal, he read…

July 24, 1861

I don't know how long I can go on like this…Koshijiro and I are starting to move on with our lives… with Kaoru on our side. She really is an angel, if it weren't for her… I might as well be emotionally dead by now, but the pain is still there. How can a mother get over the loss of one of her daughters? Kaoru's twin died even before I had the chance to touch her… to claim her as mine…

After reading the entry, he saw that another note was inserted. He unfolded it and read…

Battousai, with the killer instincts you have,

I am surprised and in the same way disappointed that

you don't even know who you are really with.

"Aaaaaaaarrrrrggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!" Kenshin yelled, releasing all the pent up fear, remorse, worry and hate inside him. He clenched his fists so hard that blood dripped from his palm. His eyes turned amber in realization, Where is the real Kaoru? At that point, he wanted to tear the whole city down to search for his love. He wanted to rip the imposter's head off. He wanted to… but he knew he couldn't. This is a very delicate situation and he can't afford to be rash. Hang in there, Kaoru… I am coming…

~~~~~

Blood drained from Regan's face as she saw Marcus, the man she killed months before. She stared at him unbelievingly, noting the gi and hakama he was wearing as he sat on a wheel chair.

Marcus smiled upon seeing Regan stoned to the ground. He greeted casually, "Hello Regan. You look like you have seen a ghost." Smiling wickedly, he widened his eyes, aimed his gun at Gohei. He fired the gun and said at the same time, "Boo!"

Regan was snapped out of her stupor as Gohei's limp body fell to the floor. She stared at him and shrieked. "Aaaaiiiie!!!!"

Marcus snickered at her reaction and asked as he rolled closer to her, "Aren't you even going to hug your daddy? Surprised to see me, Reiko?"

"But…. But… that's impossible… you are dead," she stuttered, feeling her knees quiver in extreme fear.

"I can see that," he chuckled as he mockingly touched his chest. "Let me see, you stabbed me and shot me. That's all you did." He shrugged. "Stupid girl. You didn't even kill me right."

Regan shook her head. "No… no… you are dead!"

Marcus approached her pressing the gun on her stomach. He grabbed a handful of her hair, pulling her down to level with him. "If I am dead, can I do this?" With that, he licked Regan's neck causing Kaoru to shudder in disgust. "What are you looking at?" he yelled, turning to Kaoru.

"This can't be…" Regan murmured.

"Sit down," he commanded Regan.

The terrified woman did as she was ordered, not wanting to worsen the situation.

"Tobe, bind her!" he called out.

"Tobe?" Regan repeated as she stared at the door, waiting for him to come in. When she saw him enter the room, she spat at him and yelled, "Traitor!!!"

"Don't be too hard on him, dear. Did you actually think that Tobe's loyalty would lie on you? Tsk. Tsk. You should've known better."

Kaoru observed that events that are happening with wide and confused eyes. She asked herself, Is he the man mother referred to as Aki?

"Tobe… I think that the ropes are not tight enough. This naughty and disobedient girl deserved to be bound by a barbed wire but since we don't have any here, I guess that cord will do. By the way, tie her on the bed instead. I don't want her running around in minutes."

Marcus rolled beside the bed and stroked Regan's cheek, "Well, don't look at me like that! You left me half-dead for Tobe to seal up. Half-dead! Feh! You should have finished the job while you had the chance. I have another news for you, Reiko. While you were on the ship, busy reading my journal, I was on the top deck, recovering from the scratches you gave me."

Kaoru looked at the fear and panic on Regan's eyes causing her stomach to churn, If my supposedly evil twin seems frightened, I wonder how vicious this man is.

He continued, "I'll just have to teach you a lesson then. Did you know that they had to take away my kidney for my body to function properly? Of course you didn't! You were too busy building up your new life or should I say, stealing another's life. Having that operation without any kind of anesthesia to numb the incisions was such an excruciating experience. Don't worry, as my daughter I know you want to share my pain. Don't worry, we still have time. I'll make you feel every single jolt of pain I felt."

Regan wanted to scream out but she couldn't. All she could do is to watch and listen to him as she awaited her inevitable death. A long and painful death.

Marcus took out a dagger from his pocket and started playing it around Regan. "Remember Regan when you did this to me? It was your birthday." He violently disrobed her and slashed the left part of her stomach.

Regan and Kaoru both shrieked at the same time. Regan, because of the pain, and Kaoru, because of abhorrence. "Get off her!!" Kaoru demanded.

Marcus smiled at Kaoru appreciatively but made no move to approach her. He rested his dagger on Regan's cheeks and commented, "You have a very beautiful sister. More beautiful than you, I have to say. I can see the innocence within her you lack."

"You took everything away from me, Marcus!" she replied defiantly.

Marcus narrowed his eyes and slapped her. "Don't disrespect me, Regan!" Looking at Kaoru's makeshift coffin, he smirked, "You were going to bury her alive? Nice touch, Regan. I never knew you were that creative and blood thirsty. Speaking of blood… Tobe?"

Tobe returned with a pitcher of blood on one hand. Marcus accepted it and smiled, "I want you taste every single ounce of blood I shed because of your foolishness." With that, he poured blood on Regan's mouth not stopping until she choked.

"Stop! No! No!" she cried out.

"Had enough!?"

"Yes!" she answered as unwanted tears fell.

"Are you sorry for disrespecting me?"

Regan glared at him and spat on his face.

Marcus wiped off her spit, hitting her hard on the face. "Again… are you sorry for disrespecting me?"

"Yes, Marcus."

He pressed his dagger on her neck and asked sweetly, "Come again?"

"Yes, Father."

"You know what? I have always wanted to take revenge on your whole family." He patted her head mockingly and continued, " Thank you for making it easier for me."

Kaoru couldn't take it anymore. Everything that was happening in front of her was disgusting her. She yelled out boldly, "Why do you want to take revenge on our family anyway? I am sure that my parents didn't do anything to you. They are good and righteous peo— "

"Righteous?" Marcus huffed. "Little missy, it seems you are lost. Let me enlighten you with the truth… The first time I saw your mother, it was love at first sight. She was there, standing in the rain. She was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. She approached me and we formally met. Since then, nothing was ever the same again for me. She made me want to be a better man. Because of her, I stopped trading opium. I went into the textile business instead. Winter came and we both decided that it is time for me to meet her parents. I came there as a well-mannered and respected man, but her parents drove me away. Her father secretly threatened me not to come close to Miharu. Your grandfather told me that he knew of my illegal dealings and he would never let his daughter marry an opium trader. He said that he would never allow shame and disgrace to enter his household…"

Kaoru listened to him intently as she pieced everything together. So that was the real reason why my grandparents didn't like him. It wasn't really because he is a gaijin. It was a cover up. They just didn't want to hurt my mother by telling her of his illegal business.

"…Later on, I moved back to Europe to settle things. My mind was set, I was going to take your mother to Spain with me and we would live happily ever after without anyone coming between us. I returned nine months later, September to be precise. There I saw your mother with your father, kissing on the riverbank, where we used to kiss. That whore! How would you feel if you had given up everything to become a better man for the love of your life and have everything shattered just because your woman can't resist her lustful urges!"

Marcus narrative was cut short when Regan raised her head to spit on him, "Don't call my mother a whore."

Kaoru looked at her in shock, she knew that it wasn't the time to go against her sister but she needed to say it, "So, you're defending her now? I thought you hated her?"

"I do, but I hate Marcus more," she replied flatly.

Marcus gave her another hard blow on the face. "Don't interrupt me while I am talking! After the first week of September, I went to the river to talk to her. I felt that if I kissed her then she would remember how much she loved me. So I did…"

At that time, Kaoru felt slightly relieved, So that entry when mother was so furious… it wasn't with my dad. It was with him…

"…But that stupid bitch chose your Koshijiro Kamiya over me. I tried to drag her all the way to the pier and take her home to Spain with me, but your father arrived with two policemen. That coward! He couldn't even protect Miharu by himself!" he laughed condescendingly.

Kaoru raised her eyebrows, controlling the urge to show just how effective Kamiya Kasshin Ryu, the style his father created, was.

"…After that, I lurked under the shadows of Tokyo, silently keeping surveillance of her life." Clenching his fists, he yelled, "I hated her! I hated your father! I despise despised them so much…" Regaining his composure, he continued, "…but I waited. I waited for the right moment to strike. And then your mother got pregnant… that's when the fun began."

"I thought I was given to you as payment for my father's debt?" Regan asked.

"Don't be too excited, dear… we'll get there. I can't believe it was too easy!" he announced proudly. "When your mother was in labor, I made arrangements to make sure that your family doctor will be too busy, leaving your clueless father to deliver the baby. He was so panic-stricken when he found out that there was another one coming out so that he just left you," he smiled as he pointed a finger on Regan. "…on one corner while he attended to your wailing mother. That moron gave me a huge window of opportunity to snatch you and replace you with a dead infant. Genius, don't you think so? They never suspected anything."

Bitter tears streamed down Regan's cheeks as a realization dawned upon her. I can't believe I went through all this trouble for nothing. I betrayed and ruined the only family I have left. I can't believe I have been such a fool. She bit her lower lip to prevent her tears from falling. Taking a deep breath, she partially soothed her nerves and growled, "Liar!!! I was never a payment for my father's debt!! You kidnapped me!! Liar! You are one big liar and you even had to lie to your own journal to console yourself that what you did was right."

"I didn't lie," he answered casually. "You are a payment for his debt. He stole Miharu, the woman I loved most and in return, I took one of his daughters. In a way, I am being kind to him because even if I took you, he still had your twin. I, on the other hand, had no other wife."

"Don't patronize yourself," she sneered.

Kaoru snapped at Marcus, "That doesn't justify your actions!!"

Completely ignoring Kaoru, he moved closer to Regan. "Who said I was? A woman for a woman. That's enough for me. And boy, what a beautiful woman you have become," he said maliciously as he unfolded her tattered kimono. "Tobe!!!" he called out.

"Yes, master."

"Bring Ms. Kaoru Kamiya to the place I told you a while ago. I have other plans for her."

"As you wish, master."

Kaoru looked up at him in horror. She was about to say something in defiance but Tobe had already hit her head, causing her to pass out. He carried Kaoru on his shoulders and locked the door behind him.

When the door had closed behind him, Marcus pulled his body to the bed as he advanced his moves on Regan.

Regan couldn't do anything else but close her eyes as she relived a part of her nightmares.

~~~~~

Kaoru woke up in the middle of what seemed to be nowhere with a violent pain stabbing her head. She raised her hand to her head, wincing slightly because of the pain. She couldn't open one of her eyes because of Tobe's hard blow. Everything came back to her slowly, but she still couldn't process the information coursing through her mind due to her severe headache. However, there was one thing clear to her… she needed to return home to Kenshin. With slow and painful steps, she staggered to walk back to her dojo. Her body was screaming out in pain but her willpower and drive to see Kenshin was strong enough for her to push her limits. Almost there…

Finally, she opened the dojo gates and panted, "Tadaima."

Kenshin welcomed her amber-eyed, pointing the sharp edge of his sakabattou on her neck, "Who are you?"

Author's Notes:

Finally, the truth had been revealed! Ooops! Wait things are not over yet! Sorry for the delay!!! Yes, I am going to finish all my fics so leave me a review and inspire me!!! ^__^

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