Children of the Revolution
Chapter 5: Empty
Enishi took a step towards her.
"No!" she exclaimed, panicked. Her lips were trembling, and she looked down.
Despair struck him as he saw the repulsion in her eyes when she finally faced him again. She was rubbing frantically her wrist, and she wasn't seeing him. Her eyes were passing through him as if he were transparent. As if he were a ghost. As if he existed no more for her.
"Clean," she uttered, and she escaped, literally, the room.
He heard the door of the bathroom slamming a few seconds later.
He clenched his jaw. He had frightened her as much as Kaneda. She had just witnessed two men turning into beasts, one of out lust, one out of anger. His gaze dropped on his watou, uselessly lying on the floor. Few minutes ago, he was stronger than he had ever been. He had rediscovered a peace of mind that he had never experienced since childhood. He was living in the present, not in the past, he was even thinking of a future. He had planned nothing for after the completion of Jinchuu, these last weeks only he had experienced the feeling of wanting to live his life for himself, not for Tomoe. He had been ready to move forward. Now he was barely able to move at all, his guilt so strong that it was weighting on his body, paralyzing him.
He meant well, but he had just hurt her more. And himself, more than he could have imagined. She had considered him like a human being, and not out of pity and guilt, like Battousai, not torn between loyalty and compassion, like Kamiya Kaoru. She wasn't afraid of him like everybody was, either. She had seen him as a brother, as a son, as a man who had feelings, she had cared enough to push him to reconcile with his father.
He had thanked her by proving her wrong. He couldn't regret what he had done, even now that he was staring at Kaneda's lifeless body. She would be safe from this man. He had had no intention to leave without ensuring it, anyway. But he never had wanted her to witness it, less to see him changing into an animal.
He knew very well that it was impossible to go back through time. There was nothing that he could do to erase the memory of what she just saw. She had been so shattered, although she was familiar with death as she was a doctor, and with violence, too, because of..
Kanryuu. The Triads. He realized that his own emotions had relegated momentarily what he had learnt before Kaneda attacked her to a corner of his mind.
Megumi's past.
Saitoh put down the short report of the Nagasaki port surveillance officer, and crushed his cigarette in the ashtray.
"And you waited that long to inform me?"
Sweat pearled on the young policeman's chubby face. "But.it arrived in the beginning of the afternoon..you were nowhere to be found.."
"Moron."
"Yes, sir," answered the boy, shrinking literally under the contemptuous stare.
"Well, if they show as much sense of initiative as you do, no hurt done," added his terrifying, temporary superior, deadpan. "Send immediately a message to forbid any action without my consent. They have to watch them closely and avoid any departure of the boat, though. Is the Nagasaki officer who followed the passengers here still around?"
"No, sir. He gave us the address of the house they settled in, and went back. He said ..err..that he had some work back there too, and.."
To the surprise of the young policeman, who was expecting a furious reaction, what could be described as an approving, yet very, very frightening smirk quirked lieutenant Fujita's lips.
"You'll give me his name. I'm tired of being surrounded by idiots and I could use a subordinate with a sense of priorities. I guess you didn't send anybody to that place?"
"No, sir, we were waiting for your orders."
"Keep it this way. I'm going to take care of it by myself. You're dismissed."
"Yes, sir."
The moron gone, Saitoh lit another stick, glancing at the report. Entry of a boat coming from Shangai, everything seemed legal yet it belonged to a society owned by the Hungs. And 17 of their passengers had gone to Aizu. Saitoh could guess that it was to meet Kaneda and get the chemists' name.
The Triads had arrived. He had to go, now.
A shack. Li Tao was furious. He had asked for a discreet place, and all that Takeuchi had found for him was a shack. Japanese thugs had obviously no idea that Shangai mafia bosses were living in such a luxury that they couldn't even imagine it in their wildest dreams. It wasn't his first trip to Japan, not the first time that he noticed the prejudices Japanese held against Chinese, and this began to seriously offend him.
He hid carefully his feelings, swallowing his growing annoyance at the sight of the old wooden walls covered with dust and spider webs, and at the disturbing smell of rotten humidity, but behind his mask of distant politeness, he had already decided to get rid of his "employee".
It would be the reparation of an offense as much as a punishment for failing to his mission and presenting only vague apologies instead of begging for forgiveness. Takeuchi was supposed to keep an eye on Takeda Kanryuu, even more since he had left his hidden place near Tokyo for Aizu. And the stupid man had lost him just after his arrival. The only thing that had made Li Tao stop his lieutenant, Wong Chen, to execute him on the spot, was that the Japanese had at least found the real place where Takeda had settled in.
Moreover, he had a message from Kaneda, confirming their appointment in his office, and he still needed Takeuchi to lead two of his men to Kanryuu's new living arrangements, while he would go himself to the detective's office and get the name he was looking for.
Li Tao forgot the putrid odor and miserable environment, as his thoughts wandered towards the pleasant perspectives of his future.
When Megumi came out of the bathroom, Enishi was waiting for her, sitting on the tatami. He ignored the sharp, swift stinging pain provoked by her reaction to him. She had paled and was now glancing at her lap.
"We have to talk," he said, managing to stay unemotional.
"I guess we have to, yes," she whispered, and settled in front of him, kneeling formally, her hands grasping tightly the fabric of her yukata.
"I'll be gone. I want you to know that I will take care of Kaneda. Considering the situation, it will be unwise to attract the attention of the police. I will visit his office, too, in case he keeps..kept, any information on your past."
She nodded, the hold of her fingers tightening a little more, but still she avoided looking at his face. She couldn't bring herself to, more exactly, he corrected, his mouth filling with a bitter taste.
"I want to thank you. For everything you did. I'm sorry," he added, somberly. "I have to leave now."
He wanted to see her eyes a last time, but he couldn't demand that from her. He wasn't sure he could endure the same disgusted look she had given him earlier, anyway. He deserved it. It was the first time since the loss of his sister that he thanked someone. And the first time that he apologized, ever. It wouldn't be enough, neither was merely cleaning the mess he had done.
Of course he wouldn't be just doing that. He had found a way to thank her. He would go back to China. He would retrieve his place in the mafia, his own organization was down but he was certain that whatever was the branch of the family looking for her, they would be gladly welcoming the idea of using his capacities. He would make sure that they never get to her. He would destroy them, too. It wouldn't be another Jinchuu. He wanted to do the right thing, now, even if he had to become a criminal again in order to stop other criminals. It was a good way to atone for his past crimes.
She had given him a goal. She had shown him a way. He ached at the thought that he would never see her again, though.
Megumi had a hard time preventing her tears from falling. He knew now, he had heard. He despised her. And she had deceived him. The realization she saw in his eyes earlier, his sorrow, had been tangible.
Enishi was distrustful, and not forgiving, that was the least that could be said. She had gained his trust, as a doctor, at least. She had tricked him into believing that she was an innocent, when she was nothing more than a murderer. A coward murderer. Enishi had killed, too, innocent people, but he had assumed the act, he had watched them die. She had just prepared some powder, yet that mere gesture, which consequences her mind could easily dismiss, condemned faceless people to death. She wanted to explain him, not why she worked for Kanryuu, she wouldn't try to make excuses for the unforgivable, but why she didn't tell him. She nevertheless knew that he wouldn't listen anyway. She had lost his trust; she had lost his respect.
He must have thought that she was a coward even more since she had fled the clinic. She wanted to thank him, but when her eyes had dropped on the marks Kaneda had made on her wrists, she had felt dirty, so dirty that she had needed to clean. The memories had come to her again, or more exactly she had been transported in the past, in Kanryuu's mansion. Her hallucinations had gone away only after she immersed completely in the hot, purifying water of the tub.
The worst was that Enishi wasn't angry. He was disappointed in her, but he didn't hate her. He was even ready to cover her trace so she'd escape the police. And he had thanked her, when to save her life, he had had to kill. He had made a scary vision, but she hadn't been afraid, because the killing intent she had felt in him had been different from mere bloodlust. She understood too well what had happened in his head. The way he had strangled Kaneda had struck her, afterwards, it was so similar to the way he had attacked Wu on the island. The attack surely triggered bad memories, memories of Tomoe dying. It was the only way to explain this furor in him, furor that didn't scare her, because she had wished so many times she were strong enough to defend herself like this, to avenge what these men did to her, that she had identified herself with Enishi, his mad anger had been hers, too. She had been too shocked to do anything, or to realize at that moment, yet a part of her had wanted Kaneda's death.
So she hadn't stopped him. Unlike on the island during Jinchuu, nobody prevented him to commit a murder. Enishi would certainly never make a non- killing vow, like Ken-san, but he had killed again because of her. Still he had thanked her. Still he wanted to assure her freedom.
But he would never look at her again in the same way. He was so somber when he had said he was sorry, pushed by gratefulness, surely. He didn't have to thank her. He had no idea of what he had done for her. She could never endure another physical abuse. She couldn't have lived with this one.
He had to know that. He would leave her; she had no right to demand that he listened to her explanations, but he had to be freed of feeling indebted to her, even if it meant admitting her shame to him.
"Don't thank me," she managed to whisper, through the lump constricting her throat. "What you saved me from, today.. It wasn't the first time it happened to me."
"You don't.."
"Please! There's something you have to know," she interrupted, feeling her voice near to break. "Each time, I hoped that somebody would come, each time in vain. Not one time somebody spared me this humiliation, this pain, not once. But you did. You heard what I am, and you still came to my help. So you don't have to be grateful. What you did for me today is more than I could ever do for you."
She paused, and added, in a barely audible murmur: "You see, Enishi, you aren't a monster. Kanryuu was. And so was I."
She raised her eyes to him, and instead of the disgust that he was expecting, he read sadness, gratefulness, and..affection. He stared at her in disbelief.
"You.a monster? "
It was her turn to look puzzled.
He understood, suddenly. An incredible relief seized him, almost too much for him to bear. She still saw the human being in him. She was even thankful, not repulsed. He had just misunderstood her reactions. She just had the same fear as he had, the fear to be exposed completely in front of him, and that he'd reject her because of her past. Just like he had felt when he had been exposed in front of her, after she saw the violence in him. The fear of not being accepted for what they were.
He knew now that both their fears were needless. She had to know, too.
"You just survived," he asserted, calmly but forcefully.
And nobody understood that better than he did. He had assumed that he felt close to her because they had both lost their families. It was more than that. She accepted him, completely, because they were both survivors, and that they had a price to pay for that. They had both lost a part of their humanity, during the Bakumatsu. The only difference was that he had the opportunity of not being used, of fighting back. As a woman, she had had no choice, having nobody to protect her, and no matter what she had done, in his eyes she was still a victim. And he was going to ensure that she would never be one, again.
Because he loved her.
He didn't know how it happened, or when, but he was sure of it. All his feelings, the closeness, the trust, the understanding, the need to protect, all that made sense to him all of a sudden. He reached for a strand of her beautiful long black hair, rolling it between his fingers, realizing how he had wanted to do that. She smiled at him, surprised relief in her eyes. Jinchuu was behind them. Their pasts weren't an obstacle between them anymore.
Not absolutely, he recalled the next second. Kaneda's body was still in her clinic. He had to get rid of the corpse, and to make sure that he didn't keep any document or proof leading to her in his office. And the Triads were still after her.
He still had to protect her from them. He still had to fight them. But he would change his plans. He wasn't going to leave her forever. He wasn't Battousai, to give up on the woman he loved, even full of good intentions, to leave her alone and unprotected. He'd find a way. Tomoe's face, nodding encouragingly, approvingly at him, appeared briefly in his mind.
The cinnamon eyes took an inquiring expression, and the same trust as Tomoe's lingering in their depths achieved to forge his determination.
He stood up, smiling confidently. "I'm going for a walk, I have one or two things to do. You should rest, now. I may be late, but I'll be back tonight. We'll talk again, then."
She just nodded. His smiled turned into an indulgent smirk. She was still too puzzled to fully realize, leaving him totally in charge. He liked this. He had nevertheless the certainty that it wouldn't last. She would retrieve soon her willful temper. He liked that too. It was contradictory, but well, it was probably natural when one fell in love with a contradiction.
The Chinese man's fine eyebrows lifted in disgust as, re-sheathing his sword, he gave a last glance to the body he had just mutilated. Incompetence was an unforgivable fault. He looked around the office, sighing with exasperation at the mess of files on the floor and the destroyed desk drawer. He clasped his fingers, and immediately two of his men seized what was left of Takeuchi. They would take care to get rid of it; he didn't have to precise it. The Triads never left any evidences.
Four other of his followers were waiting for his orders. He breathed deeply. This operation had been ill-prepared, and he would make a note to the boss when he was back to Shangai. The responsible of this strategy had to be punished. Instead of using one Japanese yakuza to look after Kanryuu, they should have had him followed by a real member of their organization.
When they had arrived at Kaneda's office, to realize that he wasn't there for their appointment, and that the place had been searched, Li had been enraged to see his plan going wrong. Takeuchi had joined just on time for him to release his anger. The quick nod of the guard accompanying him, assuring Li that he had actually shown them to the place, had signed the death sentence of the useless bastard.
Discarding the mere existence of the man along with his frustrations in a satisfied sigh, his practical mind started to work again, leading him to wonder briefly if Kanryuu had anything to do with Kaneda's disappearance. He'd investigate the possibility later. There was more urgent for now.
"Wong, go to our "place" and gather the others. Find us at our dear associate's house, we'll be waiting for you there."
"Yes, Master Li. If.."
"If?"
The man bowed. "Forgive my impudence, master Li, but is it sure that the miserable, incompetent Japanese didn't make another mistake? Shouldn't I ask one or two of us to stay at the hotel, in case Takeda finally shows up there again?"
"Your impudence being caused by your care for our success, Wong, I won't take any offense on it. Takeda has surely found the chemist by now; I don't see any other explanation for his sudden disappearance. He won't take the risk to be seen in a frequented area. Oh, I charge you to find and punish the detective who worked against us, and what happened to Kaneda, too, once we cleared the relations with our Japanese associate."
"Yes, Master Li. My view was the reflection of my poor intelligence. Your orders will be scrupulously and swiftly obeyed, as you can righteously expect."
Li Tao nodded absently, dismissing him with a little wave of his long, delicate fingers. His bosses wanted Kanryuu's opium so much that they were ready to treat with him to get it. Yet they would prefer not having to share the benefits. He had been charged of the contact role in their offensive towards Japan, but he knew that if he found the chemist, he would be promoted, and the territory would be his.
He had been waiting for an opportunity like this forever. No shooting star rising in the organization at the speed of light would stand in his way to power this time.
Saitoh was one block away from Takani Megumi's clinic, in the deserted streets of crepuscule. He noticed distractedly a man carrying another one on his back, coming from the opposite direction. Two drunkards, probably, he thought as he heard the whining, thick murmur of the walking one.
He was about to dismiss the view, with a snort of contempt, when something attracted his attention. The drunkard who had obviously passed out was wearing a coat, a hood covering his head. And he realized that the other one was not progressing in the middle of the street, but cautiously, near the walls, although he seemed drunk enough to have his balance affected. Fishy. Pretending not to pay attention, Saitoh kept on walking, and knew his instinct was right when the man suddenly turned into a little alley, just before they crossed path. The movement had been swift, sure. They were no more drunk than himself. Following his instinct, he immediately followed, drawing his sword, and managed to grab the covered figure.
"Police! Freeze!" he ordered.
Saitoh frowned as the man didn't resist when he pulled him back. He was dead, he realized. The next moment the body fell on the ground, leaving Saitoh with the coat in one hand. Tossing it away, he took a fighting stance immediately to look at his opponent. The rapid intake he had on the corpse's face hadn't be of any help to identify it, but the relents of cheap perfume lingering on the coat, hitting his sensitive nostrils along with the smell of death, had. It was Kaneda Kazushi.
Saitoh was not easily taken aback, yet the discovery of the identity of the other man actually surprised him. He recognized the weapon first, a watou. His eyes narrowed as they met the electric blue gaze. The bastard's hair was black and he wasn't wearing his trademark sunglasses, but it was indeed Yukishiro Enishi. He contained a curse. Another element, that he hadn't, and couldn't have expected, finished to complete the puzzle. He knew he would have had to find whom the Triads used for their contacts, and the answer was standing in front of him. He was surely the leader of that little delegation arrived in Nagasaki.
Yukishiro was obviously as surprised as him, which gave him time to overcome his moment of puzzlement.
"Saitoh Hajime.."he let out.
"I'm honored that you remember me. Long time, no see, Yukishiro," smirked the Mibu's wolf.
Shit. No luck. Enishi wondered briefly what to do. He was the last person he had expected to fall upon. He thought of the man's reputation. That let him no choice. He secured his hold on his sword, under the appreciative glance of his enemy.
"Once a criminal, always a criminal, I'm not surprised. I should have put more efforts into looking for you, though. Not that I ever give up, but I had more urgent tasks to accomplish. Or so I thought, my mistake on both levels. Nothing that I can't correct now," he finished, taking his Gatotsu stance.
Megumi realized that she had stayed half an hour staring at the door after Enishi left. She didn't know what he wanted to talk about, but she knew him and his confidence had given her the certainty that..
She knew him. How weird was that. Thinking about it, it wasn't. They had spent months together, in her house, she had followed his recovery, shared his efforts, witnessed him bonding with is father. Discovered that they had so much in common. Discovered the man he really was.
And she fell in love with that man.
She had realized it today. It was no gratefulness for saving her. She knew it wasn't because she had felt that for Ken-san. It was not only physical attraction either, because she had been drawn to Sanosuke in that way. It had made her so uncomfortable, that she was always provoking him. She had never felt for anybody what she felt for Enishi.
The realization had erased the fear of Kaneda's attack, and she had the impression of having a nice dream after she had a nightmare. The late events left her nearby reality, but not completely into it. She was still shocked, still amazed.
One thing only she was fully aware of. She wasn't lonely anymore. He had said he'd be back. She was sure he would.
And instead of stupidly taking root into the floor, she should prepare dinner. He would be starving when he came home. Her stomach protested. All right, she was already, she thought, beginning to gather the dishes.
The door communicating with the clinic opened. Was he already back? He couldn't be so early..
"Megumi-san. Long time, no see."
She dropped the plates she was holding on the floor, and they broke into millions of pieces, like she was inside.
"No.." she breathed, her body trembling uncontrollably. There it was again, the ghosts, the fear.
Takeda Kanryuu was standing in her house, a gun pointed to her.
The swords clung violently under the combined forces of the two fighters. They both jumped several feet back afterwards.
Enishi wished that he could have more recent experience of fighting before facing such an adversary. The Miburo's reputation was certainly not usurped. A few years back, he would have enjoyed to be confronting a swordsman of this quality. In the current situation, he would rather have a slightly easier one to start with. This duel wouldn't be won easily.
Saitoh was surprised at Yukishiro's shape. Considering the state in which he had last seen him, he was surely not expecting that. He had been so broken physically and mentally, that he couldn't be a threat anymore. In fact, Himura Kenshin had been so sure that Yukishiro would redeem the way he had, that Saitoh's imagination had made him picture the man with long white hair in a ponytail, a pink gi, and doing the laundry for a Tanuki woman. The bemusing image had allowed him to endure Himura's lecture on his beliefs. Well, Saitoh wasn't bemused now. This duel wouldn't be won easily.
"Tell me, is that the so-called honor of the Triads? Getting rid of their associates after they have fulfilled their part of the contract? Or are you in charge of the dirty work because of your pitiful failure?"
Enishi recognized Saitoh's method as it was consigned on his file: a first provocation, a first harmless engagement to evaluate his opponent's strength, followed by a combination of new destabilization attempts and deadly Gatotsu. Yet, the cop was wrong on several aspects. Enishi wasn't working for the Hungs anymore, so his teasing had no effect. The mention of the Chinese just proved him that his enemy was after Megumi, like Enishi had assumed, reinforcing only his determination to fight. And finally, he was himself a master of provocation.
"Why don't you give me the answer? Aren't you doing the Meiji government's dirty work after YOUR blatant failure?"
He attacked without waiting for a response, but Saitoh counterstriked with a Gatotsu Ni-shiki. That had been close, he thought as they drew back.
"Not bad, for a looser. I understand why they were eager to have you as their lapdog," grinned Enishi. "I finally wonder if you're not doing them a favor."
"Well, as you did me the favor of not going until Takani's place to find her already gone, I'll keep you alive until you tell me where she is."
"How compassionate."
"While we're into compassion, she'd better be in a good shape. I wouldn't be too demanding usually, I don't really care about ex-drug traffickers' well-being, just that they aren't forced again into business," smirked Saitoh, "BUT I don't want Battousai, your dear brother in law, to interfere into my business again because his friend was hurt."
His smirk deepened at the traitor's stunned face. Yukishiro had still the same weakness: the name of Battousai was enough to destroy completely his concentration. Their last assault had led the cop to think that the more likely result he could expect was a tie, but it seemed that this fight wouldn't be that much of a problem after all.
He knew for Megumi, he had known all along. He didn't come to arrest her. He had used the word "forced". This fight was pointless, yet there was no way out of it. He couldn't convince Saitoh that he wasn't working for the Triads now, when he hadn't denied it earlier. Saitoh was after them, only, not her, and wanted her in good shape. Enishi opened his mouth, closed it. Saitoh would arrest her for helping him without hesitation. Helping a traitor was punished with death penalty. Shit. He knew that the best he could hope, especially because of his lack of practice, was a tie. Saitoh had seemed surprised to see him, it meant that he didn't know how Enishi had escaped Kyoto. That more precisely meant that he and Oibore had been wrong to assume that the police was after them there. If he had had a report signaling Enishi's presence, there was no way that the Miburo didn't make the link with the Triads he was investigating. Not dwelling on the ironic absurdity of the situation, he reassured himself with the certainty that Saitoh thus ignored Megumi's relation to him. Unfortunately, that was for now only. He would make the connections, one day or another. He would go after Megumi, and he would execute her. The optimistic version was that she would be a fugitive for the rest of her life. And it would be his fault. He couldn't let that happen. He had to deter the suspicions, and for that he needed to gain time.
Saitoh took his attacking position again.
Enishi searched frantically for a solution. A plan formed in his mind. Words wouldn't convince the Mibu's Wolf, only acts. There was a risk, though. Saitoh said that he wanted information on the Triads, on Megumi that he thought being missing. The risk was hence minimal on the probability level. It was still great in consequences. But Megumi's life was at stake.
"If you don't attack, I will," warned Saitoh.
Enishi had the satisfaction to see his ironic mask crumble as he let the watou drop to his feet, and extended his hands, signifying that he accepted to be arrested. Now was the time to see if he had calculated the risk well. Saitoh could still decide to kill him.
"Oh, yes, Megumi-san."
Waves of repulsion shattered her as he gave her that awful smile. He walked to her. She wanted to escape but was unable to move. Maybe it was a nightmare. Maybe she had fallen asleep and was going to wake up now.
Her foolish thoughts vanished as soon as he took her chin in his moist, sweaty hands. It was real.
"I'm glad to see that you didn't forget me. I was worried you did..Though what we have shared is unforgettable, isn't it?"
He placed the gun on her stomach. "Isn't it?" he repeated, his voice turning hard and cold.
She nodded slowly, in a trance. She was unable to talk, either.
"I thought a lot about you, Megumi-san, a lot. And not all the time, I admit it regretfully, in such a pleasant way," he went on, having retrieved his suave intonations, "nevertheless, in my great generosity, I decided to forgive you your..little misjudgment."
The cruel light in his eyes appeared finally, his tongue passing on his lips, like a lizard's. She knew it was the sign of his sadistic anticipation, that he had each time he was preparing a particularly refined torture, and her knees began to buckle.
"We're going to go back in time, you see. Like nothing happened. Our relation turned sour after you came back to my manor. So let's set up the return a little earlier, when I made you my proposition."
"I'll never, ever, work for you again," she stated calmly, holding her breath as he caressed her cheek with the gun.
"Oh, yes, you will. Takeda Kanryuu always gets what he wants. And what he wants now is."
Megumi felt her whole body react in disgust as he bent and licked her neck. The nausea seizing her was so violent that it sent her on the verge of fainting.
He released her the next second, pushing her to the floor, sighing of satisfaction. He threw a piece of paper to her, his features hardening.
"Be there in one hour. Don't even think of tricking me. If you think of killing yourself to escape your fate, give up that ludicrous idea. If you were not to show, whatever the reason, I'll have my revenge."
He took a gracious expression and a pleasant tone again, to pronounce the words that sent her into the depths of despair. "I heard that Himura Battousai has a baby-son? How wonderful. Children are so sweet, so innocent..so vulnerable."
He paused meaningfully. "See you in one hour."
She heard him laugh as soon as he was out of her house. She was cold to the bones, shuddering, her hands and feet growing insensitive, her lungs fighting for air as if she was drowning in cold water.
She saw a little light at the surface. She had thought she was lost under Kaneda's assault, and Enishi had come to save her. He could again. He would again.
One hour was too short for Enishi to be back in time. The realization that she had hoped in vain again finished to shatter her, sending her deeper in the dark waters, in the abyss.
She was wiped off any emotion, any will, she was empty, soulless. A disincarnated voice was filling the void, compelling, imperative. You have no choice. You have no choice.
Her past would never be behind her.
She had died inside. Considering what was waiting for her, it was better, said mockingly the voice in her head.
She heard the main door opening. Kanryuu again, probably he had just played with her and would demand that she went with him now.
She turned to it, and gasped. The person standing on the threshold was certainly the last one that she expected to see.
To be continued.
Author's notes:
This chapter and the next one were one initially. It wasn't enough to develop the story in a satisfying way, hence the division. If you find here any OOCness or inconsistencies, it should be explained in the next one. I did my best, and LOTS of thanks to Firuze for bearing with my last-minute worries about the logic of the plot! Thank you also for your helpful hints and corrections.
I hope that I let enough doubts before, about Enishi being or not followed by the police in Kyoto. I thought that Saitoh being surprised to see him was enough of a hint, but it was better that I stated it clearly. Enishi was in a very bad shape there, and Oibore overly worried about him, so that explains their misunderstanding. Oibore escaped the police, as I said in chapter 3, and it was due to the fact that they weren't after him in the first place. It's really ironical that Enishi met Megumi out of a mistake..It's destiny (-)
I hope that Megumi doesn't look too much like the typical romance novel heroine, always threatened with sexual abuse. Kanryuu's attitude is strongly hinted in the manga, and Kaneda being similar to him on many points, it was the only way things could go. The double shock also explains her attitude. Megumi being a strong woman, she can't be taken down that easily.
Before the review's response, I'd like to express my gratefulness to Firuze and Oryo for their trust in this story.
Next chapter: I said it..last chapter!
See You!
Kamorgana
