Kagura threw Kagome to the ground by her employer's feet, her red eyes cold. "There. I brought her, just like you wanted."
"The money has already been deposited in your account," he replied, kneeling down to get a good look at the miko, his dark hair spilling about his face.
"Good." Knowing that she was no longer needed, the wind sorceress turned and left.
Growling in anger, Kagome looked up at the man, blue-gray eyes narrowed in fury. "Naraku," she hissed; however, her pale face gave away the fact that she was scared. She had just been kidnapped and taken to the one man she had never wanted to see again. The day had just taken a turn for the worst.
"Well, my pretty little thing, I'm going to enjoy breaking you again." The dark hanyou chuckled as the miko's eyes widened in fear. "You are mine."
"Miroku?" Sango sighed softly as she looked down at her IV. The doctors had insisted on putting it in because she had lost so much blood. "I need to call Sesshoumaru. I have to tell him about Kagome."
"The police are looking for her now, and they should have already informed him," the black haired man responded.
The bodyguard shook her head. "He isn't a relative, so they won't. I NEED to call him NOW."
He sighed and pulled out his cell phone. "You should be sleeping like Varice," he commented as he handed it to her, sparing a glance at the napping blonde that was just a few feet away. Of course, the nurses had been forced to drug her to make her relax and sleep some. "Let the police take care of things."
Sango just ignored him, pushing buttons on the phone. She held it to her ear as it began to ring.
~Hello, Taiyoukai Technology. How may I help you?~ a pleasant female voice stated.
"This is Sango. I need to talk to Sesshoumaru," the bodyguard replied simply.
~I'm sorry, but he's in a meeting. Can I take a message?~
"No. I need to talk to him now. Just tell him that Sango is on the phone for him," she insisted.
~I am not to interrupt the meeting for anything, even your call.~
Sango growled softly in annoyance. "Listen, I don't have time for this. I have to talk to Sesshoumaru right now."
~That's what they all say.~ The woman sounded exasperated.
"Here, let me try." Inuyasha held out his hand. He had just entered the room a moment ago. "I can get him on the phone."
The bodyguard gave him the phone. "Enjoy."
Smiling wickedly, the hanyou raised the cell phone to his ear. "Yo, this is Inuyasha. I wanna talk to my bro."
~I'm sorry, but-~
"Now. Tell that sorry jerk Sesshoumaru that if he wants my sword, Tetsusaiga, then he'd better get his butt on the phone right this second!"
The lady gasped softly. She had heard her boss talk about that sword more than once, and she knew how badly the full-blooded inu youkai wanted it. ~I'll tell him that you're on line one.~
Inuyasha was put on hold, but he didn't have to wait long for someone to pick up.
"Inuyasha?" Sesshoumaru's voice came across the phone line loud and clear.
"Hey, Sesshoumaru. Sango wants to talk to you." Before his half brother could say another word, he handed the phone to the bodyguard.
"Sesshoumaru, Kagome was kidnapped," Sango blurted out. She was met with silence, and she instantly became worried. "Sesshoumaru?"
~Where are you?~ he asked suddenly.
"St. Lukes Hospital," she answered, frowning. She didn't like how he sounded. It was almost like he was about to snap.
"I'll be there in a few minutes.~ Then, he hung up.
Sesshoumaru set down the phone and turned to his secretary. "I'll deal with you later, Ms. Smith." Leaving the woman visibly cringing, he raced off without a second thought.
The inu youkai quickly went to his chair, climbed in, and rushed to the hospital. He found his way to Sango's room in no time at all, walking in there to find Inuyasha, Miroku, and Varice in there as well. None of them looked happy.
"Sango, what exactly happened?" he demanded to know as soon as he walked up to her bed.
"Kagome was in the kitchen, making tea, when three demons broke through the wall and attacked. I told her to run, while Varice and I fought against them. We quickly realized that we couldn't fight them on our own for long, so I held the three off while Varice called for help," Sango rattled off. "Inuyasha came and slaughtered the three demons, but not before Varice and I were both severely injured. Sometime during the fight, another youkai came and kidnapped Kagome. Inuyasha said so."
Sesshoumaru glanced over at his half brother, a questioning look on his face.
"The wall had been cut into pieces, and I smelled demon," Inuyasha stated.
The raven-haired bodyguard sighed. "If I had to take a guess as to who took her, then I would have to say Kagura did it. She's the most likely candidate, especially since Inuyasha said that he once he left the house, he couldn't smell the demon on the ground. Kagome was kidnapped by someone who could fly."
"Naraku must have her now," the full-blooded youkai growled out, eyes becoming red.
Miroku looked up at the taiyoukai. "Do you want help rescuing Kagome?" he inquired.
"I don't know where Naraku lives," he said, frowning. Without another word, he pulled out his cell phone and quickly dialed a number.
~Hey, Shippou here.~
"Shippou, I need you to find out where Naraku could have possibly taken Kagome," Sesshoumaru ordered.
The fox demon let lose a string of curses, but he calmed after a moment. ~Give me a few minutes to check around. I'll call you back when I have some answers.~ He hung up.
The inu youkai put up his phone and mentally sighed. 'How could this had happened? Everything was fine until today. Just yesterday Kagome was free and happy, laughing and reading books with me. Now she's in the hands of that sicko... a soon to be dead sicko.' He grinned evilly at that idea, liking the thought of a dead Naraku.
"Sesshoumaru..." Sango didn't like the look on the taiyoukai's face. It worried her. 'He is truly on edge. He won't think twice about wringing Naraku's neck if the filthy hanyou does show his face.'
"Yes?" He looked up from his phone to her face.
"What did Shippou say?" she asked, voice soft.
"Does he know anything about Naraku?" Miroku inquired, hope in his eyes. He didn't know Kagome all that well, but he didn't want anything bad to happen to her.
Sesshoumaru sighed softly, golden eyes filled with sadness and worry. He wanted the miko back and safe in his arms. "He's looking for information right now."
"You shouldn't worry too much, Sesshoumaru," Varice stated optimistically. "I'm sure that Houshi-sama and Inuyasha-kun will help you rescue her once you know where she is." She smiled sweetly, warming the inu hanyou's heart.
"You're always so positive," the half demon commented, returning her smile with a wistful one of his own.
The blonde laughed softly. "I have to be. I'm in a hospital, aren't I?" she gently retorted. "Things certainly can't become any worse than they are now."
Sesshoumaru's phone suddenly ran, and he quickly grabbed and answered it. "Hello?"
~I got three different locations for you: Naraku's house, his log cabin, and his warehouse.~
"Give me the addresses," the inu taiyoukai ordered. Shippou obeyed. "Thank you." Without further ado, he hung up the phone.
Looking at the other males in the room, Sesshoumaru considered something. 'I could ask for help. I certainly need it. If they each go to a different location, we'll find her faster.'
"Inuyasha, there's a cabin at this address..." The pure-blooded demon grabbed a pad of paper and a pen, rapidly scribbling down a few lines; he handed it to the hanyou. "You go here, and you-" he pointed at the one-time monk before writing down another address and handing it to him, "get to go here. If you find Kagome, call me and do whatever you can to get her out of there."
"What do we do if we don't find her?" Miroku asked.
"You'll find her," Sango assured him immediately.
"Houshi-sama, you need to think more positive," Varice added.
The black-haired man shook his head sadly. "I'm asking just in case."
"Come back here then," Sesshoumaru instructed, heading towards the door. "But whatever you do, don't kill Naraku. He's mine." With that said, he was out the door and walking down the hall.
Inuyasha and Miroku exchanged looks, said good-bye to the girls, and then left.
Inuyasha walked up to the log cabin, double-checking the address Sesshoumaru had given him. He was in the right place, but he couldn't smell Naraku. Also, the place seemed lifeless. Frowning, he tested the door and found it locked. He gave a small shrug and kicked it down.
The cabin living room was sparsely furnished, but what was there was completely black. Only the walls, the logs, gave the room any color besides black. An old-fashioned fireplace rested in the corner, and a black-bladed fan hung from the ceiling.
Eyes catching every detail of the dusty room, the hanyou sighed. 'I don't think he's here,' he mused. 'Still, I probably should look in every room.' Not leaving anything up to chance, he began to search the small cabin room-by-room.
The kitchenette was empty of all life except for a few spiders, and the cabinets were completely bare. Not a speck of food was to be found anywhere. Also, the black refrigerator was missing the electrical cord to plug it in.
The bathroom was in the same state as the kitchenette and the bedroom only had one small military-style cot in it. Obviously, no one had entered the cabin in a long time.
"Kuso," he cursed, golden eyes flashing in anger.
Frustrated, he stormed to his car and drove back to the hospital.
Inuyasha was still fuming over his failure when he walked into Sango and Varice's room. Sango was napping, but Varice was flipping through the channels. The blonde turned off the TV the instant she saw the hanyou.
"Inuyasha... you didn't find her, did you?" She knew that look on his face; he wasn't that hard to read. The poor guy looked like someone had just run over his favorite dog.
The silver-haired man shook his head. "No. I didn't. The place looked pretty abandoned."
Varice sighed sadly. "Maybe the other two will have better luck."
Miroku pulled his car up to a medium sized warehouse, his eyes taking inventory of the area. There seemed to be only one door; however, there were a few windows. Unsure of whether he should go through the door or a window, he walked around the building, looking for any signs of the dark hanyou. He didn't find anything.
'I really wish that I had stayed a monk. If I had, then I would be able to sense demons by now.'
With a silent sigh, he finally decided to enter through the door. He quickly found it to be locked. Praying that he could enter another way he began to test the windows. The first few were locked; however, one was not. Smiling triumphantly, he climbed through the window and into the warehouse.
The small amount of sunlight filtering into the building through the sparsely spaced windows was just enough to punch through the gloom. Miroku could see, but only barely.
About five long shelves stretched the length of the building, and boxes of many different sizes littered the area.
Moving slowly so he wouldn't make any noise, Miroku began to search the warehouse, opening all the boxes and walking up and down every aisle.
He found nothing.
Sighing in defeat, the electrician climbed out of the building via the window.
Miroku got into his car and drove back to the hospital, a hopeless look on his face. He had really been praying that he would find Kagome. He didn't want to leave her with Naraku any longer than necessary.
A frown on his face, he walked into the girls' room at the hospital, instantly noticing that Inuyasha was already present. 'Two down, one to go,' Miroku mused.
"Nothing?" the black-haired man asked, even though he already knew the answer.
The hanyou shook his head. "Nothing."
Sesshoumaru pulled into Naraku's driveway, his whole body tenses for battle. He was hoping that he would find the evil hanyou and Kagome inside. While he had sent the other two off to the least likely locations, he had saved the one with the greatest possibility for himself. If Naraku had the miko anywhere, he probably had her at his house.
Without caring about appearance or what he destroyed (Naraku had totaled his mansion, after all), the dog demon stormed right up to the front door, the fresh scent of the hanyou and Kagome swirling around him. Balling his hand, he slammed his fist into the front door. The door didn't break. It was a youkai-strength door, just like his.
Shrugging, the inu youkai went over to a window, brought out his youki whip, and obliterated the window and a good section of the wall. He didn't care if Naraku heard all the noise. In fact, he was kind of hoping that he had so they could fight. Unfortunately, no dark-haired hanyou came out to greet him; however, his scent was even stronger on the inside of the black house. The miko's scent laced the air as well, telling him that she was nearby.
Completely alert, Sesshoumaru followed Kagome's scent through the house. He went into the dining room first, but no one was there. He followed her sweet smell downstairs and then back upstairs. She was somewhere in the house, he just had to figure out where. 'Wherever she is, it's almost certain that Naraku will be there with her,' he thought darkly, wishing the most painful death on his adversary.
Taking a deep breath, the inu youkai went where the smells of both Kagome and Naraku were the strongest. Slowly walking down the hall, poison dripping from his claws, he stopped outside the bedroom. With a great show of strength, he unceremoniously kicked the door down.
Sesshoumaru rushed into the completely black room, his eyes flicking from one side to the other. A bed rested in one corner, the sheets disheveled, and a wardrobe sat on the other side, toppled over. The door to the bathroom was wide open, revealing a black-tiled and black-walled room.
Other than the furniture, the room was empty. Neither Kagome or Naraku could be found anywhere in sight.
Growling, he took a few more steps in to the room, finally noticing a very large window that had been left open by someone. It was large enough for a person to easily crawl through.
'I'm not giving up just yet,' he thought firmly, going outside to the backyard through the window. Both Kagome's and Naraku's scents were strong outside, stronger even than inside the bedroom. Golden eyes searched the area, finding trees, bushes, and grass, but no Kagome or Naraku. There was no shed for anyone to hide in, and the miko's smell just seemed to end in the backyard.
'He flew out her of here, using the wind to disperse their scents so no one could follow,' Sesshoumaru mused darkly, eyes flashing in fury. 'Naraku is going to pay for this.'
"I can only hope that one of the other two found her." With a sigh, he left the backyard and got back in his car.
Sesshoumaru walked into the hospital, every muscle in his body tense. If both Inuyasha and Miroku were there, then no one had found Kagome. He wasn't sure if he would be able to stand finding out that the miko was still in the hands of the evil hanyou.
Saying a small prayer, he opened the door to Varice and Sango's room and entered. Sango and Miroku were talking, while Varice and Inuyasha were watching the television in companionable silence. Everyone turned to look at him the instant he walked in, and the pure-blooded inu youkai merely shook his head.
"Kuso."
No one knew who said it first, but they all echoed the sentiment.
AN: Okay, I can't remember who asked me this, but someone wanted to know about Varice. I stole her name and looks from a book by Tamera Piece called Emperor Mage. Her personality is mine. Someone else asked about what chappies I tweaked. The answer is... well... I mostly tweaked the first five chapters or so. They aren't changed all that much, so I wouldn't really bother going back and reading them. It isn't worth it, unless, of course, you just like my story that much... which I highly doubt.
Also... Over 700 reviews. Yea!!! Um... okay. Well, the review responses are below.
Hamaguri: Yes, poor Fluffy's house went bye-bye... again. And he just got it fixed. *sighs* He's angry at me... again! However, he can't find me to kick my butt, so it's okay.
Tydepul: Inuyasha is the second richest man in the country, but what's the point of betting against the number one guy in the country? IY knew that he'd lose before he even started.
Daydreaminggal: Yes, evil cliff hanger. And I believe that Ja ne means see you later, technically, but goodbye works as well.
Ichigo: Sorry, no fluff in this chappie either. I guess that you'll just have to wait for a bit.
LSR-7: I haven't started on the next chappie yet, but I have a basic idea as to what I wanna write. Yes, I made up Telonomaru. He's my character, so his name isn't strictly japanese. Also, I have no clue what Sesshoumaru's laughing would sound like.
Ruu-chan: I take it that your story is The Maid? I've already read the first chappie, and it's pretty good. I'm impressed. *hugs Ruu-chan* You've got a great story here. Now, I need to finish responding to reviews and finish reading your story.
Rei Akita: I will update as soon as I can, okay?
Xonnie: I stopped there b/c... well... b/c I felt like it. I figured it was as good of a place to stop as any.
InvisibleRain: Oh, sorry. Miner misunderstanding. And don't worry, this story will end well if I have any say in it.
Chibi-Kerochan: Of course, Sesshoumaru doesn't express his feelings a lot. It's part of his character. And I did have the majority of this story planned out before I even started writing it.
Luffy: Yes, only two or three more chappies. Sorry, but I do have to end this eventually. I have a I/K story to finish writing, and I have an excellent idea for a Kouga/Kag fic. It's gonna be so great once I get around to writing it. *giggles* Well, thank you for the amazing compliments, and I hope that this chappie lived up to your expectations.
Fuse: Umm... I don't believe that there's any way you could possibly convince Sesshoumaru to fight you for Kagome. He's rather attached to her, if you haven't noticed. However, you can attack Naraku if you want. Just don't kill him, okay? Sesshoumaru wants to do that.
Purple Witchy Angel: Yeah... Sesshoumaru is so not happy about it. He's handling it pretty well though.
Foxlover: Yes, Sesshoumaru was going to propose and then everything goes down the drain. Poor Sesshoumaru and Kagome.
Alice (Ice): Thanks and you're welcome in return. I try my hardest to make my chapters good. It's kinda hard sometimes though.
Eruinichil: Yep, I finally worked in Kanna. She didn't have a mirror, but *shrugs* Oh well. No big deal.
Relena Peace: Thanks for reviewing. I'm glad you like this story.
Holly: I read your story, and I believe that I posted a review as well.
Namiko-Daughter of Sekhmet: Yes, cliffies do tend to be evil; however, as an authoress, I tend to use them to keep my readers interested. Did my plan work?
Mattielover: Sorry about not writing more. I wanted to get this chappie out.
Inuyashachich515: Yep, Sesshoumaru is going to be one pissed pup when he finds Naraku.
Eris Goddess of Chaos: I stopped b/c I wanted to put a small cliffie in the story.
Evilfire4321: Um... Fluffy was at work.
Yanou: Inuyasha may not want her anymore, but he definitely doesn't want her in the hands of Naraku. And I believe the next chappie is going to be one big beat down. ^_^
Sukera: Eeek, so many lights... That would really, really bite. I had to help my parents put our lights up too, and I have a serious disliking for the cold.
Ringhearty: Sorry, but the butt-kicking is in the next chapter. :) And Kagome doesn't know how to use her defensive powers. She can heal and use her powers to... entertain guys.
Kagome: I believe the show was called Ronin Warriors. The good guys were 5 boys in armor and the main bad guy was a floating head. Oh, and if you wanna come join me here... *pulls out sword and cuts a glowing circle in the air* The other end to the portal is in my computer room. You'll be the only one capable of going through it, so don't worry about people following you. The guys are looking forward to seeing you. Just beware Rowen's cooking. I can't wait to see you either. This is going to be a nice week-long vacation; however, as soon as Sess-chan's out of heat, I need to go back home and work some more on my stories. Well, I hope you enjoyed the chappie. *hugs Kagome-chan* Enjoy!
Magiabruxa: I'll update asap, I promise.
Raining Fire: Thanks for the compliment. I appreciate it.
Shinigami-Sama1: Sesshoumaru's reaction is going to be... let's not go there. Thanks for asking though. *hugs Shin-sama* Sorry, but I'm too lazy to write your whole name again. Do you mind me calling you Shin-sama? I hope not.
Flowerblossom: I didn't exactly rush, but I didn't get it out all that fast either.
Rain67: You usually hate Sess/Kag fics? Awww... that's kinda sad. For some reason, it's become my favorite pairing. *shrugs* oh well. Good luck with that package thing.
Day: Yes, it was a little anti-climatic, but hey... the next few chappies should make up for it.