Chapter 9: Thirty Six Hours Later
Kaoru glared at the stoic man before her. 'How could he just sit there?' She cleared her throat, earning the attention of the dashing detective.
Aoshi calmly drank his herbal tea. "Something on your mind Kamiya?" Aoshi inquired, knowing full well that she was growing anxious at being confined to their room. They had not stepped out of their chambers for the past thirty-six hours. Granted, those hours could have been better spent.
He stretched his sore back, he had taken to the couch and allowed Kaoru the comfort of the canopied bed. He could feel himself growing too attached to her and sought to keep a distance, but he also didn't want her out of his sight. It presented a confusing situation, one of which he couldn't think of how to solve without locking her into their room.
Kaoru sputtered before compiling her jumbled thoughts. "Something on my mind!" She shouted angrily as her hands fisted upon her hips in her ire. "You can bet your socks something is on my mind!"
An ebon brow rose at that declaration and he couldn't help but chuckle slightly. "Bet your socks?" He choked out as he fought to keep from spilling his hot tea.
"You can't keep me locked in here! We've got stuff to do! Things are happening and it's up to us to solve them!" She declared, trying to stress her point as she walked up to his sitting position on the couch and took his tea right from his hand as he was calmly raising it back to his lips.
He smirked at her obvious aggravation. "I most certainly can keep you locked in here. After you went wandering about the night before what did you expect me to do? I don't want to have to follow you around like some lap dog so you're going to have to settle for this."
"I don't need your protection," Kaoru whispered as she set the cup of tea on the small table near the bed. She was trying to calm herself. She knew that Aoshi was only trying to prevent harm from happening to her. He was doing Hajime a favor.
Aoshi watched her carefully and let a few silent moments pass before speaking. "Kaoru," he spoke, but she failed to look at him. "Kaoru," he repeated. She continued to look away.
The detective stood behind her and wrapped his arms loosely around her waist as he pulled her against his solid form. He bent his chin down to rest it upon her head comfortably. Her rigid form relaxed in his embrace.
"Kaoru, I know you are strong. However, my instincts tell me something about this place means to do us both harm and my instincts have never been wrong." He closed his eyes and tried to keep the possessive feeling raging within him under control. His instincts were telling him that, but he also had been so afraid when he couldn't find her the other night.
Aoshi Shinomori was not one to be afraid, and he didn't want to go through that experience ever again. He wasn't sure when she had become more than a favor to Saito for him. It had to be something related with the odd dreams he was having.
"I don't want to sit back when I could do something worth while." Kaoru replied softly.
"Why don't you rest? You haven't slept much." Aoshi suggested as he allowed Kaoru to move out of his arms. She kept her head down, hiding the blush staining her cheeks.
"That's probably a good idea," Kaoru agreed reluctantly as she pulled back her covers and climbed into bed. Truth be told, she was afraid to sleep. She just knew that as soon as she fell into a deep slumber that her dreams would haunt her.
She knew that Battousai had struck again.
Aoshi watched as she settled into the thick comforter and moved to sit beside her on the large bed. Kaoru felt the mattress shift under his weight and moved over to make more room for him. "You should rest too," Kaoru told him sleepily, her exhaustion finally catching up with her.
"Are you afraid of what you will see when you sleep?" Aoshi asked insightfully. As he observed that Kaoru was not falling sound asleep like she normally did. She didn't answer and he knew what her reply would be. "Don't worry, I'm here with you." He told her as he gathered the woman in his arms and pulled her to rest in the safety of his arms.
She relaxed considerably. "You must think I'm such a baby," Kaoru replied embarrassed, not daring to open her eyes and see the strong man looking at her in annoyance. However, he was only looking at her with a soft expression.
"I don't think you're a baby, just rest." Aoshi assured her. She let out a deep breath she didn't realize she was holding and was soon sleeping soundly. Aoshi felt a content smile grace his lips as he watched her angelic face relax peacefully. Her rosy lips fell apart slightly and his attention was riveted there.
A flashback to the dream where she died in his arms came back to him full force. He wanted to feel those lips of hers molded to fit his own. The temptation was starting to overwhelm him and he didn't even realize that his mouth began to descent towards the target.
Mere centimeter's from his goal he paused when the ringing of Kaoru's cell phone caught his attention. He pulled back, unsure whether to be relieved or annoyed as he reached for the phone on the nightstand.
He glanced at the caller ID and a feeling of unfounded jealousy clenched at his heart.
"Shinomori here," he greeted the man on the other end, a frown marring his sculptured features.
######################
Hajime Saito paced back and forth in his office. It had been nearly six days since he had heard from Kaoru. He wasn't even certain that she had arrived safely to Enishi's castle estate.
The agony of not knowing had finally been too much of a strain on the wolf and the next thing he knew he was dialing a very familiar number. He could feel that he was holding his breath, anxiously awaiting to hear the voice he adored so much.
However that was not the voice that greeted him. "Shinomori here," the man on the other end replied, his tone cool as ice.
"Where is she?" Saito demanded, not one for small talk. If he had wanted to speak with Shinomori then he would have called him. He wanted to talk to his little raccoon, his Tanuki.
There was a long pause before Aoshi answered. "She's asleep right now. She fears that Battousai will haunt her dreams."
Saito pulled a cigarette from his pocket and lit it, placing it between his thin lips. He took a long, soothing drag, before trusting himself to speak after feeling a knot in his stomach. His Kaoru had trusted Shinomori with her secret. "Has anything unusual occurred," he asked keeping his voice reserved.
"There have already been unexplained murders. We are stuck here until the end of the fortnight. I have kept her in the room for the last thirty six hours. You didn't tell me what sort of trouble she liked to get herself into." Aoshi's grin could be felt over the phone.
Saito dropped his cigarette to the floor and ground it out with his boot. "Yeah, well why else do you think I had you watch over my Tanuki." Saito barked out sharply. His tone made it very clear that he was quite unhappy that he was not the one with her.
"My Saito, if I didn't know any better I'd think you were jealous." Aoshi commented dryly.
Saito could feel his temper rise. He regretted now, more than ever, allowing Megumi to convince him in using Kaoru's former engagement ring as part of the act that she was in a relationship with Shinomori.
"Just don't get any ideas Shinomori. Do not forget that she is MINE." Saito warned in deadly tones. "I want you to have her call me as soon as she wakes up."
"Very well," Aoshi replied calmly.
Saito ended the telephone call. Never before had he ever felt so angry and possessive. Kaoru was HIS! Saito slammed his hand against the wall and clunks of sheetrock fell under the impact.
Decision made, Saito picked up his car keys. There was no need for him to remain at the office. Things had been slow for the past week anyway. The wolf had made his decision. He was about to travel to England and take back his Tanuki.
The Battosai mystery be damned. Saito wasn't about to lose his woman to that Californian detective over a possible lead.
######################
Aoshi glared at the phone in his hand, willing it to melt. He set it aside and tightened his hold upon Kaoru. He hadn't liked the way that the wolf had sounded. If he didn't know any better, he's say that Saito would be on the next plane here.
But he knew Saito better than that.
The wolf would never risk losing a lead to the Battousai case for a bit of jealousy. Would he?
Kaoru began to shift uneasily, making Aoshi forget his musings. "No, don't do it." Kaoru pleaded to some unseen entity.
Aoshi held her close as she continued to thrash apart. Finally a scream ripped through her throat as she sat bolt upright in his arms. A pair of crimson tears had leaked from each of her eyes.
"What is it Kaoru? What did you see?" Aoshi asked, locking gazes with a wide-eyed Kaoru as one of his hands brushed away the evidence of her bloody tear stained trail on her cheeks.
"I saw a young woman that I didn't recognize, he killed her. Then, I saw Misao. He was chasing her." She trailed off.
Aoshi shook her, "Come on Kaoru, stay with me. What happened to Misao?" He felt a need to protect Misao, something residual from his dream the other night.
Kaoru blinked at him before answering. "Soujiro protected her. But, he hit them both. I don't think they are dead." She trailed off, looking past him at the tapestry on the wall behind his head.
"How do you know they aren't dead?" Aoshi demanded, slightly impatient.
"Because, he heard my pleading. He said my name and only knocked them with the blunt handle of his sword." She looked back at the man holding her. "I think they are unconscious."
Aoshi stood, the thick blankets falling at his feet and had her stand alongside him. "That was foolish," he told her. She looked back at him confused so he decided to elaborate. "The Battousai now has witnesses to his crime."
Kaoru shook her head. "No, if anything he probably put them into some sort of coma."
That possibility hadn't crossed Aoshi's mind but he conceded the point. He looked at the phone briefly but decided there were more pressing matters than to pass on the obsessive message of an ex-lover to the woman he was feeling so protective.
"Did someone call while I was asleep?" Kaoru suddenly asked as she pulled on her tennis shoes ignoring that her clothes were rumpled, ready to investigate the scene of the crime.
Aoshi shook his head negatively as he slipped on his jeans and then pulled on his own running shoes. He reached behind the pillow and placed a gun between the waistline of his pants before extending his hand for Kaoru to accept.
"Oh, but I thought I heard it ring," Kaoru replied unsure as she cast the silent phone a suspicious glance, wondering if it would deny that it rang.
"Don't concern yourself with such things," Aoshi assured her as he guided her out of their room and locked the door behind them.
######################
Enishi looked down at the three bodies before him. One had been found dead and the latter two were both unconscious. The doctor, Megumi had been optimistic about Misao and Soujiro, but said they would not be waking up anytime soon.
And when they did, it was doubtful that they would remember anything about their attack.
The young lord ran his fingers through his cropped white hair nervously as he glanced over at his beloved sister anxiously. She didn't seem bothered in the least to discover that there was a murdering lunatic inside of his estate that they were locked within for two weeks!
On the plus side, there were only eight days left before his unbreakable security measures would deactivate. He could only hope that no more 'accidents' occurred.
He glanced over at the stairwell again. 'Why is Shinomori keeping Kamiya away?' He thought to himself. That young woman was the only thing that had been entertaining him. He was suspicious about their relationship.
Tomoe had informed him that the ring that Kaoru bore was the exact same design that Hajime Saito had special made for her during their engagement. The coincidence was highly suspicious.
A plate fell to the floor and shattered. Enishi turned an annoyed look towards the klutzy guest. The red haired man smiled apologetically as his violet eyes widened in embarrassment.
"Oro?" Himura replied under his breath at his 'carelessness.' "My apologies Enishi, but I'm afraid I do not have the best coordination."
"Obviously," Enishi snapped, his patience with the man thin if existent at all. He watched as the short statured but physically fit man began to bend over and pick up the pieces of shattered plate. He was deceptively small, Enishi noted.
"Have you seen Kaoru?" Enishi asked the man.
Kenshin shook his head and brought up his violet orbs to meet Enishi's cold, indifferent ones. "The last I saw Kaoru was when Aoshi and I found her with Sanosuke and the others the night before last. They have been in their room ever since."
Enishi noted the angry undertones in Himura's voice at that little tid bit. Granted, he couldn't blame him for he felt the same anger.
Kaoru glared at the stoic man before her. 'How could he just sit there?' She cleared her throat, earning the attention of the dashing detective.
Aoshi calmly drank his herbal tea. "Something on your mind Kamiya?" Aoshi inquired, knowing full well that she was growing anxious at being confined to their room. They had not stepped out of their chambers for the past thirty-six hours. Granted, those hours could have been better spent.
He stretched his sore back, he had taken to the couch and allowed Kaoru the comfort of the canopied bed. He could feel himself growing too attached to her and sought to keep a distance, but he also didn't want her out of his sight. It presented a confusing situation, one of which he couldn't think of how to solve without locking her into their room.
Kaoru sputtered before compiling her jumbled thoughts. "Something on my mind!" She shouted angrily as her hands fisted upon her hips in her ire. "You can bet your socks something is on my mind!"
An ebon brow rose at that declaration and he couldn't help but chuckle slightly. "Bet your socks?" He choked out as he fought to keep from spilling his hot tea.
"You can't keep me locked in here! We've got stuff to do! Things are happening and it's up to us to solve them!" She declared, trying to stress her point as she walked up to his sitting position on the couch and took his tea right from his hand as he was calmly raising it back to his lips.
He smirked at her obvious aggravation. "I most certainly can keep you locked in here. After you went wandering about the night before what did you expect me to do? I don't want to have to follow you around like some lap dog so you're going to have to settle for this."
"I don't need your protection," Kaoru whispered as she set the cup of tea on the small table near the bed. She was trying to calm herself. She knew that Aoshi was only trying to prevent harm from happening to her. He was doing Hajime a favor.
Aoshi watched her carefully and let a few silent moments pass before speaking. "Kaoru," he spoke, but she failed to look at him. "Kaoru," he repeated. She continued to look away.
The detective stood behind her and wrapped his arms loosely around her waist as he pulled her against his solid form. He bent his chin down to rest it upon her head comfortably. Her rigid form relaxed in his embrace.
"Kaoru, I know you are strong. However, my instincts tell me something about this place means to do us both harm and my instincts have never been wrong." He closed his eyes and tried to keep the possessive feeling raging within him under control. His instincts were telling him that, but he also had been so afraid when he couldn't find her the other night.
Aoshi Shinomori was not one to be afraid, and he didn't want to go through that experience ever again. He wasn't sure when she had become more than a favor to Saito for him. It had to be something related with the odd dreams he was having.
"I don't want to sit back when I could do something worth while." Kaoru replied softly.
"Why don't you rest? You haven't slept much." Aoshi suggested as he allowed Kaoru to move out of his arms. She kept her head down, hiding the blush staining her cheeks.
"That's probably a good idea," Kaoru agreed reluctantly as she pulled back her covers and climbed into bed. Truth be told, she was afraid to sleep. She just knew that as soon as she fell into a deep slumber that her dreams would haunt her.
She knew that Battousai had struck again.
Aoshi watched as she settled into the thick comforter and moved to sit beside her on the large bed. Kaoru felt the mattress shift under his weight and moved over to make more room for him. "You should rest too," Kaoru told him sleepily, her exhaustion finally catching up with her.
"Are you afraid of what you will see when you sleep?" Aoshi asked insightfully. As he observed that Kaoru was not falling sound asleep like she normally did. She didn't answer and he knew what her reply would be. "Don't worry, I'm here with you." He told her as he gathered the woman in his arms and pulled her to rest in the safety of his arms.
She relaxed considerably. "You must think I'm such a baby," Kaoru replied embarrassed, not daring to open her eyes and see the strong man looking at her in annoyance. However, he was only looking at her with a soft expression.
"I don't think you're a baby, just rest." Aoshi assured her. She let out a deep breath she didn't realize she was holding and was soon sleeping soundly. Aoshi felt a content smile grace his lips as he watched her angelic face relax peacefully. Her rosy lips fell apart slightly and his attention was riveted there.
A flashback to the dream where she died in his arms came back to him full force. He wanted to feel those lips of hers molded to fit his own. The temptation was starting to overwhelm him and he didn't even realize that his mouth began to descent towards the target.
Mere centimeter's from his goal he paused when the ringing of Kaoru's cell phone caught his attention. He pulled back, unsure whether to be relieved or annoyed as he reached for the phone on the nightstand.
He glanced at the caller ID and a feeling of unfounded jealousy clenched at his heart.
"Shinomori here," he greeted the man on the other end, a frown marring his sculptured features.
######################
Hajime Saito paced back and forth in his office. It had been nearly six days since he had heard from Kaoru. He wasn't even certain that she had arrived safely to Enishi's castle estate.
The agony of not knowing had finally been too much of a strain on the wolf and the next thing he knew he was dialing a very familiar number. He could feel that he was holding his breath, anxiously awaiting to hear the voice he adored so much.
However that was not the voice that greeted him. "Shinomori here," the man on the other end replied, his tone cool as ice.
"Where is she?" Saito demanded, not one for small talk. If he had wanted to speak with Shinomori then he would have called him. He wanted to talk to his little raccoon, his Tanuki.
There was a long pause before Aoshi answered. "She's asleep right now. She fears that Battousai will haunt her dreams."
Saito pulled a cigarette from his pocket and lit it, placing it between his thin lips. He took a long, soothing drag, before trusting himself to speak after feeling a knot in his stomach. His Kaoru had trusted Shinomori with her secret. "Has anything unusual occurred," he asked keeping his voice reserved.
"There have already been unexplained murders. We are stuck here until the end of the fortnight. I have kept her in the room for the last thirty six hours. You didn't tell me what sort of trouble she liked to get herself into." Aoshi's grin could be felt over the phone.
Saito dropped his cigarette to the floor and ground it out with his boot. "Yeah, well why else do you think I had you watch over my Tanuki." Saito barked out sharply. His tone made it very clear that he was quite unhappy that he was not the one with her.
"My Saito, if I didn't know any better I'd think you were jealous." Aoshi commented dryly.
Saito could feel his temper rise. He regretted now, more than ever, allowing Megumi to convince him in using Kaoru's former engagement ring as part of the act that she was in a relationship with Shinomori.
"Just don't get any ideas Shinomori. Do not forget that she is MINE." Saito warned in deadly tones. "I want you to have her call me as soon as she wakes up."
"Very well," Aoshi replied calmly.
Saito ended the telephone call. Never before had he ever felt so angry and possessive. Kaoru was HIS! Saito slammed his hand against the wall and clunks of sheetrock fell under the impact.
Decision made, Saito picked up his car keys. There was no need for him to remain at the office. Things had been slow for the past week anyway. The wolf had made his decision. He was about to travel to England and take back his Tanuki.
The Battosai mystery be damned. Saito wasn't about to lose his woman to that Californian detective over a possible lead.
######################
Aoshi glared at the phone in his hand, willing it to melt. He set it aside and tightened his hold upon Kaoru. He hadn't liked the way that the wolf had sounded. If he didn't know any better, he's say that Saito would be on the next plane here.
But he knew Saito better than that.
The wolf would never risk losing a lead to the Battousai case for a bit of jealousy. Would he?
Kaoru began to shift uneasily, making Aoshi forget his musings. "No, don't do it." Kaoru pleaded to some unseen entity.
Aoshi held her close as she continued to thrash apart. Finally a scream ripped through her throat as she sat bolt upright in his arms. A pair of crimson tears had leaked from each of her eyes.
"What is it Kaoru? What did you see?" Aoshi asked, locking gazes with a wide-eyed Kaoru as one of his hands brushed away the evidence of her bloody tear stained trail on her cheeks.
"I saw a young woman that I didn't recognize, he killed her. Then, I saw Misao. He was chasing her." She trailed off.
Aoshi shook her, "Come on Kaoru, stay with me. What happened to Misao?" He felt a need to protect Misao, something residual from his dream the other night.
Kaoru blinked at him before answering. "Soujiro protected her. But, he hit them both. I don't think they are dead." She trailed off, looking past him at the tapestry on the wall behind his head.
"How do you know they aren't dead?" Aoshi demanded, slightly impatient.
"Because, he heard my pleading. He said my name and only knocked them with the blunt handle of his sword." She looked back at the man holding her. "I think they are unconscious."
Aoshi stood, the thick blankets falling at his feet and had her stand alongside him. "That was foolish," he told her. She looked back at him confused so he decided to elaborate. "The Battousai now has witnesses to his crime."
Kaoru shook her head. "No, if anything he probably put them into some sort of coma."
That possibility hadn't crossed Aoshi's mind but he conceded the point. He looked at the phone briefly but decided there were more pressing matters than to pass on the obsessive message of an ex-lover to the woman he was feeling so protective.
"Did someone call while I was asleep?" Kaoru suddenly asked as she pulled on her tennis shoes ignoring that her clothes were rumpled, ready to investigate the scene of the crime.
Aoshi shook his head negatively as he slipped on his jeans and then pulled on his own running shoes. He reached behind the pillow and placed a gun between the waistline of his pants before extending his hand for Kaoru to accept.
"Oh, but I thought I heard it ring," Kaoru replied unsure as she cast the silent phone a suspicious glance, wondering if it would deny that it rang.
"Don't concern yourself with such things," Aoshi assured her as he guided her out of their room and locked the door behind them.
######################
Enishi looked down at the three bodies before him. One had been found dead and the latter two were both unconscious. The doctor, Megumi had been optimistic about Misao and Soujiro, but said they would not be waking up anytime soon.
And when they did, it was doubtful that they would remember anything about their attack.
The young lord ran his fingers through his cropped white hair nervously as he glanced over at his beloved sister anxiously. She didn't seem bothered in the least to discover that there was a murdering lunatic inside of his estate that they were locked within for two weeks!
On the plus side, there were only eight days left before his unbreakable security measures would deactivate. He could only hope that no more 'accidents' occurred.
He glanced over at the stairwell again. 'Why is Shinomori keeping Kamiya away?' He thought to himself. That young woman was the only thing that had been entertaining him. He was suspicious about their relationship.
Tomoe had informed him that the ring that Kaoru bore was the exact same design that Hajime Saito had special made for her during their engagement. The coincidence was highly suspicious.
A plate fell to the floor and shattered. Enishi turned an annoyed look towards the klutzy guest. The red haired man smiled apologetically as his violet eyes widened in embarrassment.
"Oro?" Himura replied under his breath at his 'carelessness.' "My apologies Enishi, but I'm afraid I do not have the best coordination."
"Obviously," Enishi snapped, his patience with the man thin if existent at all. He watched as the short statured but physically fit man began to bend over and pick up the pieces of shattered plate. He was deceptively small, Enishi noted.
"Have you seen Kaoru?" Enishi asked the man.
Kenshin shook his head and brought up his violet orbs to meet Enishi's cold, indifferent ones. "The last I saw Kaoru was when Aoshi and I found her with Sanosuke and the others the night before last. They have been in their room ever since."
Enishi noted the angry undertones in Himura's voice at that little tid bit. Granted, he couldn't blame him for he felt the same anger.