Prisoner of War
Part Ten: Abandon
"Mukuro-sama?" the advisor questioned delicately. When he received no response, he assumed it safe to continue. "The guards you sent to find Hiei have returned. They found nothing."
"He must not want to be found," Mukuro said darkly. "What I don't understand is why he disappeared. He's never left without warning."
The advisor cleared his throat. "Perhaps it has something to do with the human's disappearance?"
"You think he went looking for her?" Mukuro questioned rounding on the advisor. "Why didn't he say so?"
Shaking his head, the advisor replied, "I wasn't suggesting that he went after her."
"Then what were you suggesting?"
The advisor cleared his throat again before answering. "Mukuro-sama, if I recall correctly, you sent Hiei to kill the human the night before she disappeared."
"What does that have to do with anything?"
"He went to the cell that night—I have confirmation from the sentinels at the dungeon gates. The girl's escape wasn't reported until the following morning. There's no evidence that she was wounded, no blood trails, nothing. Someone helped her escape."
Mukuro was silent for a moment. "You think that Hiei helped her escape?"
"It appears that way, Mukuro-sama."
Again, the yokai lord stood in silence, eyes closed in a mixture of thought and anger. "No," she said finally. "I refuse to believe that. That damn human has planned this." She rounded on the advisor dangerously. "If anyone helped her, it's you. You want me to turn against Hiei." The tyrant wrapped a strong hand around the advisor's throat. "He wouldn't betray me."
Her grip tightened around the advisor's neck.
"And you're a fool to try to make me think he did."
A snapping sound rung through the throne room.
The advisor stopped moving.
Mukuro tossed the now lifeless body to the floor unceremoniously. "Now," she said, stepping over the advisor's body. "I'll just have to find them myself, won't I?"
The occupants of the safe house crowded around the closed doors of the house's main room struggling to hear the conference that was going on inside.
Three leaders, a runaway human and a yokai….
"I still don't understand what the big deal is," Calai said, crossing her arms in frustration. "I mean, if Mukuro knew where you guys were, wouldn't she have done something by now?"
"Not if she thought we'd expect it," Yusuke said coldly.
Hiei shook his head. "Nearly every human Mukuro wants dead is here. She wouldn't waste time on strategy."
"Maybe you just want us to believe that," Kuwabara said. "Maybe that's just part of your cover story. I bet she's on her way here right now."
"No," Kurama frowned. "She's still occupied with looking for Calai from what I hear. But it won't be long before the search leads her here." Kurama turned to Hiei. "Hiei, we've known each other for a long time—since before this whole war. But I understand that you'd have a lot to gain from turning us in—"
"We have known each other for a long time," Hiei said. "That's why I didn't tell her where you are. I owe that much to you."
Kurama and Yusuke both smiled.
"Good to know that honor code of yours is still intact," Yusuke said. "What was it? 'Never abandon an ally for the sake of power'?"
"That still doesn't answer why you're here," Kuwabara frowned.
The yokai glanced to Calai before answering. "I let someone that I was supposed to kill go. I'm a traitor to her now."
"So she'll be looking for you?" Calai asked.
"There's no question of that," Kurama stated. "She'll have the whole army out looking for him."
"Whoa, not good," Yusuke said. "What if she traces him to the house? She'll just kill two birds with one stone."
Kuwabara nodded. "Yeah, and there's no way that we can stand up to her whole army. Not even if everyone in the house helped."
"Which is why I'm leaving," Hiei said, rising from his seat.
"Wait," Calai said. "If you leave, she'll find you."
"And if I stay she'll find all of you," the yokai replied, making his way towards the door.
Calai rose to her feet and followed the yokai to the door. "Hiei, she won't… she'll…. God, Hiei, if she finds you, you'll die."
The yokai was silent for a moment, his hand resting on the doorknob.
He turned to look at the girl. "Probably."
"Probably what?"
"I'll probably die."
Hiei turned from Calai, opened the door and disappeared.
End Part Ten
