She woke in the morning, stretching slightly before looking around.
The detective was stretched out on two chairs, his jacket folded under his head.
She quietly watched him for a while.
He began to mutter, his forehead creasing. "No..get away.."
She watched him a few moments longer before moving enough to reach him. She shook his arm lightly, "Detective?"
With a jerk, his eyes opened. There was a flash of red before they reverted to dark brown and he sat up with an embarrassed look. "You're awake."
She nodded, "You seemed to be having a bad dream, so I thought I should wake you.."
He reddened a little. "Sorry."
"Don't be," she gave him a small smile. "I get nightmares too sometimes."
There was a knock at the door and the detective quickly stood. Opening it, he admitted the doctor, then excused himself and slipped out.
Mia watched the doctor closely as they checked her stitches.
"They look alright. They will dissolve in a few days, though the surgical site will be tender for a while. I'll finish your paperwork and get you discharged." He gave her a reassuring smile, then left the room.
Mia worked on getting dressed then sat on the bed to wait.
Ten minutes later the detective opened the door. "Ready to go?"
She nodded and stood, moving slowly toward the door.
"Sit down." He indicated a wheelchair. "Just until we get to the van."
She sighed and sat down, "I guess."
He chuckled at her disgruntled expression, then pushed her toward the parking lot.
She sat quietly, soon realizing she probably couldn't have walked all that way by herself.
Three men were warily watching them as they approached a black nondescript van.
"This her?" A dark blond watched her with undisguised hostility, the other two remaining silent.
"Yeah. Be polite." The detective said sharply.
"Or what?" The blond retorted as he climbed inside.
Mia stayed silent, her eyes locked on the ground until she pushed herself out of the chair and worked on getting into the van.
One of the others gently aided her, giving her a soft smile before glaring at the blond.
She gave him a slight smile before staring down at her lap, wishing she was home and didn't have to deal with this.
The nice one took a seat beside her, whispering "Don't mind Ryu. He's mad at being born."
She chuckled slightly in response.
The detective slid the door closed, then climbed into the driver's seat. He started the engine, moving into traffic smoothly.
They drove for an hour, then pulled into a remote area. One small house stood next to the van. "We're here."
Mia looked at the house carefully but continued to be quiet.
The three men inside climbed out, quickly moving to check the grounds. Toriyama helped her out, handing her a small suitcase. "From your father."
"Thank you."
"No problem." He glanced up at a signal from one of the others. "Let's get you inside."
She followed him into the small house, looking around slowly.
"Two bedrooms. One for you, one for the others. We made sure to stock the fridge, freezer and cabinets for a month. Hopefully, it won't be that long and you'll be home soon."
"Thank you.. I still don't think you need to go through all this trouble though."
"Orders, remember? I like having a job." He gave her a smile.
"What he means is, he likes a paycheck. Everyone knows he does the bare minimum of work." The one who had helped her entered with a laugh.
She chuckled slightly before heading to her room and opening the suitcase to go through it.
Isao rolled his eyes. "Funny. Just for that, you cook tonight."
The other men mock shuddered. "You're going to let him poison us?"
The man gave them a death glare. "You two finish getting set up."
The blond grumbled, "You're no fun anymore." as he and the third man disappeared outside again.
Mia sat quietly on her bed, staring at her favorite book which her dad had packed.
A few hours later, there was a soft knock on the door.
She stood and went to answer it.
"Dinner's ready, if you're hungry." Toriyama gave her a tiny smile.
She nodded, "Alright." She closed her door behind her and went to the kitchen.
"Should probably introduce you to everyone." He pointed to the one plating the food. "Ryon Takano." He shifted to point at another. "Yamae Takano. Finally," He pointed at the blond, who scowled. "Ryusei Nakamura."
"Nice to meet you."
Ryon smiled and handed her a plate. "Hope you like it."
Yamae gave her a small wave as Ryusei walked away.
"That went well…" The remark was uttered under the leader's breath as he frowned.
Mia moved to sit down and began eating.
He got his own plate, sitting down with a sigh. "Sorry about him."
"It's okay."
"You're pretty forgiving, aren't you?" His eyes watched her intently.
"Is that bad?"
He smiled and shook his head. "Just surprising."
She was quiet a while before asking, "So, how long have you been a detective?"
"A few years." He answered before smacking his forehead. "I didn't introduce myself, did I?"
"You kind of did yesterday."
"Did I?" He looked sheepish. "Must be the concussion then."
She chuckled, "I don't think you told me your first name. Or do you prefer Detective Toriyama?"
He blushed, fighting a smile. "It's Isao."
She smiled before going back to eating.
He rose to put his plate in the sink, but stumbled.
"Are you alright? Maybe you should rest."
"You might be right. Feel like I'm on a tilt a whirl." He slowly recovered, continuing to the sink before leaning against it.
"Go lay down, I'll wash the dishes."
Isao gave her a look, then nodded. He headed for the couch, laying down silently.
She washed the dishes before heading back to her room.