Yay! I finally updated! I'm sorry for taking so long, but school and spring break came and I was out of the country and I wanted to get to a point in Dangerous Souls before I continued this fic which I made it to! Check it out if you haven't, it will make future chapters of this fic make more sense! I hope you enjoy I think this may be a five chapter saga but I promise you won't be disappointed! Enjoy!

12-England Part 2

After that awkward start, dinner commenced in a much calmer manner. The seven of them sat around the table with Martin and Luella at the two heads, Mai sat to the right of Martin with Naru on her right and Evangeline on his, Madoka and Lin sat across from them. Martin, Luella, and Madoka did a great job keeping up conversation and engaging Mai, trying to get to know her.

Mai tried to keep her mind off of the blonde girl sitting on the other side of her boyfriend. But she ahd to admit the girl was beautiful. Tall, thin, blonde, she had the biggest light blue eyes Mai had ever seen and lashes she would kill for. But who is she? And why has Naru never mentioned her before? Suddenly…I'm not so hungry anymore…

"So how did you two meet?" Luella asked, looking to Mai.

"Well," she began, adjusting her napkin on her lap. "He actually was investigating the abandoned schoolhouse at my high school when I was a freshman. Some friends and I were telling ghost stories in one of the empty classrooms like we normally did and Naru decided to scare us by pretending to be a ghost."

"Yes, but you sought revenge by breaking Lin's ankle and my camera," Naru quipped between bites.

"None of it was intentional unlike you getting free help out of me to pay for the camera," Mai said almost rolling her eyes.

"Oliver, I told you to make sure the equipment was insured," Martin scolded, even though the event was years ago.

"Don't worry, Martin," Mai replied, taking a bite. "He made sure everything was insured. I just didn't find out until working for him for almost a year."

"Oliver!" Luella exclaimed with wide eyes. Naru looked as though he was beginning to get a headache and Mai could only laugh and shake her head.

Serves him right for not telling me about whomever this Evangeline is, she smirked. "Don't worry, Luella, I was paid well for helping him out since Lin wasn't able to," she explained with a smile. "After that he even offered me a job as his assistant after the case. And now here we are."

"Poor Lin," Evangeline commented, pushing her food around with her fork. She had barely touched her plate. "You must have been really hurt for Noll to need another assistant."

Mai was taken aback by the girl's response and opened her mouth to retort, when Lin answered. "It was just a sprain to my ankle, I was better after a few days," he explained emotionlessly.

"But what were you doing in the schoolhouse that caused you to break a camera?" the blonde girl asked, leaning over to look at the brunette.

"I was passing it on my way to class and I didn't understand why there was a camera in there," Mai explained with a shrug. "I went in to investigate and Lin shouted at me and I ended up knocking into a bookshelf-"

"Rather clumsy, wouldn't you say?" Mai's heart sank with Evangeline's words.

"In her defense," Lin piped up, sensing the tension, "I did startle her."

"Luella, this is delicious!" Madoka said, changing the subject. She smiled warmly at her friend. "You've really outdone yourself tonight!"

"Thank you, Madoka," the middle aged woman said with a smile. "I must admit though, I did have help." She nodded her head to the young woman next to her. "I ran into Evangeline at the market today and was telling her all about you two coming to visit and she insisted on helping me cook!"

"I bet you're not used to home cooking like this anymore, are you, Noll?" Evangeline quipped, Mai watched as the blonde made sure to touch Naru's arm.

This is going to be a long dinner, Mai internally sighed as she began picking at her plate. Come on, eat something. You can't insult Luella after she went to such trouble.

But you can insult Evangeline.

Mai visibly shook her head of the thought. "You okay, Mai?" Martin asked, snapping her of her reverie.

"Yes, I'm fine," she replied with a wave of her hand. "I thought I had forgotten something before the flight but I know I didn't," she lied smoothly.

Besides, by the way she seems to cling to Naru I doubt she'd be offended if I didn't eat. She resisted the urge to sigh as took another bite. Hopefully, we can keep me out of the topic of conversation for a bit.

She passed a glance to Madoka who, if she had noticed the awkwardness of the situation, was damn good at hiding it. Madoka, you will give me answers!

Dinner continued to commence on topics of Evangeline's choice, asking Naru how Japan is, how she missed him, how she's helping her father with his work. No one else seemed to keen on changing the topic and since Naru was already a man of few words, he wasn't about to throw in his two cents unless asked. They moved to the living room after dinner for dessert and tea. Mai was glad that she could pin her quietness on jetlag, but knew she couldn't use the excuse forever. "My, it's gotten late," Martin said, looking at the watch on his wrist. "I'm afraid I must turn in for the night. I need to be up early, Evangeline, what is your plan?"

"I suppose I better head home," the young blonde replied with a sad smile. "I also have to be up early-"

"Oh, Eve, just stay the night!" Luella urged, picking up the finished dessert plates. "You know where your room is and I have some pajamas I can give you. It's much too late for you to be driving."

"You know, I might have left my pajamas from the last time I stayed over," Evangeline replied with a smile. "If it's no imposition-"

"Of course not! You're always welcome here."

Her room? Mai had never felt so disheartened in her life. She was sitting on the couch next to her boyfriend, staring at her hands. Who the hell is she? Why does she have a room here? Why does she stay over so often to need a room?

A hand on her knee almost made her jump. She looked up at the boy next to her. "Are you okay?" he asked her quietly. Mai couldn't help but smile, because for a moment, just a moment, he made her forget why she was upset.

"I'm fine, just a little tired," she admitted. It wasn't a total lie. She was exhausted but she also wanted to lock Madoka in a closet and interrogate her.

"It is almost midnight," Madoka said looking at her own watch. Mai really needed to invest in one. "Why don't we all head to bed? Tomorrow's a big day."

And that was how Mai ended up in her room completely wired. She had made note that at the very least Evangeline's room was on the other end of the hall and furthest from Naru's, that made her feel a little better. Unfortunately, it appeared that Madoka and Lin's room were on that side as well. I guess I won't get to interrogate her after all, Mai thought bitterly.

She retrieved her laptop once she made it back to her room. Someone had left her the wifi password in the drawer of the desk and Mai happily logged in. She might not have been able to confront Madoka about this, but there was one person she could call and get some type of explanation.

She logged on to her email and quickly sent a message to said person. Hey, good morning. You busy? Was all she wrote. She knew this person very well so there was no need to be formal.

After she sent the message she glanced at the time. It was just past midnight, meaning it was about nine in the morning in Tokyo. Hopefully, her message was received.

Still too wound up to even think about getting herself ready for bed, Mai busied herself by checking her emails. Keiko had sent her photos of her and Taiki's trip to Hawaii for their honeymoon. They've been saving for that since high school, Mai thought with a smile.

The soft ping of her laptop alerted her of a new message and with a held breath, she went back to her inbox. Sure enough, there was a reply and it only took thirty minutes. Hey, girl! How's England? How's the weather? Crappy, right? No, I'm not busy. Yasuhara and I got to the office about an hour ago and so far no one's walked in without an appointment. What's up?

The sky is pretty gloomy, I'll admit. And in more ways than one. Do you have a minute to video chat? Mai replied, immediately grabbing her earbuds from her jacket's pocket.

Only a minute after she sent the message and plugged in her earbuds did said friend call her. Mai clicked the accept button and soon she was looking at the face of another brunette, one with much longer hair. "Hey, how're the wedding plans coming?" Mai asked once she heard the background noise of the SPR office. She was glad to finally be speaking in her native tongu

"I'm almost at the point where I want to elope, to be honest," the girl joked with a shake of her head. "But there's no point seeing as we only have a month to go, right Yasu?"

Mai watched as a bespectacled man came up behind the brunette and bent over to be seen by that camera and waved. "Hey, Mai, up past your bedtime aren't you?" he teased, Mai shook her head and smiled.

"Hi, Yasuhara," she replied. "Thanks for watching the office while we're gone. I know you guys are busy-"

"It's no trouble, Mai," Yasuhara said with a laugh. "I think Kiko's welcoming the distraction right now."

"As long as I don't have to deal with our mothers arguing over the place settings and colors of the napkins, I'm more than happy to deal with crazy cat ladies swearing their cat is possessed," Kiko said. She sighed and shrugged her shoulders. "So what's up? It's like, what? One in the morning your time?"

"Shouldn't one of you be watching the door?" Mai asked with a look in her eye.

Yasuhara held up his hands in surrender. "Got it, girl talk. Have fun in England, Mai."

"Are you in Naru's office?" Mai asked once she heard the door close.

"Yeah, ever sit in his chair? I can feel the power emanating off of it." She moved herself side to side in the swivel chair. "So what's up? I know you didn't call to check in on the office. I'd expect that more from Noll."

"Who's Evangeline?" Mai blurted before she could thing. She watched as Kiko's jaw dropped and brow furrowed.

"Eve's there!" Mai was so glad that she did plug in her earbuds. "What the hell? She really doesn't know when to quit."

"Who is she?" Mai pressed, leaving closer to the camera.

"Madoka didn't tell you? Or did she set this up? Wait that makes no sense, she can't stand her," Kiko rambled, causing Mai to shake her head in annoyance.

"Kiko…" Her tone held warning.

"Okay, okay, long story short, she's a childhood friend." When Mai gave her a look she continued. "A childhood friend who had an obsessive crush on him."

"Had? You should have seen her at dinner." Mai wanted to groan, but also had to keep her voice down. She couldn't risk anyone waking up and overhearing her conversation. "Did…did Naru ever-"

"No." Mai couldn't finish her question and was glad that she didn't have to. "Look, the last time I saw Eve she was four-eyed, metal mouthed, zit-face whiney brat that would cling to Noll every time she came over. He would ignore her but she never got the hint."

"She doesn't look that way anymore," Mai sighed looking down at her hands. "She's beautiful-"

"And you're not?" The question stopped her. "Mai, you may not have blonde hair or blue eyes or are as tall as Eve is, but that doesn't mean you aren't beautiful. Besides, I'm pretty sure beauty is the last thing on Noll's list of qualities for a partner. In your case, it's just an added perk to everything that you are."

Mai's mouth molded to a small smile, but her eyes still looked sad. "Thanks for saying that, Kiko, but-"

"No buts, missy," Kiko said with a hard look. "You need to push these insecurities aside and remember that you're the reason Noll stays in Tokyo. If he were truly interested in Eve he would have brought her to Tokyo instead of bringing you to England to meet his parents. Maybe he's hoping that you'll be able to help him get Eve to back off."

Mai's smile grew as her exhaustion set in. "Thanks, Kiko, you're right," she said with a yawn.

"Glad I could help, now go to bed!"

"Good night, Kiko."

The next morning, Mai realized that she never really got any answers about Evangeline. She was kicking herself for that and for oversleeping as she hurried to get ready. By the time she reached the kitchen, it was almost lunchtime, she also found only Luella and Lin there having a cup of tea.

"Good morning, sweetie," Luella said cheerfully, as she crossed the room to grab another mug. "Would you like some tea?"

"Yes, please," she said after a slight hesitation to remember which language to reply in. She took a seat at the island next to the tall Chinese man who had turned his attention to the newspaper in front of him.

"Sleep well?" his monotone voice asked as his eyes never left the paper. Mai shrugged.

"I suppose," she admitted then smiled at Luella who handed her the mug of tea. "My body isn't used to the time change so it took me a while to fall asleep."

"Don't worry, dear, you were also traveling yesterday and that will take a lot out of you," the woman said, picking up her own cup and taking a sip. "Martin took Oliver over to their client's place and I believe Evangeline and Madoka followed behind them."

Great, she'll be there too, Mai thought with an internal scowl. She kept her focus on the sweet liquid she sipped. Why didn't they wait for me? Oh right, Naru's always all about business.

"I'll take you over after you've had something to eat," Lin said, his eyes still on the paper.

"I'm not very hungry, so we can always head out now. And it's almost lunchtime-"

"Oh, pish posh!" Luella exclaimed as she cracked an egg over the pan on the stove. "Breakfast is the most important meal of the day and I'll be damned if I let my guest skip it!" She threw the shell into the sink. "Sunny side or over easy?"

Mere moments later, Mai had a huge plate of eggs, sausage, hash browns, and toast in front of her. Luella was a fabulous cook, don't get her wrong, it's just there was so much food and Mai wasn't sure she'd be able to finish it. Luckily, it appeared that Lin understood this and every time Luella left the room, he made sure to help Mai out with his fork.

Someone wants to get to the case, Mai noted as she wolfed down her food. She regretted eating so much so fast when they made it to the case site. I don't have a good feeling, she thought as Lin pulled up the driveway.

"Due to the disappearances, I suggest that no one goes anywhere alone, while on the property," Martin explained just as Lin and Mai walked into the makeshift Base of the property. It wasn't too much different from the Bases she had been in in Japan. Although, it did look as though the equipment was newer.

Imagine that, Mai thought with amusement in her eyes, Naru has to use the older models in Japan. Suddenly I don't feel bad about breaking that one camera.

"Disappearances?" she asked, bringing the attention of the room to herself.

"Didn't Noll tell you?" Evangeline asked with an almost concerned look in her eyes. "Three members of the staff have gone missing over the last few weeks. Before they did they each swore that something was following them."

"No, he didn't tell me," Mai shot a look over at Naru whose face remained impassive. Actually, he shot a look to his own father.

"I was unaware of the disappearances until this morning," Naru admitted.

Judging by that look, he's not lying, Mai noted with a sigh as she walked up to the monitors. According to the camera angles, they were going to be investigating not only the main building but the barn and lake in the backyard. This is a lot of ground to cover.

"Martin, why don't I show Mai around?" Evangeline offered with a sickeningly sweet smile. "I can fill her in on the details that she might have missed."

"That's a great-"

"I'll do that," Naru interrupted with crossed arms. "It is partially my fault that she is uninformed about the case."

Naru admitting blame, huh? Mai thought with amusement. Kiko was right, I really have nothing to worry about.

"Oh, Noll," the blonde laughed. The sound sent a shiver down the brunette's spine. "I was only teasing, you never could tell the difference even when we were kids. I don't mind showing her around, it'll give us a chance to get to know each other."

"She's right, Naru," Mai agreed, plastering a smile on her face. "I'd love to get to know Evangeline a little more."

"Excellent, meet back here within the hour," Martin decided as he turned his attention back to the file in his hand. "Remember to stick together."

Evangeline showed Mai around the building, told her where certain activity had been reported and even took her out to see the lake and barn so that she knew what they were dealing with. At least she can pretend to be civil with me even when no one's around, Mai thought with some relief.

The relief faded as the wind sent a chill down her spine. "Here, there's one more place," Evangeline said leading the girl to a shed. As Mai walked into the small building she realized one thing very quickly, there were no cameras or microphones nearby. She was completely alone with this Englishwoman.

"Evangeline, I don't think this is really an area of import-"

"Oh shut up." And just like that, the woman's sweet demeanor was gone as she flipped the light switch.

"E-excuse me?" Mai internally cursed herself for stuttering.

"Did I stutter?" An evil gleam showed through her blue eyes as she smirked. "No, but you did." Mai held her breath as the woman stepped closer. "We need to have a little chat."

And Mai once again regretted having that big breakfast.

I do apologize for any grammatical errors I wanted to get this up tonight and I'll edit it later! Don't you hate Evangeline? I wonder just what she's going to say to Mai?

I'm sorry if this seems rushed or too Mai centric, but I had to work very hard to keep this chapter so condensed! Otherwise I go too deep in details and I wanted to include the conversation in this chapter but it would have been too long if I did. Let me know what you think!