Chapter Six

As it turned out, Angelique's house was a small place on a fairly nice street. But it was empty, as the group soon discovered as they climbed onto the porch and desperately rang the doorbell and knocked.

"No one's home," Yami Bakura grunted after peering into every window.

"What are we going to do?!" Serenity cried.

"Just stay calm," Duke soothed. "I'm sure one of the neighbors can help us."

One such neighbor was looking over the wooden fence right then. "You're looking for the Germaine girl?" she asked.

Duke perked up. "That's Angelique's last name?"

"Sure," the chatty old woman nodded. "Haven't seen her today. If she's not with that voodoo priest, she's at her family's restaurant."

Everyone exchanged amazed looks.

"It wouldn't happen to be called Angelique's, would it?" Atem asked.

"Sure would," the woman said.

"Thanks," Duke said in relief.

"So it's a family restaurant, yet Angelique's uncle conveniently forgot to mention it?" David mused.

"That really is suspicious, isn't it," Duke frowned. He took out his phone. "I'll find out if anyone is closer to it than we are right now."

It only took a moment to text everyone in the group. Soon an answering text came back from Johnson.

We all split up and have been going up and down the streets around the knick-knack shop.

I can see Angelique's just up the block from where I am. I'll try it now.

Duke wanted to relax, but his cynical side wouldn't permit it. He quickly typed back.

Ask about Kaiba and Crump, whether you see the girl or not. Kaiba supposedly left the place,

but I'm not sure I'd put anything past these people. Maybe they're lying through their teeth.

"What's going on?" Serenity asked, leaning over to look.

"Johnson's going to check it out," Duke said.

"I hope he has some luck," David said.

I know all about lying and liars. I'm sure I can find my way around.

Duke sighed, staring at the text. "You'd better," he muttered. "Who knows what depends on it."

xxxx

With the news that the mystery of the missing people might be solved by going to the diner Angelique's, all the groups began converging on that location. Mai and Téa, who had been searching farther away, were taking longer to arrive.

"This has to work!" Téa exclaimed, wringing her hands as Mai weaved around the New Orleans streets. "They have to be okay. . . ."

"We might not find any answers, you know," Mai said. "They insisted Kaiba had left when Mokuba called there."

"But maybe if a whole bunch of us show up, they'll change their tune and tell the truth," Téa hoped.

"If they weren't telling the truth in the first place," Mai retorted. "Look, hon, Kaiba could have left and something happened to him on his way back. Same with that Evangeline girl."

"I can hardly believe she doesn't remember anything about meeting Kaiba," Téa said in horror. "What could that creep have done to her?!"

"Any number of things, most of which have nothing to do with voodoo," Mai deadpanned.

"Well, no one's talked to Angelique yet," Téa said. "Maybe she'll know something. She was supposed to have met Crump, after all."

"We don't even know if that happened," Mai sighed. She turned a corner. "Are you really this worried about Crump?"

Téa flushed. ". . . He's not our enemy anymore," she said. "Okay, maybe he's still not one of my favorite people, but I don't want anything to happen to him."

"And Kaiba?" Mai spoke more quietly now.

"He's our friend," Téa said softly. "My friend. . . . And Mokuba's brother. . . . I can't stand to think of what Mokuba would do without him. . . ."

She bit her lip and tugged on her bracelet. Mokuba had told her once that Seto had drawn up a new will in which the Ishtars had been named as Mokuba's guardians were anything to happen to him. Mokuba, of course, would inherit the house and KaibaCorp.

"How did it make you feel?" Téa had gently asked.

"Weird," Mokuba had replied. "Wills are for old people. Seto shouldn't need to have one. . . ." He had looked away at the game shop door. "But . . . I'm glad that he's always thinking about me."

Téa couldn't help remembering what Mokuba had said when Yugi and Joey had been about to go into the first virtual reality game to rescue Seto. Mokuba had insisted on going along, not just because he was the most familiar with the virtual world, but because he felt life would be meaningless without Seto and if they failed, he would rather be trapped in the game with Seto than to try to live in the outside world without him. It had haunted Téa. The brothers were truly inseparable; she couldn't stand to think of Seto dying.

She was getting morbid, though, wasn't she? She frowned. There was no real reason to think Seto might be dead. Why would he be?

. . . Unless whatever Evangeline had told him had been worth killing him over. It had been worth erasing her memories over.

"Téa?" Mai broke into her thoughts.

Téa started. "Oh. I'm sorry, Mai. I was just thinking about Kaiba and Mokuba. . . ."

"They're really close, I know," Mai said. "But if anything did happen to Kaiba, I don't think Mokuba would be the only one devastated about it. . . ." She gave Téa a knowing look.

Téa went completely red. "I don't even know Kaiba that well, really," she exclaimed. "And he always frustrated me so much. Sometimes I thought I hated him!"

"But you don't now," Mai pointed out.

". . . No," Téa agreed. "I don't now. . . ."

She slumped back against the seat, staring out at the late afternoon light.

Where are you, Kaiba? Please be alright. . . .

xxxx

Johnson was the first to arrive at the diner, as he had been sure he would be. Adjusting his tie and his glasses, he headed inside with purpose.

The agonized girl behind the counter was definitely Angelique. She was leaning on it and wringing her hands. When she caught sight of Johnson, her dark skin turned several shades of pale.

Immediately Johnson dropped all pretense of smoothness and ran over to her. "Where's Crump?!" he demanded, grabbing her wrist. "I can tell you know. And Seto Kaiba is missing as well. Did he really leave the diner as we were told he did?"

She cried out, pulling free of his grasp. "I . . . I don't know what you're talking about!" she insisted.

"Of course you do," Johnson snapped. "I want my friend back. And my ex-boss." His eyes narrowed. "If you know of anything about their whereabouts and don't tell me, you'll be an accessory to murder if they die."

Angelique choked, turning away and covering her mouth with a hand. For what seemed like an eternity she debated with herself. Then, at last, she started down the hallway. "Come with me."

Johnson chased after her. "I should also tell you that everyone knows I'm here, and they're all going to start trickling in shortly," he said. "So if anything happens to me, they'll know it within a few minutes."

Angelique stopped, gesturing for him to do the same. "If we can get past her, we can save them," she told him.

Johnson stared. Up ahead was a woman with wildly curly hair and a maniacal smile. She wasn't watching them at all, but instead was periodically looking through a small window in a door and cackling madly to herself.

"What on Earth," Johnson gasped.

"They're locked in the freezer," Angelique explained. "She's watching them . . . and me. I tried to get away for help, but I was caught."

"But if she's back here, why couldn't you leave the counter up front?" Johnson frowned.

"She claims she'll know," Angelique replied. "Dr. Raven has a crystal that lets him see people. She said she has a smaller version of it."

"Well, maybe it's a miniature camera or something," Johnson said uncomfortably. He looked to the heavy door in growing distress. "You say they're in the freezer?! How long have they been in there?!"

"Too long," Angelique whispered in anguish. "I don't know if they're still alive. From the way she looks, they must be suffering. . . ."

Johnson swallowed hard. He wasn't into physical fights and never had been. He didn't think he would have much trouble with this woman, but on the other hand, what if she really did have some kind of hidden skills?

He steeled himself. He had to do this. In a situation like this, every second counted. The others would be coming soon, but maybe even that would be too late.

If it wasn't too late already. . . .

He started forward in determination. "Excuse me," he called when he was right up behind the strange woman.

She spun around, immediately flinging a strange powder into his face.

He gasped, falling back. "What . . . ?! What is this?!"

The woman just laughed.

Angelique ran to the freezer door and quickly unlocked it, hauling it open. "Are you alright?!" she cried. "Please, answer me!"

Crump looked up with bleary eyes. "You got to us," he said with a weak smile. "Hey, Kaiba, you see this?" He shook the boy in his arms. "We're saved. . . ."

Seto gave an unintelligible groan.

Johnson came from around the door, a light coming into his eyes at the sight of them still alive. "Thank God! Can you get up?"

"Yeah, I think so. If not, you can just drag us out." Crump reached for Johnson's hand and used it to support himself while getting to his feet. Still only semi-conscious, Seto stumbled with him, but finally made a weak grab at his green suitcoat.

"Finally! Some signs of life!" Crump said. He limped to the doorway, still supporting Seto, and stepped out into the hallway. "I never thought I'd be so grateful to be warm. . . ." He shivered. "Hey, was it just another hallucination or was there some crazy broad looking in at us?"

"She was there," Johnson said. "Only now she's completely gone. . . ." He stared down the hall in disbelief.

"Nevermind her," Angelique said. She shut the freezer door with a firm clang. "I'll get you some blankets and warm soup. And I'd better call 911. Just stand under this heat vent until I bring what you need."

Seto looked to her, blinking repeatedly as he tried to bring her into focus. "Just . . . call my plane," he mumbled. "I always travel with doctors and a medical wing. You never know . . . when you'll need them."

"What's the number for your plane?" Angelique asked.

Seto recited it. His voice was still slurred, albeit slightly stronger now that they were free.

Angelique immediately wrote it down. "I'll call right now," she promised.

"And I'll call the others," Johnson said. He took out his phone. "By the way, do you have any idea what was in that powder that woman flung at me?"

Angelique looked to him with a start, her eyes worried. "No, I don't. Do you feel strange?"

"I don't think so," Johnson said. "Maybe it was nothing more than a distraction so she could run away."

Crump gave him a worried look too. "Are you sure, Buddy? Creepy old ladies who laugh at guys slowly freezing to death can't be up to anything good when they throw weird powder at the rescue party."

"I'm sure," Johnson insisted as he started to dial Gansley's number.

". . . Wait!" Angelique suddenly exclaimed.

Johnson froze mid-dial. "What?"

"Dr. Raven told me I was supposed to poison anyone who came to rescue these poor people," Angelique said. "I couldn't do it. But what if that woman did it?!"

Johnson paled. "The powder could be poison?!"

"Oh no," Crump cried. "That's too messed-up. It can't be!"

"I hope it's not," Angelique said softly. "But I wouldn't put it past her."

Johnson swallowed hard and looked down at the phone. Now his hands shook as he finished dialing the number.

Gansley answered after only one ring. "What's happening, Johnson?!"

Johnson drew a shaking breath. "Crump and Mr. Kaiba have been found," he reported.

"Where?!" Gansley demanded.

"In the freezer." Johnson gripped the phone a bit tighter.

"What?!" Gansley boomed in horror and outrage. "How bad off are they?!"

"We got to them before it became as bad as it could have," Johnson said. "They were just starting to slip into hallucinations. That girl is calling Mr. Kaiba's doctors. By the time you get here, we'll have a good start on getting them warmed up."

"Good," Gansley barked. "We'll be there shortly."

Crump stared at Johnson as he hung up. "Hey, hey, wait a minute," he gasped. "You didn't mention anything about the poison!"

"No," Johnson agreed, "and I'm not going to. Not unless I know it really is poison. When the doctors come, I'll have them examine me. But I don't want to make everyone worry if there's no reason to. They've already been so worried about you. I have too, of course."

Crump frowned. He was still feeling a little loopy from the onset of the hallucinations, but he could think well enough to process what Johnson was likely thinking and not saying. "Is this about how you feel you should be suffering instead of the rest of us?" he said quietly.

Johnson started. "Maybe somewhat," he admitted. "I just don't want to cause any more pain than this madman has already caused." He tried to smile. "I'll be alright, Crump. The important thing is to get you and Mr. Kaiba warm again. Please, don't say anything to the others unless I really am sick."

". . . Okay," Crump said slowly, "but I don't like it. If you start acting strange at all, even if the docs say you haven't been poisoned, I'm gonna tell them."

Seto didn't say anything, but that wasn't particularly unusual for him. He watched the two with glazed eyes and stepped closer to the heat. It was impossible to tell if he was really aware enough to understand the conversation.

xxxx

The rest of the Big Five was closest to the diner and they arrived ahead of everyone else in the group, just after the doctors.

"Crump!" Lector spotted their friend burrowed in a blanket near an old radiator and rushed over. "Are you alright?!"

Crump looked up at him, and Lector was relieved to see that his eyes were clear. "Yeah," he said. "But oh boy, if that wasn't a doozy." He set the mug he had been holding on the table. "I've gotta say, being stuck in the cold with no way out really isn't as fun as it seemed in Noa's world."

Lector sighed and sat down next to him. "Johnson said you were starting to hallucinate."

"Yep. You remember that scene in Dumbo with all the pink elephants on parade?" Crump rushed on when Lector gave him a blank stare. "Well, this was like that, but with penguins. And they weren't pink."

". . . I see," Lector said, though he really didn't.

"How did it happen?" Nesbitt demanded, his eyes burning.

"Well, after you've been in the cold for too long, you . . ."

"Not the pink penguins!" Nesbitt interrupted. "How did you get locked in the freezer?!"

"Good question," Crump said. "I don't really know. First Kaiba was acting funny and he fell over on the floor. When I tried to find out what was wrong, some nutty dame blew powder in my face. That was it for me. I woke up in the freezer."

"They'll pay," Nesbitt snarled, clenching a shaking fist.

"Of course they will," Gansley said. He looked around. "Where's Johnson?"

"Oh. . . ." Crump grabbed the mug again. "He's . . . uh . . . with the doc, I think. P-Probably asking about me, making sure I'm not still hallucinating when I say I'm okay, that kinda thing."

"Not a bad idea," Gansley said with a slight smirk as he sat at the table. Sobering, he added, "Although you do seem your normal self, Crump. I know I speak for all of us when I say that we are very relieved."

Nesbitt nodded. "Yeah." He stood behind Crump and gruffly patted his shoulders.

"Very relieved," Lector quietly echoed.

xxxx

Mokuba was filled with mixed emotions when he took Lector's phone call moments later. "They found Seto!" he exclaimed to Marik.

"Thank goodness," Marik said in relief. "Where was he?"

Lector sighed, overhearing the question and knowing it was on Mokuba's mind as well. "I regret to have to tell you this, Mokuba, but he and Crump were locked in the freezer."

Mokuba went sheet-white. "In the freezer?!"

Marik was stunned too. "How bad off are they?!" he demanded into the phone while gripping Mokuba's shoulder.

"They'll live," Lector said. "Mr. Kaiba's doctors are here. Johnson and the young lady here at the diner did their best to keep them warm. I just got here."

"We'll be there right away," Mokuba vowed. "Thanks, Lector." He hung up, his hands shaking. "I can't believe all of this is happening to Seto and Crump. If I'd just realized the person at the diner was lying to me when she said Seto had left . . . !"

"There's no logical reason why you would have known, Mokuba," Marik insisted. "At that time, there was no reason to believe that anyone at the diner was lying."

"Yeah, but . . ." Mokuba looked away. "If we hadn't found them in time, I'd always blame myself. . . ."

Marik was sure he would have. "Luckily, we don't have to think about that," he said kindly.

"Yeah . . ." Mokuba said softly.

xxxx

Seto was definitely rousing up more after being wrapped in an electric blanket and drinking a mug of hot soup. As his mind cleared, the more he realized how close he had come to unconsciousness. Death likely would have followed shortly after.

He frowned, glancing over at Crump as the man talked and laughed with his friends. How strange it was, to realize that a former enemy had done all he could to keep Seto conscious. Of course, in this case it had been helping himself too, but although Crump hadn't admitted it, Seto actually had the feeling that Crump had been concerned about him.

They had all collectively tried to reach out to him while he had been trapped in Gozaburo's nightmare world last month. He had felt their concern then. And Mokuba and others had told him that they had all tried to protect him from Gozaburo. It wasn't that he hadn't believed his brother's words; it was just that it had sounded so outlandish and impossible coming from people who had hated him for so long.

The door opened and Mokuba came flying in, followed closely by the Ishtars and Joey and Tristan. "Seto!" Mokuba cried. He ran to his brother and into his arms.

Seto held him close. "It's alright," he said quietly. "Everything's going to be alright now."

"It'd better be," Mokuba said. "You'd better be."

Gansley now caught sight of Johnson sitting at the counter and drinking a mug of either coffee or hot chocolate. He looked badly shaken. Frowning, Gansley went over to him. "Johnson, are you alright?"

"Hmm? Oh." Johnson looked up at him. "Y-Yes, I am. . . . It . . . er . . . was a terrible experience, seeing them in the freezer. . . ."

Gansley nodded in understanding. "I wish we'd known sooner, but I'm glad we didn't know any later."

Johnson nodded too. "It could have been fatal for them both if they'd slipped into unconsciousness." He shuddered. "First the incident with the cement pot and now this. . . . Who . . ." His voice caught in his throat. "Who are we going to almost lose next?"

Gansley shook his head. He had no answers.

Joey was furious. "Alright, who's goin' down for this?!" he cried. "Puttin' people in the freezer! That's low. That's beyond low! And I'm not gonna stand for it!"

"Neither am I, Wheeler, but there's not much I can do about it right now," Seto grunted. It was probably more because of the principle of the thing in general, but still, it was a strange experience, to hear Joey so outraged about something that had happened to him.

"The people to blame are Dr. Raven and that mad woman working for him," Atem said.

"Then I say let's surprise them at the shop!" Joey declared. "Don't give them a chance to do anything more to anyone!"

"Right now we should focus on taking care of Kaiba and Crump," Atem said. "If they can be moved, I think we should get them back to the hotel."

The doctor nodded. "It should be alright. Getting them to warm beds is a good idea. Just make sure they stay warm on the car ride."

"Of course," Atem said.

Joey was still fuming. Tristan frowned as he looked to him. He could tell by the look in Joey's eyes that he wasn't going to give up his idea of trying to corner the bad guys. And Tristan was all for it, really; this really had been an outrageous stunt. But, knowing how Joey tended to impulsively run into things he shouldn't, he was worried.

Nesbitt was fuming likewise. "The boy is right," he said to the others as they helped Crump up. "We have to go after those people before they try anything else."

"Not to mention we need to find out if there's anything more to this than what we've been told," Lector said.

Overhearing, Seto suddenly remembered his phone. "There is," he said. "Evangeline told me things that are very concerning. I tried to record the conversation . . . although I don't know if my phone survived being frozen." He fumbled in his pocket for it.

Lector went over to him. "What did she say, Mr. Kaiba?"

Seto took out his phone and powered it up. He had turned it off while it still had enough battery to perform a few tasks, and now he loaded the recording app and hit the Playback button.

Everyone was stunned into silence by the conversation between Seto and Evangeline. Lector was downright shaken. "My father lied," he whispered. "He lied to me and I believed him!"

Gansley gripped Lector's shoulder. "That doesn't mean he really has been stealing the crates," he said. "He may have only thought it would make him look bad to tell everything."

"He lied," Lector snarled. "He got me out here on a lie!" He slammed his hand on the table. "Crump and Mr. Kaiba almost died because of his lies and Evangeline had who knows what done to her! If he would have told me the truth in the first place, she wouldn't have felt the need to go looking for Mr. Kaiba!"

"Hey, Lector." Crump reached and laid his hand on Lector's. "We're okay. We're gonna be okay. And we'll find out what's going on here. We'll bring down whoever needs to be brought down."

Lector flinched. "Your hand is still cold," he whispered. Louder he boomed, "After we get you safely to the hotel, my father is going to answer for this!"

There was no calming him. Johnson swallowed the rest of what was hot chocolate and shakily got up from the counter stool. Lector was a very trusting person. Betraying his trust could set him on fire as much or moreso than Nesbitt. There was no way Johnson was going to reveal any of what had been happening with him while Lector had this to deal with. He still didn't know the truth anyway. The doctor hadn't thought he was poisoned, but they wouldn't really know until he was able to analyze some of the powder grains back at the medical center on the plane. Until then, Johnson just had to sit tight and wait. And call if he started feeling anything strange in the least.

Téa and Mai burst through the door just as everyone was starting to prepare to leave. "Kaiba!" Téa called. She hurried over. "Are you really okay?"

"I'm fine," Seto said in some surprise. He took up his phone, replacing it in his pocket.

"You were almost frozen to death," Téa cried, tears pricking her eyes. "How could you be fine?"

"With some rest, I will be," Seto insisted.

Guilt flashed through Crump's eyes. Téa already knew what it was like; it was no wonder that she was particularly upset. As he got up, he stepped close enough to her to say, "Hey, Téa . . . I'm sorry about what I tried to do to you. You didn't deserve that."

Téa looked to him in utter shock. "No, I didn't," she said. "But . . . thank you, for telling me that. Are you alright?"

"Oh sure," Crump said. "You know me; I just keep on keeping on."

"Do you still love the cold after this?" Téa wondered.

"Nothing could make me stop loving it," Crump said. "But I'm sure gonna be careful when I'm out in it. Never gonna forget my coat, that's for sure."

"Yeah, you'd better not," Téa half-quipped.

She walked with everyone as they headed out of the diner. "What's going to happen to that Angelique girl?" she wondered.

"She's been talking to the police," Seto said. "They decided to take her into protective custody for the time being. She may know more about what's been happening than she was willing to say. After we've had more of a chance to warm up, I'll call the station and find out if she said anything more."

"And I will call on my father," Lector darkly added. "He's got a lot of explaining to do."

"Why?" Téa asked. "What happened?"

"I'll play it for you in the car," Seto said.

Téa looked around at everyone as they stepped into the winter evening. Emotions were running high, and for good reason. But she had the bad feeling that there would still be much more to be angry about later.