Part 23: Crushed

A/N: Hello, remember me? I can't believe it has been so long since my last update! Time has flown by, way too quickly. I apologize for the delay! Life totally got in the way of my writing. I will try to do better!

Thank you for reviewing:

Little25Victor

AmorPorSiempre

Sunshinelily455

Anonymous (Naraku is devious and capable of doing the worst things indeed, but could he really take things this far?)

Artemis Farron

Guest (I'm glad you're liking the story. Things will definitely get bloody and there will be deaths before everything comes to an end.)

Disclaimer: No matter how much I wish for it, I unfortunately own nothing except my plot, and a few OC's here and there.

While Inuyasha got back on the field, Sesshoumaru and I had spent another day franticly waiting for information. We had stopped by the hospital in the afternoon to check on Miroku. Considering that he was still in the intensive care unit we had not been allowed to see him. Talking with his surgeon had reassured us that he would make a recovery, so we had gone back to the search. I had expected Sango to blame me for what had happened to her boyfriend, but she had simply greeted me, with no malice in her eyes. Part of the weight had been lifted off my guilty conscious. However I would only be truly absolved when Miroku got home form the hospital, and mom was back home with me, where she belonged.

I almost dropped the cup of coffee I had been nursing when I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket. My heart almost jumped out of my ribcage when I saw who was calling me.

"Naraku. What do you want?" It had taken all the self-restraint I had not to drive over to his house when we had gotten back from the hospital. I wanted to unleash my tornadoes on him in order for him to tell me what he had done to mom.

"I am calling with appalling news my dear." He sniffled, and I wished I could reach through the phone to punch him in the face. He wasn't fooling anyone with the fake crying. "I had not told you as I had not wanted to worry you, but you mother went missing some time ago. The clinic she had been placed in for her own safety told me she sneaked out during the middle of the night…"

"Go on."

"Sadly, the poor creature was not well enough to live on her own out in the real world." Naraku pretended to blow his nose. "They found her at the bottom of a ditch, her neck broken. She had been dead a number of hours. As I wished to spare you pain, I had her body cremated this afternoon."

I heard his words, but I could not grasp what he was trying to say.

"You're lying, mom is not dead…"

"On the contrary my dear daughter." All traces of his fake grief were gone form his voice, replaced by utter glee. "She's dead and gone now. You will never see her again."

A deafening silence settled between us. I was too shocked to speak, and Naraku seemed to be too busy relishing my upset to break the silence.

"After all you've done, do you honestly think I would fall for your lies?" I spat in anger as soon as I got my voice. How could Naraku think I would ever believe him? A small part of me was worried he might be telling the truth, but I pushed it down. I refused to believe mom was dead. Beside if she were, I would have felt it somehow. When someone so close to you was gone, you were supposed to feel it; and I had not felt her loss. Not yet at least.

"Ku ku ku!" He chuckled. "Not a lie, when they found her body by the side of the road, they tried to help. They brought her to Kiseki Hospital, but she was beyond saving. You can call them to find out."

His confidence shook me. Why would he name a hospital where I could so easily check what he said? Either way, I refused to let him see that I was buying into his story.

"Stop with your lies. We will find mom, and Sesshoumaru will kill you during the challenge." I hissed angrily in return.

I was startled when I felt a warm hand on my shoulder. Sesshoumaru looked at me with worried eyes and a deep frown between his brows. I mustered a weak smile; I did not want him to get upset. I was barely hanging on as it was.

"You foolish girl." Naraku barked in my ear. He had not enjoyed me opposing him one bit. "You are bound to suffer another great loss. In less than two weeks, I will kill your beloved dog, and throw his mangled corpse at your feet. I only regret that I had your mother cremated. I should have had her crushed body shipped to you in more pieces."

I hung up. I had heard enough. His casual mention of mother's mutilation and potential death, coupled with the threat to Sesshoumaru were more than I could bear at the moment. I barely repressed the urge to throw my phone away. I took a calming breath. The first course of action to take was to find mom and the missing mercenary.

"Did you get any useful information from Naraku about your mother's whereabouts?"

As much as I hated to admit it to myself and to Sesshoumaru, as of now, there was only one place I could go look for mom.

"We have to go to Kiseki hospital."

"Naraku is a liar. I bet your mom isn't here." Inuyasha grumbled under his breath.

Just as his brother and I were leaving the house to go in search of mom, the hanyou had come back home from a quick visit to Miroku. Even though his best friend's condition was improving, Inuyasha was still worried about the young lawyer, and that made for a pissed off half demon. Miroku had undergone a second eye surgery, but the doctors were still not sure they were going to be able to save his organ. I felt guilty that he had gotten hurt while trying to recover mom. Thankfully despite his injuries, he still kept his good humor and lecherous ways. During a visit of Sesshoumaru and I, Miroku had used the opportunity to feel up Sango. She had been so happy to see him regaining his usual habits that for once she had let him get away with it without beating him. It felt good to see him back to his usual self.

"She is his bargaining chip. If he kills her, he has no more sway over you." Inuyasha's comment brought me out of my musing.

"I just hope you're right." Deep down, even if I hated admit it, I knew he was likely right.

I walked forward, and headed for the reception desk. I pasted as wide a smile as I could. In order to extract information from the hospital employee I knew I would have to display some charm. That would be easier said than done. I probably looked awful. I had barely slept and ate in the last days. This was why I had taken extra care with my clothes and carefully applied my make-up. Wasting time getting dolled up was the last thing I wanted to do, but I knew it was necessary. If I came up looking like a ghost asking about confidential information on a patient, the hospital employee was more likely to call the cops on me.

"Can I help you?" The tired looking young man at the desk asked me as I walked up to him. In order not to look too suspicious, I had asked Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha to stay behind. My lover had not liked it one bit, but he was a reasonable man, and knew this was for the best. Still, considering Naraku's threats, the Tashio brothers were only a few steps away, keeping me straight in their line of sight. Good thing it was the middle of the night. There was no one to overhear our conversation, nor interrupt us.

"I sure hope so. I am looking for information… I was told an injured female youkai was brought in a few hours ago to Kiseki Hospital…I would like to inquire about her."

"Name of the patient? Only next of kin can come and see patients." He droned, barely bothering to look up from the screen of his computer.

"Her name is Ame Onigumo, but she probably wasn't brought in under this name…" I knew how Naraku's mind worked, no way was he going to have left on her any shred of information that would have made easy to identify her.

"How did you know she was brought here then?"

I was getting pissed off. This kid was wasting my time, and not giving me the answers I wanted. I took a calming breath. Sure I was terrified, pissed off and anxious, but he was not the root of it. I had to keep my temper in check if I wanted to find out more about mom.

"I'm talking about my mother. The person responsible for her injuries told me she would be here, so I came to check." I hoped this would be enough info. Youkai were usually reluctant to seek medical help in non demon-only facilities, so I was sure that if mom had really been brought in here, she would have been the only female youkai, and therefore easy to identify.

"That's a bummer. I wish I could help, but I can't tell you anything." He shook his head. "It's hospital policy not to divulge info on patients to non registered next of kin."

"Look, I'm trying to do this the nice way. All I want is some information, that's all." I leaned forward, looking the young human straight in the eyes. "My mother is all I have. I just want to know if she was the person that was brought in. I…"

I did not get to finish my sentence. I felt a stir of wind at my back, and a well-known arm shot past me to slam on the reception desk. I was shocked to see a wad of bills clutched in the hand of Sesshoumaru. The human man's eyes grew wide. He had probably never seen such a large amount of cash in real life.

"Give us the information she seeks, and the money is yours." To emphasize his point, my lover slid the wad of bills towards the hospital employee. "You can either take the money, or my brother here will beat you and break every bone in your body. Either way, we are not leaving until we get the information we seek."

This clearly was a game the Tashio brothers had played together several times before. A small nod from Sesshoumaru had Inuyasha step forward to play his part.

"Look kid, I've had a horrible week, and don't feel like beating up a young human, but if you don't cooperate, I will. So do as the icicle says, and start talking." To emphasize his point, the hanyoi loudly cracked his knuckles, making the young human gulp. I had no inu youkai super enhanced sense of smell, but even I could smell terror rolling of off him.

"Well yeah, we had a female youkai brought in by emergency services a couple hours ago. I was there…"

"What did she look like?" I asked. My heart was suddenly picking up speed.

"Frankly, you youkai all look the same to me…" A warning growl from both Tashio brothers had him clear his throat before continuing. "She was older than you, but still looked young. She had dark hair, red eyes and she seemed to have been…"

Clearly, he was struggling to say what he had seen. It must have been bad. "She was tortured, and had a hand cut off." I fought nausea as the image of mother's severed limb flashed through my mind.

"What else can you tell us?" I pushed down my anguish, now was not the time to let my emotions get the best of me.

"She… the body was torn to shreds by multiple blades in some sort of weird zig-zag pattern. She suffered from major blood loss and shock."

"It's consistent with Jakotsu's weapon." Inuyasha added, gently fingering the bandage still wrapped around his sword arm. A wound he had acquired during his fight with the mercenary.

"I'm sorry but the lady… she was in such bad shape that she did not even make it to surgery. She died in the emergency room…"

My heartbeat accelerated, but I refused to give into panic just yet. "Where is your morgue? I need to see her body for myself." I would not believe it until I saw the body with my own two eyes. Mom could not be dead!

The human seemed to hesitate, but all it took was Sesshoumaru pushing the money closer towards him. The young man lowered his gaze back to his computer, and typed a few words.

"Shit, I'm sorry, but it seems like the body is not here anymore."

"What do you mean not here?" I growled angrily.

He licked his dried lips, nervousness pouring from him. "It says in the system that the body was claimed by the next of kin, in this case the husband of the deceased. For some reason the coroner decided to forgo the autopsy, and in accordance with the husband's wishes the body was taken to be cremated."

I felt the bitter taste of failure in my mouth, and the torment of grief in my heart. This could not be happening. All signs were pointing towards the fact that Naraku had been telling the truth, and had indeed had mother murdered. He then had her body cremated to hide the evidence. That was it, there was nothing more to do.

"If it can be of any consolation, her personal things are still here. Her husband didn't want to take them."

I was too lost in my thoughts to answer, but Sesshoumaru must have said something because the young human quickly pocketed the money and ran away. A few instants later, he came back with a cardboard box, which he handed to me. A shiver ran down my spine as I recalled the horrific sight that had greeted me the last time I had lifted the lid of a similar box. Taking a deep breath, and cloaking myself in courage, I took the box and lifted the lid.

A soft cry left my mouth as I saw a dreaded pink fabric; I now had the whole garment. It was only by feel that I knew this had once been a gorgeous pink satin number. The fabric was sodden with browned blood. So much blood. Too much blood. The way the dress was shredded told the whole story. The person who had worn the gown had been cut open repeatedly causing major blood loss. I was no inu youkai, but even my senses could discern mother's scent and youki all over the fabric. I put down the dress, and this time I was not able to hold in my cry of grief as I spied the remaining contents of the box. I picked up a small necklace, and twirled it between my fingers. A small gold ring I knew all too well was dangling from the chain.

My stomach plummeted to the ground. My vision swam and next thing I knew I had to hold on to the desk not to fall to my knees. I composed myself only long enough to explain to my worried lover the reason for my anguish.

"Mother never removes this. Ever. My father, my biological father gave this necklace to her when they first got married. After he died she placed his wedding band on it in a way to always have him nearby. I remember, one day when I must have been seven or eight years old, Naraku beat mom within an inch of her life because she refused to take off the memento from dad. When he tried to cut if off from her, and for the first time she fought him back. Sure this earned her an extended trip to his dungeon, but Naraku never asked her to remove it again."

I realized I was babbling, but it was the only way I could think to try to process the situation. If I paused right now, I would break down, and I could not allow for that to happen, not just yet.

Sesshoumaru took out his phone from his pocket, and placed a call. "Pay a visit to the coroner at Kiseki hospital. Find out what happened to the body of Ame Onigumo. Quickly." He then turned towards me. "We will find out if what the human said is true."

I barely acknowledged his words with a nod. Deep down I knew it was true. Mother was gone, and I had come for her too late. "Let's go home. I got the answer I needed." I placed the lid back on the box, and marched towards the exit of the hospital.

As soon as we got home, I went up to our bedroom. Sesshoumaru urged me to get some much needed rest, but I knew there was no way I would be able to get a wink of sleep. I lay in bed in complete darkness with my eyes wide opened and my mind swirling. Thinking about how much pain and anguish mother suffered in her last hours tore at my heart. After so many years of horrific abuse, she had been kidnapped, tortured, mutilated and murdered. Every time I closed my eyes I just saw her mutilated body in my head ranting at me for not being able to save her as we had promised.

"Kagura?"

I heard Sesshoumaru come into our room, and felt my body tense up. A ball of fiery rage formed in my stomach, preventing me from speaking an answer. My lover flicked on the lights, and joined me on the bed, sitting close to me.

"Don't." I hissed angrily as he reached a hand towards my cheek. I did not want his comfort. In fact right about now, I wanted nothing from him.

He stilled his hand, a frown on his brows.

"I heard back from my men. The coroner confirmed her death, and produced a death certificate. Naraku pad him off to have her body cremated before the proper authorities could be notified…" He clenched his hand then relaxed it. "I am sorry for your loss. Inuyasha and the rest of my men are still looking for Jakotsu. I promise we will find the human, and make him pay for what he did to your mother."

I sat up, shooting him an angry glare. "You do not get to make more any more fucking promises."

He seemed taken aback by the vehemence of my words and tone. In truth so was I, but right about now, I was so angry I could have clawed his eyes out. I needed an outlet for my pain, guilt and anger, and right about now Sesshoumaru made for a great punching ball.

"I don't care about that fucking human. My mother is dead… you swore to me you would keep her safe, and you lied." I yelled angrily. Before I could curb my impulse, I hit him in the chest. He did not even flinch at my punch, and this only made me madder. "With all your money and connections you could have protected her better. What's the point to being the Lord of the West if you can't use your resources to save and protect people you care about?"

The anger had morphed into full on rage, and the next thing I knew I had sprung to my feet, and headed towards the far wall of our room. Despite the cold, I had cracked the window opened in hopes that the cold air and howling wind would help me feel better. Now I sought help from my trusted element to help soothe my aching heart. A freezing cold breeze drifted in the room and enveloped me, but even that was not enough to calm my boiling rage.

Sesshoumaru stood up from the bed, and joined me by the window. His enduring silence only made me angrier.

"You said we would rescue her. You promised me we would save her… That you would keep her safe. But she's dead! No killing of that mercenary will undo her death... it's too late, she's already gone." My voice broke on that last statement. Just speaking the words made that terrible reality more real.

"Kagura." He reached a hand towards me once again, but I slapped it away.

"Don't touch me." I hissed, hatred dripping from my voice. I could see the pain in his eyes upon my rejection, but as much as a big part of me wanted to apologize for causing him such hurt, another, much larger part of me rejoiced in it. I wanted him to hurt, as I was hurting; even if being the cause of his pain tore me apart.

"Words cannot convey how sorry this Sesshoumaru is to have failed you and your mother. I made you promises that I was unable to keep."

"Sorry isn't going to bring my mother back. For months I begged you to take her out of the clinic, and you asked me to be patient. Once you finally decided to break her out, she was taken away while you were supposed to have her guarded. You told me not to worry, that you would bring her back to me…"

As I spoke, my anger grew, and I felt my winds swell around me, forming blades of wind out of thin air. I clamped my eyes shut. I could not stand to look at him.

"And now, she's gone, and I don't even have a body to bury!" My anger exploded, sending wind blades in all directions around me. This sudden burst surprised me, and I opened my eyes to look at the carnage I had accidentally created. Some blades ended up in the wall, creating deep craters, others shredded our bed, and some had headed straight for Sesshoumaru. He had not attempted to push them back, nor protect himself from them. I had felt the blades slice his skin, and smelt his blood. The ring he had given me heated up on my finger. Just like me, it hated that I was hurting Sesshoumaru. Suddenly my winds died down. As angry as I was, spilling his blood without him defending himself broke my aching heart. His calm resolve unnerved me further. Could he not lash out at me in return, or express some sort of upset? Instead he was just standing there, his mouth clamped shut, and his eyes unreadable.

"Sesshoumaru-sama."

I heard a female voice exclaim in shock. I looked towards the door, and was surprised to see Sango walk into her master's bedroom.

"Sesshoumaru-sama, please let her be. We will look after her, why don't you retire for now?"

My lover sent me one last glance before walking away from me, not speaking a word. His usually regal form was ruined by his slumped shoulders. Blood was streaming down his arm where my wind blade had sliced him open.

I felt numb and empty. All of a sudden I wanted to slip into bed, and stay there forever. I did not even care that my angry burst from earlier had destroyed the bedding.

"I will be right back."

The young bodyguard ran out of the room, and in just a few minutes came back clutching new bedding, and a steaming cup in her hands.

"I know how you feel." She bent over to strip down the destroyed bedclothes. "Naraku murdered my parents in front of my eyes, and I stood by unable to do anything. I was so angry that I wanted to destroy the whole world. The violence of it caused Kohaku, my younger brother to be affected mentally." Her voice wavered, and I could tell she was keeping in tears.

"Kohaku was so young and vulnerable at the time, that demons inside his head consumed him. This only made me hate Naraku more, and I swore then and there that I would see the hanyou dead." She paused as if silently remembering her vow to herself. "Thankfully Sesshoumaru-sama helped me get Kohaku proper care abroad, and he is now able to study, away from here and the horrible memories."

"I am sorry for your loss, and I promise that we will see Naraku dead for all the pain and suffering he has put all of us through. In the meantime hurting the people who care about you will not make you feel better. I can assure you it will only make you feel worse."

"There, all set." She turned towards me, and I saw she had quickly made up the bed with clean linens. "Why don't you get some rest? You will need it.

"I don't think I can sleep." I admitted. The moment I had closed my eyes earlier, I had been plagued with horrific visions of mother screaming at me and blaming me for her death. The fact that I had just attacked the man I loved and that he had not even defended himself, was also sitting badly in my stomach. More pain. More guilt.

"Here." She handed me the cup she had brought along earlier. "I had the cook prepare this for you. It is a sleeping draught."

I did as she asked, chugged down the piping hot liquid, and got into bed. I felt too numb and empty to protest being put to bed like a child. Thankfully sweet oblivion took me away and for now I did not have to think anymore.

Whatever drug Sango gave me, it worked. I woke up suddenly, and a quick look at the watch on my side table told me I had been in a dreamless sleep for hours. Despite that, I was still feeling worn out and raw. No amount of rest could erase my grief.

I unexpectedly heard sounds of a living full house around me, and soon realized that meant the kids and Kagome had moved back home. That explained why their bodyguard had been home. It saddened me that mother had to die for a sense of peace to settle over our household.

A small knock on the door was the only warning I received before the bedroom door was thrown opened.

"Hi, I just wanted to come in and see how you were doing."

Kagome slipped inside, carrying a tray. She frowned when she saw the damage I had caused with my wind blades the previous day. It shamed me that I had lost control like this, but it did not mean that my anger had subsided.

"I'm fine." I sat up, but did not bother trying to force a smile.

She walked up to me and placed the tray on my side table. I saw she had brought a bowl of soup and some water. If only she knew, food was the furthest thing on my mind.

"I am so sorry for your loss. I know how close you and your mother were… losing her in such a horrid way is truly heartbreaking. May she rest in peace."

I silently nodded my thanks. I was still in a fog, and was so hurt that I felt numb. I knew I should find a way to thank Kagome for her kindness, but currently it was beyond my abilities.

"I brought you some soup. I know you must not be hungry, but you have to eat. You've been asleep for over 24 hours! Youkai, or not, you need sustenance!"

I could not remember the last time I had eaten, nor drank anything, and deep down I knew I should force myself to get some food in. Forcing myself to eat would also get Kagome off my back. Knowing her, she would not leave me alone until I had taken in some of her soup.

Heaving a sigh, I sat up straighter in bed, and reached for the bowl. She beamed in happiness as she watched me slurp down a few spoonfuls. I only managed that much, and had to put down the bowl.

"Good enough." She took back her food tray.

Had I been in my normal state of mind I would have sneered at her not to treat me like one of her kids, but right now my usual fire had been doused.

"Rest some more, and let me know if you need anything."

I appreciated her lack of lecturing. Kagome was usually a bossy chatterbox who liked to tell people in details what they needed to do. It was only once she had left the room, that I realized I wanted to ask her about Sesshoumaru's whereabouts. Ever since he had left our room, he had not come back. I idly wondered where he had spent the night. I pushed thoughts of my lover aside. I could barely keep myself together at the moment, and worrying about him was not going to help.

I felt drained of energy. I did not care to get up, shower or eat some more. I just wanted to fade into nothingness and not have to think anymore. Thinking was too painful. Why did I not listen to mom? Why did I not do more to save her?

My dark thoughts were broken by another knock. Just as I was about to yell at whoever dared to disturb me, no one other than Rin poked her sweet face in. Her cheeks were red and her eye bright, clearly she had been crying.

"Hi." She walked up to the bed and crawled in to lie next to me. She took my cold hand and held on to it right. Tear streaks still stained her cheeks. This was when I realized I had been so angry that I had not been able to spill tears since I had heard about mother's death. How more fucked up could I be?

"I am so sorry about your mother Kagura-sama. This kind of loss can break you. When my parents died, I just wanted to be left alone and I felt completely numb." She let go of my hand long enough to wipe her wet cheeks. I wondered if she cried for my loss or her own. Maybe a mix of both.

"I had no family to take me in, so they put me in an orphanage. It was awful. The people there… the nice ones just kept trying to make me talk about my feelings and the death of my parents… as if it would help… the mean ones... " She took in a shuddering breath. "They knew the kids there were defenseless and alone, so they took advantage of it."

Despite the fog I was in, this caught my attention. "Did someone hurt you while you were there?" The thought that some monster could have taken advantage of her at her most vulnerable time enraged me.

"No, because I learned how to hide myself well. Other kids were not so lucky." She shuddered violently at the memory.

"I ran away from the orphanage at the first chance I got. I was scared of what the people there might do to me. I stayed on the streets for a while then I found Sesshoumaru-sama and he helped him."

The mere mention of her father figure was enough to bring a smile to her lips.

"Frankly just like me, he seemed so lonely, so I had to help when I saw he was hurt and bleeding in some alley. In return, he took me in, kept me safe, and made sure the orphanage was shut down and all the kids freed. Once he brought me here, I got a whole new family. It never took away the pain of losing mom and dad, but it made me feel better."

She took my hand and gave it a firm squeeze. "You might always feel the loss of your mom, but I hope that being here with us will make you feel better. We want to be your family. I want you to know that we are here for you, all of us."

She was so genuine that even despite my broken heart, I was able to muster a ghost of a smile. "Thank you. For now, I just want to rest."

"Of course." She stood up and headed for the door. She then paused, and looked at me, her eyes suddenly older than her few years. "Sesshoumaru-sama helped ease my pain, and I am sure that if you let him, he would help you too."

"Thank you sweetie. I'll talk to you later."

With one last smile sent towards me, the teenager left me alone with my thoughts. Rin's words almost made my resolve crack, and go look for my lover, but it was not enough. Not nearly enough. Sesshoumaru's pain was but a sliver compared to the agony I was going through. I needed to find a way to build myself back up before I worried about him.

I don't know how long I stayed in bed, unmoving. I felt completely numb. I had spied through the curtains the sun go up and down a few times, and Kagome had come to force more food down my throat, but I had lost all notion of time.

The sun had gone down again, and I was lying down with the covers over my head. I heard the door open, and heaved a sigh.

"Kagome, I really don't want anymore food right now." The sandwich she had forced me to eat earlier was still lodged in my throat. The thought of eating more made me nauseous.

I was startled when the covers were suddenly tugged away from me. I sat up, ready to curse at whoever had dared to disturb my peace like this. All words died in my throat. My visitor was the last person I expected to see.

"Get up wind witch! Time to face the world."

To be continued…

A/N: Once again, I apologize for the long delay! I am sure lots of you must be saddened about Naraku's evil deeds and the fallout between Kagura and Sesshoumaru. Sorry! On another note, who could Kagura's surprise visitor be? We shall find out soon. I promise not to make you guys wait three months before the next one. After all we are so close to the end of the story!

The next chapter will be named Sealing.