Chapter 65

"Colonel Une, I absolutely forbid you to send Kiri back to her parents!"

Une sighed. She should have known that Winner would put Catherine up to this. "I understand that you disagree with this course of action but our hands are tied. We have run out of leads. And unless we want to wait for another house full of dead girls to show up, we need to take the initiative."

"And that's the best you could figure out?" Cathy glared at Une.

"Unfortunately, yes, it is," Une told her evenly. "Everything else we've tried hasn't worked. This really is a last-ditch effort, Catherine."

"You sent her to me for safe-keeping because her parents couldn't be trusted. Now you expect me to be okay with you sending her back to them?"

"No."

Cathy was surprised.

"Actually, I'm not too keen on the idea either but as I said, we've exhausted all of our other leads. We're really grasping at straws here…unless she told you something that we can use?"

Cathy sighed. "No. She didn't tell me anything other than she'd been attacked in the kitchen by that bastard. And even then, I had to guess at what was wrong and she only confirmed it by nodding. She still isn't talking."

Une grimaced. "Then this is what we have. I'm sorry, Catherine. I wish we had something else to go on but we just don't. And I'd rather send her in now than wait for another location to be revealed. We've gotten some information that suggests this has been going on for almost thirty years. We need to get these monsters off the streets. That's why I'm willing to take this chance. If we had any other options I wouldn't even suggest it."

"Can't you send some of your agents in instead?"

"We've already tried that. It didn't get us anywhere. Would it make you feel better if we made sure she was under surveillance the entire time so we can extract her if things don't go well?"

"I suppose," Cathy muttered. "Does Kiri know about this?"

"I doubt it. My last report said that she was still asleep. Once she wakes up I will speak to her about it."

"You can't force her to do this."

"Miss Bloom, I am running this investigation as I see fit. You don't have to like it and it is not your call to make. Now, unless you have any further information that I can use to wrap up this investigation, then I must end our discussion. I have a meeting."

Cathy scowled. "Fine. But this isn't over." She stalked out of Une's office, slamming the door behind her.

Trowa took a deep breath and slowly let it out before knocking on Kiri's door. She was awake and he didn't want to be responsible for upsetting her already. Quatre opened the door and Trowa walked in. Kiri looked really upset. What had happened while he was gone? He glared at Quatre.

"What—" Trowa started.

Quatre put up a hand to stop Trowa from asking the obvious. "Duo let it slip. She's doing…okay." At least, she hadn't gotten worse since Duo left to find her another blanket. She'd sat quietly with Quatre, not attempting to communicate, but she hadn't started crying again, either.

Trowa frowned. "What do you mean 'okay'? What's got her scared?"

He could read her like an open book. She was terrified and he hated it. He thought they were past this.

Quatre looked at Kiri before answering. She was shivering on the bed. "She said it was bad memories triggered by what happened with Carter. I sent Duo to bring her another blanket."

Trowa sat next to her and wrapped his arm around her. She snuggled into him as he stroked her hair. "Shhh...You're safe. Everything will be okay."

They sat in silence for a few moments. Trowa wanted to take her and hide her away where nobody could ever hurt her again. If she would just start talking then maybe they could get her the help she needed for her PTSD. Perhaps he should suggest to Cathy that she teach Kiri some of the techniques she was learning in her own session with the psychiatrist.

A soft knock at the door signaled Duo's return. He had extra blankets, one of which Trowa wrapped securely around Kiri before pulling her tightly against him again. Her shivering slowed and he could feel her beginning to relax a little.

Duo sat off to the side to watch. He knew Trowa and Quatre were pissed. He knew that they wouldn't do anything to upset Kiri further, but he also wanted to see how everything played out. He also didn't want to leave Kiri upset, seeing as it was his fault. So he stayed to see if there was anything he could do to help fix the situation.

Quatre watched as Kiri settled against Trowa. She seemed to be spacing out; much like Heero was wont to do after flashback. He wondered if they ought to try and bring her out of it. Apparently, Trowa had the same thought.

"Are you still afraid to talk?" Trowa asked softly, not wanting to spook her again.

Kiri didn't respond. She just stayed still, leaning against him and staring at the floor.

Quatre looked at Trowa before holding out a pen and paper to Kiri. "Tell us what you're thinking," he prompted. He couldn't feel much from her other than the fear she'd been feeling for the last little while.

Kiri took the paper and stared at it for a moment before reaching for the pen and starting to write. Trowa and Quatre didn't speak as she wrote, not wanting to mess up her concentration. She took a long time to write what she wanted to say but when she finally gave them her paper they were both surprised at how much Kiri had written. Most of her notes before had been only a few words long, since she was writing with her non-dominant hand. Now that she had the use of her right arm back, she had quite a bit to say.

"Thank you, Kiri," Quatre said as he took her paper and started to read. He didn't miss how she'd bit her lower lip as though certain that he wouldn't like what he was about to read. She wasn't wrong. He didn't like it.

'I was on my way home from school. Spring Break was starting and I had plans to spend the weekend with my friends. I was waiting to cross the street when a limo pulled up next to me. The window rolled down and he (she crossed that out) Perdu (Kiri had crossed that out as well. It seemed to Quatre that she was debating how to refer to him.) Chase was inside. He told me that I had pretty eyes and asked if I wanted to audition for something he was directing. When I agreed, he pulled me into the limo and it drove off. I was too surprised to try to escape. I wish now that I had jumped out when the limo stopped at a red light but I don't really know why I didn't. Maybe it was the shock of being kidnapped or maybe he'd already told me he'd kill my parents if I tried to leave, I don't remember for sure. It's stupid, but I do remember watching the light change from red to green and thinking that I was going to be late to Tanya's house for our sleepover.

When we got to The House, he pulled me inside and threw me against the wall. He told me that I was his and if I didn't do what I was told I'd be sorry. He scared (she crossed that out) scares me. The first thing he did was lock me in a small room with only a cot, a chair and a pot in the corner for a toilet. He told me he would break me before he used me and then he left me there. I can't be positive about how long I was there, but I think it was two days. When he finally came back he asked me if I wanted to earn food and a blanket. There wasn't a blanket or a pillow on the cot. It was just the canvas stretched across the wooden frame.

I agreed, mostly because I didn't know what I was in for and partly because I was hungry and cold and I didn't want to be anymore. He took me up to the attic and told me that I had to clean it up and stack the boxes nicely. He said if I got it all done, I could have a hot meal and a blanket. He told me that there was a guard so I shouldn't bother trying to escape. I thought if I cooperated then maybe he'd let me go home. I was wrong.

There was so much up there that I couldn't get it done that day. I didn't finish it the next day, either, and that's when he got mad. He hit me. He hit me so long and so hard that I don't remember most of it. I remember waking up and I hurt so bad that I couldn't move and my throat hurt from screaming. I think I passed out again after a little while. When I woke up the next time there was a plate of food by the door. I don't know how long it had been there but by the time I crawled over to it, it was ice cold. I didn't care. I was hungry. I ate it anyway. Two days later he came to see me again. He asked if I wanted to try again to earn the blanket and food. Since he hadn't fed me anything since the cold plate of food, I agreed. I had hoped that I would be able to finish. I was wrong, but he didn't hit me that night. The next night, when I still didn't finish, is when he hit me again. It went like that for a long time. He would give me something impossible to do and he would hit me every other day until it was done. Sometimes he remembered to feed me but mostly I remember being hungry all the time. Sometimes he would hit me just because he could. At least, I could never figure out what I had done wrong, so I think that was the reason. Sometimes I knew what I did. If I talked at all, he would hit me or grab my throat and squeeze until I cried. Then he would hit me because I cried. I think there are a lot of things that happened that I don't remember and I don't want to remember them. It was a living nightmare.

He made me clean the house and cook his meals. If I made his food wrong, he beat me. If I tried to sneak a taste, even just to make sure that I had made it right so he wouldn't hit me, he beat me. He told me that if he ever caught me eating food he didn't give me that he would cut my tongue out and force me to swallow it. When I cleaned up after his clients I had to make sure that everything was perfect. Once a client left a sock behind and I was hit because I didn't find it before he left, even though he was gone before I was allowed in the room to clean it. If I didn't shower fast enough, I got hit. If I didn't clean fast enough, I got hit. If I tried to talk to anyone, I got hit. If someone tried to talk to me, I got hit. If I didn't respond with a nod or a shake of my head when someone tried to talk to me, I got hit for not responding and I was forced to respond. Then I got hit again because I responded. I couldn't win. Nothing I did was right.

I wish I could forget what he made me do with Carter. Carter was brought in just to teach me how to pleasure 'The Master'. I think that's how they refer to Decart. I was supposed to be trained and then handed over to him. I fought against learning it but eventually they both forced me. When I wouldn't do it for Chase, he got really mad. He hit me with a baseball bat and whipped me until I passed out. When I woke up he told me that since I wouldn't cooperate that he would make me cooperate. He was going to rape me but he stopped right before he did anything. He left me alone in the room and told me that if I tried to escape I'd be sorry. Then you guys showed up and I was so scared that you were working for him and you were going to hurt me, too.

I'm sorry I've been such a pain. I didn't mean to be. I just learned not to trust anyone.'

Quatre's gut felt like it had a cold stone in it. He knew she'd been through hell but this was even worse than he'd let himself imagine. "I'm sorry you went through that," he told her softly as he handed the note to Trowa. "We won't push you anymore."

Trowa could feel the anger growing hot in his soul as he read. Kiri had been forced to stack up the boxes in the attic, the ones filled with pieces of Chase's other victims. And she hadn't even known what was in them. Chase would not be allowed to get away with this. The man was a monster that had to be stopped. He wanted to scream with rage and frustration because the man was still out there, hurting other girls. But he knew that he would just upset Kiri, so instead, he grunted and let Duo take the paper from him.

Duo read Kiri's statement and images of the girls on L2 flashed through his mind. He had to get justice for them. All of them. Even the girls they hadn't found yet. When he read about the unfair beatings Kiri had endured he couldn't help but mutter, "That bastard." He felt sick when he realized that they'd found her just after Chase attempted to rape her. The thought that they could have walked in on him using her made him want to puke.

"I think this will be statement enough for Une," Trowa said, taking the paper from Duo and putting it into his pocket. He didn't want Kiri to dwell on such depressing times. She needed to rest and in order to do that she needed a distraction.

He looked at Kiri who was writing something else. She handed him the paper, looking a little ashamed as she did so.

'I think something is wrong with me. I tried to talk a few days ago but I couldn't. I managed a whisper, but even that was forced.'

Trowa was surprised. He hadn't realized that Kiri was having such a hard time talking. He had thought that it was just her fear keeping her silent. It made him appreciate even more the whispered 'thank you' that she had saved just for him. He frowned. Whispering shouldn't be hard to do. "We might have to have Sally check you."

Quatre was thinking. There had to be a reason she was having a hard time talking. "It could be psychological. Or it could just be from disuse. Would you feel safe enough to try talking to us now?"

Kiri nodded and took a breath but then let it out and blinked quizzically at them.

Duo grinned. "Let me guess, you can't think of anything to say."

Trowa and Quatre looked at him. He'd been relatively quiet for so long, especially for him, that they'd almost forgotten he was in the room. Trowa almost told him to quit teasing Kiri, but realized that Duo was just trying to help her out. He looked back at Kiri. She was blushing as she nodded.

"So tell us that you can't think of anything to say," Quatre told her.

Kiri seemed to like that suggestion. She opened her mouth, but there was nothing. She tried again and this time a soft, strangled noise came out. She grabbed at her throat and looked like she was going to cry.

"Did that hurt?" Trowa asked.

Kiri nodded.

Trowa frowned as he considered this. "You wrote before that he strangled you a number of times over the last five years. It's possible he damaged your vocal cords."

Kiri frowned and looked down.

"I'll talk to Sally about it and have her check you," Quatre told her. He didn't want her to feel like she was in trouble. "As much as I hope Trowa's wrong, it might be what Une needs to change her mind."

Kiri nodded, but she still looked troubled. None of the men knew what else to say to put her at ease. Duo was definitely not comfortable with the awkward silence that fell on the room and was the first to make an excuse to leave.

"I'm gonna…go see if Heero needs help with anything." Duo slipped out the door before Trowa or Quatre could give him something else to do.

Quatre looked at Trowa, who was still sitting with Kiri, his arm around her as she leaned against him. He decided that they probably wanted to have a little time to themselves. Besides, he reasoned, Kiri trusted Trowa more than any of them. If anyone could get her to calm down it would be him. Quatre felt like he would only get in the way.

"I think I'm going to speak to Sally," Quatre told Trowa. "The sooner we get Kiri's throat checked out the sooner we can get her better."

Trowa nodded and watched him leave. He wondered if sitting like this with Kiri was considered inappropriate, especially since he knew he was developing feelings for her and she had given her consent to let him see her after all of this was over. But it wasn't like they were actually doing anything. In fact, Kiri seemed to be falling asleep. She yawned and rested her head against him. Trowa wasn't sure if she ought to lie down before she drifted off but at the same time, he liked having her there. Her warmth was comforting after the stressful events of the last few days. He wondered if he ought to turn on a movie or something but he really didn't want to make Kiri move. He was comfortable and she seemed to be comfortable so he decided to just let things be for the moment.

Unfortunately, it wasn't too long before someone knocked on the door. Trowa sighed and moved carefully off the bed, gently laying the sleeping Kiri down and covering her with the blankets.

Sally was at the door. "How is she doing?"

"She's sleeping at the moment. Did Quatre speak to you?"

She nodded. "Briefly. I'll check in on her again later. I don't want to interrupt her nap."

Kiri shifted on the bed. Her face scrunched up and she shivered a little. Trowa grabbed the other extra blanket and wrapped it securely around her. She settled again and Trowa brushed her bangs out of her face before returning to his conversation with Sally, who had come into the room while Trowa saw to Kiri.

"She wrote down some more information for us," Trowa said, pulling Kiri's statement out of his pocket. "Chase strangled her a number of times as punishment. He may have done permanent damage. I know that you'll do your best to fix her but I'm not sure it's wise to get her hopes up. If you can't do anything for her…I just don't want her to be disappointed."

Sally skimmed over Kiri's statement before handing it back to Trowa with a frown. "I understand. I really hate that she had to go through all of this."

Trowa nodded. "At least we found her before it was too late."

A soft knock on the door interrupted their conversation. Trowa opened it and let Cathy in.

"How is she?" Cathy asked.

"She'll be okay," Trowa told her. "She woke up for a little while. I'm not sure how long she'll stay asleep this time but she seemed pretty tired still."

Cathy nodded. "I was wondering if I could borrow your car."

Trowa raised an eyebrow.

"I need to tell the Manager what happened and I ought to bring Kiri's things. I don't know how long I'll be staying here and the Circus is due to change locations in a few days."

Trowa nodded and pulled his keys out of his pocket. "Is Johnson going with you?"

"Um…I haven't seen him to ask."

"If you'll come with me to the nurse's station, I can contact him for you," Sally offered. "After everything that happened it would be better to have him with you than to risk going alone."

Cathy hesitated but she saw the sense of taking Johnson with her. Besides, he had some things to explain to the Manager as well. She nodded.

"If Kiri wakes up before I get back, let her know that I'll be back and I'm not abandoning her."

Trowa nodded. "I'm sure she won't think you're abandoning her."

"Yeah, well, it's just good that the circus is so close right now. I should be back in a few hours."

Cathy followed Sally out and Trowa settled into a chair to watch Kiri.

"But she's been screaming and hasn't had a problem." Heero was leaning against his desk with his arms folded.

"Screaming seems to be an involuntary response," Quatre pointed out. "It isn't like she screams just for the fun of it. She's usually in the throes of a nightmare and doesn't have any control over it."

Heero looked skeptical.

"And I'd be willing to bet that her throat hurts when she screams," Quatre said. "She just never thought to tell us about it, probably because it's become normal for her throat to hurt."

Heero frowned. Pain shouldn't be "normal" for anyone.

"Sally is going to evaluate her condition and we'll go from there."