Because in most cases, people are raped by those they trust.

13

After a short fight, in which I milked my misery for all it was worth to get Naru to do what I want, I found myself hobbling up the steps to the dorm as evening pulled her skirts over Tokyo University campus, a grouchy Naru at my side. He knew he had been manipulated, and his stinging pride was now mixing with his concern for me. Add in a handful of cops and the most generic detective, with all his thin features and grim stance, and you got the she-demon of bad Naru moods.

"I see you've been doing my work for me," he said wryly as Naru came level with him. "Could it be that Ms. Taniyama really does have clairvoyance?"

"And a comforting way with people," said Naru. "Perhaps you could take notes, if nothing more than to save yourself from a few more punches from little girls."

The detective's mouth twitched and I made a mental note to do something seriously nice for my man.

"So, this rape blog—"

Naru cut him off. "Do you have the results on the scopolamine?"

"These tests take time—"

"Then you must not be as serious about stopping more students from dying as I am." Naru inclined his head. "So, if you would excuse me—"

But just as he moved to pass the detective, the older man took hold of his arm in a very authoritive, movie-like gesture. I had another burning contraction coming on so I stopped caring for a moment as I focused on not making it known that I wanted to writhe on the ground in pain.

"'Visions' aren't evidence," he growled, and once more I saw the asshole I had first perceived him as. Perhaps it hadn't been an act. "And I can't keep giving out confidential information to a ghost hunter."

"Then put me down as a psychic consultant. The police still do that, don't they? Or is it palmistry?"

The other man's eye twitched. "I respect you, Mr. Davis. You're smart. But be careful how far you strut, you're still a kid. And for God's sake, don't go throwing around that drug's name like it's candy. The reason the tests aren't in is because we don't have the means to do the test, we had to order them in. Drugs from Columbia don't exactly chippity skip cheap and common to Japan, you know."

Naru had tugged his arm out of the detective's grip, but suddenly froze. "What did you say?"

"I'm saying the drug isn't common enough to keep tests around—"

"No. You said it's from Columbia. We're still talking about scopolamine, correct?"

The detective's mouth frowned, taking full advantage of the pronounced lines. "Yeah, the Devil's Breath, Crocodile something or other. It's made in Columbia from some drunk tree, why?"

"Excuse me, sir. I must check something. If I come upon anything, I will contact you."

"Wait, weren't you going to ask to see the crime scene—"

"I think anything important I can get from you." Naru leveled a cool stare over his shoulder. "So, if you would please be thorough in your reports, that would be much appreciated. Mai, are you holding up?"

I flinched in the act of wrapping my arms around my middle. I could feel sweat beading on my forehead, but I gave him my best smile. I don't think he bought it. He put his arm about me and led me inside the building, the common room of which had become stuffed with students, jabbering about the recent murder. Somehow, despite the various stares and pointing, Naru managed to shuffle us past without any interruptions and back into base, where we found Lin dutifully at the screens. Yasu sat backwards on a chair besides him, watching him type away.

"Hey, big boss," said Yasu with a weak wave. "We've pulled in the cameras and set them up in the hallways like you asked."

"Take them down."

Yasu blanched. "Wh-what?"

"Whoever committed the murder is probably long gone from this building now, and it isn't like surveillance is going to help much. What can you tell me about the victim?"

"Um, well…not too much. He wasn't exactly in my crowd." At Naru's cold stare, Yasu rushed to excuse himself. "But I think I heard the guys saying he had a girlfriend. I could ask around, see if he did the test behind the library."

"Why you haven't done so already is beyond me. I suppose I'm the only one taking it seriously that someone has died here."

"Naru," I hissed. "Pull back on the jerkiness."

In response, Naru just strut to Lin's side. I exchanged expressions with Yasu and gave him a helpless shrug, to which he smiled to.

"You doing alright Mai? You're not looking too good. Maybe you should have stayed home."

"Well, since I'm the only one on the team right now who has any, you know, spirit-sensing abilities, at least until Masako drops by tomorrow." Which reminded me of something. "Hey, Naru, wasn't your mom suppose to come by and watch us work today? Her plane is leaving in the morning, shouldn't you be with them?"

"Father and her decided not to on reviewing the situation, as murder isn't exactly a tourist attraction," said Naru curtly. "I thought I told you that. In fact, I'm certain I did."

"Uh…" And I was certain he did not, but I had more pressing matters on my mind—like sitting down before my cramps forced me to. Damn Midol, what a joke. Why couldn't they just give me morphine? Oh yeah, addictive crap that could make you a brain-dead, drug-sucking zombie. At least I would be a pain-free zombie.

"Yasu, before you go, you said the other boy who had died was from Columbia, correct?"

"Uh, the one who died from alcohol poisoning?"

"Yes, think quicker, won't you?"

"Yeah. Mom was Columbian, he was from Columbia—"

"You said he'd visit her occasionally?"

"Did I say that? It should be in my email. Why?"

But I was following Naru's train of thought. "The source of the drug! What if he brought it in—"

"—and was killed by it as well," finished Naru. "Made to drink until he died. It's only been a year and a half, the killer could have gotten the drug from him, used it against him. Yasu, which room is Swii's?"

"I haven't seen that guy all day—"

"Room, Yasu."

"26. Second floor."

Naru nodded and went to move, but paused as Lin spoke up.

"He's in camera six, coming towards the south entrance."

"Thank you." Naru strode towards the door. I stumbled up from the chair I had sunk into.

"Wait! You shouldn't go alone!"

"Stay, Mai." He practically threw open the door, but I was out before it even shut, surprising myself at my own speed while having an inflamed uterus. What could I say, I was a tough one. Besides, the idiot had forgotten that Swii could have anything on him, including the drug that could make Naru do anything, including kill himself. Like hell I was going to let that happen.

We went down a few halls I personally had not been down before that headed towards the back of the building. The chattering of the students in the common room grew muffled as more walls were placed between us until we came upon a poorly lit back room lit by the faces of a soda dispenser and a vending machine. Outside I could see the faint flickering red light of our recording camera, cleverly hidden into the hedge of bushes that lined the sidewalk leading to the glass back door.

And through the glass, a figure shuffled up, his head swinging.

Naru didn't pause. He threw open the door just as Swii was reaching for it. Unfocused eyes met Naru's and a sloppy sort of smile spread across his face.

"Oh, the ghost man! That means," his gaze went past Naru and fell upon me. I instantly froze up, a horrible black pressure, like something hard and heavy had come down to press in on all my sides, pushed my heart rate to the sky. I could remember his hands. I could remember his devouring eyes.

"Eyes here." Naru grabbed the man's shirt and jerked him out of the doorway, forcing Swii's focus on him at the same time. "Did you ever use a drug called Devil's Breath?"

The drunken face blinked, shuddered, and the smile fell. I couldn't help but wonder why Swii had gotten himself so plastered, and where.

"When did you get so mean?" he asked

"Mai, describe her."

I flinched. "Short brown hair, kind of l-lanky or willowy. She had a button nose, with freckles, and—and she was shorter than me. You blew white powder into her face and—and…"

Swii had gone back to staring at me, but I could tell he wasn't seeing me. His eyes had widened to the point that I could see the whites all the way around the dark sphere of his iris. His complexion went a bit green and his legs shook so bad it could have been comical.

"You took her upstairs," I said, clutching my hands so hard I thought they might break. "Up to the top, to a room. She did whatever you said because of the powder. You took her to that room and told her to lay down on the bed and take off her shirt—"

And like a great chasm of earth, his face split open into a scream.

"What the hell are you!?"

Naru was shoved back. Swii's fists had gone wild, arms like solid clubs, his white gaze and flopping body streaking at me, screaming, screaming—

And Naru was back with a punch to the back of the guy's head that cracked through the room like breaking stone. Swii dropped like a bag of sand.

But it was Naru's face that now took up my terror. His lips had curled back in a wild, open mouthed snarl I didn't know it could make. His skin had wrinkled up from the force, turning his eyes to dark slits and flushing his skin with color.

"Guess that answers our questions," he said.

I, however, grappled at my throat that had constricted up with panic.

"N-Naru, what was…" I could hardly speak. I couldn't believe how afraid I was. My voice just wouldn't work.

Something was in front of me, and it wasn't my Naru.

That horrible, wild face turned to me. "What is it?"

I could see it more clearly now. Somewhere from the back of my mind, Masako's voice echoed up from my memory, back from the bloodstained labyrinth.

'Since we were talking about them, a spirit in this house possessed you.'

What had she done then? I had to calm myself and do that now, because Naru's attention was turning back to the fallen Swii, and I thought I could see his nose wrinkling and his teeth beginning to flash once more.

"Stop. You've done enough."

"Hardly," he hissed. "This isn't anger, this is beyond anger, beyond fear, this isn't human."

If only I knew her name. I should be able to call her name, because it had to be her. I had to stop her—I had to stop Naru—

Just as I thought that, the glass on the vending machine besides me exploded. Bags of chips flew everywhere and the lightbulb burst.

Mini explosions, like enormous contained pops, started going off in the soda machine. It vibrated and wobbled. I could see the air about Naru changing as he pulled back his leg.

Oh God, she had unlocked his PK.

"Stop!" I flung myself foreword, reaching for him. "You're going to hurt him!"

"That's the idea."

The air about him almost seemed to resist me as I tackled my weight into his side, throwing him off balance at the last moment, sending his kick grazing over Swii's side. We landed in a heap on the floor and the soda machine gave a cacophony of pops and moans. The glass on the back door had started to hum.

"Not him! You're going to hurt Naru!"

Naru's face whirled about me to give me the full brunt of his wild, inhuman snarl.

"Get off me!" he growled. "You of all people should understand—you of all people!"

"And you're a freaking bitch for pulling me into that!" I shrieked, bringing my hands about for the nine cuts as I straddled him. "Get out of my fiancé' or I swear I'll exorcise your ass to hell!"

The wrinkles fell back and he went stiff in surprise. I raised my two fingers above my shoulder.

"I was going to help you anyways," I said. "And I can forgive what you did to me, but unless you get out of him right now—"

The glass door shattered with a bang.

Glass shards zipped past. I threw myself over Naru, covering every inch of him that I could with my own body as the glass plunked and bounced off of me. The soda machine gave one final pop and went dark, and some of the dark long phosphorescent light bulbs tinkled in their covers as they shattered as well.

And then there was silence. Nothing exploded. The thick air about Naru shrunk back and I finally felt like my flesh was reaching his.

Something blew past me, like a wind, and I felt the urge to lift my head.

Standing in the broken doorway was the willowy girl with the soft, sad eyes. Once more I didn't feel any threat, nor did I feel particularly safe. She was null and pale as moonlight.

She covered her face with her hands.

"I thought you'd understand."

I blinked, and she was gone.

And I became hyper aware of Naru's labored breathing beneath me. I rushed to get my weight off of him, noticing the new streams of blood trickling down my arms as I did so. Swii still hadn't moved from his unconscious position on the floor.

"Naru!?" I clutched at his too pale face. One of his hands had slid up to his chest, clutching at it. "Naru? Naru, speak to me, are you okay? If you don't say anything, I swear I'll…I'll…"

In answer he groaned, his eyelashes fluttered, then went still. His hand went limp.

Every inch of me went black ice cold.

Ignoring the blood now smearing all over my palms, I grappled for my phone. Already I could hear shouts and footsteps down the hall, but I already had Lin's number to my ear.

Upon the gray tiles, glittering with broken glass that reflected back a dozen half-moons, Naru's face blended in, the perfect gray of death.

And you trusted me...