Strictly speaking, the Okashira thought dispassionately, of all the precious liquid on the face of the world, only running water was perilous to vampire-kind. A bathtub, a swimming pool, a koi pond - none were any more harmful than this glimmering pool in his palm, waiting to escape his fingers.
But dripped into a bloodied nose, it would sting.
Beshimi sputtered back to consciousness, cat-yellow gaze sweeping the debris-strewn alley he was slumped in, touching the dumpster he'd been hauled out of, then focusing on the tall white trenchcoat and calm face above him with a gulp.
The Okashira gave it half a heartbeat more, then inclined his head. "Report."
The Rakshasa's mouth worked soundlessly a moment.
The Okashira lifted a brow.
"She's gone!"
"Yes." As had been made obvious by the presence of the two still-dazed underlings still in the dumpster. Though if his plans still held, she hadn't gone far.
"There was a gambler," Beshimi began, scrambling to his knees. "A Herd... a human," he amended at a slight narrowing of his superior's green eyes. "Tough, even for Shuei-ya's dice crowd. And - there was a Kin with him. A red-haired swordsman, with claws, and a cross-shaped scar on his cheek..."
The Okashira listened, dispassionately taking in word after word and adding them to the evidence left inside Shuei-ya. His left thumb rubbed on platinum, absently turning his ring to flash blue-violet in the street light.
A Kin and a human, working together. Not common... but not rare, here in New York.
The human was no cause for concern. Oh, he was probably dangerous; no Herd would work so closely with a Kin were he not. But a human, nonetheless. The Okashira's Kin onmitsu could handle the man, easily.
The Kin was another matter. "Claws?"
"He had them from the moment I saw them, and never used them," Beshimi nodded violently, flexing his own claws. "Other Kin, Ubos like yourself, Okashira - your claws always look new. Fresh-made, to slash the foe. His - he's kept them neat and sharp, but they don't have that newness."
Implying the claws were permanent, not manifestations of an Edge. Almost unheard-of among Kin. "But not a Rakshasa."
"I swear-"
The Okashira looked at him.
Beshimi shut his mouth.
Turning on his heel, the trenchcoated Kin swept out into the main street, stalking down the sidewalk. Behind him he heard Beshimi dash to keep up, grumbling something about cabs and getting back.
No, the Okashira thought logically, twisting iolite-set platinum on his finger. Kanryuu's perimeter is secure. Measures to reclaim Takani are in place. There is no pressing need for us to be elsewhere. For... me to be elsewhere.
For these few minutes, he could be himself.
Aoshi Shinomori breathed in night air, stepping slightly aside from a tipsy stockbroker in the endless dance of New York's pedestrian traffic, halfway expecting the ring's enchantment to clamp down again. Not that he could tell when it was; that was the true hell of it. For this moment, he was himself. But any breath, the ring's enchantment could decide he wasn't serving Kanryuu's interests-
And he would be the Okashira again. Cool. Emotionless. Untouched by the sheer horror of the man he was bound to serve.
Another twist of that damn ring; an almost unconscious act by this time, to fool Beshimi and the others he'd been bound to lead into thinking the Okashira still held sway. Over these past five years, Kanryuu's Kin bodyguards had only met Aoshi for a few, fleeting moments, and neither side had enjoyed the experience. The Kin onmitsu wanted a strong leader; and while they might have been kind enough to teach a just-turned Ubo what it was to be Kin, they'd had little patience with a young man horrified by his first human kill.
It hadn't been his last.
Don't think about it! Aoshi thought fiercely. No knowing how much time you have... think about what binds you. While you still can.
Platinum for permanence, binding the spell. Iolite to find and polarize, dissociating any fear and hatred he felt for Kanryuu to create the cool, ruthlessly efficient Okashira. A built-in pocket behind the stone's setting, like an assassin's poison ring; only instead of venom, it held enchanted powders, binding together the rest of the spell. Subtle work, Kanryuu's less-than-subtle gloating, and his own access to the businessman's files had determined what else that should be: prehnite, jet, lodestone, amethyst, epidote, sardonyx, and spinel. Binding the wearer to a contract he couldn't break, and a ring he couldn't take off.
Together, the enchanted components gave Kanryuu precisely what he wanted. The head of his security was not brainwashed; far from it. The Okashira was perfectly in his right mind.
Yet the part of that right mind that was Aoshi spent this endless nightmare locked in a closet, only surfacing to taste a few stolen breaths of night.
Sane, every stolen moment. No matter how much he might wish otherwise. The ring preserved Kanryuu's interests; and a madman in charge of security served no one.
At least this is the only ring.
He hoped. He'd never run across a mention of any others. And since the accident with Megumi's coven master, those capable of creating such a ring should have taken that knowledge to their graves.
Besides, you know Kanryuu. He values the Okashira's services too much to let anyone else gain such an advantage.
A slim comfort, but all Aoshi had. If his extended family were targeted by Kanryuu again, at least the businessman wouldn't have that to bind them.
How did they know? How did they find us? How did - why did-
His breath hitched, remembering that endless moment before the Ubo's fangs had come down.
I will kill him.
And how much of that was himself, and how much the Okashira, Aoshi could no longer determine. Aoshi remembered Bleacher Bob's red-dripping fangs, and shivered with rage; knew how easily the Ubo could have picked one of the others of his clan to gift to Kanryuu, and seethed with hate. The Okashira...
Ninja live only to die; in the service of the lord, or of the clan. That is the old way. That is our honor.
And he shattered it.
Yes. One night he would have his sire's life.
But not tonight.
The Okashira glanced back at his subordinate, calmly ignoring the crunch as Beshimi straightened his broken nose. "Humans are more likely to be on record. Find this gambler."
"H-hai, Okashira."
We will find why you ran to them, Takani, the onmitsu leader thought coolly. We will find who you ran to. What resources they have. What allies they can call on.
And then we will close that escape.
Forever.
---------
"'Night, Kaoru-nee-san," Ayame murmured drowsily. Her littler sister Suzume only gave a wordless yawn, and nestled under the sheets as her grandfather stepped back and turned out the bedroom light.
Closing the door behind them, Dr. Gensai let out a relieved breath. "Thank goodness. I thought I'd never get them to sleep tonight."
"They were pretty wild," Kaoru laughed softly. Maybe because they were worried? No; they've only known Kenshin a little while. But I'm worried. They probably picked up on that.
It's just - they're out so late...
Gensai shook his head as they walked back toward the front of the apartment, evidently picturing the three- and two-year-old bundles of energy it had taken all three of them to corral. "Amazing how easy Kenshin makes it look, hmm?"
"You mean weird," Yahiko grumbled. "Why's he want to play with kids anyway?"
Kaoru shot him a fiery glance. "Yahiko-!"
"We all have our own ways of staying human, young man," the elderly Sorcerer stated. "My clinic helps me, as your brother's store likely helps him. But superficial interactions with other people only stave off the darkness. To truly keep it in check, we need people to care about. And care for." He regarded the teen with a sober gaze. "Fail in that, and a Kin truly will become the nightmare humans see us as; a twisted predator that once was a man, feeding on those who were its own flesh and blood, searching only for its next meal."
"But - but Kenshin wouldn't-" Yahiko stammered.
"Because he knows the danger." Gensai inclined his head. "I admit, I had my doubts of Battousai. The rumors on the street... well. But your brother seems to have him well in hand. And now that I think on it, all those I'd trust to pass on the truth have never said that sword killed without cause."
But it still kills. Kaoru said her goodnights, flicking a warning glance at Yahiko as he tried to skip out without manners. Politeness was just as much a part of the dojo as sword-skill. If he wanted to learn the one, he'd darn well better learn the other.
"They're out pretty late," Kaoru murmured as they stepped into the hall, glancing toward the pair of doors that marked Kenshin's apartment and her own.
"Gambling!" Yahiko shook his head. "Bet you Sano loses it all and Kenshin drags him back in his underwear!"
"Ugh." Kaoru wrinkled her nose at the image of a near-naked Sanosuke; then fought back a blush as her traitor mind presented her with a skimpily-dressed redhead. "So... why just Sano?"
"You kidding me? Big brother wouldn't bet on the sun coming up. Not after that psycho-" He shut his mouth.
Kaoru's eyebrows bounced up, recognizing that near-snap of teeth together. Whatever it was that had put Kenshin off gambling for life, it had to do with Kenshin's ex-girlfriend. The one with the family Yahiko called psycho bastards. One of these days I've got to - well, Sano says alcohol doesn't work that well on Kin, and stronger drugs just kill. But maybe I could get him flying high on sugar and caffeine and ask. Preferably somewhere he can throw things at the wall, and I can duck.
"Might as well haul out the air mattress now," Yahiko grumbled, unlocking his front door.
Kaoru frowned. "I thought Sano was staying with Katsu?" Kenshin had taken Sano in for the first few nights, but Katsuhiro Tsukioka had offered his foster brother a place to crash while Sanosuke looked for a new apartment, and Sano had taken the Crowley printer up on it.
Yahiko stepped inside, shrugging. "Yeah, well - seems Katsu has this funny idea that people ought to come in at regular hours..."
"We're home."
"Kenshin!" Just inside the doorway, Kaoru turned, grinning. "Welcome ba-"
Tall. Elegant, green-tinted black hair. A leather doctor's outfit that would have blended right in at the Rocky Horror Picture Show.
And she stood between Kenshin and Sano like a cat decked with canary feathers.
"We're sorry we're late," Kenshin said cheerfully.
"What a quaint little place," the dark-haired woman said dryly. "Friendly to Crowleys, you said?"
"Uh..." Kaoru gave the redhead a stunned look. Explain! Now!
"Um." Kenshin scratched his head nervously. "This is Megumi Takani. There was... an incident, with the gambling..."
Sano muffled him with one hand. "Sorry, Jou-chan. She's a material witness who might give us a few leads in a case. She'll be staying a while."
"Witness to what?" Kaoru said faintly.
Sano sighed. "Okay, okay; you got me." He shrugged. "One of the guys wouldn't pay up, so we took her instead."
"What?"
"Heard that could happen in Chinatown, but whoa!" Yahiko snickered. "Way to go, Sano!"
Thwack! Thwack!
"Ow!"
"Hey!" Harder of head, Sano's eyes barely crossed. "Look, it's about face - the guy has to clear it, or nobody's going to let him live it down-"
Thwack!
"Oough..."
"Um... sorry about that," Kaoru said sheepishly, lowering her bokken as the agent reeled. "Miss... Takani, was it? I'll have a talk with this idiot. You can go home."
"Oh, but I have no intention of going anywhere." Standing behind Kenshin, Megumi smiled like shadows and secrets, resting a dark-nailed hand on his shoulder as her fingers traced down his unscarred cheek. "I couldn't leave such a sweet young thing... not for a moment."
Kenshin froze.
Kaoru saw red. "Get your hands off him!"
"Oh? Why should I?" Megumi folded her hands, the very picture of innocence, even as Kenshin shook off shock to scoot out of arm's reach. "No scarf, no high collar - you couldn't possibly be his lover. What right have you to say who touches him?"
"Give the girl a break, lady," Sano grumbled, picking himself off the wall. "A month ago she didn't even know about garlic mace. Teeth are a lot to get used to."
"Get out!"
Panting, Kaoru leaned against the inside of the locked door, silently cursing men in general and one rooster-headed idiot in particular. To say that- to hint that-
We've had dinner a couple times, all right? And coffee. And breakfast. But I still don't know if... and I don't know if he knows, and...
It hadn't been too bad, letting Kenshin drink her blood. But he hadn't used the knife. And he'd said she could say no. Even though he needed it.
And the fact that both Sano and this Takani seemed to think Kenshin would bite someone he was - having a relationship with-
And - she'd just thrown Kenshin out of his own apartment.
Why does the floor never open up and swallow you when you want it to?
---------
Sano dusted himself off, picking up a still-stunned Yahiko. "Sheesh!"
"Indeed," Kenshin murmured, still measuring distances to make sure he was out of range of those deadly fingernails. I will not blush. I will not... I wouldn't do that to Kaoru!
:Not against her will, no,: Battousai said firmly.
Biting her? How could that ever be with her will? Humans didn't do that to each other; didn't inflict pain, and call it love-
:You'd be surprised what humans will do,: the blade said dryly. :But you are not human, my own. You are Kin. You need blood - and that which is given freely is most nourishing of all.:
You don't think of someone you - care about - as food!
:Have you never cherished an apple tree?:
"This is all your fault, you - you tramp!" Yahiko glared at Megumi. "Saying stuff like that to Kaoru, when my brother would never let you-"
"Your brother?" Megumi blinked, looking between dark and red hair; then smiled, like a fox outside a henhouse. "Oh, but I don't want to leave him. He's strong, and he has a generous heart. If I stay near him, he'll protect me - even from Kanryuu's men." Dark eyes gleamed. "Kenshin, is it? I've always wanted a handsome bodyguard."
Watching the witch's finger trace a suggestive line near her lips, Kenshin's eyes bugged. He could feel hairs rising on the back of his neck in a way that had nothing to do with hostile ki, and everything to do with pure, unadulterated panic. Help?
:...What am I supposed to do? No one's ever - even in the teahouses, the geisha and meiko were usually too frightened of me to - eep!:
No help there. Kenshin swallowed, thinking firmly of snow; cool, silent flakes of white, dimming even New York to a whisper. "You could at least tell us your story, that you could."
"Oh, it's so boring..."
"Nobody goes looking for a bodyguard 'cause they're bored," Sano stated, fishing in his sleeve for a folded color printout. "Just who and what are you? Why are you running from Kanryuu? Why's he so determined to catch you? Why do bits of you look like bits of this?"
With a shock, Kenshin recognized a snapshot of the odd gem-laced Root Magic below Zip Electronics.
:So...: Embarrassed dismay turned to cold calculation. :Her ki was too faded for the link to be obvious to us... but Sano's reading of auras is true. She is linked to it.:
"Where's the rest of your coven, lady?" Sano bit out, brandishing a packet of Spider's Web along with the printout. "And how did you get hold of this?"
"Kenshin?" Yahiko looked at folded paper, obviously sensing Sano's hatred of the packet. "What's-?"
"A drug," Kenshin answered in an undertone. "Lethal. Even to Kin." Especially to Kin. Alcohol might be tolerated, with difficulty, but the lingering charge of dreams and nightmares humans had invested opiates and their kind with were deadly to a Kin's very essence. A Kin crazy or suicidal enough to play with drugs might die, or melt, or even explode.
Megumi hmphed. "It's rude to speak of a lady's past."
"Like you're a lady? Listen, you-"
"Easy, easy..." Kenshin raised a soothing hand. "If you won't speak of yourself, tell us of Kanryuu. To have so much power over the Beijings... he must be the leader of those who actually create the drug."
Brown eyes shifted away.
Why?
Sano's phone rang. He gave Megumi another dark look, then tucked papers in his jacket pocket and fished out his cell. "Sagara. Hey, Shuu... whoa, slow down - Gin and the others okay?" Sano's eyes narrowed. "Yeah, thanks for the tip." He hung up. "Come on!"
---------
"You guys take me to the greatest places," Yahiko muttered, staring down at the mass of lights and uniforms gathered at the edge of the night-black East River. He shifted from foot to foot, somehow chilly despite the crowd watching with them. "Teacher's never going to believe this 'How I spent my summer vacation'."
"Yahiko." Kenshin's hand touched his shoulder. "You shouldn't be here."
"Why the heck not?" Yahiko glared up at his brother, angry at the worry in violet eyes. "You're looking!"
"I am." Kenshin's gaze never wavered. "But I am... not unprepared. The nightmares I claim, I would not have for you."
Kenshin remembers what Battousai remembers. And Battousai's a killer. Yahiko swallowed dryly. But he squared his shoulders, and looked back at the mass of police and crime scene analysts. "I'm staying! I- I-yi-yi..."
"Not pretty, is it?" Sano tucked his hands in his pockets, fixed on that glimpse of water trickling from dead mouths, eyes rolled back in skulls 'til only the bloodshot whites showed. "Rakshasa venom. Kanryuu's own guys... cold."
"Failures are disposed of." Sweat trickled down Megumi's hairline, smearing a hint of blush. "It's Kanryuu's way."
Yahiko tried not to shiver, inexpressibly glad when black bags zipped over sightless eyes. Kenshin's so quiet. He said Battousai would - but how can anybody be ready for this?
"What do you see?" Sano said softly.
Startled, Yahiko followed his brother's gaze to another part of the rubbernecking crowd. Just as noisy and brash as the New Yorkers and tourists gathered around them... except for one knot of stillness.
A sneering gray suit with rectangular glasses. A sweating short guy with cat-eyes and a bandaged nose. And a tall, dark-haired man in a white trenchcoat over a deep indigo leather and cloth outfit that oddly reminded Yahiko of Misao's. Except it was a lot subtler. And didn't have a skirt.
That's the one. That's the guy Kenshin's worried about.
"Damn! That little-" Sano's fists clenched, as cat-eyes saw them and flared wide with rage. "If he throws that poison here-"
"He won't." Kenshin's voice was chill. Controlled, even as the Rakshasa's claws lifted and glimmered. "Not in a crowd."
And the trenchcoat spoke one unheard word, and the Rakshasa froze.
"Can you hear 'em from here?" Sano asked in a low tone, even as Megumi glanced at his brother in shock.
"No." Kenshin's voice was his own again, with no trace of Battousai. "The crowd's too unruly. But I doubt they can hear us, either."
Still startled, Megumi looked where they were looking - and froze. "Kanryuu..."
"She's right." Sano's tone was curt, angry. "Glasses is definitely Kanryuu Takeda."
"But the one behind the Rakshasa?" Kenshin wondered.
"Vampire-pale, white coat..." Sano shrugged. "Ubo, probably. Head of the Beijings' little division for the bastard?"
"No!" Fear and fury mingled, bringing a flush of red to Megumi's pale face. "He's... the Okashira!"
---------
"Megumi-san. My little hen who lays the golden egg." Gloved hand caressing his cheek, Kanryuu smirked. "I do believe I'm losing patience with her."
"Loss of patience cost you her mentor," the Okashira said coolly.
"True; so true," Kanryuu chuckled. "I'm lucky I have you to look over my interests, aren't I, Aoshi-san? Otherwise, I might become... over-exuberant. Again." He tapped up his glasses. "And then she really would escape us. So to speak."
An escape I cannot even claim myself, the Ubo thought bleakly. Megumi-san. I'm... sorry.
"The crowd means nothing," Beshimi grumbled. "We could take her!"
"No." The Okashira sought violet once more, searching for that sudden flash of inhuman gold. "That is no average man, Beshimi. You would not be able to handle him alone."
Beshimi sneered. "He was lucky-"
The Ubo's face was still, even as he remembered that sudden, weighing look from eyes no longer violet. A look that had echoed the best of his clan's teachers; what are you capable of? "He was not."
"Of course the man's not average. He's Kin." The words were casual, but Kanryuu's glance held razor interest.
"Of no kind we know." And if Megumi is here with them, then... "Han'nya."
"Yes." The Animate's voice came from everywhere and nowhere; he could have been any shadow in the crowd. Or none of them.
The Okashira inclined his head slightly. "You tracked them to their base?"
"The redhead has sharp senses. Following him was a challenge." A moment's silence. "To change events near him draws... attention."
Elemental attention? Against his will, the Okashira felt his interest sparked. What made Han'nya such a skilled spy was not only his wizardry with disguises, but his skill at the rare Edge of Event Manipulation; a Kin's supernatural power to change the fabric of the world at will. Should Han'nya slip in a climb across impassible rooftops, should he be caught by one unaccountably-alert guard - he could change the event, smoothing away the impediment to his mission. A risky power, and not one to be used lightly. Still, it normally only drew City Elementals' outrage if several people were affected.
Or... if one of their own kind is threatened.
An Elemental? Is it possible?
Wall Street's Elemental manifested in the form of a woman in a smart pinstriped suit. Chinatown, as a concrete dragon. Liberty Island itself as - well, what else? It wasn't impossible that the number of Japanese immigrants to New York might have created a Tokugawa swordsman.
Not impossible. Yet there was something about the presence of that rooster-haired human in the redhead's company that reminded him of something else, some other report... the Ubo frowned, matching piece upon piece of intelligence. "Smythe claimed he encountered a Rakshasa." Idiot. Trying to interfere with Black Solstice when Kanryuu is not yet prepared to crush them? Smythe's body was safely hidden, a knife through his heart to kill him every sunset to come, until Kanryuu either relented or ended the torment with a meteoric blade. Lone actions spurred by pride had no place in Kanryuu's organization.
"The description matches." A wry humor touched Han'nya's tone. "Even if the Sorcerer had met Beshimi, I doubt he would realize his mistake."
"Claws, but not Rakshasa?" Kanryuu scowled. "Your people will handle him, Aoshi. Whatever he is." His voice lightened, teasing. "We need to show our dear Megumi how much we've missed her."
"You should move out of sight," the Okashira said levelly.
"Oh, should I?" Glasses glimmered over a smile. "And why would that be?"
The Ubo inclined his head toward a tall, dark-haired man in a gray trenchcoat and a small blonde in sensible suit and low heels ducking under the crime scene tape to head toward Megumi's protectors. Familiar humans; if more from report than contact, in the Okashira's case.
"My, my; Detectives Goren and Eames." Kanryuu laughed softly. "New York's finest must be truly frustrated to call out the Major Case Squad for this." Dark eyes glittered coldly at green. "And they're going to stay frustrated, aren't they?"
"There is nothing for them to find." Damn the ring and his own training.
Kanryuu tched. "So why do you still look upset?"
The Okashira watched the subtle play of emotions over the swordsman's face as the detectives approached; surprise, recognition - concern? All swiftly hidden, under a polite mask of resignation. "They've met before." And he's worried. Worried that they might get too close. That they might find us - and we would have to... take steps.
As he would. That was his contract.
The corner of Kanryuu's mouth turned up. "Which should make it all the easier to find out who and what he really is, shouldn't it?"
True. "Han'nya. Inform Hyottoko. The two of you will help Beshimi recapture Takani."
"Yes, Okashira." A waft of wind, and even his shadow was gone.
"Two helpers, Beshimi." The Ubo's eyes narrowed, green gaining the silvery glint of a predator. "No more failures."
"I will t-take that to heart." Shivering, the Rakshasa vanished.
"Hmm." Kanryuu regarded the detectives' angry body language as they confronted Megumi's little group. "Second chances. How generous."
He would not twitch, the Okashira thought. He would not.
"I'm too much of a businessman, I suppose," Kanryuu sighed. "Nothing's finished until the trash is disposed of." Streetlights glinted off lenses as he watched the ambulances pull away, carrying the river's dead. "But once it is... ah, the world feels so fresh and new!"
---------
"You brought your little brother to a crime scene?" Detective Alexandrea Eames growled.
Detective Bobby Goren let his partner take the lead, watching the reactions of this odd little group. Despite Alex's snarl, Yahiko looked reasonably okay, for now; even if that pale gulp meant the teen wasn't going to have much appetite for the foreseeable future. The tall, leather-clad woman with the green tint to her hair was shivering, but trying to hide it. Connected to the case? Bobby wondered. Agent Sagara looked as deliberately unimpressed as ever, no information there. But Himura...
Kenshin was keeping an eye on something behind them. "Who's back there?"
"Kanryuu Takeda."
Bobby's brows lifted, even as Alex's lips pursed in an involuntary, silent whistle. Goren took a subtle step sideways, just enough to catch a glimpse of their arrogant suspect strolling off through the crowd. "Talk about chutzpah," Alex muttered.
True. But Takeda walking away from yet another of his organization's hits on errant members wasn't half as interesting as the implications Himura had just let slip. You know who Kanryuu is. You know we know who he is.
And Sanosuke hadn't so much as flinched.
He's not just helping you in an investigation, is he? He's your partner.
Even if he doesn't know it yet.
How on Earth did a shopkeeper get snatched into the DEA?
But this wasn't the time or place to ask; not with an unknown in the equation. "I'm Detective Goren," he smiled at the woman. "This is my partner, Detective Eames. And you are, Miss...?"
She swallowed, but lifted her head, dark eyes flashing. "Takani. Megumi Takani."
Felt like the truth. So whatever you're scared of, you don't think hiding will do any good. Goren's lips thinned a little, taking in the defiant desperation of a woman who expected each breath might be her last. Now why would-?
Steel-blue caught his gaze, shifted a subtle glance toward the departing ambulances. Drew the detective's attention back to their protective knot once more, with a bare flicker toward Sano's concealed semi-automatic.
Goren drew in a quiet breath, watching Himura's changeable eyes until they faded back to pleading violet. "Well, we already have their numbers, right Alex? If we think of something, I'm sure we can call..."
Alex's swift glance might as well have trumpeted disbelief at high noon, but she crossed her arms and gave them a scowl as if it was what she'd meant to do all along. "Get that kid off the streets, or I'm calling DCS!"
"I'm not a kid-!"
Sano latched onto the protesting teen, half-dragging him away as Megumi and Himura fell in behind him. "Come on, brat..."
"Well, well," Alex muttered as the foursome walked away, watching the careful spacing, the way Sagara and Himura between them watched every angle of attack. "Since when did the DEA start picking up random New Yorkers for protective detail?"
Goren shrugged. "Maybe since they figured out Kanryuu seems to find defectors before they even get a chance to turn state's evidence?"
Alex nodded once. "She's one of his?"
"She's scared enough."
His partner frowned. "Kid didn't sign up for that kind of trouble, Bobby."
"I don't think Himura has a choice." Goren weighed that look in his mind again. Subtle. Not a flicker more than was needed to get the message across. And not a doubt that it would be understood. "Special Forces."
"Say what?"
Right, right; Himura's height, his weight - it was impossible. Bobby had been Army long enough to know. But he nodded anyway, certainty solid as bedrock. "I don't know how. But it's what he is."
Alex raised a brow. "Puttering around with antique reproductions."
"A lot of them are really peaceable guys," Bobby shrugged. "Until... well, until they have a target."
Alex took that in, eyes narrowing as she compared that detail with the rest of her mental file on Himura. "He did kill Tani's people."
"Pipe bomb, with his brother in the apartment?" Goren's smile never touched his eyes. "They'd have had to kill him to walk away after that."
"Panic, hell!" Alex's fists clenched. "And Sagara knows."
"Maybe not," Bobby murmured. Caught his partner's angry look, and tried to lay out his chain of thought. "Oh, yeah, about Tani's people - he knows that. But what he's got watching his back... I don't think so. Sagara's law enforcement. Like us. And Himura's - not."
Alex frowned. "Deakins isn't going to like this."
No; the captain definitely wouldn't like knowing they had someone truly lethal in the middle of multiple investigations. But that was the least of their problems. "We don't really need to mention that Takeda was here, do we?"
"He's a suspect. Even if we've got no hard evidence to back us up, and half a dozen political heavy-hitters telling us to ignore him," Alex said flatly. "There's no way we're leaving him out of our report."
"I didn't say modify the report," Bobby amended hastily, waving his hand. "Just... not mention him. To the captain. Who can read the report, if he really wants to know-"
"Bobby."
"Well... hypothetically, if we had reason to believe a certain citizen's life was in danger, we might be obligated to warn him who was coming his way. Being the good, law-abiding citizens that we are," Goren finished.
"And Takeda's in danger because...?" Alex prompted.
"Did I say Takeda?" Bobby blinked innocently. "I could've sworn I didn't say anything about Takeda."
"...Right," Alex said slowly. "But hypothetically, if a certain alleged druglord we can't pin anything on was planning to take out a hit on a witness, and if one of the people guarding that witness has the training to know that..."
"Interesting thing about the trained operatives?" Bobby observed. "They don't really have a problem with doing unto the bad guy before he can do unto you."
Alex gave him a warning look.
"His little brother's right there," Goren said more softly. "Yahiko and Takani are going to be his first priorities. If he can just protect Takani until tBuku and Uramura get their act together and squirrel her into a safehouse, Takeda will never see him again. Just because he can kill - that doesn't mean he likes it."
"But he might," Alex stated.
"Well... anyone might do anything," Bobby shrugged. "And if we mention Himura to Takeda - not that we've got any reason to mention the guy, after all, he's just a shopkeeper..."
"Then he'd know just where to look for Takani." Alex grimaced. "I hate waiting."
"So you love autopsies?" He gave her his best impish grin.
"Beats waiting." She dusted off her hands. "Let's go see if Takeda's people slipped up this time."
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Translations and info:
Geisha - "art persons"; trained to be excellent conversationalists, and other arts to make their patrons comfortable. Women of the Pleasure Quarters is a very neat book on the subject.
Hai - yes (formal).
Meiko - Kyoto apprentice geisha.
-nee-san - "Big sister".
Onmitsu - spies, ninja.