Chapter 15
Sending Mai off to England did nothing to abate my worry and fear and if possible it made it even worse.
"I want everyone to keep alert for any suspicious cases in the media, brought to our attention as a case or even if you get a feeling from a certain place or object. Trust all your physic senses, nothing physical can be used to test or examine as this case seem to be able to avoid all our means of detection." On the second day, Masako san informs us that she has been getting a strong presence from a near by shoreline. We set out immediately and on the short ride there I could think of nothing but getting this solved as quick as possible.
Lin pulls to a stop in the car park that leads to the seashore. The whole beach was deserted as threatening storm clouds were building up just off shore.
"Do you feel anything Masako san?" I ask her as she stares out into the darkening sea.
"I can't feel it now but it had to be coming from that cave over there." She points to a half-submerged cliff-face. It is high tide now so the cave entrance is totally covered but I'm sure that when it's low tide you would be able to access the cave.
"Alright then, we'll just wait out the tide and check the cave out since that's our only lead."
When the tide receded we entered the cave through some guidance from a local resident willing enough to show us the way.
"I don't advise you to stay down here long, the tide gets really unpredictable. Even with all the forecasts… We can never trust the tide so we normally make sure that our kids don't come into the caves."
"Thank you for your concern." I say not too concerned about our safety, I run my hands along the walls of the cave to try and pick up any thing I can find but I find nought. I can just feel pent up emotions that have been harvested as a power source. Didn't matter what kind of emotions were kept; they were happy, sad, angry, joyous – all of them different but all equally powerful.
"I don't feel anything. What about you Masako san?" I ask suppressing my frustration.
"There isn't anything here that I can feel. There is nothing here except the residues of sprits that have left."
"Residues…?" I press my hands harder against the cave walls willing myself to pick up everything I can. Along with the emotions came memories; old memories of centuries gone by, and recent memories that reflects times not too long ago. They were all jumbled up but they had one thing in common; they all belonged to deceased people.
"These emotions are harvested. Whatever we're going up against relies on the power of others. The emotions of others…" I murmur, trying to make sense of it all.
"So you feel it too young man? All these people that is." The local guide asks me observantly and for a fleeting moment went beyond his age. Something older, wiser was speaking through him.
"Tell me more sir, about these people." I say following him deeper into the cave until we reach a fork in the cave where he stops.
"I can lead you no further, most locals would have already turned back at the mouth of the cave. This has been the furthest anyone has gone and came back alive." He regards us with solemn serious eyes before continuing, "If you wish to venture further you must do so alone, if not you are most welcomed to head back with me. In regards to your question young man; these people are all the ones that have perished in this very cave." Everyone looks expectantly at me, waiting for my answer.
"We'll head back, there is nothing more to be found." The guide heads the front of the group but as he passes me I see the side of his face twist into a smirk. It is gone before I can make more sense out of it. But I am certain that there was a leer of sorts contorting his face.
Outside the setting sun paints the skies a vivid shade of reds and oranges leaving little daylight left for us to head back to SPR.
"Now what do we do?" Ayako whines at the back of the van.
"We wait and see if we get anything else." Masako san replies calmly and serenely.
Indeed, we'll wait and see… I glance in the rear view mirror and catch a glimpse of the guide that led us in the cave. There seems to be a forbidding aura around him, something that just doesn't sit right with me. Just what other secrets does that cave hold?
---
"I'm sorry Miss, to wake you but Mrs. Davis had requested you have some breakfast. She is afraid that you mightn't feel too good if you don't have anything to eat."
I open my eyes to a soft spoken and gentle looking maid who is holding a tray of some food.
"No… that's, that's fine…" I give her a sleepy smile and drag myself as quietly and gently as I can from Kenji to stop him from waking. As I my brain start to work again I realise that she was speaking to me in Japanese and still is.
"Your son has already eaten, but he must have been really tired as he went back to sleep as soon as he finished eating."
"You speak Japanese?" I ask mildly surprised.
"Oh, – oh yes, Mrs. Davis had required all house hold staff to be fluent in it as her sons speak very fluent Japanese. She wanted all of us to speak to them in Japanese so that they don't ever stop speaking it."
"Oh…" Naru and his brother. I hesitate and continue, "Do her sons ever… ever come home often?"
"Not really, no." She sighs, "Ever since the oldest died the youngest has been going all over look for his brother."
"Naru's brother died?!" I exclaim in shock.
"You… Weren't told…?" She asks cautiously I shake my head in response. There is just too much that I've never known about Naru, his life or his family, the maid blushes deeply before saying,
"I'm sorry, I don't think I should have said that… But I thought you knew him well since you called him by his nickname." Her meaning is plain as day. That was information outsiders were not privileged to know.
"It's fine." I say quietly taking a bite out of the bread and drinking a mouthful of water – not tasting anything. Indeed, it was his nickname. But it was mine. I was the one who said it.
She quietly takes her leave and leaves me alone to finish eating. A soft knock comes from the door and it slowly opens to reveal a careful looking Mrs. Davis.
"Oh, you're up. I was afraid I was going to wake you." She shuts the door gently behind her before walking over to me.
"It's fine, I should be getting used to the time anyway." She takes a seat next to me and pulls out a heavy photo album.
"I wanted to show you this yesterday but I thought you'd be too tired." She flips to a page showing me the photos. A much younger Naru smiles up at the camera with his arms around his brother, they were probably not much older than Kenji is.
"Oh…" I mummer in surprise. I'm surprised that Mrs. Davis decided to show me this.
"Such angels weren't they?" She sighed contentedly, "That was taken in America where we used to live." I look at his brother for a little while longer trying to place his face. Even though they were identical I could tell who was who, but there was something familiar about his brother and it wasn't due to the resemblance.
"Can you tell them apart?" She asks me thoroughly enjoying herself, I nod my head and say,
"Naru is the one holding his brother. Although they are identical there's just something that makes them so very different. I can't tell what it is but I can see it. What was his brother's name?"
"Eugene. But we all called him Gene and Oliver, Naru." She sighs again saying wistfully, "I miss the boys so much. I wish I could see Naru more often…" She flips to the next page where it was dated.
"Ah! This was taken on the boys' sixth birthday." Two happy looking boys smile and laugh as the photo was taken. I trace their faces in my mind and say quiet absent-mindedly,
"Kenji looks so much like them." I suddenly jerk awake at what I had said, "I mean – what I meant…" Mrs. Davis smiles and shakes her head.
"It's fine Mai. Naru told me."
"H-he did?" I ask cautiously.
"Yes, well when I first saw Kenji I nearly thought it was one of the boys! Until I remembered what Naru told me…"
"What did he say?" I ask finally letting my curiosity get the better of me.
"That Kenji was yours as well as his. Not in as many ways as yours but still part of him nonetheless."
"Are you, I mean do you disapprove of it?" She regards me with a puzzled look.
"Disapprove? What for?"
"I mean since…" I trail off hopelessly.
"No I don't. I am only sorry that Naru did such a thing to you. But I'm sure you don't regret Kenji."
"No I don't regret Kenji… But… I don't think I've ever been angry at Naru for doing that to me." I take another bite from the bread determined to finish the food.
"I'm sorry that he did such a thing to you while he was drunk." She amended bluntly.
"You think?" I ask staring into my cup. "I think it's partly my fault for not stopping him. And it wasn't as if he was forcing me; I could have stopped him – I would have. If I wanted to. But it's gone past the blame game now; I don't care much for it any more. I never have anyway, what happened was just a consequence of a decision not thought out at all."
"You love him don't you?" She asks me gently setting the photo album aside.
"Strange, I don't feel any different about him from seven years ago." She pulls me into a comforting hug and I accept it without any qualms. "If I were given the chance to re-do what happened that night, I would still do what I did. Even knowing the consequences."
"I know why you didn't tell him." I sit up right after hearing that.
"You do? Most people ask me why…"
"You wanted to protect him didn't you?" Protect… him…?
"I… don't know… I just didn't want to burden him… and I didn't and still don't know a lot about him. Maybe I'm learning slowly but I still don't know."
"You were trying to protect him subconsciously. Through all your conscious decisions that is." I scoff.
"He doesn't need my protection. He can do well enough without me."
"Do you think so Taniyama Mai?" She picks up the photo album and went through the photos with me. "Do you see how much he is with his brother?" I nod my head, but that is to be expected. They were siblings! Twins!
"Naru depended greatly on his brother. It doesn't look like it but Naru was a lot more outgoing when he was with his brother. Do you know why he went to Japan?" She asks me seriously, I shake my head slowly.
"He went there to find Gene's body. We had only found out that Gene had died when Naru saw visions of him being killed." I shiver involuntarily and I can feel the sadness rise up in my body like bile.
"Why would anyone…" I whisper fading out.
"It was a hit and run accident, or so we think but Naru wouldn't tell us anything else. We had contacted the police in Japan but they couldn't find Gene's body." I shut my eyes to stop the tears from leaking out. Then I suddenly remember.
"Gene! I know where I've seen him before!" My tears roll down my face but I keep telling Mrs. Davis about the dreams I would use to have. "I've seen him before in my dreams, years ago when I was working at SPR. But I've stopped seeing him since I left. Or should I say he's stopped seeing me since I left because I have no power over when I'll see him." She gently wipes my tears away.
"There, there, don't cry. It's fine, I'm sorry I told you about Gene." I shake my head.
"No, it's normal to grieve. I think I'm hurting more for myself than for anything else now."
"Do you miss him?" She asks me handing me a tissue.
"Yes." I answer miserably, "I've missed him the moment I left, not just to London but the moment I left his life forever. It ate me up so much I often just left like I'm hollow." I stop up the tears and start on a more cheerful conversation,
"It'll be Kenji's seventh birthday soon, I wonder where we'll have it. Most years we just have the two of us celebrating at home but this year will be different." Mrs. Davis picks up on the change and follows my lead.
"When will he be turning seven?"
"In July…"
"That's in a few months only!" She exclaims much to my surprise. "Please have it here! We'll get everyone to come!" That's if we're all alive by then. I shake the morbid thought out of my head.
"I suppose so…" Just five more months… will all this be over by then? I hope it will be.
---
A grey haze everywhere, some places were darker almost to black while other places had shades of purple tinting it. All of these places, some we've been before others we haven't. The cave we went to was covered in a purple haze thinning out to a grey around the edges. Mai's house is covered in a pitch-black haze of the deepest darkest shade I've ever seen. Several other places were shrouded in the same black but there were more places covered in the purple or grey haze.
There's a pattern to this. The black haze is at Mai's house… Then a familiar mansion, there is a black haze surrounding it but it has not covered it yet and I can feel an unexplained feeling dread chew on the insides of my stomach.
I suddenly wake up on my cold desk. Groaning I rub out a crick in my neck, my fault for falling asleep on my desk I suppose. The dream! I push away from my desk jumping up to retrieve the thick over spilling case file from above the filing cabinet. I pull out the papers with little ceremony and leaf through them to find what I know will be there.
Photos. Maps. They're all there. I can't believe what I'm seeing; all the places covered in black were the places where the killings took place. It still doesn't explain the purple or grey but there's a connection. Everywhere covered in black had a murdered person… The mansion… It hasn't been covered yet but I know something bad will happen once the black haze covers it.
I shove all the papers back into the folder before leaving my office to find Lin typing away at his laptop.
"Lin, we have to go to England. I think I know how to stop this. And if I don't stop it now… This is our last chance."
"London? To your parent's place?" He asks me stopping his rapid typing to talk to me.
"Yes, London! And NOW would be very good Lin. I'm going to leave the tickets up to you. I'll call everyone and tell them. Don't bother to book for everyone. Just the first flight out for the two of us, get them a six AM flight." I leave his office and quickly glance at the clock. Four AM. That's too bad then, they'll just have to get up.
"What is it…?" Ayako greets me tiredly on the phone after the fifth ring.
"I need you to get up now. Lin and I are going over to London as soon as possible, you're on the six AM flight. I'm going to call Bou and Masako san now."
"Naru, what is happening? You call me at…" she knocks something off a table before cursing under her breath, "at 4 AM demanding that I get up this very moment."
"Ayako, I don't have time to explain to you now. Just get up and get ready. Call Bou san at five." I hang up before listening to her further complaints. I dial in Bou san's number and on the tenth ring I hear it being picked up.
"Hello…?"Bou san mutters half-conscious.
"It's me Naru, I need you to get up and get ready. Pick Ayako up from her house when she calls you and come to SPR. Lin and I are going to London as soon as possible. I think I've got some kind of a lead on this case. When you get to SPR the tickets for your flights will be on my desk. It's for the six AM flight so don't miss it." I hear him yawn loudly over the phone.
"Fine… We'll be there… Am I picking up Masako?"
"If she calls you yes. Since you have the extra key I'm leaving it up to you to be here to let everyone in." He stifles another yawn.
"K, Naru." I hang up and dial Masako's private number; the phone is picked up on the third ring.
"May I help you?" A sleepy but polite Masako greets the phone.
"I need you to get up and get ready to come down to the SPR. Lin and I are going over to London as soon as we can. You, Bou san and Ayako are getting on a six AM flight Lin booked. If you need someone to come and pick you up call Bou san. If not be at the office no later than five thirty."
"Did you find something linking the case there?" She asks me less sleepy now.
"Yes. Bou san has the key to let you all in." I hang up without further explanations and walk into Lin's study.
"The flight is in less than an hour's time. I suggest we hurry." He shuts his laptop down and packs it up into the carry bag before shrugging on his coat. He hands me the details for their flight along with all the necessary paper work for them to be able to check in. I return to my study and set them on my table, using a paperweight to hold them down, I pick up the case file and head out to the front door lifting my coat off the coat stand before shutting the door shut behind me. Lin is already outside waiting for me.
The pre-dawn sky; darker than any other time reflected almost the same shade of black I saw in my dreams. Only a few stars were shining, reducing the oppressiveness of the pre-dawn sky. I pull on my coat and hurry down the stairs.
I pull the car door firmly shut before buckling the seat belts. As Lin drives to the airport on empty streets the same unexplained feeling of dread starts to chew on my stomach. Will I be too late?
Will I be too late this time? I was an idiot to send her to London like that, I've got my opening but at the cost of her safety. Please God, let her be unharmed when I get there. I beg silently to the twinkling stars above me.
A/N: How was that? Repetitive? Not really interesting? Despite my misgivings about this chapter I still hope you enjoyed it! Please leave a review too! Thousand thanks to everyone who has ever reviewed!! oh yes! and what date would be good for Kenji's birthday? any particular meaning to a specific date in July that could relate to Kenji and the story would be good