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OOC warning.
Disclaimer: I do not own KHR
Chapter Three: Unexpected Dilemma
I bolt up with a gasp, my breaths out short and ragged as I took in my surroundings. I was in a dull gray sparsely furnished room bearing no windows.
What…? This isn't my bedroom. How'd I end up here? In response to my question, the memories played in my head like a movie. That's right… 'Amelia' lured me to the parking lot and then transformed into a man, and he and his partner knocked me out with chloroform. So, now that they've kidnapped me, what'll they do to me now? I wondered, fear seizing my heart.
Even though I was in terrifying situation, there was something that disturbed me even more. That man in the glasses had disguised himself as Amelia, but how did he do it? He looked and acted just like Amelia, but how…? I replayed the man's transformation in my head and then shook my head as if to shake away the image. Oh, who cares how he did it. I should focus more on escaping.
I rolled off the bed and flinched when I felt the coldness of the cement floor through my bare feet. Ugh, my flip flops must have fallen off when they dragged me away. I hurried toward the wooden door, trying the knob and gasping happily when it twisted easily. I opened the door, cringing at the ear-grating squeak that echoed throughout the silent hall. I poked my head out to see a gray hallway dimly lit by small orange bulbs lining the ceiling. Drat, which way should I go? I wondered, oscillating my head in both directions. I withdrew my head in the room and frowned as I contemplated if I should even move. It's not smart to run around an unknown area where you can easily get caught. For all I know, this place is probably booby trapped!
Still though, if I were to remain in the room, my chances of escape were zero, but if I were to leave and search for an exit, my chances would increase even if it's 1%. It was certainly better than zero. With this reasoning, I sprinted to the right, praying to God it would lead to my salvation. When I reached the end, I looked both ways and turned right, reaching another end that branched into two more halls. At this rate, I would undoubtedly get lost. Where are breadcrumbs when you need them? Still, though, I couldn't turn back now. I make right after right and, after a while, I wondered if I was going in circles. This was confirmed when I wound back at the room.
Okay, fine. I'll just alternate the turns, I decided, running down the hall and making a left and then a right. But the result remained the same. "Argh! What the hell?!" I growled, jumping up and down in frustration. I punched the wall across the room with the side of my fist. I may not be much of a threat, but I swear, when I see those jerk-holes, I'm gonna—"H-Hey, what's happening?" I asked, shocked.
The hall trembled slightly, a rumbling noise filling the air as a section of the wall shifted vertically, revealing stone stairs ascending into the darkness. I blinked at the newly revealed passageway. Well, that was unexpected. I rushed up the stone stairs, the wall returning to its normal position and bathing the passage and myself in total darkness. Before I could panic, embers along the wall flickered to life, leading upward and providing light—albeit dim—to the passage.
Whoa, cool, I thought briefly admiring the torches. Wait, this is no time for admiration! I gotta go before they discover I'm missing. I rocketed up the stairs, tripping twice until I reached a cement wall, but I wasn't fooled.
Like before, I punched the middle of the wall and stepped back when the wall vibrated before shifting vertically, allowing a stream of light to pour into the dim corridor and temporarily blinded me. I lifted a hand to shield my eyes from the brilliant glow.
Yes, I did it! I'm free! I inwardly rejoiced, running out of the gloomy passage into what looked to be a large fancy study room.
The large oval windows allowed the afternoon sunlight to provide natural light. Damn. I thought for sure I was outside. I looked behind me to see I had emerged from a section of a bookshelf. The section returned to normal with a click, and I was left in wonderment. So, now what? As I pondered my next move, I heard voices outside the door and squeaked involuntarily as I frantically looked about the room for a hiding spot.
Oh, my goodness, the voices are getting closer! Where do I hide? There's no place to hide!
At least, no decent places anyway. I couldn't escape via the secret passageway because it took a while to open, plus the whole shaking thing would undoubtedly draw attention. There was a black sofa I could possibly hide behind, but that'd be stupid. I'd get caught in a second. The other possible choice was under the wide mahogany desk, but if someone were to sit at the desk, he'll definitely see me. The knob started to turn, jolting me into movement, and I dove under the desk at the exact moment the door opened.
"Now that you have the girl, what is your next move?" A woman asked.
I stiffened at the question, my heart threatening to burst out of my chest. They're talking about me! I drew my knees closer to my chest as I listened to the conversation with growing apprehension.
"We grab his attention, of course," a male spoke softly, so soft that I had to strain my ears to hear him. "Send Kaoru and Koyo."
"As you wish, though do you really think he'll try and rescue the girl? They only met once. They're barely acquaintances," the woman voiced her doubts.
"Even if that's true, he'll respond. After all, she saved his life."
Even though I had no idea what the man looked like, by the way his tone darkened, I could imagine him looking pissed. But the conversation disturbed me, and the last sentence the man spoke confirmed it for me.
Could they be talking about… Tsuna? Perfect. Just bleepin' perfect. The people who kidnapped me were the ones responsible for shooting Tsuna. For them to know it was me who took care of him meant that they were watching us! But why didn't they finish the job that night? I wondered.
"I still don't understand why you didn't let me dispose of them both. The area was absent of witnesses. It would have been simple to finish off Sawada and silence the girl."
I blanched at the woman's frosty tone, a wave of nausea and horror overwhelming me and threatening to knock me out. I knew it… Tsuna was into some shady stuff and now I was all caught up in it! I recalled Amelia's bizarre reaction when I told her my story and squeezed my eyes shut in an attempt to stem the tears. Amelia warned me. Somehow, she knew Tsuna was no good and warned me about him, but now it was too late.
But it doesn't make any sense. Even though I hardly knew the guy, for some reason, I can tell Tsuna's not a bad guy. I mean, he left the apartment, leaving behind that note saying he didn't want to inconvenience me, but really I think he left because he knew I'd be in danger if he remained with me any longer.
I stifled a sigh as I took in my current situation. Some good that did…. I realized the man hadn't replied and briefly feared if he was aware of my presence, but then I heard someone flopping on the sofa while heaving an exhausted sigh.
"I know that," the man spoke tiredly.
"Are you telling me that after we succeed in getting Sawada to meet with us, you'll just let the girl go?"
The man didn't reply, and I realized I was holding my breath as I waited for him to speak and quietly exhaled.
"No, of course not. She was dead as soon as she saved his life," the man said, the icy tone returning.
"Then why—?"
"Because this way we don't have to risk anyone else getting involved. What if someone had passed by the alley—just like the girl—while you killed them? You'd have to eliminate them, too. No, this way is less messy. We use the girl to lure Sawada, and once her purpose is fulfilled, we'll dispose of her." The man was speaking with such detachment, I had to wonder if he really was human or a robot masquerading as a human.
"I understand. My apologies, Enma-sama."
"As long as you get it, it's fine. Send out Koyo and Kaoru now while you go and check on our prisoner to see if she's awaken yet. If she has, have a meal prepared for her. I can't have her starving to death."
"Yes, I will do that right away."
Light footsteps hurried out the room followed by a slam of the heavy wooden door. Finally alone, the man—Enma— released another weary sigh before flopping on his back on the couch. I remained frozen in my hiding place while replaying the conversation in my mind, gripping my legs so tightly as tears streamed silently down my face.
"Now that you have the girl, what is your next move?"
"Do you really think he'll try and rescue the girl?"
"She was dead as soon as she saved his life."
It took every ounce of my strength not to scream my heart out at the dangerous situation I had unwittingly found myself in. They're going to kill me! They're going to flippin' kill me because I was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Or, no, that's not right. I don't regret helping Tsuna. Not even a little bit. I don't know who Tsuna is to these people or why they want him dead so badly, but clearly they're the villains in this scenario, and Tsuna, who at least attempted to keep me safe, was the hero in my book.
I didn't know if Tsuna will risk his life for a stranger—even if he owed said stranger for saving his own life—but I did know that if I didn't get out of this soon, I was screwed. No, worse, I was dead. Dead woman walking, everyone! This Enma person sounded terrifying, especially how he was always speaking in such soft tones. That told you if he did raise his voice—look out. Faint snoring filled the large room, distracting me from my thoughts.
He's fallen asleep! How lucky!
I peered over the desk's edge to see a young man in his early twenties dressed sharply in a black suit resembling Tsuna's. He laid on the black sofa, an arm settled casually across his pale face as he slept. Perfect. Now, I could move freely without worrying about him spotting me. I carefully crept out of my hiding place and dashed behind the sofa, breathing raggedly.
All this adrenaline rush I've been receiving lately cannot be good for me, I inwardly groaned. This was no time to complain, however, as the woman from earlier was sure to find my absence and alert Enma. I had to move quickly. I peeked over the sofa's edge to see Enma's position hadn't changed. Weapon. I need a weapon. If I'm going to continue sneaking around this place, I'm going to need a weapon on the very large chance I get caught.
I surveyed the room, but came up empty, much to my frustration. Enma sighed, removing his arm, and I immediately ducked out of view, my heart thundering in my chest as I heard him shift his body. After what seemed like a lifetime, the soft snoring resumed, and I exhaled in immense relief, though it didn't last long.
"Enma-sama!" The woman from earlier burst into the room, startling both Enma and myself. "The girl—she's gone." Crap, my absence have been discovered already!
"What do you mean she's gone? With how the basement's set up, she should still be down there." I knew it was a trick! All those twists and turns only to end up back where you started….
"I know, but I searched the entire area, and she's definitely not down there. Damn that Julie! I told him to make sure he locks the door. That useless oaf…." As the woman muttered curses, Enma spoke.
"By some dumb luck, she must have discovered one of the hidden passages. Search—"
"Enma-sama!" Another person, a woman, screamed, rushing into the room.
"What is it, Luna?" Enma asked, clearly irritated.
"It's Mami-sama! She's—" The lady, Luna, didn't finish her sentence as Enma was already out of the room.
"Adelheid, search the rooms that have passageways and find the girl. Report when you do."
"Yes, Enma-sama," Adelheid spoke dutifully.
The door shut with a resounding slam as everyone fled the room, leaving me alone. I peeked around the sofa to see I was indeed alone and exhaled loudly. It felt as if I've been holding my breath forever. I had to act fast if I wanted to escape before being discovered. I rushed over to one of the oval windows and peered outside, my mouth dropping open at the beautiful expansive garden spread out below.
What the—?! Where is this place?! Am I still in Japan? I wondered worriedly.
The study room was high above the ground, so jumping out the window was not an option… or was it? With how the oval window was designed, one could open a section of glass. I released the latch and pushed open the glass wide enough for me to peer down and spot a narrow ledge running along the wall. I wasn't much of a daredevil or risk taker, but being thrust in a life-or-death situation will cause a person to perform deeds they would literally not even dream of doing.
I exhaled shakily as I swung one leg over and felt the roughness of the ledge beneath my bare foot and swung the other leg until both feet were planted on the narrow ledge. I closed the glass so as to not arouse suspicion when someone returns before slowly, very slowly, inching my way across the ledge. Where did I hope to go? That balcony below me appeared safe. It wasn't that far down from where I was, but I could still seriously injure myself if I wasn't careful. I inched my way towards the balcony until I was right on top of it.
Okay, on the count of three, you're going to jump. One… two….
As I prepared myself, the door on the balcony suddenly opened, sending a violent shock throughout my body and almost causing me to tumble to my death. A small young girl with fiery red hair sporting a short white dress and carrying a plush toy peered out at the magnificent view. Though I couldn't see her face, I could tell something was wrong by how her shoulders where hunched and head was bowed.
"Mami, I told you it's not safe for you to leave the compound," Enma's scolding tone filtered from inside the room.
"I know, nii-san, but they're having a festival today. I wanted to go," the little girl replied, pouting. "How long until I can go outside again?"
"Until I know for certain that you'll no longer be in danger."
"But when will that be?! That can take years!"
"I promise you, it won't. The time is soon coming when everyone who stands in the Simon Family's way will be taken care of. And when that happens, I'll take you to all the festivals around the world."
The girl gasped happily, whirling around to face Enma who still remained hidden in the room. "You promise?"
"I always keep my promises, don't I?"
"Yeah, nii-san does! Yatta! I'm so happy! And Eri-chan is, too!" Mami said, holding up a honey brown teddy bear with a large pink bow tied around her right ear.
"Glad to hear it. So, no more giving Luna a hard time, okay?"
"Hai!" Mami agreed, nodding enthusiastically.
"Oh, and also, stay in your room for a little while."
"Huh? Why?" Mami complained.
"Don't whine; just listen to your big brother, okay?" Mami sighed dramatically before shrugging her shoulders. "Okay, if nii-san says so."
I heard Enma's receding footsteps and watched as Mami heaved another sigh before turning and looking out at the horizon again. Urgh. Now I'd have to find another place to drop, and I had to hurry because my feet were hurting.
Maybe I should just take my chances and try and land in those bushes, I thought, studying the neatly trimmed evergreen shrubs lining the edge of the house. Oh, who am I kidding? At this height, I'll surely be finished.
"Ne, what are you doing up there?" Mami asked, startling me so bad that I leaned backward and plummeted to my doom.