The Truth is Hard to Handle
Chapter 10
Check Mate
Hey y'all! I have a HUGE assignment due tomorrow and I hadn't even started it! S'okay, but this'll teach me to start assignments earlier than this!!!
Mint was tense. Very, very tense. She was sneaking out with Pudding and Zakuro, with Lettuce in Zakuro's arms. Kish probably expected it…after all, he'd been the one who'd forgotten to lock the door and then whispered, "I hope she's OK," to them before he'd left. He probably was even on his way. There was no way to find out until they arrived.
Lettuce seemed half-awake. Maybe she was just asleep, not fainted. Like Pudding. She'd woken up, but went back to sleep. She kept fidgeting and mumbling things…she talked in her sleep. ("No! I don't want the cheesecake!") Mint figured she'd wake up soon.
She wondered if Ichigo was awake. What if Masaya had already gotten there? Was Ichigo safe? How about Ryou and Keiichiro? Wondering was too hard. She mentally told her conscience to shut up, but it kept nagging at her. (Don't you hate it when consciences do that?)
"Come on, let's pick it up," Mint said, "We need to get there before…" she paused, gulped down hard, "well, before anyone else does."
They began to jog, then run and finally, once the café was in view, they sprinted towards it. Mint wondered if Ichigo would actually be there or at her home. Kish was standing directly outside the café, the door cracked open, his whole face pressed against the frame.
"What's happening?" Pudding asked.
"SHHHH!" Kish said, a little too loudly. The people inside paused to look, but did not see anything so continued with their conversation. Zakuro laid Lettuce against the door and they all crowded to peer in, changing into Mew form first.
"He's not dead…yet," Masaya said. He was holding Ryou in one hand. From outside, they couldn't tell if Ryou was conscious or not.
"What do you want with him?" Ichigo asked, secretly wondering why Ryou didn't struggle, but then saw the ropes tied around his wrists and ankles, as well as a gag around his mouth.
Masaya's eyes turned scary, "Revenge."
From outside, Mint whispered, "Why is he like this?"
"I brought him back to life on one thing: hatred," Kish said, "There are only two things powerful enough to fuel a dead body. They are hatred and love. At the end, Masaya didn't love anyone too much, but he hated a lot of people."
"Such as…?" Zakuro asked.
"Ryou, me, Tart, Pai, and even Ichigo a little bit," Kish said, "I think he even hated himself. Or, I guess, what he'd become."
Back inside, they heard Ichigo say, "What can I do to make you stop?" Mint felt like running in there and telling her to stop it.
"Come with me," Masaya said.
That was it. Kish, Mint, Zakuro and Mint stormed in (well, Zakuro carried Lettuce inside first and laid her on the table), yelling and hollering.
"WAIT, GUYS!" Ichigo said, turning to them. Then she turned back to Masaya, but stared at her feet rather than his eyes, "Is there any other way?"
Masaya smiled an evil smile, "Nope."
Kish ran at Masaya, knocking him over and knocking Ryou out of his hands. Ichigo ran to him, unbinding his wrists and un-gagging his mouth. Kish held Masaya down, shouting at the others to run. Every one of the Mew Mews disobeyed. They all stormed at Kish, pulling him off of Masaya, who'd gotten a hold of Kish and was attempting to beat him up. But, as the pulled Kish away, Masaya grabbed onto Ichigo's pink hair and held her tight. He pulled a knife out from his pocket and held it two inches from Ichigo's neck.
Mint squinted and saw blood on the tip. Her blood. He hadn't washed it. It still had her blood on it.
"You wouldn't," Ryou said, stepping closer to Masaya and his hostage. Masaya brought the knife closer to Ichigo's skin, so it was one-half inch away. Ryou stopped. He wouldn't! He loved Ichigo! What purpose would it have?
Ryou wanted to step closer, but what good would that do? He'd only kill her.
Masaya took a step back, dragging Ichigo with him. He stepped further and further back until he left the café completely.
"What now?" Mint asked.
"We save her I guess," Ryou said.
"Argh!" Pudding cried, throwing her arms up in frustration, "I'm so sick of saving people!"
Her comment was funny. Mint would have laughed. But no one felt like laughing.
OK, the main thank you I want to give out today is to Bekka. You know who you are! Thank you for being a loyal reader and reviewer! Also, thank you to Firediva, who is a loyal friend and reader who needs to email me or call me cuz I miss her… :-( Please, please, please review!!! I LIKE it when peeps review! It makes my pathetic life seem ever so much more important! (I'm not dramatic or anything!!!)