NOTE! Okay guys, in case you didn't notice, I screwed up the chappie order. So if you DIDN'T read Darkness (chapter 12), I suggest you read it. Only because it has some information you need to know. Thank you!
Yes. I am back. With another evil chapter. With another evil cliffy.
But I am depressed but I just finished writing the end of Imaginary and am so depressed right now that I can't write... Talk about addiction to your own story...
Disclaimer: No I don't...
Chapter Fourteen: Hate
Kagome waited impatiently in the front seat of her car, waiting for Miroku who was taking his sweet time getting ready. Finally fed up with her friend, Kagome slammed her hand down on the horn, the loud annoying sound resonating through the house.
"I'm coming!" Miroku yelled from somewhere inside. "Just a second, please."
"You said that five minutes ago!" Kagome hollered back at him.
Miroku peeked his head out the door, a small scowl on his face. "I don't think you've been waiting five minutes Kagome, be realistic."
Kagome looked at the clock and mentally calculated. "Oh, I so terribly sorry, I've been waiting six minutes. Please, forgive me."
"You're so touchy this morning," Miroku commented, now walking out of the door with his cell in hand. "Sango and I already apologized for what happened last night."
Kagome blushed and looked down. "I told you Miroku, enough of that. And I'm not touchy."
Miroku smiled and shook his head. "So I trust that things are good with you and Inuyasha?"
Kagome shrugged. "I think so."
"Well, once again I'm sorry for…interrupting the two of you."
"Nothing was happening Miroku!" Kagome whined.
Miroku laughed. "My dear sweet Kagome, I know you're not that naïve. And we both know I'm not naïve. You were heading towards the bedroom, am I right?"
Kagome glared at Miroku, and the words shut up rang all too clearly in his mind. "Let's just go," Kagome muttered. "Inuyasha wants us to be there to help him with some stuff. I think they're getting the results of both the blood in the warehouse and on the axe. Everything was backed up so I think they're just sending everything over together."
"Yes, Sango told me all about it last night."
Kagome smirked. "Oh, I almost forgot. How was your dessert date last night?"
"I assure you Kagome it was not a date of any sort. More like…a friendly outing."
Shaking her head, Kagome laughed. "Right, I see."
"And it's not me and Sango that you should be worrying about. It should be you and Inuyasha. And me, being an absolute pro at this love thing, think it's for the best," Miroku's voice sounded innocent enough but Kagome took none of it.
"Conceit is God's gift to little men, remember that Miroku," Kagome murmured just loud enough for her friend to hear.
"Aesop?"
Kagome shook her head, smiling at Miroku. "No, Bruce Barton."
Inuyasha drummed his fingers, impatiently on his desk, waiting for his deputy Sango to hurry up and get in his office.
"Sango!" Inuyasha hollered, knowing well that Sango could easily hear him.
"Hold up," Sango muttered, waiting patiently as the fax made its way through. "I'm trying to get the information for you."
"Then hurry up!" Inuyasha's snappy voice came back.
"Hey chief, do you want the info or not because I can just as easily push it through the shredder."
Inuyasha remained quiet after that and smirking triumphantly, Sango grabbed the finally finished fax sheet.
"Here," Sango said as she entered Inuyasha's office. "It's the past history of the warehouse. It never belonged to Yuri or anyone under the Wadena name. The most recent was in 1976 when it belonged to a man named Mr. Orikasa."
Inuyasha frowned. "Isn't Nazuna's last name Orikasa?"
Sango thought for a moment and then nodded. "Yeah and it's her father's last name too. I already needed to check Nazuna out because of some stuff between her, Shippo and Kirara. Didn't she come in claiming she was the killer?"
Inuyasha nodded, shrugging. "She hated Kirara after what happened with the so-called love triangle. I don't know ask her but I guess she wanted Kirara dead and after it happened she just sort of…lost it."
"Did she have a solid alibi?"
"As far as I could tell, she did. I'd further check into it though."
Sango nodded and clapped her hands. "Got it. Oh, and Miroku and Kagome should be here soon. Any reason you wanted them to come here?"
"I want Kagome to check over the scene's where we found the bodies…maybe their apartments. I want to get as much information as I can."
"Even as ominous as that?" Sango raised a brow. "So what exactly did you do before we crashed your little party?"
"Don't tease me now; you're the one that set us up in the first place."
Sango's cell phone ring held off any comment Sango was about to bring. Answering it quickly, Sango flipped open the phone and spoke.
"Yeah?"
"I think Inuyasha better go outside," Miroku's voice came in clearly. "We can't get in there without being seen and unless you want us to go in there publicly, I suggest you do something. Reporters are practically setting up camp."
Sango gasped and looked outside. "Okay, thanks Miroku. I'll call when it's clear." When she hung up, Sango looked at Inuyasha. "Chief, did you not see the twenty something people outside the station?"
Inuyasha jumped up and dashed to the door, cursing when he saw the people. "What sort of people work here if no one can see the freaking reporters piling up outside our door?" Inuyasha spoke loud enough to make sure everyone knew he was not happy and soon everyone was looking outside, hiding sheepish grins.
Taking a deep breath, Inuyasha forced himself outside and into the crowd of people. As fast as he could, Inuyasha organised a date for the meeting to take place where he would answer as many questions as he could tomorrow. It took a while and lots of promises, but finally they were all gone.
Inuyasha walked in and stared at the main office where everyone seemed to look at him. "Traitors," he murmured and then walked back into his office.
Twenty minutes later, Kagome and Miroku walked into the office.
"Did you learn anything new?" Kagome asked hopefully.
"Well the warehouse that Yuri was using belongs to a man named Mr. Orikasa or so he was the most recent owner of it. And if we're correct, Mr. Orikasa is Nazuna's father," Sango said quickly.
Inuyasha nodded. "I called you two here to help me check out the crime scenes and their places. Maybe Kagome, you can pick up something?"
Kagome looked to the side wall, thinking but then making up her mind, remembering Inuyasha's words last night. "Sure. When do we leave?"
"Right now," he said slowly and then looked at Sango. "I need both of them and are you going to check out Nazuna now?"
Sango nodded. "I'll take Ayame with me, okay?"
"That's fine with me. I just want you to be careful, make sure to question thoroughly. Actually, I prefer you bring her back here and record it. Nazuna seems to be in part with it, even if she doesn't know it."
Kagome zoned out the rest of the conversation and looked around the room. She had been in it several times but the conversation at hand didn't seem to grab her. Something else was calling her attention…something else…
Kagome had no clue what she was searching for but before she made the decision to, Kagome walked out of Inuyasha's office and to the main room. A couple of officers looked at her though she took no notice. Something was telling her to move…
It was like a whisper through the breeze though certainly no wind moved in here. It was a calling of some sort and it was telling her to…to…
Look. Focus Kagome, look.
Her imaginary friend talked to her, soothed her and more quickly she moved. Behind her she heard Inuyasha call her out of confusion and Miroku's deep voice. Sango had yelled something too, but none of it registered. None of it seemed to matter.
Look. It's there.
'What's there?' she wanted to know. She clung to the voice and kept on the realization that she was doing something right, not crazy.
And then she saw it – saw her.
"Nazuna," she whispered. The young woman didn't seem to notice, her eyes were trained on the mat at the door and her hair was up in a hat, her eyes shielded by sunglasses. Kagome started to run forward, the urge to get her strong. Something about what she was doing…what she held.
"Nazuna!" she yelled. Inuyasha's hands grabbed her from behind but soon dropped the minute he realized what she was looking at.
Sango rushed forward and opened the glass door, but Nazuna noticed and saw them. Dropping the sheet of paper, Nazuna made a run for it. The gust of wind that surrounded her blew off her hat and her long brown locks. She made the mistake of trying to get it and before she was able to get it, Sango was at her.
Sango grabbed her arm gently but held a firm grip. "Nazuna, what are you doing here? What's wrong?"
Nazuna struggled to break free. "Let go of me! Let me go!"
When Nazuna saw that Sango was about to hold her in a firmer grip, blind instinct took over and her will to not be caught filled her. Using the hand that Sango hadn't managed to get just yet, Nazuna spun around and slapped Sango.
The burn to her cheek stung and Sango momentarily loosened her grip. Nazuna felt her chance to escape and jerked away, only to crash into a hard body and be trapped again by strong hands.
Sango recovered the instant she let Nazuna get away and when she saw Miroku standing there in front of her, holding a panicked Nazuna, she took charge.
Grabbing handcuffs off her belt, Sango immediately cuffed the screaming girl.
"Chief," Sango called to Inuyasha, whose attention was focused elsewhere. "Where do I put her?"
Inuyasha looked up and thought for a moment, trying to remember what the deputy said. "Room two," Inuyasha shouted and then turned away once more looking at the raven haired girl who was crouched on the ground.
"Two down, two more to go. The stakes are higher and it's all because of you. Her life is in my hands and I'm about to let it slip away. Do you know the meaning of hate?" Kagome's words were clipped, an unusual detachment in her normally musical voice.
"Kagome?" Inuyasha asked. "What are you talking about?"
There's one more, her friend whispered from the darkness in her mind.
"This," Kagome said, her voice sharp. "It's a note, something Nazuna was trying to put under the welcome mat." She pointed to the welcome mat at the front of the door and Inuyasha winced.
Kagome lowered her arm and caught his gaze. "Where's the other note?"
"How did you-?" Inuyasha didn't even finish his own sentence. "Never mind, let's just go back inside."
Kagome nodded and walked away.
"Heaven just keeps getting hotter, doesn't it?" Inuyasha muttered and followed, already dreading the rest of the day.
Sango watched Nazuna with mild interest as she sat down on the chair across from her. Nazuna's eyes seemed to spit rage but when Sango looked closer, she saw something else.
Pure fear.
"Let me out of here," Nazuna said, the words trembling. "I didn't do anything, so let me go."
"Gladly," Sango said. "After answering a few questions, if you don't mind."
"I didn't do it; I swear I'm not the killer!" Nazuna yelled; her voice cracking.
"And yet wasn't it you that willingly came into the station two days ago claiming that you were?"
Nazuna's body physically trembled and tears came to her eyes. "I was scared okay? After what I said about Kirara I thought-"
"What did you say?" Sango interrupted; her voice harsher and more distant. It was part of interrogation that Sango knew she had to be quick and cunning, if not slightly cruel. It was how they seemed to get answers.
"I…I wanted her d-dead. Because Shippo cheated on me with her and she acted as if the world was all smiles and sunshine. I hated her for that."
"Hmm…really? Shippo told me he broke up with you that morning and at the party he got drunk, as did Kirara. It was all an accident and even if it wasn't you were no longer together."
"You don't get it, do you?" Nazuna hissed. "I loved Shippo. Do you know how much it hurts when someone drops you off like that, as if you don't matter? It kills Officer Houko, it really does."
"Literally or figuratively? Explain the notes to me Nazuna, the first one and the second one." Sango handed the girl the two notes and she watched as Nazuna took them, her hands shaking.
"I didn't do it," she whispered.
Sango shrugged. "Then explain this to me."
Nazuna took a deep breath and put them down. "The first one I found quite a few days ago, probably around a week ago. It was on the front seat of my car, I'd never seen it before and it looked so out of place… I read what it said before I touched it and when I realized it probably had something to do with Yuri's death; I grabbed some gloves and moved it. The next morning I put it under the mat, hoping you would find it. The second one I found early this morning, like before dawn. It was on my kitchen table and I don't know when it got there. I hadn't seen it last night; of course I'd gone out for dinner."
"With who?"
"Korari Takeda, you know her?"
Sango shook her head. "Can you give me her address? Where she works maybe?"
Nazuna quickly gave her the information. "She works for that guy named Naraku Morikawa, the lawyer? I believe she's his secretary. But if you're going to check anyone out, I'd check him. He creeps me out."
The car ride to the café was a quiet one. Kagome rode in the back of the car while Miroku sat up front with Inuyasha. They had already gone to the farmer's field, the place where Yuri was murdered. It took a while but soon memories had flooded within her and Kagome had doubled over in pain at the emotion.
She knew the bare facts, that Yuri was strangled to death, cut later. Yuri's feelings were of pure shock, so that told them that the killing was unexpected (though, most were). Kagome had told Inuyasha everything that she felt, everything that she knew…except one thing, one emotion.
Hate.
The power of the hate seemed to be so strong that only pure evil could hold it, treasure it and nurture it. The evil inside the person who did this was strong, fierce and uncontrollable. For some reason, Kagome had felt the need to retain that information and hold it herself. She wouldn't tell him…yet.
It was the strangest feeling, what she felt for Inuyasha. She couldn't quite put her finger on it. Okay, so Miroku and Sango were right, they were heading towards her bedroom last night. But was it strictly just because of all the emotional stress? Sex was always good taking away the heavy weights of stress but…would he really do that to her? Would…she have done that to him?
Kagome sighed in frustration. Why was this so confusing?
Inuyasha noticed her sigh and looked through the rear-view mirror to see her. "Are you okay? We're almost at the café."
Kagome looked at Inuyasha and forced down the heat in her cheeks, thinking about thoughts she would rather keep private. "Yes, sorry. Just…thinking."
Inuyasha nodded. "It sucks, doesn't it?"
Kagome scoffed. "You're telling me."
Their destination appeared only a minute afterwards, and after parking, the three walked slowly out of the car and towards the once popular café. Kagome immediately took in a deep breath and prepared herself. Before she could even shore up her mental walls though, the voices grew and soon she was clouded with noise.
"You'll know…then you'll tell. I can't let you…I won't let you."
Kagome shivered; the voice of the killer strong and loud. It was just like at the field though; she could hear the sound of him but couldn't really tell if it was a deep voice, high voice…hell she didn't even know if it was a boy.
Miroku grabbed her hand. "Will you be okay? Do you need a lifeline?"
Kagome walked into the café without answering, merely shaking her head. She wouldn't have to go deep to find this. She wouldn't even have to try.
"Get away! Leave me alone! What are you doing? What are you doing-?"
Kagome walked around the room, touching the bare walls and the large main counter. Made of marble, the smoothness felt cool to the touch…
Kirara tried to run, wanted to run, anywhere. She had to get out, get out before she was killed. Her life was in danger and her primal instincts for survival took over. Her legs tensed and released as she sprinted, she cut the corner sharply, going behind the counter and towards the door.
"Don't try to run you liar," the voice murmured, the sound deadly quiet.
"Oh God help me! Don't! I didn't know, I didn't know! Oh Jesus I didn't know!" Kirara shrieked. "Help me, please, oh please…"
She was pushed against the counter, the cold chill of the marble sending a shock down her body…
The walls, Kagome noted, were rough, specially designed and decorated. The walls had added texture and a jagged feel…
She was pushed against the hard wall, the air pressed out of her lungs…
She stood in the spot that Kirara's chopped up body lay, hacked into bits…
The final image that flashed through her mind was the glint of the metal and the final sound was the gasping breath when the first impact sliced through her. She couldn't breathe… She couldn't think of anything but the blackness that covered her vision…
Death and an everlasting hate…
"Kagome, dammit, get her out of here," Inuyasha barked, grabbing Kagome when he saw her start to choke for air, her eyes wide and pupils enlarged to the point where there was no colour.
"She must have heard her voice, felt Kirara's pain through the words… She saw the death..." Miroku mumbled; his words barely audible as he chased Inuyasha out of the café where he was currently shaking Kagome.
"Snap out of it, Kagome wake up!"
"Huh?" Kagome groaned.
Inuyasha sighed in relief but then a moment on the sidewalk caught his eye and he immediately cursed. "What the hell are you doing here?"
"Well, hello to you too little brother."
Did you like it?
Next Chapter: Truth-"Hate for what though?" Kagome couldn't help but ask, remembering the strong emotion envelope her body, feeling the lashes as the hands clawed around her throat, as the axe struck down into the flesh…
P.S. Do not give me a review that tells me how long it took for me to update. I know I was late. And I apologize for having a life outside of FanFiction.
Terrible thing, I know.
Please Review! And I will answer any questions you have...unless it's something I can't tell you and you just have to read to find out!