I don't own him.

Chapter Twenty-Six: Only Hope

She sleeps like an angel.

But this angel is going to Hell.

She sleeps like royalty.

But this princess is going to end the war.

The war she started.

Twenty-eight years ago.

When I was born.

I never understood abandon.

But now I get revenge.

Say bye now princess.

And this time, you're white knight isn't going to come.

"You mean the Great Fall?"

"Yes child," Kaede said in a quiet voice. "Four hundred and thirty-two people in that building. One hundred and seven died instantly. The others we're all seriously injured."

"How many?"

"Did I save?" Kaede asked to clarify. "Ninety-eight."

"No," Ami said, looking up from the floor to meet Kaede's unwavering gaze. "How many did you lose?"

"Many doctors lost their patients. It couldn't be helped. I saw ninety-nine people from that wreck. I lost one."

"Who?"

"Haku Ohta, father of three and married. He died saying their names…"

"That must have been difficult."

"You can't save them all, even with gifts. It took me a while to understand that."

"Everyone feels guilt during death. It's hard to accept. It makes you wonder how monsters can walk the earth and embrace it."

"They are monsters," Kaede agreed. "Full of evil and hatred, these monsters take it as a blessing."

"So you're a psychic?" Ami asked, looking towards her psychiatrist with interest.

"I am," Kaede said. "I'm a healer, a clairvoyant and I also have the ability to tell if another person is psychic and what ability he or she has."

Ami looked at Kaede with a curious look. "So I take it you've talked to Kagome?"

Kaede frowned, her eyebrows furrowing and her nose scrunching up. "How would you know?"

"I just…know." Ami sighed. "I'm sorry; I don't know much of it myself."

"Wait a minute…" Kaede whispered, looking over her client a little more carefully. "You're-"

Ami gave a ghost of a smile. "I wondered if you'd figure it out."

And it was then that a sudden blinding pain overwhelmed, and one's vision went black.

"You can't be serious chief," Sango said, her eyes wide in disbelief. "Kagome having a half-sister and not even knowing it?"

Inuyasha sat at his desk, his head in his hands as he tried to piece it together. "It's…possible. If Kagome's mother put up the child for adoption before Kagome got a chance to really know her baby sister, then there's always the possibility that she has one."

"So this half-sister has the other half of the jewel?"

"Apparently, yes."

Sango sat down on the seat that sat on the other side of his desk. "Then there would be good motive," she stated. "Not being kept. If Kagome didn't know, then the girl must have tried to find her family."

"Only to find she had an older sister because the first killings started after Kagome's mother died."

"That makes sense. Did she tell you that?" Sango asked.

"Yeah," Inuyasha nodded and then frowned. "But, why not keep the child?"

"They couldn't afford it?" Sango suggested.

Inuyasha shook his head. "Money wasn't the problem. Maybe…Kagome's mother had an affair?"

"How would you know money wasn't the problem?"

Inuyasha met Sango's gaze. "The connection we have… It let us see each other's memories. I basically know her entire life."

"And she knows yours?"

Inuyasha nodded. "Kagome's parents lived and worked at some sort of hotel. Say…Kagome's mother had an affair with one of the clients. She gets pregnant. The client is probably already gone so she's left with a baby. Kagome would've only been a young kid then."

"So then when Kagome's father found out, he wanted to get rid of it."

Inuyasha mused that thought for a moment, remembering what Kagome told him. 'Maybe that's why Kagome's father was so abusive to her mother. The fact that she cheated on him.'

"So the profile has now been changed," Sango stated. "We're looking for a female –not a male. Younger then thirty-three."

"But there's a lot of them in Trite," Inuyasha said. "It's going to be hard to find out who it is. Dammit."

Just then Ayame poked her head in. "Chief, I have some news."

"What is it Ayame?" Inuyasha asked.

"I found a picture of Kikyo at the high school she went to. Something just turned up. I sent Kouga to get it."

"Alright, so now we may have a definite picture of the next victim."

"Hopefully," Sango added. Then, both Sango and Inuyasha filled Ayame in on what they found out. "So let's think about this. Who could the killer be? This girl has to be strong, both mentally and physically. She kills every five years, one woman every seven days."

Ayame thought about it. Something was just so familiar… "The twenty-eight year old grudge," Ayame whispered.

"What?" Sango asked.

"It's a pattern," Ayame said. "Don't you see? If the girl was orphaned and she's jealous because she was given up, wouldn't the grudge start from when you were born? Even if you didn't know, she had unknowingly suffered for twenty-eight years. The killer has to be around twenty-eight."

"Five…one…seven," Inuyasha murmured. Then, he remembered something. "Kagome was five when her mother had the baby."

Sango was about to ask but remembered the connection. Even when you're a young child, you notice things about parents. "So five represents the age gap between the two sisters. One and seven… January seventh!"

Ayame gave Sango a questioning glance and one look from Inuyasha made her explain. "January seventh is the date of Tsubaki's birthday! Tsubaki is twenty-eight, she moved to Trite when she was young…"

"It fits," Inuyasha agreed. "Ayame, get everyone together. Sango, get a warrant. We're going to pay Tsubaki a visit."

It took twenty minutes for all of them to get ready. By the time they were all assigned groups and cars and a plan was made, it was around four-thirty. Tsubaki's house was easy enough to get to since she lived in the heart of Trite and as the police circled around her house, some from the backstreets and others from the far side.

"Sango, you ready?" Inuyasha asked, getting out of the police cruiser.

"Ready," Sango confirmed and the two casually strolled up the walkway, looking bored but extremely alert.

"There aren't any lights on," Sango said.

Inuyasha cursed quietly but still went to the door and knocked. He saw his men –and Ayame- stationed around the house. No answer came.

Inuyasha waved for Hiten to come to the door. He held in his hands an instrument made to bash in the doorknob so it would immediately unlock and open.

"Tsubaki Mizuka," Inuyasha called. "This is Trite police. We have a warrant to search your house. Open the door."

When no noise could be heard, Inuyasha nodded and Hiten bashed the door, taking him three swings before it was knocked open and Ayame rushed in, gun at the ready. Sango, Manten and Inuyasha were right behind him, as well as a couple other officers.

"Clear!" Ayame yelled after searching a couple rooms.

"Clear!" Sango yelled.

"Clear!" Inuyasha repeated and then they all met in the kitchen. "She's gone."

"Her clothes are still there though, all her jewellery. Nothing's missing but I don't think her car is parked in the garage."

"Double-check," Inuyasha told Sango and then suddenly, his phone went off.

"What?" Inuyasha growled when he flipped open the phone.

"Chief, I think you'll want to take a look at this," Kouga's voice was unmistakable.

"What is it Kouga?"

"I have the picture of Kikyo and if I didn't know better, I'd say that it would be Kagome's twin."

"Kagome?" And it was then that it all made sense. He couldn't believe he just hadn't put two and two together.

And she was at home.

Not with him.

He hung up without any more words and then dialled Miroku's number. He wasn't met with a 'hello' however, but a frantic cry.

"Inuyasha! Kagome's gone!"

Inuyasha felt his blood go cold.

"I don't know where she is but she left her cell phone and certainly didn't talk to me. I think… I think she was taken."

He couldn't speak.

"There's a big window in the shrine and it's open, just a crack so you wouldn't notice if you weren't looking, but it's still open. I think that's how he got her."

Finally, Inuyasha found the voice to speak. "…It's a she. I'll be over in a second."

When he shut the flip phone, Sango, Ayame, Hiten, Manten and the rest of his workers just stared at him.

"Chief?" Sango asked hesitantly. "Kagome…she isn't…"

"Get in the Goddamned cars now!"

Nothing else needed to be said.

It took fifteen-minutes to get to Kagome's house but to Inuyasha it felt like forever. He felt numb and cold. So very, very cold. Kagome was gone, taken.

Kagome could be dead.

Dead.

And cold.

"Chief!" Sango screamed, stirring Inuyasha out of his thoughts.

He didn't say anything though, but his ears flickered in her direction.

"Don't think that way," Sango said. "She's going to be okay. She's not…"

Inuyasha stared at her but Sango didn't back down.

"Don't look at me like that, you know I'm right. You were thinking that she was dead. Well, she isn't so stop zoning out, you're scaring me."

"Scaring you?" Inuyasha hissed. He laughed bitterly. "Sango, you don't know the half of it."

Sango didn't comment for two reasons. One: there was nothing she could say and two: they were at the house. Miroku came rushing out, his face drained of colour and his eyes shiny. It looked like he was on the verge of crying.

Sango ran out of the car and jumped into his arms, knowing that it was the least she could do. She couldn't take away his pain but if he knew she was there…maybe he wouldn't feel so alone. Sango buried her face in the crook of his neck and she could feel Miroku's grip around her back. He held her so tightly Sango wasn't sure if she could breathe, but she said nothing.

Right now, Miroku needed her and that was the important thing.

"She's gone," he whispered, so brokenly Sango almost burst into tears right then and there. "She's gone."

"Shh," Sango hushed, rocking him slightly. "We're going to find her. We're going to get her back."

"Please…" Miroku murmured and then held her for a moment longer before letting her –slowly- go. Inuyasha was no where in sight and when Miroku walked towards the house, Sango touched his hand gently and felt his large hand grasp hers. They found the police chief in the room, standing before the large window Miroku had described.

"This is definitely how Tsubaki got in and out."

"Tsubaki?" Miroku asked. "What are you talking about?"

"Tsubaki Mizuka is the killer. Tsubaki Mizuka is Kagome's half-sister."

Miroku paled even more and looked at Sango like she was insane. "Half-sister?"

"Same mother," Sango said, nodding. "I'll explain it later but right now we have to find Kagome."

"I think I can help you," a quiet voice said from behind and when the three spun around, they came face-to-face with Ami Dai.

"What are you doing out of the hospital?" Inuyasha asked. "What are you doing here?"

"I know where Kagome is."

"What?" Inuyasha exclaimed. "Wait, what the hell is going on?"

"I brought her here," another voice said and then Kaede came in the door, poking her head around before showing herself.

"I saw Kagome," Ami said, still quiet. "She was in a dark place…"

"What the hell is going on?" Inuyasha screamed. "Tell me!"

"Ami is psychic," Kaede said. "She's a Seer, like Miroku's mother. And she saw Kagome."

I did it.

It's only a matter of time now.

Let the fun begin.

Come out, come out Inuyasha. Save the princess.

Save the bitch.

Because time is running out and Kagome's life is in your hands.

Come and find me.

Tag you're it.

"What did you see?" Inuyasha asked; his voice sounding both desperate and rushed. "Where is she?"

"I don't…know exactly where she is," Ami said quickly, still in that hushed voice. "I know she's confined somewhere, in the dark. There's something…smooth at her feet but I don't know how big of a room she's in. She's alive, but knocked out."

"For how long?" Inuyasha asked.

"I don't know."

"How long?" he repeated.

"I don't know."

"Dammit Ami, what help is-"

Shut up you jerk… She's trying.

Kagome?

Inuyasha stopped dead in his tracks, his words cut off and his eyes wide. Did he just hear Kagome? He swore that was her voice, scolding him for being impatient and ungrateful. No, it couldn't be her. She's not here.

Kaede frowned and studied Inuyasha, hearing his thoughts from her ability. 'Interesting,' she thought but didn't say anything.

"I'm sorry," Inuyasha said quickly. "I'm just…"

Ami gave a ghost of a smile. "Don't. But I want to help."

"Okay, well then we have to figure out where Tsubaki is. I want everyone we can afford out on the streets, looking. Tell them to check every nook, cranny and hole," he said pointedly to Sango.

Sango nodded and rushed off.

Ami tilted her head and closed her eyes. "She's…somewhere in the main part of Trite."

Inuyasha narrowed his eyes. "Wouldn't that make it so much more difficult? People could see her… I don't get it."

"The area is…fairly secluded, but still in the heart of it."

Inuyasha took in that information. "Well, that will stop us from wasting our time on the outskirts. Are you positive?"

"Yes."

"Alright then."

Sango ran in. "Inuyasha, call Sesshomaru."

"Why?" Inuyasha asked harshly.

"We have no clue where Tsubaki is," Sango started. "But she did leave us those notes after every murder. Maybe there's a clue in one of them."

Inuyasha sighed. "It's a possibility."

Dialling Sesshomaru's number, Inuyasha updated his half-brother about the situation.

"Alright, Kagura and I will get to the station and I'll call you the minute I know something."

"Okay, thanks," Inuyasha said, unbelieving that he just thanked his brother. Sesshomaru seemed to be equally shocked but didn't comment. He just hung up.

"Inuyasha," Kaede's voice called from another room and Inuyasha followed the voice to Kagome's bedroom.

"Why are you in here?" he asked angrily. "Get out."

Kaede nodded. "Fine but I understand who Tsubaki is."

Inuyasha stopped dead in his tracks, not grasping what she said. "What?"

Kaede seemed to ignore him and just walked around the room, touching fabrics and items that Kagome owned. She wasn't like Kagome in the sense that when she went too deep she went in a sort of trance, Kaede just looked a bit…zoned out. Like she wasn't really there but in a land far, far away.

"It was too easy," Kaede murmured. "She expected it to be more of a challenge."

Inuyasha didn't like the sound of that but didn't say anything, waiting patiently for the first time in his life. If Kaede had anything important to say, she would say it.

Kaede then turned to face Inuyasha. "Came through the window and hid before they got here and then when Kagome was asleep, took her. Escaped by the same means."

Inuyasha nodded. It was basically what he had suspected.

"She was chloroformed…" Kaede started but then trailed off, walking out of the bedroom and to where the window was. "Kagome woke up. Kagome saw her and then Tsubaki chloroformed her. It didn't matter though; Tsubaki could've killed Kagome in a second if she wanted to."

"Then why didn't she?"

Kaede shrugged. "I don't know. All I'm getting is something about a…test. No, more like a game."

"The notes," Inuyasha said. "The information, the psychic hints, the stories and the jewel shards –all of them were pieces of the puzzle. Put the puzzle together and you get the answer. This is like a game. Tsubaki is toying with our minds."

"Not toying… Tsubaki is…seeing if it's true. Kagome was kept and Tsubaki was given away. Tsubaki was second best. She's seeing if it's true. She's not toying with you, she's proving herself."

Inuyasha was too stunned for words so he stayed silent. Kaede seemed to understand that he needed to take it all in so she left the room, leaving him alone. Everyone was outside, doing something important to try and get Kagome back.

And what was he doing? Sitting around hoping that it was all a bad dream.

He really didn't deserve Kagome.

His ring tone stirred him out of his depressing thoughts and answering it automatically, he was vaguely surprised to hear Sesshomaru's voice.

"We think you're right. There may be a clue in the recent note that we were given."

"What is it?" Inuyasha asked, desperate for some sort of lead. He had to save Kagome, he just had to…

"The line that puzzled me before was 'when two more suns by love's place.' Kagura and I figured it out. Kagome is somewhere near your house."

"My house?!" Inuyasha exclaimed, unbelieving. "Are you sure? I mean…"

"Logic Inuyasha. You're house is in the heart of Trite but there aren't many homes in the area. You have a lot of land, don't you?"

"Yes."

"Then wouldn't it only be fitting? She loves you, doesn't she?"

Inuyasha wanted to argue but stayed silent. "Kagome is at my house. It's too easy."

"A trap, most likely."

"More or less what I was thinking, so thanks. I'll update you in a bit."

Inuyasha hung up and jumped into his truck, radioing everyone to his house and providing a plan of action. Giving Kaede and Ami a vague bit of information on what was happening, Inuyasha wasted no time driving towards his house, a small flat that had served him over the many years alone. It was an old place, built a long time ago but renovated to keep up with living standards.

It was like he was living a dream. Everyone followed the plan as they stalked there way to his house, surrounding the place and then screaming orders. Yelling Tsubaki's name, listing her faults, not hearing a sound and then invading the couple roomed building.

Shouts of "clear" rang through Inuyasha's ears but he didn't really digest anything until a gun shot rang through the air. Yells and orders were barked out, and a door was slammed as Tsubaki, a gun in hand, darted around the house, successfully shooting and knocking the wind out of several of the younger officers. The bullet proof vest protected them from death but the loss of air was something that couldn't be escaped.

Dropping the gun after several clicks signalling the gun was empty filled the air, Tsubaki ran to the far back of the property and chasing after her, Inuyasha and his team set out to stop her. Bound by rights and law, no one shot at her, Tsubaki being defenceless and unable to harm any longer. There was a small section where many thick coniferous trees blocked the view, but when the roar of a car engine came to life, Inuyasha could feel the muscles in the backs of his legs and arms tense up and he pushed himself forward.

He had to find Kagome, before it was too late.

Tsubaki's car tore down the back streets and Inuyasha felt a stab of pain as he watched Tsubaki escape. He couldn't let that happen. He had to find Kagome.

The safety off and levelling his gun, Inuyasha didn't hesitate before shooting a single bullet into the back right tire of Tsubaki's car and it went spinning out of control, crashing into the metal guard rail. Tsubaki stumbled out as Inuyasha caught up, his gun out and pointing at her. He opened his mouth, ordering her to get down and put her hands behind her head but then a glint of black metal caught his gaze. Tsubaki had another gun.

And she was aiming it at him.

Another gun shot resonated through the surrounding area and Sango yelled in deep panic. Tsubaki had fired.

It hit Inuyasha straight in the chest, the bullet lodged deeply dead center of his chest and lucky for him, in his bullet-proof vest. Inuyasha felt his body being forced back, a sharp pain and felt the world spinning. Tsubaki was still in his sight though and as he fell through the air towards the asphalt, he randomly shot, aiming for Tsubaki's figure.

Sango ran forward towards Inuyasha, his body sprawled on the road and automatically shouted orders. Tsubaki's shrill scream could be heard and Sango could hear Hiten's panicked voice. The gun was out of Tsubaki's hand but a bullet lodge just to the left of her chest was clear for everyone to see.

Blood poured from her body and gushed to the street, staining the grey rock an unsettling purplish-red. Her eyes glazed over and Hiten compressed around the wound, realizing that the bullet punctured her heart and her breaths were her last. Two minutes later, Tsubaki was dead and the ambulance and fire trucks filled the streets. Inuyasha was up but slightly shaken. He had killed Tsubaki, the only person who knew where Kagome was. He killed his only chance.

"Chief!" Ayame screamed; rushing up to him as EMS handled the situation. Forensics were already called and on their way but it would be a while before they showed up. "We found something!"

"W-What?" Inuyasha asked; his voice raspy and gaping.

"It's another note," Ayame said, handing Inuyasha a white piece of paper. "It was with Tsubaki."

Tick-toc. Tick-toc.

Kagome will be dead in a matter of minutes.

You have until ten-o-four. Then she's dead.

Tick-toc. Tick-toc.

Time's running out.

Because it was already ten-to-ten. Kagome had fourteen minutes to live.

Final Chapter- Time's Up: In there lay Kagome's body, her skin as pale as the dead and her black raven hair spread out around her. Her eyes were closed and her lips were together and chapped. Her hands were clenched in tight fist by her side and her body was absolutely frozen…

Please don't kill me...