Chapter 9

Help You

A/N: I gained two more readers! Magby and Feardancer have joined ever faithful Kurokineko, Psycho-Phantom, and Tomizu87. Welcome Welcome!

"I'm not going to participate in this any longer! They were my friends and it worries me how lax you are about finding their killer."

Illiana heard her fathers voice through her cracked window. She moved so she could see him. She didn't recognize the man who had his back to the house, but her father's distraught face would haunt her forever.

"They were my friends too." The mysterious man said.

"Then act like it!" her father lost his temper, "I'm pouring everything into finding the person who did this and I'm done helping you!"

Illiana wanted to shout to her father. Tell him to turn around, but it had happened to fast. The man simply put out a gun and fired at her father's back like a coward; leaving him facedown in the driveway.

Illiana sat straight up in bed and put her head on her bent knees. She tried to will away her headache but it wasn't working. She wasn't that drunk last night, but odd dreams were as bad as hangovers. She groaned and rubbed her eyes before climbing from the bed. The message light on her phone was blinking incessantly so she picked it up.

Almost thirty missed calls from Yuri and a message tacked to every single one. She put the phone down with no intentions of calling the man. She had nothing to say.

In fact, if he wanted her to figure everything out on her own, she would.

Illiana bustled about the hotel room getting herself ready. She was out the door in half the time it usually took her and hailed a taxi once on the street.

She buzzed with excitement as she ran through the halls of the building once she arrived. As she passed the gym Karina poked her head into the hall, "Is Tiger back?"

"No!" she shouted as she continued on.

Karina frowned as Barnaby peaked into the hall also. He frowned and started after the woman but stopped as his phone rang.

Illiana fell into her chair and picked up the phone as she logged into her computer. It rang once and the receptionist answered happily, "Hello?"

"This is Illiana Blackwell, is Judge Petrov in his office right now?"

"No ma'am, he'll be in a meeting until much later in the day."

"Alright, thank you."

Her computer flickered to life and she chose the option to link to another computer in the building. She chose Yuri's and knew his password would be something pertaining to her. She tried, her birthday opened the computer, "Zero, four, zero, one. You should know better Yuri. It's like you want me snoop in here."

She stopped and looked to her phone, wondering if he was sitting before his computer at this moment, watching her. But she shook the thought.

As fast as the printer was releasing paper she was shoving everything into folders. She hadn't read anything; she just hit the print button. She wanted the chance to read them with Barnaby. As the last page shot from the printer her phone rang.

"Yes Lloyds?"

"I just received a call from the hospital."

"Who's in the hospital?"

"Kriem."

Illiana recognized that name. She was Jake's partner, the man who supposedly killed Barnaby's parents and kept the city hostage before she arrived. She bit her lip, "Go on."

"She was in a coma but she's awake now. Barnaby is already there trying to question her. I figured you should know incase you were looking for him later."

"Alright Lloyds, thank you." She ended the conversation and stared at her phone. Her stomach was all twisted up in knots so she took a deep breath.

"Is everything ok?"

"Kotetsu." She tried her hardest not to frown at the hero. "I need you to go to the hospital and stay with Barnaby."

"Bunny! Is he ok?"

She smiled at him the best she could, "Bunny?"

"Uh…"

"Never mind it. He's fine physically, but I don't know about emotionally." She folded her arms, still fighting the knot in her gut, "Kriem is awake. I don't want him to be alone. Go meet him to question her."

"I will." The veteran hero turned to leave but stopped, "Do you care about him Ana?"

Illiana knew she was blushing and she shrugged, "I do."

Kotetsu grinned and left, "I'll get there as soon as I can!"

"Tiger!" He came back into the room in a bit of a huff. "Is everything ok?"

"I'm fine." He fibbed.

"You never came to talk to me. I'm reminding you that you can."

He shuffled his feet and backed out of the office. "I um…better check on Barnaby…"

Illiana sat before her phone, a nervous wreck. She was shaking and extremely on edge about the whole situation. "Ana."

She looked up and almost jumped from her chair, "Yuri…"

He watched her, not really glaring, but not really his usual loving gaze either. She stood her ground as he approached her and released a breath she didn't know she had been holding when his chest almost bumped her nose.

"I called you."

"I know."

"You didn't answer."

"I know."

Yuri sighed, a deep, tired sigh and put his pointer finger under her chin, "Next time I call you. Answer or call back. I was worried."

"You told me to handle it on my own. That's what I was doing."

The man stared at her; her eyes were pointed away from him. It bothered him how as she had grown it became harder and harder for him to read her. It was almost alluring; it was scary. His want to protect her was growing and he wasn't sure how to handle it. He lent in close to her and watched her eyes dart to him and widen.

His lips were cold but she could feel them slowly warming against her own. She was afraid of this, of what she was feeling. This was Yuri; he was like family, liker her brother, right? He pulled away some and lent back in quickly before ending the kiss altogether.

Yuri stared at Illiana, and she stared back. He frowned at her and pat her on the head, "Be careful."

"Be careful? Is that all you can tell me?"

"You said it yourself. I told you to handle this alone."

The woman was furious, "Handle what? My past or us?" He didn't say anything but turned to leave. Illiana didn't reach out after him but she did speak again, "What's happening Yuri?"

"Changes."

"But-" her phone started to ring, cutting her off. She saw that it was Kotetsu and answered, "Yes Tiger?"

"It didn't go well. Barnaby heard some things he really didn't want to hear."

Yuri slipped out as she spoke with the Hero and Illiana let him leave. There was no use in arguing. Yuri was stubborn. He was a brick wall when he wanted to be.

"I don't know what to tell you." She touched her lips; "I'm having some problems on my end too."

"Well, we're heading back now. If you want you can meet us at our desks. I think Barnaby needs to hear some sense from more than one person."

Illiana was confused, "What exactly did Kriem tell him?"

"I'll let you know when we get there."

"What happened?"

"She killed herself." Barnaby said plainly. He was pacing as Kotetsu sat at his computer. "Go on. There won't be anything there."

Illiana approached the older man and lent onto the desk, "What are we looking for?"

"Kriem told him that Jake had kidnapped her on the night his parents died. We're going over the footage to see if Jake had the Ouroboros tattoo on his right hand?"

The woman looked at an on edge Barnaby, "Tattoo?"

"The murderer in my memory had an Ouroboros tattoo on his hand."

Illiana frowned at him, "And what happens if there is no tattoo?"

"There will be one!"

"Barnaby..."

"Here we go." Kotetsu beckoned his partner over to the computer and watched him warily for a moment. "Are you ready?"

"Go ahead."

Illiana didn't watch the screen. She didn't need to; she had studied that video several times when she arrived in Sternbuild two months ago. She heard Barnaby gasp behind her and jumped when he hit the bookshelf. Backing into it in shock.

"This can't be!"

She bit her lip, "Kotetsu, take him home."

The older man frowned at the woman, her seriousness hanging in the use of his real name. Barnaby sat in a heap on the floor with his head in his hands. He shook his head when Kotetsu approached him, "No. I can go home myself…"

"No you can't! Let me help you bunny!"

"I don't need help!"

Illiana squatted to his level and lifted his chin, "Yes you do."

He pouted at her until tears spilled down his cheeks and onto her hand, "I don't know what I should do. The one thing a believed, the one thing I knew is falling apart. I don't know what to believe in anymore."

Kotetsu frowned at the two as Illiana was almost brought to tears. She reached over to the table and grabbed the folders she had brought with her, "I think I can help you. If you'll let me."

"Please Bunny. I don't like to see you sad."

Barnaby looked to his partner and stood, Illiana stood as well and stood back as the blonde approached the older male, "Help or no help, I think I should quit being a hero."

"What? No! Wait!" Kotetsu shouted in shock but Barnaby still walked out of the office space without another word.

Illiana rubbed the older man's back, "I won't let him quit."

Kotetsu frowned at her, "He can't. Not before me."