The team assembled in Mai's room. However, the base was set up in the room next door so both of the girls could get some much-needed rest. A camera sat in the room its red light blinking with a good view of both of the beds where the girls lay. Another camera was in an empty room with a shot of the hallway in front of the girls' room.
Monk gently hugged Mai. "I'm sorry that this happened to you."
She smiled up at the Monk, who was like her big brother. Mai's voice cracked, "I'm just glad to see you all here." She glanced at all the people from SPR.
Yasu took her hand in his and kissed the back of it while giving her a Shakespearian bow and flourish.
Mai giggled and rolled her eyes at him. "Thanks, Yasu."
John just smiled at her and slightly bowed his head in her direction.
Masako stood at the back glaring until she thought of something. With Mai cooped up in the hospital, Masako was free to make Naru his tea and show him she could make better tea than Mai.
"Mai, I have something for you." Madoka approached the bed and pulled out something in a bag. "Lin called me several weeks ago and asked if I could find this, he said it was very special to you."
Mai's hand trembled as she took the small bag from Madoka. It felt somewhat heavy. She opened the bag and pulled out a simple but elegant silver picture frame that held a picture of her parents with her mother holding her as a baby. Tears filled her eyes as she hugged the frame to her chest. She couldn't help but cry tears of joy as she rocked herself in the bed.
Naru took her into his arms as he sat on the bed. "What did you give her Madoka?"
Mai wiped tears from her eyes as she pulled the frame from her chest, and held it out so Naru could see. The others crowded in to get a glimpse. "It's my parents with me as a baby." She smiled as she reached out and grabbed Lin by the hand. "Thank you, Lin."
A slight smile tugged at the corners of the tall man's face as he looked down on her. He felt a small tug on his heart. He was glad that she thought of him as a father figure.
Naru released Mai as she let go of Lin's hand. He placed a kiss on the top of her head. "We need to get to work." He hated to leave her, but he would be just next door if anything happened.
Leiko tried to get back into the room. However, something stopped her from getting in. Looking at all the new people who stepped out she felt it. Someone else hated Mai.
Slipping behind the kimono-clad medium, Leiko stepped into her body and smiled. It felt so good to be able to feel again.
Naru looked over the two monitors. "Any sign of activity?"
"There hasn't been any activity since we arrived."
Naru sat next to Lin. Where are you Leiko? He crossed his arms over his chest. He felt eyes boring into him and glanced over to find Masako staring intently at him. "Miss Hara, have you sensed anything?"
"No, I haven't, Naru."
The squeaky wheels out in the corridor announced the arrival of the meal carts. Squeaky shoes added to the noises as the workers passed out dinner trays to the patients.
Masako slipped out of the room unnoticed. She slipped into Mai's room and noticed both girls were sleeping. She bumped the camera and it moved slightly away from her target's bed. Staying out of camera range, she moved over to Mai's side and looked around for a weapon.
Mai woke and her eyes fluttered open, she smiled up at the medium. "Masako Hi, what are you doing in here?"
"I thought I sensed the spirit in here."
"Really, does Naru know?"
Masako's slight smile turned into a sneer. "He doesn't need to know, and soon you'll never have to breathe again."
"Masako…"
Two delicate hands reached out, gripped Mai around the throat, and squeezed with all their might. Mai reached up fighting against the small woman who was trying to kill her. She tried to break free, but Masako seemed to have superhuman strength, and her eyes glowed. "Leiko…" Mai choked out as her windpipe started closing cutting off her air. She managed to get her body close to the mediums and shifted her weight enough to head-butt the other girl.
Mai saw another person behind Masako, who gently pulled her back after the head-butt released her grip slightly. It was Jessica, "Leiko, you know this isn't right. You know Mai didn't do anything to you, she's not that kind of person and you know deep down that you don't want to do this either. You're hurting so much because your own family never paid attention to you. They value money and monetary things above you, their own daughter who they rejected."
Masako turned to look at Jessica, "How… how did you know?"
"Early this morning I went on a vision quest and asked my grandfather about you. He's my spirit guide and he showed me what I needed to know about you. It's funny though I wouldn't have been able to get through to my grandfather without the help of a guy who looked like Naru and called himself Gene.
"Leiko, it's time to move on and leave the pain you feel here and move on to your aunt. I understand she was the only one besides your grandparents who actually care about you."
A tear fell from Masako eye as she nodded, "Yes…" she whispered. She gazed at a corner of the room and smiled as if she saw someone there. She stared at the girl who she had tried to kill, "I'm sorry and ashamed of what I did. Can you find it in your heart to forgive me?"
Mai smiled at Leiko who still possessed Masako's body. "Yes, I forgive you, Leiko."
Masako smiled again as a bright light enveloped the medium with a beautiful golden sheen. The light faded, and Masako collapsed in Jessica's arms.
"Nicely done," both girls turned to see both Naru and Lin standing in the doorway with the rest of SPR standing behind them in the hall. Jessica blushed as Naru entered the room with Lin and Yasuhara following.
"Yasu would please take Miss Hara to the room next door."
"Sure boss."
Yasu took Masako's unconscious form in his arms and carried her to the other room. Naru noted the expression on Yasu's face. It held had a quality of… love.
"This is why I asked Jessica to join SPR," Naru said. She practices a form of Qigong that's different from the traditional style. She also warned me when Leiko had attempted to suffocate Mai last night. Her form is spiritualism comes from the Native American blood that runs through her veins."
Mai reached out, hugged Jessica, and with a laugh, she announced, "Welcome to the family."
At the end of the week, Ayako finally pronounced both Jessica and Mai fit enough to be released from the hospital. Naru had been working out of the hospital.
Madoka flew back home to London and the Takahashi brothers picked Jessica up.
Before Mai could leave the hospital, though, Ayako gave Naru a list of how to care for the most severe wounds. He nodded to the redhead doctor. "Before we leave I would like to make an announcement. SPR as a whole has been invited by the Takahashi brothers to spend a week at their private beach house. It will be a non-working vacation."
Mai looked at Naru as if he'd lost his mind. "Naru, you never take a vacation and you never ever do anything unless it involves work."
"Well, this time, I accepted their request on everyone's behalf. You especially need a break, and more time to heal."
Monk ruffled her hair, "Look at it this way kiddo. You get to spend some time away from being a ghost magnet."
Mai's face flushed, "I'm not a magnet."
Ayako laughed and this time, Masako actually giggled.
As the black SPR van pulled into the driveway of the huge mansion, the building awed Mai. Four palm trees stood proudly reaching their branches to the sky in front of the house. The house was white with Indian style archways and windows that could compete with the Tajmahal. Intricately styled lattices covered the interconnected balcony on the second floor and around the roof. If she had to use one word to describe it, it would have to be lovely.
The white car owned by Hosho Takigawa followed behind. Everyone felt like they were transported to India at seeing the house. As everyone piled out of their vehicles, Keisuke Takahashi met them.
"Sorry, that Ryosuke wasn't able to be here to meet you. We had a snag with Project D and he's busy going over some of the details with Matsumoto and the others."
Mai looked up at the taller man, "Project D?"
"Yes, we're street racers and we send out a challenge to different teams in different areas and prefectures to test them on the uphill and downhill races. I'm the uphill ace. We have another driver who is the downhill ace. We just defeated the Purple Shadow."
Keisuke led them upstairs and showed each one to their bedrooms, he stopped at the last one, "Ryosuke said this room was for you and Mai." He opened the door and Naru led her inside the huge room black and the white room decorated in a bamboo theme with some actual bamboo plants growing in pots and a giant panda painted on the wall.
"This is the SPR end of the house the other end is for the Redsuns and Project D. Although watch out for Kenta, he sometimes is a little crazy."
"Thank you," Naru bowed as the man left.
Mai tried to pick up her suitcase but groaned as pain lanced through her shoulder.
"Mai, you know you're not supposed to pick up something heavy. Miss Matsuzaki told you that even though most of your wounds have healed on the outside, you'll still have pain because they're still healing on the inside."
She rolled her eyes at him. "Stop treating me like a baby," Mai huffed and flopped backward on the bed.
Naru sat down beside her and took her hand in his. "I'm not treating you like a baby. You still have to take care of yourself."
Mai sighed, as a tear slipped out of her eye. "I just wish it never happened."
"I do too," he leaned over her and she could feel his warm breath on her face. He claimed her mouth with his and he deepened the kiss.
Dizziness washed over her as her body tingled and butterflies fluttered in her stomach. "Naru…" Mai whispered as he released his claim.
A slight smile tugged at Naru's lips, not his smirk, but a real smile.
She looked deeply into his eyes and saw not only love but also true happiness. She smiled back at him.
Monk dressed in his swim trunks, and Ayako in a red and green bikini played a game of volleyball against two of the Redsuns drivers on the beach.
Masako was taking a stroll down the beach with John and Yasu while other Redsuns drivers were either swimming in the ocean or lounging around the in ground pool.
Lin sat a table along with Naru, who held Mai in his lap underneath an umbrella. They watched all the activity. Ryosuke Takahashi also sat at an umbrella table in a blue polo shirt and white swim trunks going over some data on his laptop.
Jessica dressed in a sky blue bikini glanced at the man. Keisuke stepped up to her and handed her a glass of iced tea. "Thanks," looking over at Ryosuke she huffed. "I thought we were supposed to be having fun and not working."
Keisuke shrugged, "that's my brother for you. He does his best racing and planning out his strategy for a race on the computer." Keisuke shook his head. "I don't understand how he does it, but it works."
"I'm tired of it and I'm going to do something about it," Jessica turned to Keisuke with a devilish grin on her face and winked.
"Uhm… I'll just stay back here and watch. When you get that look on your face, I know something major is going to happen."
An evil laugh slipped out as Jessica headed for Ryosuke.
Mai dozed in Naru's embrace as she rested her head against his bare chest. He was wearing black swim trunks and she wore a one piece under a thin lacy white cover-up. She smiled as she felt his breath on her ear.
"How are you feeling today?" Naru whispered.
"Happy, now that we can finally show our feelings for one another in front of everyone else.
He was going to answer but his attention was drawn to the oldest Takahashi brother.
"Come on Ryosuke and swim with me," Jessica pouted.
"I'm sorry but I've still got work to catch up on with Project D, and then I have to do my report on infectious diseases."
She set her glass of tea down on the empty table behind them and pulled out an ice cube. Catching Ryosuke off guard, she shoved it down the back of his shirt and smacked the cube.
Ryosuke jumped out of his chair and glared at the younger woman. "You'll pay for that."
Jessica giggled and ran down the beach as fast as her feet could carry her.
Mai let out a giggle as Ryosuke chased after. As a lineman, he took Jessica down in a quick tackle and picked her up. Looking around at everyone, he shouts, "Now that I've caught her now what should I do with a person who puts an ice cube down your shirt."
He hears some suggestions of dropping her. One was to throw her back into the sea. However, Mai's idea was the best when it reached his ears. He carried her to the pool and then threw her in. Jessica screamed as she fell into the water and Ryosuke jumped in after her. She made it to the surface, spluttered, and then felt a hand on her leg. Before she could look to see who it was, she was yanked down to the bottom where Ryosuke proceeded to kiss her senseless.
They both surfaced gasping for breath, and Ryosuke kissed her again. "Jess, I don't know when it happened, but I'm in love with you."
She looked at him with a glazed look on her face as if she couldn't believe her ears. She looked down at the water in the pool and blushed. "I… I love you too. I think I actually fell for you the first time I met you."
"Well then kiss him, Jessica," Mai shouted at the pair.
Naru smirked down at her and lifted her head and murmured, "Maybe you should take your own advice," as he kissed her.
The End