The next day.

Everyone knew Usagi was what was holding everything together. And now that she was facing her own issues, no one knew what to do other than to try to band-aid the issues. That was until Luna got it in her mind to act as an advisor to the Queen. In this case, it meant doing the best she could to guess what Usagi would want to be done.

Despite her having an office at the penthouse, she began working from home. Her intent was to give Mamoru and Usagi space to help her mind heal.

She pulled out the laptop that she had specially designed and logged onto a secured network. She then began creating a plan.

Luna decided to call Artemis first. "Things can't continue like this. Everyone is too scattered. I'm making a plan."

"Don't do too much. You're pregnant."

She smiled at the phone. "I'm working from home, not running around risking myself. And I'll remind you, without Usagi, the baby and I would both be dead." She regretted saying that the moment it was out of her mouth.

Artemis was quiet for a minute and then said, "Trust me, I can't ever forget that."

"Sorry. My point was that she protracted me, and I want to help her right now. Rubeus is still out there."

Fifteen minutes later, she was working on what to do next. Artemis had promised to lend her support in anything she needed. He did extract a promise from her that she would take breaks from time to time.

It was when she checked in with Sapphire that she became positive that she was doing the right thing. Because he didn't want to disturb Usagi, he hadn't reported on what had happened last night.

She took down all the information and then informed him as a former policewoman, she knew some very discreet movers that could pack all his and Naru's things and take it all to storage. She would then have it quietly moved to another storage facility before it was brought to whatever new apartment he chose.

When she hung up the phone, she made a group call to Artemis and Hatori, explaining the situation and asking if they could have someone look into the background of her stepfather. Normally she would do it, but right now, she was busy.

Her next call was to Kunzite to find out how Minako was doing and if there was any sign of improvement. She noted down all he told her, which included the grandchild that was now healed of cancer and the schedule for Makoto and Ami going over to bring her fresh blood.

Artemis had been busy helping her, so when she hung up from her phone calls with Sapphire and then Kunzite, she noticed an email from Yamato updating her on the goings-on in the morgue. That included the fact that the number of bodies the police had found was now up to ten.

Mamoru lay holding Usagi. She had stopped crying, and she was resting. Vampires weren't able to sleep; their bodies didn't need rest. But they were able to do something similar if needed.

While Usagi was still technically awake, her body acted like it was sleeping. While she could still register everything that happened around her, her resting state would jettison that information almost immediately. The practical purpose for that was to let her mind heal. It let everything else slide away so that the rest she received could work to restore her mind.

Now, as Mamoru kept her snuggled in his tight embrace, he was finally able to admit to himself that part of this felt good. Yes, her altered state and her weeping had broken his heart. But through all this, it was as clear as day that she needed him. The werewolf and vampire inside him both kept preening over the fact that their mate and bonded love was wholly theirs.

He felt their bond the most clearly he'd ever felt before. And he hoped that she'd quickly go back to her happy, joyful self and that this feeling of closeness he had wouldn't go away.

Reflecting on the feeling, he likened it to a thick core that tied them together. One encased in their feelings for each other.

Mamoru closed his eyes and concentrated on the "cord" he felt connecting them, and through it, he could sense a calm radiating off of Usagi. It was such a relief that he smiled for the first time since he felt all the items in the penthouse rattling.

Mayumi looked at her husband, crossed her arms, and said, "Well? Have you made your decision yet? Are you going to let your little 'boys club' get in the way of the relationship you have with the girl you helped me raise?!"

"It's not that easy. They're both vampires, Honey. They fed off human blood. And Sapphire had to have killed her to make her like him. What do you think of that?"

"I think she's still my daughter!" Mayumi yelled.

"I told you it's not that simple!"

"It is to me. If you move to murder my daughter in any way, I will come after you. Think long and hard about what you can live with!"

He pointed out, "She's a killer. How can you live with that?!"

"Really? How can you know for sure? Did your little cult tell you that?"

"For the tenth time, it's not a cult!"

Mayumi rolled her eyes, "said just like a cult follower. You're not even open to listening to them."

"I told Sapphire to explain it to me!"

"Standing outside. They weren't even welcomed into our home!"

"If we welcomed them in, they could murder us in our bed."

That pissed her off to no end. "Fuck you! Naru would never!"

"She's a vampire now. And you don't know what Sapphire would do."

Mayumi shook her head and turned her back on him. "I'm going to work, and I'll probably stay at a friend's house tonight. I can't look at you right now."

Ten bodies had been discovered so far, and Yamato was hoping the other four wouldn't be discovered for a while. The morgue was already full, and he really didn't want any new bodies to be sent to another coroner. That was why he was working so hard. He was trying to process the bodies convincingly enough that he could put them in the cooler and make room for any more that came up.

He turned and screamed out loud, startled by the sudden appearance of the very quiet Makoto. She looked at him apologetically and said, "Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you. I was just coming to tell you Jadeite and Nephrite found the remaining four bodies. They have them stored in a cool basement in an abandoned warehouse. When you are able to finally get off work, we'll bring you there to assess what needs to be done."

He leaned against his desk. "Thank you. That's a relief. I'm going to want their lists of priors if they can be identified. Maybe Artemis can help with that."

"I'll ask him. Can I ask why?"

"They might have victims that need the closure of knowing they're dead. Otherwise, with how overwhelmed I am, I might have you make them disappear."

Makoto smiled at him, "You're exhausted, and you're thinking of others first."

"No, I'm covering up fourteen murders, and I've covered up the assassination of Wiseman's son. I'm not the good guy here."

"Wiseman had Mamoru's parents killed."

Yamato shook his head. "It still doesn't justify killing. I just happen to care about Mamoru and Usagi more than I care about my professional standards."

She shrugged, "I got in fights constantly growing up. I have long believed in taking matters into my own hands."

Makoto pointed at a body, "What did he do?"

"Sold drugs near middle schools and beat a hooker to death."

She curled her lip at the man. "Yeah, I'll sleep just fine tonight."

At that, he chuckled, "Vampires don't sleep."

"It was an expression. So many of them are limited to the living. It's kinda a pain."

He knitted his brow, "What's another?"

"Saying you were so upset you 'cried your eyes out,' or telling someone to 'take a deep breath,' and along that line saying something is a 'like a breath of fresh air.' None of those work for me now, either. I think I should invent new ones. I'll be around long enough for them to catch on."

He laughed and said, "Thank you for the help. I think I better get back to work. I still need to figure out how to explain the loss of blood. I think I figured out how to gloss over the general lack of injuries."

"Good luck. Let us know if you need anything else."

Shingo answered the phone. "What's up, Hatori?"

"You know what I'm calling about."

"Deadend on the Oracle."

"She's not there?" Hatori asked, slumping in his chair from frustration.

"Oh no, she is here. I'm just looking at her grave. She died three and a half months ago."

"Dammit! I was hoping she would have information on Miran."

"So was I. She has a daughter, but she's an alcoholic." Shingo then added, "Unsurprisingly."

"What does that mean? Why would you expect that?"

"She's got just a bit of the gift. It's not enough to see visions, but it's enough to be hard to deal with or interpret. She's self-medicating."

Hatori saw his point, so he nodded. He then asked, "Are you heading back?"

"Yup. It sounds like with what happened with Aunt Usagi that I would be more helpful there."

"Let me know your flight information."

"I'll text it to you."

Singo was in China. It turned out that after Miran was finished hiding the cause of death for the Chibas and then making sure Mamoru would stay under the radar, she hid out in China until she died.