Bleach Fan Fiction ❯ Murder My Heart ❯ Countdown ( Chapter 17 )

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or any Bleach affiliates.

 

(A/N: Sorry it took so long to write. But since we're here now… can I have my cookies? Just kidding. I love all of you. Plus, after this rather climactic chapter Hitsugaya Toshiro will make a lovely and lengthy appearance (for at least 3 chapters XD ) I can't wait to write it but it might take a few more days than usual. You know, Thanksgiving… crazy family members… burnt turkey's etc. But anyway, Happy Thanksgiving!

PLEASE ENJOY AND REVIEW!!!)

 

 

 

 

 

Chapter 17

 

Ichigo killed the engine and quickly exited the car, his heart pulsating inside of his chest. Nimble fingers reached into the back of the vehicle and pulled out a small gym bag filled with a few pairs of jeans and a couple of tight tee shirts. Ichigo grinned when he thought of how much Rukia liked it when he wore shirts that accented the muscles in his stomach. He would always notice how she stared at his chest and abdomen while he wore them just around the house. Hell, he couldn't get away with wearing a beater for a couple of seconds before she took it off of him and began running those small hands of hers over his stomach.

 

But upcoming sexual experiences weren't the only thing that Ichigo had on his mind. Swallowing heavily he drew in a breath and began bolting up the stairs.

 

He wondered how she'd react when she heard what he was going to say with her… Would her face reflect surprise? Doubt? Anger? Fear?

 

Or maybe happiness? Ichigo shrugged as he wheeled around the third floor landing and kept dashing up the steps. Christ, he had been working with her for almost a year now; he knew how she reacted to good—was it good?—news… stoic face with slightly expressive eyes. He knew that the fluttering in her heart would grow and there might be a tiny twitch or two from her small finger. But that would be it. That was always it.

 

He slowed his pace on the fifth floor steps, not wanting to appear before her panting and out of breath—even though he would be panting and out of breath anyway in a few minutes.

 

His last few steps allowed him to think and also allowed a small smile to play on the edges of his mouth. Yeah, tonight was the night that he was going to… well, if he got up enough balls anyway.

 

Ichigo snorted as he turned; balls he had, it was tact that left something to be desired.

 

“Rukia!” He called, marching towards her door with vivacious footsteps, “Rukia, I'm back—”

 

Ichigo stared at the door, immediately his eyes widened and trickles of fear began to slip down his spine.

 

He inched forward just a bit, his hand going to the holster of the gun he kept on his hip. “Rukia?” He said, his voice echoing around the empty space of the apartment complex.

 

He took a few more steps forward and swept his eyes across the ground. There were dark splotches of liquid littering the tiles underneath his feet. His nostrils flared in the darkness and his throat tightened when he bent on one knee and dipped his finger into a spot. He pulled up the digit quickly and felt the trickle of fear on his neck become a full-blown wave as he saw red.

 

“Rukia?” He said, his voice even more strangled this time.

 

He rose from is knee and pulled his gun out completely. He kept it pinned near Rukia's door as he stepped forward. He braced himself as he shoved the toe of his shoe against the base of the door. It opened soundlessly before him. Ichigo's eyes immediately went to the shattered vase on the floor, the keys, gun, and phone on the side table, and on the steady drops of blood littering the floor beneath his feet.

 

His heart was beating faster than he had ever known in his life.

 

“Rukia!” He shouted, dropping one of his hands from his gun and rushing into the apartment. “Rukia!” He thundered through the living room. No one. He called her name again as he went through to the kitchen. She wasn't there. “RUKIA!” He screamed, shoving the door to her bedroom open, then her bathroom, she wasn't anywhere in the room.

 

He screamed her name once again, loud enough to earn a thump on the wall from Rukia's semi-deaf neighbors.

 

Ichigo felt his head growing light and his blood pounding through his veins as he dug into his pocket and flipped open his cell phone, forgoing the natural police radio he should have used. But not now, not when he needed everyone available…

 

His thumb jabbed speed-dial number nine, the number he was only supposed to use if a meteor decided to hit the three one.

 

Ichigo didn't even allow the man to get a word out before saying, “Ten four Kenpachi, Rukia's been kidnapped and she's injured.”

 

There was a millisecond pause, “Call everyone, Abarai, Ikkaku, one police plaza… everyone. No one sleeps until she's in.”

 

Ichigo's breathing wouldn't settle and his heart was burning between his lungs. “Alright.”

 

“And Ichigo?” Kenpachi's gravelly voice scratched through to his ear.

 

Ichigo could have screamed at his boss for delaying him even one second more. “What?”

 

“You've got some explaining to do.”

 

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-

 

Rukia's mind was fuzzy. She didn't know where the hell she was. She didn't know why her eyes felt so heavy or why her senses felt so bogged down. All she knew was that she was alive and that she was, in fact, breathing.

 

Now she could feel her arms… her limbs… she was being supported by something tight, something that was making her wrists and ankles hurt. Was she being dragged across the floor? She was almost positive that she could feel her feet running against a harsh, wooden floor.

 

Her throat tingled as she let a small gasp of air escape, a tiny moan and that was all it was.

 

Something around her waist tightened and constricted Rukia's ribs. She grunted at the sensation, reality slowly beginning to reform around her. Someone above her snickered and kept walking. She wanted to tell them to stop, to put her down, to give her something to drink, to do anything to relieve this terrible pressure in her head and wash away the fear in her stomach and heart. Only she couldn't form words; grunts and moans yes, but actual words, no.

 

Where was Ichigo? Why wasn't he here? Was he coming for her? Wait… if this wasn't Ichigo… who the hell was holding her? Where was she? Why was she being carried like a useless sack? What the hell was going on?

 

The footsteps of the person carrying her stopped; she heard another snickering above her and then the scraping of four chair legs against unpolished and disintegrating floorboards. Her body was slammed into the rotted seat and her head snapped against the back of the chair. She groaned fitfully as her captor began to walk away. Rukia's weak body almost slipped from the chair, her muscles would not respond to any message being sent out by her brain and her arms felt as if they were experiencing atrophy.

 

The man was back. “Sorry little girl, no duct tape, you'll have to just deal with good, old-fashioned, ropes.” The voice was slick and evil; it seemed covered in ooze yet still sickly sweet. Rukia would have known that voice anywhere.

 

Rukia felt them being wrapped around her body, tightened, and then wrapped around again. Next were her legs and ankles. He was tightening the knots when her neck muscles lost their slight rigidity and her head fell forward, raven hair falling into her drowsy eyes.

 

The man finished and then stepped back, Rukia tried to open her eyes but found it difficult to do even that.

 

“Nice jacket,” the voice muttered, “Too bad you left a piece of it on my windowsill.”

 

For the first time since the death of her brother, Rukia Kuchiki felt like crying.

 

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-

 

Ichigo stood in the front of the entirety of the three one, its contents were packed with bleary-eyed detectives, scowling computer techs, and handfuls of street cops. He was pacing back and forth, rubbing his five o'clock shadow voraciously.

 

The room was silent except for a few muffled coughs, slurps of coffee, and murderous mutters.

 

Renji was the first to comment, “You don't know what the fuck you're talking about.”

 

Ichigo turned to him first, “Look, Abarai, I know that it sounds hard to believe, but right now we need to focus on—”

 

Renji stood up, effectively cutting Ichigo off. His forehead was pushing a vein through his skin and his tattoo's seemed to glow unnaturally. “I'm not going to go on some wild goose chase that could incriminate my superior officer!”

 

Ichigo's expression flared murderously and he stepped forward aggressively, “And what about Rukia, huh? What about her? You don't give a shit that she's missing?” He shouted.

 

“Sure, I'll look for Rukia,” Renji snarled, “But I think she's more or less left you, considering that you two were fucking sleeping together!”

 

Ichigo's fist connected with Renji's face within an instant, his cheek crunched underneath Ichigo's curled fingers as he pummeled Renji fiercely. Ichigo then had his knee inside of Renji's abdomen before he could even draw a breath to prepare himself for the second attack. A moment later Kenpachi's arms were curled around Ichigo's biceps, restraining his detective from killing Renji.

 

“Cool it Ichigo!” Kenpachi growled, his body jerking as Ichigo tried to lunge towards Renji again.

 

“Let me go!” The detective snapped, still struggling to get out of his captain's grip.

 

Hinamori was beside her partner, her hand soothing a path over his bruised cheek and slightly askew nose. He was bent over double on the floor, gasping and wheezing while his partner soothed him gently.

 

Ichigo's eyes lit upon the pair, Hinamori tending to an injured Renji made his heart immediately constrict. He felt like ropes were being tied over his entire body, squeezing him until he couldn't breathe.

 

He had to find her. He needed to find her.

 

Renji's face turned towards Ichigo's and he snarled maliciously. “What? Can't stand to think that she might have left you?”

 

Ichigo's eyes saw red and Kenpachi tightened his grip.

 

However, instead of Ichigo answering, Orihime, who was standing near the back with her spine pressed to Ishida's chest, chose to respond. “Think about it Renji, the broken lamp, the blood on the floor! Honestly Renji, don't be so stupid!”

 

Renji turned to her, “I'm not about to believe that my captain smuggles weapons, associates with coke dealers, and has murdered four of his subordinates!” Her roared.

 

The entire room erupted into heated debate, shouting, and calls for order. Renji and a few other detectives from the two eight were squared off at one edge of the room while other officers from the three one were on the other side, yelling just as fitfully.

 

Ichigo's head was swimming with all of the noises going on around him. His senses seemed to be on complete overload. The only thing he was running on right now was a small cup of coffee and a heaping load of fear. He was afraid for Rukia and where she might be. He was afraid for her limp body and stilled heart that might be dumped into a ravine somewhere unknown. He was afraid because she had been gone for well over an hour and he still had no idea where she was. He was afraid because Orihime had run a quick DNA scan of the blood on the floor and Rukia's blood, they now knew that they were the exact same. He was afraid of where she might be cut and if she was bleeding to death in some place where he would never find her.

 

His breathing began to grow erratic as he loosened his muscles in Kenpachi's grip and began to shake. Kenpachi let go of him softly, which must have been an impressive feat for such a large man, but he actually was able to do it. Ichigo staggered over to a small stool and sat on it, digging his fingers into his hair fruitlessly.

 

The room was louder than it had been three minutes ago. Ichigo swallowed and raised his head, completely ready to shut these people up and make them start looking for Rukia.

 

Only he didn't get the chance; in the next moment Kenpachi took a step forward, curled his meaty fingers into a fist, brought that hand up into a curving arch, and then slammed it down on the next available desk. The wood rattled and cracked and immediately the room was completely silent, every eye was trained on the massive man with the eye patch.

 

Kenpachi took two steps forward, his feet thundering on the wooden planks of the floor. The gazes in the room were riveted to him.

 

“We are here tonight,” Kenpachi began in a low and deadly voice, “Not to squabble about `ifs' and `ors' but in order to find one of our best detectives, who, as we are entitled to believe, has been kidnapped by a person of ill intent.”

 

Detectives from the two eight scowled but didn't say a word.

 

“From the resources that we have now, which might not be all correct, we will start investigating possible places that Rukia Kuchiki could be… we will begin by looking into places that Sosuke Aizen has been in the past year.”

 

There were more snarls from the two eight side but Ichigo had never looked at his boss with more respect.

 

“Are. There. Any. Questions?”

 

Silence.

 

Kenpachi nodded to the room and then turned to Ichigo. “Tell us what to do detective.”

 

Ichigo swallowed hard and rose, squaring his shoulder he breathed in deeply and dove directly into the melee. “You! I want a comprehensive search of any places he might have gone in the past three months. You! Six months. You! Known contacts, possible confidential informants, anyone worth mentioning in his history. You! Look for any places our victims had that he might be using for a hideout. Check the phone records, check postal records, emails, everything! We need to find her and we need to find her now!”

 

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-

 

Rukia's eyes were closed on purpose.

 

Her body was shaking slightly and her senses were considerably sharper than they had been ten minutes ago. She could hear heavy breathing on the other side of the room and felt the definite presence of another human.

 

She couldn't tell if the area was lit or not, she couldn't smell anything besides the lingering odor of chloroform, and her limbs still moved sluggishly underneath her—she wasn't even sure she could move them. The ropes were just so tight.

 

She needed to think of a way out of here. She needed to get away from here, away from him, and most definitely get away from everything he was going to do to her.

 

Images of her dead brother flashed before her mind, then Matsumoto, then Yumichika, and then Nanao… was she going to be the last? Starting with a Kuchiki… ending with a Kuchiki… it made perfect sense.

 

Her eyes burned as she fought to keep them shut.

 

Where was Ichigo?

 

“I know you're awake.”

 

Rukia's throat tightened immediately. She thought about faking a small moan to make him think that she really was still unconscious. She drew in a shuddering breath and shook her head slowly. It would be no use.

 

“I was wondering how long you were going to fake it.” The voice said conversationally. Another chair scraped as she raised her head and slowly opened her eyes.

 

“Captain,” she croaked in greeting.

 

Aizen smiled charmingly and cocked his head to the side. He took a few steps forward, his hands slipped into his pockets, and said, “Hello detective.”

 

Rukia's heart was filled with fear as she stared at him. He looked different than he usually did… his hair was slicked back and his eyes were released from their usual thick glasses.

 

Rukia cleared her throat, her voice still a bit shaky from the chloroform. “You look… different.”

 

Aizen grinned slickly and brought his hand up so he could run it through his jelled locks. “You like it? I think it gives me more of a villainous look.”

 

Rukia couldn't believe her voice was holding up as well as it was. She had been drugged, was currently in tied to a chair, in a dank and crummy building, and was now conversing with a murderer. She didn't know how long she could even maintain an aura of confidence or even decorum.

 

But more than that… how could he be so calm? He was acting as if she had just come into his office and was asking about the weather.

 

Aizen took another step forward and Rukia's head inclined backwards. She wanted to be as far away from him as possible.

 

His grin turned into a smirk and he cocked an eyebrow up, “You're afraid.”

 

“You've killed four people.” Rukia's answer came out as a whisper.

 

Aizen took another step, she tried to lean back but nothing she did could stop his advance. He was soon only an inch away from her face, his smile was deadly and slick, “Four people… that you know of.” he said smugly.

 

Rukia felt her entire insides turn to ice.

 

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-

 

“Kurosaki!” Hanataro called, his body hunched over a computer, “I have something for you!”

 

Ichigo was next to him in a second. “What is it?” He asked, his wild eyes scanning the computer screen and then the tired looking man beside him.

 

Hanataro pointed to the monitor, it displayed a map of—what seemed to be—the area near the docks. The lake expanded to one side and the rest of it was an interconnecting weave of roads, buildings, and street corners. The cursor was resting on a thumping red dot somewhere in the middle. Ichigo's exhausted eyes shifted over the entire thing, then fixed on that particular spot.

 

“What is it?” He asked again, this time with more urgency. Time was ticking away and they still didn't have a clue where Rukia was.

 

“These are all places on the docks where we've reported frequent drug activity, mostly dealings in cocaine, marijuana, and ecstasy, stuff like that.” Hanataro began tensely, “These are also the areas where our friend, Gin Ichimaru, said that Tosen likes to hang out.”

 

“So?”

 

Hanataro gulped at the resonance of Ichigo's hard voice. The man sounded ready to kill someone.

 

“This building, right here,” he tapped the blinking red dot, “Is owned by Sosuke Aizen.”

 

Ichigo tensed beside Hanataro and nodded, “Alright, I'm going.” He moved away from the tiny man on the computer and reached over to his desk. He pulled his jacket on and shouted into the air, “I'm going to the docks, and I'll have my cell phone on at all times, if another lead comes up contact me immediately.”

 

Renji frowned, “The docks are over an hour away.” He called.

 

“So? I'll be there in forty minutes.” Ichigo grabbed his keys and shot towards the door. Renji was hot on his heels, his face set in a frown and a jacket clutched in his grasp.

 

“I'm coming with you,” he told Ichigo as they slammed their way through the doors.

 

“I don't care, just take your own car, if Rukia's there we might have company, and if she's hurt…” Ichigo just swallowed and rushed to his car.

 

Renji moved to the one beside him and glared at Ichigo, “Don't think like that. It won't do any good.”

 

Ichigo glared at him over the top of the two cars and growled, “Just try and keep up.”

 

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-

 

Rukia body was shaking completely as Aizen continued to walk around the room, his fingers ticking off as he counted name after name. She couldn't help it, he had already counted over thirty names; Byakuya, Matsumoto, Yumichika, and Nanao had simply been the icing on the cake. They were the top ones. He had killed everyone from lowly drug deals to pimps on the street and even hookers. Each one had been victims at the hands of Sosuke Aizen.

 

“… And I can't forget Cookie Azakati,” Aizen murmured thoughtfully. “She was my most recent, victim; I guess that's what you would call her.” He smiled back at Rukia and shrugged, “Well… I'm not sure you'd be able to actually call her a victim. I was saving her from a life on the streets, from whoring herself, and from wasting the only thing that makes her—or woman for that matter—useful.”

 

Rukia's lips trembled as she tried to speak, “You're disgusting.”

 

“Am I, Rukia?” He asked her, a bit of laughter in his voice, “Am I really?”

 

She nodded her head.

 

Aizen's smile broadened, “I'm so glad you're actually speaking. Most of my other victims just screamed, cried, or begged. I might actually have a decent conversation before I kill you.”

 

Rukia blinked her eyes rapidly, “So you are going to kill me.” It was a statement, not a question.

 

Aizen spread his arms in a genial motion; his sick grin never left his face, “Why of course! Killing a Kuchiki is a very rare thing.”

 

Rukia's chin trembled.

 

“Your brother was amazing to kill,” he sighed and smiled again, softer this time, he reached over to the edge of the dimly lit room and brought out another chair. He pulled it towards her until his face was only a few inches away. He straddled the chair backwards and rested his arms across the top. Rukia turned her head completely away but felt his pointer finger run along the side of her neck. She had to fight to suppress the shiver that ran through her body. His finger ran up the entire length of her neck and then pressed her earlobe between his thumb and forefinger. He yanked her ear painfully down and forced her to meet his eyes.

 

“Tsk, tsk, tsk…” he smirked, his mouth only a breath away from hers, “You're going to have to look at me when I talk to you.”

 

Rukia wanted so badly to pull away, to butt him in the head, to do something that would keep him away from her. But she didn't… the only thing she did was swallow loudly and say, “So t-talk.”

 

Aizen smirked softly and toyed a bit with the ends of her hair. She felt revolted to have him touch her like this.

 

Only Ichigo should ever touch her like this.

 

“Your brother called me that night, he asked me to meet him in the slums because of a homicide. He wanted a consult. He needed to see me immediately.” He blew lightly on her neck and she whimpered, her eyes were still staring into his, she couldn't pull away.

 

“When I met him there he confronted me with pictures he had taken showing me and a certain associate, perhaps you know him… Tosen? Yes, you probably do. He's a close friend and an excellent poker player. Don't know how he does it though, being blind and all… anyway, not the point. He told me that he knew everything. About me buying and dealing coke, about the black market antiques, and especially about the missing hookers I spent time with.” He smiled warmly and his eyes took on a glassy, reminiscent look, “The hookers were the first… my dear Rukia, killing is just so fun and easy too. I never thought it would be that easy. I swear, after only one shot I was hooked. It was amazing. It was just…” he pumped his open hand up and down in order to emphasize his point, “The adrenaline was fantastic. I just knew I would want to feel like that again… and often.”

 

At this Aizen pulled his head back and laughed. “But I honestly never thought anyone would figure it out! I mean, I thought it was the perfect crime… ah, but I guess that no one ever pulls off the perfect crime. Do they?”

 

There was silence in the room. Everything was quiet except for the harsh breathing of the captive and the chilling warmth of the captor. Aizen was smiling expectantly at Rukia, his façade of kindness never leaving his horrific face. His eyes narrowed and he gripped a handful of hair, he yanked her head back until she was staring at the top of a rotted ceiling. She gulped soundlessly as she felt a cold and sharp piece of metal press against the exposed vein of her throat.

 

Aizen's mouth was next to her ear, his lips tickled her skin as he whispered, “Do they?”

 

She didn't dare shake her head but her body continued to shake against her will. Her breathing was quick as she whispered, “N-no.”

 

“Good,” he grinned. He sighed and ran a small knife across the top of her throat. He paused for a few moments, Rukia could feel his hot breath on her neck. “Well… my, my, my… the Great Rukia Kuchiki is shaking… trembling actually.”

 

“S-so?” She whispered, he pricked the knife against her skin and she winced as it broke the skin and a warm trail of blood slid down her neck. “If you're going to kill me t-then just g-get it over w-with.”

 

Nothing in the room moved, Aizen's knife stopped its lazy trail along her neck, the breeze outside stopped shifting, and the windows of the rotted building ceased rattling.

 

“Oh sweetie,” Sosuke Aizen said with a small smile, “You're not going to die…”

 

Rukia's bottom lip trembled and she closed her eyes, willing herself to be stronger, to accept what he had said and was going to say. She knew… she just knew… that this wasn't over.

 

“You're going to burn.”

 

A tear slid past Rukia's closed eyes and down her cheek.

 

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-

 

Ichigo's cell phone buzzed and he picked it up immediately. “Yeah?” He answered, his voice tense and his tone dangerous.

 

“Ichigo, it's Kenpachi,” he boss said, Ichigo could hear the movements of the precinct in the back round, there were shouts, calls, clicks, and swears echoing everywhere. Ichigo's mind felt a little less troubled knowing that so many people were still working back at the base. “How far away are you?”

 

“Fifteen minutes.” Short and to the point.

 

“Is Abarai following you?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“How far over the speed limit are you going?”

 

“Sixty miles an hour.”

 

“If you get into an accident and die…”

 

“That's not going to happen.” Ichigo sniped. “Did you have something to tell me?”

 

“Just an update. There aren't any other leads. This is the best one we've got.” Kenpachi paused, “Ichigo… be careful. Don't you dare fly off the handle if he's there.”

 

“I know.”

 

“I'm sending an EMS truck to the area; they should be there in about thirty minutes.” Kenpachi sighed.

 

Ichigo scowled into the phone, “I'm almost there. Goodbye.”

 

“Good luck.”

 

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-

 

“But your brother was a crafty one!” Aizen exclaimed brightly as he got up from his chair and whisked away towards the edges of the room. “He told me, after I stabbed him with the knife a couple of times, you'll never believe this, he said, `This isn't over.' Like he was some sort of hero from a crime drama or something. My goodness. But see, I didn't really know what to make of that before I figured it out.” He sighed and turned to her. “Did you know that he actually knew more about computer than some of our most experienced computer analysts?”

 

Rukia wheezed softly, “N-no.”

 

He pouted lightly and reached behind him. Rukia watched as he pulled out a bright red canister and began unscrewing the lid. “My my my, you should have known him better little girl. He was, after all, your very own brother.” He threw the lid to the side and began to pour a pungent liquid all over the floor. Rukia drew in a small breath and instantly began coughing; she smell was sharp and disgusting but she still knew what it was.

 

“Did you know what he actually put all of those photos onto a tiny little microchip—” Aizen squeezed his fingers together to show how small the object was, “And hid that little chip on the back of your badge?”

 

Rukia's throat was convulsing at the terrible smells around her. Her lungs were burning with an attempt to breathe properly as well as restrain waterfalls of tears from falling down her face. Both efforts were futile, she was gasping and her face was wet with tears.

 

“When you and Mr. Kurosaki came to visit the docks that day I thought for sure that my thug would be able to take you out and then get your badge… but alas, that idiotic, orange-haired, freak managed to save you from being strangled. How typical.” He walked towards her again, both of his hands were in his pockets and he was grinning from ear to ear. “I bet you've thanked him for that a lot since you two have started fucking.”

 

He took his hands from his pockets and placed them on either side of the chair arms, leaning his face so close to her that she could feel his nose brush against hers.

 

He took a lock of her hair and began to twirl it again, “Tell me Rukia… where is that boy now? Is he back at your apartment? Is he looking for you? He'll never find you. Never ever.”

 

Rukia's throat released a sob and she tried to avert her eyes from his.

 

“Too bad little girl, I can tell too… he loves you so much… and you love him too. I can see it in the way you're crying right now.”

 

“Stop.” She whispered, tears streaming down her face.

 

“But you'll never get to tell him anything. You were too much of an icy bitch before to even consider the fact that you loved him. No… you wanted distance, I'll bet, and all he wanted to do was wake up next to you every… single… day.”

 

“Please.” She couldn't take this anymore.

 

“How do you think he'll feel when he sees your charred bones in all the rubble of this place?” He cocked his head to the side and smirked. “I think he'll put his gun in his mouth and pull the trigger.”

 

“No!” She shrieked, throwing her head desperately from side to side, anything to stop the hateful words that were coming from his mouth. “Stop it! Stop it! Please just stop it!”

 

“Ichigo dead because of you, little girl!” Aizen shouted above her screams. “You wouldn't let go of this case and he just had to solve it with you because he was so in love with you. Now you and Ichigo will both die because of your own stupidity.”

 

“No…” Rukia sobbed, rivers of tears falling from her eyes, “No… no… no…”

 

Aizen smiled, “Yes, yes, yes… little girl.”

 

Abruptly, he let go of the chair and sauntered to the edge of the room. Rukia couldn't hear him. She couldn't see him. The only thing she was aware of was the wrenching, stabbing feeling in her chest, the burning sensation in her eyes, the salty water dripping down her face, and the gasoline creeping up her nostrils.

 

“You're on the top floor Rukia!” Aizen shouted over her. “This thing goes up five! I'm going down and at the very, very bottom there are some cartons soaked in gasoline. I'm going to light them on fire…”

 

He burst out laughing for a moment and then dwindled down, his voice still merry as he said, “Don't worry Rukia! You'll die from smoke inhalation far before you die from the actual burns.”

 

Rukia continued to cry as Aizen paused at the door then came back into the room. He smiled down at her and shifted his head to the side, “I'm sorry, I almost forgot.”

 

Humming softly he reached down to her belt and pulled off her badge. Rukia opened her eyes long enough to watch him dig behind the clip and take out a tiny, miniscule, metallic chip. Aizen sighed softly and threw the chip to the room. It simply clattered onto the floor and skipped out of sight.

 

“No more evidence. No more Kuchiki's.” He said happily as he grasped the butt of the knife in his hand and brought it down on her head. “Goodbye Rukia.”

 

Darkness fell upon Rukia once again… but not before her last, singular, thought.

 

Ichigo.

 

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-

 

Ichigo's car pulled to a screeching halt and he was out of the driver's side in less then a second. Something was slithering up his nostrils and it smelled distinctly like…

 

“Renji!” Ichigo shouted, “There's smoke coming from a building!”

 

“I can smell it!” He shouted back, following Ichigo quickly.

 

Their feet pounded on the wet concrete as they turned corner after corner, searching for a building billowing in smoke. The continued running… just running and running, their sides splitting open and their lungs bursting to capacity… Running for Rukia—they needed to find—

 

“No!”

 

The building before them was roaring in flames. Smoke was flowing into the sky and sparks were flying everywhere.

 

Ichigo and Renji stopped moving. Ice was running through their veins.

 

“NO!”

 

Then Ichigo was running, fast and hard towards the burning building he was running. Renji was calling after him but Ichigo couldn't hear him. He could only hear the roaring of the fire and the pounding of his heart. He needed to get up there. He needed to find her. He needed to search the entire goddamn fucking building to find her.

 

“RUKIA!”

 

Then he was there. Right in front of Ichigo. He could see him walking slightly in front of the burning building, a smile on his face as he laughed joyously. He couldn't see Ichigo behind him.

 

The next thing Sosuke Aizen knew he was on the ground, his face in the dirt, his nose smashed into the asphalt, and Ichigo's fist pummeling into his back. He was kicking him and punching him in the shoulders and the sides. His fist was in Aizen's hair long enough to pull his head back and smash it into the ground once more. His other hand was wrapped around his neck, squeezing tightly as the older man suffered on the ground.

 

“Ichigo!” Renji shrieked. “Ichigo! Don't kill him!”

 

But Ichigo didn't pay any attention to him. He moved to the side and quickly flipped Aizen over, slamming his head backwards. He was sputtering and coughing up blood. His eyes were closed tight in pain. He looked absolutely pathetic.

 

“Where is she?” Ichigo screamed as he wrapped his hand around Aizen's throat and tightened. “Where?”

 

“K-k-uro-sa-ki.” He coughed, his voice still retaining a malicious hint of malice and glee.

 

“Where is she?”

 

Renji was beside him now, his arms wrapped around Ichigo's biceps as he attempted to yank him off of his captain. But Ichigo wouldn't let go of Aizen's throat. “Stop it Ichigo!”

 

“WHERE?” He screamed, his movements becoming wild as Renji jerked him away. But Ichigo wouldn't give into Renji; he kept trying to launch himself onto the prostrate man before him.

 

Aizen coughed on the ground and rolled to the side, “She… s-she's high n-now… bu-but sh-she'll be h-higher in a m-minute.”

 

Ichigo's muscles went slack as his eyes widened in horror. “She's on the top.” He whispered softly.

 

He was out of Renji's grasp within the next second. He was pushing his legs forward and running towards the burning building. Renji was calling after him. He could hear his name being yelled at full force. Ichigo didn't care. He just didn't care.

 

He knew that the chances of him coming out of that building alive with Rukia were slim. It was just too hot. The floors were most likely fallen in and the smoke was terrible. He just needed to get in there. He knew it was suicidal. But then again… what was life anyway if he didn't have Rukia?

 

Ichigo rounded the building and located the wobbling fire escape. He placed his hands on the metallic bars and instantly withdrew them. They were scalding. Gritting his teeth painfully, Ichigo pulled his sleeves over his hands and began to climb. One floor… two… a rung slipped from his foot and he dangled for a minute before gathering the strength to continue.

 

Ichigo pulled himself to the landing, all the while calling her name, needing to hear some sort of confirmation other than the roaring of flames and the pluming of smoke. He drew in another breath to shout her name but ended up coughing badly. He needed to get to the top and soon.

 

Two more levels to go. The climb was steady but now the cuffs of his jacket were burned off and his fingers were blistering on the hot metal. Sweat was pooling on the back of his neck and his face was smudged with dirt and smoldering ashes.

 

Last one. Ichigo threw himself up onto the last landing and he frantically looked around. A charred window was directly to his side and Ichigo didn't waste a moment before he smashed it with his elbow. Smoke started billowing out of the window but Ichigo jumped inside, ripping his jacket and tearing a gash in his arm in the process. He curled his raised arm around his mouth as he walked inside the blistering heat. Flames were licking the unsteady floorboards and everything was black with ash.

 

His eyes began to water as he looked around, his head jerking from one side to another in search of anything that might tell him—

 

There! Ichigo lurched forward immediately, his feet cracking and shifting the floorboards as he ran. There was a chair in the very center. In that chair… oh sweet Jesus.

 

“Rukia!” Ichigo shouted above the roaring flames. He ran to her as fast as he could without falling through the floor himself. He knelt down beside her. His hand reached out and touched the heated skin on her face and he immediately saw that her eyes were closed and blood was trickling down her cheek and neck. His first two fingers went to her neck to feel for a pulse… he could barely feel it.

 

“Shit.” He muttered helplessly. He ran his hands down her arms and then felt a small but thick rope wrapped around both of her wrists and her ankles. He cursed again and felt around into his back pocket for his knife. Whispering to her constantly he snapped open the blade and began to saw through her restraints. She didn't move the entire time he worked on her, she didn't even flinch when his knife penetrated her skin accidentally.

 

“Come on Rukia,” he begged as he unraveled the ropes from her limp body, “Come on… wake up please.”

 

Everything was so thick around them. Ichigo could barely see as he hoisted her onto his shoulder and rushed to the window. The frame almost cracked as he dove outside and into the fractionally cooler air. The railing to the fire escape was scalding as he scaled down floor after floor, all the while dodging falling pieces of wood, avoiding collapsed parts of the stairwell, and holding Rukia tight to his chest, willing her eyes to open. The scene was so chaotic that Ichigo barely noticed when his feet hit the solid ground. He deftly situated Rukia so he could grasp her tighter and carry her more securely. Once again, his body began running away from the fire, away from the terror, away from the fear of losing her forever.

 

Yet, out there, further in the distance—but growing closer as he ran—he could see the flashing lights of multiple police cars, the brilliant hues of two emergency trucks, and the red flickers of fire trucks. There were people outside he recognized. They were running around, yelling forcefully, preparing search parties, and calling for people to make room for the fire trucks.

 

When they saw him their eyes widened and they started running. In a matter of moments Rukia was out of Ichigo's hands. Her limp body was pulled onto a stretcher as countless people hovered over her body, calling for oxygen, morphine, burn medication, and countless other things that Ichigo could not name.

 

“Please,” he said softly, his voice being drowned out by the screeching fire engines. He tried to go forward but couldn't. There were too many pairs of hands holding him back. They were telling him he was injured and that he needed to rest.

 

A mask was shoved into his face but Ichigo pushed it aside. He needed to go with Rukia. He needed to make sure that she was alright.

 

“Please,” he croaked again, “Please… I need to—to go—”

 

Then he was being forced down. People were making him sit while all he wanted to do was run to her and hold her.

 

Ichigo reached a hand out into the air, desperately trying to catch some part of her as she was strapped into a stretcher, loaded onto the ambulance, and whisked away.

 

“Rukia.”