InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Hijacked Honeymoon ❯ Chapter 10

Hijacked Honeymoon

 

Chapter 10

 

Kagome thought it odd that Sesshomaru had read her fried chicken recipe. And it wasn't until they'd returned to the road and stuck out their thumbs to hitch that she realized he'd wanted to make sure she hadn't left any secret message with Daisy.

 

She supposed she couldn't blame him for not trusting her. Especially since she had yet to firmly make up her own mind about her situation. Sesshomaru insisted that using the Forest Service's truck again would be too dangerous, and they now stood on the highway shoulder. About to question Sesshomaru about their next destination, she lost her chance when a dump truck stopped along the road to give them a lift.

 

Wedged between the burley truck driver and Sesshomaru, Kagome tried to sort out her thoughts while the two men chatted. This time Sesshomaru told the driver that they were brother and sister hitching a ride to their mother's funeral. Not only did his tall tale gain them the driver's sympathy but the easy way in which Sesshomaru lied to cover their tracks told her that the story he'd her could also be a lie.

 

And yet to keep on stubbornly believing that Sesshomaru wasn't what he said didn't make much sense either, not after she'd seen the video, not after someone else had shot at them. Sesshomaru wasn't a killer or a rapist. What else could he be but what he'd claimed? She could think of several far-fetched possibilities. He could be a foreign agent trying to use her to get her father to do something. He could be an enemy of Hojo's or possibly be trying to use her to get to blackmail Hojo.

 

But that would mean Hojo had lied to her, too. Could her fiancé be much more important then he'd told her?

 

Think.

 

How could she verify Sesshomaru's story? Calling Hojo wouldn't help. If he'd lied to her before, he would simply do so again. She could ask to speak with her father, but she wouldn't recognize his voice. Her thoughts circled. Surly Sesshomaru had to have some kind of prove, some kind of documentation to verify he was whom he claimed. And yet, what would satisfy her? The word of a police officers that she knew? But she didn't know any police officers.

 

She was still pondering her dilemma when the dump truck driver stopped in front of Darby's largest shopping center, which consisted of a super discount store, a grocery, a hair salon, a pawnshop and a dry-cleaning establishment. She hopped out, Sesshomaru thanked the driver again and, after the truck departed, Kagome raised her eyebrow. “Now what?”

 

“We need toiletries, a change of clothing, wheels and I should cheek in with me boss. I'm going to ask him to send flowers to Daisy in thanks for her hospitality. Let's find a phone.”

 

“I'm surprised you don't have a cell.”

 

“It was in my bag on the chopper. With Jack having direct communication to base, I saw no reason to carry it in my pocket.” He gazed at her and guessed, “Yours was left in the limo?”

 

“Yeah, me departure was too sudden to take all my belongings—which I expect you to replace.”

 

“No problem.”

 

As they headed toward the huge discount store, she rolled her eyes. “My diary was in my bag. I was hoping to record my wedding memories while they were still fresh.”

 

He shot her a charming, don't-make-a-fuss grin. “So, now you'll have plenty of material to start writing a new one.”

 

“Yeah, right.”

 

“This one will be much more exciting,” he assured her.

 

“Why?”

 

“You'll be writing about me.” He chuckled and placed his arm around her shoulders as they strolled over the hot pavement of the crowded parking lot.

 

She wasn't sure how she felt about his arm on her shoulder. Was his gesture one of simple affection? She doubted it. Sesshomaru had dual reasons for everything. He probably wanted them to appear like a couple to any passersby. And maybe he thought she might attempt to make a break for it and his arm would remind her not to try something so foolish.

 

“I'm not crazy about the idea of some police officer or FBI agent reading my diary,” she muttered.

 

“Shh. Not here, he cautioned her as if the teenager unloaded the groceries for him mom might be listing or the harried dad with a baby might in actually be an undercover agent.

 

His cautions nature that was so much a park of him helped to convince her that he worked undercover for a living. She didn't miss him checking out vehicles as they walked, or his casual steering of her away from a parked van with a snoozing driver behind the wheel, as if a sniper might pop out between the parked cars and start firing. Observant, vigilant. Watchful, thoughtful and careful, he always seemed on guard.

 

She wasn't sure if she felt protected or smothered. But either way, she'd decided not to run. For now. Not with the memory of the shooter in the woods so fresh in her mind. Not after that convincing video.

 

“Darby isn't that far from Canfield. There's a slim chance we may bump into someone who knows me,” she told him.

 

Sesshomaru removed the baseball cab from his pocket. Placed it on her head and tugged the brim low over her eyes. “If you see anyone you know, try to turn your face away and keep walking.”

 

“And if that doesn't work?”

 

“We'll play it by the ear.”

 

After spotting the phone booths I the front of the store, Sesshomaru had her go in first, then followed, closing the door behind them. With him blocking her from view, they were safe for now.

 

He seemed resigned to her hearing at least his end of the conversation. She watched intently as he dialled a ten-digit number, then he covered the mouthpiece while he waited. “Our system connects through five satellites on three continents and is encrypted with the latest classified technology, but it takes a few seconds to go through.” He uncovered the mouthpiece. “Logan Kincaid, please.”

 

She was stunned when Sesshomaru bent and placed the phone low enough for her to hear the entire conversation. And that's when she finally believed Sesshomaru one hundred percent. He wouldn't permit her to listen in if he wasn't who he claimed.

 

“Sesshomaru?”

 

“Sir, it's me, and Kagome is listing, too. She's not quite sure if she believes that I'm one of the good guys.”

“Understood.”

 

“Jack okay?” Sesshomaru asked about the pilot.

 

“He made it back in time for Piper to curse him as she gave birth to a healthy, eight-pound, fourteen-ounce boy. I sent champagne, cigars and a bassinet from all of us.”

 

“Great.”

 

“Not so great. We have a problem. Apparently one of Kagome's friends, a Sango Suzuki, is a TV anchor for a small station in Canfield. She's causing a ruckus. Kagome's face is everywhere. Newspapers. Television. Posters.”

 

At Kincaid's words, Kagome's heart warmed. Dear Sango would move heaven and hell to find her. She'd always been the first one to take up a cause, and with her best friend's disappearance, she'd see it as her moral duty to stir up the media.

 

“Is Sango working with Hojo?”

 

“They've been in contact. Whether or not they are working together is another matter.”

 

“We've already left canfield and someone was on our tail, but I think we've lost him. Can you account for Hojo's whereabouts last night around midnight?”

 

“He was in Mobile at FBI headquarters.”

 

“So he wasn't the one shooting at us.” Kagome breathed out a sigh of relief. While she believed Sesshomaru, the idea that her fiancé wanted her dead still filled her with horror.

 

“Just because Hojo didn't do the dirty work himself, doesn't mean he's innocent,” Kincaid cautioned her.

 

“What do you suggest, sir?” Sesshomaru asked.

 

“Will Kagome cooperate?”

 

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow and let her speck for herself.

 

“Yes. Sesshomaru and you have convinced me that Hojo's not who he claims he is.”

 

Sesshomaru's eyes blazed with approval as he spoke to his boss. “What would you like us to do?”

 

“Visit her friend. Tell her a story that will stop the media blitz.”

 

Excitement raced through Kagome. Kincaid wanted her to visit Sango? Nothing would make her happier than an opportunity to speck to her best friend. The two of them frequently had long conversations to help each other make decisions, and she valued her friend's judgment. She'd love to know Sango's impression of Sesshomaru.

 

“Do it in person,” Sesshomaru's boss suggested. “I want this contained.”

 

As Kincaid's words, Kagome's excitement shattered, leaving shards of fear. Was contained a code word for kill?