InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Love's Smirking Revenge ❯ Hedge Your Bets ( Chapter 17 )

Shiba Park was every bit as dark and unwelcoming as he'd expected it to be. In a couple of weeks it would be lit from end to end by large paper lanterns and its walkways lined with an eclectic compliment of food vendors. It wouldn't be long before the air was rich with the smell of sweet sake and cooking meat. In those last minutes before midnight crowds of eager spectators would huddle together near the temple, their wish balloons bobbing above their heads, and wait with barely contained excitement for the countdown they'd waited 364 days to take part in.

 

 

New Years celebrations at Shiba Park never failed to impress even the most stubborn members of the anti-holiday brigade, but with the year end still weeks away the park was nothing more than a barren desert amid the urban landscape. Above their heads the branches of the naked trees entwined, forming a gnarled archway so dense it nearly blocked out the moonlight.

 

 

For some reason the wind felt different here. It was sharp and bitter against his skin and far colder than it'd been on the street. Its touch sent a bone-deep shiver coursing through his body, one that he found hard to shake off. Of all the places she could've gone, this had to be one of the worst.

 

 

The imposing Zojoji temple and the quaint winding pathways made the park a popular tourist spot by day, but once night fell its dark corners were littered with a baser sort of being. It was the kind of place that attracted people looking for trouble and repelled those with even the barest shred of common sense after dark. He'd always considered Higurashi to be impressively sharp for a woman, but he couldn't help but question her motives given the situation they were in. Coming to this kind of place after dark in search of a lead… It wasn't just a bad judgement call - it was downright suicidal. In fact, he would've been shocked had something not happened to her.

 

 

Higurashi… Just what the hell were ya thinkin'?

 

 

As they made their way across one of the arched wooden bridges he found his steps feeling heavy and sluggish. The longer he dwelt on it, the more his sympathy for her waned. After all, she'd brought it on herself hadn't she? Disregarding that thought as unnecessary and pointless, he kicked an errant branch off the path with the toe of his shoe and contemplated what he could see of the temple ahead.

 

 

There was lingering notion making the rounds in his mind that he couldn't seem to shake - the feeling that somehow it was all connected. Somewhere along the way there was a link they were missing, a lone piece that would somehow join the disjointed bits of their puzzle together. The mutt seemed convinced that it all centered on him. The way he saw it, Kagome was an innocent bystander that ended up being pulled into some kind of twisted vendetta game because of their relationship. Though he had yet to say as much aloud, Kouga wasn't so sure he bought that theory.

 

 

With nothing substantial to go on, he was stuck for the moment operating solely on his gut instinct and almost ten year's experience on the job. Both were telling him that the girl was involved. The task of figuring out exactly how rested on his shoulders and he was running short on time. Inuyasha wasn't exactly the type to sit back and strategize. Hell, when you got right down to it neither was he. They'd both end up charging in to save her like the damn cavalry and wind up killed. The only chance they had of succeeding was in figuring out that missing link. The phrase `easier said than done' came to mind and he couldn't remember it ever feeling truer.

 

 

The park around them appeared empty, but he could feel a multitude of gazes following their every step. The crunch of their thick-soled shoes atop the frozen, snow dusted gravel resounded loudly into the night. They weren't making any effort to be quiet and they had no need to. Everyone knew exactly what they were the moment they'd stepped foot onto the path. It was just a matter of time before one of them came out of the shadows to assuage their curiosity.

 

 

As they slipped around another turn in the path, the pungent aroma of ripe, unwashed bodies assaulted them in a wave strong enough to make his stomach churn. No doubt about it, they were close. All around them the darkened landscape was littered with society's dregs and one of those unlucky bastards would be their winning ticket. His eyes settled on Inuyasha's back in-between scanning the trees for `guests'. When the mutt's feet suddenly drew to a halt he paused as well and watched while he took inventory of their surroundings.

 

 

“You smell them too don't you,” he remarked with a brief nod toward the cluster of tall bushes to their right.

 

 

Inuyasha scoffed and without missing a beat replied, “I've been holding my breath since we were three blocks out.”

 

 

Smell them? Hell, when they were this close he could practically feel them. Their presence was like a colony of ants scurrying across his bare skin. He cast a bland look back over his shoulder at the empty pathway and adjusted his stance expectantly.

 

 

“Anyone want to earn some easy money?” He called out with an expectant look at the landscape.

 

 

“We're just looking for information,” Kouga added and pivoted in a slow half-circle to guard his back.

 

 

It didn't take long for the first one to emerge. From behind one of the large oak trees that grew next to the path, a woman emerged dressed in little more than an oversized band t-shirt, cinched at the hips with a low-slung, tacky, gold belt. Her face appeared gaunt and pale in the moonlight and she was far too thin to be healthy, but her dark eyes were sharp and calculating. They glanced from one cop to the other, not appearing the least bit intimidated.

 

 

“You sure ya don't wanna add a happy ending to that?” she drawled while appraising Kouga's fit physique with a prolonged glance. Perhaps trying to appear flirtatious, she combed her fingers through her blunt cut, shoulder-length wig and flipped a section of it back over her shoulder. It was a cheap hair piece from one of those bargain bin costume shops. The style looked as though it'd been inspired by Cleopatra, but she was a far cry from Elizabeth Taylor.

 

 

Torn between feeling flattered and disgusted that in a whore's eyes he was a better catch than the mutt, Kouga smirked and put a hand up to ward her off. “Sorry, no, but if you can help us out we'll make it worth your while.”

 

 

“That's rich! I've never seen a cop who knew how to tip,” she scoffed with a derisive look in Inuyasha's general direction.

 

 

Despite her crass words, she didn't seem bothered enough to leave. Breathing an impatient sigh, she brushed the thick fringe of polyester bangs off her forehead and began rummaging through the large purse slung haphazardly over her shoulder. After a moment of searching she pulled out a small carton of Marlboros and a lighter.

 

 

With practised ease, she pulled one of the cigarettes from the pack with her teeth and lit the tip. Her thin, pale lips sucked greedily at the other end and she exhaled with an exaggerated sigh. Satisfied for the moment, she crossed her arms to stave off the cold and regarded the pair of detectives evenly.

 

 

“So what kinda information you lookin' for anyway?”

 

 

“We're lookin' for someone, a girl,” Kouga explained while groping around inside his jacket for the Polaroid. It wasn't the best photo they could've used, but it was the only one they had to work with. He still couldn't understand how the mutt had a woman that attractive on his arm and didn't carry a picture of her in his wallet. If she were my woman I'd look at that thing every day, he could remember thinking at the time.

 

 

Grasping hold of the photo, he held it out to her face down. With a derisive snort the hooker took another long drag of her Marlboro and exhaled it in a string of perfect smoke rings.

 

 

“We got a lotta Daddy's girls `round here. Is her Pa a good buddy or sumthin', ya know from back in the college days? Maybe one o' you's her pimp? Oooo… We get a lotta those too…,” she teased, loudly sucking her teeth.

 

“Un-fucking believable…” Inuyasha muttered and turned away to keep from lashing out. With a wary glance in his direction, Kouga offered the picture once more with a shake. The woman's blank expression didn't seem overly promising, but she accepted the photo nonetheless. Her dark eyes scanned the scene without even batting an eyelash at the content.

 

 

“Pretty little thing isn't she? You sure he ain't her pimp?” she asked in all sincerity, her eyes firmly on Inuyasha's back. “Cause I know a lotta customers who'd be int'rested some `un like her.”

 

 

The speed at which Inuyasha spun around was almost comical. With his face twisted into a dark glower that would've had a grown man feeling nervous, he pinned the hooker with a look that promised pain. Kouga was all set to step in and diffuse the situation when she suddenly spoke up, catching them both by surprise.

 

 

“Yeah, I saw her,” she admitted with a flippant shrug and offered the photo back to Kouga. He tucked it hastily into his jacket, eager to have the damn thing out of sight.

 

 

“Alright, I gave you what you wanted, now pay up!” Hands planted firmly on her hips, she glared the pair down as though she fully expected to be shafted.

 

 

“Not so fast. Where'd you see her? Was she with anyone?”

 

 

Inuyasha's questions came off sounding cool and measured, perfunctory even, but the taut line of his shoulders and the hard eagerness burning in his eyes told a different story.

 

 

The woman rolled her eyes and impatiently tapped her heeled foot on the frozen ground. Taking a drag of her cigarette, she muttered something derogatory about cops and their whores before answering with a shrug of her bony shoulders and a wave of her hand.

 

 

“I saw her by the temple talking to some yakuza types. I had a customer so I left and when I got back they were gone. Shame too cause unlike some gents the yakuza know how to tip,” she added with a meaningful look at them both.

 

 

“Do you know which clan they belonged to?” Inuyasha demanded with a sharp look.

 

 

Her brow furrowed in concentration, but whether it was from thinking over his question or using the toe of her heeled shoe to stamp out her cigarette was uncertain.

 

 

“One yakuza's the same as another as far as I'm concerned,” was her tired sounding response. “Try asking some of the girls who hang out by the temple.”

 

 

With a glint of greed shimmering in her eyes, she looked at Kouga expectantly and held out her hand. He looked up to find Inuyasha already making his way down the path toward the temple, leaving him behind to pay her off. Typical. After muttering a few choice curses under his breath, he reached into his jacket to retrieve his wallet.

 

 

“I've changed my mind,” the hooker blurted out suddenly. He caught the hungry look in her eyes and followed her gaze to the front of his jacket. “A girl could sure use a thing like that to stay warm out here,” she observed with a none-too-subtle lift of her eyebrow.

 

 

“Think again,” he shot back. Scowling, he emptied his wallet of 25 000 yen and held it out to her. She looked around warily before snatching it from his grasp and shoving it into her bra.

 

 

“Twenty-five hundred as promised,” he stated just loud enough for the other eavesdroppers to hear. It was impossible to miss the look of relief that washed over her face. No one would bother mugging her for a measly twenty-five hundred yen.

 

 

A sudden buzzing inside his jacket had him reaching in once more, this time to retrieve his cell phone. A determined look crossed his features as he glanced at the name flashing across the call display. Their timing couldn't have been more perfect. Dismissing the hooker with an appreciative half-smile and a two-fingered salute, he flicked the phone open and pressed it to his ear.

 

 

“Talk fast.”

 

 

He spoke quietly into the receiver as he followed the path to the temple, his voice barely audible above the crunch of gravel beneath his feet. From the other end of the line came a heavy sigh followed by a tentative, “Boss I hope you're sittin' down, cause you ain't gonna believe this...”

 

 

 

 

---

 

 

 

 

Damn.

 

 

He'd been able to put it off at first; shoved aside, ignored and rationalized it'd stayed quiet. The reprieve had given him precious time to think straight, strategize and do what he was best at - piece it all together. But whatever he'd been doing before to hold it at bay just didn't cut it anymore and he couldn't push it aside any longer.

 

 

He could feel it slowly creeping in, sneaky though it was. It churned his gut and made him feel sick to his stomach. He could still vividly recall dry heaving over his kitchen sink only days earlier. The way it welled up inside of him, he felt as though he were suffocating - trapped within a giant rubber band that stretched tight across his chest.

 

 

Despite the cold and the overpowering scent of unwashed bodies and the fact that his senses were going wild trying to take it all in, he could still feel her. She'd walked down this path, taken these same steps. It didn't matter that it was days ago and her scent had long since been washed away - she felt nearly as close now as she had while sitting across from him at that over-priced coffee shop. She was almost tangible and that was the problem.

 

 

Feeling her like that brought the panic rushing in. The closer he came to finding her, the greater the chance that she would slip through his fingers, like water through a sieve. That was the part that terrified him. Feeling the remnants of her presence all around made everything that'd happened since their last date at the coffee shop so painfully real. As much as he wished it weren't true, this was not a nightmare he could wake himself up from. Come morning, he wouldn't stir to life surrounded by the warm embrace of sheets laden with her scent unless he somehow managed to do the impossible.

 

 

That was why he moved toward the looming silhouette of the temple like a man on a mission. He didn't have time to dwell on the fact that what he was asking of himself was damn near impossible. He didn't have time to doubt or question what his instincts were telling him. The only thing he had time to do was press forward and so he did, with the panic riding his ass the whole way.

 

 

Determined to find the answers he sought, no matter what the cost, he jogged up the steps that led to the main floor of the temple and scanned the lightened interior of the structure. At night the monks kept candles burning to honour the souls of the dead. Vagrants usually drew toward the warm glow like moths to a burning flame. Perhaps on some level it was comforting, or maybe it was just warmer in there with all the candles around.

 

 

He could sense them inside - there were at least a half dozen or so milling about, but they were either too scared or apathetic to bother with him. Suppressing an impatient growl, he stormed through the open entryway and pointed auspiciously at the first person he happened across.

 

 

“Hey you,” he barked authoritatively, “you see a girl hanging around here about four nights ago? Talking with some yakuza types?”

 

 

The homeless man, wrapped in several layers of hand me down clothes, shrugged deeper into the dirty patchwork quilt he was using as a blanket and pretended not to hear. Inuyasha sneered at the man, disgusted with his choice to remain silent when Kagome's life was on the line. Un-thwarted, he quickly moved on to his next target.

 

 

Catching sight of a young girl sitting off to one side by herself, he took a step in her direction and stared at her until she reluctantly made eye contact. “Hey, you see a girl here four nights ago?” he inquired, his tone a hair less harsh than before.

 

 

“She was abducted. There would've been a scene,” he explained while his eyes scanned her features for some sign of comprehension. The girl's eyes widened with recognition but she quickly diverted her gaze to the floor and anxiously picked at the worn edges of her sneakers with dirtied fingertips.

 

 

Frustrated to his last nerve, Inuyasha could feel himself losing composure. A few more witnesses playing dumb was all the incentive he'd need before he resorted to less appropriate methods. Once it reached that point, he wouldn't be held accountable for where his fists landed. Had he been there for any other reason but to find Kagome he would've accepted the code of silence that such groups operated on as just another inconvenience, but this was different. Their silence was keeping him from her and he'd beat the information out of every one of them with his bare hands if he had to. Whatever it took to find her…

 

 

Reluctantly turning away from the girl, he decided to go for broke and address the room at large. “Look, my partner's got a wallet full of cash and I need info. If any of you know somethin' about what took place here four nights ago now's your chance to speak up!”

 

 

The room grew pin drop silent almost instantaneously. With arms open wide to show that he was unarmed, Inuyasha turned in a small circle and tried to catch the eye of those closest to him. He waited a solid ten seconds before prodding a little more. “No one wants to earn a few hundred thousand yen? It'll be the easiest money you'll make all year,” he goaded. They may have been scared but money was a very good motivator. Almost any coat could be turned for the right price.

 

 

“You a cop?” A harsh voice barked from somewhere in the back left corner. It was too dark too tell whether it'd been a man or woman who spoke.

 

 

“Yeah, a detective,” he replied with a guarded expression. He swallowed nervously and tried to ignore the trickle of cold sweat snaking down the back of his neck. He wasn't exactly on safe ground. It only took one wrong move or one misplaced word on his part before he found himself in a world of trouble.

 

 

A quiet murmur travelled through the room, spreading like wildfire from one side to the other. Feeling as though they might need a bit more encouragement, he held his hands up and played the `I'm gonna level with you so you sympathize with my situation and help me out' card.

 

 

“Look, that girl - she's a good friend of mine. Bein' a cop, it's not like I've got many of `em hangin' around...”

 

 

A twitter of amusement and a few understanding nods were directed his way. Feeling somewhat reassured, he took a deep breath and pressed on.

 

 

“I just wanna bring her home. You don't gotta make a statement or nothin' official like that. Anythin' you tell me is strictly off the record. All I wanna know is who took her and you get some easy money. Sounds fair right?”

 

 

Another quiet murmur, this one sounding a touch more positive than the last, made its way round the room. It only took a few seconds before a figure stepped away from the far wall and made their way towards him. It was a girl, young by the looks of it - no more than seventeen or eighteen. Even though she was scantily clad in a mini skirt, knee-high boots and a short jacket that'd seen better days, she was undeniably attractive. The fashionable way she'd bleached her shoulder length hair to a brassy brown and the layers of eye makeup she used to hide the shred of innocence that still lingered in her wide, dark eyes suggested that she hadn't been on the streets long. She was a far cry from the seasoned pro they'd run into along the path, that was for damn sure.

 

 

She looked warily about the room before separating herself from them even further and shuffling a few steps forward. With her arms crossed tight across her chest, perhaps to stifle her nerves or keep out the cold, she stood in front of him just out of arm's reach. He offered her a quick, appreciative nod and she hastily glanced away, too timid to meet the fiery determination in his eyes.

 

 

“I saw your friend,” she began softly. “I wanted to help but…,” she explained and finished with a small lift of her shoulders.

 

 

“Did you see who took her?”

 

 

The girl chewed at her bottom lip and moved a step closer. She seemed nervous, like she didn't want the others to overhear even though it was obvious that the entire room was riveted to their conversation. Reluctantly, she nodded her head and pulled in a quick breath to steel her resolve.

 

 

“Yeah, I saw. One of `em… He's one of my regulars.”

 

 

For a moment his lungs refused to draw breath. He kept telling himself not to let his hopes rise too high, not to get ahead of himself, but it was hard to control the excitement. Hesitant to move but knowing it was safer for them both if they were away from prying eyes and ears, he motioned toward the entrance.

 

 

Once they were outside, the girl seemed to visibly relax. She leaned back against the wall of the temple and crossed her feet in front of her at the ankles. He felt anything but. Every part of him was charged and primed, ready to move at a moment's notice. Just the wait to hear the rest of her story was practically killing him. In an effort to calm himself down, he joined her against the wall and rubbed a heavy hand across the stubble growing along his jaw.

 

 

“If I tell you his name you gotta give me your word you won't haul him in,” she bartered, giving him a serious look. “He's a good customer. He treats me decent and pays well. Business isn't exactly booming this time of year ya know. I can't afford to lose any of my regulars.”

 

 

Inuyasha nodded and followed her gaze to the tree line. He understood where she was coming from and he had to commend her for being smart enough to know how it all worked. Once she gave a name it'd be hard for him not to bring the guy in. The decent man in him wanted the bastard's name so he could lock the guy away purely on principle for the part he played in helping someone so young destroy her life. Realizing that that kind of philosophy would get him nowhere with the girl fast, he decided on a compromise.

 

 

“Here's the deal… I don't give a rat's ass about your friend. I don't care who he is, I just wanna know who he works for. If you can tell me that we both go home happy.”

 

 

Stunned, the girl blinked slowly at him in the dim light. The last part of her that was still innocent made her easy to read. He knew every one of her thoughts just as clearly as if she'd spoken them aloud. Part of her wanted to trust him. She felt sorry for him and he could tell from her posture alone that she felt guilty for not helping Kagome when she'd had the chance.

 

 

However, the part of her that'd spent the past few months on the streets sang a different tune. Because he was a cop, in her world he was the enemy. That part of her brain was telling her to put as much distance between them as possible if she wanted to escape unscathed. Just being there and talking with him out in the open left them both straddling dangerous ground. Whatever her reservations, it was her conscience that won out in the end.

 

 

“Alright,” she conceded, and her shoulders visibly sagged when she blew out the breath she'd been holding in. “He's never said who he works for. He just refers to him as “the Boss”. “The Boss” this and “The Boss” that; on his cell about it all the time. Sounds like a heck of a guy.”

 

 

Her sarcasm was particularly thick for that last remark and he had to push down the urge to shake her while ordering her get to the fucking point already. She seemed to pick up on his urgency though, and with a perceptive glance in his direction pushed onward.

 

 

“During the summer I saw his tats when he wore sleeveless shirts to the park. He belongs to Inagawa-kai, I'm almost positive.”

 

 

“How do you know?” He pushed away from the temple wall, hardly able to stand being still any longer.

 

 

“Because they all have the same mark, a spider - right here,” she explained and reached a hand over her shoulder to tap a spot above her left shoulder blade.

 

 

He watched the small movements of her hand and nodded as though he were paying attention, but his mind was already a thousand steps ahead. Inagawa-kai was one of the most powerful yakuza clans in Tokyo, second only to the Sumiyoshi-kai! The one glimmer of hope he had left in all of this was that he now knew exactly where to find her.

 

 

It was pretty much common knowledge within the yakuza syndicate that a significant portion of the store houses located near the fish market were owned by Inagawa-kai and their subsidiaries. The cavernous structures made smuggling convenient, and when they weren't being used to hold a shipment they doubled as an excellent place to torture informants or get rid of bodies.

 

 

The implication behind that thought made him swallow hard and he studied the girl out of the corner of his eye. The way she was chewing at her bottom lip like it was going out of style spoke of her nervousness. She was already regretting having said anything at all - that much seemed blatantly obvious.

 

 

Feeling as though he needed to reassure her somehow, he laid a heavy hand against her shoulder and waited until her gaze lifted far enough to meet his.

 

 

“Inagawa-kai…shit. You're sure?”

 

 

She nodded and he glanced uneasily over his shoulder at the temple. All he wanted to do was be gone, girl be damned, but he didn't trust her enough to leave her alone. The last thing he needed was for her to call her `regular' in a fit of guilt. Walking blindly into a trap was not on his list of things to do, now or ever.

 

 

Taking the girl by the arm, he guided her down the steps and pushed her toward the trees. She looked back at him surprised, but he dismissed her confusion with a shake of his head.

 

 

“My partner - he's just up the path. He's got money to pay you for the tip,” he explained and pointed his finger at the spot where the path disappeared into the dark. “When he gets here, tell him… Tell him I said not to do anything stupid and to take care of you first.”

 

 

Wide-eyed and looking a bit lost, the girl reached out to him but stopped herself short. “But where are you-?”

 

 

“Isn't it obvious?”

 

 

She opened her mouth to respond, but finding herself with nothing else to say deliberately closed it again. She was still staring after the spot where he'd disappeared when a tall, dark-haired man, appeared next to her on the walkway. Curious, she let her eyes pass over the rugged, less pretty features of his face. He was attractive in his own way and there was something casual about his demeanour that she liked. When he returned her gaze with one of his own she decided that he had rather nice eyes as well.

 

 

“Let me guess…”

 

 

She didn't even let him finish his thought before she was slowly nodding her head. Her mind was too preoccupied to worry about asking for the money. She couldn't stop thinking about the girl. Of course she'd noticed that the girl was different from the usual crowd when she'd seen her hanging around the temple four nights earlier, but she wondered now what made her so special? It was rare to find a man willing to hazard anything for a woman anymore, and yet, that detective was willing to risk everything for her.

 

 

The solid weight of folded yen being pressed into her palm stirred her out of her thoughts long enough for her mouth to blurt out the question that'd been repeating over and over again in her mind.

 

 

“I don't get it. Why's he going to all this trouble? I mean, he said she was a friend but Inagawa-kai's no joke…”

 

 

With a remorseful grimace, Kouga closed up his sadly deflated wallet and tucked it into the back of his pants. Casting a glance up at the moon, he thought her words over a moment before letting out a thoughtful `hmmm'.

 

 

“Higurashi's an interesting woman. She's the only person I know who's ever been able to get through to him.” After a reflective pause he added, “She saved him. I s'pose he figures it's about time he returned the favour. Speaking of the bastard, he still inside?” he asked with a jerk of his thumb toward the temple.

 

 

The girl shook her head and pointed toward one of the far paths that led away from the temple to the main road. “He left just before you got here. Told me to tell you not to do anything stupid and to take care of me first - whatever that means.”

 

 

All easy going humour gone, Kouga stared between the temple and the girl in wide-eyed disbelief. “How long?” he prodded and took hold of her shoulders as much to catch her eye as to steady himself.

 

 

“I dunno, ten minutes? Maybe a bit more?”

 

 

Unnerved by the panic underlying his tone and the speed at which his light mood had disappeared, she quickly shrugged her shoulders out from beneath his hands and took a cautious step backwards. It was a good thing too, because his fist narrowly missed her foot when he sent it careening toward the frozen earth in a sudden fit of rage.

 

 

Each successive blow was followed by a string of vile curses and when that wasn't enough, he threw his jacket to the ground for good measure. Anger temporarily assuaged, he retrieved his jacket from the ground and righted himself. Still growling, he shoved his arms through the sleeves and pulled it shut across his chest.

 

 

“Takahashi you stupid son of a bitch,” he seethed, “If you're not already dead by the time I get there I'm gonna fucking kill you myself.”

 

 

 

 

----------------

 

 

Author's Note: For those of you who may be curious, the Inagawa-kai and the Sumiyoshi-kai are real yakuza gangs in Tokyo. I'll do my best to be accurate in my portrayal of them. The only artistic license I've taken so far is the bit about a spider tattoo being a mark of Inagawa-kai membership.

 

So it's been a long ass time since my last update. Apologies are kind of pointless at this point, so I'll just bribe you with promises of another update within the week. :)

 

In more exciting news, since my last update LSR placed third for “Best AU” in the 1st Quarter 2008 IYFG Awards! I was so honoured that you, the readers, thought enough of this fic to nominate it and for it to place too…just wow - thank you so much!

 

Nominations for the 2nd Quarter are already in and by the looks of it LSR is nominated in the categories “Best AU” and “Best Inu/Kag Romance”!! For believing in this fic enough to nominate it, I'd like to dedicate this chapter to LRose, madmiko, audacious_pen, and lunatickat. I can't forget Kibo either, for sticking with me from the beginning despite all my plot meandering. ;)

 

Until next time…

 

Langus

 

Next Instalment: Chapter 19 - The Devil You Know